[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 108 (Friday, June 6, 2025)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 24088-24089]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2025-10348]
[[Page 24088]]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration
49 CFR Part 193
[Docket No. PHMSA-2019-0091]
Pipeline Safety: Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental
Impact Statement for the Amendments to Liquefied Natural Gas Facilities
Rulemaking
AGENCY: Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA),
Department of Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act,
PHMSA intends to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS)
analyzing the potential environmental impacts of amendments to the
pipeline safety regulations governing liquefied natural gas (LNG). This
document initiates the process for determining the scope of
considerations to be addressed in the EIS and for identifying any
significant environmental matters related to the proposed action. PHMSA
invites comments from Federal, State, and local agencies, Indian
tribes, stakeholders, and the public in this scoping process to help
identify any matters of environmental significance, as well as
reasonable alternatives to be examined in the EIS.
DATES: The scoping process is anticipated to culminate in the
preparation and issuance of a Draft EIS, which would be made available
for public comment concurrently with the issuance of a Notice of
Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM). Scoping comments should be received on or
before July 7, 2025, to ensure that PHMSA has an opportunity to
consider scoping comments. PHMSA will consider comments received after
that date to the extent the rulemaking schedule allows.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Docket Number PHMSA-
2019-0091 using any of the following methods:
E-Gov Web: https://www.regulations.gov. This site allows the public
to enter comments on any Federal Register notice issued by any agency.
Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.
Mail: Docket Management System: U.S. Department of Transportation,
1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140,
Washington, DC 20590-0001.
Hand Delivery: U.S. DOT Docket Management System: West Building
Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, between 9 a.m.
and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
Fax: 1-202-493-2251.
Instructions: Please include the docket number PHMSA-2019-0091 at
the beginning of your comments. If you submit your comments by mail,
submit two copies. If you wish to receive confirmation that PHMSA
received your comments, include a self-addressed stamped postcard.
Internet users may submit comments at https://www.regulations.gov.
Note: Comments are posted without changes or edits to https://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information provided.
There is a privacy statement published on https://www.regulations.gov.
Privacy Act: In accordance with 5 United States Code (U.S.C.
553(c)), DOT solicits comments from the public to inform its rulemaking
process better. DOT posts these comments, without edit, including any
personal information the commenter provides, to https://www.regulations.gov, as described in the system of records notice (DOT/
ALL-14 FDMS), which can be reviewed at https://www.dot.gov/privacy.
Confidential Business Information: Confidential Business
Information (CBI) is commercial or financial information that is both
customarily and actually treated as private by its owner. Under the
Freedom of Information Act (FOIA, 5 U.S.C. 552), CBI is exempt from
public disclosure. It is important that you clearly designate the
comments submitted as CBI if: your comments responsive to this document
contain commercial or financial information that is customarily treated
as private; you actually treat such information as private; and your
comment is relevant or responsive to this document. Pursuant to 49 Code
of Federal Regulations (CFR) 190.343, you may ask PHMSA to provide
confidential treatment to information you give to the agency by taking
the following steps: (1) mark each page of the original document
submission containing CBI as ``Confidential''; (2) send PHMSA, along
with the original document, a second copy of the original document with
the CBI deleted; and (3) explain why the information that you are
submitting is CBI. Submissions containing CBI should be sent to Brianna
Wilson, Office of Pipeline Safety (PHP-30), Pipeline and Hazardous
Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), 2nd Floor, 1200 New Jersey
Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590-0001, or by email at
[email protected]. Any materials PHMSA receives that is not
specifically designated as CBI will be placed in the public docket.
Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or
comments received, go to https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online
instructions for accessing the docket. Alternatively, you may review
the documents in person at the street address listed above.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Carolyn Nelson, Office of Planning and
Analytics, PHMSA, by email at [email protected] or by phone at
202-860-6173.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In a forthcoming notice of proposed
rulemaking (NPRM), PHMSA will propose amendments to the safety
standards in 49 CFR part 193 for the siting, design, installation,
construction, inspection, testing, operation, and maintenance of
liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities. PHMSA has recently issued an
advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM) soliciting stakeholder
feedback on potential amendments to include in the forthcoming NPRM.\1\
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\1\ PHMSA, ``Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking: Amendments
to Liquefied Natural Gas Facilities,'' 90 FR 18949 (May 5, 2025).
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The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA; 42 U.S.C. 4321 et
seq.) requires Federal agencies to analyze proposed actions to
determine whether the action would have a significant impact on the
human and natural environment. If the proposed action has a reasonably
foreseeable significant effect on the quality of the human and natural
environment, the agency is required to issue an environmental impact
statement (EIS) (42 U.S.C. 4336(b)(1)). In connection with the action
described above, PHMSA intends to prepare an EIS to analyze the
potential environmental impacts of the proposed reasonable alternatives
for amending 49 CFR part 193 pursuant to NEPA. To inform decisionmakers
and the public, the EIS would analyze the reasonably foreseeable
environmental impacts of the agency's Preferred Alternative and a range
of reasonable alternatives, including a ``no action'' alternative.
Purpose and Need
PHMSA has not revised the safety standards in 49 CFR part 193 since
the early 2000s and many of the concepts in the current regulations
date to the
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1970s. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) and industry
stakeholders have urged PHMSA to update 49 CFR part 193 to address the
significant changes that have occurred in the LNG industry in recent
years. Congress also included rulemaking mandates directing PHMSA to
adopt new requirements for ``permanent, small scale'' LNG facilities in
section 27 of the Protecting our Infrastructure of Pipelines and
Enhancing Safety Act of 2016 (PIPES Act of 2016, Pub. L. 114-183), and
to prescribe risk-based regulations for large-scale LNG facilities,
other than peak-shaving facilities, in section 110 of the Protecting
our Infrastructure of Pipelines and Enhancing Safety Act of 2020 (PIPES
Act of 2020, Pub. L. 116-2600).
PHMSA intends to amend 49 CFR part 193 to address these
congressional mandates, to account for current technologies, best
practices, and lessons learned, and to incorporate recent editions of
consensus industry standards by reference, 49 U.S.C. 60102(l). PHMSA's
effort to update 49 CFR part 193 advances President Trump's goal of
unleashing American energy and achieving economic prosperity by
alleviating unnecessary regulatory burdens as well.\2\
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\2\ See, e.g., E.O. 14192, ``Unleashing Prosperity Through
Deregulation,'' 90 FR 9065 (Feb. 6, 2025); E.O. 14152, ``Unleashing
American Energy,'' 90 FR 8353 (Jan. 29, 2025); E.O. 14156,
``Declaring a National Energy Emergency,'' 90 FR 8433 (Jan. 29,
2025).
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Alternatives Under Consideration
PHMSA is proposing to update its safety standards for LNG
facilities to address congressional mandates, to account for current
technologies, best practices, and lessons learned, and to incorporate
recent editions of consensus industry standards by reference. To
achieve these objectives, PHMSA would amend the regulations in 49 CFR
part 193 that apply to the siting, design, installation, construction,
inspection, testing, operation, and maintenance of LNG facilities, by
incorporating more recent editions of industry standards by reference.
Accordingly, the proposed action for consideration in the EIS includes
the following components: (1) revising 49 CFR part 193 to incorporate
by reference provisions of the 2023 edition of National Fire Protection
Association (NFPA) Standard 59A, ``Standard for the Production,
Storage, and Handling of Liquefied Natural Gas''; (2) implementing the
congressional mandate in section 27 of the PIPES Act of 2016 \3\
pertaining to safety standards for permanent, small-scale LNG
facilities; and (3) implementing the congressional mandate in section
110 of the PIPES Act of 2020 \4\ to adopt a risk-based regulatory
approach for operations and maintenance for large-scale LNG facilities
(other than peak-shaving facilities).
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\3\ Public Law 114-183, see https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/COMPS-12081/pdf/COMPS-12081.pdf.
\4\ Public Law 116-260, see https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/PLAW-116publ260/pdf/PLAW-116publ260.pdf.
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PHMSA would also consider a no action alternative. The no action
alternative serves as a baseline to compare the potential environmental
impacts of the proposed action and alternatives.
Consideration of Expected Impacts
PHMSA's NEPA analysis will consider reasonably foreseeable effects
of the proposed action and the reasonable alternatives. PHMSA intends
to develop regulations that may alter the siting, design, installation,
construction, inspection, testing, operation, and maintenance
activities of LNG facilities. PHMSA anticipates evaluating the
following potential impacts in the EIS, including but not limited to
reasonably foreseeable:
Effects on populations located near LNG facilities;
Impacts related to public safety and human health in the
event of accidental release of hazardous substances from LNG
facilities;
Effects on human health from factors such as emissions of
air pollutants;
Effects on socioeconomic factors such as economy,
employment, transportation (e.g., road, and marine);
Effects on historic and cultural resources;
Effects on land use; and
Effects on natural resources.
Permits and Authorizations
PHMSA does not authorize the construction or operation of LNG
facilities. PHMSA's forthcoming NPRM would not authorize any
construction activities or require any permits or authorizations.
Agencies that would like to request cooperating or participating agency
status should follow the instructions for filing comments provided
under the ADDRESSES section above.
Scoping Process
PHMSA anticipates its NEPA analysis will consider reasonably
foreseeable effects of the proposed amendments to 49 CFR part 193 and
reasonable alternatives. The public is encouraged to provide
information and comments on the range of alternatives and the potential
environmental impacts that could result from this action. All comments
relevant to the scoping process are welcome.
The public may comment by using any of the methods described in the
ADDRESSES section of this document. PHMSA anticipates written comments
will be effective in identifying and narrowing the considerations for
analysis.
Schedule for Decisionmaking
PHMSA will consider the comments received in response to this
document in determining next steps. If necessary, separate Federal
Register documents will announce the availability of a Draft EIS, which
will be available for public comment, and a Final EIS. If prepared,
PHMSA will issue the Draft EIS concurrently with its NPRM. PHMSA will
simultaneously issue a Final EIS and Record of Decision (Final Rule)
pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 304a unless it is determined that statutory
criteria or practicability considerations preclude concurrent issuance.
Issued in Washington, DC, on June 3, 2025, under authority
delegated in 49 CFR 1.81(a)(5).
Benjamin D. Kochman,
Acting Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2025-10348 Filed 6-5-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-60-P