[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 119 (Friday, June 20, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35403-35404]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-14499]
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DEPARTMENT OF STATE
[Public Notice: 8770]
Intent To Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Assessment
(Supplemental EA) and To Conduct Scoping Consistent With the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) for Proposed Changes to the
NuStar Dos Laredos Pipeline
AGENCY: Department of State.
ACTION: Notice; solicitation of comments.
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SUMMARY: NuStar Logistics, L.P. (NuStar) has applied to the U.S.
Department of State (Department) for a Presidential Permit to replace a
2003 Presidential Permit issued to Valero Logistics Operations L.P. to
construct, connect, operate, and maintain pipeline facilities (the Dos
Laredos Pipeline) crossing the international border between the United
States and Mexico at a location on the Rio Grande River known as ``La
Bota,'' approximately six miles northwest of downtown Laredo, Texas.
Specifically, NuStar requests a Presidential Permit that: (1) Reflects
NuStar's name change from Valero Logistics Operations, L.P. to NuStar
Logistics, L.P., as the owner and operator of the Dos Laredos Pipeline
crossing the international boundary; and (2) expands the types of
products that may be transported through the pipeline. The 2003
Presidential Permit only allows shipment of liquefied petroleum gas
(LPG), while NuStar now proposes to transport other specifically
defined petroleum products, including diesel.
On December 30, 2003, the Department issued a ``Finding of No
Significant Impact and Summary Environmental Assessment; Valero
Logistics LP Pipeline in Webb County, TX,'' applicable to the Dos
Laredos Pipeline (the 2003 Environmental Finding). In the 2003
Environmental Finding, the Department described the proposed Dos
Laredos Pipeline as being designed to transport up to 32,400 barrels
(1.36 million gallons) of LPG daily from the United States to Mexico.
The Department concluded that issuance of a Presidential Permit
authorizing the proposed Dos Laredos Pipeline would have no significant
impact on the quality of the human environment within the United
States, and further determined that granting a Presidential Permit for
the Dos Laredos Pipeline would serve the national interest.
In accordance with the 2003 Environmental Finding and the 2003
Presidential Permit, the Dos Laredos Pipeline was constructed and went
into service in 2004. The owner, Valero Logistics Operations, L.P.,
changed its name to NuStar Logistics, L.P. on April 1, 2007. In June
2011, NuStar temporarily suspended transportation of LPG on the Dos
Laredos Pipeline. NuStar has continued to maintain the pipeline with
the intent to place the pipeline back into active service in 2014.
On December 4, 2013, NuStar submitted an application to the
Department requesting a new Presidential Permit for the Dos Laredos
Pipeline. The Department has concluded, consistent with NEPA, that it
will prepare a Supplemental EA to determine whether the proposed action
may have a significant impact on the human environment.
The purpose of this Notice of Intent is to inform the public about
the proposed action, announce plans for determining the scope of the
review, invite public participation in the scoping process, and solicit
public comments for consideration in establishing the scope and content
of the Supplemental EA.
DATES: Submit comments on or before August 4, 2014. The public scoping
period starts with the publication of this Notice in the Federal
Register on June 20, 2014 and will continue until August 4, 2014.
Written and electronic comments will be given equal weight and the
Department will consider all comments received or postmarked by August
4, 2014 in determining the scope and content of the Supplemental EA.
ADDRESSES: Parties may submit comments on the scope and content of the
Supplemental EA through the Federal eRulemaking Portal (http://www.regulations.gov) by entering the Docket No. DOS-2014-0013 and
following the prompts. Written comments should be addressed to: Mr.
Travis Grout, U.S. Department of State, 2201 C Street NW., Room 2726,
Washington, DC 20520.
Comments are not private. They will be posted on the site http://www.regulations.gov. The comments will not be edited to remove
identifying or contact information, and the State Department cautions
against including any information that one does not want publicly
disclosed. The State Department requests that any party soliciting or
aggregating comments received from other persons for submission to the
State Department inform those persons that the State Department will
not edit their comments to remove identifying or contact information,
and that they should not include any information in their comments that
they do not want publicly disclosed.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Office of Environmental Quality and
Transboundary Issues, Attn: Mr. Travis Grout, U.S. Department of State,
2201 C Street NW., Room 2726, Washington, DC 20520. Tel: (202) 647-
4284.
Project details and environmental information on the NuStar
application
[[Page 35404]]
for a Presidential Permit, as well as the Presidential Permit process,
are downloadable from the following Web site: http://www.state.gov/e/enr/applicant/applicants/index.htm.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Project Description
The Dos Laredos Pipeline is an 8 and \5/8\ inch outer diameter
pipeline at the United States-Mexico border that connects the NuStar
terminal in Laredo, Texas, with a terminal in Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas,
Mexico. The U.S. portion of the Dos Laredos Pipeline consists of
approximately 10.6 miles of pipeline from the NuStar terminal in
Laredo, Texas to the Rio Grande crossing approximately six miles
northwest of downtown Laredo, Texas. The Mexican portion consists of
approximately 1.5 kilometers of pipeline from the Rio Grande crossing
to the Nuevo Laredo terminal.
NuStar has requested authorization to expand the types of products
that may be transported through the pipeline to include LPG and other
specified petroleum products, including diesel. Specifically, NuStar
has requested a Presidential Permit that allows transportation of any
petroleum product that, by American Society for Testing Materials test
methods,: (1) Substantially distills below 700 degrees Fahrenheit; (2)
has a Reid vapor pressure not exceeding 28 pounds at 100 degrees
Fahrenheit; and (3) is a color not darker than No. 3. NuStar's request
excludes certain petroleum products legally prohibited from being
exported by statute or regulation. As stated above, the 2003
Presidential Permit only allows shipment of LPG. No substantial
physical changes to the pipeline would be required to transport the
expanded range of petroleum products. NuStar expects to transport no
more than 24,000 barrels per day of refined petroleum products, in
contrast to the 32,400 barrels per day of LPG that the Dos Laredos
Pipeline has transported, because of differences in viscosity and flow
characteristics. While the proposed operational change in products
would require some physical change of pipeline facilities within the
U.S. terminal, NuStar is not proposing any construction on the U.S.
portion of the Dos Laredos Pipeline facilities outside the fence line
of the U.S. terminal and no specific support infrastructure or access
roads are necessary or required by state or regional plans with respect
to the border-crossing facilities.
The Supplemental EA Process
The Department, consistent with NEPA, will prepare the Supplemental
EA to determine whether the approval of a Presidential Permit for
NuStar to transport a broader range of petroleum products, including
diesel, using the Dos Laredos Pipeline would result in significant
impacts to the human environment. The Department will also evaluate
reasonable alternatives, including a ``no action'' alternative, to the
proposed project or portions of the project. Below, the Department
invites interested parties to submit comments to assist in determining
the appropriate scope and content of that Supplemental EA.
The Department will select a Third-Party Contractor to assist with
preparation of the Supplemental EA and related tasks. The draft and
final Supplemental EA will be prepared under the direction of the
Department.
A draft Supplemental EA will be released to the public and
distributed to relevant government agencies and stakeholders. Once the
draft Supplemental EA is published, all interested parties will have an
opportunity to provide specific comments or concerns about the draft
Supplemental EA. The Department will consider all timely submissions
received about the draft Supplemental EA and will incorporate them, as
appropriate, into the final Supplemental EA.
Dated: June 16, 2014.
Deborah Klepp,
Director, Office of Environmental Quality and Transboundary Issues,
Department of State.
[FR Doc. 2014-14499 Filed 6-19-14; 8:45 am]
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