[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 212 (Friday, November 1, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65637-65639]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-26030]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket Nos. CP13-73-000; CP13-74-000]
Sierrita Gas Pipeline LLC; Notice of Availability of the Draft
Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Sierrita Pipeline
Project
The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or
Commission) has prepared a draft environmental impact statement (EIS)
for the Sierrita Pipeline Project (Project), proposed by Sierrita Gas
Pipeline LLC (Sierrita) in the above-referenced docket. Sierrita
requests authorization to link El Paso Natural Gas Company's existing
South Mainline System near Tucson to an interconnect with the
S[aacute]sabe-Guaymas Pipeline at the U.S.-Mexico border near the town
of Sasabe, Arizona.
The draft EIS assesses the potential environmental effects of the
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construction and operation of the Project in accordance with the
requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The FERC
staff concludes that approval of the Project would have some adverse
environmental impacts; however, these impacts would be reduced to less-
than-significant levels with the implementation of Sierrita's proposed
mitigation and the additional measures recommended in the draft EIS.
The US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS)--Arizona Ecological Services
Office; the FWS--Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge; the Arizona
Game and Fish Department; and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection
participated as cooperating agencies in the preparation of the EIS.
Cooperating agencies have jurisdiction by law or special expertise with
respect to resources potentially affected by the proposal and
participate in the NEPA analysis. Although the cooperating agencies
provided input to the conclusions and recommendations presented in the
draft EIS, the agencies will present their own conclusions and
recommendations in their respective Records of Decision for the
Project.
The draft EIS addresses the potential environmental effects of the
construction and operation of the following Project facilities:
Approximately 60.5 miles of 36-inch-diameter natural gas
pipeline in Pima County, Arizona;
two meter stations;
two pig launchers and two pig receivers; \1\ and
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\1\ A pig is an internal tool that can be used to clean and dry
a pipeline and/or to inspect it for damage or corrosion.
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six mainline valves.
The FERC staff mailed copies of the draft EIS to federal, state,
and local government representatives and agencies; elected officials;
environmental and public interest groups; Native American tribes;
potentially affected landowners and other interested individuals and
groups; newspapers and libraries in the Project area; and parties to
this proceeding. Paper copy versions of this EIS were mailed to those
specifically requesting them; all others received a CD version. In
addition, the draft EIS is available for public viewing on the FERC's
Web site (www.ferc.gov) using the eLibrary link. A limited number of
copies are available for distribution and public inspection at:
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Public Reference Room, 888
First Street NE., Room 2A, Washington, DC 20426, (202) 502-8371.
Any person wishing to comment on the draft EIS may do so. To ensure
consideration of your comments on the proposal in the final EIS, it is
important that the Commission receive your comments before December 16,
2013.
For your convenience, there are four methods you can use to submit
your comments to the Commission. In all instances, please reference the
Project docket numbers (CP13-73-000 and CP13-74-000) with your
submission. The Commission encourages electronic filing of comments and
has expert staff available to assist you at (202) 502-8258 or
[email protected]. Please carefully follow these instructions so that
your comments are properly recorded.
(1) You can file your comments electronically using the eComment
feature on the Commission's Web site (www.ferc.gov) under the link to
Documents and Filings. This is an easy method for submitting brief,
text-only comments on a project;
(2) You can file your comments electronically by using the eFiling
feature on the Commission's Web site (www.ferc.gov) under the link to
Documents and Filings. With eFiling, you can provide comments in a
variety of formats by attaching them as a file with your submission.
New eFiling users must first create an account by clicking on
``eRegister.'' If you are filing a comment on a particular project,
please select ``Comment on a Filing'' as the filing type; or
(3) You can file a paper copy of your comments by mailing them to
the following address: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE., Room 1A, Washington, DC
20426.
(4) In lieu of sending written or electronic comments, the
Commission invites you to attend one of the public comment meetings its
staff will conduct in the Project area to receive comments on the draft
EIS. We encourage interested groups and individuals to attend and
present oral comments on the draft EIS. Transcripts of the meetings
will be available for review in eLibrary under the Project docket
number. The meetings are scheduled as follows:
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Date and time Location
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Thursday, December 12, 2013, 6:00 pm Robles Elementary School
local time. Cafeteria, 9875 South Sasabe
Road, Tucson, AZ 85735.
Saturday, December 14, 2013, 10:00 am San Fernando Elementary School,
local time \2\. 1 Schoolhouse Drive, Sasabe,
AZ 85633.
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Any person seeking to become a party to the proceeding must file a
motion to intervene pursuant to Rule 214 of the Commission's Rules of
Practice and Procedures (18 CFR Part 385.214).\3\ Only intervenors have
the right to seek rehearing of the Commission's decision. The
Commission grants affected landowners and others with environmental
concerns intervenor status upon showing good cause by stating that they
have a clear and direct interest in this proceeding which no other
party can adequately represent. Simply filing environmental comments
will not give you intervenor status, but you do not need intervenor
status to have your comments considered.
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\2\ A Spanish-English translator will be provided at this
meeting.
\3\ See the previous discussion on the methods for filing
comments.
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Questions?
Additional information about the Project is available from the
Commission's Office of External Affairs, at (866) 208-FERC, or on the
FERC Web site (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 (i.e., CP13-
73 and CP13-74). Be sure you have selected an appropriate date range.
For assistance, please contact FERC Online Support at FercOnline
[email protected] or toll free at (866) 208-3676; for TTY, contact (202)
502-8659. 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 offers a free service called
eSubscription that 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
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by automatically providing you with notification of these filings,
document summaries, and direct links to the documents. Go to
www.ferc.gov/esubscribenow.htm.
Dated: October 25, 2013.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2013-26030 Filed 10-31-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P