E5-428. Tennessee Gas Pipeline Company; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Compressor Station 325 Horsepower Replacement Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

January 26, 2005.

The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or Commission) will prepare an environmental assessment (EA) on Tennessee Gas Pipeline Company's (Tennessee) proposed Compressor Station 325 Horsepower Replacement Project. Tennessee's proposal involves the replacement of the two existing turbines at its Compressor Station 325 in Sussex County, New Jersey with two new turbines.

This notice announces the opening of the scoping period that will be used to gather environmental input from the public and interested agencies on the project. Please note that the scoping period will close on February 25, 2005.

This notice is being sent to potentially affected landowners; Federal, State, and local government agencies; elected officials; environmental and public interest groups; Native American tribes; other interested parties; and local libraries and newspapers. This includes all owners of property within 0.5-mile of Tennessee's Compressor Station 325. State and local government representatives are asked to notify their constituents of this planned project and encourage them to comment on their areas of concern.

A fact sheet prepared by the FERC entitled “An Interstate Natural Gas Facility on My Land? What Do I Need To Know?” is available for viewing on the FERC Internet Web site (http://www.ferc.gov). This fact sheet addresses a number of typically asked questions, including how to participate in the Commission's proceedings.

Summary of the Proposed Project

Tennessee seeks the authority to replace the two turbines at its existing Compressor Station 325 in order to comply with Reasonably Available Control Technology standards set by the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection regarding nitrogen oxide emissions.

The existing turbines are both site-rated at 3,500 horsepower; the replacements would be site-rated at 4,721 horsepower. Therefore, the proposed action would increase the total authorized compressor station output by 2,442 horsepower and increase pipeline flow capacity by 18,000 dekatherms per day in the vicinity of compressor station. Construction of the proposed project would commence on or about April 2006 and Tennessee would place the project in-service in November 2006. The general location of the project is shown in Appendix 1.^[1]

Land Requirements for Construction

Compressor Station 325 is located on a 93.59-acre lot. However, the fenced station yard is 4.92 acres in size and is served by a paved access road. The private access road would not be improved, and no temporary access roads would be constructed. All construction activities would take place within the previously disturbed, graveled areas inside the fenced station yard. No expansion of the fenced station yard is proposed.

The EA Process

We ^[2] are preparing this EA to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) which requires the Commission to take into account the environmental impact that could result if it authorizes Tennessee's proposed project. NEPA also requires us to discover and address concerns the public may have about proposals. This process is referred to as “scoping.” The main goal of the scoping process is to focus the analysis in the EA on the important environmental issues. By this notice, we are requesting public comment on the scope of the issues to address in the EA. All comments received will be considered during the preparation of the EA. By this notice, we are also asking Federal, State, and local agencies with jurisdiction and/or special expertise with respect to environmental issues to formally cooperate with us in the preparation of the EA. Agencies that would like to request cooperating status should follow the instructions for filing comments provided below.

The EA will present our independent analysis of the issues. 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, potentially 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 make our recommendations to the Commission.

To ensure your comments are considered, please carefully follow the instructions in the public participation section below.

Public Participation

You can make a difference by providing us with your specific comments or concerns about the project. By becoming a commentor, your concerns will be addressed in the EA and considered by the Commission. You should focus on the potential environmental effects of the proposal, alternatives to the proposal, and measures to avoid or lessen environmental impact. The more specific your comments, the more useful they will be. Please carefully follow these instructions to ensure that your comments are received in time and properly recorded:

• Send an original and two copies of your letter to: Magalie R. Salas, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First St., NE., Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426.
• Label one copy of the comments for the attention of Gas Branch 1.
• Reference Docket No. CP05-42-000.
• Mail your comments so that they will be received in Washington, DC on or before February 25, 2005.

The Commission strongly encourages electronic filing of any comments or interventions or protests to this proceeding. See 18 CFR 385.2001(a)(1)(iii) and the instructions on the Commission's Web site at http://www.ferc.gov under the “e-Filing” link and the link to the User's Guide. Before you can file comments you will need to create a free account which can be created on-line.

Becoming an Intervenor

In addition to involvement in the EA scoping process, you may want to become an official party to the proceeding known as an “intervenor”. Intervenors play a more formal role in the process. Among other things, intervenors have the right to receive copies of case-related Commission documents and filings by other intervenors. Likewise, each intervenor must send one electronic copy (using the Commission's eFiling system) or 14 paper copies of its filings to the Secretary of the Commission and must send a copy of its filings to all other parties on the Commission's service list for this proceeding. 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) (see Appendix 2).^[3] Only intervenors have the right to seek rehearing of the Commission's decision.

Affected landowners and parties with environmental concerns may be granted intervenor status upon showing good cause by stating that they have a clear and direct interest in this proceeding which would not be adequately represented by any other parties. You do not need intervenor status to have your environmental comments considered.

Additional Information

Additional information about the project is available from the Commission's Office of External Affairs, at 1-866-208-FERC or on the FERC Internet Web site (http://www.ferc.gov) using the eLibrary link. Click on the eLibrary link, click on “General Search” and enter the docket number excluding the last three digits in the Docket Number field. Be sure you have selected an appropriate date range. For assistance, please contact FERC Online Support at [e-mail] or toll free at 1-866-208-3676, or for TTY, contact [phone]. The eLibrary link also provides access to the texts of formal documents issued by the Commission, such as orders, notices, and rulemakings.

In addition, the Commission now 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. To register for this service, go to http://www.ferc.gov/​esubscribenow.htm.

Magalie R. Salas,

Secretary.

Footnotes

1.  The appendices referenced in this notice are not being printed in the Federal Register. Copies of all appendices, other than Appendix 1 (maps), are available on the Commission's Web site at the “eLibrary” link or from the Commission's Public Reference Room, 888 First Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426, or call [phone]. For instructions on connecting to eLibrary refer to the last page of this notice. Copies of the appendices were sent to all those receiving this notice in the mail.

2.  “We,” “us,” and “our” refer to the environmental staff of the Office of Energy Projects.

3.  Interventions may also be filed electronically via the Internet in lieu of paper. See the previous discussion on filing comments electronically.