[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 46 (Friday, March 8, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8567-8570]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-04176]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Maritime Administration

[Docket No. MARAD-2019-0012]


Deepwater Port License Application: Texas COLT LLC

AGENCY: Maritime Administration, Department of Transportation.

ACTION: Notice of intent; notice of public meeting; request for 
comments.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG), in coordination with the Maritime 
Administration (MARAD), will prepare an environmental impact statement 
(EIS) as part of the environmental review of the Texas COLT LLC (Texas 
COLT) deepwater port license application. The application proposes the 
ownership, construction, operation and eventual decommissioning of an 
offshore oil export deepwater port that would be located in Federal 
waters approximately 27.8 nautical miles off the coast of Brazoria 
County, Texas in a water depth of approximately 110 feet. The deepwater 
port would allow for the loading of Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs) 
and other sized crude oil cargo carriers via two single point mooring 
buoy systems.
    This Notice of Intent (NOI) requests public participation in the 
scoping process, provides information on how to participate and 
announces an informational open house and public meeting in Lake 
Jackson, Texas. Pursuant to the criteria provided in the Deepwater Port 
Act of 1974, as amended, Texas is the designated Adjacent Coastal State 
for this application.

DATES: There will be one public scoping meeting held in connection with 
the Texas COLT deepwater port application. The meeting will be held in 
Lake Jackson, Texas on March 22, 2019, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. The 
public meeting will be preceded by an informational open house from 
4:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
    The public meeting may end later than the stated time, depending on 
the number of persons wishing to speak. Additionally, materials 
submitted in response to this request for comments on the Texas COLT 
deepwater port license application must reach the Federal Docket 
Management Facility as detailed below by April 8, 2019.

ADDRESSES: The open house and public meeting in Lake Jackson, Texas 
will be held at the Courtyard Lake Jackson, 159 State Highway 288, Lake 
Jackson, TX 77566, phone: (979) 297-7300, web address: https://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/ljncy-courtyard-lake-jackson/. Free 
parking is available at the venue.
    The public docket for the Texas COLT deepwater port license 
application is maintained by the U.S. Department of Transportation, 
Docket Management Facility, West Building, Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 
1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590. The license 
application is available for viewing at the Regulations.gov website: 
http://www.regulations.gov under docket number MARAD-2019-0012.
    We encourage you to submit comments electronically through the 
Federal eRulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov. If you submit 
your comments electronically, it is not necessary to also submit a hard 
copy. If you cannot submit material using http://www.regulations.gov, 
please contact either Mr. Ken Smith, USCG or Mr. Linden Houston, MARAD, 
as listed in the following FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of 
this document, which also provides alternate instructions for 
submitting written comments. Additionally, if you go to the online 
docket and sign up for email alerts, you will be notified when comments 
are posted. Anonymous comments will be accepted. All comments received 
will be posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov and will 
include any personal information you have provided. The Federal Docket 
Management Facility's telephone number is 202-366-9317 or 202-366-9826, 
the fax number is 202-493-2251.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Ken Smith, USCG, telephone: 202-
372-1413, email: [email protected], or Mr. Linden Houston, MARAD, 
telephone: 202-366-4839, email: [email protected]. For questions 
regarding viewing the Docket, call Docket Operations, telephone: 202-
366-9317 or 202-366-9826.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

[[Page 8568]]

Public Meeting and Open House

    We encourage you to attend the informational open house and public 
meeting to learn about, and comment on, the proposed deepwater port. 
You will have the opportunity to submit comments on the scope and 
significance of the issues related to the proposed deepwater port that 
should be addressed in the EIS.
    Speaker registrations will be available at the door. Speakers at 
the public scoping meeting will be recognized in the following order: 
Elected officials, public agencies, individuals or groups in the sign-
up order and then anyone else who wishes to speak.
    In order to allow everyone a chance to speak at a public meeting, 
we may limit speaker time, extend the meeting hours, or both. You must 
identify yourself, and any organization you represent, by name. Your 
remarks will be recorded and/or transcribed for inclusion in the public 
docket.
    You may submit written material at the public meeting, either in 
place of, or in addition to, speaking. Written material should include 
your name and address and will be included in the public docket.
    Public docket materials will be made available to the public on the 
Federal Docket Management Facility website (see ADDRESSES).
    Our public meeting location is wheelchair-accessible and compliant 
with the Americans with Disabilities Act. If you plan to attend an open 
house or public meeting and need special assistance such as sign 
language interpretation, non-English language translator services or 
other reasonable accommodation, please notify the USCG or MARAD (see 
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT) at least 5 business days in advance of 
the public meeting. Include your contact information as well as 
information about your specific needs.

Request for Comments

    We request public comment on this proposal. The comments may relate 
to, but are not limited to, the environmental impact of the proposed 
action. All comments will be accepted. The public meeting is not the 
only opportunity you have to comment on the Texas COLT deepwater port 
license application. In addition to, or in place of, attending a 
meeting, you may submit comments directly to the Federal Docket 
Management Facility during the public comment period (see DATES). We 
will consider all comments and material received during the 30-day 
scoping period.
    The license application, comments and associated documentation, as 
well as the draft and final EISs (when published), are available for 
viewing at the Federal Docket Management System (FDMS) website: http://www.regulations.gov under docket number MARAD-2019-0012.
    Public comment submissions should include:
     Docket number MARAD-2019-0012.
     Your name and address.
    Submit comments or material using only one of the following 
methods:
     Electronically (preferred for processing) to the Federal 
Docket Management System (FDMS) website: http://www.regulations.gov 
under docket number MARAD-2019-0012.
     By mail to the Federal Docket Management Facility (MARAD-
2019-0012), U.S. Department of Transportation, West Building, Ground 
Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590-
0001.
     By personal delivery to the room and address listed above 
between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal 
holidays.
     By fax to the Federal Docket Management Facility at 202-
493-2251.
    Faxed, mailed or hand delivered submissions must be unbound, no 
larger than 8\1/2\ by 11 inches and suitable for copying and electronic 
scanning. The format of electronic submissions should also be no larger 
than 8\1/2\ by 11 inches. If you mail your submission and want to know 
when it reaches the Federal Docket Management Facility, please include 
a stamped, self-addressed postcard or envelope.
    Regardless of the method used for submitting comments, all 
submissions will be posted, without change, to the FDMS website (http://www.regulations.gov) and will include any personal information you 
provide. Therefore, submitting this information to the docket makes it 
public. You may wish to read the Privacy and Use Notice that is 
available on the FDMS website and the Department of Transportation 
Privacy Act Notice that appeared in the Federal Register on April 11, 
2000 (65 FR 19477), see Privacy Act. You may view docket submissions at 
the Federal Docket Management Facility or electronically on the FDMS 
website.

Background

    Information about deepwater ports, the statutes, and regulations 
governing their licensing, including the application review process, 
and the receipt of the current application for the proposed Texas COLT 
deepwater port appears in the Texas COLT Notice of Application, 
Tuesday, March 5, 2019 edition of the Federal Register. The ``Summary 
of the Application'' from that publication is reprinted below for your 
convenience.
    Consideration of a deepwater port license application includes 
review of the proposed deepwater port's impact on the natural and human 
environment. For the proposed deepwater port, USCG and MARAD are the 
co-lead Federal agencies for determining the scope of this review, and 
in this case, it has been determined that review must include 
preparation of an EIS. This NOI is required by 40 CFR 1501.7. It 
briefly describes the proposed action, possible alternatives and our 
proposed scoping process. You can address any questions about the 
proposed action, the scoping process or the EIS to the USCG or MARAD 
project managers identified in this notice (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT).

Proposed Action and Alternatives

    The proposed action requiring environmental review is the Federal 
licensing of the proposed deepwater port described in ``Summary of the 
Application'' below. The alternatives to licensing the proposed port 
are: (1) Licensing with conditions (including conditions designed to 
mitigate environmental impact), (2) evaluation of proposed deepwater 
port and onshore site/pipeline route alternatives or (3) denying the 
application, which for purposes of environmental review is the ``no-
action'' alternative.

Scoping Process

    Public scoping is an early and open process for identifying and 
determining the scope of issues to be addressed in the EIS. Scoping 
begins with this notice, continues through the public comment period 
(see DATES), and ends when USCG and MARAD have completed the following 
actions:
     Invites the participation of Federal, state, and local 
agencies, any affected Indian tribe, the applicant, in this case Texas 
COLT, and other interested persons;
     Determines the actions, alternatives and impacts described 
in 40 CFR 1508.25;
     Identifies and eliminates from detailed study, those 
issues that are not significant or that have been covered elsewhere;
     Identifies other relevant permitting, environmental review 
and consultation requirements;
     Indicates the relationship between timing of the 
environmental review and

[[Page 8569]]

other aspects of the application process; and
     At its discretion, exercises the options provided in 40 
CFR 1501.7(b).
    Once the scoping process is complete, USCG and MARAD will prepare a 
draft EIS. When complete, MARAD will publish a Federal Register notice 
announcing public availability of the Draft EIS. (If you want that 
notice to be sent to you, please contact the USCG or MARAD project 
manager identified in FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT). You will have 
an opportunity to review and comment on the Draft EIS. The USCG, MARAD 
and other appropriate cooperating agencies will consider the received 
comments and then prepare the Final EIS. As with the Draft EIS, we will 
announce the availability of the Final EIS and give you an opportunity 
for review and comment. The Act requires a final public hearing be held 
in the Adjacent Coastal State. Its purpose is to receive comments on 
matters related to whether or not a deepwater port license should be 
issued to the applicant by the Maritime Administrator. The final public 
hearing will be held in Lake Jackson, Texas after the Final EIS is made 
available for public review and comment.

Summary of the Application

    Texas COLT LLC is proposing to construct, own, and operate a 
deepwater port terminal in the Gulf of Mexico to export domestically 
produced crude oil. Use of the DWP would include the loading of various 
grades of crude oil at flow rates of up to 85,000 barrels per hour 
(bph). At full operating capacity twenty-three Very Large Crude Carrier 
(VLCC) vessels (or equivalent volumes) would be loaded per month from 
the proposed deepwater port. Loading of one VLCC vessel is expected to 
take 24 hours.
    The overall project would consist of offshore and marine components 
as well as onshore components as described below.
    The COLT deepwater port offshore and marine components would 
consist of the following:
     Texas COLT Offshore Manned Platform and Control Center: 
One (1) fixed offshore platform with piles in Brazos Area Outer 
Continental Shelf lease block 466, approximately 27.8 nautical miles 
off the coast of Brazoria County, Texas in a water depth of 
approximately 110 feet. The fixed offshore platform would be comprised 
of several decks including: A sump deck and a cellar deck. The cellar 
deck will have a supporting pig trap, leak detection meter, control 
valve, oil relief (Holding) tank, and associated equipment, complete 
with living quarters, control room and a helideck.
     One (1) 42-inch outside diameter, 27.8-nautical-mile long 
crude oil pipeline would be constructed from the shoreline crossing in 
Brazoria County, Texas, to the COLT deepwater port for crude oil 
delivery. This pipeline would connect the Texas COLT Onshore Delivery 
Pipeline to the offshore Texas COLT deepwater port platform.
     The platform is connected to Very Large Crude Carrier 
(VLCC) tankers for loading by two (2) 42-inch outside diameter 
departing pipelines. Each pipeline will depart the offshore platform, 
carrying the oil to a Pipeline End Manifold (PLEM) in approximately 110 
feet water depth located one nautical mile from the offshore platform. 
Each PLEM is then connected through two 24-inch underbuoy hoses to a 
Single Point Mooring (SPM) Buoy. Two 24-inch floating loading hoses 
will connect the SPM Buoy to the VLCC.
    The Texas COLT deepwater port onshore storage and supply components 
would consist of the following:
     Texas COLT Onshore Storage Terminal: The proposed Onshore 
Storage Terminal would be located in Brazoria County, Texas, on 
approximately 245 acres of land consisting of twenty-five (25) above 
ground storage tanks, each with a working storage capacity of 600,000 
barrels, for a total onshore storage capacity of approximately 15 
million barrels. The Texas COLT Onshore Storage Terminal also would 
include: Eight (8) 2,500-hp vertical product pumps; six (6) 750-hp 
vertical recirculation pumps; two (2) receiving manifolds; one (1) 
product metering station; two (2) motor control centers; nine (9) 
auxiliary electrical control buildings in the storage tank area; one 
(1) Administrative building and onshore operations control center and 
one (1) 15,000 square foot warehouse building.
     Texas COLT Pump Station: The Texas COLT Pump Station will 
be at the Texas COLT Onshore Storage Terminal site and will be 
comprised of twelve, 7,000 horsepower (hp) pumps (two banks of six 
pumps including two total spare pumps). The Texas COLT Pump Station 
will boost the system pressure to a maximum flow rate of 85,000 barrels 
per hour.
     Four onshore crude oil pipelines and affiliated facilities 
would be constructed onshore to support the Texas COLT deepwater port 
and include the following items:
    [cir] Genoa Pipeline: One (1) 60-mile-long 24-inch crude oil 
pipeline from Genoa Junction to the proposed Texas COLT Onshore Storage 
Terminal. This pipeline would be located in Harris County, Galveston 
County and Brazoria County, Texas. Additional components include six 
Mainline Emergency Flow Restriction Device (EFRD) Valves along the 
pipeline to facilitate shutdowns as needed, two meter stations (Kurland 
Station and Texas COLT Terminal Metering Station), two pump stations 
(Kurland Pump Station and Rosharon Pump Station), launcher traps and 
receiver traps, transfer meter, and surge relief.
    [cir] Gray Oak Connector Pipeline: One (1) 28-mile-long, 30-inch 
inbound pipeline in Brazoria County, Texas from Sweeny Junction to the 
Texas COLT Onshore Terminal. Additional components include one pump 
station (Texas COLT Sweeny Junction Pump Station), and Mainline EFRD 
valves to facilitate shutdowns as needed, as well as a launcher trap, 
receiver trap, transfer meter, and surge relief.
    [cir] Onshore Delivery Pipeline: One (1) 8 mile, 42-inch outbound 
pipeline in Brazoria County, Texas from the Texas COLT Onshore Storage 
Terminal to the Texas COLT Offshore Delivery Pipeline. Additional 
components include three Mainline EFRD Valves along the pipeline to 
facilitate shutdowns as needed.
    [cir] Seaway Pipeline Connection: One (1) 1 mile bi-directional, 
30-inch diameter pipeline and associated facilities in Brazoria County, 
Texas between the Seaway Jones Creek Crude Oil Terminal and the Texas 
COLT Onshore Storage Terminal. The Texas COLT Seaway Pipeline 
Connection will primarily receive crude oil from the Seaway Jones Creek 
Crude Oil Terminal. Additional components include EFRD Valves to 
facilitate shutdowns as needed, launcher trap, receiver trap, transfer 
meter, and surge relief.
    Crude oil will be delivered to the Texas COLT Onshore Storage 
Terminal from existing sources via the Texas COLT Gray Oak Connector 
Pipeline, Texas COLT Genoa Pipeline, and Texas COLT Seaway Pipeline 
Connection. Crude oil will be delivered to the Texas COLT Offshore 
Manned Platform and Control Center via the Texas COLT Onshore Delivery 
Pipeline and continuing through the Texas COLT Offshore Delivery 
Pipeline. The Texas COLT Deepwater Port will transfer the crude oil to 
VLCCs through two separate SPM Buoy systems. VLCCs will moor to the SPM 
Buoys with support from assist vessels.

Privacy Act

    DOT posts comments, without edit, to www.regulations.gov, as 
described in the system of records notice, DOT/ALL-

[[Page 8570]]

14 FDMS, accessible through www.dot.gov/privacy. To facilitate comment 
tracking and response, we encourage commenters to provide their name, 
or the name of their organization; however, submission of names is 
completely optional. Whether or not commenters identify themselves, all 
timely comments will be fully considered. If you wish to provide 
comments containing proprietary or confidential information, please 
contact the agency for alternate submission instructions.

(Authority: 49 CFR 1.93).

    Dated: March 5, 2019.

    By Order of the Maritime Administrator.
T. Mitchell Hudson, Jr.,
Secretary, Maritime Administration.
[FR Doc. 2019-04176 Filed 3-7-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-81-P