STATE OF CALIFORNIA
PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION

Central Valley Natural Gas Storage Project

(Application No. A.09-08-008)

Construction Progress and Mitigation Monitoring

Construction of the Central Valley Gas Storage Project began in March 2011 with the establishment of construction yards, 10-acre compressor station, 5-acre remote well pad site and three observation wells. Notices to Proceed (NTPs) have been issued by the CPUC for each of these activities. The majority of construction is expected to start in June 2011 once the CPUC issues NTPs for each project component. Issuance of NTPs will be contingent upon Central Valley compliance with pre-construction requirements as specified by the approved mitigation measures and responsible agency permitting requirements. NTPs that have been issued to Central Valley are noted in the table below.

The CPUC, in conjunction with Central Valley Gas Storage LLC, drafted a Mitigation Monitoring Compliance and Reporting Program (MMCRP) to ensure compliance with mitigation measures approved in the Final MND. Although changes may be made to the document as construction progresses, a current final version of the MMCRP document and attachments, including a map of the approved route with segments, is found here.

A CPUC Environmental Monitor (EM) is monitoring construction activities to ensure that they are conducted in accordance with the approved mitigation measures and permit conditions. Weekly reports documenting construction status and compliance activities will be posted here.

As defined by the MMCRP, at various times throughout project construction, the need for extra workspace or additional access roads may be identified. Similarly, changes to the project requirements (mitigation measures, specifications, etc.) may be needed to facilitate construction or provide more effective protection of resources (e.g., installation of additional erosion control outside of approved disturbance areas). The CPUC Project Manager, along with the CPUC EMs, will implement the variance procedures defined in the MMCRP to evaluate each proposed project change for its potential for creating significant environmental effects to determine whether supplemental California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and/or National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review is required. Variance requests processed to date are provided in the table below.

This page contains tables and is best viewed with Netscape Energy Division web coordinator.

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