[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 9 (Thursday, January 14, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2134-2136]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-532]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. PF10-2-000]


Northern Border Pipeline Company; Notice of Intent To Prepare an 
Environmental Assessment for the Planned Princeton Lateral Project, 
Request for Comments on Environmental Issues, and Notice of Public 
Scoping Meeting

January 7, 2010.
    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 Princeton Lateral Project 
involving construction and operation of facilities by Northern Border 
Pipeline Company (Northern Border) in Bureau County, Illinois. 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 announces the opening of the scoping process the 
Commission 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 February 8, 2010.
    Comments may be submitted in written form or verbally. Further 
details on how to submit written comments are provided in the Public 
Participation section of this notice. In lieu of or in addition to 
sending written comments, we invite you to attend the public

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scoping meeting we have scheduled as follows:

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             Date and time                           Location
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January 21, 2010, 7 p.m. (CST).........  Princeton Public Library, 698
                                          East Peru Street, Princeton,
                                          Illinois 61356.
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    This notice is being sent to the Commission's current environmental 
mailing list for this project, which includes 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 pipeline company representative about the acquisition of an 
easement to construct, operate, and maintain the planned 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 pipeline 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.

Summary of the Planned Project

    Northern Border plans to construct and operate approximately 8.9 
miles of 16-inch-diameter pipeline in Bureau County, Illinois. The 
Princeton Lateral Project would provide about 120 million standard 
cubic feet of natural gas per day to the Central Illinois Light Company 
(CILCO), a local distribution company. Northern Border states that its 
project would provide CILCO with the natural gas pipeline capacity to 
meet the natural gas demand in its service territory.
    The Princeton Lateral Project would consist of the following 
facilities:
     Approximately 8.9 miles of 16-inch-diameter pipeline;
     One pig\1\ launcher assembly; and
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    \1\ A pipeline ``pig'' is a device designed to internally clean 
or inspect the pipeline. A pig launcher/receiver is an aboveground 
facility where pigs are inserted or retrieved from the pipeline.
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     One delivery meter station and appurtenant facilities.
    The general location of the project facilities is 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 appendices were sent to 
all those receiving this notice in the mail and are available at 
http://www.ferc.gov using the link called ``eLibrary'' 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.
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Land Requirements for Construction

    Construction of the planned facilities would disturb about 88.7 
acres of land for the aboveground facilities and the pipeline. 
Following construction, about 54.6 acres would be maintained for 
permanent operation of the project's facilities; the remaining acreage 
would be restored and allowed to revert to former uses.

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 
\3\ 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, the Commission 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.
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    \3\ ``We,'' ``us,'' and ``our'' refer to the environmental staff 
of the Commission's Office of Energy Projects.
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    In the EA we will discuss impacts that could occur as a result of 
the construction and operation of the planned 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; and
     Public safety.
    We will also evaluate possible alternatives to the planned project 
or portions of the project, and make recommendations on how to lessen 
or avoid impacts on the various resource areas.
    Although no formal application has been filed, we have already 
initiated our NEPA review under the Commission's pre-filing process. 
The purpose of the pre-filing process is to encourage early involvement 
of interested stakeholders and to identify and resolve issues before an 
application is filed with the FERC. As part of our pre-filing review, 
we have begun to contact some Federal and State agencies to discuss 
their involvement in the scoping process and the preparation of the EA.
    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 those on our environmental mailing list. 
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 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

[[Page 2136]]

more useful they will be. To ensure that your written comments are 
timely and properly recorded, please send in your comments so that they 
will be received in Washington, DC on or before February 8, 2010.
    For your convenience, there are three methods which you can use to 
submit your written comments to the Commission. The Commission 
encourages electronic filing of comments and has expert eFiling 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 at http://www.ferc.gov under the link 
called ``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 that is listed under the ``Documents and Filings'' 
link. 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 to your submission. 
New eFiling users must first create an account by clicking on the links 
called ``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 with the Commission via mail 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.
    In all instances, please reference the project docket number (PF10-
2-000) with your submission. 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 planned 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 certain distances of 
aboveground facilities (as defined in the Commission's regulations), as 
well as those who comment on the project.

Becoming an Intervenor

    Once Northern Border files its application with the Commission, 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 ``eFiling'' link on the 
Commission's Web site. Please note that you may not request intervenor 
status at this time. You must wait until a formal application for the 
project is filed with the Commission.

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 (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 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. 2010-532 Filed 1-13-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P