Federal Register, Volume 74, Number 75, April 21, 2009, Pages 18115-18284 Page: 18,170
vi, 18283, iii p. ; 28 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
Federal Register/Vol. 74, No. 75/Tuesday, April 21, 2009/Proposed Rules
* Federal e Rulemaking Portal: http://
www.regulations.gov. Submit electronic
comments via the Federal e Rulemaking
Portal rather than by e-mail;
* Mail: Debra Malek, NOAA, Office of
National Marine Sanctuaries, 1305 East-
West Highway, (N/NMS2), 11th Floor,
Silver Spring, Maryland 20910.
Copies of the interim policy and
permit guidance for submarine cable
projects may be viewed and
downloaded at http://
sanctuaries.noaa.gov/.
Paperwork burden: Submit written
comments regarding the burden-hour
estimates or other aspects of the
information collection requirements
contained in this proposed rule by e-
mail to Diana Hynek at
dHynek@doc.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Debra Malek, (301) 713-3125, ext. 262.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The NOAA Office of National Marine
Sanctuaries (ONMS) manages a system
of thirteen national marine sanctuaries
(NMSs or sanctuaries) that protect
special, nationally significant areas of
the marine environment under the
authority of the National Marine
Sanctuaries Act (NMSA; 16 U.S.C. 1431
et seq.). The ONMS, along with the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service and the State
of Hawaii, also manages the
Papahanaumokuakea Marine National
Monument under the Antiquities Act.
Sanctuaries and the monument protect
a variety of marine habitats and cultural
resources including coral reefs,
mangrove forests, seagrass beds, deep-
sea canyons, kelp beds, marine mammal
feeding and breeding grounds, and
historic shipwrecks and other
submerged cultural resources.
In the late 1990s, the ONMS received
applications to install and maintain
telecommunication submarine cables
through the Olympic Coast National
Marine Sanctuary and the Stellwagen
Bank National Marine Sanctuary.
Experience gained through the
consideration and issuance of permits
for those projects highlighted the need
for more clarity on how such projects
would be handled in the future.
The Department of Commerce
convened a workshop in February 2000
with representatives from the
telecommunications and fishing
industries, environmental and
conservation organizations, and state
agencies. A white paper with key issues
and guiding principles was distributed
prior to, and discussed at, the
workshop. The proposed guidingprinciples included: Analysis of habitat
types appropriate or inappropriate for
cable laying, analysis of individual
sanctuary regulations, and parameters
for evaluating proposals for cable
installations.
In August 2000, NOAA published an
advance notice of proposed rulemaking
(ANPR) on Installing and Maintaining
Commercial Submarine Cables in
National Marine Sanctuaries in the
Federal Register (65 FR 51264, Aug. 23,
2000). A second ANPR was published in
November 2000 at the request of the
industry for additional time to comment
(65 FR 70537, Nov. 24, 2000). The
ANPR requested comments on both the
guiding principles contained in the
white paper and on the issues raised at
the workshop.
Specifically, the ANPR requested
comments on:
* Whether changes to existing ONMS
regulations or some form of policy
guidance was necessary to clarify
NOAA's decision-making process
regarding the installation and
maintenance of commercial submarine
cables within NMSs;
* If changes or additional guidance
were appropriate, what those changes or
guidance should contain; and
* Whether there were comments on
the proposed principles on the
installation of commercial submarine
cables with the marine and coastal
environment.
The ONMS received 36 comments
from the telecommunications industry,
the Department of Defense, the
environmental community, State
government, and various interested
individuals.
General comments on the ANPR
included the following:
* The telecommunications industry
believed that existing regulations are
adequate in NMSs.
* The environmental community
urged NOAA to prohibit cables within
NMSs, and to develop stringent permit
application criteria, including removal
of out-of-service cables.
* The industry and the environmental
community did not a support a
Programmatic Environmental Impact
Statement (PETS) or the concept of
approving projects in the planning
stage.
* The environmental community
supported the idea of cable corridors
while the industry opposed it.
* The industry wanted improved
consultation between NOAA and other
cable permitting authorities, such as the
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the
Federal Communications Commission,
etc., and more specific, user-friendlyThese comments, in addition to direct
experience related to cables installed in
sanctuaries, were factors that led to
NOAA's decision not to pursue
rulemaking at this time, but, rather to
develop and issue interim permit
guidelines. The ONMS believes that
cable permit guidelines will ensure that
applications to install and maintain
submarine cables in sanctuaries are
reviewed consistently and in a manner
that adheres to the NMSA and ONMS
regulations (15 CFR part 922).
John Dunnigan,
Assistant Administrator for Ocean Services
and Coastal Zone Management.
[FR Doc. E9-8945 Filed 4-20-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-NK-M
FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
16 CFR Part 429
Trade Regulation Rule Concerning
Cooling-Off Period for Sales Made at
Homes or at Certain Other Locations
AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission
("FTC" or "Commission").
ACTION: Request for public comment.
SUMMARY: The Commission requests
public comment on its Trade Regulation
Rule Concerning Cooling-Off Period for
Sales Made at Homes or at Certain Other
Locations ("Cooling-Off Rule" or
"Rule"). The Commission is soliciting
public comment as part of the FTC's
systematic review of all current
Commission regulations and guides.
DATES: Written comments concerning
the Cooling-Off Rule must be received
no later than June 22, 2009.
ADDRESSES: Interested parties are
invited to submit written comments
electronically or in paper form.
Comments should refer to "Cooling-Off
Rule Regulatory Review, 16 CFR 429,
Comment, Project No. P087109" to
facilitate the organization of comments.
Please note that your comment-
including your name and your state-
will be placed on the public record of
this proceeding, including on the
publicly accessible FTC website, at
(http://ftc.gov/os/
publiccomments.shtm.)
Because comments will be made
public, they should not include any
sensitive personal information, such as
an individual's Social Security Number;
date of birth; driver's license number or
other state identification number, or
foreign country equivalent; passport
number; financial account number; or
credit or debit card number. Commentscriteria for permit applications.
also should not include any sensitive
18170
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This issue can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Periodical.
United States. Office of the Federal Register. Federal Register, Volume 74, Number 75, April 21, 2009, Pages 18115-18284, periodical, April 21, 2009; Washington D.C.. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc132937/m1/62/: accessed April 19, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.