In December 2021, the FERC staff prepared a draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) to evaluate the environmental impacts associated with LA Storage, LLC’s Hackberry Storage Project. LA Storage is soliciting approval to construct and operate certain natural gas facilities in the state of Louisiana. LA Storage proposes to convert three current salt dome caverns and develop one new salt dome cavern for natural gas storage service.
The project would also involve construction of the following:
- Pelican Compressor Station, a new 21,400-horsepower compressor station
- up to six freshwater supply wells
- brine disposal system that includes 6.2 miles of 16-inch-diameter pipeline to transport brine from the caverns to four new saltwater disposal wells
- 4.9 miles of 42-inch-diameter bi-directional pipeline (the Cameron Interstate Pipeline Lateral)
- 11.1 miles of 42-inch-diameter bi-directional pipeline (the Hackberry Pipeline)
The DEIS was developed in accordance with the mandates of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Council on Environmental Quality’s regulations setting forth procedural provisions of NEPA in Title 40 Code of Federal Regulations Parts 1500-1508 (40 CFR 1500-1508) and the FERC’s regulations implementing NEPA in 18 CFR 380.
The FERC has determined that construction and operation of the Hackberry Storage Project would result in minimal adverse environmental impacts, and most of those adverse environmental impacts would be temporary during construction. The FERC concluded this based on its assessment of the information provided by LA Storage and made further determinations from: (1) environmental information requests; (2) scoping, (3) literature research, (4) a consideration of potential alternatives, and (5) contacts with federal, state, and local agencies, and other stakeholders.
With the exception of climate change impacts, the FERC concluded that impacts would be reduced to negligible levels through implementation of its recommendations and LA Storage’s proposed avoidance, minimization, and mitigation measures.
The comment period for the DEIS is open until February 7, 2022.
Sources:
FERC Staff Issues Hackberry Storage (CP21-44-000) Draft Environmental Impact Statement (ferc.gov)
