national fuel€¦ · 03-11-2015 · Resource Report 10 – Alternatives Northern Access 2016...

national fuel Kenneth E. Webster (716) 857-7067 Attorney

NATIONAL FUEL GAS SUPPLY CORPORATION / 6363 MAIN STREET / WILLIAMSVILLE, NY 14221-5887

November 3, 2015 Ms. Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary Federal Energy Regulatory Commission 888 First Street, N.E. Washington, DC 20426 RE: National Fuel Gas Supply Corporation and Empire Pipeline, Inc. Northern Access 2016 Project Docket No. CP15-115-001 Dear Ms. Bose: On November 2, 2015, National Fuel Gas Supply Corporation and Empire Pipeline, Inc. (collectively “Applicants”) submitted an amendment to their Joint Abbreviated Application (“Amendment”) for their Northern Access 2016 Project. Applicants hereby supplement their Amendment with the enclosed environmental information:

• Supplement to Resource Report 4 - correspondence from the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission; and

• Updated Resource Report 10 – Alternatives. Please direct any questions concerning this filing to the undersigned. Very truly yours, /s/ Kenneth Webster Attorney National Fuel Gas Supply Corporation and Attorney for Empire Pipeline, Inc. Enc. cc: Christine Allen (Project Manager) All Parties

20151103-5215 FERC PDF (Unofficial) 11/3/2015 4:10:15 PM

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I hereby certify that I have this day served, in accordance with the provisions of Rule 2010 of the Commission’s Rules of Practice and Procedure, the foregoing document upon each person designated on the official service list compiled by the Secretary of the Commission in this proceeding. Dated at Williamsville, New York this 3rd day of November, 2015.

/s/ Janet R. Bayer Janet R. Bayer National Fuel Gas Supply Corp. 6363 Main Street Williamsville, New York 14221 Telephone No. (716) 857-7429


Addendum to Appendix 4-A

State SHPO Correspondence


NATIONAL FUEL GAS SUPPLY CORPORATION

AND EMPIRE PIPELINE, INC.

Northern Access 2016 Project

UPDATES TO RESOURCE REPORT 10

Alternatives

FERC Docket No. CP15-115-001

Submitted: November 3, 2015


Resource Report 10 – Alternatives Northern Access 2016 Project

10-1

RESOURCE REPORT 10 – ALTERNATIVES

Additional information for RR10 Alternatives is provided below. This information is intended to

update that which was provided under Section 10.5.1 Pendleton Compressor Station Site

Alternatives in National Fuel’s March 17, 2015 FERC filing. Table updates are shown in red ink.

10.5.1 Pendleton Compressor Station Site Alternatives

Table 10.5-1 has been updated to present a comparison of the new proposed site on Killian Road

(preferred site) for the Pendleton Compressor Station, the previously proposed site, and alternative

sites that have been considered. The following subsections provide details regarding the site

selection process and criteria that were employed to determine the proposed site for the Pendleton

Compressor Station. The preferred site was determined to be the site that best met the Project

objectives. All site alternatives and corresponding required transmission lines are identified on an

updated Figure 10.5-1, provided following the text.



10-2

Table 10.5-1 Comparison of Proposed Pendleton Compressor Station Locations

Siting Criteria Unit

New Proposed

Site – Killian

Road

(Preferred

Site)

Previously

Proposed

Site – Aiken

Road

Alternative

Site 1

Alternative

Site 2

Alternative

Site 3

Alternative

Site 4

Alternative

Site 5

(Cambria)1

Alternative

Site 6

(Wheatfield)2

Size of Site acres 20 40 10 28 82 28 unknown 20

Contiguous

Developable

Upland Area acres 18.7 29 0 5 7 24 unknown 6

Site Acquisition

Feasible and

Timely yes/no yes yes yes no no no unknown yes

Existing Land Use type Agricultural

Idle

agricultural

Idle

agricultural

Idle

agricultural

Idle

agricultural

Idle

agricultural Forest, open Forest, open

Zoning type Light Industrial

R2-

Residential

R2-

Residential

R1-

Residential

R1-

Residential

R1-

Residential Industrial

M-1,

Industrial-1

Length of

Suction/Discharge

pipelines required

(approx.) feet

minimal

(connection to

transmission

line onsite) 125 125 1,310 470 125

minimal

(connection

to

transmission

line onsite) 150

Required Related

Transmission Line

Length miles 2.07 3.05 3.90 2.40 1.10 0.60 11.22a 3.34

Wetlands on site acres 1.3 9.6 8.8 5.8 21.9 2.2 0.77 14.0b

Waterbody

Crossings by

Related

Transmission Line quantity 2 3 3 2 1 0 5 2

Potential for

Flooding4 n/a

Low – site

outside of

FEMA 100

year floodplain

Low – site

outside of

FEMA 100

year

floodplain

High – site

within FEMA

100 yr.

floodplain

Low – site

outside of

FEMA 100

year

floodplain

High – site

within FEMA

100 yr.

floodplain and

portion of

property

within

regulated

floodway

Low –

majority of

site outside

of FEMA

100 year

floodplain

Low –

majority of

site outside

of FEMA

100 year

floodplain

Low –

majority of

site outside of

FEMA 100

year

floodplain



10-3

Siting Criteria Unit

New Proposed

Site – Killian

Road

(Preferred

Site)

Previously

Proposed

Site – Aiken

Road

Alternative

Site 1

Alternative

Site 2

Alternative

Site 3

Alternative

Site 4

Alternative

Site 5

(Cambria)1

Alternative

Site 6

(Wheatfield)2

Estimated Access

driveway length feet 800

2,680 Beach

Ridge Rd

option / 1,150

XM-10

option 3,740 2,370 1,590 2,060 1,300 400

Distance to nearest

Noise Sensitive

Area (NSA) feet 1,300 830 1,950 1,870 870 640 2,200 2,450

Access to public

roads and

availability of

electrical power n/a Good Good Poor Good Good Good Good Good

Number of parcels

with houses

(within 0.5 miles)3 quantity 75 80 20 45 252 241 6 390

Topography

suitable yes/no yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes

Prime Farmland acres 20 39 10 28 82 17 0 0

Potential to affect

endangered or

threatened species,

or other sensitive

wildlife or

fisheries4 n/a

Within

potential

Northern long-

eared Bat range

Within

potential

Northern

long-eared

Bat range

Within

potential

Northern

long-eared

Bat range

Within

potential

Northern long-

eared Bat

range

Within

potential

Northern long-

eared Bat

range

Within

potential

Northern

long-eared

Bat range

Within

potential

Northern

long-eared

Bat range

Within

potential

Northern

long-eared

Bat range Notes: a The length of the suction pipeline required is 7.55 miles. The length of the discharge pipeline required is 3.64 miles, all of which would be parallel to the suction pipeline. b Only the southern 10 acres of the Wheatfield site were surveyed, of which 4 acres were delineated as wetlands. Publicly available data illustrates all 10 acres of the northern

portion of the site as forested and freshwater emergent wetlands. 1 Refer to text following this table for additional analysis of the Cambria Site Alternative. 2 Refer to text following this table for additional analysis of the Wheatfield Site Alternative. 3 Number of parcels with houses within 0.5 miles was calculated using Niagara County parcel data for parcels in this radius that included data in the field “Year Built.” Note:

This methodology differs from actual house count within 0.5 miles of the compressor station of 32 houses which was utilized for other public disclosures related to the

Preferred Site. 4 Data Source: NYSDEC Environmental Resource Mapper.



10-4

New Proposed Site – Killian Road (Preferred Site)

This site is 20 acres of primarily farm fields, with a small portion of forest and shrub land. For

this preferred site, Empire would construct an approximately 2.07-mile long 16”/24” pipeline

(which would become part of its Line EMP-03 after construction) in lieu of the previously

proposed 3.05-mile Replacement Pipeline. This site is zoned Light Industrial and permits essential

services, such as the subject natural gas infrastructure. This site also allows Empire to avoid

significant construction/pipeline replacement along the Frontier Chemical hazardous waste site,

addressing a concern expressed by various community stakeholders related to the previously

proposed Aiken Road site. Thus, the Killian Road site is considered a more suitable location for

the proposed compressor station than the previously proposed site located adjacent to Aiken Road.

Previously Proposed Site – Aiken Road

This property is 40 acres of a combination of farm fields, reverting farm fields, shrub land, and

forest. Approximately 9 acres of the site are wetlands. The site proximity to Empire’s existing

XM-10 line is closer than the new proposed site, but requires Empire to replace 3.05 miles of 16”

OD pipeline with a new 24” OD pipeline (replacing almost all - 3.05 of 3.09 miles – of National

Fuel’s existing Line XM-10). The land use is zoned R-2 residential. In response to community

stakeholder concerns about land use compatibility within a residential zoning district, and an

impasse between the landowner and Empire as to an option to purchase the site, Empire has

eliminated this site from consideration.

Alternative Site 5 (Cambria)

In response to various community stakeholder comments, Empire conducted a desktop analysis

concerning the feasibility of locating the compressor station near an existing compressor station in

the Town of Cambria, Niagara County, New York. Analysis was conducted on a 24” OD pipeline

routed northerly from National Fuel’s existing Line X to a compressor station site adjacent to a

compressor station operated by Tennessee Gas Pipeline on Junction Road in Cambria, New York

(approximately 3.64 miles north of Empire’s mainline pipeline and 7.55 miles north of National

Fuel’s existing Line X pipeline) and then routed back to the south with a 16” OD pipeline to an

interconnect with the existing Empire mainline pipeline. This preliminary route was selected from

GIS/Aerial Imagery with the goal of commencing the review at an existing National Fuel pig

launcher/receiver facility located at an interconnect between National Fuel’s existing Line X-North

and Line XM-10 pipelines.

Approximately 3.91 miles of the pipeline route would consist of Empire’s replacement of the entire

existing Line XM-10 and EMP-03 16” OD pipelines (from Line X-North to the Empire mainline)

with a new 24” OD pipeline to accommodate the required flowrate at Line X-North pressure. This

pipeline would be constructed using existing pipeline ROW, including the section adjacent to the

Frontier Chemical hazardous waste site. Additionally, 3.64 miles of new 24” OD pipeline north

of the Empire mainline would be required to connect to the northern terminus of Line EMP-03 to

the compressor station site. The entire length of new 24” OD pipeline required on the suction side

of the compressor station (from the southern terminus of existing Line XM-10 to the proposed

compressor station) would be 7.55 miles. The new pipeline required on the discharge side of the



10-5

compressor station (from the proposed compressor station back to the Empire mainline) would be

an additional approximately 3.64 miles. This discharge side pipeline would utilize the same ROW

as the northern end of the suction side pipeline (“Double Pipeline ROW”), 25 feet offset from the

suction side pipeline. The total length of new or replacement pipeline required would be

approximately 11.22 miles, although due to co-location of a portion of the pipeline, the length of

ROW used would be 7.55 miles.

This 7.55-mile pipeline ROW would use an existing pipeline and abandoned railroad corridor, but

would need to be expanded in width onto adjoining properties along the Double Pipeline ROW to

accommodate two new transmission pipelines. The railroad ROW is already congested with two

separate brine lines and other utilities currently utilizing the subterranean space. The 24” OD

pipeline would be offset a distance of 25 feet from existing utilities, with the 16” OD pipeline

offset an additional 25 feet. The majority of the route would be located in agricultural land and

would require a standard 100 feet typical construction ROW to accommodate two transmission

pipelines in the ROW, plus typically an additional 25 feet of additional temporary workspace for

agricultural mitigation techniques.

Other land use types crossed by this route include forest, open, roadway, and residential.

Additionally, approximately 5 acres of National Wetlands Inventory (NWI) mapped wetlands

would be impacted by construction of these pipelines. This pipeline route is also in close proximity

to residential subdivisions.

A new compressor station would need to be constructed adjacent to the existing Cambria

Compressor Station, which is functionally independent and connected to an independent pipeline

system (with different downstream connectivity) and already operates at capacity and at lower

operating pressure. Of this proposed site, 20 acres would be necessary for construction and

approximately 8 acres would be permanently developed, and approximately 81 percent is forested

and the rest is open land. The forested area would need to be cleared prior to construction and the

permanent 8 acre site would not be allowed to revert to this cover type following construction of

the compression facilities.

This proposed alternate site and pipeline route as described, based on the limited field review

available, appears to be constructible, but would add a significant length (approximately 48,312

feet or 9.15 miles) of pipeline to the Project. In addition to substantial incremental environmental

impacts to wetlands and forested habitat for wildlife (including potentially the threatened northern

long-eared bat, which is in range), this alternative would have temporary impacts on local traffic

during construction in the area with its six additional road crossings. The Cambria site, in

particular its required 11.22 miles of pipeline, presents unnecessary impacts to environmental

resources and is therefore not preferred.

Alternative Site 6 (Wheatfield)

Empire conducted additional desktop analysis on siting the compressor station on the same parcel

as the proposed Wheatfield Dehydration Facility site in the Town of Wheatfield, Niagara County,

New York. The proposed pipeline route that would connect National Fuel’s Line X-North to the

Wheatfield alternative site would be approximately 3.34 miles in length. The pipeline would



10-6

commence at National Fuel’s existing Nash Road Meter and Regulator Station at Line X-North,

located approximately 630 feet east of Nash Road in the Town of North Tonawanda, Niagara

County, New York. The pipeline would then be routed westward with the intent of locating

adjacent to the existing National Grid power line corridor. The pipeline would abut a 75-foot-

wide ROW that contains two high voltage aboveground power lines that are 25 feet apart, in

addition to two brine pipelines located between the power lines, and a third line outboard of the

powerlines.

The area surrounding this existing ROW is heavily populated, and where it is undeveloped,

forested wetlands are prevalent. Assuming a 75-foot-wide construction ROW for construction of

the pipeline, approximately 17 acres of NWI wetlands would be crossed, the majority of which are

forested. In a proposed 50-foot-wide permanent ROW of approximately 20 acres, over half of the

acreage impacted is wetlands (approximately 12 acres). Forested wetlands would not be allowed

to revert back to previous conditions following construction if they are located in the permanently

maintained ROW.

Safety would be a concern during construction of this pipeline due to the proximity to the existing

aboveground power lines. It would be difficult to construct a pipeline adjacent to the towers and

also avoid homes and existing infrastructure, while maintaining a safe working distance from the

outside conductor. Seven road crossings would be necessary for the construction of this pipeline.

The crossing of Nash, Witmer, and Ward Roads would likely require horizontal directional drilling

(HDD) due to residential and commercial congestion and the limited work areas at these crossings.

Drill site workspace and access roads would be required at each side of the three roads, behind

houses and/or commercial buildings fronting the roads, in order to diagonally drill the road and

existing utility obstructions. This is not a favorable crossing method in highly populated areas due

to noise, site acreage requirements at both ends of the drill (to support the drill rig and support

equipment), site access requirements (for equipment set-up, drill rig service, materials and water

supply), and the duration of the construction. In addition, it has not yet been determined that HDD

is feasible, as geotechnical studies have not been performed. Without the use of HDD it is quite

possible that this route is infeasible.

Even assuming that HDD is feasible, the proposed route would likely be viewed as highly

unfavorable by numerous community stakeholders given the close proximity to subdivisions and

construction related impacts at the three main road crossings. Based on Empire’s desktop review,

the route may potentially be constructible, but there would be major concerns as to safety, noise

and timing based on workspace limitations and allowable working hours. Additionally, there

would be significant incremental environmental impacts, particularly with respect to wetlands.

National Fuel surveyed approximately half of this 20-acre site for the purpose of siting the

dehydration facility. Within the survey area of approximately 10 acres, 4 acres are wetland. Based

on publicly available NWI wetland data, (USFWS 2015), approximately 85 percent of the northern

half of this site are forested wetlands, and the remaining 15 percent are freshwater emergent

wetlands. There is not adequate acreage at the Wheatfield site to locate both the dehydration

facility and the compressor station outside of delineated wetlands. As such, siting the compressor

station within the Wheatfield Dehydration Facility site is not preferred.



10-7

10.6 REFERENCES

USFWS 2015. FWS Wetlands & Riparian Data. Available online at

http://www.fws.gov/wetlands/Data/Data-Download.html. Accessed November 3, 2015.


http://www.fws.gov/wetlands/Data/Data-Download.html


APPENDIX 10-A

FIGURE UPDATE


Alternative Site 1

Previously Proposed Site

Alternative Site 5 (Cambria)

Alternative 6 Required Transmission Pipeline

Alternative Site 6 (Wheatfield)

Previously Proposed Required Transmission Pipeline3.05 Miles Along Existing XM-10 Line Alternative Site 2

Alternative 2 Required Transmission Pipeline2.40 Miles of Existing XM-10 Line

Alternative 3 Required Transmission Pipeline1.10 Miles Along Existing XM-10 Line Alternative Site 3

New Proposed Site "Preferred Site" Required Transmission Pipeline(EMP-03 Line)Alternative Site 4

Alternative 4 Required Transmission Pipeline0.60 Miles Along Existing XM-10 Line

Alternative 1 Required Transmission Pipeline3.90 Miles Along Existing XM-10 Line

Alternative 5 Required Transmission Pipeline11.22 Miles

New Proposed Site "Preferred Site"

E

Project Location

Livingston

New York

Pennsylvania

Erie

ErieTioga

Steuben

PotterWarren McKean

AlleganyCattaraugus

Wayne

Ontario

Chautauqua

Monroe

Crawford

Cayuga

Niagara

Yates

Bradford

Wyoming

Genesee Seneca

Orleans

ChemungSchuyler

Coordinate System: North American Datum, 1983Universal Transverse Mercator, Zone 18, North, Meters

Date:11/03/15

Figure 10.5-1. Site Alternatives Considered for PendletonCompressor StationNote:Required Transmission Lines for Alternatives 1-4 and Previously Proposed Alternative would share ROW with existing XM-10 Line

Northern Access 2016 Project

Legend20151103-5215 FERC PDF (Unofficial) 11/3/2015 4:10:15 PM

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