

[Federal Register: February 27, 2007 (Volume 72, Number 38)]
[Notices]               
[Page 8723-8725]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr27fe07-67]                         

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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. PF07-3-000]

 
Floridian Natural Gas Storage Company, LLC; Notice of Intent To 
Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Floridian 
Natural Gas Storage Project; Request for Comments on Environmental 
Issues and Notice of a Public Meeting

February 15, 2007.
    The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or 
Commission) is in the process of evaluating the Floridian Natural Gas 
Storage Project planned by Floridian Natural Gas Storage Company, LLC 
(FGS). The project would consist of a natural gas storage facility 
located in Martin County, Florida, north of Indiantown, Florida, and 
two approximately 4-mile-long natural gas pipelines, extending 
northwest from the facility to interconnect with the existing 
interstate pipeline systems of Florida Gas Transmission (FGT) and 
Gulfstream Natural Gas System, L.L.C. (Gulfstream).
    As a part of this evaluation, FERC staff will prepare an 
environmental impact statement (EIS) that will address the 
environmental impacts of the project. Comments on the project may be 
submitted in written form or verbally. Further details on how to submit 
written comments are provided in the Public Participation section of 
this NOI. In lieu of sending written comments, we invite you to attend 
the following public scoping meeting and site visit scheduled as 
follows: Wednesday, March 7, 2007, 7 p.m., Indiantown Civic Center, 
15675 SW Osceola Street, Indiantown FL 34956, (772) 597-2886.
    FERC will be conducting a site visit of the proposed project on 
March 7, 2007, beginning at the Indiantown Civic Center parking lot at 
4 p.m. and returning to the lot before 6 p.m. Please note that the 
applicant will provide a small bus or allow a caravan of private 
vehicles to the project site. The project pipelines will be viewed from 
public rights-of-way from the vehicle.
    The Commission will use the EIS in its decision-making process to 
determine whether or not to authorize the project. This Notice of 
Intent (NOI) explains the scoping process we \1\ will use to gather 
information on the project from the public and interested agencies.

[[Page 8724]]

Your input will help identify the issues that need to be evaluated in 
the EIS. Please note that scoping comments are requested by March 19, 
2007.
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    \1\ ``We,'' ``us,'' and ``our'' refer to the environmental staff 
of the FERC's Office of Energy Projects.
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    This NOI is being sent to Federal, State, and local government 
agencies; elected officials; affected landowners; environmental and 
public interest groups; Indian tribes and regional Native American 
organizations; commentors and other interested parties; and local 
libraries and newspapers. We encourage government representatives to 
notify their constituents of this planned project and encourage them to 
comment on their areas of concern.

Summary of the Proposed Project

    The proposed project will consist of a natural gas storage facility 
with a capacity of up to 8,000,000 dekatherms per day (dt/d) of sendout 
capacity. Additional equipment at the facility will include 
liquefaction facilities, re-vaporization facilities, two 4-mile-long 
pipelines to connect with existing interstate natural gas pipelines, 
and metering facilities.

Natural Gas Storage Facility

    The Floridian Natural Gas Storage Project will consist of the 
following:
     Two 190,000 m\3\ net capacity full-containment natural gas 
storage tanks;
     Liquefaction equipment;
     Process equipment;
     Boil-off gas (BOG) compression system;
     Re-vaporization equipment; and
     Electrical, control, and hazard protection system.

Pipelines

    The pipelines to interconnect with the interstate natural gas 
pipelines will consist of the following:
     Two 4-mile-long, 24- and 10-inch-diameter natural gas 
pipelines (sendout and receiving, respectively) with capacity to 
deliver up to 8,000,000 dt/d;
     An interconnection with both the FGT and Gulfstream 
pipeline systems;
     Metering, flow control/pressure control, odorant, and 
security systems; and
     Pig launching and receiving facilities.
    FGS proposes to begin construction of the project in second 
quarter-2008 with a projected in-service date early in the second 
quarter of 2011.
    A location map depicting FGS' proposed facilities is attached to 
this NOI as Appendix 1 (Figures 1 and 2).\2\
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    \2\ The appendices referenced in this notice are not being 
printed in the Federal Register. Copies are available on the 
Commission's Web site (excluding maps) at the ``e-Library'' link or 
from the Commission's Public Reference Room or call (202) 502-8371. 
For instructions on connecting to e-Library refer to the end of this 
notice. Copies of the appendices were sent to all those receiving 
this notice in the mail.
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The EIS Process

    The National Environmental Policy Act (``NEPA'') requires the 
Commission to take into account the environmental impacts that could 
result from an action when it considers whether or not a natural gas 
storage facility should be approved. The FERC will use the EIS to 
consider the environmental impacts that could result if it issues 
project authorizations to FGS under section 7 of the Natural Gas Act. 
The 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 
EIS on the important environmental issues. With this NOI, the 
Commission staff is requesting public comments on the scope of the 
issues to be addressed in the EIS. All comments received will be 
considered during preparation of the EIS.
    In the EIS we will discuss impacts that could occur as a result of 
the construction, operation, maintenance, and abandonment of the 
proposed project under these general headings:
     Geology and Soils.
     Water Resources.
     Aquatic Resources.
     Vegetation and Wildlife.
     Threatened and Endangered Species.
     Land Use, Recreation, and Visual Resources.
     Cultural Resources.
     Socioeconomics.
     Air Quality and Noise.
     Reliability and Safety.
     Cumulative Impacts.
    In the EIS, 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 affected resources.
    Our independent analysis of the issues will be included in a draft 
EIS. The draft EIS will be mailed to federal, state, and local 
government agencies; elected officials; affected landowners; 
environmental and public interest groups; Indian tribes and regional 
Native American organizations; commentors; other interested parties; 
local libraries and newspapers; and the FERC's official service list 
for this proceeding. A 45-day comment period will be allotted for 
review of the draft EIS. We will consider all comments on the draft EIS 
and revise the document, as necessary, before issuing a final EIS. We 
will consider all comments on the final EIS before we make our 
recommendations to the Commission. To ensure that your comments are 
considered, please follow the instructions in the Public Participation 
section of this NOI.
    Although no formal application has been filed, the FERC staff has 
already initiated its NEPA review under its pre-filing process. The 
purpose of the pre-filing process is to encourage early involvement of 
interested stakeholders and to identify and resolve issues before an 
application is filed with the FERC.
    With this NOI, we are asking Federal, State, and local agencies 
with jurisdiction and/or special expertise with respect to 
environmental issues, especially those identified in Appendix 2, to 
express their interest in becoming cooperating agencies for the 
preparation of the EIS. These agencies may choose to participate once 
they have evaluated the proposal relative to their responsibilities. 
Agencies that would like to request cooperating agency status should 
follow the instructions for filing comments provided in Appendix 2.

Currently Identified Environmental Issues

    We have already identified issues that we think deserve attention 
based on a preliminary review of the project area, the planned facility 
information provided by FGS, and the public open house sponsored by FGS 
and attended by FERC. This preliminary list of issues, which is 
presented below, may be revised based on your comments and our 
continuing analyses.
     Potential impacts on residents in the project area, 
including safety issues at the storage facility, noise, air quality, 
and visual resources.
     Potential impacts of the construction of the storage 
facility and the pipeline on property values.
     Potential impacts on threatened and endangered species.
     Potential impacts on wetlands, vegetation, and wildlife 
habitat.
     Potential impacts on cultural resources.

Public Participation

    You can make a difference by providing us with your specific 
comments or concerns about the planned project. By becoming a 
commentor, your concerns will be addressed in the EIS and considered by 
the Commission. Your comments should focus on the potential 
environmental effects, reasonable alternatives (including alternative

[[Page 8725]]

facility sites and pipeline routes), 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 follow these instructions:
     Send an original and two copies of your letter to: Magalie 
R. Salas, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First 
St., NE., Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426.
     Label one copy of your comments for the attention of Gas 
Branch 2, DG2E.
     Reference Docket No. PF07-3-000 on the original and both 
copies. Mail your comments so that they will be received in Washington, 
DC on or before March 19, 2007.
    The Commission strongly encourages electronic filing of any 
comments in response to this NOI. For information on electronically 
filing comments, please see 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 as well as information in 18 CFR 385.2001(a)(1)(iii). 
Before you can file comments you will need to create a free account, 
which can be accomplished on-line.
    The public scoping meeting (date, time, and location listed above) 
are designed to provide another opportunity to offer comments on the 
proposed project. Interested groups and individuals are encouraged to 
attend the meetings and to present comments on the environmental issues 
that they believe should be addressed in the EIS. A transcript of the 
meeting will be generated so that your comments will be accurately 
recorded.
    Once FGS formally files its application with the Commission, you 
may want to become an ``intervenor,'' which is an official party to the 
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 a Commission proceeding by filing a request to 
intervene. Instructions for becoming an intervenor are included in the 
User's Guide under the ``e-filing'' link on the Commission's Web site. 
Please note that you may not request intervenor status at this time. 
You must wait until a formal application is filed with the Commission.

Environmental Mailing List

    If you wish to remain on the environmental mailing list, please 
return the attached Mailing List Retention Form (Appendix 3 of this 
NOI). If you do not return this form, we will remove your name from our 
mailing list.
    To reduce printing and mailing costs, the draft and final EIS will 
be issued in both compact disk (CD-ROM) and hard copy formats. The FERC 
strongly encourages the use of CD-ROM format in its publication of 
large documents. Thus, all recipients will automatically receive the 
EIS on CD-ROM. If you wish to receive a paper copy of the draft EIS 
instead of a CD-ROM, you must indicate that choice on the return 
mailer.

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 Web site (http://www.ferc.gov) using the ``eLibrary 

link.'' Click on the eLibrary link, select ``General Search'' and enter 
the project docket number excluding the last three digits (i.e., PF07-
3) in the ``Docket Number'' field. Be sure you have selected an 
appropriate date range. For assistance with eLibrary, the eLibrary 
helpline can be reached at 1-866-208-3676, TTY (202) 502-8659, or by e-
mail at FercOnlineSupport@ferc.gov. The eLibrary link on the FERC 
Internet Web site also provides access to the texts of formal documents 
issued by the Commission, such as orders, notices, and rule makings.
    In addition, the FERC now 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 by automatically providing you with 
notification of these filings, document summaries, and direct links to 
the documents. To register for this service, go to http://www.ferc.gov/esubscribenow.htm
.

    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.
    Finally, FGS has established an Internet Web site for this project 
at http://www.floridiangasstorage.com. The Web site includes a project 

overview, status, answers to frequently asked questions, and links to 
related documents. You can also request additional information by 
calling FGS directly at (800) 621-6843.

Magalie R. Salas,
Secretary.
 [FR Doc. E7-3348 Filed 2-26-07; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6717-01-P
