[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 41 (Thursday, March 2, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Page 13114]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-04310]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP22-461-000]


Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Company, LLC; Notice of 
Availability of the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the 
Proposed Southside Reliability Enhancement Project

    The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or 
Commission) has prepared a final environmental impact statement (EIS) 
for the Southside Reliability Enhancement Project (Project), proposed 
by Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Company, LLC (Transco) in the above-
referenced docket. Transco requests authorization to construct and 
operate one new compressor station and modify two existing compressor 
stations and three existing meter stations in North Carolina and 
Virginia. The Project would provide an incremental 423,400 dekatherms 
per day (Dth/d) of year-round firm transportation capacity from 
Transco's Compressor Station 165 and Pine Needle Storage Facility along 
the mainline and South Virginia Lateral pipeline systems to delivery 
points in North Carolina.
    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 approval of the proposed Project, with the 
mitigation measures recommended in the EIS, would result in some 
adverse environmental impacts; however, impacts would be reduced to 
less-than-significant levels. Regarding climate change impacts, the 
Project's construction and operation emissions would increase the 
atmospheric concentration of greenhouse gases (GHG), in combination 
with past, present, and future emissions from all other sources. 
Climate change impacts are not characterized in the EIS 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 or other alternative site 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 final EIS addresses the potential environmental effects of the 
construction and operation of the following Project facilities:
     installation of a new compressor station (Compressor 
Station 168) which includes one new 33,000 horsepower electric motor-
driven compressor unit, and installation of new mainline valves on 
South Virginia Lateral A-Line and B-Line at the new Compressor Station 
168 in Mecklenburg County, Virginia;
     addition of one 16,000 horsepower electric motor-driven 
compressor unit at existing Compressor Station 166 in Pittsylvania 
County, Virginia;
     installation of piping modifications to allow for flow 
reversal at existing Compressor Station 155 in Davidson County, North 
Carolina;
     replacement of one meter run to increase delivery volumes 
at the existing Ahoskie Meter Station in Hertford County, North 
Carolina;
     installation of new facilities to increase delivery 
volumes at the existing Pleasant Hill Meter Station in Northampton 
County, North Carolina; and
     upgrade meter and controls and debottleneck piping at the 
existing Iredell Meter Station in Iredell County, North Carolina.
    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 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., CP22-
461). 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 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 https://www.ferc.gov/ferc-online/overview to 
register for eSubscription.

    Dated: February 24, 2023.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2023-04310 Filed 3-1-23; 8:45 am]
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