[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 50 (Tuesday, March 17, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11369-11370]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-5679]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP09-58-000]


Rockies Express Pipeline LLC; Notice of Intent To Prepare an 
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Meeker to Cheyenne Expansion 
Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

March 10, 2009.
    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 Meeker to Cheyenne Expansion 
Project involving construction and operation of facilities by Rockies 
Express Pipeline LLC (REX) in Moffat County, Colorado, and Carbon 
County, Wyoming. This 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 of Intent (NOI) 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 April 9, 2009.
    This notice is being sent to landowners of property within 2.5 mile 
of the Big Hole and Arlington Compressor Stations; Federal, State, and 
local government representatives and agencies; elected officials; 
environmental and public interest groups; Native American Tribes; other 
interested parties; and local libraries and newspapers. State and local 
government representatives are asked 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?'' is available for 
viewing on the FERC Internet Web site (http://www.ferc.gov). This fact 
sheet addresses a number of typically asked questions, including the 
use of eminent domain and how to participate in the Commission's 
proceedings.

Summary of the Proposed Project

    REX proposes to design, construct, and maintain (a) a new 17,500-
horsepower (hp) electric-driven compressor unit at the existing 
Arlington Compressor Station in Carbon County, Wyoming; and (b) a new 
20,500-hp gas-fired compressor unit at the existing Big Hole Compressor 
Station in Moffat County, Colorado.
    Carbon Power and Light, Inc. (CP&L) would construct a 230-kilovolt 
electric transmission line about three (3) miles long to serve the 
electric compressor units at the Arlington Compressor Station. The 
proposed transmission line would begin at the Foot Creek Substation and 
follow a route to the southwest along Wyoming State Highway 13 to 
CP&L's planned Arlington substation site adjacent to the Arlington 
Compressor Station.\1\
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    \1\ This NOI is also being sent to affected landowners along the 
planned CP&L non-jurisdictional transmission line.
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    The additional compression expansion would provide an additional 
200,000 dekatherms per day (Dth/day) of natural gas from the Meeker Hub 
northward to the Wamsutter Hub and continuing eastward to the Cheyenne 
Hub as a result of a ``ramp-up'' contractual agreement with EnCana 
Marketing USA. If approved, REX proposes to commence construction of 
the proposed facilities in July 2010.
    The general location map of REX's Meeker to Cheyenne Expansion 
Project and CP&L's facilities are shown in Appendix 1.\2\
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    \2\ The appendices referenced in this notice are not being 
printed in the Federal Register. Copies of all appendices, other 
than appendix 1 (maps) are available on the Commissions 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 instruction 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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Land Requirements for Construction

    Construction of the compressor station expansions would occur 
completely within the fenced property boundaries of the existing 19.4-
acre Big Hole and 10.8-acre Arlington Compressor Stations. Land 
required for operation of the new compressor units would be 0.7 acre 
within the existing compressor station sites. Existing public roads 
would be used to access the facilities.
    CP&L's planned transmission line would be about 4.2 miles long with 
a 150-foot wide right of way (ROW). Support structures would be 
``H~Frame'' wooden poles which would be placed every 650 feet apart for 
a total of about 34 structures. Land disturbance during construction 
would be approximately 2800 square feet per structure. At each 
structure there would be a 100-foot by 100-foot area that would be 
permanently cleared of trees or shrubbery.

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 NOI, 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 \3\ will discuss impacts that could occur as a result 
of the construction and operation of the proposed project under these 
general headings:
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    \3\ ``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.
     Public safety.
    We will also evaluate possible alternatives to the proposed project 
or

[[Page 11370]]

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.

Public Participation

    You can make a difference by providing us with your specific 
comments or concerns about the Meeker to Cheyenne 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 April 9, 2009.
    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 CP09-58-000 with your submission. 
The docket number can be found on the front of this notice. 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 website at 
http://www.ferc.gov under the link to Documents and Filings. eFiling 
involves 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 Street, NE., 
Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426.
    Label one copy of the comments for the attention of Gas Branch 1, 
PJ11.1.

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 who are 
potential right-of-way grantors, whose property may be used temporarily 
for project purposes, or who own homes within distances defined in the 
Commission's regulations of certain aboveground facilities.
    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 2). 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 ``intervenor,'' which is an official party to the 
proceeding. Intervenors play a more formal role in the process and are 
able to file briefs, appear at hearings, and be heard by the courts if 
they choose to appeal the Commission's final ruling. An intervenor 
formally participates in a Commission proceeding by filing a request to 
intervene. Instructions for becoming an intervenor are included in the 
User's Guide under the ``e-filing'' link on the Commission's Internet 
Web site.

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. E9-5679 Filed 3-16-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P