Port Access Route Study: Alaskan Arctic Coast

CourtCoast Guard
Record Number2018-27604
Published date21 December 2018
Federal Register, Volume 83 Issue 245 (Friday, December 21, 2018)
[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 245 (Friday, December 21, 2018)]
                [Notices]
                [Pages 65701-65703]
                From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
                [FR Doc No: 2018-27604]
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                DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
                Coast Guard
                [USCG-2018-1058]
                Port Access Route Study: Alaskan Arctic Coast
                AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.
                ACTION: Notice of study; request for comments.
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                SUMMARY: In order to provide safe access routes for the movement of
                vessel traffic along the Arctic Coast of the United States for vessels
                proceeding to or from ports or places of the United States and
                transiting within the United States Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), the
                Coast Guard is conducting an Alaskan Arctic Coast Port Access Route
                Study (AACPARS) to evaluate the need for establishing vessel routing
                measures. The information gathered during this AACPARS may result in
                the establishment of one or more vessel routing measures. The goal of
                the AACPARS is to enhance navigational safety by examining existing
                shipping routes and waterway uses, and, to the extent practicable,
                reconciling the paramount right of navigation with other reasonable
                waterway uses. The recommendations of the study may lead to future
                rulemaking action or appropriate international agreements.
                DATES: Comments must be submitted to the online docket via http://www.regulations.gov, or reach the Docket Management Facility, on or
                before September 1, 2019.
                ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by docket number USCG-
                2018-1058 using the Federal eRulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov. See the ``Public Participation and Request for
                Comments'' portion of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section for further
                instructions on submitting comments.
                FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information about this document
                call or email LCDR Michael Newell, Seventeenth Coast Guard District
                (dpw); telephone (907) 463-2263; email Michael.D.Newell@uscg.mil or Mr.
                David Seris, Seventeenth Coast Guard District (dpw); telephone (907)
                463-2267; email David.M.Seris@uscg.mil or LT Stephanie Bugyis,
                Seventeenth Coast Guard District (dpw); telephone (907) 463-2265; email
                Stephanie.M.Bugyis@uscg.mil.
                SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
                Public Participation and Comments
                 We encourage you to submit comments (or related materials) on the
                AACPARS. We will consider all submissions and may adjust our final
                action based on your comments. If you submit a comment, please include
                the docket number for this notice, indicate the specific section of
                this document to which each comment applies, and provide a reason for
                each suggestion or recommendation.
                 Comments should be submitted through the Federal eRulemaking Portal
                at http://www.regulations.gov. If your material cannot be submitted
                using http://www.regulations.gov, contact the person in the FOR FURTHER
                INFORMATION CONTACT section of this document for alternate
                instructions. Documents mentioned in this notice, and all public
                comments, are in our online docket at http://www.regulations.gov and
                can be viewed by following that website's instructions. Additionally,
                if you go to the online docket and sign up for email alerts, you will
                be notified when comments are posted or a final rule is published.
                 We accept anonymous comments. All comments received will be posted
                without change to http://www.regulations.gov and will include any
                personal information you have provided. For more about privacy and the
                docket, you may review a Privacy Act notice regarding the Federal
                Docket Management System in the March 24, 2005, issue of the Federal
                Register (70 FR 15086).
                Public Meeting(s)
                 If requested, we plan to hold public meetings to receive oral
                comments on this NPRM and would announce the dates, times, and
                locations in a separate document published in the Federal Register. To
                receive an email notice whenever a comment or notice--including the
                notice announcing when any meetings are to be held, are submitted or
                issued, go to the online docket and select the sign-up-for-email-alerts
                option. When it is published, we will place a copy of the announcement
                in the docket and you will receive an email alert from
                www.regulations.gov.
                Definitions
                 The following definitions (except as noted by an asterisk) are from
                the International Maritime Organization's (IMO's) publication ``Ships'
                Routing'' Twelfth Edition 2017 and should help you review this notice:
                 Area to be avoided (ATBA): A routing measure comprising an area
                within defined limits in which either navigation is particularly
                hazardous or it is exceptionally important to avoid casualties and
                which should be avoided by all ships, or certain classes of ships.
                 Deep-water route: A route within defined limits which has been
                accurately surveyed for clearance of sea bottom and submerged obstacles
                as indicated on the chart.
                 Exclusive economic zone (EEZ)*: The zone established by
                Presidential Proclamation 5030, dated March 10, 1983 and delineated in
                the August 23, 1995, issue of the Federal Register (60 FR 43825).
                 Inshore traffic zone: A routing measure comprising a designated
                area between the landward boundary of a traffic separation scheme and
                the adjacent coast, to be used in accordance with the provisions of
                Rule 10(d), as amended, of the International Regulations for Preventing
                Collisions at Sea, 1972 (Collision Regulations).
                 Mandatory routing system: A routing system adopted by the
                Organization, in accordance with the requirements of regulation V/10 of
                the International Convention for Safety of Life at Sea 1974, for
                mandatory use by all ships, certain categories of ships or ships
                carrying certain cargoes.
                 Obstruction*: Anything that restricts, endangers, or interferes
                with navigation (33 CFR 64.06).
                 Precautionary area: A routing measure comprising an area within
                defined limits where ships must navigate with particular caution and
                within which the direction of traffic flow may be recommended.
                [[Page 65702]]
                 Recommended route: A route of undefined width, for the convenience
                of ships in transit, which is often marked by centerline buoys.
                 Recommended track: A route which has been specially examined to
                ensure so far as possible that it is free of dangers and along which
                vessels are advised to navigate.
                 Regulated Navigation Area (RNA)*: A water area within a defined
                boundary for which regulations for vessels navigating within the area
                have been established under 33 CFR part 165.
                 Roundabout: A routing measure comprising a separation point or
                circular separation zone and a circular traffic lane within defined
                limits. Traffic within the roundabout is separated by moving in a
                counterclockwise direction around the separation point or zone.
                 Routing system: Any system of one or more routes or routing
                measures aimed at reducing the risk of casualties; it includes traffic
                separation schemes, two way routes, recommended tracks, areas to be
                avoided, no anchoring areas, inshore traffic zones, roundabouts,
                precautionary areas and deep-water routes.
                 Separation zone or separation line: A zone or line separating the
                traffic lanes in which ships are proceeding in opposite or nearly
                opposite directions; or separating a traffic lane from the adjacent sea
                area; or separating traffic lanes designated for particular classes of
                ship proceeding in the same direction.
                 Structure*: Any fixed or floating obstruction, intentionally placed
                in the water, which may interfere with or restrict marine navigation
                (33 CFR 64.06).
                 Traffic lane: An area within defined limits in which one-way
                traffic is established. Natural obstacles, including those forming
                separation zones, may constitute a boundary.
                 Traffic Separation Scheme (TSS): A routing measure aimed at the
                separation of opposing streams of traffic by appropriate means and by
                the establishment of traffic lanes.
                 Two-way route: A route within defined limits inside which two-way
                traffic is established, aimed at providing safe passage of ships
                through waters where navigation is difficult or dangerous.
                Background and Purpose
                Requirement for Port Access Route Studies
                 Under the Ports and Waterways Safety Act (PWSA) (33 U.S.C.
                1223(c)), the Commandant of the Coast Guard may designate necessary
                fairways and traffic separation schemes (TSSs) to provide safe access
                routes for vessels proceeding to and from U.S. ports.
                Previous Port Access Route Studies
                 The Coast Guard conducted a PARS in 1981 which focused on localized
                approaches for some Alaskan ports and Unimak Pass in the Aleutian
                Island Chain. Another PARS was conducted for the Bering Sea and Bering
                Strait region of Alaska to analyze the need and suitability of a vessel
                routing system for that region. Neither of these studies focused on the
                United States Arctic coast to analyze vessel traffic proceeding to or
                from ports and places of the United States and transiting within the
                United States Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), which will be the focus of
                this study.
                Necessity for a New Port Access Route Study
                 Sea ice extent in the Arctic Ocean, Chukchi Sea, and Beaufort Sea
                is declining. These changes in the arctic are affecting the people,
                wildlife and habitat of the region which in turn has resulted in
                increased levels of government attention, media attention, scientific
                research, natural resource exploration, eco and adventure tourism, and
                increasing commercial use of the Northwest Passage and the Northern Sea
                Route as alternative shipping routes.
                 As the federal agency most responsible for coastal and marine
                spatial planning, the Coast Guard, via the PARS process, is initiating
                the study to analyze current vessel patterns, predict future vessel
                needs and balance the needs of all waterway users by developing and
                recommending vessel routing measures for the arctic coast.
                PARS Timeline, Study Area, and Process
                 The PARS will begin upon publication of this Federal Register
                notice. The study is expected to take in excess of 48 months to
                complete due to the size and remoteness of the study area, expected
                difficulty in accessing and communicating with regional stakeholders at
                times when discussions will be most productive, the proximity to
                Canada, difficulty in predicting expected future changes in
                international shipping and other waterway uses, and the highly
                technical nature of scientific data available on the Arctic.
                 The study will encompass the entire EEZ of the United States Arctic
                coast from the border between the United States and Canada to Cape
                Prince of Wales on Alaska's Seward Peninsula.
                 As part of the study, the Coast Guard may analyze commercial vessel
                traffic, fishing vessel traffic, subsistence hunting and fishing
                activities, recreational activities, military activities, existing and
                potential outer continental shelf activities, port activities,
                environmental factors, economic effects and impacts, as well as other
                topics that may arise during the study process.
                 Specific areas of interest for initial public comment: The lack of
                historical information about actual vessel traffic patterns in U.S.
                Arctic waters, and how those patterns have changed over time, makes
                this PARS study unique. There are few instances where actual vessel
                track and density information will be available to analyze as potential
                routing measures are considered. Generic comments on vessels operating
                in U.S. Arctic waters are welcome and will be given due consideration,
                but at this stage in the AACPARS study, the Coast Guard is particularly
                interested in identifying specific locations, times, or instances where
                future vessel activity could increase significantly in density or cause
                specific undesirable consequences. Specific areas of concern include,
                but are not limited to:
                 1. Times and/or locations where vessel operations could cause
                significant consequences to species of concern, subsistence activities,
                marine mammal migration routes, or other equities.
                 2. Areas of known biological importance, such as the area of the
                Hanna Shoal, and whether they are of importance year round or only
                during specific times.
                 3. Specific times and locations of current and expected future
                subsistence activity.
                 4. Areas identified or expected to have high potential for Outer
                Continental Shelf resource development, to include oil/gas development,
                development of renewable energy sources, and extraction of seabed
                resources.
                 5. Onshore areas of particular environmental concern.
                 6. Areas where extreme weather or ice conditions that could impact
                navigation are expected to be present, now or in the future.
                 7. Any information on prevailing wind/current patterns and how they
                might change in the future in varying scenarios of decreasing or
                increasing sea ice coverage.
                 8. Any information on specific habitat characteristics (for
                example, water depth, ocean currents, or distances to or from land or
                sea ice) that tend to attract higher concentrations of marine mammals.
                 The Coast Guard will publish the results of the PARS in the Federal
                [[Page 65703]]
                Register. It is possible that the study may validate the status quo (no
                routing measures) and conclude that no changes are necessary. It is
                also possible that the study may recommend one or more changes to
                enhance navigational safety and the efficiency of vessel traffic
                management. The recommendations may lead to future rulemakings or
                appropriate international agreements.
                 This notice is published under the authority of 5 U.S.C. 552(a).
                 Dated: December 4, 2018.
                Melissa L. Rivera,
                Captain, U.S. Coast Guard, Chief of Staff, Seventeenth Coast Guard
                District.
                [FR Doc. 2018-27604 Filed 12-20-18; 8:45 am]
                 BILLING CODE 9110-04-P
                

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