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INTRODUCTION
Welcome
to the California Public Utilities Commission’s (CPUC) Wild Goose Storage
Expansion Project Web site. Wild
Goose Storage, Inc. (WGSI) filed an application (Application Number 01-06-029)
with the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) on June 18, 2001,
for an amended Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN).
The application requests authorization to expand the permitted storage
and operational capacity of the existing Wild Goose Gas Storage Filed
located in Butte County, California.
The application also seeks approval to construct a 25.6-mile
pipeline from the WGSI Remote Facility Site (RFS) to the Pacific Gas and
Electric Company (PG&E) Line 400/401 transmission pipeline in Colusa
County.
BACKGROUND
The
CPUC initially granted WGSI a CPCN on June 25, 1997, to develop, construct,
and operate an underground natural gas storage facility in Butte County,
California and to provide firm and interruptible storage services at market-based
rates. That approval entitled WGSI to:
•
Construct
and operate (including the injection and withdrawal of natural gas) a
new Well Pad atop the depleted Wild Goose Gas Field.
•
Construct
a bi-directional pipeline (Loop Pipeline) from the Well Pad to a new remote
operating facility.
• Construct
a remote operating facility (Remote Facility Site) where all operations
of the storage field would be managed and monitored (see Figure 1.2-1).
Initial
development and construction of the WGSI project was completed in April
1999. The CPUC's initail approval of the WGSI project authorized the use
of one of the Wild Goose Gas Field's twelve gas storage zones (L4). Zone
L4 is authorized for the maximum storage of 14 billion cubic feet (bcf)
of natural gas. The Commission's approval also limited the daily injection
and withdrawal of gas into and from the Field to 80 million cubic feet
per day (Mmcfd) and 200 Mmcfd, respectively.
PROJECTION
DESCRIPTION
The proposed project would expand WGSI's permitted storage capacity from
14 to 29 bcf, with daily injection/withdrawl rates of 450 Mmcfd and 700
Mmcfd respectively.
Four
project components have been proposed to expand storage capacity and increase
injection/withdrawal rates:
•
Expansion
of the existing Well Pad Site
•
Construction
of a second Storage Loop Pipeline
•
Expansion
of the Remote Facility Site
•
Construction
of the Line 400/401 Connection Pipeline and Delevan Interconnect Facility
Well Pad Site
WGSI proposed expansion of the existing well pad site to provide for the
added storage and injection/withdrawal capacity. Expansion of the Well
Pad was designed to accommodate the drilling of up to 16 new wells. The
new wells would be used for injection/withdrawal and observation, and
would be drilled into the Wild Goose reservoir Zones L1, U1, and U2. The
Well Pad expansion would displace approximately 1.4 acres of wetland,
and would require up to 26,000 cubic yards of structural fill material
and 1,000 cubic yards of soil for elevation of the Well Pad site and construction
of a perimeter berm.
Storage Loop Pipeline
WGSI has proposed construction of a second 18-inch diameter bi-directional
Loop Pipeline to convey the additional gas volumes between the reservoir
and the Remote Facility Site. A fiber optic cable would be installed with
this pipeline. The Pipeline and cable would be installed in the same right-of-way
as the existing Loop Pipeline.
Remote Facility Site
The added capacity of the Wild Goose reservoir would require expansion
of the Remote Facility Site. The site now serves as the operational base
for the WGSI facilities and includes the equipment required to receive
gas from the PG&E transmission system, to inject and withdraw gas
from the reservoir, and to prepare it for reintroduction into the PG&E
system. The project would add three additional natural gas-fueled engines
with three additional compressors. These new engines would produce a total
of up to 14,400 horsepower.
Expansion of the Remote Facility Site would include:
- Expansion of the lease area by 5.8 acres to a total of 11.9 acres
- Three additional natural gas-fueled engines and compressors producing
up to 14,400 horsepower
- Up to 6 additional produced-water storage tanks with a total capacity
of 200,000 gallons
- Dehydration units and reboilers
- Natural gas coolers
- A relief vent for pressure relief from the compressor station piping
- A new 1,000-gallon glycol supply/drain tank
- A standby generator
Line 400/401 Connection Pipeline and Delevan Interconnect Facility
Gas would be conveyed to and from the WGSI facilities from PG&E's
Line 400/401 gas transmission pipeline, which runs in a north-south direction
along the west side of the upper Sacramento Valley. The proposed Pipeline,
which would be up to 36-inches in diameter, would connect the Remote Facility
Site to the PG&E Line 400/401 Pipeline at the Delevan Compressor Station.
Two fiber optic communication cables, one primary and one back-up, would
be installed in the Pipeline trench to allow remote operation of valves
and data acquisition by the project applicant.
A new interconnect facility with valves, metering, and pressure monitoring
equipment would be constructed adjacent to PG&E's Delevan Compressor
Station. The Delevan Interconnect Facility would consist of a graveled
lot with a small pre-engineered metal building that would house the site's
instrumentation electronics and monitoring equipment.
APPROACH TO ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The CPUC is conducting its review of the potential environmental impacts
that could result from implementation of the project. The review is being
conducted in accordance with CEQA and the CEQA Guidelines and CPUC CEQA
Rules 17.1. All government agencies in California are required to consider
whether their decisions would result in significant impacts on the environment
and, if so, to take actions to eliminate, avoid, compensate for, or reduce
those impacts to a less than significant level.
In conducting the environmental review, the CPUC first examined and verified
information provided by WGSI in the Application and PEA concerning the
potential environmental impacts of the proposed project, including air
quality, water quality, noise, public health and safety, utilities and
services, geology and mineral resources, aesthetics, and biological resources.
The CPUC then consulted with government agencies that have permitting
or statutory authority over all or part of the project or who have specialized
knowledge of the project area. The CPUC conducted additional studies and
analyses as needed to identiry any potentially significant impacts and
identifies measures, called mitigation measures, that would avoid, eliminate,
compensate for, or reduce any such impacts to a less than significant
level.
Feasible mitigation measures are identified in this EIR for impacts that
could be considered potentially significant. The measures are designed
to reduce the impact to a less than significant level. In many cases,
WGSI proposed design features or mitigation measures as part of the project
that would reduce impacts. For other potential impacts, the CPUC has identified
additional mitigation measures in addition to those proposed by WGSI.
The CPUC is seeking comments on this EIR. The CPUC will respond to comments
on the EIR, conduct additional analysis as necessary, and modify mitigation
measures as appropriate. If the CPUC approves the project, CPUC stafff
would closely monitor WGSI's compliance with the requirements imposed
by the mitigation measures.
-
-
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- Michael Rosauer, CPUC
Project Manager
- C/o MHA Environmental Consulting,
Inc.
- 4 West Fourth Street, Suite 303
- San Mateo, CA 94402
- Project e-mail: wildgoose@mha-inc.com
- Voice:
(650)373-1200 Facisimile: (650)373-1211
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