Proposed Rule2024-12572
Recordkeeping and Reporting Requirements To Document Environmental Compliance on Certain Commercial Vessels
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
June 7, 2024
Issuing agencies
Homeland Security DepartmentCoast Guard
Abstract
The Coast Guard seeks information about the recordkeeping and reporting procedures required under the Coast Guard ballast water regulations issued in 2012 and 2015 and the monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting required under the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 2013 Vessel General Permit (VGP). The Coast Guard plans to use this information to evaluate new and updated solutions that inform data-driven policymaking, reduce the reporting and record-keeping burden on industry, and confirm environmental compliance.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 111 (Friday, June 7, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 111 (Friday, June 7, 2024)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 48515-48517]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-12572]
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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
Coast Guard
33 CFR Part 151
[Docket No. USCG-2024-0046]
Recordkeeping and Reporting Requirements To Document
Environmental Compliance on Certain Commercial Vessels
AGENCY: Coast Guard, Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
ACTION: Request for information.
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SUMMARY: The Coast Guard seeks information about the recordkeeping and
reporting procedures required under the Coast Guard ballast water
regulations issued in 2012 and 2015 and the monitoring, recordkeeping,
and reporting required under the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) 2013 Vessel General Permit (VGP). The Coast Guard plans to use
this information to evaluate new and updated solutions that inform
data-driven policymaking, reduce the reporting and record-keeping
burden on industry, and confirm environmental compliance.
DATES: Comments must be received by the Coast Guard on or before July
22, 2024.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments using the Federal Decision-Making
Portal at <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>. See the ``Public Participation
and Request for Comments'' portion of the SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION
section for further instructions on submitting comments.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information about this document,
email or phone Joseph Adamson, U.S. Coast Guard; email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#baf9fd97f5ffe9facfc9d9dd94d7d3d6"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="aeede983e1ebfdeedbddcdc980c3c7c2">[email protected]</span></a>, telephone: 206-836-3831.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Public Participation and Comments
We encourage you to submit comments or related material responding
to this request for information. The Coast Guard views public
participation as essential to understanding the recordkeeping and
reporting requirements for documenting environmental compliance. We
consider all submissions and may adjust agency policy based on your
feedback. If you submit a comment, please include the docket number for
this notice (USCG-2024-0046), indicate the specific section of this
document to which each comment applies, and provide a detailed
description of the issues, the reasoning, and suggestion or
recommendations for solutions.
Methods for submitting comments. We encourage you to submit
comments through the Federal Decision-Making Portal at
<a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a>. To do so, go to <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a>, type USCG-
2024-0046 in the search box and click
[[Page 48516]]
``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 <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a>, contact the person in
the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this document for
alternate instructions.
Viewing material in the docket. Public comments will be placed in
our online docket at <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a> and can be viewed by following
that website's instructions, provided on its Frequently Asked Questions
page. We review all comments received, but we will only post comments
that address the topic of this request for information. We may choose
not to post off-topic, inappropriate, or duplicate comments that we
receive.
The Coast Guard will carefully consider each comment received, but
may not issue separate responses. The Coast Guard may also propose
regulatory changes or update guidance related to this topic. If the
Coast Guard were to undertake any regulatory or guidance changes as a
result of comments received, those changes would be announced
separately.
Personal information. We accept anonymous comments. Comments we
post to <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a> will include any personal information you
have provided. For more about privacy and submissions to the docket in
response to this document, see the Department of Homeland Security's
(DHS) eRulemaking System of Records notice (85 FR 14226, March 11,
2020).
II. Abbreviations
CFR Code of Federal Regulations
DHS Department of Homeland Security
DMR Discharge Monitoring Report
eNOI Electronic Notice of Intent
EPA Environmental Protection Agency
NBIC National Ballast Information Clearinghouse
VGP Vessel General Permit
III. Background
On March 23, 2012, the Coast Guard published a final rule about
vessel ballast water management, titled ``Standards for Living
Organisms in Ships' Ballast Water Discharge in U.S. Waters'' (77 FR
17254), which became effective on June 21, 2012. On November 24, 2015,
the Coast Guard published a final rule amending the reporting and
recordkeeping requirements to simplify and streamline the reporting
process (80 FR 73105). Those amendments became effective on February
22, 2016. These regulations, codified in 33 CFR part 151, require
vessel owners or operators to submit reports to the National Ballast
Information Clearinghouse (NBIC). These reports must include, among
other information, the number of ballast water tanks, the total ballast
water capacity, and primary port of ballast water loading and discharge
for each voyage. The Coast Guard uses this information to understand
ballasting patterns in the waters of the United States and evaluate the
effectiveness of regulations and guidance. The Coast Guard also uses
this information to ensure that ballast water is managed in accordance
with the regulatory requirements outlined in 33 CFR 151.1510.
On April 12, 2013, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
published its Notice of final permit issuance, titled Final National
Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) General Permit for
Discharges Incidental to the Normal Operation of a Vessel (78 FR
21938). The notice finalizes Vessel General Permit (VGP) requirements
for certain commercial vessels that are 79 feet or longer operating
within waters of the United States. The VGP requirements do not apply
to fishing vessels (except for ballast water), recreational vessels as
defined in section 502(25) of the Clean Water Act (CWA) (33 U.S.C.
1362), or vessels of the Armed Forces as defined in CWA section
312(a)(14) (33 U.S.C. 1322).
The VGP requires vessel owners or operators to monitor vessel
discharges, retain records necessary to demonstrate compliance, and
submit an annual report to the EPA. This annual report is currently
electronically submitted to the EPA by uploading a datasheet or
manually completing an online form. In the report, vessel owners or
operators must:
1. Identify the regions of the United States where the vessel
operated during the year;
2. Provide details about the vessel, vessel discharges, and onboard
pollution control devices;
3. Provide details of required sampling and inspection; and
4. Identify any instances of noncompliance with the permit
requirements.
The EPA uses this information to assess compliance with permit
requirements. The Coast Guard also uses this information to assist EPA
with compliance under the VGP as detailed in the February 11, 2011,
memorandum of understanding between the Coast Guard and the EPA
(available in the docket for this notice, see the Public Participation
and Comments section of this preamble.).
Electronic reporting systems have become more user-friendly,
powerful, efficient, intelligent, and secure since the 2012 and 2015
ballast water final rules and VGP were issued. The Coast Guard hopes to
leverage these advances to improve the environmental compliance
reporting processes, reduce the reporting burden, streamline
procedures, and encourage direct entry into Federal data systems. These
centrally housed systems facilitate consistent data analysis, policy
development, and public transparency and access.
IV. Request for Information
The Coast Guard seeks information, comments, and suggestions about
the convenience, costs, time spent, content, applicability, and
functionality of the current EPA and Coast Guard monitoring,
recordkeeping, and reporting procedures. Questions are divided into
four categories pertaining to the vessel's VGP annual report, including
the Discharge Monitoring Report (DMR) required by the EPA, and the
vessel's ballast water management reporting form (see OMB number 1625-
0069) required by the Coast Guard:
A. General question;
B. Information collection;
C. Compiling data and preparing reports; and
D. Submission of reports.
The purpose of these questions is to obtain details on the
resources needed to collect, document, compile, and report information,
and to solicit comments on existing electronic reporting systems to
identify opportunities to streamline any future Coast Guard monitoring,
recordkeeping, and reporting activities. The questions below illustrate
the type of information sought by the Coast Guard and are intended to
help guide your responses.
Please respond to as many questions as you like. We ask that you
provide as much specificity and rationale as possible to explain your
responses and suggestions and, in particular, whether your responses
relate to the EPA VGP, Coast Guard ballast water management reporting
requirements, or both.
A. General Question
What amount of time and resources are devoted per vessel to
monitoring, recordkeeping, compiling data, and preparing reports to
comply with the EPA's VGP and the Coast Guard's ballast water
management requirements? Please provide information about who collects
this information, such as the Master, environmental compliance officer,
or vessel operator, and the amount of time these individuals spend on
the different elements of this activity.
[[Page 48517]]
B. Information Collection by Vessel Owner or Operator for Submission to
the Coast Guard, EPA, or Both
(1) Do you recommend any specific improvements for completing the
vessel's ballast water management reporting form for submission to the
NBIC and why? Please provide details.
(2) Based on your current experience with collecting information
for the EPA's VGP via the Electronic Notice of Intent (eNOI)
application, do you recommend any specific improvements to a potential
future compliance and enforcement data system and why? Please provide
details.
C. Compiling Data and Preparing Reports by Vessel Owner or Operator for
Submission to the Coast Guard, EPA, or Both
(1) Based on your current user experience with the instructions
provided on the vessel's VGP annual report and the vessel's ballast
water management reporting form, what improvements to a potential
future compliance and enforcement data system do you recommend? Please
provide details.
(2) Based on your current user experience with completing the
vessel's VGP annual report and the vessel's ballast water management
reporting form, what improvements to a potential future compliance and
enforcement data system do you recommend? Please provide details.
(3) Are there any other types of software, in addition to using
Microsoft Office file formats, that you use for compiling EPA's VGP
information? Please provide details.
(4) Does your vessel owner or operator prepare the vessel's VGP
annual report, including DMR data, locally or is information compiled
using other means and forwarded to a central location or separate
office? Please provide details.
(5) Based on your current user experience with compiling and
preparing information for submission to either the EPA's VGP eNOI
application or to the NBIC, are there any specific improvements to any
potential future compliance and enforcement data system you recommend?
Please provide details.
D. Submission of Reports by Vessel Owner or Operators to the Coast
Guard or EPA
(1) What improvements with submitting the vessel's ballast water
management reporting form do you recommend? Please provide details.
(2) Are there are any specific improvements you suggest for
submitting information to the NBIC website? Please provide details and
examples of what works well and data fields that could be improved for
ease of submission.
(3) Based on your user experience with completing and submitting
the vessel's VGP annual report, including any DMR data, what
recommendations do you have for any potential future compliance and
enforcement data system? Please provide details.
(4) Based on your user experience with the EPA's VGP eNOI system
and the submission process (including data verification) for the annual
report, what recommendations do you have for any potential future
compliance and enforcement data system? Please provide details and
examples of what works well.
Dated: June 4, 2024.
J.G. Lantz,
Director of Commercial Regulations and Standards.
[FR Doc. 2024-12572 Filed 6-6-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9110-04-P
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