[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 122 (Wednesday, June 25, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34252-34253]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-16581]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket No. CP97-318-000]
Algonquin Gas Transmission Company; Notice of Intent To Prepare
an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Taunton Municipal Lighting
Plant Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues
June 19, 1997.
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
the facilities, about 924 feet of 12-inch-diameter pipeline, a new
meter station and appurtenant facilities, proposed in the Taunton
Municipal Lighting Plant Project.\1\ This EA will be used by the
Commission in its decision-making process to determine whether the
project is in the public convenience and necessity.
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\1\ Algonquin Gas Transmission 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
Algonquin Gas Transmission Company (Algonquin) proposes to expand
the capacity of its facilities in Massachusetts to transport an
additional 27,000 million British thermal units per day of natural gas
to the Taunton Municipal Lighting Plant (TMLP). Algonquin seeks
authority to construct and operate:
942 feet of 12-inch-diameter pipeline between the towns of
Berkley and Taunton, Massachusetts;
A new meter station on TMLP property in Taunton; and
A tap and valving in Berkley.
TMLP would construct about 150 feet of nonjurisdictional pipeline
to connect
[[Page 34253]]
the meter station to the existing Cleary Flood generating station.
The location of the project facilities is shown in appendix 1.\2\
If you are interested in obtaining procedural information please write
to the Secretary of the Commission.
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\2\ The appendices referenced in this notice are not being
printed in the Federal Register. Copies are available from the
Commissions Public Reference and Files Maintenance Branch, 888 First
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 1.17
acres of land. Following construction, about 0.58 acre would be
maintained as new permanent right-of-way. The remaining 0.59 acre 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
Vegetation and wildlife
Endangered and threatened species
Land use
Cultural resources
Air quality and noise
Hazardous waste
Public safety
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 Commissions 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.
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 Algonquin. This preliminary
list of issues may be changed based on your comments and our analysis.
Crossing of the Taunton River by directional drilling.
Location of the proposed directional drill target and pipe
make-up area near the residences on Candice Lane.
Location of a valve near the residences on Candice Lane.
A potential alternative route that would be located
entirely on the west side of the Taunton River.
Also, we have made a preliminary decision to not address the
impacts of the nonjurisdictional facilities. We will briefly describe
their location and status in the EA.
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:
Send two copies of your letter to: Lois Cashell,
Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First St., N.E.,
Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426;
Reference Docket No. CP97-318-000; and
Mail your comments so that they will be received in
Washington, DC on or before July 21, 1997.
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
Commissions 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 comments considered.
Lois D. Cashell,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 97-16581 Filed 6-24-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-M
