[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 37 (Monday, February 26, 2007)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 8325-8327]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-2875]
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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army; Corps of Engineers
33 CFR Part 334
Department of the Navy, Chesapeake Bay, in Vicinity of
Bloodsworth Island, MD
AGENCY: Department of the Army, United States Army Corps of Engineers,
DOD.
ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking and request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The Corps of Engineers is proposing to amend the regulations
in 33 CFR 334.190 which establishes a danger zone, in waters of the
United States in the vicinity of Bloodsworth Island, Maryland. The
proposed amendment will reflect the current operational and safety
procedures at the Bloodsworth Island Range and highlight a change in
the enforcement authority from the Commander, Naval Base Norfolk,
Virginia to the Commander, Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland.
The regulations are necessary to safeguard United States Navy vessels
and United States Government facilities/installations from sabotage and
other subversive acts, accidents, or incidents of a similar nature.
These regulations are also necessary to protect the public from
potentially hazardous conditions which may exist as a result from use
of the areas by the United States Navy.
DATES: Written comments must be submitted on or before March 28, 2007.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by docket number COE-
2006-0040, by any of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments.
E-mail: [email protected]. Include the docket number,
COE-2006-0040, in the subject line of the message.
Fax: 202-761-0140.
Mail: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Attn: CECW-OR/MVD (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-2006-0040.
All comments received will be included in the public docket without
change and may be made available on-line fnl;at http://www.regulations.gov, including
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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 e-mail. 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 e-mail directly to the
Corps without going through regulations.gov, your e-mail 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 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.
Consideration will be given to all comments received within 30 days
of the date of publication of this notice.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. David Olson, Headquarters,
Operations and Regulatory Community of Practice, Washington, DC at 202-
761-4922, or Mr. Steve Elinsky, Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District,
Regulatory Branch, at 410-962-4503.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 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 proposes to amend the danger zone regulations at
33 CFR 334.190 to reflect current operational and safety procedures at
the Bloodsworth Island Range and highlight a change in the enforcement
authority from the Commander, Naval Base Norfolk, Virginia to the
Commander, Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland. The proposed
amendment will also provide more detailed times, dates, and extents of
restrictions.
Procedural Requirements
a. Review Under Executive Order 12866
This proposed 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
These proposed rules have been reviewed under the Regulatory
Flexibility Act (Public Law 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). Unless information is
obtained to the contrary during the public notice comment period, the
Corps expects that the economic impact of the amendment of this danger
zone would have practically no impact on the public, no anticipated
navigational hazard or interference with existing waterway traffic.
This proposed rule if adopted, will have no significant economic impact
on small entities.
c. Review Under the National Environmental Policy Act
Due to the administrative nature of this action and because there
is no intended change in the use of the area, the Corps expects that
this regulation, if adopted, 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 will be prepared after the public notice period is closed
and all comments have been received and considered. It may be reviewed
at the District office listed at the end of FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT, above.
d. Unfunded Mandates Act
This proposed rule does not impose an enforceable duty among the
private sector and, therefore, it is not a Federal private sector
mandate and it is not subject to the requirements of either Section 202
or Section 205 of the Unfunded Mandates Act. We have also found under
Section 203 of the Act, that small governments will not be
significantly and uniquely affected by this rulemaking.
List of Subjects in 33 CFR Part 334
Danger zones, Marine safety, Navigation (water), Restricted areas,
Waterways.
For the reasons set out in the preamble, the Corps proposes to
amend 33 CFR part 334, as follows:
PART 334--DANGER ZONE AND RESTRICTED AREA REGULATIONS
1. The authority citation for 33 CFR 334 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 40 Stat. 266 (33 U.S.C. 1) and 40 Stat. 892 (33
U.S.C. 3).
2. Section 334.190 would be revised to read as follows:
Sec. 334.190, Chesapeake Bay, in vicinity of Bloodsworth Island, MD;
shore bombardment, air bombing, air strafing, and rocket firing area,
U.S. Navy.
(a) The areas--(1) Prohibited area. All waters within a circle 0.5
miles in radius with its center at latitude 38[deg]10'00'', longitude
76[deg]06'00''; Bloodsworth Island, Pone Island, Northeast Island, and
Adams Island.
(2) The danger zone. All waters of Chesapeake Bay and Tangier Sound
within an area bounded as follows: Beginning at latitude
38[deg]08'15'', longitude 76[deg]10'00'' thence to latitude
38[deg]12'00'', longitude 76[deg]10'00''; thence to latitude
38[deg]12'00'', longitude 76[deg]07'00''; thence to latitude
38[deg]13'00'', longitude 76[deg]06'00''; thence to latitude
38[deg]13'00'', longitude 76[deg]04'00''; thence to latitude
38[deg]12'00'', longitude 76[deg]02'00''; thence to latitude
38[deg]12'00'', longitude 76[deg]00'00''; thence to latitude
38[deg]08'15'', longitude 76[deg]00'00''; thence to the point of
beginning, excluding the prohibited area described in paragraph (a)(1)
of this section.
(b) The regulations. (1) No person, vessel or other craft shall
approach closer than 75 yards to the beaches, shoreline, or piers of
Bloodsworth, Pone Island, Northeast Island, Adams Island, or any
Patuxent River Naval Air Station property at any time unless authorized
to do so by the enforcing agency. No person, vessel or other craft
shall approach rafts, barges, or platforms closer than 100 yards.
(2) No person, vessel, or other craft shall enter or remain in the
danger zone when notified by the enforcing authority to keep clear. Any
watercraft under way or at anchor, upon being so warned, shall
immediately vacate the area and shall remain outside the area until
conclusion of potentially hazardous test or training events.
(3) The area will be in use intermittently throughout the year.
(4) Prior to the commencement of any potentially hazardous test or
training
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event that requires clearing of non participant boats from the danger
zone, surface or air search of the entire area will be made for the
purpose of locating and warning all craft and persons not connected
with the test or training event, and a patrol will be maintained
throughout the duration of the event.
(5) All persons, vessels, or other craft shall clear the area when
warned by patrol vessels.
(6) Patrol vessels will provide warning that a potentially
hazardous test or training event is in progress or is about to
commence; when so warned, fishing or oystering vessels or other craft
not directly connected with the event shall not navigate within the
danger zone. Deep-draft vessels proceeding in established navigation
channels normally will be permitted to traverse the area upon
coordination with range patrol vessels. The patrol vessels will ensure
safe separation between all non-participant vessels and potentially
hazardous operations.
(7) When potentially hazardous testing or training is not in
progress or is not about to commence, oystering and fishing boats and
other craft may operate within the danger zone.
(8) All potentially hazardous test or training events will be
performed in such a way as to contain the hazard footprint to the
established danger zone described in paragraph (a) of this section.
Naval authorities will not be responsible for damage to nets, traps,
buoys, pots, fish pounds, stakes, or other equipment that may be
located within the danger zone.
(9) Nothing in this regulation shall be intended to prevent the
lawful use of approved waterfowl hunting blinds along the shorelines of
Bloodsworth Island range complex, provided that all necessary licenses
and permits have been obtained from the Maryland Department of Natural
Resources and the completed copy of the permit has been submitted to
the Conservation Division Director at NAS Patuxent River. Waterfowl
hunters must observe all warnings and range clearances, as note herein.
(10) The regulations in this section shall be enforced by the
Commander, Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland, and such
agencies as he/she may designate.
Dated: February 14, 2007.
Lawrence A. Lang,
Acting Chief, Operations, Directorate of Civil Works.
[FR Doc. E7-2875 Filed 2-23-07; 8:45 am]
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