A proposed pipeline through Carbon County would have a minimal impact on the environment, according to a statement issued Friday by the Federal Regulatory Energy Commission.

Any impacts of the $1.2 billion PennEast pipeline project would be reduced to "less-than-significant levels" with the implementation of PennEast's proposed and FERC staff's recommended mitigation measures, FERC said in a news release on its website.The 118-mile pipeline would cut through Kidder, Penn Forest, Towamensing and Lower Towamensing townships in Carbon County. It has received intense public opposition with residents along the path holding numerous protest rallies.FERC said its environmental statement was based on information provided by PennEast and further developed from data requests, field investigations, scoping, literature research, alternatives analysis, contacts with federal, state, and local agencies, Indian tribes and the public."There are 79 instances in the impact statement where information has not been provided butFERC still concludes that the impacts of this pipeline will be minimal," said Linda Christman of Towamensing Township. "This draft was rushed to publication and it shows. We have a growing number of landowners who will stand together and will not cooperate as FERC and PennEast/UGI conspire to deprive them of their property rights. In the end, that is how this pipeline will be defeated - by ordinary people standing up for what is right."Pat Kornick, PennEast spokeswoman, said Friday's announcement was a major step forward in the review of a project she said will "safely deliver clean, American-made energy.""FERC's action will provide additional opportunity for input on the draft environmental impact statement," she said. "Since its August 2014 inception, PennEast has held more than 250 meetings with landowners, residents and public officials. Dozens of route changes were implemented through those conversations, including collocating 37 percent of the pipeline's route alongside other utility rights of way, to minimize environmental and community impacts."PollutantsLocally, a 47,700-horsepower compressor station would be built in Kidder Township. Construction would take six months."During operation of the pipeline and the compressor station," FERC wrote, "emissions of criteria pollutants, greenhouse gases, and hazardous air pollutants would occur. Estimated emissions from the proposed station are below all Prevention of Significant Deteriorationthresholds except for GHG. However, the requirements of PSD are not triggered if GHG is the only pollutant above the PSD threshold.Along the pipeline route, FERC continued, leaks and venting could occur at the compressor station and potentially from small leaks at flanges and valves."Emissions expected during operation of the pipeline would be relatively minor," it said.Construction of the compressor station would exceed FERC's threshold at several noise-sensitive areas, and PennEast has agreed to implement mitigation measures, as necessary, such as use of temporary noise barriers."Depending on the listener proximity to the project right of way, pipeline construction noise may also be audible to recreationists at Hickory Run State Park and the eastern end of Beltzville State Park," FERC said.FERC evaluated whether existing or proposed natural gas pipeline systems could meet Penn-East's objectives while offering an environmental advantage."Approximately 100 percent of capacity for the Atlantic Sunrise Project, and 90 percent for the PennEast Project, has been contracted, therefore, there is customer demand for both projects," according to the impact statement. "The Atlantic Sunrise Project would also not provide for the same delivery points for customers that have been identified for the PennEast project."FERC will accept public comments on the draft at its website

www.ferc.gov for 45 days from Friday.Opponents, including Maya K. van Rossum of the Delaware Riverkeeper Network, took issue with the impact statement and timeline for comment."A 45-day comment period, most of which falls during the month of August which is among the highest months in our region for vacations, displays an offensive and unnecessary abuse of power clearly designed to serve the goals of the PennEast Pipeline project to get a quick answer rather than showing fairness to the people who want and need to comment on the PennEast Pipeline proposal because they are going to be deeply and irreparably harmed," she said.A final FERC decision on the pipeline is scheduled to come in 2017.