[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 209 (Tuesday, October 28, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 63961-63963]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-25616]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP08-465-000]


ANR Pipeline Company; Notice of Intent To Prepare an 
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Wisconsin 2009 Expansion 
Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

October 21, 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 ANR Pipeline Company's (ANR's) 
Wisconsin 2009 Expansion Project (Project) involving installation of 
8.9 miles of 30-inch-diameter looping pipeline and appurtenant 
facilities in Rock, Wood, Marathon, and Columbia Counties, Wisconsin.
    This notice announces the opening of the scoping process we will 
use to gather input from the public and interested agencies on the 
project. Your input will help the Commission staff determine which 
issues need to be evaluated in the EA. Please note that the scoping 
period will close on November 25, 2008.

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    This notice is being sent to affected landowners; federal, state, 
and local government representatives and agencies; environmental and 
public interest groups; Native American tribes; other interested 
parties in this proceeding; and local libraries and newspapers. We 
encourage government representatives to notify their constituents of 
this planned project and 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?'' was attached to the 
project notice ANR provided to landowners. This fact sheet addresses a 
number of typically asked questions, including 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

    To accommodate the growing demand for natural gas on its system ANR 
is proposing to construct its Project facilities in order to provide 
about 97,880,000 dekatherms per day of incremental firm capacity. ANR 
proposes to undertake the following construction-related activities in 
Wisconsin:
     Construct about 8.9 miles of 30-inch-diameter pipeline 
loop (Janesville Loop) in Rock County;
     Relocate an existing pig receiver and appurtenances to the 
existing Janesville Compressor Station at milepost 8.9 of the 
Janesville Loop in Rock County;
     Install a new control valve at the existing Marshfield 
Compressor Station in Wood County;
     Install a new control valve at the existing Fairwater 
Meter Station in Columbia County; and
     Perform upgrades to the existing Marshfield, North Wausau, 
and Randolph Meter Stations in Wood, Marathon, and Columbia Counties, 
respectively.
    The location of the project facilities 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 of all appendices are 
available on the Commission's Web site at the ``eLibrary'' link or 
from the Commission's Public Reference Room, 888 First Street, NE., 
Washington, DC 20426, or call (202) 502-8371. For instructions on 
connecting to eLibrary, refer to the last page of this notice. 
Copies of the appendices were sent to all those receiving this 
notice in the mail.
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Nonjurisdictional Facilities

    There are no non-jurisdictional facilities associated with this 
project.

Land Requirements for Construction

    Construction of the proposed Janesville Loop facilities would 
require a construction right-of-way (ROW) varying in width from 75 feet 
to 125 feet totaling about 130.3 acres of land, of which a 50-foot-wide 
strip totaling about 53.4 acres would remain as permanent ROW. 
Following construction about, 76.9 acres of land would be allowed to 
revert to its former use.

The EA Process

    The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requires the 
Commission to take into account the environmental impacts that could 
result from an action whenever it considers the issuance of a 
Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity. NEPA also requires us 
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, the Commission staff 
requests public comments on the scope of the issues to address in the 
EA. All comments received are considered during the preparation of the 
EA. State and local government representatives are encouraged to notify 
their constituents of this proposed action and encourage them to 
comment on their areas of concern.
    In the EA we \2\ will discuss impacts that could occur as a result 
of the construction and operation of the proposed project under these 
general headings:

    \2\ ``We'', ``us'', and ``our'' refer to the environmental staff 
of the Office of Energy Projects (OEP).
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 Geology and soils
 Land use
 Water resources, fisheries, and wetlands
 Cultural resources
 Vegetation and wildlife
 Air quality and noise
 Endangered and threatened species
 Hazardous waste
 Public safety

    We will also evaluate reasonable alternatives to the proposed 
project or portions of the project, and make recommendations on how to 
lessen or avoid impacts on the various resource areas.
    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.

Currently Identified Environmental Issues

    We have already identified issues that we think deserve attention 
based on a preliminary review of the proposed facilities and the 
environmental information provided by ANR. This preliminary list of 
issues may be changed based on your comments and our analysis.
     The project may impact residential areas.
     The project may impact forested wetlands.

Public Participation

    You can make a difference by providing us with your specific 
comments or concerns about the Wisconsin 2009 Expansion Project. Your 
comments should focus on the potential environmental effects, 
reasonable alternatives, and measures to avoid or lessen environmental 
impacts. The more specific your comments, the more useful they will be. 
To ensure that your comments are timely and properly recorded, please 
send in your comments so that they will be received in Washington, DC 
on or before November 25, 2008.
    For your convenience, there are three methods in which you can use 
to submit your comments to the Commission. In all instances please 
reference the project docket number CP08-465-000 with your submission. 
The Commission encourages electronic filing of comments and has 
dedicated eFiling expert staff available to assist you at (202) 502-
8258 or [email protected].
    (1) You may file your comments electronically by using the Quick 
Comment feature, which is located on the Commission's internet Web site 
at http://www.ferc.gov under the link to Documents and Filings. A Quick 
Comment is an easy method for interested persons to submit text-only 
comments on a project;
    (2) You may file your comments electronically by using the eFiling 
feature, which is located on the Commission's internet Web site at 
http://www.ferc.gov under the link to Documents and Filings. eFiling 
involves

[[Page 63963]]

preparing your submission in the same manner as you would if filing on 
paper, and then saving the file on your computer's hard drive. You will 
attach that file as your submission. New eFiling users must first 
create an account by clicking on ``Sign up'' or ``eRegister.'' You will 
be asked to select the type of filing you are making. A comment on a 
particular project is considered a ``Comment on a Filing;'' or
    (3) You may file your comments via mail to the Commission by 
sending an original and two copies of your letter to: Kimberly 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 3, 
PJ11.3.

Environmental Mailing List

    An effort is being made to send this notice to all individuals, 
organizations, and government entities interested in and/or potentially 
affected by the proposed project. This includes all landowners whose 
property may be used temporarily for project purposes, who have 
existing easements from the pipeline, or who own homes within distances 
defined in the Commission's regulations of certain aboveground 
facilities. By this notice we are also asking governmental agencies, 
especially those in Appendix 2, to express their interest in becoming 
cooperating agencies for the preparation of the EA.
    If you do not want to send comments at this time but still want to 
remain on our mailing list, 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). Only intervenors have the right to seek 
rehearing of the Commission's decision.
    The Notice of Application for this proposed project issued on 
August 29, 2008 identified the date for the filing of interventions as 
September 19, 2008. However, affected landowners and parties with 
environmental concerns may be granted late 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.

Availability of 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.

Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. E8-25616 Filed 10-27-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P