[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 169 (Friday, August 30, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53750-53751]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-21208]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP13-516-000]


EcoEl[eacute]ctrica, L.P.; Notice of Intent To Prepare an 
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed LNG Supply Pipeline Project 
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 LNG Supply Pipeline Project 
involving construction and operation of facilities by 
EcoEl[eacute]ctrica, L.P. (EcoEl[eacute]ctrica) at its liquefied 
natural gas (LNG) facility in Pe[ntilde]uelas, Puerto Rico. This EA 
will be used by the Commission in its decision-making process to 
determine whether the project is in the public interest.
    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. 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. Please note that the scoping period will close on 
September 23, 2013.
    This notice is being sent to the Commission's current environmental 
mailing list for this project. State and local government 
representatives are asked to notify their constituents of this proposed 
project and encourage them to comment on their areas of concern.

Summary of the Proposed Project

    EcoEl[eacute]ctrica plans to construct and operate facilities at 
its LNG facility in order to enable EcoEl[eacute]ctrica to supply LNG 
to a proposed adjacent LNG truck loading facility that is not under the 
Commission's jurisdiction and that is being developed and permitted by 
Gas Natural Puerto Rico, Inc.
    The new facilities would consist of an approximately 3,600-foot-
long, 4-inch-diameter LNG transfer pipeline; an approximately 3,600-
foot-long, 6-inch-diameter boil-off gas return pipeline; an 
approximately 3,600-foot-long, 1.5-inch-diameter LNG recirculation 
pipeline; and associated equipment.
    The general location of the project 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 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 ``Additional Information'' section at the end of this notice.
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Land Requirements for Construction

    EcoEl[eacute]ctrica plans to construct the facilities using 
approximately 1 acre of an already disturbed area within its LNG 
facility.

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 an authorization of a 
project. 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 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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    \2\ ``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 the 
general headings of land use, air quality, noise, and public safety. We 
do not expect other resource areas to be impacted by the proposed 
project, which would take place entirely within an existing industrial-
use facility.
    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. It will 
be available in the public record through eLibrary. Depending on the 
comments

[[Page 53751]]

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 below.
    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.\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.
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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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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 
September 23, 2013.
    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 (CP13-516-000) with your submission. 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 can file your comments electronically using the eComment 
feature on the Commission's Web site at 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 by using the eFiling 
feature on the Commission's Web site at 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; other interested parties; and 
local libraries and newspapers. This list also includes all affected 
landowners (as defined in the Commission's regulations) 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 of it 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 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 (www.ferc.gov) using the eLibrary link. Click on the 
eLibrary link, click on ``General Search'' and enter the project docket 
number, excluding the last three digits in the Docket Number field 
(i.e., CP13-516). 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 22, 2013.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2013-21208 Filed 8-29-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P