18 August 2006
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
[Federal Register: August 18, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 160)]
[Notices]
[Page 47801-47803]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr18au06-81]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket No. CP06-398-000]
MoBay Storage Hub, Inc.; Notice of Intent To Prepare an
Environmental Assessment for the Proposed MoBay Storage Project and
Request for Comments on Environmental Issues
August 1, 2006.
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 MoBay Storage Project
involving construction and operation of facilities by MoBay Storage
Hub, Inc. (MoBay) in offshore Alabama waters and in Mobile County,
Alabama.\1\ These facilities would consist of injection/withdrawal
storage wells, observation wells, various diameter offshore and onshore
pipeline, two 8,500 horsepower (hp) offshore compressor units, one
37,880 hp onshore compressor station, and meter stations. This EA will
be used by the Commission in its decisionmaking process to determine
whether the project is in the public convenience and necessity.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ MoBay's application was filed with the Commission under
section 7 of the Natural Gas Act and part 157 of the Commission's
regulations.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you are a landowner receiving this notice, you may be contacted
by a pipeline company representative about the acquisition of an
easement to construct, operate, and maintain the proposed facilities.
The pipeline company would seek to negotiate a mutually acceptable
agreement. However, if the project is approved by the Commission, 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 in accordance with
State law.
A fact sheet prepared by the FERC entitled ``An Interstate Natural
Gas Facility on My Land? What Do I Need To Know?'' was attached to the
project notice Caledonia provided to landowners. 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 available for viewing on the FERC Internet Web site (http://www.ferc.gov
).
[[Page 47802]]
Summary of the Proposed Project
MoBay proposes to build and operate a high-deliverability, multi-
cycle natural gas storage facility and appurtenant facilities in Mobile
Bay in offshore Alabama waters and in Mobile County, Alabama, to
provide a working gas capacity of approximately 50 billion cubic feet
(BCF), and maximum daily injection and withdrawal capabilities of up to
one BCF per day. The proposed storage facility would be converted from
three offshore substantially-depleted natural gas reservoirs: the North
Dauphin Island (NDI), Northwest Dauphin Island (NWDI), and Northeast
Petit Bois (NEPB) fields.
MoBay seeks authority to construct and operate:
30 offshore injection and withdrawal wells supported by 10
caissons;
14 observation wells within the three reservoirs;
two offshore 8,500 hp compressor units on the NDI
platform;
7.4 miles of 8- to 16-inch-diameter offshore pipeline
connecting the 30 wells to the NDI and NWDI platforms;
12.1 miles of 36-inch-diameter offshore pipeline from the
NDI platform to the Bayou Coden Valve Station at landfall just east of
the mouth of Bayou Coden at milepost 0.0;
the 37,880 hp MoBay Compressor Station near the Gulfstream
Compressor Station 410 on Rock Road in Mobile County, Alabama;
the Gulfstream Interconnect, the Transco Interconnect, and
the Gulf South Pipe Line Interconnect Meter Stations; and
the Coden Valve at milepost 0.04.
MoBay requests certification by November 1, 2006, to enable
commencement of construction in late 2006 for a targeted in-service
date of October 1, 2007.
The location of the project facilities is shown in Appendix 1.\2\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ The appendices referenced in this notice are not being
printed in the Federal Register. Copies of all appendices, other
than Appendix 1 (maps), are available on the Commission's Web site
at the ``eLibrary'' link 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. Copies of the appendices were sent to all
those receiving this notice in the mail.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Land Requirements for Construction
Construction of the proposed facilities would require disturbance
of 14 acres of land offshore and 93 acres of land onshore (18 acres in
extra workspaces and pipe yard) for a total of 107 acres. Following
construction, 14 acres of offshore land and 33 acres of onshore land
would be restored to previous use, leaving 60 acres of onshore land
under permanent easement for operation. MoBay would use a 100-foot-wide
construction ROW and a 75-foot-wide operational ROW for the onshore
pipelines. MoBay would open a 5-foot-wide seafloor trench for offshore
pipeline construction.
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.
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 of Intent, the Commission staff
requests public comments on the scope of the issues to 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.
In the EA we \3\ will discuss impacts that could occur as a result
of the construction and operation of the proposed project under these
general headings:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ ``We'', ``us'', and ``our'' refer to the environmental staff
of the Office of Energy Projects (OEP).
Geology and soils;
Water resources;
Wetlands and fisheries;
Vegetation and wildlife;
Threatened and endangered species;
Land use;
Cultural resources;
Air quality and noise;
Reliability and safety, and
Cumulative impacts.
We will also evaluate reasonable 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 make
our recommendations to the Commission.
To ensure your comments are considered, please carefully follow the
instructions in the public participation section below.
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 MoBay. This preliminary list
of issues may be changed based on your comments and our analysis.
Open-cut crossing of three perennial waterways, including
Bayou Jonas and Bayou Como;
Disturbance of cypress trees associated with Jonas Bayou;
Sedimentation in the Mississippi Sound from underwater
pipeline and well installation;
Disturbance of 102 acres of wetlands, including conversion
of 35 acres of palustrine forested wetlands to emergent wetlands;
Open-cut pipeline installation across 15 miles of the
Intercoastal Waterway;
Visual impacts of 10 injection/withdrawal well caissons
and 14 observation well caissons;
Crossing within 0.03 mile of Ralston Park at milepost
0.70;
Crossing of the Dauphin Island-Bayou LaBatre Loop of the
Alabama Coastal Birding Trail at milepost 1.12;
Noise impacts to three noise sensitive areas (i.e.
residences) located from 1,800 to 4,300 feet from the proposed MoBay
Compressor Station.
Public Participation
You can make a difference by providing us with your specific
comments or concerns about the project. By becoming a commentor, your
concerns will be addressed in the EA and considered by the Commission.
You should focus on the potential environmental effects of the
proposal, alternatives to the proposal (including alternative
locations/routes), and measures to avoid or lessen environmental
impact. The more specific your comments, the more useful they will be.
Please carefully follow these instructions to ensure that your comments
are received in time and properly recorded:
Send an original and two copies of your letter to: Magalie
R. Salas,
[[Page 47803]]
Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First St., NE.,
Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426.
Label one copy of the comments for the attention of Gas 2.
Reference Docket No. CP06-398-000.
Mail your comments so that they will be received in
Washington, DC on or before August 31, 2006.
Please note that we are continuing to experience delays in mail
deliveries from the U.S. Postal Service. As a result, we will include
all comments that we receive within a reasonable time frame in our
environmental analysis of this project. However, the Commission
strongly encourages electronic filing of any comments or interventions
or protests to this proceeding. See 18 CFR 385.2001(a)(1)(iii) and the
instructions on the Commission's Web site at http://www.ferc.gov under
the ``e-Filing'' link and the link to the User's Guide. Before you can
file comments you will need to create a free account which can be
created online.
We may mail the EA for comment. If you are interested in receiving
it, please return the Information Request (Appendix 4). If you do not
return the Information Request, you will be taken off the mailing list.
Becoming an Intervenor
In addition to involvement in the EA scoping process, you may want
to become an official party to the proceeding known as an
``intervenor''. Intervenors play a more formal role in the process.
Among other things, intervenors have the right to receive copies of
case-related Commission documents and filings by other intervenors.
Likewise, each intervenor must send one electronic copy (using the
Commission's eFiling system) or 14 paper copies of its filings to the
Secretary of the Commission and must send a copy of its filings to all
other parties on the Commission's service list for this proceeding. 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).\4\ Only intervenors have
the right to seek rehearing of the Commission's decision.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ Interventions may also be filed electronically via the
Internet in lieu of paper. See the previous discussion on filing
comments electronically.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Affected landowners and parties with environmental concerns may be
granted intervenor status upon showing good cause by stating that they
have a clear and direct interest in this proceeding which would not be
adequately represented by any other parties. You do not need intervenor
status to have your environmental comments considered.
Environmental Mailing List
An effort is being made to send this notice to all individuals,
organizations, and government entities interested in and/or potentially
affected by the proposed project. This includes all landowners who are
potential right-of-way grantors, whose property may be used temporarily
for project purposes, or who own homes within distances defined in the
Commission's regulations of certain aboveground facilities. By this
notice we are also asking governmental agencies, especially those in
Appendix 3, to express their interest in becoming cooperating agencies
for the preparation of the EA.
Additional Information
Additional information about the project is available from the
Commission's Office of External Affairs, at 1-866-208-FERC (3372) or on
the FERC Internet website (http://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 (i.e., enter PF06-
398) in the Docket Number field. Be sure you have selected an
appropriate date range. For assistance, please contact FERC Online
Support at FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov or toll free at 1-866-208-3676,
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 now 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 http://www.ferc.gov/esubscribenow.htm.
Finally, public meetings or site visits will be posted on the
Commission's calendar located at http://www.ferc.gov/EventCalendar/EventsList.aspx
along with other related information.
Magalie R. Salas,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. E6-13760 Filed 8-17-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P