PG&E Richmond-to-Pittsburg Pipeline
View the Draft Mitigated Negative Declaration
STATE OF CALIFORNIA
PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION
SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102-3298
NOTICE OF PUBLICATION OF A NEGATIVE DECLARATION
To All Interested Parties:
Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) has submitted a Application (No. 00-05-035) to the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) seeking authority under Section 851 of the Public Utilities Code to sell its heated Richmond-to-Pittsburg Fuel Oil Pipeline to a new owner, the San Pablo Bay Pipeline Company (SPBPC), a subsidiary of Tosco Corporation. In a separate application (No. 00-12-008) to the CPUC, SPBPC is seeking authority under Sections 216 and 228 of the code to own and operate the Richmond-to-Pittsburg Fuel Oil Pipeline as a common carrier pipeline corporation. The proposed sale includes the pipeline from its point of origin in Castro Street (adjacent to General Chemical’s facility) in the City of Richmond, to the Pittsburg Power Plant, formerly owned by PG&E, located in the City of Pittsburg and includes the Hercules Pump Station, located in the City of Hercules. The Richmond to Pittsburg Pipeline and Hercules Pump Station would be sold in their current "as-is, where-is, with all faults" condition.
In accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), the CPUC had an Initial Study prepared that review the impacts that would result from approval of the two applications. The activities considered include the sale of the pipeline by PG&E, the reconstruction of a 4,000-foot section of the pipeline that was removed in 1998 to allow construction of a railway station in the City of Martinez, and the future operation of the pipeline and pump station by SPBPC. The CPUC review concluded that all potential impacts could be mitigated to less than significant levels. PG&E and SPBPC have agreed to incorporate all the proposed mitigation measures into the project. CPUC has included the stipulated mitigation measures as conditions of approval of the two applications and has circulated a proposed Mitigated Negative Declaration.
Documents Available for Review
The Commission’s proposed Mitigated Negative Declaration conducted on the PG&E and SPBPC application are available for review at the following locations:
The full text of these documents will also be made directly available on the Internet at the following address: http://www.pgedivest.com; or by accessing the CPUC’s website at the following address: http://www.cpuc.ca.gov. From the CPUC’s home page click on the "Regulated Industries" link. Once there then click on the "Environmental" link and then click on the "Current Projects" link. You may then select this project from the list of projects presented on this "Current Projects" page.
Time for Review:
This Negative Declaration and Initial Study will undergo a public review process from October 30, 2001, to November 29, 2001. Comments on the documents must be received in writing by 5:00 pm (Pacific Standard Time) on November 29, 2001, at the following address:
Billie Blanchard, CPUC
c/o Environmental Science Associates
225 Bush St., Suite. 1700
Francisco, CA 94104-4207
Comments can also be submitted by the same deadline by electronic mail at: tmorgan@esassoc.com, or by facsimile to: (415) 896-0332.
For further information, please leave a message at (877) 779-2782, and your call will be returned promptly.