News Release

For Immediate Release: 4/23/02 CA-610-02-46
Contact: Doran Sanchez, (909) 697-5220 or Jan Bedrosian (916) 978-4616

Decision Issued Authorizing North Baja Pipeline

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the U.S. Department of the Interior have issued decisions authorizing construction and operation of an 80-mile-long natural gas pipeline and associated facilities stretching from the U.S.-Mexico border in eastern Imperial County, north through Riverside County, to La Paz County, Arizona.

The project, to be operated by North Baja Pipeline Limited Liability Corp., would transport up to 500 million cubic feet per day of natural gas from a proposed interconnect with an existing El Paso Natural Gas Company pipeline in Ehrenberg, Arizona, to the U.S.-Mexico border where it would interconnect with a new pipeline, Gasoducto Bajanorte, currently under construction by Sempra Energy Mexico. About 48 miles of the 80-mile 30 and 36-inch diameter pipeline and some of the related facilities will be located on Federal lands managed by the BLM, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, or the Bureau of Reclamation, all agencies of the U.S. Department of the Interior.

The approved right-of-way is about 50 feet wide and covers a total of about 300 acres. The right-of-way grant is for a period of 30 years and is subject to renewal. At three points, the approved pipeline will be located outside of a designated utility corridor on BLM public lands. Plan amendments authorizing these exceptions to the California Desert Conservation Area Plan and the Yuma Resource Management Plan were also approved by BLM as part of this decision. The right-of-way grant, and a temporary use permit for construction purposes, were approved by the U.S. Department of the Interior on behalf of the affected agencies. The project will provide additional natural gas supplies to customers in the southwestern U.S. and northern Mexico. Two new powerplants are also under construction in Mexico which will utilize natural gas from the North Baja project and have been separately authorized by the relevant Mexican regulatory agencies.

A draft environmental impact statement (EIS) and environmental impact report (EIR) were issued in July 2001 for public comment. Two public hearings were held and 50 comments received. A Final EIS/EIR was jointly issued by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission as the Federal lead under the National Environmental Policy Act and the California State Lands Commission under the California Environmental Quality Act in January 2002. The Record of Decision for the North Baja Project is available online at http://www.ca.blm.gov/news/reports_docs/2002/northbajadocs_042302.html. Paper copies of the FEIS/EIR are available from the State Lands Commission upon request (email walkerk@slc.ca.gov or Kirk Walker at 916-574-1893). For further information on the North Baja Project, contact the BLM's El Centro Field Office at (760) 337-4400.

-BLM-

California Desert District Office - 6221 Box Springs Blvd, Riverside, California - (909) 697-5200