[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 110 (Thursday, June 8, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33312-33313]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-8882]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

[USCG-2004-19621]
RIN 1625-AA89


Dry Cargo Residue Discharges in the Great Lakes

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Coast Guard announces a public scoping meeting in support 
of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) analysis for this 
rulemaking, which concerns the regulation of dry cargo residues or 
sweepings in the Great Lakes. We also announce the availability of a 
sampling plan proposal that the Coast Guard may implement, in part or 
in whole, as part of this NEPA analysis, and we request public comments 
on that proposal.

DATES: The public scoping meeting will be held on July 6, 2006, from 1 
p.m. to 5 p.m. Comments and related material must reach the Docket 
Management Facility on or before July 31, 2006.

ADDRESSES: The public scoping meeting will be held at the Anthony J. 
Celebreeze Federal Building, 31st floor auditorium, 1240 E 9th Street, 
Cleveland, OH 44199, telephone (216) 902-6020; photo identification 
required for entrance.
    In addition to submitting written statements or making verbal 
comments at the public scoping meeting, you may submit comments 
identified by Coast Guard docket number USCG-2004-19621 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: For further information about this 
rulemaking, contact Lieutenant Commander Mary Sohlberg, U.S. Coast 
Guard, Environmental Standards Division, telephone: 202-372-1429, e-
mail: [email protected]. Information about the public scoping 
meeting will be available at http://www.uscg.mil/hq/g-m/mso/dry 
cargo.htm. If you need special arrangements to attend the public 
scoping meeting, contact LTJG Regan Blomshield, U.S. Coast Guard 
District Nine, telephone: 216-902-6050, e-mail: 
[email protected]. If you have questions on viewing or submitting 
material to the docket, call Renee V. Wright, Program Manager, Docket 
Operations, telephone 202-493-0402.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Public Scoping Meeting

    The public scoping meeting will be held in a handicapped accessible 
facility. Please note that you will be required to provide photo 
identification to enter the facility. If you need special arrangements, 
please use the contact information in FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. 
The meeting will start with an overview presentation, followed by a 
formal public comment period. Following the formal public comment 
period, we will hold an informal open house. At the open house, Coast 
Guard personnel will be available to provide more information about the 
NEPA and rulemaking processes, dry cargo residue discharges, and the 
Coast Guard's proposed regulatory action, which we described in an 
earlier notice (71 FR 12210, March 9, 2006). A court reporter will be 
present during both the formal public comment period and the informal 
open house, to record verbal comments from the public. The public will 
also be able to submit written comments at any time during the meeting. 
Verbal comments to the court reporter will be transcribed, and the 
transcription will be placed in the public docket along with any 
written statements that may be submitted during the meeting. These 
comments and statements will be addressed by the Coast Guard as part of 
the Environmental Impact Statement.

Request for Comments

    We published a notice on March 9, 2006 (71 FR 12210), requesting 
public comments on any significant environmental issues related to the 
Coast Guard's proposed regulatory action. The public comment period for 
that notice remains open until July 31, 2006. In addition, we request 
public comments on, or information relevant to, the proposed sampling 
plan discussed below. 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'' paragraph below.

[[Page 33313]]

    Submitting comments: If you submit a comment, please include your 
name and address, identify the docket number for this notice (USCG-
2004-19621) and give the reason for each comment. You may submit your 
comments by electronic means, mail, fax, or delivery to the Docket 
Management Facility at the address under ADDRESSES; but please submit 
your comments 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 received during the comment period.
    Viewing comments and documents: To view comments and documents, go 
to http://dms.dot.gov at any time, click on ``Simple Search,'' enter 
the last five digits of the docket number for this rulemaking, and 
click on ``Search.'' 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.

Background and Purpose

    On March 9, 2006, the Coast Guard published a notice of intent, 
notice of availability, and request for comments (71 FR 12210), 
announcing the start of the public scoping process that determines the 
scope of issues to be addressed in the EIS and for identifying the 
significant issues related to the proposed action. As promised in that 
notice, today we are announcing where and when the public scoping 
meeting will be held. We are also announcing the availability of a 
sampling plan that environmental experts retained by the Coast Guard 
have proposed. We are considering adopting this sampling plan in order 
to analyze the impact of dry cargo residue discharges in the Great 
Lakes. The proposed sampling plan is available for public review either 
electronically or at the Docket Management Facility (see ADDRESSES and 
Request for Comments).

    Dated: June 2, 2006.
Howard L. Hime,
Acting Director of Standards, Assistant Commandant for Prevention.
[FR Doc. E6-8882 Filed 6-7-06; 8:45 am]
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