[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