Eastern Shore Natural Gas Company; Notice of Intent To Prepa

Note: EPA no longer updates this information, but it may be useful as a reference or resource.

[Federal Register: January 22, 1996 (Volume 61, Number 14)] [Notices]
[Page 1569-1570]
>From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
[Docket No. CP96-97-000]

Eastern Shore Natural Gas Company; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Hockessin Expansion Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues

January 16, 1996.
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 construction and operation of the facilities proposed in the Hockessin Expansion Project.\1\ This EA will be used by the Commission in its decision-making process to determine whether an environmental impact statement is necessary and whether to approve the project.

\1\ Eastern Shore Natural Gas Company's application was filed with the Commission under Section 7 of the Natural Gas Act and Part 157 of the Commission's regulations.

Summary of the Proposed Project

Eastern Shore Natural Gas Company (ESNG) seeks to: (1) Provide additional firm contract demand sales and storage service to several of its existing customers; (2) Abandon firm sales service to one of its existing customers; and
(3) Construct and operate certain new pipeline and compressor facilities required to stabilize capacity on its system and to provide the additional firm sales and storage service. ESNG indicates that the proposed project (1) would stabilize system capacity and integrity of declining inlet gas pressure at the Hockessin meter and regulating station, and (2) enable ESNG to provide 4,796 Mcf of additional firm daily capacity on ESNG's system. ESNG seeks authority to:

construct and operate a 2,170-horsepower (hp) Delaware City Compressor Station (C.S.), with a 1,085-hp back-up unit, in New Castle County, Delaware;

construct and operate 0.89 mile of 16-inch-diameter pipeline in New Castle County, Delaware to tie the suction side of the proposed Delaware C.S. into the Hockessin Line;

uprate the maximum allowable operating pressure from 500 pounds per square inch gauge (psig) to 590 psig on 28.7 miles of the Salisbury Lateral from the outlet of ESNG's existing Bridgeville C.S. in Sussex County, Delaware to the Citizens Meter and Regulatory Station in Salisbury, Wicomico County, Maryland; and

abandon 100 Mcfd of firm sales service to Playtex Apparel, Inc., a direct sales customer.
The general location of the project facilities and specific locations for facilities on new sites are shown in appendix 1.\2\

\2\ The appendices referenced in this notice are not being printed in the Federal Register. Copies are available from the Delaware's Public Reference and Files Maintenance Branch, 888 First Street NE., Washington, DC 20426, or call (202) 208-1371. 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 about 4.8 acres of land for the proposed pipeline and about 2.7 acres for the new compressor station. About 0.9 acre would be fenced around the compressor station facilities.

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

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public may have about proposals. We call this ``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 requests public comments on the scope of the issues it will 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. The EA will discuss impacts that could occur as a result of the construction and operation of the proposed project under these general headings:

Land use.

Water resources, fisheries, and wetlands.

Air quality and noise.

Cultural resources.

Public safety.

Endangered and threatened species. 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 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 recommend that the Commission approve or not approve the project.

Currently Identified Environmental Issues

We have already identified one issue that we think deserves attention based on a preliminary review of the proposed facilities and the environmental information provided by Transwestern: The proposed compressor station may increase ambient noise levels. Keep in mind that this is a preliminary issue. Issues may be added, subtracted, or changed based on your comments and our analysis.

Public Participation

You can make a difference by sending a letter addressing your specific comments or concerns about the project. You should focus on the potential environmental effects of the proposal, alternatives to the proposal (including alternative locations or routes), and measures to avoid or lessen environmental impact. The more specific your comments, the more useful they will be. Please follow the instructions below to ensure that your comments are received and properly recorded:

Address your letter to: Lois Cashell, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street, NE., Washington, DC 20426;

Reference Docket No. CP96-97-000;

Send a copy of your letter to: Mr. Herman K. Der, EA Project Manager, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE., PR-11.1, Washington, DC 20426; and

Mail your comments so that they will be received in Washington, DC on or before February 20, 1996. If you wish to receive a copy of the EA, you should request one from Mr. Herman K. Der at the above address.

Becoming an Intervenor

In addition to involvement in the EA scoping process, you may want to become an official party to the proceeding or become an ``intervenor''. Among other things, intervenors have the right to receive copies of case-related Commission documents and filings by other intervenors. Likewise, each intervenor must provide copies of its filings to all other parties. 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).
You do not need intervenor status to have your scoping comments considered.
Additional information about the proposed project is available from Mr. Herman K. Der, EA Project Manager, at (202) 208-0896. Lois D. Cashell,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 96-656 Filed 1-19-96; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6717-01-M

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Eastern Shore Natural Gas Company; Notice of Intent To Prepa

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