[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 62 (Monday, April 3, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16273-16274]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-06404]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

[Docket No. PHMSA-2016-0149] Donlin Gold LLC


Pipeline Safety: Request for Special Permit

AGENCY: Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), 
DOT.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: PHMSA is publishing this notice to seek public comments on a 
request for special permit, seeking relief from compliance with certain 
requirements in the federal pipeline safety regulations. At the 
conclusion of the 60-day comment period, PHMSA will review the comments 
received from this notice as part of its evaluation to grant or deny 
the special permit request.

DATES: Submit any comments regarding this special permit request by 
June 2, 2017.

ADDRESSES: Comments should reference the docket number for the specific 
special permit request and may be submitted in the following ways:
     E-Gov Web site: http://www.Regulations.gov. This site 
allows the public to enter comments on any Federal Register notice 
issued by any agency.
     Fax: 1-202-493-2251.
     Mail: Docket Management System: U.S. Department of 
Transportation, Docket Operations, M-30, West Building Ground Floor, 
Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590.
     Hand Delivery: Docket Management System: U.S. Department 
of Transportation, Docket Operations, M-30, West Building Ground Floor, 
Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590, between 
9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal 
holidays.
    Instructions: You should identify the docket number for the special 
permit request you are commenting on at the beginning of your comments. 
If you submit your comments by mail, please submit two copies. To 
receive confirmation that PHMSA has received your comments, please 
include a self-addressed stamped postcard. Internet users may submit 
comments at http://www.Regulations.gov.
    Note: Comments are posted without changes or edits to http://www.Regulations.gov, including any personal information provided. There 
is a privacy statement published on http://www.Regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
    General: Ms. Kay McIver by telephone at 202-366-0113, or email at 
[email protected].
    Technical: Mr. Steve Nanney by telephone at 713-628-7479, or email 
at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: PHMSA has received a special permit request 
from a pipeline operator seeking relief from compliance with certain 
federal pipeline safety regulations. The request includes a technical 
analysis, environmental assessment, proposed special permit conditions, 
and location map for the pipeline provided by the operator and has been 
filed at http://www.Regulations.gov under docket number PHMSA-2016-
0149. We invite interested persons to participate by reviewing the 
special permit request and supporting documents for implementing the 
special permit request versus designing, constructing, operating, and 
maintaining the pipeline in accordance with Part 192 at http://www.Regulations.gov and by submitting written comments, data or other 
views concerning the request. Please include any comments on potential 
safety, environmental impacts, and any additional conditions that 
should be considered if the special permit is granted.
    Before issuing a decision on the special permit request, PHMSA will 
evaluate all comments received on or

[[Page 16274]]

before the comment closing date. Comments received after the closing 
date will be evaluated if it is possible to do so without incurring 
additional expense or delay. PHMSA will consider each relevant comment 
we receive in making our decision to grant or deny the request.
    PHMSA has received a special permit request from Donlin Gold, LLC, 
(DGLLC), to deviate from the pipeline safety regulations in its 
construction, design, and operations and maintenance (O&M) of a 14-
inch, 315-mile pipeline. The proposed pipeline would transport natural 
gas from the Cook Inlet in Alaska to the Donlin Gold project site in 
Western Alaska. The lead agency responsible for authorizing siting and 
construction of the Donlin Gold mine and pipeline servicing the mine is 
the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). The USACE has prepared a 
draft environmental impact statement (DEIS).
    DGLLC has requested that PHMSA allow the use of Strain-Based Design 
(SBD) for segments of the pipeline. PHMSA regulates the design, 
construction and operation of natural gas transmission pipelines under 
49 CFR part 192. Use of SBD would allow the proposed pipeline to be 
buried in permafrost and discontinuous permafrost soils. SBD is not 
specifically addressed in Part 192. These soils exert significant 
strains on a pipeline due to thaw settlement, frost heave, and ground 
movements.
    PHMSA is considering issuing a special permit with conditions that 
would require specific materials, engineering, construction, and O&M 
procedures to mitigate the external forces of thaw settlement and 
longitudinal bending strains that exceed allowed limits in the 
specified SBD Segments.
    The proposed SBD special permit conditions are designed to achieve 
the level of safety that is normally achieved through full compliance 
with 49 CFR part 192, including Sec. Sec.  192.103, 192.105, 192.111, 
192.317, and 192.619. The pipeline will supply gas to provide heating 
and generate electricity to power the industrial equipment at the gold 
mine.
    The pipeline origin will tie into an existing natural gas pipeline 
at Cook Inlet, approximately 30-miles (48 kilometers) northwest of 
Anchorage at a tie-in near Beluga, Alaska, and will terminate at the 
Donlin Gold mine site. The first 117 miles of the pipeline will be 
located within the Matanuska-Sustina Borough, while the remainder of 
the 315-mile pipeline, including all the requested SBD segments, will 
be located in the Unorganized Borough. The pipeline terminus at Mile 
Post 315 is about 10-miles (16 kilometers) north of the village of 
Crooked Creek, Alaska.
    The project design pressure and maximum allowable operating 
pressure will be 1,480 pounds per square inch gauge (psig). The minimum 
delivery pressure required at the mine is 550 psig. PHMSA's EA 
references USACE's DEIS, which is also available in Docket No. PHMSA-
2016-0149. The USACE's DEIS of the Donlin Gold Project can be assessed 
at http://www.donlingoldeis.com/.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on March 28, 2017, under authority 
delegated in 49 CFR 1.97.
Alan K. Mayberry,
Associate Administrator for Pipeline Safety.
[FR Doc. 2017-06404 Filed 3-31-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-60-P