ENR (202) 514-2007
WWW.USDOJ.GOV
TDD (202) 514-1888
STATEMENT OF LOIS J. SCHIFFER ON SPILLER V. WALKER
Assistant Attorney General for Environment and Natural Resources
Today the Honorable Sam Sparks, Federal District Judge for the Western District of Texas, approved an important settlement in Spiller v. Walker, the case involving the operation of the Longhorn Pipeline across central Texas. This settlement requires that an environmental analysis be conducted of the pipeline before it begins operation, and it provides extensive opportunities for public review and comment on the results of the analysis. Under the settlement:
- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), the lead agencies involved in this case, will prepare a comprehensive environmental assessment (EA) of the Longhorn Pipeline;
- The EA will be prepared by a contractor selected and supervised by the EPA and the DOT, and paid for by Longhorn Partners Pipeline, L.P.;
- The agencies will host a meeting in Austin if requested to provide information to the public and receive comments on the EA;
- The EA will include analysis of the pipeline on the affected environment and a commitment to consider alternatives to reroute the pipeline around aquifers and other pipeline mitigation alternatives;
- The EPA and the DOT will attempt to complete the EA within a seven-month period.
- The EA will be followed by either a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) or notice of intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).
All of the parties involved in this case have worked hard to reach this settlement. It is the result of enormous effort involving difficult and complex issues. This settlement is a good one. It provides for environmental analysis of an important statewide pipeline project and a plan to ensure that the process is open, fair, and timely. We are pleased that the Judge has approved this important settlement.
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