Disestablishment of Danger Zone for Meteorological Rocket Launching Facility, Shemya Island Area, AK, 16093-16094 [2016-06860]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
• Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 58 (Friday, March 25, 2016)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 16093-16094]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-06860]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers

33 CFR Part 334


Disestablishment of Danger Zone for Meteorological Rocket 
Launching Facility, Shemya Island Area, AK

AGENCY: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, DoD.

ACTION: Direct final rule.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Air Force has requested that the U.S. Army Corps of 
Engineers (Corps) disestablish the existing danger zone located in the 
Bering Sea near Shemya Island, Alaska. The danger zone was established 
on September 28, 1971. The purpose of the danger zone was to protect 
persons and property from dangers encountered in the area associated 
with the launching of weather rockets. The facility has not been used 
for this activity since the mid-1980s. As a result of the discontinued 
use of this area, the Air Force has requested the danger zone be 
disestablished.

DATES: This rule is effective May 24, 2016 without further notice, 
unless the Corps receives adverse comment by April 25, 2016. If we 
receive such adverse comment, we will publish a timely withdrawal in 
the Federal Register informing the public that this rule will not take 
effect.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by docket number COE-
2016-0003, by any of the following methods:
    Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 
instructions for submitting comments.
    Email: david.b.olson@usace.army.mil. Include the docket number, 
COE-2016-0003, in the subject line of the message.
    Mail: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Attn: CECW-CO (David B. Olson), 
441 G Street NW., Washington, DC 20314-1000.
    Hand Delivery/Courier: Due to security requirements, we cannot 
receive comments by hand delivery or courier.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to docket number COE-2016-0003. 
All comments received will be included in the public docket without 
change and may be made available on-line at https://www.regulations.gov, 
including any personal information provided, unless the commenter 
indicates that the comment includes information claimed to be 
Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose 
disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit information that you 
consider to be CBI, or otherwise protected, through regulations.gov or 
email. The regulations.gov Web site is an anonymous access system, 
which means we will not know your identity or contact information 
unless you provide it in the body of your comment. If you send an email 
directly to the Corps without going through regulations.gov, your email 
address will be automatically captured and included as part of the 
comment that is placed in the public docket and made available on the 
Internet. If you submit an electronic comment, we recommend that you

[[Page 16094]]

include your name and other contact information in the body of your 
comment and with any disk or CD-ROM you submit. If we cannot read your 
comment because of technical difficulties and cannot contact you for 
clarification, we may not be able to consider your comment. Electronic 
comments should avoid the use of any special characters, any form of 
encryption, and be free of any defects or viruses.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments received, go to www.regulations.gov. All documents in the 
docket are listed. Although listed in the index, some information is 
not publicly available, such as CBI or other information whose 
disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such as 
copyrighted material, is not placed on the Internet and will be 
publicly available only in hard copy form.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. David Olson, Headquarters, 
Operations and Regulatory Community of Practice, Washington, DC at 202-
761-4922 or Ms. Linda Speerstra, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Alaska 
District, Regulatory Division, at 907-747-0658.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: By letter dated December 18, 2015, the 
Chief, Pacific Air Forces Weather Operations Branch, Joint Base Pearl 
Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii requested the disestablishment of the danger zone 
at Meteorological Rocket Launching Facility on Shemya Island, Alaska. 
This request was made because the facility has not been used since the 
mid-1980s. In response to this request by the Pacific Air Forces 
Weather Operations Branch, and pursuant to its authorities in Section 7 
of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1917 (40 Stat 266; 33 U.S.C. 1) and 
Chapter XIX of the Army Appropriations Act of 1919 (40 Stat 892; 33 
U.S.C. 3), the Corps is amending the regulation at 33 CFR part 334 by 
disestablishing the danger zone in the waters of the Bering Sea, 
Meteorological Rocket Launching Facility on Shemya Island Area, Alaska.
    The Corps is publishing this rule without prior proposal because we 
view this as a non-controversial amendment and anticipate no adverse 
comment. The Corps regulations governing restricted areas state that 
notice of proposed rulemaking and public procedures are not needed 
before publishing a final rule revoking a danger zone area (see 33 CFR 
334.5(b)).
    In the ``Proposed Rules'' section of today's Federal Register, we 
are publishing a separate document that will serve as the proposal to 
disestablish this danger zone if adverse comments are filed. This rule 
will be effective on May 24, 2016 without further notice unless we 
receive adverse comment by April 25, 2016. If we receive adverse 
comment, we will publish a timely withdrawal in the Federal Register 
informing the public that the direct final rule will not take effect. 
We will address all public comments in a subsequent final rule based on 
the proposed rule. We will not institute a second comment period on 
this action. Any parties interested in commenting must do so at this 
time.

Procedural Requirements

    a. Review Under Executive Order 12866. This rule is issued with 
respect to a military function of the Defense Department and the 
provisions of Executive Order 12866 do not apply.
    b. Review Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act. This rule has been 
reviewed under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (Pub. L. 96-354) which 
requires the preparation of a regulatory flexibility analysis for any 
regulation that will have a significant economic impact on a 
substantial number of small entities (i.e., small businesses and small 
governments). The Corps has determined that the removal of the danger 
zone area will have no economic impact on the public because the area 
has not been used to launch weather rockets since the mid-1980s. The 
removal of the danger zone will decrease economic impacts on small 
entities because they will no longer have to comply with that 
regulation. The proposal will have no significant economic impact on 
small entities.
    c. Review Under the National Environmental Policy Act. The Corps 
expects that the final rule will not have a significant impact to the 
quality of the human environment and, therefore, preparation of an 
environmental impact statement will not be required. An environmental 
assessment has been prepared and it may be reviewed at the District 
office listed at the end of the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, above. 
If we receive adverse comment, an environmental assessment will be 
prepared for the subsequent decision on the final rule.
    d. Unfunded Mandates Act. The final rule does not impose an 
enforceable duty among the private sector and, therefore, are not a 
Federal private sector mandate and are not subject to the requirements 
of Section 202 or 205 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (Pub. L. 104-
4, 109 Stat. 48, 2 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.). We have also found under 
Section 203 of the Act, that small governments will not be 
significantly or uniquely affected by this rulemaking.

List of Subjects in 33 CFR Part 334

    Danger zones, Navigation (water), Restricted areas, Waterways.

    For the reasons set out in the preamble, the Corps amends 33 CFR 
part 334 as follows:

PART 334--DANGER ZONE AND RESTRICTED AREA REGULATIONS

0
1. The authority citation for 33 CFR part 334 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority:  40 Stat. 266 (33 U.S.C. 1) and 40 Stat. 892 (33 
U.S.C. 3).

Sec.  334.1290  [Removed]

0
2. Remove Sec.  334.1290.

    Dated: March 18, 2016.
Edward E. Belk, Jr.,
Chief, Operations and Regulatory Division, Directorate of Civil Works.
[FR Doc. 2016-06860 Filed 3-24-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3720-58-P