[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 248 (Thursday, December 26, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 78350-78352]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-30783]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket No. CP14-13-000]
Houston Pipe Line Company, LP; Notice of Intent to Prepare an
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed 24-Inch Border Crossing
Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues
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 24-Inch Border Crossing
Project (Project) involving construction and operation of border
crossing facilities at the international border between Mexico and the
United States in Hidalgo County, Texas by Houston Pipe Line Company, LP
(HPL). The Commission will use this EA in its decision-making process
to determine whether the Project is in the public convenience and
necessity.
This notice announces the opening of the scoping process the
Commission will use to gather input from the public and interested
agencies on the Project. Your input will help the Commission staff
determine what issues they need to evaluate in the EA. Please note that
the scoping period will close on January 17, 2014.
You may submit comments in written form or verbally. Further
details on how to submit written comments are in the Public
Participation section of this notice.
This notice is being sent to the Commission's current environmental
mailing list for the Project. State and local government
representatives should notify their constituents of this planned
project and encourage them to comment on their areas of concern.
If you are a landowner receiving this notice, a pipeline company
representative may contact you about the acquisition of an easement to
construct, operate, and maintain the planned facilities. The company
would seek to negotiate a mutually acceptable agreement. However, if
the Commission approves the Project, that approval conveys with it the
right of eminent domain. Therefore, if easement negotiations fail to
produce an agreement, the pipeline company could initiate condemnation
proceedings where compensation would be determined in accordance with
state law.
HPL provided landowners with a fact sheet prepared by the FERC
entitled ``An Interstate Natural Gas Facility On My Land? What Do I
Need To Know?'' This fact sheet addresses a number of typically-asked
questions, including the use of eminent domain and how to participate
in the Commission's proceedings. It is also available for viewing on
the FERC Web site (www.ferc.gov).
Summary of the Proposed Project
HPL proposes to construct a new border crossing at the
international boundary between the United States and Mexico in Hidalgo
County, Texas. The Project would consist of approximately 703 feet of
24-inch-diameter natural gas pipeline, directionally drilled underneath
the Rio Grande River in Hidalgo County, Texas. The new pipeline would
have a design capacity of approximately 140 million cubic feet per day
(Mmcf/d) and a maximum allowable operating pressure of 1,300 pounds per
square inch gauge designed to transport natural gas to a new delivery
interconnect with HPL's non-jurisdictional intrastate pipeline and to a
new interconnection with the Pemex Pipeline at the United States-Mexico
border.
The general location of the Project is shown in Appendix \1\.
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\1\ The appendices referenced in this notice will not appear in
the Federal Register. Copies of the appendices were sent to all
those receiving this notice in the mail and are available at
www.ferc.gov using the link called ``eLibrary'' or from the
Commission's Public Reference Room, 888 First Street NE.,
Washington, DC 20426, or call (202) 502-8371. For instructions on
connecting to eLibrary, refer to the last page of this notice.
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Land Requirements for Construction
Construction of the planned facilities would require ground
disturbance of approximately 4.1 acres of land for temporary workspace.
Following construction, HPL would maintain 0.81 acre for operation of
the Project and the remaining 3.3 acres would be revegetated.
In its application, HPL indicates that it would also construct
pipeline facilities that are not under the jurisdiction of the FERC.
Although FERC doesn't have the regulatory authority to modify or deny
the construction of these facilities, we will disclose available
information regarding the construction impacts in our EA. These
facilities would include approximately 23 miles of 24-inch-
[[Page 78351]]
diameter intrastate pipeline, to interconnect with the existing
Edinburg Lateral Pipeline in Hidalgo County, Texas.
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
\2\ 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, the Commission requests public
comments on the scope of the issues to address in the EA. We will
consider all filed comments during the preparation of the EA.
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\2\ ``We,'' ``us,'' and ``our'' refer to the environmental staff
of the Commission's Office of Energy Projects.
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In the EA we will discuss impacts that could occur as a result of
the construction and operation of the planned Project under these
general headings:
geology and soils;
water resources and fisheries;
vegetation, wildlife, and endangered and threatened
species;
land use and cumulative impacts;
cultural resources;
air quality and noise; and
public safety.
We will also evaluate possible alternatives to the planned project
or portions of the project, and make recommendations on how to lessen
or avoid impacts on the various resource areas.
The EA will present our independent analysis of the issues. The EA
will be available in the public record through eLibrary. Depending on
the comments received during the scoping process, we may also publish
and distribute the EA to the public for an allotted comment period. We
will consider all comments on the EA before making our recommendations
to the Commission. To ensure we have the opportunity to consider and
address your comments, please carefully follow the instructions in the
Public Participation section below.
With this notice, we are asking agencies with jurisdiction by law
and/or special expertise with respect to the environmental issues
related to this Project to formally cooperate with us in the
preparation of the EA.\3\
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\3\ The Council on Environmental Quality regulations addressing
cooperating agency responsibilities are at Title 40, Code of Federal
Regulations, Part 1501.6.
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Agencies that would like to request cooperating agency status
should follow the instructions for filing comments provided under the
Public Participation section of this notice.
Consultations Under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation
Act
In accordance with the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation's
implementing regulations for section 106 of the National Historic
Preservation Act, we are using this notice to initiate consultation
with the Texas Historical Commission (THC), and to solicit their views
and those of other government agencies, interested Indian tribes, and
the public on the Project's potential effects on historic
properties.\4\ We will define the Project-specific Area of Potential
Effects in consultation with the State Historic Preservation Officer as
the Project develops. On natural gas facility projects, the Area of
Potential Effects at a minimum encompasses all areas subject to ground
disturbance (examples include construction right-of-way, contractor/
pipe storage yards, meter stations, and access roads). Our EA for this
Project will document our findings on the impacts on historic
properties and summarize the status of consultations under section 106.
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\4\ The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation's regulations
are at Title 36, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 800. Those
regulations define historic properties as any prehistoric or
historic district, site, building, structure, or object included in
or eligible for inclusion in the National Register of Historic
Places.
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Public Participation
You can make a difference by providing us with your specific
comments or concerns about the Project. Your comments should focus on
the potential environmental effects, reasonable alternatives, and
measures to avoid or lessen environmental impacts. The more specific
your comments, the more useful they will be. To ensure that your
comments are timely and properly recorded, please send your comments so
that the Commission receives them in Washington, DC on or before
January 17, 2013.
For your convenience, there are three methods you can use to submit
your comments to the Commission. In all instances, please reference the
Project docket number (CP14-13-000) 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].
(1) You can file your comments electronically using the eComment
feature located on the Commission's Web site (www.ferc.gov) under the
link to Documents and Filings. This is an easy method for interested
persons to submit brief, text-only comments on a project;
(2) You can file your comments electronically using the eFiling
feature located 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.'' You must select the type of filing you are making. If
you are filing a comment on a particular project, please select
``Comment on a Filing''; 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.
Environmental Mailing List
The environmental mailing list includes federal, state, and local
government representatives and agencies; elected officials;
environmental and public interest groups; Native American Tribes; other
interested parties; and local libraries and newspapers. This list also
includes all affected landowners (as defined in the Commission's
regulations) who are potential right-of-way grantors, whose property
may be used temporarily for project purposes, or who own homes within
certain distances of aboveground facilities, and anyone who submits
comments on the Project. We will update the environmental mailing list
as the analysis proceeds to ensure that we send the information related
to this environmental review to all individuals, organizations, and
government entities interested in and/or potentially affected by the
planned Project.
If we publish and distribute the EA, copies of the completed EA
will be sent to the environmental mailing list for public review and
comment. If you would prefer to receive a paper copy of the document
instead of the CD version or would like to remove your name from the
mailing list, please return the attached Information Request (Appendix
2).
Becoming an Intervenor
In addition to involvement in the EA scoping process, you may want
to become an ``intervenor,'' which is an official party to the
Commission's
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proceeding. Intervenors play a more formal role in the process and are
able to file briefs, appear at hearings, and be heard by the courts if
they choose to appeal the Commission's final ruling. An intervenor
formally participates in the proceeding by filing a request to
intervene. Instructions for becoming an intervenor are in the User's
Guide under the ``e-filing'' link on the Commission's Web site at
http://www.ferc.gov/help/how-to/intervene.asp.
Additional Information
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., CP14-
13). Be sure you have selected an appropriate date range. For
assistance, please contact FERC Online Support at
[email protected] or toll free at (866) 208-3676, or 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 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. Go to www.ferc.gov/esubscribenow.htm.
Finally, public meetings or site visits will be posted on the
Commission's calendar located at www.ferc.gov/EventCalendar/EventsList.aspx along with other related information.
Dated: December 18, 2013.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2013-30783 Filed 12-24-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P