[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 58 (Monday, March 26, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17472-17473]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-7149]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP11-56-000]


Texas Eastern Transmission, LP, Algonquin Gas Transmission, LLC; 
Notice of Availability of the Final Environmental Impact Statement for 
the Proposed New Jersey-New York Expansion Project

    The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or 
Commission) has prepared a final environmental impact statement (EIS) 
for the New Jersey-New York Expansion Project (NJ-NY Project or 
Project), proposed by Texas Eastern Transmission, LP (Texas Eastern) 
and Algonquin Gas Transmission, LLC (Algonquin), both Spectra Energy 
Corporation natural gas pipeline companies, in the above-referenced 
docket. Texas Eastern and Algonquin request authorization to expand 
their natural gas pipeline systems in New Jersey, New York, and 
Connecticut, to deliver up to 800,000 dekatherms per day of natural gas 
from multiple receipt points on the Texas Eastern and Algonquin 
pipeline systems to new delivery points in New Jersey and New York.
    The final EIS assesses the potential environmental effects of the 
construction and operation of the NJ-NY Project in accordance with the 
requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The FERC 
staff concludes that approval of the proposed Project would have some 
adverse environmental impact; however, these impacts would be reduced 
to less-than-significant levels with the implementation of Texas 
Eastern's and Algonquin's proposed

[[Page 17473]]

mitigation and the additional measures we recommend in the EIS.
    The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), U.S. Department of 
Transportation, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New York City Mayor's 
Office, and New York City Department of Environmental Protection 
participated as cooperating agencies in the preparation of the EIS. 
Cooperating agencies have jurisdiction by law or special expertise with 
respect to resources potentially affected by the proposal and 
participate in the NEPA analysis. Although the cooperating agencies 
provided input to the conclusions and recommendations presented in the 
EIS, the agencies will present their own conclusions and 
recommendations in their respective Records of Decision for the 
project.
    The final EIS addresses the potential environmental effects of the 
following project facilities:
     Construction and operation of approximately 15.2 miles of 
new 30-inch-diameter pipeline and 4.8 miles of 42-inch-diameter 
pipeline;
     Abandonment of 8.95 miles of existing 12-, 20-, and 24-
inch-diameter pipeline;
     Installation of seven new metering and regulating (M&R) 
stations;
     Modifications to four existing compressor stations and one 
existing M&R station; and
     Modifications and installations of associated valves and 
piping.
    The FERC staff mailed copies of the EIS to federal, state, and 
local government representatives and agencies; elected officials; 
environmental and public interest groups; Native American tribes; local 
newspapers and libraries in the Project area; intervenors to the FERC's 
proceeding; and potentially affected landowners and other interested 
individuals and groups. Paper copy versions of the EIS were mailed to 
those specifically requesting them; all others received a CD version. 
In addition, the EIS is available for public viewing on the FERC's Web 
site (www.ferc.gov) using the eLibrary link. A limited number of copies 
are 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.
    In accordance with the Council on Environmental Quality's (CEQ) 
regulations implementing NEPA, no agency decision on a proposed action 
may be made until 30 days after the EPA publishes a notice of 
availability of the final EIS in the Federal Register. However, the CEQ 
regulations provide an exception to this rule when an agency decision 
is subject to a formal internal appeal process that allows other 
agencies or the public to make their views known. In such cases, the 
agency decision may be made at the same time the notice of the final 
EIS is published, allowing both periods to run concurrently. The 
Commission decision for this proposed action is subject to a 30-day 
rehearing period.

Questions

    Additional information about the Project is available from the 
Commission's Office of External Affairs, at (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 (i.e., CP11-
56). Be sure you have selected an appropriate date range. For 
assistance, please contact FERC Online Support at 
[email protected] or toll free at (866) 208-3676; 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 www.ferc.gov/esubscribenow.htm.

    Dated: March 16, 2012.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2012-7149 Filed 3-23-12; 8:45 am]
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