[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 229 (Wednesday, November 28, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 61155-61156]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-25922]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP18-534-000]


Notice of Availability of the Environmental Assessment for the 
Proposed Northern Natural Gas Company Northern Lights 2019 Expansion 
and Rochester Projects

    The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or 
Commission) has prepared an environmental assessment (EA) for the 
Northern Lights 2019 Expansion Project and the Rochester Project, 
proposed by Northern Natural Gas Company (Northern) in the above-
referenced docket. Considering both projects, Northern requests 
authorization to construct, operate, and maintain new natural gas 
facilities in Carver, Freeborn, Hennepin, Le Sueur, Morrison, Mower, 
Olmsted, Rice, Steele, and Wright Counties, Minnesota, and to uprate 
the maximum allowable operating pressure (MAOP) of a line segment. The 
projects would allow Northern to provide 138,504 dekatherms per day of 
new firm natural gas transportation service to serve increased markets 
for industrial, commercial, and residential uses.
    The EA assesses the potential environmental effects of the 
construction and operation of the Northern Lights 2019 Expansion 
Project and the Rochester Project in accordance with the requirements 
of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The FERC staff 
concludes that approval of the proposed projects, with appropriate 
mitigating measures, would not constitute a major federal action 
significantly affecting the quality of the human environment.
    The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency participated as a 
cooperating agency in the preparation of the EA. A cooperating agency 
has jurisdiction by law or special expertise regarding environmental 
impacts involved with the proposal, and is involved in the NEPA 
analysis.
    The proposed projects includes the following facilities (all 
located in Minnesota):

Rochester Project

     Approximately 12.6 miles of new 16-inch-diameter pipeline 
in Olmsted County;
     Increase of MAOP on an existing 8-mile-long segment of 16-
inch-diameter pipeline in Freeborn and Mower Counties;
     A new town border station with receiver in Olmsted County;
     Relocation of a regulator from Freeborn to Mower County; 
and
     Appurtenant facilities including two valves and a pig 
launcher at milepost 0.0 of the Rochester Greenfield Lateral.

Northern Lights 2019 Project

     Approximately 10.0 miles of new 24-inch-diameter pipeline 
in Hennepin and Wright Counties;
     Approximately 4.3 miles of new 8-inch-diameter pipeline 
loop extension in Morrison County;
     Approximately 1.6 miles of new 6-inch-diameter pipeline 
looping in Le Sueur County;
     Approximately 3.1 miles of new 24-inch-diameter pipeline 
extension in Carver County;
     [Agr]a new 11,153-horsepower (hp) compressor station in 
Carver County;
     [Agr]an additional 15,900 hp of compression at the 
existing Faribault Compressor Station in Rice County;
     An additional 15,900 hp of compression at the existing 
Owatonna Compressor Station in Steele County; and
     Appurtenant facilities including valves, pig launchers, 
and pig receivers.
    The Commission mailed a copy of the Notice of Availability to 
federal, state, and local government representatives and agencies; 
elected officials; environmental and public interest groups; Native 
American tribes; potentially affected landowners and other interested 
individuals and groups; and newspapers and libraries in the project 
areas. The EA is only available in electronic format. It may be viewed 
and downloaded from the FERC's website (www.ferc.gov), on the 
Environmental Documents page (https://www.ferc.gov/industries/gas/enviro/eis.asp). In addition, the EA may be accessed by using the 
eLibrary link on the FERC's website. Click on the eLibrary link 
(https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/elibrary.asp), click on General 
Search, and enter the docket number in the Docket Number field, 
excluding the last three digits (i.e. CP18-534). Be sure you have 
selected an appropriate date range. For assistance, please contact FERC 
Online Support at [email protected]

[[Page 61156]]

or toll free at (866) 208-3676, or for TTY, contact (202) 502-8659.
    Any person wishing to comment on the EA may do so. Your comments 
should focus on EA's disclosure and discussion of 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 the Commission has the 
opportunity to consider your comments prior to making its decision on 
these projects, it is important that we receive your comments in 
Washington, DC on or before 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on December 21, 
2018.
    For your convenience, there are three methods you can use to file 
your comments to the Commission. The Commission encourages electronic 
filing of comments and has staff available to assist you at (866) 208-
3676 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 website (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 also file your comments electronically using the 
eFiling feature on the Commission's website (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. Be sure to reference the project docket number 
(CP18534-000) with your submission: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, 
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE, Room 1A, 
Washington, DC 20426.
    Any person seeking to become a party to the proceeding must file a 
motion to intervene pursuant to Rule 214 of the Commission's Rules of 
Practice and Procedures (18 CFR 385.214). Motions to intervene are more 
fully described at http://www.ferc.gov/resources/guides/how-to/intervene.asp. Only intervenors have the right to seek rehearing or 
judicial review of the Commission's decision. The Commission may grant 
affected landowners and others with environmental concerns intervenor 
status upon showing good cause by stating that they have a clear and 
direct interest in this proceeding which no other party can adequately 
represent. Simply filing environmental comments will not give you 
intervenor status, but you do not need intervenor status to have your 
comments considered.
    Additional information about the projects is available from the 
Commission's Office of External Affairs, at (866) 208-FERC, or on the 
FERC website (www.ferc.gov) using the eLibrary link. The eLibrary link 
also provides access to the texts of all 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.

    Dated: November 21, 2018.
Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2018-25922 Filed 11-27-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6717-01-P