[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 29 (Monday, February 13, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8231-8232]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-3468]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
[Docket No. CP95-130-000]
Northern Natural Gas Co.; Intent To Prepare an Environmental
Assessment for the Proposed East Leg Expansion Project and Request for
Comments on Environmental Issues
February 7, 1995.
The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or the
Commission) will prepare an environmental assessment (EA) that will
discuss the environmental impacts of the construction and operation of
the facilities proposed in the East Leg Expansion Project.\1\ This EA
will be used by the Commission in its decision-making process to
determine whether an environmental impact statement is necessary and
whether to approve the project.
\1\Northern Natural Gas Company's application was filed with the
Commission under Section 7 of the Natural Gas Act and Part 157 of
the Commission's regulations.
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Summary of the Proposed Project
Northern Natural Gas Company (Northern) wants to expand the
capacity of its facilities in Iowa, Illinois and Wisconsin to transport
an additional 107,600 million British thermal units per day of natural
gas to four local distribution companies and one electric cogeneration
plant. Northern requests Commission authorization, in Docket No. CP95-
130-000, to construct and operate the following facilities needed to
transport those volumes:
Phase I Facilities (1995)
6,000 horsepower (hp) of electric motor-driven compression
at the new Hubbard Compressor Station in Hardin County, Iowa;
Modification and repiping of the existing Waterloo
Compressor Station in Black Hawk County, Iowa;
14,000 hp of gas turbine-driven compression at the new
Earlville Compressor Station in Delaware County, Iowa;
A new Quad Cities town border station (TBS) in Dubuque
County, Iowa for deliveries to the Iowa-Illinois Gas and Electric
Company;
Modification of the existing Galena Compressor Station in
Jo Daviess County, Illinois;
Modification of the existing Beloit TBS near Beloit, Rock
County, Wisconsin for deliveries to the Wisconsin Power and Light
Company; and
A new LS Power TBS in Walworth County, Wisconsin for
Deliveries to the LS Power-Whitewater Limited Partnership (LS Power).
Phase II Facilities (1996)
3,200 hp of compression (two 1,600-hp gas turbine-driven
compressors) at the new Belleville Compressor Station in Green County,
Wisconsin.
The general location of the project facilities and specific
locations for facilities on new sites are shown in appendix 1.\2\
\2\The appendices referenced in this notice are not being
printed in the Federal Register. Copies are available from the
Commission's Public Reference and Files Maintenance Branch, Room
3104, 941 North Capitol Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20426, or
call (202) 208-1371. Copies of the appendices were sent to all those
receiving this notice in the mail.
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Land Requirements for Construction
Construction of the proposed facilities would require about 26.9
acres of land. Following construction about 8.6 acres would be
maintained as new above-ground facility sites. The remaining 18.3 acres
of land would be restored and allowed to revert to its former use.
The EA Process
The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requires the
Commission to take into account the environmental impacts that could
result from an action whenever it considers the issuance of a
Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity. NEPA also requires us
to discover and address concerns the public may have about proposals.
We call this ``scoping''. The main goal of the scoping process is to
focus the analysis in the EA on the important environmental issues. By
this Notice of Intent, the Commission requests public comments on the
scope of the issues it will address in the EA. All comments received
are considered during the preparation of the EA. State and local
government representatives are encouraged to notify their constituents
of this proposed action and encourage them to comment on their areas of
concern.
The EA will discuss impacts that could occur as a result of the
construction and operation of the proposed project under these general
headings:
Geology and soils
Water resources, fisheries, and wetlands\3\
\3\According to the applicant, the project will not affect any
waters of the United States. We will repot any potential impacts, or
their absence, under this heading.
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Vegetation and wildlife
Endangered and threatened species
Land use
Cultural resources
Air quality and noise
Hazardous waste
We will also evaluate possible alternatives to the proposed project
or portions of the project, and make recommendations on how to lessen
or avoid impacts on the various resource areas.
Our independent analysis of the issue will be in the EA. Depending
on the comments received during the scoping process, the EA may be
published and mailed to Federal, state, and local agencies, public
interest groups, interested individuals, affected landowners,
newspapers, libraries, and the Commission's official service list for
this proceeding. A comment period will be allotted for review if the EA
is published. We will consider all comments on the EA before we
recommend that the Commission approve or not approve the project.
Currently Identified Environmental Issues
We have already identified several issues that we think deserve
attention based on a preliminary review of the proposed facilities and
the environmental information provided by Northern. Keep in mind that
this is a [[Page 8232]] preliminary list. The list of issues may be
added to, subtracted from, or changed based on your comments and our
analysis. Issues are:
Eight federally listed endangered or threatened species
may occur in the proposed project area.
A total of 8.6 acres of agricultural land, including a
total of 3.2 acres of prime farmland soils, would convert to industrial
use.
Public Participation
You can make a difference by sending a letter addressing your
specific comments or concerns about the project. You should focus on
the potential environmental effects of the proposal, alternatives to
the proposal (including alternative locations), and measures to avoid
or lessen environmental impact. The more specific your comments, the
more useful they will be. Please follow the instructions below to
ensure that your comments are received and properly recorded:
Address your letter to: Lois Cashell, Secretary, Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission, 825 North Capitol St., N.E., Washington,
D.C. 20426;
Reference Docket No. CP95-130-000;
Send a copy of your letter to: Mr. Jeff Gerber, EA Project
Manager, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 825 North Capitol St.,
N.E., Room 7312, Washington, D.C. 20426; and
Mail your comments so that they will be received in
Washington, D.C. on or before March 13, 1995.
If you wish to receive a copy of the EA, you should request one
from Mr. Gerber at the above address.
Becoming an Intervenor
In addition to involvement in the EA scoping process, you may want
to become an official party to the proceeding or become an
``intervenor''. Among other things, intervenors have the right to
receive copies of case-related Commission documents and filings by
other intervenors. Likewise, each intervenor must provide copies of its
filings to all other parties. If you want to become an intervenor you
must file a motion to intervene according to Rule 214 of the
Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure (18 CFR 385.214) attached
as appendix 2.
The date for filing of timely motions to intervene in this
proceeding has passed. Therefore, parties now seeking to file late
interventions must show good cause, as required by Sec. 385.214(b)(3),
why this time limitation should be waived. Environmental issues have
been viewed as good cause for late intervention. You do not need
intervenor status to have your scoping comments considered.
Additional information about the proposed project is available from
Mr. Jeff Gerber, EA Project Manager, at (202) 208-1121.
Lois D. Cashell,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 95-3468 Filed 2-10-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-M
