[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 152 (Tuesday, August 7, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 47052-47058]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-19265]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. PF12-11-000]


El Paso Natural Gas Company; Notice of Intent To Prepare an 
Environmental Impact Statement for the Planned Sasabe Lateral Project 
and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

    The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or 
Commission) will prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) that 
will discuss the environmental impacts of the Sasabe Lateral Project 
(Project) involving construction and operation of facilities by El Paso 
Natural Gas Company (El Paso) in Pima County, Arizona. The Commission 
will use this EIS 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 they need to evaluate in the EIS.
    You may submit comments in written form or verbally. Further 
details on how to submit written comments are in the Public 
Participation section of this notice. In addition, the Commission 
intends to host public scoping meetings in the Project area. The times 
and locations of scoping meetings will be announced in a future Notice 
of Scoping Meetings. Scoping will close 7 days after the last scoping 
meeting.
    This notice is being sent to the Commission's current environmental 
mailing list for the Sasabe Lateral Project, and the forthcoming Notice 
of Scoping Meetings will also be sent out to this list. State and local 
government representatives should 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, a pipeline company 
representative may contact you 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 Commission approves the Project, 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 where compensation would be determined 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 (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

    The Project would consist of the following facilities in Pima 
County, Arizona:
     Installation of about 60 miles of 36-inch-diameter natural 
gas pipeline;
     Construction of a new meter station near the U.S.-Mexico 
border; and
     Construction of other appurtenant facilities.
    The Project would link El Paso's existing South Mainline System 
near Tucson to the U.S.-Mexico border near the town of Sasabe, Arizona. 
El Paso is currently considering two routes for the pipeline: the West 
Route and the East Route. The West Route would be located on private 
and state lands. The East Route would be located on private, state, and 
federal lands. The East Route would primarily follow an existing 
highway right-of-way and traverse the Buenos Aires National Wildlife 
Refuge. The general location of the Project facilities is shown in 
Appendix 1.\1\
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    \1\ The appendices referenced in this notice will not appear in 
the Federal Register. Copies of the appendices were sent to all 
those receiving this notice in the mail and are available at 
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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    According to El Paso, the planned Project would provide additional 
natural gas export capability of between 160 and 210 million cubic feet 
of natural gas per day to an interconnect with the Puerto Libertad 
Pipeline at the international border. The Mexico Comisi[oacute]n 
Federal de Electricidad has specified this point as their desired 
receipt point in order to supply gas for power generation.

Land Requirements for Construction

    Construction of the planned facilities would disturb about 815 
acres of land for the pipeline and aboveground facilities. Following 
construction, El Paso would maintain about 362 acres for permanent 
operation of the Project's facilities; the remaining acreage would be 
restored and revert to former uses. About 70 percent of the East Route 
parallels existing utility or road rights-

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of-way, while about 30 percent of the West Route parallels existing 
utility or road rights-of-way.

The EIS 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 
\2\ 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 EIS on the 
important environmental issues. By this notice, the Commission requests 
public comments on the scope of the issues to address in the EIS. We 
will consider all filed comments during the preparation of the EIS.
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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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    In the EIS 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;
     Water resources, fisheries, and wetlands;
     Vegetation, wildlife, and endangered and threatened 
species;
     Land use and cumulative impacts;
     Socioeconomics;
     Cultural resources;
     Air quality and noise; 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 
the FERC receives an application. 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 EIS.
    The EIS will present our independent analysis of the issues. We 
will publish and distribute the draft EIS for public comment. After the 
comment period, we will consider all timely comments and revise the 
document, as necessary, before issuing a final EIS. To ensure we have 
the opportunity to consider and address your comments, please carefully 
follow the instructions in the Public Participation section beginning 
on page 5.
    With this notice, we are asking agencies with jurisdiction by law 
and/or special expertise with respect to the environmental issues 
related to this Project to formally cooperate with us in the 
preparation of the EIS.\3\ 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. Currently, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Arizona 
Ecological Services Office and the Buenos Aires National Wildlife 
Refuge, and the Arizona Game and Fish Department have expressed their 
intention to participate as a cooperating agency in the preparation of 
the EIS to satisfy their NEPA responsibilities related to this Project.
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    \3\ The Council on Environmental Quality regulations addressing 
cooperating agency responsibilities are at Title 40, Code of Federal 
Regulations, Part 1501.6.
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Consultations Under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation 
Act

    In accordance with the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation's 
implementing regulations for section 106 of the National Historic 
Preservation Act, we are using this notice to initiate consultation 
with the Arizona State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO), and to 
solicit their views and those of other government agencies, interested 
Indian tribes, and the public on the Project's potential effects on 
historic properties.\4\ We will define the Project-specific Area of 
Potential Effects in consultation with the SHPO as the Project 
develops. On natural gas facility projects, the Area of Potential 
Effects at a minimum encompasses all areas subject to ground 
disturbance (examples include construction right-of-way, contractor/
pipe storage yards, meter stations, and access roads). Our EIS for this 
Project will document our findings on the impacts on historic 
properties and summarize the status of consultations under section 106.
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    \4\ The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation regulations 
are at Title 36, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 800. Those 
regulations define historic properties as any prehistoric or 
historic district, site, building, structure, or object included in 
or eligible for inclusion in the National Register for Historic 
Places.
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Currently Identified Environmental Issues

    We have already identified several issues that we think deserve 
attention based on a preliminary review of the planned facilities and 
the environmental information provided by El Paso. This preliminary 
list of issues may change based on your comments and our analysis:
     Impacts on riparian areas at approximately 220 dry wash 
crossings;
     Land use impacts, such as disruption of on-going 
conservation efforts to restore native grassland;
     Visual impacts in consideration of Native American sacred 
sites;
     The creation of a new corridor that could exacerbate the 
current illegal immigration and drug trafficking activities;
     Socioeconomic issues, such as job creation and future 
development;
     Unauthorized all terrain vehicle use of the right-of-way 
after construction;
     Impacts on threatened and endangered species (including 
the masked bobwhite quail, Pima pineapple cactus, and Chiricahua 
leopard frog) and other sensitive species (including the cactus 
ferruginous pygmy owl); and
     Alternatives, including routing that may impact the Buenos 
Aires National Wildlife Refuge.

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 more useful they will be. To ensure that your 
comments are timely and properly recorded, please send your comments so 
that the Commission receives them in Washington, DC on or before the 
end of the scoping period, which will close 7 days after the last 
scoping meeting, to be announced in a future Notice of Scoping 
Meetings. This is not your only public input opportunity; please refer 
to the Environmental Review Process flow chart in Appendix 2.
    For your convenience, there are three methods you can use to submit 
your comments to the Commission. In all instances, please reference the 
Project docket number (PF12-11-000) with your submission. The 
Commission encourages electronic filing of comments and has expert 
staff available to assist you at (202) 502-8258 or [email protected].
    (1) You can file your comments electronically using the eComment 
feature located on the Commission's Web site (www.ferc.gov) under the 
link to Documents and Filings. This is an easy method for interested 
persons to submit brief, text-only comments on a project;

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    (2) You can file your comments electronically using the eFiling 
feature located on the Commission's Web site (www.ferc.gov) under the 
link to Documents and Filings. With eFiling, you can provide comments 
in a variety of formats by attaching them as a file with your 
submission. New eFiling users must first create an account by clicking 
on ``eRegister.'' You must select the type of filing you are making. If 
you are filing a comment on a particular project, please select 
``Comment on a Filing''; or
    (3) You can file a paper copy of your comments by mailing them to 
the following address: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy 
Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE., Room 1A, Washington, DC 
20426.

Environmental Mailing List

    The environmental mailing list includes 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. This list also 
includes all affected landowners (as defined in the Commission's 
regulations) 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, and anyone who submits 
comments on the Project. We will update the environmental mailing list 
as the analysis proceeds to ensure that we send the information related 
to this environmental review to all individuals, organizations, and 
government entities interested in and/or potentially affected by the 
planned Project.
    Copies of the completed draft EIS will be sent to the environmental 
mailing list for public review and comment. If you would prefer to 
receive a paper copy of the document instead of the CD version or would 
like to remove your name from the mailing list, please return the 
attached Information Request (Appendix 3).

Becoming an Intervenor

    Once El Paso 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 in 
the User's Guide under the ``e-filing'' link on the Commission's Web 
site. Please note that the Commission will not accept requests for 
intervenor status at this time. You must wait until the Commission 
receives a formal application for the Project.

Additional Information

    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., PF12-
11). 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, 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 www.ferc.gov/esubscribenow.htm.
    Finally, public meetings or site visits will be posted on the 
Commission's calendar located at www.ferc.gov/EventCalendar/EventsList.aspx along with other related information.

    Dated: August 1, 2012.
Kimberly D. Bose,
 Secretary.
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[FR Doc. 2012-19265 Filed 8-6-12; 8:45 am]
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