[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 195 (Friday, October 7, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 69805-69807]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-24273]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. PF16-6-000]


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

    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 Driftwood LNG Project 
involving construction and operation of facilities by Driftwood LNG, 
LLC and Driftwood LNG Pipeline Company, LLC (collectively referred to 
as ``DWLNG'') in Calcasieu, Jefferson Davis, Acadia, and Evangeline 
Parishes, Louisiana. The Commission will use this EIS in its decision-
making process to determine whether the planned 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. 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. 
Your input will help the Commission staff determine what issues they 
need to evaluate in the EIS. 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 November 4, 2016.
    If you sent comments on this project to the Commission before the 
opening of this docket on June 6, 2016, you will need to file those 
comments in Docket No. PF16-6-000 to ensure they are considered as part 
of this proceeding.
    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.
    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.
    A fact sheet prepared by the FERC entitled ``An Interstate Natural 
Gas Facility On My Land? What Do I Need To Know?'' is available for 
viewing on the FERC Web site (http://www.ferc.gov/resources/guides/gas/gas.pdf). This fact sheet addresses a number of typically asked 
questions, including the use of eminent domain and how to participate 
in the Commission's proceedings.

Public Participation

    For your convenience, there are four methods you can use to submit 
your comments to the Commission. The Commission will provide equal 
consideration to all comments received, whether filed in written form 
or provided verbally. The Commission encourages electronic filing of 
comments and has expert staff available to assist you at (202) 502-8258 
or [email protected]. Please carefully follow these instructions so that 
your comments are properly recorded.
    (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 submitting 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 (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.'' If you are filing a comment on a particular project, 
please select ``Comment on a Filing'' as the filing type; or
    (3) You can file a paper copy of your comments by mailing them to 
the following address. Be sure to reference the project docket number 
(PF16-6-000) with your submission: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal 
Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE., Room 1A, 
Washington, DC 20426.
    (4) In lieu of sending written or electronic comments, the 
Commission invites you to attend one of the public scoping sessions its 
staff will conduct in the project area, scheduled as follows:

[[Page 69806]]



           FERC Public Scoping Meetings Driftwood LNG project
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             Date and time                           Location
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Tuesday, October 25, 2016, 5:00 pm to    Town of Kinder Community
 8:30 pm.                                 Center, 316 N 8th Street,
                                          Kinder, LA 70648.
Wednesday, October 26, 2016, 5:00 pm to  West Cal Event Center, 401
 8:30 pm.                                 Arena Road, Sulphur, LA 70665.
Thursday, October 27, 2016, 5:00 pm to   Northwest Community Center, 501
 8:30 pm.                                 Samuel Drive, Eunice, LA
                                          70535.
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    The primary goal of these scoping sessions is to identify the 
specific environmental issues and concerns that should be considered 
and addressed in the EIS.
    Commission staff will accept verbal comments between 5:00 and 8:30 
p.m. There will not be a formal presentation by Commission staff when 
the session begins; however, Commission staff will be available to 
answer your questions about the environmental review process. Your 
comments will be recorded individually by a stenographer (with FERC 
staff or representative present) and placed into the Commission's 
administrative record. A transcript of the scoping session(s) will be 
entered into the FERC's publicly available eLibrary (see below for 
instructions on using eLibrary). It is important to note that verbal 
comments hold the same weight as written or electronically submitted 
comments.
    Please note this is not your only public input opportunity; please 
refer to the review process flow chart in appendix 1.\1\
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    \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.
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Summary of the Planned Project

    DWLNG intends to construct a planned natural gas liquefaction and 
export facility in Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana, along the west side of 
the Calcasieu River, with a liquefaction capacity of about 26 million 
tonnes per annum (MTPA) of natural gas.
    Additionally, DWLNG plans to construct 96 miles of pipeline in 
Calcasieu, Jefferson Davis, Acadia, and Evangeline Parishes, that would 
connect the liquefaction and export facility to the existing interstate 
U.S. natural gas grid.
    The proposed facilities would consist of the following components: 
(1) Five LNG plants, each comprising one gas pre-treatment unit and 
four gas-turbine-driven Integrated Pre-cooled Single Mixed Refrigerant 
liquefaction units; (2) Three full-containment LNG storage tanks of 
approximately 250,000 m\3\ each; (3) Three berths and loading 
facilities for LNG ships ranging from 125,000 m\3\ up to 216,000 m\3\ 
cargo capacity; and (4) Three compressor stations, 15 meter stations, a 
3.5-mile 36-inch-diameter pipeline lateral, and three pipeline 
segments, consisting of about 74 miles of 48-inch-diameter pipeline, 11 
miles of 42-inch-diameter pipeline, and 11 miles of 36-inch-diameter 
pipeline.
    DWLNG plans to commence construction in second quarter 2018 and 
expects to be ready to commence LNG exports in second quarter 2022.
    The general location of the project facilities is shown in appendix 
2.

Land Requirements for Construction

    The Driftwood LNG Project would be situated on the west side of the 
Calcasieu River in Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana, approximately five 
miles south of the town of Carlyss. The facility site would cover an 
area of approximately 800 acres. DWLNG would own or lease all of the 
land required for the facility and own, lease, or acquire the necessary 
rights of way on land required for the pipeline. At this time, DWLNG 
has purchased approximately 140 acres and has leased an additional 475 
acres of the facility site with the right to enter into a long-term 
lease for up to a total of fifty years.
    Following construction, DWLNG would maintain approximately 305 
acres for permanent operation of the project's facilities; the 
remaining acreage would be restored and revert to former uses.

Non-Jurisdictional Facilities

    The project would include two non-jurisdictional facilities: Power 
supply and water/wastewater systems.
    Power Supply: During normal operations electric power would be 
drawn from the power grid. Approximately 200 megawatts of electrical 
power would be required for the operation of the Facility. Power would 
be provided by the local electricity utility company. The Facility 
would have essential diesel generation capacity to generate sufficient 
electrical power to allow for lighting of safe egress, controlled 
shutdown of the facility in the event of a power failure from the main 
grid system and power for critical systems which may be required during 
storm events or emergency situations.
    Water and Wastewater: The project would connect to the local parish 
municipality for water services (Calcasieu Parish Waterworks District). 
Connection to the municipal system would not require any modifications 
to the existing infrastructure. The project would install a packaged 
sanitary sewage treatment system.
    Although FERC doesn't have the regulatory authority to modify or 
deny the construction of the above-described facilities, we will 
disclose available information regarding the construction impacts in 
the cumulative impacts section of our EIS.

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 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.
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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 EIS we will discuss impacts that could occur as a result of 
the construction and operation of the planned project under these 
general headings:
     Geology and soils;
     land use;
     water resources, fisheries, and wetlands;
     cultural resources;
     socioeconomics;
     vegetation and wildlife;
     air quality and noise;
     endangered and threatened species;
     public safety; and
     cumulative impacts.
    We will also evaluate possible alternatives to the planned project 
or

[[Page 69807]]

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 
have begun to contact some 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, beginning 
on page 2 on 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. The U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Coast Guard, and U.S. Army 
Corps of Engineers are anticipated to participate as cooperating 
agencies in the preparation of the EIS to satisfy their NEPA 
responsibilities related to this project.
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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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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 the applicable State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO), and to 
solicit their views and those of other government agencies, interested 
Native American 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 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, 
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.
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    \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.
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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 planned facilities, the 
environmental information provided by DWLNG, comments received at 
DWLNG's open houses, and those comments filed to-date. This preliminary 
list of issues may change based on your additional comments and our 
analysis:
     Visual impacts;
     noise and air emissions;
     traffic; and
     cumulative impacts.

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 DWLNG 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. Motions to intervene are more fully described at 
http://www.ferc.gov/resources/guides/how-to/intervene.asp. Instructions 
for becoming an intervenor are in the ``Document-less Intervention 
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., PF16-6). 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/docs-filing/esubscription.asp.
    Finally, public meetings/sessions 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: October 3, 2016.
Kimberly D. Bose,
 Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2016-24273 Filed 10-6-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6717-01-P