[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 92 (Friday, May 12, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 25710-25711]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-11725]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
[Docket No. CP95-119-001]
Steuben Gas Storage Company; Notice of Intent To Prepare an
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Thomas Corners Gas Storage
Field Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues
May 8, 1995.
On April 18, 1995, Steuben Gas Storage Company (Steuben) filed an
amendment to its application which substantially changed the routing of
its proposed 12-inch-diameter gathering header. The beginning and
ending points and the approximate length of the gathering header, as
well as all other aspects of Steuben's proposal remain unchanged by
this amendment. This notice supplements the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission's (FERC or Commission) ``Notice of Intent to Prepare an
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Thomas Corners Gas Storage
Field Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues'' issued
March 3, 1995 (March 3 Notice).
The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or
Commission) will prepare an environmental assessment (EA) that will
discuss the environmental impacts of the construction and operation of
facilities proposed in the Thomas Corners Gas Storage Field 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 or not to approve the project.
\1\Steuben's application was filed with the Commission under
section 7 of the Natural Gas Act and Parts 157 and 284 of the
Commission's regulations.
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Summary of the Proposed Project
Steuben requests Commission authorization to convert a depleted
natural gas production field to storage use in Steuben County, New
York. It proposes to construct and operate:
13 injection/withdrawal wells (11 new wells drilled from
one central location and two converted from existing gas production
wells);
One observation well;
0.6 mile of 4-inch-diameter well laterals;
0.3 mile of 12-inch-diameter well laterals;
A 3,284 horsepower compressor station;
6.5 miles of 12-inch-diameter gathering header including a
pipeline drip and storage tank; and
Dehydration facilities.
Steuben indicates that the proposed storage field, when fully
developed, would have a working gas capacity of 5,300,000 thousand
cubic feet of gas. Customers interested in using Steuben's storage
service would have to arrange for their own transportation. Steuben's
existing facilities are interconnected with the facilities of CNG
Transmission Corporation (CNG) in the town of Woodhull, Steuben County,
New York. The 6.5 miles of gathering header would connect the Thomas
Corners Gas Storage Field to Steuben's existing facilities.
Steuben states that the storage facility would be developed in the
nearly depleted Thomas Corners gas production reservoir. It lies about
3,530 feet below the surface. The aerial extent of the reservoir is
about 430 acres.
The location of the project facilities is 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
Steuben proposes to use a nominal 70-foot-wide right-of-way for
construction of the 6.5 miles of 12-inch-diameter pipeline. Following
construction, a 50-foot-wide easement would be permanently maintained;
the remaining 20 feet would be restored and allowed to revert to its
former use.
Additional working right-of-way width would be needed in areas of
steep side slopes and in agricultural areas where topsoil would be
segregated. Additional working space would also be needed adjacent to
road and stream crossings. About 60 acres would be required for
construction of the 12-inch-diameter gathering header.
A total of 37 acres would be needed for construction of the Thomas
Corners Gas Storage Field. All new injection/withdrawal wells would be
directionally drilled from one central pad area covering approximately
31 acres. The wells would be drilled at 150-foot centers around the
perimeter of the pad area. All of the 4- and 12-inch-diameter well
laterals would be constructed within the central well pad area.
An additional 6-acre work space would be required adjacent to the
pad area for drilling, completion, maintenance operations, and
equipment staging. After construction is complete, this area would be
used for the dehydration facilities.
The proposed compressor station would be located on Steuben's
existing Adrian Compressor Station site.
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 taken into account 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.
Vegetation and wildlife.
Endangered and threatened species.
Public safety.
Land use.
Cultural resources.
Hazardous waste.
Air and noise quality.
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 issues 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. [[Page 25711]]
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 Steuben. Keep in mind that
this is a preliminary list. The list of issues may be added to,
subtracted from, or changed based on your comments and our analysis.
Issues are:
The project would cross three perennial streams: Mud
Hollow Brook, the Canisteo River, an unnamed tributary of the Canisteo
River.
The 12-inch-diameter header would be constructed within
Catatunk Road and Canisteo River Road between approximately mileposts 1
and 2.6 (see appendix 1).
About 25 acres of upland forest would be disturbed.
A 3,284 horsepower compressor station would be constructed
adjacent to Steuben's existing Adrian Compressor Station which may
increase existing sound levels.
In addition, the following concerns were raised in response to our
March 3 Notice:
The EA should include standards required for slope
stabilization and erosion control during and after pipeline
construction.
Prime agricultural lands should be identified.
Restoration should include monitoring of agricultural
lands.
Fishery resources of the streams crossed should be
identified.
The EA should identify any threatened or endangered
species potentially found along the proposed route.
Safety features to ensure that no gas leaks during all
aspects of operation should be described.
All residences potentially affected during construction
should be identified.
All active or abandoned hazardous waste sites should be
identified.
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 routes), 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 you letter to: Lois Cashell, Secretary, Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission, 825 North Capitol St., N.E., Washington,
D.C. 20426;
Reference Docket No. CP95-119-001;
Send a copy of your letter to: Mr. Howard J. Wheeler, 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 June 12, 1995.
If you wish to receive a copy of the EA, you should request one
from Mr. Wheeler 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) (see
appendix 2).
The date for filing timely motions to intervene in this proceeding
has passed. Therefore, parties now seeking to file late interventions
must show good cause, as required by section 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. Howard Wheeler, EA Project Manager, at (202) 208-2299.
Lois D. Cashell,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 95-11725 Filed 5-11-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-M
