[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 150 (Wednesday, August 5, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46568-46569]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-19242]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army; Corps of Engineers


Board on Coastal Engineering Research

AGENCY: Department of the Army, DoD.

ACTION: Notice of Advisory Committee meeting.

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SUMMARY: The Department of the Army is publishing this notice to 
announce the following Federal advisory committee meeting of the Board 
on Coastal Engineering Research. This meeting is open to the public.

DATES AND LOCATION: The Board on Coastal Engineering Research will meet 
from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on September 1, 2015, and reconvene from 
8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on September 2, 2015. The Executive Session of 
the Board will convene from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. on September 3, 
2015. All sessions will be held Rooms 175-185, Jadwin Building, U.S. 
Army Engineer District, Galveston, 2000 Fort Point Road, Galveston, TX 
77550. All sessions are open to the public. For more information about 
the Board, please visit http://chl.erdc.usace.army.mil/cerb.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Jos[eacute] E. S[aacute]nchez, 
Alternate Designated Federal Officer (ADFO), U.S. Army Engineer 
Research and Development Center, Waterways Experiment Station, 3909 
Halls Ferry Road, Vicksburg, MS 39180-6199, phone 601-634-2001, or 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The meeting is being held under the 
provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) of 1972 (5 
U.S.C., Appendix, as amended), the Government in the Sunshine Act of 
1976 (5 U.S.C. 552b, as amended), and 41 CFR 102-3.150. The Board on 
Coastal Engineering Research provides broad policy guidance and reviews 
plans for the conduct of research and the development of research 
projects in consonance with the needs of the coastal engineering field 
and the objectives of the U.S. Army Chief of Engineers.
    Purpose of the Meeting: The theme of the meeting is Coastal 
Navigation--Driving the U.S. Economy by Integrating Marine 
Transportation Infrastructure with Natural Coastal Systems. The purpose 
of the meeting is to identify the U.S. Gulf region's engineering 
challenges with nature and nature-based systems to enhance the 
resilience of coastal systems and marine transportation infrastructure 
and sustain the values they produce and to identify research and 
development needs to enable the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the 
Nation to deliver innovative solutions to meet these challenges and 
opportunities.
    Agenda: On Tuesday morning, September 1, 2015, panel presentations 
will deal with the Integrated Coastal and Navigation Systems of the 
Texas Coast. Presentations will include The Texas Coast: Shoring Up Our 
Future--Implementation Challenges and Coastal Engineering Concerns; 
Storm Hazard Resilience Requirements of the Texas Coastal Industry's 
Energy Infrastructure and Implications for Modernizing Maritime 
Transportation Connections; Tackling the Most Challenging Built and 
Natural Infrastructure Sustainability and Resilience Problems of the 
Texas Coast; Leveraging Natural Systems and Functions for Delivering a 
Spectrum of Ecosystem Services, Restoration of Half Moon Reef in 
Matagorda Bay; The Galveston Bay Plan--A Comprehensive Conservation 
Management Plan for Galveston Bay, Galveston Bay Estuary Program: 
Regional Water and Sediment Quality Monitoring and Research Action 
Plan; USACE Engineering with Nature and Regional Sediment Management 
``Proving Ground'' Initiatives; and a presentation from the Texas A&M 
University Coastal Engineering Department. There will be an optional 
field trip Tuesday afternoon, which is open to the public. It includes 
a bus tour to a beach nourishment project; inspection of integrated 
petrochemical facility, navigation, and structural flood risk 
management infrastructure; inspection of Port of Galveston facilities 
and cruise terminal with non-structural flood proofing; and a ferry 
ride across

[[Page 46569]]

Bolivar Pass and return for inspection of potential surge gate location 
across Houston-Galveston Navigation Channel.
    On Wednesday morning, September 2, 2015, the Board will reconvene 
to discuss Coastal Engineering with Nature and Regional Sediment 
Management. Presentations will include Performance Trends of South 
Padre Island Onshore and Nearshore Placement of Navigation Channel 
Maintenance Dredging Materials, Brazos Island Harbor; Challenges and 
Opportunities of In-Bay Sediment Placement in Mobile Bay: Science, 
Technology and Research Needs; Use of USACE Enterprise Tools for Life 
Cycle Systems Management of Dredged Materials: Gulf Intracoastal 
Waterway Pilot Project; and The Future of Nearshore Processes Research: 
Implementing a Research Plan by the Nearshore Processes Community. 
Wednesday morning and afternoon session continues with the Integrated 
Coastal and Navigation Systems panel. Presentations include Dredging 
Equipment/Environmental Windows Optimization of Navigation Systems in 
the Gulf of Mexico; Coastal and Navigation Asset Management: System 
Optimization Based on Cargo Flows for the Houston-Galveston Navigation 
Channel; Informing Coastal Vulnerabilities with World Class Science: 
Texas Coastal Ocean Observation Network; Research Needs on the Texas 
Coast for Resilient Regionally Integrated Multiple Lines of Defense for 
Coastal Storm Risk Management and Navigation Sustainability; Research 
Needs on a Hurricane Surge Barrier for the Houston-Galveston Bay 
Region; Research Needs of the Texas Protection and Restoration Project; 
and Navigation and Coastal Tools for the US. Gulf Coast: Capabilities 
and Research Needs.
    The Board will meet in Executive Session to discuss ongoing 
initiatives and future actions on Thursday morning, September 3, 2015.
    Meeting Accessibility: Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552b, as amended, and 
41 CFR 102-3.140 through 102-3.165, and subject to the availability of 
space, the meeting is open to the public. Because seating capacity is 
limited, advance registration is required. Registration can be 
accomplished as set forth below. Because the meeting will be held in a 
Federal Government facility, security screening is required. A photo ID 
is required, and the name of each person seeking entry onto the 
facility will be checked against the list of names of those persons who 
have registered to attend the meeting. The guards reserve the right to 
inspect vehicles seeking to enter the facility. Individuals will be 
directed to the District Office building, where further security 
screening is required.
    Oral participation by the public is scheduled for 3:45 p.m. on 
Wednesday, September 2, 2015. The Galveston District is fully handicap 
accessible. For additional information about public access procedures, 
please contact Mr. S[aacute]nchez, the Board's ADFO, at the email 
address or telephone number listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT section.
    Registration: Individuals who wish to attend the meeting of the 
Board must register with the ADFO by email, the preferred method of 
contact, no later than August 28, using the electronic mail contact 
information found in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section, 
above. The communication should include the registrant's full name, 
title, affiliation or employer, email address, and daytime phone 
number. If applicable, include written comments or statements with the 
registration email.
    Written Comments and Statements: Pursuant to 41 CFR 102-3.015(j) 
and 102-3.140 and section 10(a)(3) of the FACA, the public or 
interested organizations may submit written comments or statements to 
the Board, in response to the stated agenda of the open meeting or in 
regard to the Board's mission in general. Written comments or 
statements should be submitted to Mr. Jos[eacute] E. S[aacute]nchez, 
ADFO, via electronic mail, the preferred mode of submission, as the 
address listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section above. 
Each page of the comment or statement must include the author's name, 
title or affiliation, address, and daytime phone number. The ADFO will 
review all submitted written comments or statements and provide them to 
members of the Board for their consideration. Written comments or 
statements being submitted in response to the agenda set forth in this 
notice must be received by the ADFO at least five business days prior 
to the meeting to be considered by the Board. The ADFO will review all 
timely submitted written comments or statements with the Board 
Chairperson and ensure the comments are provided to all members of the 
Board before the meeting. Written comments or statements received after 
this date may not be provided to the Board until its next meeting.
    Verbal Comments: Pursuant to 41 CFR 102-3.140d, the Board is not 
obligated to allow a member of the public to speak or otherwise address 
the Board during the meeting. Members of the public will be permitted 
to make verbal comments during the Board meeting only at the time and 
in the manner described below. If a member of the public is interested 
in making a verbal comment at the open meeting, that individual must 
submit a request, with a brief statement of the subject matter to be 
addressed by the comment, at least five business days in advance to the 
Board's ADFO, via electronic mail, the preferred mode of submission, at 
the address listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section. The 
ADFO will log each request, in the order received, and in consultation 
with the Board Chair, determine whether the subject matter of each 
comment is relevant to the Board's mission and/or the topics to be 
addressed in this public meeting. A 30-minute period near the end of 
the meeting will be available for verbal public comments. Members of 
the public who have requested to make a verbal comment, and whose 
comments have been deemed relevant under the process described above, 
will be allotted no more than five minutes during this period, and will 
be invited to speak in the order in which their requests were received 
by the ADFO.

Jos[eacute] E. S[aacute]nchez,
Director, Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory, Alternate Designated 
Federal Officer.
[FR Doc. 2015-19242 Filed 8-4-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3720-58-P