[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 187 (Thursday, September 26, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 50821-50822]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-20914]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket No. CP19-78-000]
PennEast Pipeline Company, LLC; Notice of Availability of the
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Penneast Pipeline Project
Amendment
The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or
Commission) has prepared an environmental assessment (EA) for the
PennEast Pipeline Project Amendment (Amendment Project), proposed by
[[Page 50822]]
PennEast Pipeline Company, LLC (PennEast) in the above-referenced
docket. PennEast proposes to amend their certificate of public
convenience and necessity for the previously approved PennEast Pipeline
Project (Docket No. CP15-558-000) that was issued by the Commission on
January 19, 2018. The Amendment Project would include four
modifications to adjust certain aspects of the design, alignment,
workspace, and construction methods for the PennEast Pipeline Project
in Luzerne, Carbon, Monroe, and Northampton counties, Pennsylvania.
The EA 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 approval of the proposed Project, with appropriate
mitigating measures, would not constitute a major federal action
significantly affecting the quality of the human environment.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency, and U.S. Department of Agriculture--Natural Resources
Conservation Service participated as cooperating agencies in the
preparation of the EA. Cooperating agencies have jurisdiction by law or
special expertise with respect to resources potentially affected by the
proposal and participate in the NEPA analysis.
The Amendment Project would consist of the following four proposed
modifications to the previously approved PennEast Pipeline Project, all
in Pennsylvania:
Saylor Avenue Realignment [Plains Township (Twp.), Luzerne
County]--a 0.4-mile-long pipeline realignment between milepost (MP)
8.5R3 and MP 8.9R3 to address construction feasibility and land use
impacts;
Interstate 81 Workspace Adjustment (Plains Twp., Luzerne
County)--a revised horizontal directional drill (HDD) design and
workspace adjustment between MP 10.0R2 and 10.4R2 due to historic
mines;
Appalachian Trail PPL Electric Utilities Crossing
Realignment (Lower Towamensing Twp., Carbon County, Eldred Twp., Monroe
County, and Moore Twp., Northampton County)--a 5.5-mile-long pipeline
re-route from MP 48.6R2 to MP 53.6R3 to collocate the crossing of the
Appalachian National Scenic Trail along an existing utility corridor,
relocation of the Blue Mountain Interconnect, and addition of a 0.5-
mile-long, 4-inch-diameter Blue Mountain Lateral; and
Freemansburg Avenue Realignment (Bethlehem Twp.,
Northampton County)--a 0.6-mile-long pipeline realignment between MP
69.7R3 and MP 70.8R3 and redesign of construction method from HDD to
open cut to avoid karst topography.
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
area. 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. CP19-78). 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.
Any person wishing to comment on the EA may do so. Your comments
should focus on the 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
this project, it is important that we receive your comments in
Washington, DC on or before 5:00pm Eastern Time on October 21, 2019.
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
(CP19-78-000) 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 Project 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.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2019-20914 Filed 9-25-19; 8:45 am]
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