FERC staff issued a positive environmental assessment of Dominion Cove Point LNG LP's proposed pier reinforcement project, recommending approval by the commission.
"FERC staff concludes that approval of the proposed project, with appropriate mitigating measures, would not constitute a major federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment," the commission said in a notice issued May 8.
The assessment reviewed the potential environmental effects of modifications to Dominion Cove Point's existing pier in the Chesapeake Bay at the Cove Point terminal in Calvert County, Md. The project calls for the addition of 10 new moorings and dredging of about 120,000 cubic yards of sediment directly adjacent to the pier.
Under Dominion Cove Point's current tariff limit, the facility receives LNG tankers with a capacity of no greater than 148,000 cubic meters. The proposed modifications to the pier would allow the company to receive vessels carrying cargoes of up to 267,000 cubic meters.
Dominion Cove Point is a subsidiary of Dominion Resources Inc. (CP09-60)