[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 88 (Friday, May 8, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21677-21678]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-10700]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP07-444-000; Docket No. CP07-441-000]


Jordan Cove Energy Project, LP; Pacific Connector Gas Pipeline, 
LP; Notice of Availability of the Final Environmental Impact Statement 
for the Proposed Jordan Cove LNG Terminal and Pacific Connector Gas 
Pipeline Project

May 1, 2009.
    The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or 
Commission) has prepared a final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) 
for the construction and operation of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) 
import terminal and natural gas pipeline facilities proposed by Jordan 
Cove Energy Project, LP (Jordan Cove) and Pacific Connector Gas 
Pipeline, LP (Pacific Connector) in the above-referenced dockets. We 
\1\ call this the Jordan Cove Energy and Pacific Connector Pipeline 
(JCE & PCGP) Project, or simply the Project. The JCE & PCGP Project 
facilities would be located in Coos, Douglas, Jackson, and Klamath 
Counties, Oregon.
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    \1\ The pronouns ``we,'' ``us,'' or ``our'' refer to the 
environmental staff of the FERC's Office of Energy Projects.
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    The final EIS was prepared to satisfy the requirements of the 
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The United States (U.S.) 
Department of Agriculture Forest Service, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Department of Homeland 
Security Coast Guard, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety 
Administration of the U.S. Department of Transportation, U.S. 
Department of the Interior Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of 
Reclamation, and Fish and Wildlife Service, and Douglas County, Oregon, 
are cooperating agencies for the development of this EIS. A cooperating 
agency has jurisdiction by law or special expertise with respect to 
potential environmental impacts associated with the proposal and is 
involved in the NEPA analysis.
    Based on the analysis included in the final EIS, the FERC staff 
concludes that the proposed action would have limited adverse 
environmental impacts. However, if the Project is constructed and 
operated in accordance with applicable laws and regulations, and with 
implementation of Jordan Cove's and Pacific Connector's proposed 
mitigation measures, and the additional mitigation measures recommended 
by staff, environmental impacts would be substantially reduced.
    The purpose of the Project is to provide a new import access point 
for overseas LNG and provide a new source of natural gas to markets in 
the Pacific Northwest, northern Nevada, and northern California. Jordan 
Cove would off-load and store the LNG in specially designed tanks at 
its terminal, vaporize the LNG back into natural gas, and provide up to 
1.0 billion cubic feet per day of natural gas to the region through the 
Pacific Connector sendout pipeline and interconnections with existing 
natural gas pipeline systems.
    The final EIS addresses the potential environmental effects 
associated with the construction and operation of the facilities listed 
below. The Project would include LNG marine traffic into U.S. 
territorial waters and transit in the waterway to Jordan Cove's 
proposed LNG import terminal. The terminal would be located on the bay 
side of the North Spit of Coos Bay, at about Channel Mile 7.5 up the 
existing Coos Bay navigation channel, in Coos County, Oregon. Jordan 
Cove's proposed facilities would include:
     An access channel from the existing Coos Bay navigation 
channel, and a slip;
     LNG unloading berth and transfer pipeline;
     2 full-containment LNG storage tanks, each with a capacity 
160,000 m\3\ (or 1,006,000 barrels);
     Vapor handling system, and vaporization equipment capable 
of regasifying the LNG for delivery into the natural gas sendout 
pipeline;
     Piping, ancillary buildings, safety systems, and other 
support facilities;
     A natural gas liquids (NGL) extraction facility, with the 
NGL to be sold to an entity other than Jordan Cove and likely 
transported from the terminal using existing railroad lines;
     A 37-megawatt, natural gas-fired, simple-cycle combustion 
turbine powerplant to provide electric power for the LNG terminal; and
     Disposal areas for the storage of excavated and dredged 
materials resulting from the construction of the access channel and 
slip.
    Pacific Connector's pipeline would extend from the Jordan Cove LNG 
terminal southeast across Coos, Douglas, Jackson, and Klamath Counties 
Oregon, to its terminus near Malin, including interconnections with 
Avista Corporation, Williams Northwest Pipeline Corporation (Williams 
Northwest), Gas Transmission Northwest Corporation, Tuscarora Gas 
Transmission Company, and Pacific Gas and Electric Company. The 
facilities proposed by Pacific Connector would include:
     A 234-mile-long, 36-inch-diameter welded steel underground 
natural gas pipeline;
     A natural gas compressor station at Butte Falls, in 
Jackson County, consisting of two new 10,310-horsepower (hp) compressor 
units;
     4 natural gas meter stations, including the Jordan Cove 
Receipt Meter Station in Coos County, Clarks Branch Delivery Meter 
Station in Douglas County, Shady Cove Delivery Meter Station in Jackson 
County, and the adjoining Tule Lake, Russell Canyon, and Buck Butte 
Meter Stations in Klamath County;
     A gas control communication system, consisting of new 
radio towers at each meter station and the compressor station, use of 
an existing communication site owned by Williams Northwest and leased 
space on seven other existing communication towers;
     Mainline block valves (MLV) at approximately 16 locations 
along the pipeline; and,
     5 pig \2\ launchers and receivers, four co-located with 
meter stations and the compressor station, and the fifth co-located 
with a MLV.
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    \2\ A ``pig'' is a tool for cleaning and inspecting the inside 
of a pipeline.
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    The final EIS has been placed in the public files of the FERC and 
is available for distribution and public inspection at: Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission, Public Reference Room, 888 First Street, NE., 
Room 2A, Washington, DC 20426, (202) 502-8371.
    Volumes 1 and 2 of the final EIS, containing text of the analysis, 
were printed in hard copy. Volume 3, containing the appendices, was 
produced as .pdf files on a compact disk (CD) that can be read by a 
personal computer with a CD-ROM drive. The CD also contains the text of 
volumes 1 and 2 as .pdf files. A limited number of hard copies and CDs 
of the final EIS are available from the FERC's Public Reference Room, 
identified above. This final EIS is also available for public viewing 
on the FERC's Internet Web site at http://www.ferc.gov, via the 
eLibrary link.

[[Page 21678]]

    Copies of the final EIS have been mailed to federal, state, and 
local agencies; elected officials; Indian tribes and Native American 
organizations with an interest in the project area; interveners; 
regional environmental organizations and public interest groups; 
affected landowners; local libraries and newspapers; and other 
interested parties. Hard copies of volumes 1 and 2 were mailed to 
cooperating agencies; other appropriate federal, state, and local 
government agencies who participated in interagency meetings; 
intervenors; and individuals that specifically requested hard copies. 
All others on the mailing list were sent a single CD containing all 
volumes of the final EIS.
    Additional information about the Project is available from the 
Commission's Office of External Affairs at 1-866-208-FERC (3372). The 
administrative public record for this proceeding to date is on the FERC 
Internet Web site (http://www.ferc.gov). Go to Documents & Filings and 
choose the eLibrary link. Under eLibrary, click on ``General Search,'' 
and enter the docket number excluding the last three digits in the 
field (e.g., CP07-441). 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 
call 202-502-8659. The eLibrary link on the FERC Internet Web site 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 that 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. To register for this service, go to the eSubscription 
link on the FERC Internet Web site (http:www.ferc.gov/docs-filings/subscription.asp).

Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. E9-10700 Filed 5-7-09; 8:45 am]
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