[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 126 (Friday, June 30, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34239-34240]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-16098]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket No. CP95-531-000]
Columbia Gas Transmission Corporation; Notice of Intent To
Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed 1995 Line L
Replacement Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues
June 26, 1995.
The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or the
Commission) will prepare an environmental assessment (EA) and operation
of the facilities proposed in the 1995 Line L Replacement Project.\1\
This EA will be used by the Commission in its decision-making process
to determine whether an environmental impact statement is required and
whether or not to approve the project.
\1\ Columbia Gas Transmission Corporation'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
Columbia Gas Transmission Corporation (Columbia) wants to construct
and operate 5.8 miles of pipeline replacement to provide continued
service to its existing customers. Columbia's proposed facilities would
consist of 5.8 miles of 16-inch-diameter pipeline and appurtenances in
9 sections that replaces approximately 0.5 mile of 12-inch and 5.2
miles of 16-inch-diameter pipeline on Line L in Ashland, Medina, and
Wayne Counties, Ohio.
The locations of these facilities 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, NE., Washington, DC 20426, or call
(202) 208-1371. Copies of the appendices were sent to all those
receiving this notice in the mail.
[[Page 34240]]
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Land Requirements for Construction
Construction of the proposed facilities would require about 116
acres of land consisting of 35 acres of existing right-of-way (ROW), 60
acres of temporary ROW and staging areas, 18 acres of new permanent
ROW, and a 3-acre contractor's yard. Following construction, the ROW
would be restored and the temporary ROW would be allowed to revert to
its former land 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 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.
Land use.
Cultural resources.
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 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 Columbia. Keep in mind that
this is a preliminary list; the list of issues will be added to,
subtracted from, or changed based on your comments and our own
analysis. Issues are:
Twelve wetlands (palustrine/emergent and palustrine
forested) and 6 intermittent streams at 9 locations would be affected.
There is one residence and one business located within 50
feet of the construction ROW.
There are trees in the project area that may be suitable
habitat for the Indiana Bat, a federally listed endangered species.
Public Participation
You can make a difference by sending a letter with 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 your letter to: Lois Cashell, Secretary, Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission, 835 North Capitol St., NE., Washington,
DC 20426;
Reference Docket No. CP95-531-000;
Send a copy of your letter to: Mr. John Wisniewski, EA
Project Manager, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 825 North
Capitol St., NE., Room 7312, Washington, DC 20426; and
Mail your comments so that they will be received in
Washington, DC on or before July 31, 1995.
If you wish to receive a copy of the EA, you should request one
from Mr. Wisniewski 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 later intervention. You do not need intervenor status
to have your scoping comments considered.
Additional information about the proposed project is available from
Mr. John Wisniewski, EA Project Manager, at (202) 208-1073.
Lois D. Cashell,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 95-16098 Filed 6-29-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-M
