[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 223 (Tuesday, November 21, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 81068-81069]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-25674]



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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP23-519-000]


Rio Bravo Pipeline Company, LLC; Notice of Availability of the 
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Rio Bravo Pipeline Route 
Amendment

    The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or 
Commission) has prepared an environmental assessment (EA) for the Rio 
Bravo Pipeline Route Amendment (Route Amendment), proposed by Rio Bravo 
Pipeline Company, LLC (RB Pipeline) in the above-referenced docket.\1\ 
The EA assesses the potential environmental effects of the construction 
and operation of the Route Amendment in accordance with the 
requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The FERC 
staff concludes that approval of the proposed Route Amendment, with 
appropriate mitigating measures, would not constitute a major Federal 
action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment.
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    \1\ As authorized, the Rio Bravo Pipeline System consists of 
135.7 miles of dual (parallel) pipelines; one 42 inches in diameter 
and the other 48 inches in diameter; one new compressor station; and 
associated meter stations and valves and related facilities. The Rio 
Bravo Pipeline Project was approved by the Commission on November 
22, 2019, in Docket No. CP16-455-000, and amended (and approved by 
the Commission) on April 21, 2023, in Docket no. CP20-481-000.
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    The proposed Route Amendment includes the following four pipeline 
route adjustments, all within the State of Texas:
     adjust the certificated route between approximate milepost 
(MP) 69.8 to approximate MP 79.4 in Willacy County to conform to the 
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Biological Opinion issued for the Rio 
Bravo Pipeline Project and to minimize impacts on potential ocelot 
habitat (the ``U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Route Adjustment'');
     adjust the certificated route between approximate MP 92.4 
and MP 93.0 in Willacy County to accommodate requirements of the 
International Boundary and Water Commission and landowner requests (the 
``North Floodway Route Adjustment'');
     adjust the certificated route between approximate MP 99.7 
and MP 100.5 in Willacy and Cameron Counties to accommodate a landowner 
request (the ``Arroyo Colorado Route Adjustment''); and
     relocate a meter station and extend the approved Rio Bravo 
Pipeline route approximately 0.6 mile in Cameron County from the 
currently certificated terminus site to the meter station within the 
fenceline of the approved Rio Grande LNG Terminal site (the ``Terminus 
Adjustment'').
    The Commission mailed a copy of the Notice of Availability of the 
EA 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 
Route Amendment 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 natural gas environmental documents page (https://www.ferc.gov/industries-data/natural-gas/environment/environmental-documents). In 
addition, the EA 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, excluding the last three digits (i.e., 
CP23-519). 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 EA 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. 
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 Route 
Amendment, it is important that we receive your comments in Washington, 
DC on or before 5 p.m. eastern time on December 14, 2023.
    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 
FERC Online. 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 FERC Online. 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 Commission. Be sure to reference the Route Amendment docket number 
(CP23-519-000) on your letter. Submissions sent via the U.S. Postal 
Service must be addressed to: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal 
Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE, Room 1A, Washington, 
DC 20426. Submissions sent via any other carrier must be addressed to: 
Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 
12225 Wilkins Avenue, Rockville, MD 20852.
    Filing environmental comments will not give you intervenor status, 
but you do not need intervenor status to have your comments considered. 
Only intervenors have the right to seek rehearing or judicial review of 
the Commission's decision. At this point in this proceeding, the 
timeframe for filing timely intervention requests has expired. Any 
person seeking to become a party to the proceeding must file a motion 
to intervene out-of-time pursuant to Rule 214(b)(3) and (d) of the 
Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedures (18 CFR 385.214(b)(3) and 
(d)) and show good cause why the time limitation should be waived. 
Motions to intervene are more fully described at https://www.ferc.gov/how-intervene.
    Additional information about the Route Amendment 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.
    The Commission's Office of Public Participation (OPP) supports 
meaningful public engagement and participation in Commission 
proceedings. OPP can help members of the public, including

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landowners, environmental justice communities, Tribal members and 
others, access publicly available information and navigate Commission 
processes. For public inquiries and assistance with making filings such 
as interventions, comments, or requests for rehearing, the public is 
encouraged to contact OPP at (202) 502-6595 or [email protected].
    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: November 14, 2023.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2023-25674 Filed 11-20-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P