[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 114 (Thursday, June 13, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35622-35624]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-14016]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP13-160-000]


Northwest Pipeline GP; Notice of Intent To Prepare an 
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Blue Water LNG Meter Station 
and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

    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 Blue Water Liquefied Natural 
Gas (LNG) Meter Project involving construction and operation of 
facilities by Northwest Pipeline GP (Northwest) in Benton County, 
Washington. The Commission will use this EA 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 EA. Please note that 
the scoping period will close on July 8, 2013.
    This notice is being sent to the Commission's current environmental 
mailing list for this project. State and local government 
representatives should notify their constituents of this proposed 
project and encourage them to comment on their areas of concern.
    Northwest provided landowners adjacent to the proposed meter 
station with a fact sheet prepared by the FERC entitled ``An Interstate 
Natural Gas Facility On My Land? What Do I Need To Know.'' This fact 
sheet addresses a number of typically-asked questions, including how to 
participate in the Commission's proceedings. It is also available for 
viewing on the FERC Web site (www.ferc.gov).

Summary of the Proposed Project

    Northwest proposes to construct and operate a new LNG meter station 
and associated piping within the yard of its existing Plymouth Peak 
Shaving Plant (Plant). The Plant is located on about 72 acres on the 
north side of the Columbia River in Benton County, Washington, about 19 
miles south of the city of Kennewick. The Plant consists of two LNG 
storage tanks with a capacity of 1.2 billion cubic feet each, two 
liquefaction trains capable of liquefying 12 million standard cubic 
feet per day of natural gas, vaporization facilities capable of 
vaporizing 305,300 dekatherms of natural gas per day (Dth/d), and a 
boil-off gas compression system.\1\
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    \1\ These facilities were authorized by the FERC in Docket Nos. 
CP74-46-000 and CP76-106-000.
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    The proposed Blue Water LNG Meter could supply up to 216,000 
gallons of LNG per day (or 17,705 Dth/d) to Transfuels LLC 
(Transfuels). Transfuels proposes to construct and operate a non-
jurisdictional LNG trunk loading facility on 20 acres of current 
agricultural land directly north of the fenced boundary for Northwest's 
Plant. The jurisdictional facilities proposed by Northwest would 
include:
     A new 360-foot-long pipeline, supported on a pipe rack, to 
convey LNG from the existing transfer pipeline between the storage 
tanks, through the new meter runs, and then to the custody transfer 
point at the plant boundary fence;
     Three new 32-foot-long meter runs and a one-inch-diameter 
receipt meter and three-inch-diameter piping to handle boil-off-gas 
coming back from the custody transfer point, all covered by a 20-foot 
by 24-foot shelter;

[[Page 35623]]

     Two new auxiliary meters to measure gas volumes used by 
customers;
     New chromatographic gas analysis and electronic flow 
measurement equipment, housed in a fully enclosed building, 26-feet-
long by 22-feet-wide, located adjacent to the north of the meter runs 
shelter;
     A new two-inch-diameter vent line to contain and transfer 
gas to an existing relief header in the event gas is released, 
supported on the new pipe rack; and
     A new cable tray to house power and communication wires, 
supported on the new pipe rack.
    The general location of the project facilities is shown in appendix 
1.\2\
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    \2\ The appendices referenced in this notice will not appear in 
the Federal Register. Copies of 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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Land Requirements for Construction

    All construction activities would take place within the 72-acre 
property of Northwest's Plant. Excavation for new facilities related to 
the Blue Water LNG Meter Station project would cover about 0.05 acre.

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. The 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. We will 
consider all filed comments 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 proposed project under these 
general headings:
     Geology and soils;
     Water resources and wetlands;
     Vegetation and wildlife;
     Cultural resources;
     Air quality and noise; and
     Public safety.
    We will also evaluate reasonable alternatives to the proposed 
project or portions of the project, and make recommendations on how to 
lessen or avoid impacts on the various resource areas.
    The EA will present our independent analysis of the issues. The EA 
will be available in the public record through eLibrary. Depending on 
the comments received during the scoping process, we may also publish 
and distribute the EA to the public for an allotted comment period. We 
will consider all comments on the EA before making our recommendations 
to the Commission. To ensure we have the opportunity to consider and 
address your comments, please carefully follow the instructions in the 
Public Participation section on page 5 of this notice.
    With this notice, we are asking agencies with jurisdiction by law 
and/or special expertise with respect to the environmental issues of 
this project to formally cooperate with us in the preparation of the 
EA.\4\ 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.
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    \4\ The Council on Environmental Quality regulations addressing 
cooperating agency responsibilities are at Title 40, Code of Federal 
Regulations (CFR), 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 consultations 
with the Washington 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.\5\ We will define the project-specific Area of 
Potential Effects (APE) in consultation with the SHPO as the project 
develops. On natural gas facility projects, the APE at a minimum 
encompasses all areas subject to ground disturbance (examples include 
construction right-of-way, contractor/pipe storage yards, and access 
roads). Our EA 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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    \5\ The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation's regulations 
are at 36 CFR 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 of 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 proposed facilities and 
the environmental information provided by Northwest. This preliminary 
list of issues may be changed based on your comments and our analysis.
     Safety issues related to vapor dispersion from the 
jurisdictional Blue Water Meter Station; and
     Environmental review of the non-jurisdictional Transfuels 
LNG loading facility by Benton County, Washington.

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 July 
8, 2013.
    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 (CP13-160-000) 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 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;
    (2) You can file your comments electronically using the eFiling 
feature 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.

[[Page 35624]]

Environmental Mailing List

    The environmental mailing list includes federal, state, and local 
government representatives and agencies; elected officials; 
environmental and public interest groups; interested Indian tribes; 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 proposed project.
    If we publish and distribute the EA, copies 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 compact 
disk version, or if you would like to remove your name from the mailing 
list, please return the attached Information Request (appendix 2).

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 
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.

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 at 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., CP13-
160). 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 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 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: June 6, 2013.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2013-14016 Filed 6-12-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P