[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 33 (Wednesday, February 19, 2003)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 7960-7961]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-3981]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Coast Guard

33 CFR Part 165

[CGD05-02-015]
RIN 2115-AE84


Regulated Navigation Area; Fifth Coast Guard District

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DOT.

ACTION: Advanced notice of proposed rulemaking.

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SUMMARY: The Coast Guard, in an effort to continually update its 
regulations and to provide a useable service to the public, proposes to 
establish a Regulated Navigation Area (RNA) encompassing the entire 
Fifth Coast Guard District. This RNA would provide for the safety of 
life and property, help facilitate commerce, and would impose 
restrictions on vessels operating within the RNA when ice is a threat 
to navigation. The Coast Guard solicits comments from the public and 
industry on the questions listed in this request.

DATES: Comments and related material must reach the Coast Guard on or 
before April 21, 2003.

ADDRESSES: You may mail comments and related material to Commander 
(oan), Fifth Coast Guard District, 431 Crawford Street, Portsmouth, 
Virginia 23704. The Fifth Coast Guard District Waterways Management 
Section maintains the public docket for this rulemaking. Comments and 
material received from the public, as well as documents indicated in 
this preamble as being available in the docket, will become part of 
this docket and will be available for inspection or copying at the 
above mentioned office between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, except Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lieutenant (junior grade) Anne 
Grabins, Aids to Navigation and Waterways Management Branch; phone: 
(757) 398-6559; e-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Request for Information

    We encourage you to participate in this rulemaking by submitting 
comments and related material. If you do so, please include your name 
and address, identify the docket number for this rulemaking (CGD05-02-
015), indicate the specific section of this document to which each 
comment applies, and give the reason for each comment. Please submit 
all comments and related material in an unbound format, no larger than 
8\1/2\ by 11 inches, suitable for copying, to the address listed under 
ADDRESSES. If you would like to know that your submission reached us, 
please enclose a stamped, self-addressed postcard or envelope. We will 
consider all comments and material received during the comment period. 
We may change this proposed rule in view of them.

Public Meeting

    We do not now plan to hold a public meeting, but you may submit a 
request for a meeting by writing to the Fifth Coast Guard District 
Waterways Management Section at the address under ADDRESSES explaining 
why one would be beneficial. If we determine that one would aid this 
rulemaking, we will hold one at a time and place announced by a later 
notice in the Federal Register.

Background and Purpose

    Executive Order No. 7521, 1 FR 2527, directed the Coast Guard to 
keep open to navigation, by means of ice-breaking operations, the 
waterways of the United States in accordance with the reasonable 
demands of commerce. On May 19, 1983, the Captain of the Port Baltimore 
exercised the provisions of a Regulated Navigation Area(RNA) published 
in the Federal Register (48 FR 22543) to manage vessel traffic in the 
event ice impedes navigation. The RNA imposed certain operational 
restrictions, established by the COTP, on vessels that

[[Page 7961]]

intended to operate within the Baltimore COTP zone. This RNA was 
repealed on February 27, 1998 (63 FR 9942), because it was believed 
that it was unnecessary to impose general continuous restrictions on 
all vessels through the winter months and that prudent mariners could 
make decisions about whether it was safe for their vessel to operate in 
ice.
    Interest in a vessel management tool similar to the RNA previously 
in place in the Baltimore Captain of the Port Zone has been 
resurrected. It is anticipated that a RNA will decrease the 
administrative burden to the Coast Guard and industry, establish 
consistent policy throughout the Fifth Coast Guard District, and assist 
the management of the limited Coast Guard ice capable resources.
    The ice navigation season historically begins in the Delaware and 
Chesapeake Bay regions as early as the first week in December and in 
Albemarle and Pamlico Sounds in North Carolina in January. Ice has 
historically ceased to be an impediment to all types of marine 
navigation interests by the first week in March. During a moderate or 
severe winter, frozen waterways can become a serious problem, impeding 
a vessel's ability to maneuver, and causing visual aids to navigation 
to be submerged, destroyed or moved off station. Vessel watertight 
integrity can also be compromised by ice abrasion and ice pressure with 
the greatest adverse affect on fiberglass and wood hulls and the least 
effect on steel or ice-reinforced hulls.
    When ice conditions deteriorate to a point where independent vessel 
operations are not possible, convoy operations are required to enable 
vessels to transit. Coast Guard vessels built to operate in the ice 
typically conduct convoy operations. In recent years, the number of 
Coast Guard resources available to operate in ice has been reduced by 
59%. In 1984, the Fifth Coast Guard District had 17 Coast Guard surface 
assets capable of working in various ice conditions. There are 
currently seven surface assets capable in the Fifth District to 
maintain aids to navigation, perform convoy missions in ice, and 
execute other Coast Guard missions that can be performed only by an ice 
capable vessel. These surface assets possess capabilities defined by 
their draft, horsepower, crew size, and their designed ability to break 
ice. Additionally, climatic, hydrographic, geographic, and operational 
constraints determine where and when these vessels may conduct convoy 
operations. Of the seven surface assets available to operate in ice, 
one has the capability to break 14 inches of ice at three knots; three 
have the capability to break up to nine inches at three knots; and 
three have the capability to break up to six inches of ice at three 
knots. The Coast Guard's ability to support convoy operations is 
finite, therefore, it behooves commercial traffic as well as the Coast 
Guard to effectively plan where and how surface assets are employed.
    In addition to the deepwater ports of Hampton Roads, Baltimore, 
Richmond, and Philadelphia that support manufacturing and trade, many 
waterways of the Fifth Coast Guard District are used for the transport 
of fuels for residential and commercial use. The primary transportation 
method to deliver fuel oil for power generation and home heating is by 
barge, and convoy operations will ensure the reliable delivery of this 
essential commodity. In the event of a waterborne emergency during the 
ice season, the Coast Guard's available surface search and rescue (SAR) 
assets are limited to the same seven Coast Guard cutters capable of 
performing convoy duty. Establishing a method for the COTPs to regulate 
vessel traffic will enable the Coast Guard to better manage available 
resources and prioritize Coast Guard missions when ice is present on 
Fifth District waterways.
    Captains of the Port have the authority (33 CFR part 160, subpart 
B) to restrict and manage vessel movement by issuing a COTP order. 
However, this authority may only be directed to a specific vessel, 
facility or an individual to restrict or stop vessel operations and 
cannot be issued to ``all vessels'' or a class of vessels. A Regulated 
Navigation Area (RNA) is a water area that allows the District 
Commander to control vessel operations to preserve the safety of 
adjacent waterfront structures, to ensure safe transit of vessels, or 
to protect the marine environment. RNA's are typically established when 
extensive vessel controls are needed over an extended period of time. A 
Regulated Navigation Area is, therefore, the more appropriate means to 
control vessel operations to ensure safe transit of vessels when 
conditions require higher standards of control than that provided by 
the Navigation Rules.
    The Coast Guard recognizes that there are exceptions to every 
circumstance. With this in mind, the RNA would include a waiver process 
for vessel operators who may not meet the criteria of the operating 
restrictions but who may have the capability to operate in ice safely. 
This waiver would be granted at the discretion of the Captain of the 
Port.

Questions

    Public response to the following questions will help the Coast 
Guard develop a more complete and carefully considered rulemaking. The 
questions are not all-inclusive, and any supplemental information is 
welcome. In responding to each question, please explain the reasons for 
each answer.
    1. Would this type of rulemaking benefit commercial vessels 
operating within the Fifth Coast Guard District?
    2. Are shaft horsepower, hull material, and convoys the best 
criteria to restrict vessel traffic when ice impedes navigation?
    3. What are the most effective threshold levels to set shaft 
horsepower restrictions?
    4. Are separate rules for each COTP zone required to effectively 
regulate vessel traffic when ice impedes navigation?
    5. If a company is able to provide its own convoy escort service, 
should this be considered in the RNA?
    6. What consideration should be given for various tug and barge 
towing configurations? Is it practical to apply the same shaft 
horsepower requirement for each towing configuration?
    7. Should the horsepower rating for a tractor tug be considered 
differently than a traditional tug shaft horsepower?
    8. Would a shaft horsepower/overall length or shaft horsepower/
overall tonnage ratio be a better method of prescribing power 
requirements for towing vessels?
    9. What, if any, elements of barge hull design should be 
considered?
    10. Are there any other criteria that should be considered in 
developing this rulemaking?

    Dated: February 4, 2003.
James D. Hull,
Vice Admiral, Coast Guard, Commander, Fifth Coast Guard District.
[FR Doc. 03-3981 Filed 2-18-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-15-P