[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 194 (Thursday, October 8, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51846-51848]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-24256]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP09-447-000]


Natural Gas Pipeline Company of America LLC; Notice of Intent To 
Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Luminant Tatum 
Mine Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

October 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 proposed Luminant Tatum Mine 
Project (Project) involving construction and operation of facilities by 
Natural Gas Pipeline Company of America LLC (Natural) in Panola County, 
Texas.\1\ 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.
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    \1\ On July 22, 2009, Natural filed its application for CP09-
447-000 with the Commission under section 7 of the Natural Gas Act 
and Part 157 of the Commission's regulations. The Commission issued 
its Notice of Application on August 6, 2009.
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    This notice announces the opening of the scoping process we \2\ 
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 2, 2009.
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    \2\ ``We'', ``us'', and ``our'' refer to the environmental staff 
of the Office of Energy Projects (OEP).
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    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; 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.
    If you are a landowner receiving this notice, you may be contacted 
by a Natural representative about survey permission and/or the 
acquisition of an easement to construct, operate, and maintain the 
proposed facilities. The company 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, the 
natural gas company could initiate condemnation proceedings in 
accordance with state law.
    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 (http://www.ferc.gov).

Summary of the Proposed Project

    Natural seeks to utilize, for mining purposes, lands currently 
occupied by three existing pipeline segments. To

[[Page 51847]]

allow the proposed surface mining operations to proceed, the affected 
pipeline segments must be relocated.
    Therefore, Natural proposes to construct and operate two 
approximately 5.55 mile-long segments of new 30-inch diameter pipeline 
and one approximately 5.55 mile-long segment of new 36-inch diameter 
pipeline, all in parallel and sharing a common right-of-way. The new 
pipelines would also parallel an existing pipeline owned by DCP 
Midstream. The pipelines would become part of Natural's existing Gulf 
Coast Mainline Nos. 1, 2, and 3, respectively, in Panola County, TX. 
Additionally, Natural proposes to abandon by exchange and transfer to 
Luminant Mining Company LLC two approximately 4.3 mile-long segments of 
existing 30-inch-diameter pipeline and one approximately 4.3 mile-long 
segment of existing 36-inch-diameter pipeline which are part of 
Natural's existing Gulf Coast Mainline Nos. 1, 2, and 3 in Panola 
County, TX.
    The specific location of the project facilities is shown in 
Appendix 1.\3\
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    \3\ 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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    If approved, Natural proposes to commence construction of the 
proposed facilities in March 2010.

Land Requirements for Construction

    Approximately 137 acres would be required for construction of the 
three new pipeline segments, including approximately 77.14 acres of 
upland forest, 48.8 acres of upland pasture, and 0.47 acres of 
wetlands. The new pipeline segments would be located almost entirely on 
Luminant's property. Additional impacts are expected from the ultimate 
removal of the lines being abandoned. This removal would be performed 
by Luminant and would occur exclusively on lands owned by Luminant.

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 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.
     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 reasonable alternatives to the proposed 
project or portions of the proposed 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.
    With this NOI, we are 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. These agencies may choose to participate once they have 
evaluated the proposal relative to their responsibilities. Additional 
agencies that would like to request cooperating agency status should 
follow the instructions for filing comments provided under the Public 
Participation section of this NOI.

Currently Identified Environmental Issues

    We have already identified several issues that we think deserve 
attention based on a preliminary review of the proposed facilities and 
the environmental information provided by Natural. This preliminary 
list of issues may be changed based on your comments and our analysis.
     Disturbance caused by project construction and abandonment 
activities may contribute to water and wind erosion of soils.
     Disturbance caused by the project may result in the 
temporary and permanent alteration and/or loss of wildlife including 
migratory bird habitat.
     Pipeline construction would cross 14 ephemeral, 
intermittent or perennial streams, and would impact approximately 0.47 
acres of wetlands.

Public Participation

    You can make a difference by providing us with your specific 
comments or concerns about the Luminant Tatum Mine 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 2, 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 CP09-447-000 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:[sol][sol]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

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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 who are 
potential right-of-way grantors, whose property may be used temporarily 
for project purposes.
    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 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 route evaluations, if applicable, 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. E9-24256 Filed 10-7-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P