61630 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 198 / Tuesday, October 14, 2014 / Notices 

abandonment 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 we publish and distribute the EA, 

copies will be sent to the environmental 

mailing list for public review and 

comment. If you would prefer to receive 

a paper copy of the document instead of 

the CD version or would like to remove 

your name from the mailing list, please 

return the attached Information Request 

(appendix 2). 

Becoming an Intervenor 

In addition to involvement in the EAs 

coping 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 in the User’s Guide under 

the ‘‘e-filing’’ link on the Commission’s 

Web site. 

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 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., CP14–539). 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 www.ferc.gov/ 

docs-filing/esubscription.asp. 

Finally, public meetings 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: October 7, 2014. 

Kimberly D. Bose, 

Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2014–24341 Filed 10–10–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6717–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

Federal Energy Regulatory 

Commission 

[Docket No. PF14–19–000] 

Downeast Liquefaction, LLC; Notice of 

Intent To Prepare an Environmental 

Impact Statement for the Planned 

Downeast LNG Import-Export Project, 

Request for Comments on 

Environmental Issues and Notice of 

Public Scoping Meeting 

The staff of the Federal Energy 

Regulatory Commission (FERC or 

Commission) will prepare an 

environmental impact statement (EIS) 

that will discuss the environmental 

impacts of the Downeast LNG Export 

Project involving construction and 

operation of facilities by Downeast 

Liquefaction, LLC (Downeast 

Liquefaction) in Washington County, 

Maine. The Commission will use this 

EIS in its decision-making process to 

determine whether the project is in the 

public convenience and necessity. 

This notice announces the opening of 

the scoping process the Commission 

and its cooperating agencies will use to 

gather input from the public and 

interested agencies on the project. Your 

input will help the Commission staff 

determine what issues they need to 

evaluate in the EIS. Please note that the 

scoping period will close on November 

3, 2014. 

You may submit comments in written 

form or verbally. Further details on how 

to submit written comments are in the 

Public Participation section of this 

notice. In lieu of or in addition to 

sending written comments, the 

Commission invites you to attend the 

public scoping meeting scheduled as 

follows: FERC Public Scoping Meeting, 

Downeast LNG Import-Export Project, 

October 22, 2014, 7:00 p.m. local time, 

Robbinston Grade School, 904 US Route 

1, Robbinston, ME 04671. 

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 planned 

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 

planned pipeline facilities associated 

with the project. The company would 

seek to negotiate a mutually acceptable 

agreement. However, if the Commission 

approves the project, that approval 

conveys with it the right of eminent 

domain for parcels crossed by the 

pipeline. Therefore, if easement 

negotiations fail to produce an 

agreement, the pipeline company could 

initiate condemnation proceedings 

where compensation would be 

determined in accordance with state 

law. 

A fact sheet prepared by the FERC 

entitled ‘‘An Interstate Natural Gas 

Facility On My Land? What Do I Need 

To Know?’’ is available for viewing on 

the FERC Web site (www.ferc.gov). 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. 

Summary of the Planned Project 

Downeast Liquefaction plans to 

develop, construct, and operate 

liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal 

facilities that would convert the 

proposed Downeast LNG Import Project 

(Docket Nos. CP07–52–000, CP07–53– 

000, and CP07–53–001) into a 

bidirectional import-export LNG 

terminal and pipeline capable of 

producing 3 million metric tonnes per 

annum (mtpa) of LNG and 100 million 

standard cubic feet per day (mmscfd) of 

regasified LNG. 

The Downeast LNG Import-Export 

Project would consist of the following 

facilities: 

Marine Facilities and Transfer Lines: 

• The Import-Export Project would 

involve no changes to the marine 

facilities and transfer lines that were 

proposed and evaluated for the Import 

Project. 

LNG Storage and Regasification: 

• The Import-Export Project would 

include a single LNG storage tank with 

a nominal usable storage capacity of 

160,000 cubic meters. The storage tank 

design and location would be the same 

as the southern-most LNG storage tank 

proposed for the Import Project. The 

northern-most LNG storage tank 

proposed for the Import Project would 

not be required for the Import-Export 

Project. 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 198 / Tuesday, October 14, 2014 / Notices 61631 

1The appendices referenced in this notice will 

not appear in the Federal Register. Copies of the 

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. 

2 ‘‘We,’’ ‘‘us,’’ and ‘‘our’’ refer to the 

environmental staff of the Commission’s Office of 

Energy Projects. 

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 

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 Import-Export Project would 

include two Submerged Combustion 

Vaporizers used for regasification of 

LNG during import mode, of which one 

would be used during operation while 

the second would be a backup. 

LNG Liquefaction Facilities: 

• feed gas pretreatment systems; 

• one LNG liquefaction train with a 

nominal design capacity of 3 mtpa; 

• refrigerant storage and handling; 

• refrigerant compression systems; 

and 

• refrigerant cooling system. 

Pipeline Facilities: 

• The pipeline for the Import-Export 

Project would be 24 inches in diameter, 

a change from 30 inches in diameter as 

proposed for the Import Project. The 

pipeline route and construction work 

areas would remain the same as 

proposed for the Import Project. 

Ancillary Facilities: 

• onsite power generation to support 

operation of the terminal in export 

mode; and 

• utilities, infrastructure, and support 

systems within the terminal site would 

be revised for the Import-Export Project 

to accommodate addition of liquefaction 

capabilities. 

The general location of the project 

facilities is shown in appendix 1.1

Land Requirements for Construction 

The planned LNG Export Project 

facilities would be constructed entirely 

within the 80-acre site of the proposed 

Downeast LNG Import Project, at Mill 

Cove in Robbinston, Maine. 

The EIS Process 

The Commission intends to publish 

its review of the Downeast LNG Export 

Project as a supplement to the previous 

review of the Downeast LNG Import 

Project (Docket Nos. CP07–52–000, 

CP07–53–000, and CP07–53–001), to be 

considered together as the Downeast 

LNG Import-Export Project. 

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 2 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 EIS on the 

important environmental issues. By this 

notice, the Commission requests public 

comments on the scope of the issues to 

address in the EIS. We will consider all 

filed comments during the preparation 

of the EIS. However, comments should 

focus on issues specific to the Downeast 

LNG Export Project and not issues 

previously addressed for the Downeast 

LNG Import Project. 

In the EIS, we will discuss impacts 

that could occur as a result of the 

construction and operation of the 

planned project under these general 

headings: 

• Geology and soils; 

• water resources, fisheries, and 

wetlands; 

• vegetation and wildlife; 

• endangered and threatened species; 

• cultural resources; 

• land use; 

• socioeconomics; 

• air quality and noise; 

• reliability and safety; 

• engineering and design material; 

and 

• direct, indirect, and cumulative 

environmental impacts. 

We will also evaluate possible 

alternatives to the planned project or 

portions of the project, and make 

recommendations on how to lessen or 

avoid impacts on the various resource 

areas. 

Although no formal application has 

been filed, we have already initiated our 

NEPA review under the Commission’s 

pre-filing process. The purpose of the 

pre-filing process is to encourage early 

involvement of interested stakeholders 

and to identify and resolve issues before 

the FERC receives an application. As 

part of our pre-filing review, we have 

begun to contact some federal and state 

agencies to discuss their involvement in 

the scoping process and the preparation 

of the EIS. 

The Supplemental draft EIS will 

present our independent analysis of the 

issues. We will publish and distribute 

the Supplemental draft EIS for public 

comment. After the comment period, we 

will consider all timely comments and 

revise the document, as necessary, 

before issuing a Supplemental final EIS. 

To ensure we have the opportunity to 

consider and address your comments, 

please carefully follow the instructions 

in the Public Participation section 

beginning on page 6. 

With this notice, we are asking 

agencies with jurisdiction by law and/ 

or special expertise with respect to the 

environmental issues related to this 

project to formally cooperate with us in 

the preparation of the EIS.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. Currently, the 

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (COE), 

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration National Marine 

Fisheries Service, and Maine 

Department of Environmental Protection 

are participating as cooperating agencies 

in the preparation of the EIS to satisfy 

their NEPA responsibilities related to 

this project. Also, in accordance with 

the 2004 Interagency Agreement on the 

safety and security review of waterfront 

import/export LNG facilities, the U.S. 

Coast Guard and U.S. Department of 

Transportation participate as 

cooperating agencies. The COE will be 

in attendance at the public scoping 

meeting to gather information for their 

independent review process and to 

answer any public questions. 

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) (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 We 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). 

Our EIS for this project will document 

our findings on the impacts on historic 

properties and summarize the status of 

consultations under section 106. 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

61632 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 198 / Tuesday, October 14, 2014 / Notices 

Currently Identified Environmental 

Issues 

We have already identified several 

issues that we think deserve attention 

based on our previous review of the 

Downeast LNG Import Project, a 

preliminary review of the planned 

Export Project facilities, and the 

environmental information provided by 

Downeast Liquefaction. This 

preliminary list of issues may change 

based on your comments and our 

analysis. Issued identified include: 

• Potential impacts on wetlands and 

other aquatic resources within the LNG 

terminal site; 

• potential impacts from release of 

ballast water from LNG carriers during 

the loading of LNG cargo; 

• potential visual effects on 

surrounding areas; 

• potential noise and air emissions 

impacts from the addition of natural gas 

liquefaction facilities; and 

• public safety and hazards 

associated with the liquefaction and 

transport of LNG. 

Public Participation 

You can make a difference by 

providing us with your specific 

comments or concerns about the project. 

Since Commission staff will issue a 

supplement to the previous 

environmental documents for the 

Downeast LNG Import Project, we do 

not intend to re-evaluate issues 

previously addressed for the LNG 

Import Project; therefore, comments are 

requested on issues specific to the LNG 

Export 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 the Commission receives them in 

Washington, DC on or before November 

3, 2014. This is not your only public 

input opportunity; please refer to the 

Environmental Review Process 

flowchart in appendix 2. 

For your convenience, there are three 

methods you can use to submit your 

comments to the Commission. In all 

instances, please reference the project 

docket number (PF14–19–000) with 

your submission. The Commission 

encourages electronic filing of 

comments and has expert staff available 

to assist you at (202) 502–8258 or 

efiling@ferc.gov. 

(1) You can file your comments 

electronically using the eComment 

feature located on the Commission’s 

Web site (www.ferc.gov) under the link 

to Documents and Filings. This is an 

easy method for interested persons to 

submit brief, text-only comments on a 

project; 

(2) You can file your comments 

electronically using the eFiling feature 

located on the Commission’s Web site 

(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 must select 

the type of filing you are making. If you 

are filing a comment on a particular 

project, please select ‘‘Comment on a 

Filing’’; or 

(3) You can file a paper copy of your 

comments by mailing them to 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 planned project. 

Copies of the completed 

Supplemental draft EIS will be sent to 

the environmental mailing list for 

public review and comment. If you 

would prefer to receive a paper copy of 

the document instead of the CD version 

or would like to remove your name from 

the mailing list, please return the 

attached Information Request (appendix 

3). 

Becoming an Intervenor 

Once Downeast Liquefaction files its 

application with the Commission, 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 in the User’s 

Guide under the ‘‘e-filing’’ link on the 

Commission’s Web site. Please note that 

the Commission will not accept requests 

for intervenor status at this time. You 

must wait until the Commission 

receives a formal application for the 

project. 

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 (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., PF14– 

19–000). 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 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 meetings 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: October 3, 2014. 

Kimberly D. Bose, 

Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2014–24297 Filed 10–10–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6717–01–P 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES