October 3, 2017 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

EPA is finalizing a significant new use rule (SNUR) under section 5(a)(2) of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) for the chemical substance identified generically as bimodal mixture consisting of multi-walled carbon nanotubes and other classes of carbon nanotubes, which was the subject of premanufacture notice (PMN) P-11-482. This action requires persons who intend to manufacture (defined by statute to include import) or process the chemical substance for a use that is designated as a significant new use by this final rule to notify EPA at least 90 days before commencing that activity. The required notification initiates EPA's evaluation of the intended use within the applicable review period. Manufacture and processing for the significant new use is unable to commence until EPA has conducted a review of the notice, made an appropriate determination on the notice, and take such actions as are required with that determination. The required notification would provide EPA with the opportunity to evaluate the intended use and, if necessary, to prohibit or limit that activity before it occurs.

This final rule establishes new regulations to address the use of Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) sand, gravel, and/or shell resources for shore protection, beach restoration, or coastal wetlands restoration projects by Federal, state, or local government agencies, and for use in construction projects authorized by or funded in whole or in part by the Federal Government. The final rule describes the negotiated noncompetitive agreement process for qualifying projects and codifies new and existing procedures.

The Coast Guard proposes to establish two special anchorage areas in the Passagassawakeag River in the vicinity of Belfast, Maine. This proposed action is necessary to facilitate safe navigation in that area and provide safe and secure anchorages for vessels less than 20 meters in length. This action is intended to increase the safety of life and property in the Passagassawakeag River in the vicinity of Belfast, improve the safety of anchored vessels, and provide for the overall safe and efficient flow of vessel traffic and commerce. We invite your comments on this proposed rulemaking.

NMFS is transferring 156.4 metric tons (mt) of Atlantic bluefin tuna (BFT) quota from the Reserve category to the General category for the remainder of the 2017 fishing year, to account for overharvests of the January, June through August, and September subquotas. This action is intended to preserve the opportunity for General category fishermen to participate in the October through November and December General category fisheries to the extent that transferrable quota is available and is based on consideration of the regulatory determination criteria regarding inseason adjustments and applies to Atlantic tunas General category (commercial) permitted vessels and Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Charter/Headboat category permitted vessels when fishing commercially for BFT.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), proposed in an earlier document this year to establish annual hunting regulations for certain migratory game birds for the 2018-19 hunting season. This supplement to that proposed rule provides the regulatory alternatives for the 2018-19 duck hunting seasons, announces the Service Migratory Bird Regulations Committee (SRC) and Flyway Council meetings, and provides Flyway Council recommendations resulting from their March meetings.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary safety zone for certain waters of the Patapsco River, Northwest Harbor and Inner Harbor. This action is necessary to provide for the safety of life on the navigable waters at Baltimore, MD, during the movement of the historic sloop-of-war USS CONSTELLATION on October 26, 2017. If necessary, due to inclement weather, the event will be rescheduled for October 27, 2017. This action will prohibit persons and vessels from entering the safety zone unless authorized by the Captain of the Port MarylandNational Capital Region.

The Coast Guard is establishing a special local regulation for all navigable waters of the Cumberland River from mile marker (MM) 190.0 to MM 195.0. This action is necessary to provide for the safety of life on these navigable waters near Nashville, TN during the Music City Head Race. Entry into, transiting through, or anchoring within this regulated area is prohibited unless authorized by the Captain of the Port Sector Ohio Valley (COTP) or a designated representative.

The Postal Service is contemplating amendment of the Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM[supreg]), to address the challenges presented by overweight parcels that make their way into the postal network. To aid us in this effort, we are requesting comments from the postal community regarding a variety of suggested actions to resolve or ameliorate this problem. Overweight parcels for the purpose of this notice are defined as anything in excess of 70 pounds or the maximum weight allowed for HAZMAT.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposes to approve, as a state implementation plan (SIP) revision, the 2011 base year inventory for the Baltimore, Maryland moderate nonattainment area for the 2008 8-hour ozone national ambient air quality standard (NAAQS) submitted by the State of Maryland through the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE). In the Final Rules section of this issue of the Federal Register, EPA is approving the State's SIP submittal as a direct final rule without prior proposal because the Agency views this as a noncontroversial submittal and anticipates no adverse comments. A more detailed description of the state submittal and EPA's evaluation is included in a technical support document (TSD) prepared in support of this rulemaking action. A copy of the TSD is available, upon request, from the EPA Regional Office listed in the ADDRESSES section of this document or is also available electronically within the Docket for this rulemaking action. If no adverse comments are received in response to this action, no further activity is contemplated. If EPA receives adverse comments, the direct final rule will be withdrawn and all public comments received will be addressed in a subsequent final rule based on this proposed rule. EPA will not institute a second comment period. Any parties interested in commenting on this action should do so at this time.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary safety zone for one mile of navigable waters of the Roanoke River in Plymouth, North Carolina. This temporary safety zone is intended to restrict vessel traffic from a portion of the Roanoke River during the Virginia Outlaw Drag Boat Association End of the Year Showdown high speed boat race. This action is intended to restrict vessel traffic movement in the regulated area to protect participants, spectators, and property from the hazards posed by high speed boat races. Entry of vessels or persons into this safety zone is prohibited unless specifically authorized by the Captain of the Port (COTP), North Carolina or a designated representative.

This rule updates the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) legal authority paragraphs in the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to cite the most recent Presidential notice continuing a national emergency declared pursuant to the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. This is a procedural, non-substantive rule that only updates authority paragraphs of the EAR. It does not alter any right, obligation or prohibition that applies to any person under the EAR.

This action establishes Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface at Picayune, MS, to accommodate new area navigation (RNAV) global positioning system (GPS) standard instrument approach procedures (SIAPs) serving Highland Community Hospital Heliport. Controlled airspace is necessary for the safety and management of instrument flight rules (IFR) operations at the heliport.