§ 157.202 - Definitions.

§ 157.202 Definitions.

(a) General rule. Terms defined in the Natural Gas Policy Act of 1978 (NGPA) shall have the same meaning for the purposes of this subpart as they have under the Natural Gas Policy Act of 1978.

(b) Subpart F definitions. For purposes of this subpart:

(1) Certificate holder means any interstate pipeline with an effective blanket certificate issued pursuant to this subpart.

(2)

(i) Eligible facility means, except as provided in paragraph (b)(2)(ii) of this section, any facility subject to the Natural Gas Act jurisdiction of the Commission that is necessary to provide service within existing certificated levels. Eligible facility also includes any gas supply facility or any facility, including receipt points, needed by the certificate holder to receive gas into its system for further transport or storage, and interconnecting facilities between transporters that transport natural gas under part 284 of this chapter. Further, eligible facility includes main line, lateral, and compressor replacements that do not qualify under § 2.55(b) of this chapter because they will result in an incidental increase in the capacity of main line facilities, or because they will not satisfy the location or work space requirements of § 2.55(b). Replacements must be done for sound engineering purposes. Replacements for the primary purpose of creating additional main line capacity are not eligible facilities; however, replacements and the modification of facilities to rearrange gas flows or increase compression for the primary purpose of restoring service in an emergency due to sudden unforeseen damage to main line facilities are eligible facilities. Eligible facility also includes auxiliary installations and observation wells which do not qualify under § 2.55(a) of this chapter because they will not satisfy the location or work space requirements of § 2.55(a). Finally, for purposes of abandonment under § 157.216, eligible facilities include auxiliary installations that do not qualify for pre-granted abandonment authority under § 2.55(a)(3) and replacement facilities constructed under § 2.55(b).

(ii) Exclusions: “Eligible facility” does not include:

(A) A main line of a transmission system, except replacement facilities covered under § 157.202(b)(2)(i).

(B) An extension of a main line, except replacement facilities covered under § 157.202(b)(2)(i).

(C) A facility, including compression and looping, that alters the capacity of a main line, except replacement facilities and facility modifications covered under paragraph (b)(2)(i) of this section;

(D) A facility required to test or develop an underground storage field or that alters the certificated capacity, deliverability, or storage boundary, or a facility required to store gas above ground in either a gaseous or liquified state, or a facility used to receive gas from plants manufacturing synthetic gas or from plants gasifying liquefied natural gas, or wells needed to utilize an underground storage field.

(E) Delivery points under § 157.211.

(F) Temporary compression under § 157.209;

(G) A facility that crosses a state line and is constructed for the primary purpose of transporting gas which is also transported by an intrastate pipeline under section 311(a)(2) of the NGPA;

(3) Facility, for purposes of construction under this subpart, does not include an auxiliary facility that qualifies for construction under § 2.55(a) of this chapter or a replacement facility that qualifies for construction under § 2.55(b).

(4) Temporary compression means compressor facilities installed and operated at existing compressor locations for the limited purpose of temporarily replacing existing permanent compressor facilities that are undergoing maintenance or repair or that are pending permanent replacement.

(5) Main line means the principal transmission facilities of a pipeline system extending from supply areas to market areas and does not include small diameter supply or delivery laterals or gathering lines.

(6) Miscellaneous rearrangement of any facility means any rearrangement of a facility, excluding underground storage injection/withdrawal wells, that does not result in any change of service rendered by means of the facilities involved, including changes in existing field operations or relocation of existing facilities:

(i) On the same property;

(ii) When required by highway construction, dam construction, encroachment of residential, commercial, or industrial areas, erosion, or the expansion or change of course of rivers, streams or creeks, or

(iii) To respond to other natural forces beyond the certificate holder's control when necessary to ensure safety or maintain the operational integrity of the certificate holder's facilities.

(7) Project means a unit of improvement or construction that is used and useful upon completion.

(8) Project cost means the total actual cost of constructing the jurisdictional portions of a project. In the case of a project constructed jointly by more than one interstate pipeline, the project cost is the total cost, irrespective of the amount paid by each pipeline.

(9) Right-of-way grantor means

(i) a person who grants a right-of-way easement to the certificate holder; or

(ii) any successor to an interest which is subject to the easement.

(10) Delivery point means a tap and/or metering and appurtenant facilities, such as heaters, minor gas conditioning, treatment, odorization, and similar equipment, necessary to enable the certificate holder to deliver gas to any party.

(11) Sensitive environmental area means:

(i) The habitats of species which have been identified as endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act (Pub. L. 93-205, as amended) and essential fish habitat as identified under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1801, et seq.);

(ii) National or State Forests or Parks;

(iii) Properties listed on, or eligible for inclusion in, the National Register of Historic Places, or the National Register of Natural Landmarks;

(iv) Floodplains and wetlands;

(v) Designated or proposed wilderness areas, national or state wild and scenic rivers, wildlife refuges and management areas and sanctuaries;

(vi) Prime agricultural lands, designated by the Department of Agriculture; or

(vii) Sites which are subject to use by American Indians and other Native Americans for religious purposes.

(12) Interconnection facilities means the interconnecting point, which includes the tap, metering, and M&R facilities and the related interconnecting pipeline.

(13) Emergency means a sudden unanticipated loss of gas supply or capacity that requires an immediate restoration of interrupted service for protection of life or health or for maintenance of physical property.

[Order 234, 47 FR 24266, June 4, 1982]

Editorial Note

Editorial Note:

For Federal Register citations affecting § 157.202, see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the Finding Aids section of the printed volume and at www.govinfo.gov.