[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 88 (Friday, May 8, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21675-21677]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-10693]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP09-83-000]


Dominion Transmission, Inc.; Notice of Intent To Prepare an 
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Dominion Hub II Project and 
Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

May 1, 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 Dominion Hub II Project 
involving construction and operation of facilities by Dominion 
Transmission, Inc. (DTI) in Tompkins County, New York. This EA will be 
used by the Commission in its decisionmaking process to determine 
whether the project is in the public convenience and necessity.
    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 what 
issues need to be evaluated in the EA. Please note that the scoping 
period will close on June 1, 2009.
    This notice is being sent to affected landowners; federal, state, 
and local government representatives and agencies; elected officials; 
environmental and public interest groups; Native American Tribes; other 
interested parties in this proceeding; and local libraries and 
newspapers. State and local government representatives are asked to 
notify their constituents of this proposed 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 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. 
It is available for viewing on the FERC Internet Web site 
(www.ferc.gov).

Summary of the Proposed Project

    DTI proposes to retire an existing 5,800-horsepower (hp) Dresser-
Clark 990 turbine and replace it with a new 10,310-hp Solar Taurus 70 
compressor unit at the Borger Compressor Station in Tompkins County, 
New York. The new unit would be installed in a new compressor building, 
to be constructed adjacent to the existing compressor building. The 
retired unit would be taken out of service and used for spare parts. In 
addition, DTI proposes to replace exhaust silencers on two existing 
turbines at the Borger Compressor Station to meet facility-wide noise 
requirements. The location of the Borger Compressor Station is shown in 
appendix 1.\1\
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    \1\ The appendix referenced in this notice is not being 
published 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 appendix were sent to all those receiving this notice 
in the mail.
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    The proposed facilities would provide a Maximum Daily 
Transportation Quantity of up to 20,000 dekatherms per day (Dth/d) of 
new incremental firm transportation service for one customer. The 
service would have a primary receipt point at Leidy, Pennsylvania, and 
a primary delivery point at West Schenectady, New York.

Land Requirements for Construction

    All land disturbed by construction of the proposed compressor unit 
would be contained entirely within the fenced 58.64-acre Borger 
Compressor Station. Construction of the unit would temporarily impact 
about 14.94 acres of land within the station's boundaries, and would 
include any necessary workspaces, a driveway, and parking areas. 
Approximately 3.3 acres would be used for operation of the proposed 
facilities, including a new compressor building and auxiliary 
facilities.

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

[[Page 21676]]

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, the Commission staff requests 
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.
    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:
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    \2\ ``We,'' ``us,'' and ``our'' refer to the environmental staff 
of the Commission's Office of Energy Projects.
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     Land use;
     Water resources, fisheries, and wetlands;
     Cultural resources;
     Vegetation and wildlife;
     Air quality and noise;
     Endangered and threatened species; and
     Public safety.
    We will also evaluate possible 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 presented in the EA. 
Depending on the comments received during the scoping process, the EA 
may be published and mailed to the entities on our mailing list (see 
how to remain on our mailing list under Environmental Mailing List, 
below). 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.
    With this notice, we are asking agencies with jurisdiction and/or 
special expertise with respect to environmental issues to formally 
cooperate with us in the preparation of the EA. These agencies may 
choose to participate once they have evaluated the proposal relative to 
their responsibilities. Agencies that would like to request cooperating 
agency status should follow the instructions for filing comments 
provided under the Public Participation section of this notice.

Public Participation

    You can make a difference by providing us with your specific 
comments or concerns about the Dominion Hub II 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 June 1, 2009.
    For your convenience, there are three methods which you can use to 
submit your comments to the Commission. In all instances, please 
reference the project docket number CP09-83-000 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 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 Web site 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, PJ-11.1.

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 
Commission's 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 the 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 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 Web site (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 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/

[[Page 21677]]

EventCalendar/EventsList.aspx along with other related information.

Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. E9-10693 Filed 5-7-09; 8:45 am]
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