49–010 

Calendar No. 312 

109TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! SENATE 1st Session 109–194 

DELAWARE WATER GAP NATIONAL RECREATION AREA 

NATURAL GAS PIPELINE ENLARGEMENT ACT 

DECEMBER 8, 2005.—Ordered to be printed 

Filed under authority of the order of the Senate of November 18, 2005 

Mr. DOMENICI, from the Committee on Energy and Natural 

Resources, submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany S. 1310] 

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 

referred the bill (S. 1310) to authorize the Secretary of the Interior 

to allow the Columbia Gas Transmission Corporation to increase 

the diameter of a natural gas pipeline located in the Delaware 

Water Gap National Recreation Area, having considered the same, 

reports favorably thereon with amendments and an amendment to 

the title and recommends that the bill, as amended, do pass. 

The amendments are as follows: 

1. On page 2, line 9, strike ‘‘16414’’ and insert ‘‘16413’’. 

2. On page 2, line 23, strike ‘‘, for no consideration,’’. 

3. On page 6, after line 7, add the following: 

‘‘SEC. 4. TERMINATION OF NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM ADVISORY BOARD. 

‘‘Section 3(f) of the Act of August 21, 1935 (16 U.S.C. 463(f)) is amended in the 

first sentence by striking ‘2006’ and inserting ‘2008’.’’ 

4. Amend the title so as to read: ‘‘To authorize the Secretary of 

the Interior to allow the Columbia Gas Transmission Corporation 

to increase the diameter of a natural gas pipeline located in the 

Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area and to extend the 

termination date of the National Park System Advisory Board to 

January 1, 2008.’’. 

2 

PURPOSE OF THE MEASURE

The purpose of S. 1310 is to allow the Columbia Gas Transmission Corporation to increase the diameter of a natural gas pipeline located in the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. 

BACKGROUND AND NEED

The Columbia Gas Transmission Corporation owns and operates 

the utility right of way to a major gas pipeline traversing Delaware 

Water Gap National Recreation Area in Pennsylvania. The pipeline 

is a critical link in the natural gas transmission network between 

production facilities in Appalachia and the South to consumers in 

the Northeast. The pipeline right-of-way crosses the park for 3.5 

miles. When the park was created authority was granted to permit 

expansion of the pipeline to meet demands of consumers for all but 

two parcels of land (approximately 800 feet) which contained the 

pipeline right-of-way. S. 1310 will grant the National Park Service 

the authority to change the rights-of-way for the two land parcels 

to be consistent with the remainder of the right-of-way, thus allowing Columbia Gas to expand the size of the pipeline to meet current demands. 

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

S. 1310 was introduced by Senators Santorum and Specter on 

June 24, 2005. The Subcommittee on National Parks held a hearing on S. 1310 on September 22, 2005. Similar legislation, S. 2909, 

was introduced by Senators Santorum and Specter in the 108th 

Congress. 

At its business meeting on September 28, 2005, the Committee 

on Energy and Natural Resources ordered S. 1310 favorably reported, as amended. 

COMMITTEE AMENDMENT

During the consideration of S. 1310, three amendments were 

adopted and an amendment to the title. The committee adopted a 

technical amendment to correct a right-of-way number. In addition, 

the Committee adopted an amendment that would strike the requirement that the easement be expanded for no consideration. The 

third amendment would extend the authority for the National Park 

System Advisory Board (Board) through 2008. The Board was first 

authorized in 1935 under the Historic Sites, Buildings, and Antiquities Act. The Board advises the Director of the National Park 

Service (Director) and the Secretary of the Interior on matters relating to the National Park Service, the National Park System, and 

programs administered by the National Park Service. The National 

Park System Advisory Board is currently authorized until January 

1, 2006. The amendment would extend the authorization through 

January 1, 2008. 

COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open business session on November 16, 2005, by a unanimous voice of a 

quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 1310 if 

amended as described herein. 

3 

SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1 entitles the bill the ‘‘Delaware Water Gap National 

Recreation Area Natural Gas Pipeline Enlargement Act.’’ 

Section 2 defines key terms. 

Section 3(a) authorizes the Secretary to provide the Columbia 

Gas Transmission Corporation an easement to enlarge the diameter of the existing gas pipeline from 14 inches to not more than 20 

inches. 

Subsection (b) defines the terms and conditions of the easement, 

including a requirement that the easement be consistent with the 

recreational values and the protection of resources in the National 

Recreation Area. 

Subsection (c) authorizes the Superintendent of the National 

Recreation Area to issue a permit to the corporation for the expansion of the pipeline and sets forth the conditions and requirements 

for the permit. 

Subsection (d) defines pipeline replacement requirements. 

Subsection (e) requires the Corporation to comply with all FERC 

requirements. 

Subsection (f) prohibits the Secretary from granting additional 

increases in the pipeline diameter. 

Subsection (g) establishes the right-of-way 50 feet. 

Subsection (h) authorizes the Attorney General, at the request of 

the Secretary to bring civil actions for violations of the easement 

or permit or for damage to park resources. 

Section 4 extends the termination date of the National Park System Advisory Board from 2006 to 2008. 

COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

The following estimate of costs of this measure has been provided 

by the Congressional Budget Office. 

S. 1310—Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area Natural 

Gas Pipeline Enlargement Act 

S. 1310 would authorize the National Park Service (NPS) to 

issue an easement and a construction permit to the Columbia Gas 

Transmission Corporation. These documents would enable the corporation to increase the diameter of a natural gas pipeline that 

crosses the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area in 

Pennsylvania. S. 1310 also would extend the life of the life of the 

National Park System advisory board for an additional two years 

(through January 1, 2008). 

Based on information provided by the NPS, CBO estimates that 

implementing S. 1310 would have no significant effect on the federal budget. We expect that the cost of providing an easement and 

a construction permit to the Columbia Gas Transmission Corporation would be less than $100,000 and would be offset by new administrative fees. Assuming the availability of appropriated funds, 

we estimate that supporting the National Park System advisory 

board would cost about $200,000 a year for each of the next two 

years. Enacting S. 1310 would not affect revenues or direct spending. 

On November 22, 2005, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for H.R. 

3124, the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area Natural 

4 

Gas Pipeline Enlargement Act, as ordered reported by the House 

Committee on Resources on November 16,2005. The two versions 

of the bill are very similar, as are their estimated costs. 

This legislation contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 

mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and 

would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Deborah Reis. This estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis. 

REGULATORY IMPACT EVALUATION

In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following evaluation 

of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in carrying out 

S. 1310. The bill is not a regulatory measure in the sense of imposing Government-established standards or significant economic responsibilities on private individuals and businesses. 

No personal information would be collected in administering the 

program. Therefore, there would be no impact on personal privacy. 

Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the enactment of S. 1310, as ordered reported. 

EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

The views of the Administration on S. 1310 were included in testimony received by the Committee at a hearing on the bill on September 22, 2005 as follows: 

STATEMENT OF JANET SNYDER MATTHEWS, ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR FOR CULTURAL RESOURCES, NATIONAL PARK

SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to present 

the Department of the Interior’s views on S. 1310, a bill 

to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to allow the Columbia Gas Transmission Corporation to increase the diameter of a natural gas pipeline located in the Delaware 

Water Gap National Recreation Area. The Department 

supports enactment of this legislation with one technical 

amendment. 

This bill provides for the Secretary of the Interior to 

enter into an agreement with the Columbia Gas Transmission Corporation, for no consideration, to grant an 

easement to permit the enlargement of an existing natural 

gas pipeline from a diameter of 14 inches to no more than 

20 inches. It provides for the Corporation to submit resource information and appropriate restoration and mitigation plans under terms and conditions that assure the protection of the natural and cultural resources of the national recreation area. In addition, the Corporation will 

have to comply with other requirements for certification 

set forth by the Federal Energy and Regulatory Commission to permit an increase in the diameter of the pipeline. 

Finally, the bill states that the Secretary shall not grant 

any additional increases in the pipeline’s diameter and 

5 

limits the pipeline’s right-of-way to its existing 50-feet 

width. 

Pipeline 1278 is a part of the Columbia Gas Transmission Corporation’s interstate pipeline network that delivers natural gas to the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic 

states from production areas in the southwest and Appalachia, 3.5 miles of which runs through sections of the 

Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. Pipeline 

1278 was constructed in the mid-1940’s on easements purchased from landowners. When land was acquired for the 

national recreation area, five parcels of land were acquired 

subject to easements for pipeline 1278. 

Pipeline 1278 underwent periodic testing in 2002. The 

inspection showed that the pipeline was showing its age, 

and there were numerous instances that the wall of the 

pipeline was thinning. The Corporation was issued a Corrective Action Order by the Department of Transportation. 

The order required the Corporation to reduce the operating 

pressure in the pipeline until such time as all anomalies 

in the pipeline could be repaired. A determination was 

made by the Corporation that the best way to repair the 

current pipeline was to replace the existing pipeline with 

a new, state of the art, cathodically protected steel pipe. At 

the same time, the Corporation decided to upgrade the diameter of the pipeline from 14 inches to 20 inches. 

The National Park Service does not have legal authority 

to issue rights-of-way for petroleum pipelines across parklands. The deeds for the five parcels of land, subject to 

easements for the Corporation pipeline, are very specific 

about the rights that the Corporation purchased back in 

the 1940’s. Congressional action is needed to allow the increase in pipeline size on two of the parcels totaling 800 

feet of parkland. Congressional action is not required for 

the remaining three parcels, since the deeds permit the increase in pipeline size. 

This legislation simply permits the Columbia Gas Transmission Corporation to fully utilize an easement they purchased 50 years ago. By order of the Department of Transportation, the pipeline must be repaired or replaced, and 

the replacement of the current pipeline with one of a larger diameter does not increase the impact to parklands of 

the replacement project. The permit issued to the Corporation has sufficient safeguards in it to insure the rehabilitation and restoration of parklands disturbed by the replacement project. 

The one technical amendment we suggest would be to 

correct the right-of-way number on p. 2, line 9 by striking 

‘‘16414’’ and inserting ‘‘16413’’. 

This concludes my prepared testimony, Mr. Chairman. I 

would be pleased to answer any questions you or the committee might have. 

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law are made by the bill 

6 

S. 1310, as ordered reported, are shown as follows (existing law 

proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new matter 

is printed in italic, existing law in which no change is proposed is 

shown in roman): 

ACT OF AUGUST 21, 1935 (16 U.S.C. 463(f)), AS 

AMENDED 

AN ACT To provide for the preservation of historic American sites, buildings, 

objects, and antiquities of national significance, and for other purposes. 

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 

United States of America in Congress assembled, That it is hereby 

declared that it is a national policy to preserve for public use historic sites, buildings and objects of national significance for the inspiration and benefit of the people of the United States. 

* * * * * * * 

SEC. 3. * * * 

(f) The National Park System Advisory Board shall continue to 

exist until January 1, ø2006¿ 2008. The provisions of section 14(b) 

of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (the Act of October 6, 1972; 

86 Stat. 776) are hereby waived with respect to the Board, but in 

all other respects, it shall be subject to the provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act. 

* * * * * * * 

Æ