After the public comment period on the proposed rule ended on July 29, 2019, NMFS reached out to AGDC on August 27, 2019 regarding additional information needed to address public comments. The request included clarification and changes related to: 1) the accuracy of the project description, and 2) their methodology for calculating expected beluga whale takes. This information was deemed critical for NMFS to adequately address public comments. AGDC did not respond to our August 27, 2019 request until the information was requested again on October 3, 2019. AGDC provided a partial response on October 7, 2019, with a full response received in the form of an updated LOA application on February 17, 2020. The update also included changes to the acoustic modeling, which NMFS had not asked for, but was aware they may be modifying.
The time it has taken to evaluate and incorporate the newly provided information into the analysis, given the late receipt, has resulted in the need for an extension to the previously agreed-upon dates for the MMPA rule, which requires extensive review by multiple offices.
Description:
Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) Consultation 101(1)(5)(a) rulemaking and Letter of Authorization (LOA).
Agency: NOAA-NMFS
Marine mammals in agency's jurisdiction and in geographic area: Humpback whale, Beluga whale, Killer whale, Harbor porpoise, and Harbor seal.
Milestones:
NOAA’s ability to meet this schedule is contingent upon receipt of adequate and complete application information. We estimate that this generally takes three months from receipt of the initial application for rules.
NOAA’s ability to meet this schedule is contingent upon receipt of adequate and complete application information. Milestone status was paused from 12/01/2017 to 4/11/2018 because NOAA did not receive adequate and complete application information by the 12/01/17 target completion date.
NOAA's ability to meet this schedule is contingent upon the extent and nature of comments received on the Notice of Receipt (NOR). In this instance, there were specific comments on the NOR from the public that required additional analysis by NMFS, so the timing will be extended to allow the applicant time to respond (i.e., applicant’s responses will inform NMFS’ analysis). Additionally, as NMFS will adopt the lead agency EIS for purposes of the MMPA authorization, this milestone is tied to the publication date of the DEIS.
This milestone tracks publication of the notice of the ITA in the Federal Register and does not provide the actual Authorization to take marine mammals, which is provided in the Letter of Authorization (LOA). NOAA’s ability to meet this schedule is contingent upon receipt of required information from the applicant, the extent and nature of public comments received on the proposed ITA, and the ability of NMFS to make the required finding. Additionally, as NMFS will adopt the lead agency EIS for purposes of the MMPA authorization, this milestone is tied to the date of the ROD, as a ROD is needed to sign the final rule. NMFS has estimated an additional two weeks for publication of the final rule from the ROD date to allow time for clearance and publication.
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Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)
:
Issuance of Lead Agency Record of Decision (Agency Action)
- Completed Date: 05/21/2020
This milestone is the actual Authorization for incidental take of marine mammals. NOAA’s ability to meet this schedule is contingent upon receipt of required information from the applicant, the extent and nature of public comments received on the proposed ITA, and the ability of NMFS to make the required finding. As NMFS will adopt the lead agency EIS for purposes of the MMPA authorization, and there is a one-month cooling off period between the final ITA notice and issuance of the LOA, this milestone is tied to a one-month period after publication of the final ITA.
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Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)
:
Issuance of Lead Agency Record of Decision (Agency Action)
- Completed Date: 05/21/2020
This milestone is the actual Authorization for incidental take of marine mammals. NOAA’s ability to meet this schedule is contingent upon receipt of required information from the applicant, the extent and nature of public comments received on the proposed ITA, and the ability of NMFS to make the required finding. As NMFS will adopt the lead agency EIS for purposes of the MMPA authorization, and there is a one-month cooling off period between the final ITA notice and issuance of the LOA, this milestone is tied to a one-month period after publication of the final ITA.
PROJECT WEBSITE: http://alaska-lng.com/
All dates below are specific to the schedule of the Environmental Review and Permitting processes for this project.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW AND PERMITTING STATUS
IN PROGRESS
ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE OF ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW AND PERMITTING
04/13/2023
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW AND PERMITTING PROCESSES
COMPLETED
SECTOR
Pipelines
CATEGORY
Project Category
FAST-41 Covered Projects
LEAD AGENCY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
View FAST-41 Postings by Agencies
Other Agencies with Actions or Authorizations:
Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Department of Homeland Security, US Coast Guard
Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management
Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service
Department of the Army, US Army Corps of Engineers - Regulatory
Department of Energy, Office of Fossil Energy
Department of the Interior, National Park Service
Department of Energy
Description:
The Alaska LNG Project is comprised of the following integrated and interdependent facilities: a liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in Southcentral Alaska designed to produce up to 20 million metric tons per annum of LNG; an approximately 807-mile, 42-inch diameter gas pipeline; a gas treatment plant (GTP) within the Prudhoe Bay Unit (PBU) on the North Slope; an approximately 1-mile, 60-inch diameter gas transmission line connecting the GTP to the PBU gas production facility; and an approximately 63 mile, 32-inch diameter gas transmission line connecting the GTP to the Point Thomson gas production facility. The mainline of the Alaska LNG Project will traverse over 800 miles from the GTP on the North Slope of Alaska through several boroughs before it crosses Cook Inlet and connects with the liquefaction plant and marine terminal in Nikiski, Alaska.
Fast-41 Initiation Notice
- Document located at: https://elibrary.ferc.gov/idmws/common/OpenNat.asp?fileID=14666498.
Project Application and Supporting Documents
- Project Application, FERC Docket No. CP17-178-000 (submitted 04/17/2017). Document located at: https://elibrary.ferc.gov/idmws/common/OpenNat.asp?fileID=14568607.
- Supporting Documents to Project Application and Additional Project-related filings and issuances can be found on FERC’s eLibrary website by searching under Docket No. CP17-178.
Federal Agency Actions
- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Notice of Application (issued 05/01/2017). Document located at: https://elibrary.ferc.gov/idmws/common/opennat.asp?fileID=14578591.
- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Notice of Schedule for Environmental Review of the Project (issued 03/12/2018). Document located at: https://elibrary.ferc.gov/idmws/common/opennat.asp?fileID=14838969.
- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Notice of Revised Schedule for Environmental Review of the Project (issued 08/31/2018). Document located at: https://elibrary.ferc.gov/idmws/common/opennat.asp?fileID=15013558.
- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Notice of Anticipated Schedule of Final Order for the Project (issued 08/31/2018). Document located at: https://elibrary.ferc.gov/idmws/common/opennat.asp?fileID=15013581.
- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Notice of Revised Schedule for Environmental Review of the Project (issued 02/28/2019). Document located at: https://elibrary.ferc.gov/idmws/common/opennat.asp?fileID=15172046.
- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Draft Environmental Impact Statement (issued 06/28/2019). Document located at: https://www.ferc.gov/industries/gas/enviro/eis/2019/06-28-19-DEIS.asp.
- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Final Environmental Impact Statement (issued 03/06/2020). Document located at: https://www.ferc.gov/industries/gas/enviro/eis/2020/03-06-20-FEIS.asp.
FERC Litigation
- None filed.
For improved transparency, FERC is providing this supplemental table to reflect the additional federal authorizations that may be required for the Alaska LNG Project.
| Additional Federal Agency Permitting Timetable for the Alaska LNG Project | |||
| Responsible Agency | Federal Permit/Review | Status | Applicable Timelines |
| US Coast Guard | Letter of Recommendation | Complete | Receipt of Letter of Intent: May 15, 2014 Receipt of Waterway Suitability Assessment: March 18, 2016 Letter of Recommendation to FERC: August 17, 2016 |
Last updated March 28, 2020
Original Target Date: 09/29/2019
Milestone: Incidental Take Authorization Decision Rendered
Requested extensions greater than 30 days for this Action are shown below:
Incidental Take Authorization Decision Rendered extended by 355
From: 07/05/2020
To: 09/18/2020