Coast Guard – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Coast Guard is amending special local regulations and establishing permanent safety zones in Coast Guard Southeastern New England Captain of the Port (COTP) Zone for annually recurring marine events.

A working group of the Merchant Marine Personnel Advisory Committee (MERPAC) will meet to discuss Task Statement 76, ``Review of Performance Measures (Assessment Criteria);'' and Task Statement 77, ``Development of Performance Measures (Assessment Criteria).'' This meeting will be open to the public.

The Coast Guard proposes to add a special operating regulation governing the Louisiana and Delta Railroad (LDRR) vertical lift bridge across Carlin Bayou in Delcambre, Iberia Parish, Louisiana. The bridge currently remains in the open-to-navigation position and only lowers for the passage of trains. This rule proposes to codify the current schedule as a special operating regulation.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary safety zone on the St. Clair River, Marysville, Michigan. This zone is intended to restrict vessels from a portion of the St. Clair River during the preparation for and display of the Marysville Days Fireworks on June 29, 2012.

The Coast Guard is proposing to establish a temporary safety zone on the waters of Cape Charles City Harbor in Cape Charles, VA in support of the Fourth of July Fireworks event. This action is intended to restrict vessel traffic movement to protect mariners from the hazards associated with firework displays.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary safety zone on the waters of Seddon Channel in the vicinity of the Tampa Convention Center in Tampa, Florida during the International Special Operations Forces Week Capability Exercise. The exercise is scheduled to take place on Tuesday, May 22, 2012 and Wednesday, May 23, 2012. The safety zone is necessary to protect the public from the hazards associated with airborne and waterborne activities occurring during the exercise. Persons and vessels are prohibited from entering, transiting through, anchoring in, or remaining within the safety zone unless authorized by the Captain of the Port St. Petersburg or a designated representative.

The Coast Guard has issued a temporary deviation from the operating schedule that governs the upper deck of the Steel Bridge across the Willamette River, mile 12.1, at Portland, OR. This deviation is necessary to accommodate the efficient movement of light rail and roadway traffic associated with the Rose Parade in Portland, Oregon. This deviation allows the upper deck of the Steel Bridge to remain in the closed position to facilitate efficient movement of event patrons.

The Coast Guard proposes to establish a moving safety zone around large cruise ships as they transit the Lower Mississippi River between the Port of New Orleans Cruise Ship Terminal, mile marker 96.0 and the Southwest Pass Sea Buoy. The proposed moving safety zone extends from bank to bank encompassing one-mile ahead and one-mile astern of each large cruise ship. This safety measure is necessary to protect persons and vessels from the potential safety hazards associated with congested maritime traffic on the Lower Mississippi River.

The Coast Guard is modifying the drawbridge operating regulation for the Hood Canal floating drawbridge near Port Gamble. This modification will relieve heavy rush hour road traffic on State Routes 3 and 104 by allowing the draw of the bridge to remain closed to maritime traffic during afternoon rush hours during summer months. This action will help alleviate heavy rush hour road traffic by reducing bridge openings, thereby reducing traffic queues and delays due to bridge openings.

The Coast Guard will enforce the safety zone for the San Francisco Giants Fireworks Display in the Captain of the Port, San Francisco area of responsibility during the dates and times noted below. This action is necessary to protect life and property of the maritime public from the hazards associated with the fireworks display. During the enforcement period, unauthorized persons or vessels are prohibited from entering into, transiting through, or anchoring in the safety zone, unless authorized by the Patrol Commander (PATCOM).

The Coast Guard will enforce the safety zone for the Incline Village, NV Red, White, and Tahoe Blue Fireworks display in the Captain of the Port, San Francisco area of responsibility during the dates and times noted below. This action is necessary to protect life and property of the maritime public from the hazards associated with the fireworks display. During the enforcement period, unauthorized persons or vessels are prohibited from entering into, transiting through, or anchoring in the safety zone, unless authorized by the Patrol Commander (PATCOM).

This document makes a correction to the preamble of the Notice of Proposed Rule Making (NPRM) that was published in the Federal Register on May 8, 2012 (77 FR 27007). In the Basis and Purpose section of that NPRM, the Coast Guard stated that the channel between the Detroit River Light and the D33 stationary light is roughly twelve- hundred yards wide. This statement is incorrect. The channel in that area is approximately twelve-hundred feet wide.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary safety zone for all waters of the Upper Mississippi River, from mile 183.0 to mile 183.5, in the vicinity of the Merchants Bridge and extending the entire width of the river. This safety zone is needed to protect repair workers and vessels transiting the area on the Upper Mississippi River to complete bridge repairs. Entry into this zone is prohibited unless specifically authorized by the Captain of the Port Upper Mississippi River or a designated representative.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the U.S. Coast Guard intends to submit an Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), requesting an extension of its approval for the following collection of information: 1625-0046, Certificates of Financial Responsibility under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990. Our ICR describes the information we seek to collect from the public. Before submitting this ICR to OIRA, the Coast Guard is inviting comments as described below.

The Coast Guard will establish a temporary safety zone on the Atlantic Ocean in the vicinity of Virginia Beach, VA to support the Virginia Beach Oceanfront Air Show. This action is necessary to provide for the safety of life on navigable waters during the Virginia Beach Air Show. This action is intended to restrict vessel traffic movement on the Atlantic Ocean to protect mariners from the hazards associated with air show events.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary safety zone during the ``Baltimore Air Show'', which consists of aerial practices, performance demonstrations and air shows, to be held over certain waters of the Patapsco River adjacent to the Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine in Baltimore, Maryland from June 14, 2012 through June 17, 2012. This rule is necessary to provide for the safety of life on navigable waters during the event. This action is intended to temporarily restrict vessel traffic in portions of the Patapsco River during the event.

The Coast Guard is proposing a temporary change to the enforcement periods and regulated areas of safety zone regulations for two recurring fireworks displays within the Fifth Coast Guard District. This regulation applies to a recurring fireworks display events that take place at Baltimore, MD and Oxford, MD. Safety zone regulations are necessary to provide for the safety of life on navigable waters during the event. This action is intended to restrict vessel traffic in portions of the Northwest Harbor (East Channel), Patapsco River, and Tred Avon River during the event.

The Coast Guard is proposing a temporary change to the enforcement period of a safety zone regulation for one recurring firework display within the Fifth Coast Guard District. This regulation refers to the firework display event that takes place on the navigable waters of Broad Bay in Virginia Beach, VA. This action is necessary to provide for the safety of life on navigable waters during the Cavalier Golf & Yacht Club Independence Day Fireworks Display. This action is intended to restrict vessel traffic movement to protect mariners from the hazards associated with firework displays.

This proposed rule would amend the inland waterways navigation regulations. Specifically, this rule proposes to redefine the geographical points which currently demarcate an area of the Detroit River in which certain vessels are restricted to speeds not greater than 12 statute miles per hour (10.4 knots).

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 the U.S. Coast Guard is forwarding Information Collection Requests (ICRs), abstracted below, to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), requesting approval of a revision to the following collections of information: 1625-0014, Request for Designation and Exemption of Oceanographic Research Vessels and 1625-0088, Voyage Planning for Tank Barge Transits in the Northeast United States. Our ICRs describe the information we seek to collect from the public. Review and comments by OIRA ensure we only impose paperwork burdens commensurate with our performance of duties.

On December 29, 2011, the Coast Guard published a notice of availability and request for comments regarding a draft policy letter on Dynamic Positioning (DP) Systems, Emergency Disconnect Systems, Blowout Preventers, and related training and emergency procedures on a Mobile Offshore Drilling Unit. We received comments both as submissions to the docket and at a public meeting held on February 9, 2012, at Coast Guard Headquarters. Based on the comments received, the Coast Guard intends to adjust the scope of the policy described in that notice. The Coast Guard is publishing this notice to recommend interim voluntary DP system guidance and recommend DP incident reporting criteria.

The Coast Guard is establishing a temporary safety zone on Lake Charlevoix near Boyne City, Michigan. This zone is intended to restrict vessels from a portion of Lake Charlevoix due to a fireworks display. This temporary safety zone is necessary to protect the surrounding public and vessels from the hazards associated with a fireworks display.

The Commander, First Coast Guard District, has issued a temporary deviation from the regulation governing the operation of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Bridge across Manchester Harbor, mile 1.0, at Manchester, Massachusetts. The deviation allows the bridge to remain in the closed position to facilitate timber replacement.

The Coast Guard is announcing its intent to enter into a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with General Dynamics C4 Systems, Inc. to lab demonstrate, field test, evaluate, and document at least one technical approach to show interoperability, with end-to-end encryption, for disparate Federal communications systems at the Internet Protocol level. The Coast Guard invites public comment on the proposed CRADA, and also invites other potential non-Federal participants, who have the interest and capability to bring similar contributions to this type of research, to consider submitting proposals for consideration in similar CRADAs.

The Coast Guard is establishing safety zones encompassing the work trestles and construction cranes involved in the construction of the TriMet Bridge on the Willamette River, in Portland, OR. This action is necessary to ensure the safety of recreational vessels and commercial vessels transiting in close proximity to cranes and overhead work associated with this construction project. These safety zones replace the prior safety zones established for the TriMet Bridge construction site and are more focused in nature than the previous safety zone. During the enforcement period, all vessels will be required to transit the area at a safe distance from the work being conducted.