Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 177 / Wednesday, September 12, 2018 / Notices 46155 

1The appendices referenced in this notice will 

not appear in the Federal Register. Copies of 

appendices were sent to all those receiving this 

notice in the mail and are available at 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. 

Dated: September 6, 2018. 

Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr., 

Deputy Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2018–19814 Filed 9–11–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6717–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

Federal Energy Regulatory 

Commission 

[Docket No. CP18–533–000] 

Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; 

Notice of Intent To Prepare an 

Environmental Assessment for the 

Proposed Line 1–N Abandonment 

Project and Request for Comments on 

Environmental Issues 

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 Line 1–N Abandonment Project 

involving construction and operation of 

facilities by Texas Eastern 

Transmission, LP (Texas Eastern) in 

Harrison and Marion Counties, Texas. 

The Commission will use this EA in its 

decision-making process to determine 

whether to authorize the project. 

This notice announces the opening of 

the scoping process the Commission 

will use to gather input from the public 

and interested agencies about issues 

regarding the project. The National 

Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) 

requires the Commission to take into 

account the environmental impacts that 

could result from its action whenever it 

considers the issuance of an 

authorization. NEPA also requires the 

Commission to discover 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. To ensure that your 

comments are timely and properly 

recorded, please submit your comments 

so that the Commission receives them in 

Washington, DC on or before 5 p.m. 

Eastern Time on October 6, 2018. 

You can make a difference by 

submitting 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. Your 

input will help the Commission staff 

determine what issues they need to 

evaluate in the EA. Commission staff 

will consider and address all filed 

comments during the preparation of the 

EA. 

If you sent comments on this project 

to the Commission before the opening of 

this docket on July 24, 2018, you will 

need to file those comments in Docket 

No. CP18–533–000 to ensure they are 

considered as part of this proceeding. 

This notice is being sent to the 

Commission’s current environmental 

mailing list for this project. State and 

local government representatives should 

notify their constituents of this 

proposed project and encourage them to 

comment on their areas of concern. 

If you are a landowner receiving this 

notice, a pipeline company 

representative may contact you about 

the acquisition of an easement to 

construct, operate, and maintain the 

proposed facilities. The company would 

seek to negotiate a mutually acceptable 

easement agreement. You are not 

required to enter into an agreement. 

However, if the Commission approves 

the project, that approval conveys with 

it the right of eminent domain. 

Therefore, if you and the company do 

not reach an easement agreement, the 

pipeline company could initiate 

condemnation proceedings in court. In 

such instances, compensation would be 

determined by a judge in accordance 

with state law. 

Texas Eastern provided landowners 

with a fact sheet prepared by the FERC 

entitled ‘‘An Interstate Natural Gas 

Facility On My Land? What Do I Need 

To Know?’’ This fact sheet addresses a 

number of typically asked questions, 

including the use of eminent domain 

and how to participate in the 

Commission’s proceedings. It is also 

available for viewing on the FERC 

website (www.ferc.gov). 

Public Participation 

For your convenience, there are three 

methods you can use to submit your 

comments to the Commission. The 

Commission encourages electronic filing 

of comments and has staff available to 

assist you at (866) 208–3676 or 

FercOnlineSupport@ferc.gov. Please 

carefully follow these instructions so 

that your comments are properly 

recorded. 

(1) You can file your comments 

electronically using the eComment 

feature, which is located on the 

Commission’s website (www.ferc.gov) 

under the link to Documents and 

Filings. Using eComment is an easy 

method for submitting brief, text-only 

comments on a project; 

(2) You can file your comments 

electronically by using the eFiling 

feature, which is located on the 

Commission’s website (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 can file a paper copy of your 

comments by mailing them to the 

following address. Be sure to reference 

the project docket number (CP18–533– 

000) with your submission: Kimberly D. 

Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy 

Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street 

NE, Room 1A, Washington, DC 20426. 

Summary of the Proposed Project 

Texas Eastern proposes to abandon a 

portion of its lateral Line 1–N and 

related facilities, in Harrison and 

Marion Counties, Texas. Specifically, 

Texas Eastern is requesting approval to 

abandon in place and by removal a total 

of approximately 30 miles of 8-inch, 10- 

inch, and 12-inch-diameter lateral 

pipeline; abandon by removal all of the 

facilities at Metering and Regulating 

(M&R) Station 70191; and abandon by 

removal all aboveground appurtenances 

on each of the 8-inch, 10-inch and 12- 

inch-diameter pipeline segments. 

According to Texas Eastern, the 

project would eliminate the need for 

operating and maintenance 

expenditures on facilities that have not 

been used to provide service for over a 

year and are not necessary to meet 

Texas Eastern’s firm service obligations. 

The project would not impact the daily 

design capacity of, or the operating 

conditions on, Texas Eastern’s system, 

and it would not impact service for 

Texas Eastern’s existing shippers. 

The general location of the project 

facilities is shown in appendix 1.1

Land Requirements for Construction 

The project would temporarily affect 

approximately 6 acres of land within the 

existing right-of-way. Following 

abandonment, Texas Eastern would 

revegetate temporary work areas in 

accordance with its Erosion and 

Sedimentation Control Plan. Texas 

Eastern would retain and continue to 

maintain the pipeline right-of-way 

following abandonment activities. 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with NOTICES
46156 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 177 / Wednesday, September 12, 2018 / Notices 

2For instructions on connecting to eLibrary, refer 

to the last page of this notice. 

3The Council on Environmental Quality 

regulations addressing cooperating agency 

responsibilities are at Title 40, Code of Federal 

Regulations, Part 1501.6. 

4The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation’s 

regulations are at Title 36, Code of Federal 

Regulations, Part 800. Those regulations define 

historic properties as any prehistoric or historic 

district, site, building, structure, or object included 

in or eligible for inclusion in the National Register 

of Historic Places. 

The EA Process 

The EA 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; 

• public safety; and 

• cumulative impacts. 

Commission staff 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. 

The EA will present Commission 

staffs’ independent analysis of the 

issues. The EA will be available in the 

public record through eLibrary.2

Commission staff will consider and 

address all comments on the EA before 

making recommendations to the 

Commission. To ensure Commission 

staff have the opportunity to address 

your comments, please carefully follow 

the instructions in the Public 

Participation section, beginning on page 

2. 

With this notice, the Commission is 

asking agencies with jurisdiction by law 

and/or special expertise with respect to 

the environmental issues of this project 

to formally cooperate in the preparation 

of the EA.3 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. 

Consultation 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, the Commission is are 

using this notice to initiate consultation 

with the applicable State Historic 

Preservation Office (SHPO), 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

Commission staff will define the 

project-specific Area of Potential Effects 

(APE) in consultation with the SHPO as 

the project develops. 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). The EA for this 

project will document findings on the 

impacts on historic properties and 

summarize the status of consultations 

under section 106. 

Environmental Mailing List 

The environmental mailing list 

includes federal, state, and local 

government representatives and 

agencies; elected officials; Native 

American Tribes; 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. Commission 

staff will update the environmental 

mailing list as the analysis proceeds to 

ensure that information related to this 

environmental review is sent to all 

individuals, organizations, and 

government entities interested in and/or 

potentially affected by the proposed 

project. 

As stated above, the EA will be 

available in the public record through 

the Commission’s eLibrary, under the 

Docket Number CP18–533–000. 

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 

website at www.ferc.gov using the 

‘‘eLibrary’’ link. Click on the eLibrary 

link, click on ‘‘General Search’’ and 

enter the docket number in the ‘‘Docket 

Number’’ field, excluding the last three 

digits (i.e., CP18–533). Be sure you have 

selected an appropriate date range. For 

assistance, please contact FERC Online 

Support at FercOnlineSupport@ferc.gov 

or (866) 208–3676, or for TTY, contact 

(202) 502–8659. 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 www.ferc.gov/docsfiling/esubscription.asp. 

Finally, public sessions or site visits 

will be posted on the Commission’s 

calendar located at www.ferc.gov/ 

EventCalendar/EventsList.aspx along 

with other related information. 

Dated: September 6, 2018. 

Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr., 

Deputy Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2018–19806 Filed 9–11–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6717–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

Federal Energy Regulatory 

Commission 

[Project No. 14872–000] 

Peterson Machinery Sales; Notice of 

Preliminary Permit Application 

Accepted for Filing and Soliciting 

Comments, Motions To Intervene, and 

Competing Applications 

On March 19, 2018, Peterson 

Machinery Sales filed an application for 

a preliminary permit, pursuant to 

section 4(f) of the Federal Power Act, 

proposing to study the feasibility of the 

Hubbardston Hydroelectric Project 

(project) to be located on the Fish Creek, 

near Hubbardston, in Ionia County, 

Michigan. The sole purpose of a 

preliminary permit, if issued, is to grant 

the permit holder priority to file a 

license application during the permit 

term. A preliminary permit does not 

authorize the permit holder to perform 

any land-disturbing activities or 

otherwise enter upon lands or waters 

owned by others without the owners’ 

express permission. 

The proposed project would be 

located at the site of an existing, nonoperational hydroelectric project 

previously operated by Hope Renewable 

Energy, LLC without a Commission 

license. The proposed run-of-river 

project will involve rehabilitation and 

upgrade of the following existing 

facilities: (1) A 60-acre, 600-acre-foot 

reservoir with normal surface elevation 

of 850 feet mean sea level; (2) a 350- 

foot-long, 25 to 30-foot-high 

combination dam and spillway 

incorporating a 80-foot-long, 12-footwide intake channel; (3) a 30-foot-long, 

20-foot-wide, 25-foot-high powerhouse 

containing two Francis turbines and 


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