Sandpiper Pipeline: Comparison of Environmental Effects of Reasonable Alternatives
Sandpiper Pipeline: Comparison of Environmental Effects of Reasonable Alternatives In the Matter of the Application of North Dakota Pipeline Company LLC for a Certificate of Need for the Sandpiper Pipeline Project in Minnesota Minnesota Public Utilities Commission Docket CN-13-473 Minnesota Department of Commerce Energy Environmental Review and Analysis | December 2014 Sandpiper Pipeline: Comparison of Environmental Effects of Reasonable Alternatives Abstract North Dakota Pipeline Company LLC (NDPC) is proposing to construct the Sandpiper Project, a 565 to 608-mile long pipeline and associated facilities from the Tioga, North Dakota, through Minnesota to Superior, Wisconsin. On November 8, 2013, NDPC filed two applications with the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (Commission): the first for a Certificate of Need (CN) and the second for a pipeline route permit for the project. The CN rules at Minn. R. 7853.0130 require, in determining if a certificate of need should be granted, that consideration be paid to the “natural and socioeconomic environments compared to the effects of reasonable alternatives,” and “the effect of the proposed facility, or a suitable modification of it, upon the natural and socioeconomic environments compared to the effect of not building the facility.” For the Sandpiper Project, the Commission concluded that an environmental analysis of six system alternatives, which were identified in the Route Permit docket, and six alternatives to the proposed project identified by NDPC in its CN application would provide it with valuable information to be weighed along with other information while making its need decision. This document is intended to provide that analysis. It is intended for the use of any party who chooses to advocate for or against consideration of an alternative in the certificate of need docket.
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