[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 119 (Friday, June 20, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35403-35404]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-14499]


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DEPARTMENT OF STATE

[Public Notice: 8770]


Intent To Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Assessment 
(Supplemental EA) and To Conduct Scoping Consistent With the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) for Proposed Changes to the 
NuStar Dos Laredos Pipeline

AGENCY: Department of State.

ACTION: Notice; solicitation of comments.

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SUMMARY: NuStar Logistics, L.P. (NuStar) has applied to the U.S. 
Department of State (Department) for a Presidential Permit to replace a 
2003 Presidential Permit issued to Valero Logistics Operations L.P. to 
construct, connect, operate, and maintain pipeline facilities (the Dos 
Laredos Pipeline) crossing the international border between the United 
States and Mexico at a location on the Rio Grande River known as ``La 
Bota,'' approximately six miles northwest of downtown Laredo, Texas. 
Specifically, NuStar requests a Presidential Permit that: (1) Reflects 
NuStar's name change from Valero Logistics Operations, L.P. to NuStar 
Logistics, L.P., as the owner and operator of the Dos Laredos Pipeline 
crossing the international boundary; and (2) expands the types of 
products that may be transported through the pipeline. The 2003 
Presidential Permit only allows shipment of liquefied petroleum gas 
(LPG), while NuStar now proposes to transport other specifically 
defined petroleum products, including diesel.
    On December 30, 2003, the Department issued a ``Finding of No 
Significant Impact and Summary Environmental Assessment; Valero 
Logistics LP Pipeline in Webb County, TX,'' applicable to the Dos 
Laredos Pipeline (the 2003 Environmental Finding). In the 2003 
Environmental Finding, the Department described the proposed Dos 
Laredos Pipeline as being designed to transport up to 32,400 barrels 
(1.36 million gallons) of LPG daily from the United States to Mexico. 
The Department concluded that issuance of a Presidential Permit 
authorizing the proposed Dos Laredos Pipeline would have no significant 
impact on the quality of the human environment within the United 
States, and further determined that granting a Presidential Permit for 
the Dos Laredos Pipeline would serve the national interest.
    In accordance with the 2003 Environmental Finding and the 2003 
Presidential Permit, the Dos Laredos Pipeline was constructed and went 
into service in 2004. The owner, Valero Logistics Operations, L.P., 
changed its name to NuStar Logistics, L.P. on April 1, 2007. In June 
2011, NuStar temporarily suspended transportation of LPG on the Dos 
Laredos Pipeline. NuStar has continued to maintain the pipeline with 
the intent to place the pipeline back into active service in 2014.
    On December 4, 2013, NuStar submitted an application to the 
Department requesting a new Presidential Permit for the Dos Laredos 
Pipeline. The Department has concluded, consistent with NEPA, that it 
will prepare a Supplemental EA to determine whether the proposed action 
may have a significant impact on the human environment.
    The purpose of this Notice of Intent is to inform the public about 
the proposed action, announce plans for determining the scope of the 
review, invite public participation in the scoping process, and solicit 
public comments for consideration in establishing the scope and content 
of the Supplemental EA.

DATES: Submit comments on or before August 4, 2014. The public scoping 
period starts with the publication of this Notice in the Federal 
Register on June 20, 2014 and will continue until August 4, 2014. 
Written and electronic comments will be given equal weight and the 
Department will consider all comments received or postmarked by August 
4, 2014 in determining the scope and content of the Supplemental EA.

ADDRESSES: Parties may submit comments on the scope and content of the 
Supplemental EA through the Federal eRulemaking Portal (http://www.regulations.gov) by entering the Docket No. DOS-2014-0013 and 
following the prompts. Written comments should be addressed to: Mr. 
Travis Grout, U.S. Department of State, 2201 C Street NW., Room 2726, 
Washington, DC 20520.
    Comments are not private. They will be posted on the site http://www.regulations.gov. The comments will not be edited to remove 
identifying or contact information, and the State Department cautions 
against including any information that one does not want publicly 
disclosed. The State Department requests that any party soliciting or 
aggregating comments received from other persons for submission to the 
State Department inform those persons that the State Department will 
not edit their comments to remove identifying or contact information, 
and that they should not include any information in their comments that 
they do not want publicly disclosed.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Office of Environmental Quality and 
Transboundary Issues, Attn: Mr. Travis Grout, U.S. Department of State, 
2201 C Street NW., Room 2726, Washington, DC 20520. Tel: (202) 647-
4284.
    Project details and environmental information on the NuStar 
application

[[Page 35404]]

for a Presidential Permit, as well as the Presidential Permit process, 
are downloadable from the following Web site: http://www.state.gov/e/enr/applicant/applicants/index.htm.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Project Description

    The Dos Laredos Pipeline is an 8 and \5/8\ inch outer diameter 
pipeline at the United States-Mexico border that connects the NuStar 
terminal in Laredo, Texas, with a terminal in Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, 
Mexico. The U.S. portion of the Dos Laredos Pipeline consists of 
approximately 10.6 miles of pipeline from the NuStar terminal in 
Laredo, Texas to the Rio Grande crossing approximately six miles 
northwest of downtown Laredo, Texas. The Mexican portion consists of 
approximately 1.5 kilometers of pipeline from the Rio Grande crossing 
to the Nuevo Laredo terminal.
    NuStar has requested authorization to expand the types of products 
that may be transported through the pipeline to include LPG and other 
specified petroleum products, including diesel. Specifically, NuStar 
has requested a Presidential Permit that allows transportation of any 
petroleum product that, by American Society for Testing Materials test 
methods,: (1) Substantially distills below 700 degrees Fahrenheit; (2) 
has a Reid vapor pressure not exceeding 28 pounds at 100 degrees 
Fahrenheit; and (3) is a color not darker than No. 3. NuStar's request 
excludes certain petroleum products legally prohibited from being 
exported by statute or regulation. As stated above, the 2003 
Presidential Permit only allows shipment of LPG. No substantial 
physical changes to the pipeline would be required to transport the 
expanded range of petroleum products. NuStar expects to transport no 
more than 24,000 barrels per day of refined petroleum products, in 
contrast to the 32,400 barrels per day of LPG that the Dos Laredos 
Pipeline has transported, because of differences in viscosity and flow 
characteristics. While the proposed operational change in products 
would require some physical change of pipeline facilities within the 
U.S. terminal, NuStar is not proposing any construction on the U.S. 
portion of the Dos Laredos Pipeline facilities outside the fence line 
of the U.S. terminal and no specific support infrastructure or access 
roads are necessary or required by state or regional plans with respect 
to the border-crossing facilities.

The Supplemental EA Process

    The Department, consistent with NEPA, will prepare the Supplemental 
EA to determine whether the approval of a Presidential Permit for 
NuStar to transport a broader range of petroleum products, including 
diesel, using the Dos Laredos Pipeline would result in significant 
impacts to the human environment. The Department will also evaluate 
reasonable alternatives, including a ``no action'' alternative, to the 
proposed project or portions of the project. Below, the Department 
invites interested parties to submit comments to assist in determining 
the appropriate scope and content of that Supplemental EA.
    The Department will select a Third-Party Contractor to assist with 
preparation of the Supplemental EA and related tasks. The draft and 
final Supplemental EA will be prepared under the direction of the 
Department.
    A draft Supplemental EA will be released to the public and 
distributed to relevant government agencies and stakeholders. Once the 
draft Supplemental EA is published, all interested parties will have an 
opportunity to provide specific comments or concerns about the draft 
Supplemental EA. The Department will consider all timely submissions 
received about the draft Supplemental EA and will incorporate them, as 
appropriate, into the final Supplemental EA.

    Dated: June 16, 2014.
Deborah Klepp,
Director, Office of Environmental Quality and Transboundary Issues, 
Department of State.
[FR Doc. 2014-14499 Filed 6-19-14; 8:45 am]
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