[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 24 (Thursday, February 5, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5562-5564]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-2507]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Coast Guard

[USCG-2003-16297]


National Preparedness for Response Exercise Program (PREP)

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.

ACTION: Notice; revision to PREP triennial exercise schedule for 2004, 
2005, and 2006; request for public comment; correction to prior notice.

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SUMMARY: On October 16, 2003, the Coast Guard--on behalf of the Coast 
Guard, the Research and Special Programs Administration, the 
Environmental Protection Agency and the Minerals Management Service--
published the Preparedness for Response Exercise Program (PREP) 
triennial exercise schedule for 2004 through 2006. This notice revises 
that schedule based on internal agency input, requests comments from 
the public, and requests industry participants to volunteer for 
scheduled PREP Area exercises.

DATES: Comments and related material must reach the Docket Management 
Facility on or before March 8, 2004.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Coast Guard docket 
number USCG-2003-16297 to the Docket Management Facility at the U.S. 
Department of Transportation. To avoid duplication, please use only one 
of the following methods:
    (1) Web Site: http://dms.dot.gov.
    (2) Mail: Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 400 Seventh Street SW., Washington, DC 20590-0001.
    (3) Fax: 202-493-2251.
    (4) Delivery: Room PL-401 on the Plaza level of the Nassif 
Building, 400 Seventh Street SW., Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 
p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. The telephone 
number is 202-366-9329.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If you have questions on this notice, 
or need general information regarding the PREP Program and the 
schedule, contact Mr. Robert Pond, Office of Response, Plans and 
Preparedness Division (G-MOR-2), U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters, 
telephone 202-267-6603, fax 202-267-4065 or e-mail 
[email protected]. If you have questions on viewing or submitting 
material to the docket, call Ms. Andrea M. Jenkins, Program Manager, 
Docket Operations, telephone 202-366-0271.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Preparedness for Response Exercise 
Program (PREP) Area exercise schedule and exercise design manuals are 
available on the Internet at http://www.uscg.mil/hq/nsfweb/nsfcc/prep/index.html. To obtain a hard copy of the exercise design manual, 
contact Ms. Melanie Barber at the Research and Special Programs 
Administration, Office of Pipeline Safety, at 202-366-4560. The 2002 
PREP Guidelines booklet is available at no cost on the Internet at 
http://www.uscg.mil/hq/nsfweb/nsfcc/prep/index.html or by writing or 
faxing the TASC DEPT Warehouse, 33141Q 75th Avenue, Landover, MD 20785, 
facsimile: 301-386-5394. The stock number of the manual is USCG-X0241. 
Please indicate the quantity when ordering. Quantities are limited to 
10 per order.

Public Participation and Request for Comments

    We encourage you to respond to this notice by submitting comments 
and related materials. All comments received will be posted, without 
change, to http://dms.dot.gov and will include any personal information 
you have provided. We have an agreement with the Department of 
Transportation (DOT) to use the Docket Management Facility. Please see 
DOT's ``Privacy Act'' three paragraphs below.
    Submitting comments: If you submit a comment, please include your 
name and address, identify the docket number for this notice (USCG-
2003-16297), indicate the specific section of this document to which 
each comment applies, and give the reason for each comment. You may 
submit your comments and material by electronic means, mail, fax, or 
delivery to the Docket Management Facility at the address under 
ADDRESSES; but please submit your comments and material by only one 
means. If you submit them by mail or delivery, submit them in an 
unbound format, no larger than 8\1/2\ by 11 inches, suitable for 
copying and electronic filing. If you submit them by mail and would 
like to know that they reached the Facility, 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 
triennial exercise schedule in view of them.
    Viewing comments and documents: To view comments, as well as 
documents mentioned in this preamble as being available in the docket, 
go to http://dms.dot.gov at any time and conduct a simple search using 
the docket number. You may also visit the Docket Management Facility in 
room PL-401 on the Plaza level of the Nassif Building, 400 Seventh 
Street SW., Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, except Federal holidays.
    Privacy Act: Anyone can search the electronic form of all comments 
received into any of our dockets by the name of the individual 
submitting the comment (or signing the comment, if submitted on behalf 
of an association, business, labor union, etc.). You may review the 
Department of Transportation's Privacy Act Statement in the Federal 
Register published on April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477), or you may visit 
http://dms.dot.gov.

Revisions to the October 2003 Notice

    On October 16, 2003, the Coast Guard published a notice in the 
Federal Register (68 FR 59627) announcing the PREP triennial exercise 
schedule for 2004, 2005, and 2006. We are making several revisions to 
the triennial exercise schedule in that notice based on internal agency 
input. A summary of the changes follows--
    For Government-Led Area Exercises for Calendar Year 2004, we 
changed

[[Page 5563]]

Guam from 1st to 4th Quarter, changed Prince William Sound from 4th to 
3rd Quarter, and added EPA Region I to 4th Quarter. For Industry-Led 
Area Exercises for Calendar Year 2004, we changed Maryland Coastal from 
2nd to 4th Quarter, and added a footnote for Charleston, SC, and 
Duluth-Superior to indicate ``credit for response in lieu of 
exercise.''
    This notice announces the revised triennial schedule of Area 
exercises. If a company wants to volunteer for an Area exercise, a 
company representative may call either the Coast Guard or EPA On-Scene 
Coordinator (OSC) where the exercise is scheduled.
    The table below is the revised PREP schedule for the calendar years 
2004, 2005, and 2006.

           Table--Prep Schedule--Government-Led Area Exercises
------------------------------------------------------------------------
             Area                  Agency     Qtr \1\     Participant
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                           CALENDAR YEAR 2004
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Los Angeles/Long Beach South   CG                   2
 (Marine Safety Office (MSO)
 LA/LB), SONS \2\.
San Diego (MSO San Diego),     CG                   2
 SONS \2\.
Prince William Sound (MSO      CG                   3
 Valdez).
Guam (MSO Guam)..............  CG                   4
Region I Regional Contingency  EPA                  4
 Plan (RCP) (EPA Region I).
------------------------------
                           CALENDAR YEAR 2005
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Houston-Galveston (MSO         CG                   1
 Houston).
Virginia Coastal (MSO Hampton  CG                   1
 Road).
Alabama-Mississippi (MSO       CG                   2
 Mobile).
Providence (MSO Providence)..  CG                   3
Western Alaska (MSO            CG                   3
 Anchorage).
Region V RCP (EPA Region V)..  EPA                  4
------------------------------
                           CALENDAR YEAR 2006
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cleveland, OH (MSO Cleveland)  CG                   1
Jacksonville, FL (MSO          CG                   2
 Jacksonville).
To Be Determined.............  CG                   2
Northwest Area-Portland (MSO   CG                   3
 Portland).
Region IX RCP or Oceania (EPA  EPA                  3
 Region IX).
New Orleans, LA (MSO New       CG                   4
 Orleans).
------------------------------------------------------------------------


               Prep Schedule--Industry-Led Area Exercises
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                 Area                  Qtr \1\         Participant
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                           CALENDAR YEAR 2004
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chicago, IL (MSO Chicago)............        2
Long Island Sound (MSO Long Island)..        2
San Francisco Bay (MSO San Francisco)        2
South Texas Coast (MSO Corpus                2
 Christi).
Charleston, SC (MSO Charleston)......    \3\ 3
Morgan City, LA (MSO Morgan City)....        3
New York, NY (Activities NY).........        3
Savannah, GA (MSO Savannah)..........        3
Duluth-Superior (MSO Duluth).........    \3\ 4
Maryland Coastal (MSO Baltimore).....        4
Eastern Wisconsin (MSO Milwaukee)....        4
Northwest-Puget Sound (MSO Puget             4
 Sound).
Region VII RCP (EPA Region VII)......        4
--------------------------------------
                           CALENDAR YEAR 2005
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Detroit, MI (MSO Detroit)............        1
Region VIII (EPA Region VIII)........        1
Boston (MSO Boston)..................        2
Hawaiian Islands (MSO Honolulu)......        2
South Florida (MSO Miami)............        2
South Los Angeles/Long Beach, CA (MSO        2
 LA/LB).
S. North Carolina (MSO Wilmington)...        3
SW La./SE Texas (MSO Port Arthur)....        3
Tampa, FL (MSO Tampa)................        3
Region X or EPA Alaska RCP (EPA              4
 Region X).
Sault Ste. Marie, MI (MSO Sault Ste.         4
 Marie).
--------------------------------------
                           CALENDAR YEAR 2006
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Florida Panhandle (MSO Mobile).......        1

[[Page 5564]]

 
SE Alaska (MSO Juneau)...............        1
Buffalo (MSO Buffalo)................        2
Maine-New Hampshire (MSO Portland,           2
 ME).
Philadelphia, PA (MSO Philadelphia)..        2
Region II RCP or Caribbean (EPA              2
 Region II).
North Coast (CA) Area (MSO San               3
 Francisco).
Region III RCP (EPA Region III)......        3
Region VI RCP (EPA Region VI)........        3
Caribbean Area (MSO San Juan)........        4
Northern Marianas (MSO Guam).........        4
Western Lake Erie (MSO Toledo).......        4
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Quarters: 1 (January-March); 2 (April-June); 3 (July-September); 4
  (October-December).
\2\ SONS: 2004 Spill of National Significance Exercise.
\3\ Note: Credit for response in lieu of exercise.

    In the first paragraph of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of 
the October 16, 2003 notice, we erroneously referred to the 2003 PREP 
Guidelines booklet. The latest edition available is the 2002 PREP 
Guidelines booklet.

Correction

    In the Federal Register of October 16, 2003, in FR Doc. 03-26129, 
on page 59628, in the first sentence of the second column, correct 
``2003'' to read ``2002''.

    Dated: January 30, 2004.
Joseph J. Angelo,
Director of Standards, Marine Safety, Security & Environmental 
Protection.
[FR Doc. 04-2507 Filed 2-4-04; 8:45 am]
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