[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 185 (Friday, September 25, 2009)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 48891-48892]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-23161]
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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
Coast Guard
33 CFR Parts 151, 155, and 160
[USCG-2008-1070]
RIN 1625-AB27
Nontank Vessel Response Plans and Other Vessel Response Plan
Requirements
AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.
ACTION: Notice of public meetings; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The Coast Guard announces three public meetings to receive
comments on a notice of proposed rulemaking that would require owners
or operators of nontank vessels to prepare and submit oil spill
response plans. The meetings will be held to allow for greater public
involvement.
DATES: The public meetings will be held at the following locations:
Washington, DC, October 28, 2009, from 1 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Oakland, CA, November 3, 2009, from 1 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
New Orleans, LA, November 19, 2009, from 4:30 p.m. to 7
p.m.
Written comments and related material may also be submitted to
Coast Guard personnel specified at that meeting. The comment period for
the proposed rule closes November 30, 2009. All comments and related
material submitted after the meeting must either be submitted to our
online docket via http://www.regulations.gov on or before November 30,
2009, or reach the Docket Management Facility by that date.
ADDRESSES: The public meetings will be held at the following locations:
Washington, DC--United States Coast Guard Headquarters
Building, Room 4202, 2100 Second St, SW., Washington, DC 20593.
Oakland, CA--Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building,
Auditorium, 3rd Floor North Tower, 1301 Clay Street, Oakland, CA 94612.
New Orleans, LA--Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, Room
208, Exhibit Hall A, 900 Convention Center Blvd, New Orleans, LA 70130.
You may submit written comments identified by docket number USCG-
2008-1070 before or after the meeting using any one of the following
methods:
(1) Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
(2) Fax: 202-493-2251.
(3) Mail: Docket Management Facility (M-30), U.S. Department of
Transportation, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New
Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590-0001.
(4) Hand delivery: Same as mail address above, between 9 a.m. and 5
p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. The telephone
number is 202-366-9329.
To avoid duplication, please use only one of these four methods.
Our online docket for this rulemaking is available on the Internet at
http://www.regulations.gov under docket number USCG-2008-1070.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you have questions about this
proposed rulemaking, contact Lieutenant Jarrod DeWitz, U.S. Coast
Guard, Office of Vessel Activities, Vessel Response Plan Review Team,
telephone (202) 372-1219. You may also e-mail questions to
[email protected]. If you have questions on viewing or
submitting material to the docket, call Ms. Renee V. Wright, Program
Manager, Docket Operations, telephone 202-366-9826.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background and Purpose
We published a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) in the Federal
Register on August 31, 2009 (74 FR 44970), entitled ``Nontank Vessel
Response Plans and Other Vessel Response Plan Requirements.'' In it, we
stated our intention to hold one or more public meetings, and to
publish a notice to announce the location and date of the public
meetings. In this notice, we announce those public meetings to receive
comments on this proposed rule.
In the NPRM, we proposed requiring owners or operators of nontank
vessels to prepare and submit oil spill response plans. The Federal
Water Pollution Control Act defines nontank vessels as self-propelled
vessels of 400 gross tons or greater that operate on the navigable
waters of the United States, carry oil of any kind as fuel for main
propulsion,
[[Page 48892]]
and are not tank vessels. The proposed rule would specify the content
of a response plan, and among other issues, address the requirement to
plan for responding to a worst case discharge and a substantial threat
of such a discharge. Additionally, the proposed rule would update the
international Shipboard Oil Pollution Emergency Plan (SOPEP)
requirements that apply to nontank vessels and certain tank vessels.
Finally, the proposed rule would require vessel owners and operators to
submit their vessel response plan control number as part of already
required notice of arrival information.
You may view the NPRM in our online docket, in addition to
supporting documents prepared by the Coast Guard (Regulatory Analysis &
Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis), and comments submitted thus
far by going to http://www.regulations.gov. Once there, select the
Advanced Docket Search option on the right side of the screen, insert
USCG-2008-1070 in the Docket ID box, press Enter, and then click on the
item in the Docket ID column. If you do not have access to the
Internet, you may view the docket by visiting the Docket Management
Facility in Room W12-140 on the ground floor of the Department of
Transportation West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington,
DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except
Federal holidays. We have an agreement with the Department of
Transportation to use the Docket Management Facility.
We encourage you to participate in this rulemaking by submitting
comments either orally at a meeting or in writing. If you bring written
comments to a meeting, you may submit them to Coast Guard personnel
specified at the meeting to receive written comments. These comments
will be submitted to our online public docket. All comments received
will be posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov and will
include any personal information you have provided.
Anyone can search the electronic form of comments received into any
of our dockets by the name of the individual submitting the comment (or
signing the comment, if submitted on behalf of an association,
business, labor union, etc.). You may review a Privacy Act notice
regarding our public dockets in the January 17, 2008 issue of the
Federal Register (73 FR 3316).
Information on Service for Individuals With Disabilities
For information on facilities or services for individuals with
disabilities or to request special assistance at the public meeting,
contact Lieutenant Jarrod DeWitz at the telephone number indicated
under the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this notice.
Public Meeting
The Coast Guard will hold three public meetings regarding this
proposed rulemaking on the following dates and at the following
locations:
Washington, DC, October 15, 2009, from 1 p.m. to 3:30
p.m., at the United States Coast Guard Headquarters Building, Room
4202, 2100 Second Street SW., Washington, DC 20593. Note: A government-
issued photo identification (for example, a driver's license) will be
required for entrance to the building.
Oakland, CA, November 3, 2009, from 1 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.,
at the Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building, Auditorium, 3rd Floor North
Tower, 1301 Clay Street, Oakland, CA 94612. Note: A government-issued
photo identification (for example, a driver's license) will be required
for entrance to the building.
New Orleans, LA, November 19, 2009, from 4:30 p.m. to 7
p.m., at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, Room 208, Exhibit Hall
A, 900 Convention Center Blvd, New Orleans, LA 70130.
Members of the public may attend these meetings up to the seating
capacity of the rooms. The meetings may conclude before the allotted
time if all matters of concern have been addressed.
We plan to record each meeting using an audio-digital recorder and
to make that audio recording available through a link in our online
docket. A written summary of comments made and a list of attendees will
be placed in the docket after each meeting concludes.
Dated: September 21, 2009.
J.G. Lantz,
Director of Commercial Regulations and Standards, U.S. Coast Guard.
[FR Doc. E9-23161 Filed 9-24-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-15-P