article: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Alaska Natural Gas Pipeline Improvement Act of 2011''. SEC. 2. FINDINGS. Congress finds that-- (1) North American demand for natural gas is expected to increase dramatically over the course of the next several decades, as described in section 114 of the Alaska Natural Gas Pipeline Act of 2004 (15 U.S.C. 720l); (2) although North American natural gas supplies are adequate to meet customer needs in calendar years 2011 and 2012 and for the near future, the availability of Alaska gas as an additional domestic source would further shield the United States from any future reliance on overseas energy supplies in the years ahead; (3) 2 military installations in the Fairbanks North Star Borough, Alaska, Fort Wainwright and Eielson Air Force Base-- (A) are a central component of the ability of the United States to project power over a vast area of the Pacific region; (B) are home to approximately 23,000 military members and families; (C) are located along or relatively adjacent to any cost-effective Alaska natural gas pipeline project corridor; and (D) would benefit from access to affordable natural gas supplies drawn from the proposed Alaska natural gas pipeline project, freeing up funding for pursuing mid- term and long-term renewable energy goals; (4) the Fairbanks North Star Borough-- (A) suffers from a thermal inversion that traps particulate emissions and other air pollutants; and (B) has been declared a nonattainment zone for failing to achieve reductions in particulate matter by the Environmental Protection Agency; (5) the availability of affordable clean-burning natural gas would significantly improve air quality in the public health interest of Borough residents; (6) the most logical route for an Alaska natural gas transportation project (as defined in section 102 of the Alaska Natural Gas Pipeline Act of 2004 (15 U.S.C. 720)) would travel through Atigun Pass; (7) Atigun Pass-- (A) holds both the James W. Dalton Highway and the trans-Alaska oil pipeline, both of which are essential to the strategically important operation of North Slope oil fields; and (B) is the highest-altitude point on the Dalton Highway (with an elevation of 4,739 feet or 1,422 meters) and is on the Continental Divide; (8) space constraints and difficulties of Arctic construction in Atigun Pass restrict the available right-of- way, allowing room for only 1 additional pipeline in the preferred route through the Pass; (9) the public interest would best be served by all proponents of a natural gas pipeline from the Alaska North Slope agreeing on a single project that-- (A) passes through Atigun Pass, taking advantage of the preferred right-of-way and avoiding costly duplication of design, permitting, and construction expenses that would fall on consumers; and (B) serves Alaskans and other North American consumers; and (10) a natural gas pipeline with sufficient capacity to facilitate economic transportation of natural gas as part of a Alaska natural gas transportation project (as defined in section 102 of the Alaska Natural Gas Pipeline Act of 2004 (15 U.S.C. 720)) is in the national interest. SEC. 3. DEFINITION OF ALASKA NATURAL GAS TRANSPORTATION PROJECT. Section 102 of the Alaska Natural Gas Pipeline Act of 2004 (15 U.S.C. 720) is amended by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the following: ``(2) Alaska natural gas transportation project.--The term `Alaska Natural Gas Transportation Project' means-- ``(A) any natural gas pipeline system that carries Alaska natural gas to the border between Alaska and Canada (including related facilities subject to the jurisdiction of the Commission) that is authorized under-- ``(i) the Alaska Natural Gas Transportation Act of 1976 (15 U.S.C. 719 et seq.); or ``(ii) section 103; and ``(B) any pipeline segment that the Commission finds could feasibly be incorporated into and serve as an integrated segment of the system described in subparagraph (A) (including the construction and operation of the segment), which shall be subject to this Act and the jurisdiction of the Commission under the Natural Gas Act (15 U.S.C. 717 et seq.), regardless of whether the segment-- ``(i) is proposed and constructed prior to the construction of the entire system described in subparagraph (A); or ``(ii) initially transports Alaska natural gas solely for delivery to consumers within the State of Alaska.''.
summary: Alaska Natural Gas Pipeline Improvement Act of 2011 - Amends the Alaska Natural Gas Pipeline Act of 2004 to include in the Alaska Natural Gas Transportation Project (carrying Alaska natural gas to the Canadian border) any pipeline segment that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) finds could feasibly be incorporated into and serve as an integrated segment of that system, regardless of whether it: (1) is proposed and constructed before construction of the entire system, or (2) initially transports natural gas solely for delivery to customers within Alaska.