Posted on: Monday, October 12, 2015

LYNNFIELD — The last day for townspeople to comment on the proposed Kinder Morgan gas pipeline is Friday, Oct. 16.

Staff from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) responded Oct. 8 to the Kinder Morgan/Tennessee Gas Pipeline’s July 24 Draft Resource Report on its proposed Northeast Energy Direct pipeline.

In the letter, FERC has requested from Kinder Morgan/Tennessee Gas “clarification of discrepancies” and identification of “missing information that we believe necessary to begin substantive preparation of the draft environmental impact statement for the project.”

Additionally, FERC states that Tennessee Gas must “address all of the comments filed in the public record by other federal, state and local agencies; as well as stakeholders” in the report.

Townspeople can read and download the report at https://www.nofrackedgasinmass.org/notgp/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/ferc-staff-comments-on-resource-reports-10-8-15.pdf.

FERC is required to hold “scoping meetings” as part of the energy giant’s application process, which seeks input from citizens.

Residents can post comments and documents by visiting www.ferc.gov. Residents can also mail their comments to: Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street, NE, Room 1A, Washington, D.C. 20426, postmarked by the Oct. 16 deadline.

Known as the Lynnfield Lateral, the pipeline will be 24 inches in diameter. Kinder Morgan wants to bring the high-pressure natural gas pipeline into Massachusetts and New Hampshire from the Marcellas Shale region of Pennsylvania and upstate New York.

The proposal has had dozens of communities up in arms as private homeowners, landowners, businesses and government entities alike push back against the private company’s request to survey properties that would be encumbered by permanent easements along its meandering route.

In Lynnfield, the project would affect Chestnut Street, Willis Lane, North Hill Drive and surrounding streets. The pipeline would also run through Lynnfield Center Water District (LCWD) property.