[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 148 (Friday, August 1, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44758-44760]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-18266]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers


Intent To Prepare a Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact 
Statement (DSEIS) for the Alaska Gasline Development Corporation 
(AGDC)'s Proposed Alaska Stand Alone Pipeline (ASAP) Utility-Grade 
Natural Gas Transportation Pipeline

AGENCY: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, DoD.

ACTION: Notice of Intent.

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SUMMARY: The Alaska District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) 
intends to prepare a DSEIS to identify and analyze the potential 
impacts associated with the construction of the proposed ASAP utility 
grade natural gas transportation pipeline. The Corps is the lead 
federal agency and currently the National Park Service (NPS), U.S. Fish 
and Wildlife Service (USFWS), U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM), 
U.S. Department of Transportation, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials 
Safety Administration (PHMSA), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 
(EPA), and the State of Alaska Department of Natural Resources State 
Pipeline Coordinator's Office (SPCO) are participating as cooperating 
agencies in the DSEIS development process. The Supplemental 
Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) will be used as a basis for the 
Corps permit decision and to ensure compliance with the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The Corps will be evaluating a permit 
application for work under Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act, 
Section 404 of the Clean Water Act, and Section 103 of the Marine 
Protection Research and Sanctuaries Act of 1972. Because ASAP would 
require decisions and actions by other federal agencies (such as right-
of-way grants and other permits), this DSEIS will also fulfill the NEPA 
requirements for those cooperating federal agencies.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions about the proposed action 
and the DSEIS can be answered by: Ms. Mary Romero, Regulatory Division, 
telephone: (907) 753-2773, toll free in AK: (800) 478-2712, fax: (907) 
753-5567, email: [email protected], or mail: U.S. Army 
Corps of Engineers, CEPOA-RD, Post Office Box 6898, JBER, Alaska 99506-
0898. Additional information may be obtained at www.asapeis.com.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    1. The permit applicant, the AGDC, has proposed, ``The purpose of 
the

[[Page 44759]]

Alaska In-State Gas Pipeline (now known as ASAP) is codified in state 
law as one of the projects the Alaska Gasline Development Corporation 
(AGDC) is directed to develop. As stated in state law, AGDC ``shall, 
for the benefit of the state, to the fullest extent possible, . . . 
develop, finance, construct, and operate an in-state natural gas 
pipeline in a safe, prudent, economical, and efficient manner, for the 
purpose of making natural gas, including propane and other hydrocarbons 
associated with natural gas other than oil, available to Fairbanks, the 
Southcentral region of the state, and other communities in the state at 
the lowest rates possible.'' (Alaska Statute 31.25.005(4)).
    The ASAP Project would be comprised of a natural gas conditioning 
facility (GCF) near Prudhoe Bay capable of producing 500 MMscfd of 
utility-grade natural gas; a 36-inch, 727-mile long, 1,480 psig 
subsurface natural gas pipeline connecting the GCF to the existing 
ENSTAR pipeline system in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough; and a 12-inch, 
29-mile long, 1,480 psig, subsurface lateral line connecting the 
mainline to Fairbanks. The GCF would be constructed from modules 
delivered to the existing West Dock causeway in Prudhoe Bay. 
Facilitating transport and offload of these modular components will 
require modifications to dock head 3, winter dredging of a navigational 
channel to a 10-ft depth, nearshore dispersion of dredge material over 
bottomfast ice, channel screeding, and use of a temporary ballasted 
barge bridge during offload. The proposed pipeline would be buried 
except at possible fault crossings, elevated bridge stream crossings, 
pigging facilities, and block valve locations. Because the pipeline 
system would be designed to transport utility-grade natural gas, access 
to smaller communities would be possible. The ASAP route would 
generally parallel the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS) and Dalton 
Highway corridor to near Livengood, northwest of Fairbanks. At 
Livengood, the route would continue south, to the west of Fairbanks and 
Nenana. The pipeline would bypass Denali National Park and Preserve to 
the east and would then generally parallel the Parks Highway corridor 
to Willow, continuing south to its connection with ENSTAR's 
distribution system at MP 39 of the Beluga Pipeline southwest of Big 
Lake. The Fairbanks Lateral tie-in would be located approximately two 
miles south of the Chatanika River, crossing at MP 439 of the mainline. 
From the mainline tie-in, the Fairbanks Lateral pipeline would traverse 
east over Murphy Dome, following the Murphy Dome and Old Murphy Dome 
Roads, and then extend southeast into Fairbanks.
    2. Alternatives: The Corps will evaluate alternatives including the 
no action alternative, the proposed action alternative, and other on-
site and off-site alternatives. The proposed project and the 
alternatives to its proposed size, design, and location will be 
developed through the EIS process and considered along with those 
routes and variations discussed in the 2012 FEIS.
    3. Scoping Process: The scoping period will begin on August 1, 
2014, and end on October 14, 2014.
    a. The Corps invites full public participation to promote open 
communication on the issues surrounding the proposal. All federal, 
state, Tribal, local agencies, and other persons or organizations that 
have an interest are urged to participate in the NEPA scoping process. 
Scoping meetings will be held to receive public input on the proposed 
purpose and need of the project, to identify significant issues and to 
discuss proposed alternatives. The scoping process will help to further 
explain the purpose and need plus the alternatives to be reviewed in 
the DSEIS.
    b. Scoping Meetings
    Public scoping meetings will be held 5:30-8:30 p.m. on the 
following dates and locations (exceptions indicated in parentheses). 
Please check the project Web site (www.asapeis.com) for potential 
updates to scoping meeting dates and locations:
    1. Healy, Monday, August 18, 2014; Tri-Valley Community Center, 
Usibelli Spur Rd, Healy, AK 99743;
    2. Nenana, Tuesday, August 19, 2014; Nenana Native Village Tribal 
House, PO Box 369, Nenana, AK 99760;
    3. Cantwell, Wednesday, August 20, 2014; Cantwell Community Hall, 
Cantwell, AK 99729;
    4. Talkeetna, Thursday, August 21, 2014; Talkeetna Alaska Lodge, 
23601 Talkeetna Spur Rd, Talkeetna, AK 99676;
    5. Willow, Monday, August 25, 2014; Willow Community Center, PO Box 
1027, Willow, AK 99688;
    6. Anchorage, Tuesday, August 26, 2014 (to be held 6:30-9:30 p.m.); 
UAA Consortium Library, Room 307, Anchorage, AK 99508;
    7. Kenai, Wednesday, August 27, 2014; Quality Inn, 10352 Kenai Spur 
Highway, Kenai, AK 99611;
    8. Seward, Thursday, August 28, 2014; KM Rae Building at UAA-Seward 
Campus, 125 Third Ave, Seward, AK 99664;
    9. Fairbanks, Tuesday, September 2, 2014; Westmark Hotel, 813 Noble 
St, Fairbanks, AK 99701;
    10. Wiseman, Wednesday, September 3, 2014; Community Center of 
Wiseman, Wiseman, AK 99701;
    11. Minto, September 4, 2014; (Tentatively scheduled at Minto Lake 
View Lodge), Lake View Rd, Minto, AK 99758;
    12. Anuktuvuk Pass, Wednesday, September 10, 2014 (to be held 1:00-
4:00 p.m.); Anuktuvuk Pass Community Center, Anaktuvuk Pass, AK 99721;
    13. Barrow, Wednesday, September 17, 2014; Inupiat Heritage Center, 
PO Box 69, Barrow, AK 99723; and
    14. Nuiqsut, Thursday, September 18, 2014; Kisik Community Center, 
PO Box 89148 Nuiqsut, AK 99789.
    Comments can be made through oral testimony or as written comments 
during scoping meetings. Comments can also be submitted to the Corps by 
October 14, 2014 via mail or email ([email protected]) 
(see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). We request that you include in 
your comments: (1) Your name, address, and affiliation (if any); and 
(2) Any background documents to support your comments as you think 
necessary.
    4. The lands along the proposed pipeline corridor and one or more 
of its alternatives are owned by numerous entities; including, federal 
and state governments, the State of Alaska, and private land holders. 
Federal land managers include the BLM, NPS and the Department of 
Defense. Private landholders include Native corporations, Native 
allottees, and land owned by other private individuals.
    5. The DSEIS will analyze the potential social, economic, and 
environmental impacts to the affected areas with particular focus on 
elements of the pipeline route that are new and different from the 
route analyzed in the 2012 FEIS. The following major issues will be 
analyzed in depth in the DSEIS: Construction of the liquid natural gas 
delivery system, operation, and maintenance and its affect upon the 
surrounding communities and environment including: essential fish 
habitat; threatened and endangered species including critical habitat; 
cultural resources; socioeconomics; and secondary and cumulative 
impacts.
    6. It is anticipated that the DSEIS will be available in spring 
2015 for public review. A second public comment period will occur once 
the FSEIS is released. For updates to the project schedule and for 
additional details, please go to the project Web site 
(www.asapeis.com).


[[Page 44760]]


    Dated: July 25, 2014.
Michael Salyer,
North Branch Chief, Alaska District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
[FR Doc. 2014-18266 Filed 7-31-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3720-58-P