[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 85 (Thursday, May 2, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 18836-18837]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-08902]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket Nos. CP16-454-000; CP16-455-000]


Rio Grande LNG, LLC, Rio Bravo Pipeline Company, LLC; Notice of 
Availability of the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the 
Proposed Rio Grande LNG Project

    The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or 
Commission) has prepared a final environmental impact statement (EIS) 
for the Rio Grande LNG Project (Project)

[[Page 18837]]

proposed by Rio Grande LNG, LLC (RG LNG) and Rio Bravo Pipeline 
Company, LLC (RB Pipeline) (collectively referred to as the RG 
Developers) in the above-referenced dockets. RG LNG requests 
authorization pursuant to section 3(a) of the Natural Gas Act (NGA) to 
construct and operate liquefied natural gas (LNG) export facilities in 
Cameron County, Texas, and RB Pipeline requests a Certificate of Public 
Convenience and Necessity pursuant to section 7(c) of the NGA to 
construct, operate, and maintain a new pipeline system in Jim Wells, 
Kleberg, Kenedy, Willacy, and Cameron Counties, Texas.
    The final EIS assesses the potential environmental effects of the 
construction and operation of the Project in accordance with the 
requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The FERC 
staff concludes that construction and operation of the Rio Grande LNG 
Project would result in some adverse environmental impacts, but these 
impacts would be reduced to less than significant levels. However, the 
Rio Grande LNG Project, combined with other projects within the 
geographic scope, including the Texas LNG and Annova LNG Projects, 
would contribute to potential significant cumulative impacts from 
construction noise during nighttime pile-driving; sediment/turbidity 
and shoreline erosion within the Brownsville Ship Channel during 
operations from vessel transits; on the federally listed ocelot and 
jaguarundi from habitat loss and potential for increased vehicular 
strikes during construction; on the federally listed northern aplomado 
falcon from habitat loss in combination with past actions; and on 
visual resources from the presence of aboveground structures. 
Construction and operation of the Rio Grande LNG Project would result 
in mostly temporary or short-term environmental impacts; however, some 
long-term and permanent environmental impacts would occur.
    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Department 
of Energy, U.S. Department of Transportation's (DOT) Pipeline and 
Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, the DOT's Federal Aviation 
Administration, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Park 
Service, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the National 
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration--National Marine Fisheries 
Service participated as cooperating agencies in the preparation of the 
EIS. Cooperating agencies have jurisdiction by law or special expertise 
with respect to resources potentially affected by the proposal and 
participate in the NEPA analysis. Although the cooperating agencies 
provided input to the conclusions and recommendations presented in the 
final EIS, the agencies will present their own conclusions and 
recommendations in their respective Records of Decision for the 
Project.
    The final EIS addresses the potential environmental effects of the 
construction and operation of the following proposed facilities:
     Six liquefaction trains at the Rio Grande LNG Terminal, 
each with a nominal capacity of 4.5 million tons per annum of LNG for 
export, resulting in the total nominal capacity of 27.0 million tons 
per annum;
     four LNG storage tanks, each with a net capacity of 
180,000 cubic meters;
     LNG truck loading facilities with four loading bays, each 
with the capacity to load 12 to 15 trucks per day;
     a refrigerant storage area and truck unloading facilities;
     a condensate storage area and truck loading facilities;
     a new marine slip with two LNG vessel berths to 
accommodate simultaneous loading of two LNG vessels, an LNG vessel and 
support vessel maneuvering area, and an LNG transfer system;
     a materials off-loading facility;
     2.4 miles of 42-inch-diameter pipeline, including 0.8 mile 
of dual pipeline, to gather gas from existing systems in Kleberg and 
Jim Wells Counties (referred to as the Header System);
     135.5 miles of parallel 42-inch-diameter pipelines 
originating in Kleberg County and terminating at the Rio Grande LNG 
Terminal in Cameron County (referred to as Pipelines 1 and 2);
     four stand-alone metering sites along the Header System;
     two new interconnect booster compressor stations, each 
with a metering site;
     three new compressor stations (one at the LNG Terminal 
site); and
     other associated utilities, systems, and facilities 
(yards, access roads, etc.).
    The Commission mailed a copy of the Notice of Availability of the 
final EIS 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 area. The final EIS 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 final EIS 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., CP16-454 or CP16-455). 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.
    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 that 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: April 26, 2019.
Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2019-08902 Filed 5-1-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P