Document Headings

                    Document headings vary by document type but may contain                    the following:                  
                -                       the agency or agencies that issued and signed a document                    
                -                       the number of the CFR title and the number of each part                      the document amends, proposes to amend, or is directly                      related to                    
                -                       the agency docket number / agency internal file number                    
                -                       the RIN which identifies each regulatory action listed in                      the Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory                      Actions                    

                    See the                                          Document Drafting Handbook                                        for more details.                  

###### Department of Energy

###### Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

          - [Docket No. CP11-46-000]

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 Mountain Pass Lateral Project involving construction and operation of facilities by Kern River Gas Transmission Company (Kern River) in San Bernardino County, California. This EA will be used by the Commission in its decisionmaking process to determine whether the project is in the public convenience and necessity.

This notice announces the opening of the scoping process the Commission will use to gather input from the public and interested agencies on the project. Your input will help the Commission staff determine what issues need to be evaluated in the EA. Please note that the scoping period will close on March 18, 2011.

## Site Visit

On March 8, 2011, the Office of Energy Projects (OEP) staff will conduct a site visit of the planned Mountain Pass Lateral Project. We will inspect accessible locations along the proposed pipeline route, as feasible. Examination of the proposed pipeline route will be by automobile, remote observation from vantage point(s) at higher elevations relative to the proposed route, and on foot. Representatives from BLM, Kern River and Molycorp will accompany the OEP staff.

All interested parties may attend. Those planning to attend must provide their own transportation (vehicles with high clearance are required) and should meet at the following time and location: Tuesday, March 8, 2011, 10 a.m. (PST), Location: Primm Valley Golf Club, Directions: (Interstate 15 Exit #291, Yates Well Road, right at stop sign; follow signs; meet in parking lot past entrance gate).

This notice is being sent to the Commission's current environmental mailing list for this project. State and local government representatives are asked to notify their constituents of this planned project and encourage them to comment on their areas of concern.

## Summary of the Proposed Project

                    Kern River proposes to construct approximately 8.6 miles of 8-inch lateral pipeline in San Bernardino County, California extending from the existing Kern River mainline along the western edge of Ivanpah Valley and terminating at the active mining operation on property owned by Molycorp Minerals, LLC (Molycorp). The lateral pipeline would have a design capacity of 24.27 million standard cubic feet per day. According to Kern River, its project and the natural gas it delivers to the Molycorp facility would provide reliable power generation and steam production in order to facilitate                           ( print page 10351)                        Molycorp's existing rare earth separations process.                

The Mountain Pass Lateral Project would consist of the following facilities:
    - Approximately 8.6 miles of 8-inch lateral pipeline;
    - A tap assembly and pig launcher  [1]                                           within and adjacent to Kern River's existing mainline pipeline system right-of-way at milepost 585.77; and                
    - A new meter station and pig receiver on the existing Molycorp property.

                    The general location of the project facilities is shown in Appendix 1.[2] 

## Land Requirements for Construction

Construction of the proposed facilities would disturb about 93.51 acres of land for the aboveground facilities and the pipeline. The majority of construction would occur on land managed by the U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Land Management (BLM); remaining construction would occur on property owned by Molycorp. Following construction, about 51.97 acres would be maintained for permanent operation of the project's facilities; the remaining acreage would be restored and allowed to revert to former uses.

## 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 [3]                                          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, the Commission requests public comments on the scope of the issues to address in the EA. All comments received will be considered during the preparation of the EA.                

In the EA we will discuss impacts that could occur as a result of the construction and operation of the proposed project under these general headings:
    - Geology and soils;
    - Land use;
    - Water resources, fisheries, and wetlands;
    - Cultural resources;
    - Vegetation and wildlife;
    - Air quality and noise;
    - Endangered and threatened species; and
    - Public safety.

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 presented in the EA. The EA will be placed in the public record and, depending on the comments received during the scoping process, may be published and distributed to the public. A comment period will be allotted if the EA is published for review. 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 beginning on page 4.

With this notice, we are asking agencies with jurisdiction and/or special expertise with respect to environmental issues to formally cooperate with us in the preparation of the EA. 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 under the Public Participation section of this notice. Currently, the BLM Needles Field Office has expressed its intention to participate as a cooperating agency in the preparation of the EA to satisfy its NEPA responsibilities related to this project.

## Consultations Under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act

                    In accordance with the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation's implementing regulations for section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, we are using this notice to initiate consultation with applicable State Historic Preservation Office(s), and to solicit their views and those of other government agencies, interested Indian tribes, and the public on the project's potential effects on historic properties.[4]                                          We will define the project-specific Area of Potential Effects (APE) in consultation with the SHPO(s) as the project is further developed. On natural gas facility projects, the APE at a minimum encompasses all areas subject to ground disturbance (examples include construction right-of-way, contractor/pipe storage yards, compressor stations, and access roads). Our EA for this project will document our findings on the impacts on historic properties and summarize the status of consultations under section 106.                

## 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 Kern River. This preliminary list of issues may be changed based on your comments and our analysis.
    - Threatened endangered species (including desert tortoise) habitat
    - Alternative pipeline routes
    - Access road improvements

## Public Participation

You can make a difference by providing us with your specific comments or concerns about the project. Your comments should focus on the potential environmental effects, reasonable alternatives, 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 send your comments so that they will be received in Washington, DC on or before March 18, 2011.

                    For your convenience, there are three methods which you can use to submit your comments to the Commission. In all instances please reference the project docket number (CP11-46-000) with your submission. The Commission encourages electronic filing of comments and has expert eFiling staff available to assist you at (202) 502-8258 or                     *efiling@ferc.gov.*

                    (1) You may file your comments electronically by using the eComment feature, which is located on the Commission's Web site at                     *http://www.ferc.gov*                     under the link to Documents and Filings. An eComment is an easy method for interested persons to submit brief, text-only comments on a project;                

                    (2) You may file your comments electronically by using the eFiling                           ( print page 10352)                        feature, which is located on the Commission's website at                     *http://www.ferc.gov*                     under the link to Documents and Filings. With eFiling, you can provide comments in a variety of formats by attaching them as a file with your submission. New eFiling users must first create an account by clicking on “eRegister.” You will be asked to select the type of filing you are making. A comment on a particular project is considered a “Comment on a Filing”; or                

(3) You may file a paper copy of your comments at the following address:  Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street, NE., Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426.

## Environmental Mailing List

The environmental mailing list includes federal, state, and local government representatives and agencies; elected officials; environmental and public interest groups; Native American Tribes; other interested parties; and local libraries and newspapers. This list also includes all affected landowners (as defined in the Commission's regulations) who are potential right-of-way grantors, whose property may be used temporarily for project purposes, or who own homes within certain distances of aboveground facilities, and anyone who submits comments on the project. We will update the environmental mailing list as the analysis proceeds to ensure that we send the information related to this environmental review to all individuals, organizations, and government entities interested in and/or potentially affected by the proposed project. If the EA is published for distribution, copies will be sent to the environmental mailing list for public review and comment.

## Becoming an Intervenor

In addition to involvement in the EA scoping process, you may want to become an “intervenor” which is an official party to the Commission's 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 the 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 website.

## Additional Information

                    Additional information about the project is available from the Commission's Office of External Affairs, at (866) 208-FERC, or on the FERC Web site at                     *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 in the Docket Number field (i.e., CP11-46). Be sure you have selected an appropriate date range. For assistance, please contact FERC Online Support at                     *FercOnlineSupport@ferc.gov*                     or toll free at (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, any additional 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.                

Dated: February 16, 2011.

Kimberly D. Bose,

Secretary.

# Footnotes

1.                             A “pig” is a tool that is inserted into and moves through the pipeline, and is used for cleaning the pipeline, internal inspections, or other purposes.                    
        Back to Citation      

2.                             The appendices referenced in this notice are not being printed in the                         **Federal Register**                        . Copies of appendices were sent to all those receiving this notice in the mail and are available at                         *http://www.ferc.gov*                         using the link called “eLibrary” 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.                    
        Back to Citation      

3.                             “We,” “us,” and “our” refer to the environmental staff of the Commission's Office of Energy Projects.                    
        Back to Citation      

4.                             The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation's regulations are at Title 36, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 800. Historic properties are defined in those regulations as any prehistoric or historic district, site, building, structure, or object included in or eligible for inclusion in the National Register for Historic Places.                    
        Back to Citation      

[FR Doc. 2011-4081 Filed 2-23-11; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6717-01-P