Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 147 / Tuesday, July 31, 2018 / Notices 36883 

Official at 240–533–9466 by August 20, 

2018. 

Dated: July 17, 2018. 

Carl C. Gouldman, 

Director, U.S. IOOS Program, National Ocean 

Service. 

[FR Doc. 2018–16286 Filed 7–30–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

Notice of 30-Day Public Comment 

Period on the Injury Assessment Plan 

for the Lower Duwamish River (‘‘Lower 

Duwamish River Natural Resource 

Damage Assessment: Injury 

Assessment Plan’’) 

AGENCY: National Ocean Service, 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration, U.S. Department of 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of public comment 

period. 

SUMMARY: NOAA, on behalf of its comembers of the Elliott Bay Trustee 

Council (Trustee Council), announce the 

release of the Lower Duwamish River 

Injury Assessment Plan, which sets 

forward the Trustee Council’s approach 

for assessing natural resource damages 

at the Lower Duwamish River. The 

Injury Assessment Plan is one of the 

first steps in the natural resources 

damages assessment process, and is 

being released to the public in 

accordance with the applicable 

regulations. 

Through today’s notice, NOAA is 

announcing: (1) The Trustees’ plan to 

begin the assessment of natural resource 

damages for lost ecological and human 

use services resulting from releases of 

hazardous substances and oil to the 

Lower Duwamish River in Seattle, 

Washington; and (2) a provision of a 30- 

day period for public comment on the 

plan. 

ADDRESSES: Comments are sought on the 

draft injury assessment plan and should 

be emailed to Rebecca.Hoff@noaa.gov 

with the subject line: ‘‘Comments on 

Lower Duwamish River Natural 

Resource Damage Assessment: Injury 

Assessment Plan.’’ Comments may also 

be mailed to: Rebecca Hoff of NOAA 

Western Region Center, 7600 Sand Point 

Way Building 1, Seattle, WA 98118. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

increasingly industrial uses of the 

Lower Duwamish River led to 

contamination of natural resources 

through multiple pathways from 

releases of hazardous substances upland 

and adjacent to the river. As a result of 

this contamination, EPA designated 

Harbor Island, Lockheed West Seattle, 

and the Lower Duwamish Waterway 

(collectively, the Site) as Superfund 

sites on the National Priority List. 

Examples of contaminants of concern 

released to the Lower Duwamish River 

include polychlorinated biphenyls 

(PCBs), metals, and polycyclic aromatic 

hydrocarbons (PAHs). Natural resources 

such as benthic invertebrates, migratory 

fish (such as juvenile Chinook salmon), 

resident fish (such as sculpin and 

English sole), birds, and fish eating 

mammals exposed to these compounds 

can potentially be harmed as a result. In 

addition, hazardous substances released 

to the Lower Duwamish River have 

potentially reduced the human use 

services (e.g., recreational fishing, 

recreational boating, tribal uses) 

provided by the River. In addition, fish 

consumption advisories related to 

hazardous substances have been issued 

to the public warning of the risks 

associated with consumption of various 

fish species commonly targeted by 

anglers. The Injury Assessment Plan sets 

forth the approach the Trustee Council 

will apply to completing the damage 

assessment process to resolve natural 

resource damages liability with nonsettling parties. 

The Elliott Bay Trustee Council is 

comprised of Federal, state and tribal 

natural resource trustees. Members of 

the Trustee Council include the U.S. 

Department of the Interior; the U.S. 

Department of Commerce, acting 

through NOAA; the State of 

Washington; the Suquamish Tribe; and 

the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe. The 

Comprehensive Environmental 

Response, Compensation, and Liability 

Act (CERCLA), 42 U.S.C. §§ 9601 et seq.; 

the Oil Pollution Act (OPA) of 1990, 33 

U.S.C. §§ 2701 et seq.; the Clean Water 

Act (CWA), 33 U.S.C. § 1251; the 

National Oil and Hazardous Substances 

Pollution Contingency Plan [National 

Contingency Plan (NCP)], 40 CFR 300, 

Subpart G; Executive Orders 12580 and 

12777; and other applicable federal and 

state laws and regulations, provide a 

legal framework for the Trustee 

Council’s actions. 

Under the federal regulations, the 

Trustee Council can elect to perform a 

Type A or Type B injury assessment. 

Type A assessment procedures use 

simplified model assumptions to 

address injuries that result from a single 

event or short-term exposure. Releases 

of hazardous substances from the Site 

have occurred from multiple sources 

over many decades, resulting in 

complex exposure conditions impacting 

aquatic and upland media and 

associated complex food webs. 

Therefore, the Elliott Bay Trustee 

Council previously elected to perform a 

Type B assessment, the procedures for 

which require ‘‘more extensive field 

observation than the Type A 

procedures.’’ 43 CFR § 11.33(b). This 

assessment method includes injury 

determination, quantification, and 

damage determination. Because 

substantial Site-specific data already 

exist to support the assessment, a Type 

B assessment can be conducted for the 

Site at a reasonable cost. The federal 

regulations for a Type B assessment 

outline methods for determining (1) 

pathways through which hazardous 

substances released by potentially 

responsible parties expose natural 

resources, (2) injuries to natural 

resources, (3) the extent of those injuries 

and resultant public losses, (4) baseline 

conditions and time required for the 

resources to recover to baseline, and (5) 

the cost or value of restoring injured 

resources. These methods facilitate 

calculation of natural resource damages. 

43 CFR §§ 11.60–11.84. 

Dated: July 19, 2018. 

David Westerholm, 

Director, Office of Response and Restoration. 

[FR Doc. 2018–16287 Filed 7–30–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–JE–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

Evaluation of State Coastal 

Management Programs 

AGENCY: Office for Coastal Management 

(OCM), National Ocean Service (NOS), 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration (NOAA), Department of 

Commerce (DOC). 

ACTION: Notice of public meeting. 

SUMMARY: The National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Office for Coastal Management will hold 

a public meeting to solicit comments on 

the performance evaluation of the 

Mississippi Coastal Management 

Program. 

DATES: Mississippi Coastal Management 

Program Evaluation: The public meeting 

will be held on September 25, 2018, and 

written comments must be received on 

or before October 5, 2018. 

For specific dates, times, and 

locations of the public meetings, see 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

on the program or reserve NOAA 

intends to evaluate by any of the 

following methods: 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with NOTICES
36884 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 147 / Tuesday, July 31, 2018 / Notices 

Public Meeting and Oral Comments: 

A public meeting will be held in Biloxi, 

Mississippi. For the specific location, 

see SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION. 

Written Comments: Please direct 

written comments to Dr. Maria 

Honeycutt, Program Evaluator, NOAA 

Office for Coastal Management, 1305 

East-West Highway N/OCM1, Silver 

Spring, Maryland 20910, or via email to 

Maria.Honeycutt@noaa.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Maria Honeycutt, Ph.D., CFM, NOAA 

Office for Coastal Management, 1305 

East-West Highway N/OCM1, Silver 

Spring, Maryland 20910, by phone at 

(240) 533–0726, or via email to 

Maria.Honeycutt@noaa.gov. Copies of 

the previous evaluation findings and 

2016–2020 Assessment and Strategy 

may be viewed and downloaded on the 

internet at http://coast.noaa.gov/czm/ 

evaluations. A copy of the evaluation 

notification letter and most recent 

progress report may be obtained upon 

request by contacting the person 

identified under FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 

312 of the Coastal Zone Management 

Act (CZMA) requires NOAA to conduct 

periodic evaluations of federally 

approved state and territorial coastal 

programs. The process includes one or 

more public meetings, consideration of 

written public comments, and 

consultations with interested Federal, 

state, and local agencies and members of 

the public. During the evaluation, 

NOAA will consider the extent to which 

the state has met the national objectives, 

adhered to the management program 

approved by the Secretary of Commerce, 

and adhered to the terms of financial 

assistance under the CZMA. When the 

evaluation is completed, NOAA’s Office 

for Coastal Management will place a 

notice in the Federal Register 

announcing the availability of the Final 

Evaluation Findings. 

You may participate or submit oral 

comments at the public meeting 

scheduled as follows: 

Date: September 25, 2018 

Time: 6:00 p.m., local time 

Location: Bolton State Building, 

Public Meeting Room, 1141 

Bayview Avenue, Biloxi, 

Mississippi 39530 

Written public comments must be 

received on or before October 5, 2018. 

(Federal Domestic Assistance Catalog 11.419. 

Coastal Zone Management Program 

Administration.) 

Dated: July 17, 2018. 

Keelin Kuipers, 

Acting Deputy Director, Office for Coastal 

Management, National Ocean Service, 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration. 

[FR Doc. 2018–16284 Filed 7–30–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–08–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

Hydrographic Services Review Panel 

Meeting 

AGENCY: National Ocean Service, 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration (NOAA), Department of 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of open public meeting. 

SUMMARY: The Hydrographic Services 

Review Panel (HSRP) will hold a 

meeting that will be open to the public 

and public comments are requested in 

advance and/or during the meeting. 

Information about the HSRP meeting, 

agenda, presentations, webinar 

registration, and other background 

documents will be posted online at: 

https://www.nauticalcharts.noaa.gov/ 

hsrp/hsrp.htm. 

DATES: The meeting is planned for two 

and a half days during August 28–30, 

2018. The dates, agenda, and times are 

subject to change. For updates, please 

check online at: https://www.nautical

charts.noaa.gov/hsrp/hsrp.htm. 

Location: Juneau, Alaska. The meeting 

venue will be announced online at: 

https://www.nauticalcharts.noaa.gov/ 

hsrp/hsrp.htm. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Lynne Mersfelder-Lewis, HSRP program 

manager, National Ocean Service, Office 

of Coast Survey, NOAA (N/NSD), 1315 

East-West Highway, SSMC3 #6305, 

Silver Spring, Maryland 20910; 

telephone: 301–533–0064; email: 

Lynne.Mersfelder@noaa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

meeting is open to the public, seating 

will be available on a first-come, firstserved basis, and public comment is 

encouraged. There are public comment 

periods scheduled each day and noted 

in the agenda. Each individual or group 

making verbal comments will be limited 

to a total time of five (5) minutes and 

will be recorded. For those not onsite, 

comments can be submitted via the 

webinar chat function or via email in 

writing. Individuals who would like to 

submit written statements in advance, 

during or after the meeting should email 

their comments to Lynne.Mersfelder@

noaa.gov. The HSRP will provide 

webinar capability. Pre-registration is 

required to access the webinar: https:// 

attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/ 

3898703691780313857. 

The Hydrographic Services Review 

Panel (HSRP) is a Federal Advisory 

Committee established to advise the 

Under Secretary of Commerce for 

Oceans and Atmosphere, the NOAA 

Administrator, on matters related to the 

responsibilities and authorities set forth 

in section 303 of the Hydrographic 

Services Improvement Act of 1998, as 

amended, and such other appropriate 

matters that the Under Secretary refers 

to the Panel for review and advice. The 

charter and other information are 

located online at: https://www.nautical

charts.noaa.gov/hsrp/CharterBylaws

HSIAStatute.htm. 

Past recommendations and issue 

papers are at: https://www.nautical

charts.noaa.gov/hsrp/ 

recommendations.htm. 

Past HSRP public meeting summary 

reports, agendas, presentations, 

transcripts, webinars, and other 

information is available online at: 

https://www.nauticalcharts.noaa.gov/ 

hsrp/meetings.htm. 

Matters To Be Considered: The panel 

is convening to hear federal, state, 

regional and local partners and 

stakeholders on issues relevant to 

NOAA’s navigation services, focusing 

on Alaska and the U.S. Arctic region as 

well as national issues. The HSRP will 

have a joint session with NOAA’s 

Integrated Ocean Observation System 

Advisory Committee on water level 

partnerships. Navigation services 

include the data, products, and services 

provided by the NOAA programs and 

activities that undertake geodetic 

observations, gravity modeling, 

shoreline mapping, bathymetric 

mapping, hydrographic surveying, 

nautical charting, tide and water level 

observations, current observations, and 

marine modeling. This suite of NOAA 

products and services support safe and 

efficient navigation, resilient coasts and 

communities, and the nationwide 

positioning information infrastructure to 

support America’s commerce. The Panel 

will hear from state and federal 

agencies, non-federal organizations, 

stakeholders and partners about their 

missions and use of NOAA’s navigation 

services, the value these services bring, 

and what improvements could be made. 

Other administrative matters may be 

considered. The agenda and speakers 

are subject to change. 

Special Accommodations: This 

meeting is physically accessible to 

people with disabilities. Please direct 

requests for sign language interpretation 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with NOTICES