Notice2023-01931
Equitrans, L.P.; Notice of Availability of the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Ohio Valley Connector Expansion Project
Primary source
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Published
January 31, 2023
Issuing agencies
Energy DepartmentFederal Energy Regulatory Commission
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 20 (Tuesday, January 31, 2023)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 20 (Tuesday, January 31, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6252-6253]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-01931]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket No. CP22-44-000]
Equitrans, L.P.; Notice of Availability of the Final
Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Ohio Valley Connector
Expansion Project
The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or
Commission) has prepared a final environmental impact statement (EIS)
for the Ohio Valley Expansion Project (Project), proposed by Equitrans,
LP (Equitrans) in the above-referenced docket. Equitrans requests
authorization to construct and operate approximately 5.5 miles of new
pipeline and pipeline loop; \1\ acquire and add compression to one non-
jurisdictional compressor station; and add compression at two existing
compression facilities in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Ohio. The
Project would provide approximately 350,000 dekatherms per day of
natural gas to mid-continent and Gulf Coast markets, create new
transportation paths, and provide long-term reliability.
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\1\ A pipeline loop is a segment of pipe constructed next to an
existing pipeline to increase capacity.
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The final EIS assesses the potential environmental effects of the
construction and operation of the Project in accordance with the
requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). FERC
staff concludes that approval of the proposed Project, with the
mitigation measures recommended in the EIS, would not result in
significant adverse impacts. Regarding climate change impacts, this EIS
is not characterizing the Project's greenhouse gas emissions as
significant or insignificant because the Commission is conducting a
generic proceeding to determine whether and how the Commission will
conclude significance going forward.\2\ The EIS also concludes that no
system, route, or other alternative would meet the Project objective
while providing a significant environmental advantage over the Project
as proposed.
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\2\ Consideration of Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Natural Gas
Infrastructure Project Reviews, 178 FERC ] 61,108 (2022); 178 FERC ]
61,197 (2022).
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The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Huntington District (COE)
participated as a cooperating agency in the preparation of the EIS. A
cooperating agency has jurisdiction by law or special expertise with
respect to resources potentially affected by the proposal and
participate in the NEPA analysis. Although a cooperating agency
provides input to the conclusions and recommendations presented in an
EIS, the agency may present its own conclusions and recommendations in
any applicable Record of Decision for a project. Accordingly, the final
EIS for this Project is intended to fulfill the COE's NEPA obligations,
as applicable, and to support the COE's subsequent conclusions and
decisions.
The final EIS addresses the potential environmental effects of the
construction and operation of the following Project facilities:
Greene County, Pennsylvania
<bullet> Acquisition of the existing non-jurisdictional Cygrymus
Compressor Station and addition of two Solar Taurus 70 turbines;
<bullet> approximately 0.5 mile of new 16-inch-diameter natural gas
pipeline (H-327);
<bullet> approximately 0.5 mile of new 12-inch-diameter natural gas
pipeline (H-328); and
<bullet> ancillary facilities, such as a valve yard, taps, and
internal inspection device (e.g., pig launchers and receivers\3\).
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\3\ A ``pig'' is a tool that the pipeline company inserts into
and pushes through the pipeline for cleaning, conducting internal
inspections, or other purposes.
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Wetzel County, West Virginia
<bullet> addition of one Solar Mars 100 compressor at the existing
Corona Compressor Station;
<bullet> approximately 3.7 miles of new 24-inch-diameter natural
gas pipeline (H-326);
<bullet> approximately 129 feet of new 8-inch-diameter natural gas
pipeline (H-329);
<bullet> approximately 0.7 mile of new 16-inch-diameter natural gas
pipeline (H-330);
<bullet> approximately 0.09 mile of new 16-inch-diameter natural
gas pipeline (H-330 Spur);
<bullet> approximately 160 feet of new 12-inch-diameter natural gas
pipeline; and
<bullet> ancillary facilities, such as mainline valves, valve
yards, measuring equipment, and pigging facilities.
Monroe County, Ohio
<bullet> addition of one Solar Titan 130 compressor at the existing
Plasma Compressor Station.
The Commission mailed a copy of the Notice of Availability of the
final EIS to federal, state, and local government representatives and
agencies; elected officials; environmental and public interest groups;
Native American tribes; potentially affected landowners and other
interested individuals and groups; and newspapers and libraries in the
Project area. The final EIS is only available in electronic format. It
may be viewed and downloaded from the FERC's website (<a href="http://www.ferc.gov">www.ferc.gov</a>), on
the natural gas environmental documents page (<a href="https://www.ferc.gov/industries-data/natural-gas/environment/environmental-documents">https://www.ferc.gov/industries-data/natural-gas/environment/environmental-documents</a>). In
addition, the final EIS may be accessed by using the eLibrary link on
the FERC's website. Click on the eLibrary link (<a href="https://elibrary.ferc.gov/eLibrary/search">https://elibrary.ferc.gov/eLibrary/search</a>) select ``General Search'' and enter
the docket number in the ``Docket Number'' field, excluding the last
three digits (i.e., CP22-44). Be sure you have selected an appropriate
date range. For assistance, please contact FERC Online Support at
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#074162756448696b6e696254727777687573476162756429606871"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="4a0c2f382905242623242f193f3a3a25383e0a2c2f3829642d253c">[email protected]</span></a> or toll free at (866) 208-3676, or for TTY,
contact (202) 502-8659.
In accordance with the Council on Environmental Quality's (CEQ)
regulations implementing NEPA, no agency decision on a proposed action
may be made until 30 days after the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency publishes a notice of availability of the final EIS in the
Federal Register. However, the CEQ regulations provide an exception to
this rule when an agency decision is subject to a formal internal
appeal process that allows other agencies or the public to make their
views known. In such cases, the agency decision may be made at the same
time the notice of the final EIS is published, allowing both periods to
run concurrently. The Commission decision for this proposed action is
subject to a 30-day rehearing period.
The final EIS is not a decision document. It presents Commission
staff's independent analysis of the environmental issues for the
Commission to consider when addressing the merits of all issues in this
proceeding.
Additional information about the Project is available from the
Commission's Office of External Affairs, at (866) 208-FERC, or on the
FERC website (<a href="http://www.ferc.gov">www.ferc.gov</a>) using the eLibrary link. The eLibrary link
also provides access to the texts of all 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 https://www.ferc.gov/
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ferc-online/overview to register for eSubscription.
Dated: January 20, 2023.
Kimberly D. Bose,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2023-01931 Filed 1-30-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P
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