[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 20 (Wednesday, January 30, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5552-5554]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-1590]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP08-46-000]


Tarpon Whitetail Gas Storage, LLC; Notice of Intent To Prepare an 
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Whitetail Natural Gas Storage 
Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

January 23, 2008.
    The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or 
Commission) will prepare an environmental assessment (EA) that will 
discuss the environmental impacts of the proposed Whitetail Natural Gas 
Storage Project involving construction and operation of natural gas 
facilities by Tarpon Whitetail Gas Storage, LLC (Whitetail) in Monroe 
County, Mississippi. The EA will be used by the Commission in its 
decision-making process to determine whether the project is in the 
public convenience and necessity.
    This notice announces the opening of the scoping process the 
Commission will use to gather input from the public and interested 
agencies on the project. Your input will help determine which issues 
need to be evaluated in the EA. Please note that the scoping period 
will close on February 25, 2008. Details on how to submit comments are 
provided in the Public Participation section of this notice.
    If you are a landowner receiving this notice, you may be contacted 
by a pipeline company representative about the acquisition of an 
easement to construct, operate, and maintain the

[[Page 5553]]

proposed facilities. Whitetail would seek to negotiate a mutually 
acceptable agreement. However, if the project is approved by the 
Commission, that approval conveys with it the right of eminent domain. 
Therefore, if easement negotiations fail to produce an agreement, 
Whitetail could initiate condemnation proceedings in accordance with 
Mississippi state law.
    This notice is being sent to affected landowners; federal, state, 
and local government representatives and agencies; elected officials; 
Native American tribes; other interested parties; and local libraries 
and newspapers. State and local government representatives are asked to 
notify their constituents of this proposed project and to encourage 
them to comment on their areas of concern.
    A fact sheet prepared by the FERC entitled ``An Interstate Natural 
Gas Facility On My Land? What Do I Need To Know?'' addresses a number 
of typically asked questions, including the use of eminent domain and 
how to participate in the Commission's proceedings. It is available for 
viewing on the FERC Internet Web site (http://www.ferc.gov).

Summary of the Proposed Project

    Whitetail proposes to construct, own, operate, and maintain a high-
deliverability, multi-cycle depleted reservoir natural gas storage 
facility, known as the Aberdeen Gas Storage Field, in Monroe County. 
The Whitetail Natural Gas Storage Project would accommodate the 
injection, storage, and subsequent withdrawal of natural gas for 
redelivery in interstate commerce. Upon completion of the project, the 
reservoir would have a total working gas storage capacity of 8.6 
billion standard cubic feet.
    The primary facilities associated with the proposed project are as 
follows:
     Up to 20 injection/withdrawal wells and 2 saltwater 
disposal wells in two general locations (the ``West Well Pad Site'' and 
the ``East Well Pad Site'');
     An interconnection (the ``TETCO Interconnect'') with Texas 
Eastern's existing interstate natural gas pipeline that includes a 
meter station, pig launcher/receiver, interconnect piping, and 
associated facilities;
     About 4.9 miles of 24-inch-diameter pipeline (the ``West 
Header Right-of-way pipeline'') and 1.0 mile of 16-inch-diameter 
pipeline (the ``Field Line Corridor pipeline''); and
     14,200 horsepower (hp) of compression (four 3,550 hp 
natural gas-driven compressors and ancillary facilities) at a new 
compressor station (the ``Whitetail Compressor Station'').
    The general location of the proposed storage field project is shown 
in Appendix 1.\1\
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    \1\ The appendices referenced in this notice are not being 
printed in the Federal Register. Copies are available on the 
Commission's Internet Web site (http://www.ferc.gov) at the 
``eLibrary'' link or from the Commission's Public Reference Room at 
(202) 502-8371. For instructions on connecting to eLibrary, refer to 
the ``Additional Information'' section at the end of this notice. 
Copies of the appendices were sent to all those receiving this 
notice in the mail. Requests for detailed maps of the proposed 
facilities should be made directly to Whitetail.
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Land Requirements for Construction

    The construction and development of the Aberdeen Gas Storage Field 
itself would encompass about 2,850 acres. An additional buffer zone, 
defined by the Mississippi Oil and Gas Board as necessary to ensure 
reservoir integrity, would bring the total storage area to 4,840 acres.
    The West Header Right-of-way and the Field Line Corridor pipelines 
would together require about 79 acres of temporary disturbance for the 
construction rights-of-way, including extra work spaces. Of this total, 
about 36 acres would be retained for Whitetail's permanent rights-of-
way.
    The proposed TETCO Interconnect site is a 1-acre tract at the 
northwest terminus of the proposed West Header Right-of-way pipeline. 
This site would be fenced and permanently converted to natural gas 
operation.
    Most of the remaining facilities associated with the proposed 
project would be constructed within the ``Plant Site,'' a 24.3-acre 
tract owned by Whitetail. Within this site, the Whitetail Compressor 
Station would encompass about 11.1 acres and the West Well Pad Site 
(for construction of injection/withdrawal and saltwater disposal wells 
and ancillary facilities) would encompass about 6.1 acres. About 4.3 
acres would be used as temporary work space, pipe storage, construction 
offices, and similar use. The remaining 2.8 acres of the Plant Site 
consists of an existing facilities area which would not be disturbed by 
Whitetail's proposed construction, though it could be used for 
operational purposes. Once the project is completed, Whitetail would 
construct a permanent security fence around the Plant Site.
    The proposed East Well Pad Site is about 1 mile southeast of the 
Plant Site and at the eastern terminus of the proposed Field Line 
Corridor pipeline. This site would encompass about 5 acres for 
construction of injection/withdrawal and saltwater disposal wells, a 
pig launcher/receiver, and ancillary facilities related to the wells 
and pipeline.

The EA Process

    We \2\ are preparing this EA to comply with the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) which requires the Commission to take 
into account the environmental impact that could result if it 
authorizes Whitetail's proposal. By this notice, we are also asking 
Federal, state, and local agencies with jurisdiction and/or special 
expertise with respect to environmental issues to formally cooperate 
with us in the preparation of the EA. Agencies that would like to 
request cooperating status should follow the instructions for filing 
comments provided below.
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    \2\ ``We,'' ``us,'' and ``our'' refer to the environmental staff 
of the FERC's Office of Energy Projects.
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    NEPA also requires the FERC to discover and address concerns the 
public may have about proposals. This process is referred to as 
``scoping.'' The main goal of the scoping process is to focus the 
analysis in the EA on the important environmental issues. By this 
Notice of Intent, we are requesting public comments on the scope of the 
issues to address in the EA. All comments received will be considered 
during the preparation of the EA.
    The EA will discuss impacts that could occur as a result of the 
construction and operation of the proposed project under these general 
headings:
     Geology and soils.
     Water resources and wetlands.
     Land use.
     Socioeconomics.
     Cultural resources.
     Vegetation and wildlife (including sensitive species).
     Air quality and noise.
    Our independent analysis of the issues will be in the EA. Depending 
on the comments received during the scoping process, the EA may be 
published and mailed to federal, state, and local agencies, public 
interest groups, interested individuals, affected landowners, 
newspapers, libraries, and the Commission's official service list for 
this proceeding. A comment period will be allotted for review if the EA 
is published. We will consider all comments on the EA before we make 
our recommendations to the Commission.
    To ensure your comments are considered, please carefully follow the 
instructions in the public participation section below.

[[Page 5554]]

Public Participation

    You can make a difference by providing us with your specific 
comments or concerns about the project. By becoming a commentor, your 
concerns will be addressed in the EA and considered by the Commission. 
You should focus on the potential environmental effects of the 
proposal, alternatives to the proposal, and measures to avoid or lessen 
environmental impact. The more specific your comments, the more useful 
they will be. Please carefully follow these instructions to ensure that 
your comments are received in time and properly recorded:
     Send an original and two copies of your letter to: 
Kimberley D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 
First St., NE; Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426.
     Label one copy of the comments for the attention of Gas 
Branch 1.
     Reference Docket No. CP08-46-000.
     Mail your comments so that they will be received in 
Washington, DC on or before February 25, 2008.
    The Commission encourages electronic filing of comments. See 18 
Code of Federal Regulations 385.2001(a)(1)(iii) and the instructions on 
the Commission's Internet Web site at http://www.ferc.gov under the 
``eFiling'' link and the link to the User's Guide. Prepare your 
submission in the same manner as you would if filing on paper and save 
it to a file on your hard drive. Before you can file comments you will 
need to create an account by clicking on ``Login to File'' and then 
``New User Account.'' You will be asked to select the type of filing 
you are making. This filing is considered a ``Comment on Filing.''
    We may mail the EA for comment. If you are interested in receiving 
it, please return the Information Request (Appendix 3). If you do not 
return the Information Request, you will be taken off the mailing list.

Becoming an Intervenor

    In addition to involvement in the EA scoping process, you may want 
to become an official party to the proceeding known as an 
``intervenor.'' Intervenors play a more formal role in the process. 
Among other things, intervenors have the right to receive copies of 
case-related Commission documents and filings by other intervenors. 
Likewise, each intervenor must send one electronic copy (using the 
Commission's eFiling system) or 14 paper copies of its filings to the 
Secretary of the Commission and must send a copy of its filings to all 
other parties on the Commission's service list for this proceeding. If 
you want to become an intervenor you must file a motion to intervene 
according to Rule 214 of the Commission's Rules of Practice and 
Procedure (18 CFR 385.214) (see Appendix 2).\3\ Only intervenors have 
the right to seek rehearing of the Commission's decision.
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    \3\ Interventions may also be filed electronically via the 
Internet in lieu of paper. See the previous discussion on filing 
comments electronically.
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    Affected landowners and parties with environmental concerns may be 
granted intervenor status upon showing good cause by stating that they 
have a clear and direct interest in this proceeding which would not be 
adequately represented by any other parties. You do not need intervenor 
status to have your environmental comments considered.

Additional Information

    Additional information about the project is available from the 
Commission's Office of External Affairs, at 1-866-208-FERC or on the 
FERC Internet Web site (http://www.ferc.gov) using the ``eLibrary'' 
link. Click on the eLibrary link, click on ``General Search'' and enter 
the docket number excluding the last three digits in the Docket Number 
field. Be sure you have selected an appropriate date range. For 
assistance, please contact FERC Online Support at 
[email protected] or toll free at 1-866-208-3676, or for TTY, 
contact (202) 502-8659. The eLibrary link also provides access to the 
texts of formal documents issued by the Commission, such as orders, 
notices, and rulemakings.
    In addition, the Commission now offers a free service called 
eSubscription which allows you to keep track of all formal issuances 
and submittals in specific dockets. This can reduce the amount of time 
you spend researching proceedings by automatically providing you with 
notification of these filings, document summaries and direct links to 
the documents. Go to http://www.ferc.gov/esubscribenow.htm.
    Finally, public meetings or site visits will be posted on the 
Commission's calendar located at http://www.ferc.gov/EventCalendar/EventsList.aspx along with other related information. You can also 
request additional information by calling Whitetail at 713-337-2743.

Kimberley D. Bose,
Secretary.
 [FR Doc. E8-1590 Filed 1-29-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P