[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 22 (Tuesday, February 3, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5744-5747]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-01999]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. PF15-1-000]


PennEast Pipeline Company, LLC; Notice of Intent To Prepare an 
Environmental Impact Statement for the Planned PennEast Pipeline 
Project, Request for Comments on Environmental Issues, and Notice of 
Public Scoping Meetings

January 13, 2015.
    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 PennEast Pipeline Project 
(Project) involving construction and operation of facilities by 
PennEast Pipeline Company, LLC (PennEast), a partnership of six member 
companies including AGL Resources, New Jersey Resources Pipeline 
Company, South Jersey Industries, Public Service Electric and Gas 
Company Power LLC, Spectra Energy Partners, and UGI Energy Services. 
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 and stakeholders on the Project. Your input will help the 
Commission staff determine what issues they need to evaluate in the 
EIS. Please note that the scoping period will close on February 12, 
2015. However, this is not your only public input opportunity; please 
refer to the Review Process flow chart in appendix 1.\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \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.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    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 lieu of or in addition to 
sending written comments, the Commission invites you to attend the 
public scoping meetings scheduled as follows:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
             Date and time                           Location
------------------------------------------------------------------------
January 27, 2015, 6:00 PM Eastern Time.  College of New Jersey, 2000
                                          Pennington Road, Ewing, NJ
                                          08628.
January 28, 2015, 6:00 PM Eastern Time.  Bucks County Community College,
                                          275 Swamp Road, Newtown, PA
                                          18940.

[[Page 5745]]

 
February 10, 2015, 6:00 PM Eastern Time  Northampton Community College,
                                          3835 Green Pond Rd, Bethlehem,
                                          PA 18020.
February 11, 2015, 6:00 PM Eastern Time  Penn's Peak, 325 Maury Road,
                                          Jim Thorpe, PA 18229.
February 12, 2015, 6:00 PM Eastern Time  Best Western Hotel & Conference
                                          Center, 77 E Market Street,
                                          Wilkes-Barre, PA.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    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 planned 
Project and encourage them to comment on their areas of concern.
    The purpose of these scoping meetings is to provide the public an 
opportunity to learn more about the Commission's environmental review 
process, and to verbally comment on the Project. Each scoping meeting 
will start at 6:00 p.m. and representatives from PennEast will be 
present one hour prior to the start of each meeting to answer questions 
about the Project. Affected landowners and interested groups and 
individuals are encouraged to attend the scoping meetings and present 
comments on the issues they believe should be addressed in the EIS. A 
transcript of each meeting will be added to the Commission's 
administrative record to ensure that your comments are accurately 
recorded.
    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.
    The ``For Citizens'' section of the FERC Web site (www.ferc.gov) 
provides more information about the FERC and the environmental review 
process. This section also includes information about getting involved 
in FERC jurisdictional projects, and a citizens' guide entitled ``An 
Interstate Natural Gas Facility On My Land? What Do I Need To Know?'' 
The guide addresses a number of frequently asked questions, including 
the use of eminent domain and how to participate in the Commission's 
proceedings.

Summary of the Planned Project

    PennEast plans to construct, install, own, operate, and maintain 
the planned Project to provide approximately 1.0 billion cubic feet per 
day of year-round transportation service from northern Pennsylvania to 
markets in eastern and southeastern Pennsylvania and New Jersey. 
PennEast states the Project would bring natural gas produced in the 
Marcellus Shale region in eastern Pennsylvania to homes and businesses 
in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. The Project would extend from various 
receipt point interconnections, including interconnections with 
Transcontinental Gas Pipeline Company, LLC and gathering systems 
operated by Williams Partners L.P., Regency Energy Partners LP, and UGI 
Energy Services, LLC, all in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. Various 
delivery point interconnections would be constructed including UGI 
Utilities, Inc. in Carbon and Northampton Counties, Pennsylvania, 
Columbia Gas Transmission, LLC in Northampton County; and Elizabethtown 
Gas, Texas Eastern Transmission, LP and Algonquin Transmission, LLC, 
all in Hunterdon, New Jersey.
    The planned Project would consist of constructing or installing the 
following components:
     108.8 miles of new 36-inch-diameter pipeline, originating 
near Dallas, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania and terminating near 
Pennington, Mercer County, New Jersey. The pipeline route would also 
traverse Carbon, Northampton, and Bucks Counties, Pennsylvania, and 
Hunterdon and Mercer Counties, New Jersey;
     the Hellertown Lateral, a 2.1-mile, 24-inch-diameter new 
pipeline and the associated TCO Interconnect and UGI Lehigh 
Interconnect and Launcher/Receiver Site in Northampton County, 
Pennsylvania;
     one new compressor station near Blakeslee in Kidder 
Township, Carbon County, Pennsylvania. Installation of three gas 
turbine-driven Taurus 70 units rated at 10,916 horsepower (hp) each 
under ISO conditions (32,745 total ISO hp);
     the Wyoming Interconnect at Milepost (MP) 0.00 in Luzerne 
County, Pennsylvania;
     the Springville Interconnect at MP 0.25 in Luzerne County, 
Pennsylvania;
     the Auburn and Leidy Interconnects at MP 4.50 in Luzerne 
County, Pennsylvania;
     the UGI HAZ Interconnect at MP 25.50 in Carbon County, 
Pennsylvania;
     the Elizabethtown Interconnect at MP 76.35 in Hunterdon 
County, New Jersey;
     the Algonquin and TETCO Interconnects in Hunterdon County, 
New Jersey;
     the Transco Interconnect at MP 108.8 in Mercer County, New 
Jersey; and
     seven mainline block valves at locations along the planned 
pipeline segments in Luzerne, Carbon, and Northampton Counties, 
Pennsylvania and Hunterdon County, New Jersey.
    The general location of the Project facilities is shown in appendix 
2.
    PennEast plans to conduct tree clearing in the fourth quarter of 
2016 with construction starting in Spring 2017 and a projected in-
service date of October 1, 2017.

Land Requirements for Construction

    PennEast is still in the planning phase of the Project and 
workspace requirements have not been finalized. However, PennEast is 
planning on using a 100-foot-wide construction right-of-way for the 36-
inch-diameter pipeline, affecting approximately 1,308 acres of land 
based on the length of the pipeline. Following construction, PennEast 
would retain a 50-foot-wide easement for operation of the Project. 
PennEast would also require land for additional temporary workspaces at 
road, railroad, waterbody, and wetland crossings; topsoil storage; 
access roads; storage or pipe yards; and other purposes during 
construction.

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

[[Page 5746]]

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, and address as appropriate.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \2\ ``We,'' ``us,'' and ``our'' refer to the environmental staff 
of the Commission's Office of Energy Projects.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    In the EIS we will discuss impacts that could occur as a result of 
the construction and operation and maintenance of the planned Project 
under these general headings:
     Geology;
     soils;
     water resources, including surface water and groundwater;
     wetlands;
     vegetation and wildlife, including migratory birds;
     fisheries and aquatic resources;
     threatened, endangered, and other special-status species;
     land use, recreation, special interest areas, and visual 
resources;
     socioeconomics;
     cultural resources;
     air quality and noise;
     public safety and reliability; and
     cumulative environmental impacts.
    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 
participated in public Open House meetings sponsored by PennEast in the 
project area in November 2014 to explain the environmental review 
process to interested stakeholders. We have also begun to contact 
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 of this 
notice.
    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. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has 
expressed their intention to participate as a cooperating agency in the 
preparation of the EIS to satisfy their NEPA responsibilities related 
to this Project. The USACE has jurisdictional authority pursuant to 
Section 404 of the Clean Water Act, which governs the discharge of 
dredged or fill material into waters of the United States, and Section 
10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act, which regulates any work or 
structures that potentially affect the navigability of a waterway.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \3\ The Council on Environmental Quality regulations addressing 
cooperating agency responsibilities are at Title 40, Code of Federal 
Regulations, part 1501.6.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

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 applicable State Historic Preservation Offices (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 (APE) in consultation with the SHPOs 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, compressor 
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.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \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 of Historic 
Places.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Currently Identified Environmental Issues

    Based on our preliminary review of the Project; information 
provided by PennEast; and public comments filed in the Commission's 
administrative record and submitted to staff at the applicant-sponsored 
open houses; we have identified several issues that we think deserve 
attention. This preliminary list of issues may change based on your 
comments and our ongoing environmental analysis. These issues are:
     Purpose and need for the Project;
     impacts on forested areas including fragmentation;
     impacts on agricultural areas and soils;
     impacts on residential areas and use of eminent domain;
     impacts on recreational areas including parks and nature 
preserves including Appalachian Trail, Sourland Conservancy, and other 
state-managed and preserved lands;
     impacts on preservation easements on private lands or 
conservation easements and property values;
     impacts on surface water including Susquehanna, Delaware, 
and Lehigh Rivers;
     impacts on groundwater including wells and springs;
     impacts on wildlife and vegetation;
     impacts on federal and state-listed threatened, 
endangered, and sensitive species;
     geologic hazards including karst and seismic areas;
     impacts on air quality;
     impacts related to noise during construction and 
operation;
     assessment of alternative pipeline routes and compressor 
station locations; and
     cumulative impacts.

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 
February 12, 2015. However, this is not your only public input 
opportunity; please refer to the Review Process flow chart in appendix 
1.
    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 (PF15-1-000) 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].

[[Page 5747]]

    (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;
    (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 PennEast 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., PF15-
1). 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 that 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. 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.
    Finally, PennEast has established a toll-free phone number (1-844-
347-7119) and an email support address ([email protected]) 
so that parties can contact it directly with questions about the 
Project. PennEast has also established a Project Web site (http://penneastpipeline.com) where additional information on the Project is 
available.

Kimberly D. Bose,
 Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2015-01999 Filed 2-2-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P