OPSAIL 2000, Port of Hampton Roads, VA

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Coast Guard

33 CFR Parts 100, 110, and 165

[CGD05-99-068]

OPSAIL 2000, Port of Hampton Roads, VA

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DOT.

ACTION: Advanced notice of proposed rulemaking; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Coast Guard requests public comment on the temporary

establishment of several exclusion areas and anchorage grounds before,

during, and after OPSAIL 2000 in the Port of Hampton Roads, Virginia,

from June 14 through June 20, 2000. The Coast Guard anticipates

rulemaking establishing Special Local Regulations to control vessel

traffic within the Port of Hampton Roads 2 days prior to the event on

June 14 and 15, 2000; establishing several exclusion areas;

establishing new and/or assigning currently designated Anchorage

Grounds for participating/spectator vessels; and establishing temporary

safety zones for fireworks displays.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before November 15, 1999.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to the Port Operations Department

(CGD05-99-068), Coast Guard Marine Safety Office Hampton Roads, 200

Granby Street, Norfolk, Virginia 23510, or delivered to the 7th floor

at the same address between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m., Monday through Friday,

except Federal holidays.

The Port Operations Department of Marine Safety Office Hampton

Roads maintains the public docket for this rulemaking. Comments, and

documents as indicated in this preamble, will become part of this

docket and will be available for inspection or copying at the Coast

Guard Marine Safety Office

[[Page 52724]]

Hampton Roads, between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m., Monday through Friday, except

Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lieutenant Commander S. Moody or

Lieutenant L. Greene, Port Operations Department, Coast Guard Marine

Safety Office Hampton Roads (757) 441-3294, between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m.,

Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Request for Comments

The Coast Guard encourages interested persons to participate in the

early stages of this rulemaking by submitting written data, views, or

arguments. Please explain your reasons for each comment so that we can

carefully weigh the consequences and impacts of any future requirements

we may propose. Persons submitting comments should include their names

and addresses, identify this rulemaking (CGD05-99-068) and the specific

section of this document to which each comment applies. Please submit

two copies of all comments and attachments in an unbound format, no

larger than 8\1/2\ by 11 inches, suitable for copying and electronic

filing. Persons wanting acknowledgment of receipt of comments should

enclose stamped, self-addressed postcards or envelopes. The Coast Guard

will consider all comments received during the comment period.

The Coast Guard plans no public hearing. Persons may request a

public hearing by writing to the Port Operations Department at the

address under ADDRESSES. The request should include the reasons why a

hearing would be beneficial. If it determines that the opportunity for

oral presentations will aid this rulemaking, the Coast Guard will hold

a public hearing at a time and place announced by a later notice in the

Federal Register.

Background and Purpose

Opsail 2000 is sponsoring the OPSAIL 2000 Parade of Tall Ships, as

well as a fireworks display. These events are scheduled to take place

on June 16 and 17, 2000 respectively, in the Port of Hampton Roads, on

the waters of Chesapeake Bay and the Elizabeth River. The Coast Guard

expects a minimum of 10,000 spectator craft for this event. The

anticipated rulemaking will provide specific guidance on temporary

anchorage regulations, vessel movement controls, safety and security

zones that will be in effect at various times in those waters during

the period June 14--20, 2000. The Coast Guard may seek to establish

additional regulated areas, Anchorage Grounds, and safety or security

zones once confirmation of the exact number of vessels and dignitaries

that will be participating in OPSAIL 2000 becomes available.

Schedule of Events

At the current time, marine related events will include the

following:

1. June 15 and 16, 2000: The arrival of more than 200 Tall Ships

and character vessels at Lynnhaven Anchorage.

2. June 16, 2000: Parade of approximately 200 Tall Ships and

character vessels from Cape Henry to Town Point Park, Downtown Norfolk.

3. June 17, 2000: Fireworks display scheduled to take place

adjacent to the Norfolk and Portsmouth Seawalls.

4. June 20, 2000: Scheduled departure for the majority of the

vessels.

Discussion

The Coast Guard estimates there will be over 10,000 spectator craft

and commercial vessels (passenger vessels and charter boats) in the

area during June 16 through 20, 2000. The safety of parade participants

and spectators will require that spectator craft be kept at a safe

distance from the parade route. The Coast Guard intends to establish

multiple limited access areas for the vessel parade, and to temporarily

modify existing anchorage areas within the port area to provide for

maximum spectator viewing areas and traffic patterns for deep draft and

barge traffic.

The most severe traffic restrictions will be in place during the

Parade of Sail, which will begin the morning of June 16 and end that

evening. These restrictions will affect all vessels. The only other

restriction anticipated for commercial deep draft and barge traffic

will be during the fireworks display on Saturday night, June 17. The

Coast Guard anticipates having vessels available on request to escort

deep draft and barge traffic through congested areas of Town Point

Reach during all other periods of June 16-20, 2000.

Regulatory Evaluation

At this early stage in what is still just a potential rulemaking,

the Coast Guard has not determined whether any future rulemaking may be

considered a significant regulatory action under section 3(f) of

Executive Order 12866 or the regulatory policies and procedures of the

Department of Transportation (DOT) (44 FR 11040; February 26, 1979).

The Coast Guard expects the economic impact of any future

rulemaking to be minimal. Although the Coast Guard anticipates

restricting traffic from transiting a portion of the Elizabeth River,

Newport News channel and some anchorages during the vessel parade, the

effect of any future rulemaking will be minimized because of the

limited duration of the event and the extensive advance notifications

that will be made to the maritime community via the Local Notice to

Mariners, facsimile, the internet, marine information broadcasts,

Hampton Roads Maritime Association meetings, and Hampton Roads area

newspapers, so mariners can adjust their plans accordingly. The Coast

Guard anticipates that the majority of the maritime industrial activity

in the Port of Hampton Roads will continue, relatively unaffected by

any future rulemaking.

Small Entities

Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.), the

Coast Guard must consider whether any potential rulemaking, if it led

to an actual rule, would have a significant economic impact on a

substantial number of small entities. ``Small entities'' include small

businesses, not-for-profit organizations that are independently owned

and operated and are not dominant in their fields, and governmental

jurisdictions with populations of less than 50,000.

The Coast Guard does not anticipate that its potential rulemaking

will have anything but a minimal impact upon small entities, but

expects that comments received on this advance notice will help it

determine the number of potentially affected small entities and in

weighing the impacts of various regulatory alternatives for the purpose

of drafting any rules.

Assistance for Small Entities

In accordance with section 213(a) of the Small Business Regulatory

Enforcement Act of 1996 [Pub. L. 104-121], the Coast Guard wants to

assist small entities in understanding this advance notice so that they

can better evaluate the potential effects of any future rulemaking on

them and participate in the rulemaking. If you believe that your small

business, organization, or agency may be affected by any future

rulemaking, and if you have questions concerning this notice, please

consult the Coast Guard point of contact designated in FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT. The Coast Guard is particularly interested in how

any future rulemaking may affect small entities. If you are a small

entity and believe that you may be affected by such a rulemaking,

please tell how, and what flexibility or compliance alternatives the

Coast Guard should consider to minimize the burden on small entities

while promoting port safety.

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Collection of Information

The Coast Guard anticipates that any future rulemaking will not

provide for a collection of information under the Paperwork Reduction

Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

Federalism

The Coast Guard has analyzed this advanced notice under the

principles and criteria contained in Executive Order 12612. From the

information available at this time, the Coast Guard cannot determine

whether this potential rulemaking would have sufficient federalism

implications to warrant the preparation of a Federalism Assessment.

Unfunded Mandates

Under the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-4), the

Coast Guard must consider whether this potential rulemaking will result

in an annual expenditure by state, local, and tribal governments, in

the aggregate of $100 million (adjusted annually for inflation). If so,

the Act requires that a reasonable number of regulatory alternatives be

considered, and that from those alternatives, the least costly, most

cost-effective, or least burdensome alternative that achieves the

objective of the rule be selected. The Coast Guard does not anticipate

that any future rulemaking will result in such expenditures, but

welcomes comments addressing the issue from interested parties.

Environment

The Coast Guard anticipates that any potential rulemaking would be

categorically excluded from further environmental documentation in

accordance with Commandant Instruction M16475.1C. Any such rulemaking

would be designed to minimize the likelihood of maritime disasters with

their attendant environmental consequences and to enhance the safety of

participants, spectators, and other maritime traffic. Therefore, any

potential rulemaking should have no environmental impact. The Coast

Guard invites comments addressing possible effects that any such

rulemaking may have on the human environment or addressing possible

inconsistencies with any Federal, State, or local law or administrative

determinations relating to the environment. It will reach a final

determination regarding the need for an environmental assessment after

receipt of relevant comments.

J.E. Schrinner,

Captain, U.S. Coast Guard, Captain of the Port Hampton Roads.

[FR Doc. 99-25448 Filed 9-29-99; 8:45 am]

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