Notice2024-31338
East Tennessee Natural Gas, LLC; Notice of Availability of the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Ridgeline Expansion Project
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
December 30, 2024
Issuing agencies
Energy DepartmentFederal Energy Regulatory Commission
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 249 (Monday, December 30, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 249 (Monday, December 30, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 106472-106473]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-31338]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
[Docket Nos. CP23-516-000; CP23-516-001]
East Tennessee Natural Gas, LLC; Notice of Availability of the
Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Ridgeline
Expansion Project
The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or
Commission) has prepared a final environmental impact statement (EIS)
for the Ridgeline Expansion Project (Project), proposed by East
Tennessee Natural Gas, LLC (East Tennessee) in the above-referenced
docket. East Tennessee requests authorization to construct and operate
122.2 miles of 30-inch-diameter natural gas pipeline and associated
facilities in Trousdale, Smith, Jackson, Putnam, Overton, Fentress,
Morgan, and Roane Counties, Tennessee. The purpose of the Project is to
provide about 300,000 dekatherms per day of new firm natural gas
transportation capacity and up to 95,000 dekatherms of customized
delivery service (i.e., peaking service) from multiple providers to the
site of Tennessee Valley Authority's Kingston Fossil Plant.
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). The FERC
staff concludes that approval of the proposed Project would have some
limited adverse environmental effects; however, with implementation of
East Tennessee's impact avoidance, minimization, and mitigation
measures, as well as adherence to the mitigation measures recommended
in the EIS, these effects would be avoided, mitigated, or reduced to
less-than-significant levels.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the National
Park Service participated as cooperating agencies in the preparation of
the EIS. Cooperating agencies have jurisdiction by law or special
expertise with respect to resources potentially affected by the
proposal and participate in the NEPA analysis. The USACE will adopt and
use the EIS to consider the issuance of an Individual Permit under
section 404 of the Clean Water Act. Although the USACE provided input
to the conclusions and recommendations presented in the final EIS, the
USACE will present its own conclusions and recommendations in its
Record of Decision for the Project.
The final EIS addresses the potential environmental effects of the
construction and operation of the following Project facilities, all in
the State of Tennessee:
<bullet> 122.2 miles of 30-inch-diameter pipeline in Trousdale,
Smith, Jackson, Putnam, Overton, Fentress, Morgan, and Roane Counties,
including 4.0 miles of header pipeline and 118.2 miles of mainline
pipeline (collectively referred to as the Mainline);
<bullet> a new 14,600-horsepower, electric-driven compressor
station (Hartsville Compressor Station) and an associated solar array
to partially power the facility in Trousdale County;
<bullet> a new meter and regulating station to receive gas from
Columbia Gulf Transmission, LLC in Trousdale County;
<bullet> modifications to two existing meter and regulating
stations to receive gas from Texas Eastern Transmission, LP and
Midwestern Gas Transmission Company in Trousdale County;
[[Page 106473]]
<bullet> a new delivery meter station to measure gas delivered to
the Kingston Fossil Plant in Roane County; and
<bullet> related appurtenances.
East Tennessee also proposes to remove approximately 24 miles of
previously abandoned-in-place pipe segments along East Tennessee's
existing 22-inch-diameter Line 3100-1 associated with various prior
pipeline replacement projects. East Tennessee would relay the new 30-
inch-diameter Mainline pipe into the same trench.
The Commission mailed a copy of the Notice of Availability to
Federal and State resources agencies, elected officials, environmental
groups and non-governmental organizations, Native American Tribes,
potentially affected landowners, local libraries and newspapers, and
other stakeholders. The final EIS is only available in electronic
format. It may be viewed and downloaded from 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 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. CP23-516). Be sure you have selected an
appropriate date range. For assistance, please contact FERC Online
Support at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#3d7b584f5e7253515453586e484d4d524f497d5b584f5e135a524b"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="aceac9decfe3c2c0c5c2c9ffd9dcdcc3ded8eccac9decf82cbc3da">[email protected]</span></a> or toll free at (866) 208-3676,
or for TTY, contact (202) 502-8659.
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.
The Commission's Office of Public Participation (OPP) supports
meaningful public engagement and participation in Commission
proceedings. OPP can help members of the public, including landowners,
environmental justice communities, Tribal members and others, access
publicly available information and navigate Commission processes. For
public inquiries and assistance with making filings such as
interventions, comments, or requests for rehearing, the public is
encouraged to contact OPP at (202) 502-6595 or <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#98d7c8c8d8fefdeafbb6fff7ee"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="c18e919181a7a4b3a2efa6aeb7">[email protected]</span></a>.
In addition, the Commission 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. Go to <a href="https://www.ferc.gov/ferc-online/overview">https://www.ferc.gov/ferc-online/overview</a> to
register for eSubscription.
Dated: December 20, 2024.
Debbie-Anne A. Reese,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2024-31338 Filed 12-27-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P
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