[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 165 (Friday, August 26, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52587-52588]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-18453]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Coast Guard

[Docket No. USCG-2021-0345]


 Port Access Route Study: The Pacific Coast From Washington to 
California

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.

ACTION: Notice of availability of draft study and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Coast Guard announces the availability of the draft 
Pacific Coast Port Access Route Study (PAC-PARS) and requests public 
comments on the draft. This study evaluates safe access routes for the 
movement of vessel traffic proceeding to or from ports or places along 
the western seaboard of the United States and aims to determine whether 
a shipping safety fairway (``fairway'') and/or routing measures should 
be established, adjusted or modified.

DATES: Comments must be submitted to the online docket via https://www.regulations.gov on or before October 25, 2022.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by docket number USCG-
2021-0345 using the Federal Decision Making Portal at https://www.regulations.gov. See the ``Public Participation and Request for 
Comments'' portion of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section for further 
instructions on submitting comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information about this document 
call or email LCDR Sara Conrad, Coast Guard Pacific Area (PAC-54), U.S. 
Coast Guard; telephone (510) 437-3813, email [email protected] or 
Mr. Tyrone Conner, Eleventh Coast Guard District (dpw), U.S. Coast 
Guard; telephone (510) 437-2968, email [email protected] or Mr. 
John Moriarty, Thirteenth Coast Guard District (dpw), U.S. Coast Guard; 
telephone (206) 220-7274, email [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Public Participation and Comments

    We encourage you to submit comments regarding the results of the 
draft Pacific Coast Port Access Route Study. We will consider all 
submissions and may adjust our final action based on your comments. If 
you submit a comment, please include the docket number for this notice, 
indicate the specific section of this document to which each comment 
applies, and provide a reason for each suggestion or recommendation.
    Submitting comments. We encourage you to submit comments through 
the Federal Decision Making Portal at http://www.regulations.gov. To do 
so, go to https://www.regulations.gov, type USCG-2021-0345 in the 
search box and click ``Search.'' Next, look for this document in the 
Search Results column, and click on it. Then click on the Comment 
option. If your material cannot be submitted using http://www.regulations.gov, contact the person in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT section of this document for alternate instructions.
    Viewing material in docket. To view documents mentioned in this 
notice as being available in the docket, find the docket as described 
in the previous paragraph, and then select ``Supporting & Related 
Material'' in the Document Type column. Public comments will also be 
placed in our online docket and can be viewed by following instructions 
on the https://www.regulations.gov Frequently Asked Questions web page. 
We review all comments received, but we may choose not to post off-
topic, inappropriate, or duplicate comments that we receive.
    Personal information. We accept anonymous comments. Comments we 
post to https://www.regulations.gov will include any personal 
information you have provided. For more about privacy and submissions 
in response to this document, see DHS's eRulemaking System of Records 
notice (85 FR 14226, March 11, 2020).

Public Meeting

    We plan to hold several public meetings to receive oral comments on 
this draft PAC-PARS. The dates, times, and locations will be announced 
on our project web page Pacific Coast Port Access Route Study (PAC-
PARS) and via a separate document published in the Federal Register.

Background

    The Ports and Waterways Safety Act, (PWSA)(46 U.S.C. 70003(c)(1)), 
authorizes the Commandant of the Coast Guard to designate necessary 
fairways and traffic separations schemes (TSSs) to provide safe access 
routes for vessels proceeding to and from United States ports. The 
designation of fairways and TSSs recognizes the paramount right of 
navigation over all other uses in the designated areas.
    Before establishing or adjusting fairways, 46 U.S.C. 70003(c)(1) 
requires the Coast Guard to study potential traffic density and assess 
the need for safe access routes for vessels. During this process, the 
Coast Guard considers the views of the maritime community, 
environmental groups, and other stakeholders to reconcile the need for 
safe access routes with reasonable waterway uses. See 46 U.S.C. 
70003(c)(3).
    On July 29, 2021, the Coast Guard announced that the Coast Guard 
Pacific Area Command would conduct a Pacific Coast Port Access Route 
Study (PAC-PARS) (86 FR 40791). The study area encompasses all vessel 
traffic patterns approaching and departing major ports along the west 
coast to include all current Traffic Separation Schemes and vessel 
maneuvering along the Pacific Coast from Washington to California and 
all federal navigable waters out to the EEZ. The PAC-PARS is focused on 
vessel traffic and navigation mitigation techniques to improve and 
support safe navigation transits within the major Pacific Coast Ports 
and the United States EEZ.
    The PAC-PARS aims to enhance navigational safety by examining 
existing shipping routes and waterway uses and, to the extent 
practicable, reconciling the paramount right of navigation within 
designated port access routes with other waterway uses such as the 
development of aquaculture farms, offshore renewable energy, commercial 
space ports/re-entry sites, marine sanctuaries, ports supporting 
Panamax vessels, potential LNG ports and additional commercial vessel 
traffic.
    After analyzing current and historical vessel traffic, fishing 
vessel information, agency and stakeholder experience in vessel traffic 
management, navigation, ship handling, and effects of weather, we have 
determined that there is a need to establish voluntary fairways for 
coastwise and nearshore vessel traffic to promote safety of navigation 
in the study area. As part of the draft PAC-PARS report, which is 
available for public review in this docket, charts of the recommended 
fairways are included as Appendices I, II, and III. Examples of public 
notice and outreach documents are included in Appendices IV-XI. Two 
vessel traffic analyses, for coastal waters and port approaches, are 
included as

[[Page 52588]]

Enclosures 1 and 2, respectively. Earlier Federal Register 
announcements associated with this effort are included as Enclosures 3 
and 4. Finally, the three memorandums from each Coast Guard command 
involved in this study are provided in Enclosures 5, 6, and 7. The 
draft and appendices can also be found on our project web page.
    We request your comments on any aspect of this study. Information 
received during this additional public comment period may result in 
changes to the study's recommendations prior to any future rulemakings 
or appropriate international agreements.
    This notice is issued under authority of 46 U.S.C. 70003(c)(1).

    Dated: August 22, 2022.
A.J. Tiongson,
Vice Admiral, U.S. Coast Guard, Commander, Pacific Area.
[FR Doc. 2022-18453 Filed 8-25-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9110-04-P