[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 245 (Thursday, December 22, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 78668-78669]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-27856]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP21-498-000]


Columbia Gas Transmission, LLC; Notice of Availability of the 
Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Virginia 
Electrification Project

    The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or 
Commission) has prepared a final environmental impact statement (EIS) 
for the Virginia Electrification Project (Project), proposed by 
Columbia Gas Transmission, LLC (Columbia) in the above-referenced 
docket. Columbia requests authorization to construct and operate 
natural gas facilities in Virginia. The Project is designed to provide 
35,000 dekatherms per day of incremental mainline capacity on 
Columbia's pipeline system. The Project would address a request from 
Columbia Gas of Virginia, an unaffiliated local distribution company, 
for firm transportation service to meet growing energy demand in the 
southeast Virginia market area off of Columbia's existing VM-107, VM-
108, and VM-109 pipelines.
    This 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). 
Columbia's Project facilities include: one zero emission electric motor

[[Page 78669]]

compressor unit at the Boswells Tavern Compressor Station located in 
Louisa County; facility modifications to the Boswells Tavern point of 
receipt located in Louisa County to allow for increased capacity; 
replacement of all five existing gas-powered compressor units at the 
Goochland Compressor Station, located in Goochland County, with new 
units that will run exclusively on electric motors, but will have the 
ability to run on gas in order to ensure reliability; and change the 
status of an existing compressor unit from backup mode to active mode 
and increase the site-rated station horsepower to 5,500 horsepower at 
the Petersburg Compressor Station located in Prince George County. The 
FERC staff concludes that approval of the proposed Project, with the 
mitigation measures recommended in the EIS, would result in some 
adverse environmental impacts; however, with the exception of climate 
change impacts, those impacts would not be significant.
    The EIS is not characterizing the Project's greenhouse gas 
emissions as significant or insignificant because the Commission is 
conducting a generic proceeding to determine whether and how the 
Commission will conduct significance determinations going forward.\1\ 
The EIS also concludes that no system, route, or other alternative 
would meet the Project objective while providing a significant 
environmental advantage over the Project as proposed.
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    \1\ Consideration of Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Natural Gas 
Infrastructure Project Reviews, 178 FERC ] 61,108 (2022); 178 FERC ] 
61,197 (2022).
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    The Commission mailed a copy of the Notice of Availability of the 
Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Virginia 
Electrification Project to federal, state, and local government 
representatives and agencies; local libraries; newspapers; elected 
officials; Native American Tribes; and other interested parties. 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 natural gas 
environmental documents page (https://www.ferc.gov/industries-data/natural-gas/environment/environmental-documents). In addition, the 
final EIS may be accessed by using the eLibrary link on the FERC's 
website. Click on the eLibrary link (https://elibrary.ferc.gov/eLibrary/search) select ``General Search'' and enter the docket number 
in the ``Docket Number'' field (i.e., CP21-498-000). 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.
    The final EIS is not a decision document. It presents Commission 
staff's independent analysis of the environmental issues for the 
Commission to consider when addressing the merits of all issues in this 
proceeding.
    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 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 https://www.ferc.gov/ferc-online/overview to 
register for eSubscription.

    Dated: December 16, 2022.
Debbie-Anne A. Reese,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2022-27856 Filed 12-21-22; 8:45 am]
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