[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 194 (Friday, October 7, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 58694-58695]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-20326]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration


Notice of Availability of Draft Environmental Impact Statement 
(DEIS), Notice of Public Comment Period for the DEIS and Schedule of 
Public Hearings for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration's Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management's 
Review of Amendments to the Alaska Coastal Management Program

AGENCY: Department of Commerce (DOC), National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration (NOAA), Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management 
(OCRM).

ACTION: Notice of Availability of DEIS, Notice of Public Comment Period 
for the DEIS and Schedule of Public Hearings.

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SUMMARY: NOAA's Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management is 
issuing this notice to advise the public that a DEIS for OCRM's review 
of amendments to the Alaska Coastal Management Program has been 
prepared and is available for public review and comment. Written 
requests for the DEIS and written comments on the DEIS can be submitted 
to the individual listed in

[[Page 58695]]

the section FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. Public hearings will be 
held on October 31, 2005 and November 1, 2005. The public comment 
period commenced on September 23, 2005 and will close on November 7, 
2005.
    Public Comment Hearings: The start of the public comment period on 
the DEIS was September 23, 2005, and will end on November 7, 2005. Two 
public hearings will be held; one on October 31, 2005 and one on 
November 1, 2005, in Juneau and Anchorage, Alaska, respectively. The 
public hearing on Monday, October 31, 2005 will be held in Juneau, 
Alaska at the Centennial Hall Convention Center, Egan Room, (101 Egan 
Drive) and will begin at 10 a.m. and last until 3 p.m. The public 
hearing on Tuesday, November 1, 2005 will be held in Anchorage, Alaska 
at the Hotel Captain Cook (939 West Fifth Avenue) and will begin at 1 
p.m. and last until 6 p.m.

DEIS Availability and Review

    Copies of the DEIS are available either on CD or hard copy by 
contacting Helen Bass at the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section 
below. In addition, the DEIS has been posted on OCRM's Web site at 
http://coastalmanagement.noaa.gov/pcd/up.html and the Alaska Coastal 
Management Program's Web site at http://www.alaskacoast.state.ak.us.
    Comments from interested parties on the DEIS are encouraged and may 
be presented orally at the public hearings. Written comments may be 
submitted to OCRM during the public hearings and at the address 
(including e-mail address) listed in the section entitled FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT.
    OCRM encourages all interested parties to provide comments 
concerning the scope and content of the DEIS. Comments should be as 
specific as possible and address the analysis of potential of 
alternatives. Reviewers should organize their comments so that it is 
meaningful and makes the agency aware of the viewer's interests and 
concerns using quotations and other specific references to the text of 
the DEIS and related documents. Matters that could have been raised 
with specificity during the comment period on the DEIS may not be 
considered if they are raised later in the decision process. This 
commenting procedure is intended to ensure that substantive comments 
and concerns are made available to OCRM in a timely manner so that OCRM 
has an opportunity to address them.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The DEIS discloses the environmental 
consequences associated with OCRM's review of amendments to the State 
of Alaska's federally-approved coastal management program (CMP). OCRM's 
approval of Alaska's request to incorporate changes into the Alaska CMP 
would allow the State to continue its certification as a federally-
approved CMP, receive Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA) funds to 
implement the revised program, and conduct State and federal 
consistency reviews based on the revised program policy. Incorporation 
of Alaska's new laws and regulations and one Executive Order into its 
program will result in the following changes:
     Eliminate the Alaska CMP Coastal Policy Council and 
transfer of its functions to the Alaska Department of Natural 
Resources;
     Replace current statewide coastal standards with new 
standards, along with mandated revisions for all district plans to 
achieve new standards and meet new policy development requirements;
     Assure that matters regulated or authorized by State or 
federal law are not duplicated by coastal or district enforceable 
policies, and that district plans address matters specific to local 
concern;
     Exempt certain activities from the coastal consistency 
review process through coverage under the State's ABC list review or 
Department of Environmental Conservation review; and
     Limit the parties who have standing to file legal claims 
challenging Alaska CMP consistency decisions.
    The proposed review will be completed, and OCRM's decision 
finalized by December 31, 2005. Depending on the alternative 
implemented, there may be positive socio-economic benefits associated 
with a more efficient permitting process, negative impacts to 
subsistence resources due to changes in Alaska's coastal standards and 
procedures for district plan development, or long-term negative 
environmental and socio-economic impacts associated with Alaska's 
withdrawal from the federal CZMA program.
    The purpose and need for OCRM's review of the amendments is 
reviewed in the DEIS. All reasonable, prudent and feasible alternatives 
are being considered, including the no-action alternative.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Helen Bass, Environmental Protection 
Specialist, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, OCRM/CPD, 
N/ORM3 Station 11207, 1305 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910 
or [email protected]. Ms. Bass may be contacted during business hours 
at (301) 713-3155, extension 175 (telephone) and 301-713-4367 (fax).
    The comment period will close on November 7, 2005.

(Federal Domestic Assistance Catalog 11.419 Coastal Zone Management 
Program Administration)

    Dated: October 3, 2005.
Eldon Hout,
Director, Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management, National 
Ocean Service, National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration.
[FR Doc. 05-20326 Filed 10-6-05; 8:45 am]
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