Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 4 / Thursday, January 6, 2000 / Notices 801

under the Oil Terminal and Oil Tanker

Environmental Oversight and

Monitoring Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2732)

(the Act). The Coast Guard issued a

policy statement on July 7, 1993 (58 FR

36505), to clarify the factors that the

Coast Guard would be considering in

making its determination as to whether

advisory groups should be certified in

accordance with the Act; and the

procedures which the Coast Guard

would follow in meeting its certification

responsibilities under the Act.

The Coast Guard has received an

application for recertification of

PWSRCAC, the currently certified

advisory group for the Prince William

Sound region. In accordance with the

review and certification process

contained in the policy statement, the

Coast Guard announces the availability

of that application.

At the conclusion of the comment

period, the Coast Guard will review all

application materials and comments

received and will take one of the

following actions:

(a) Recertify the advisory group under

33 U.S.C. 2732(o).

(b) Issue a conditional recertification

for a period of 90 days, with a statement

of any discrepancies, which must be

corrected to qualify for recertification

for the remainder of the year.

(c) Deny recertification of the advisory

group if the Coast Guard finds that the

group is not broadly representative of

the interests and communities in the

area or is not adequately fostering the

goals and purposes of 33 U.S.C. 2732.

The Coast Guard will notify

PWSRCAC by letter of the action taken

on its application. A notice will be

published in the Federal Register to

advise the public of the Coast Guard’s

determination.

Dated: December 28, 1999.

T.J. Barrett,

Rear Admiral, U.S. Coast Guard, Commander,

Seventeenth Coast Guard District.

[FR Doc. 00–249 Filed 1–5–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910–15–M

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Highway Administration

Coast Guard

Woodrow Wilson Bridge; Potomac

River, District of Columbia and Prince

George’s County, MD

AGENCY: Federal Highway

Administration, Coast Guard, DOT.

ACTION: Notice of public hearing; request

for comments.

SUMMARY: The Federal Highway

Administration together with the Coast

Guard, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,

District of Columbia Department of

Health, Maryland State Highway

Administration, Virginia Department of

Transportation and Maryland

Department of Environment will hold

two public hearings to receive

information concerning the

environmental and navigational impacts

of the replacement of the Woodrow

Wilson Bridge. The bridge is located on

Interstate 495/95 where it crosses the

Potomac River, mile 103.80, at District

of Columbia and Prince George’s

County, Maryland. The hearings will

allow interested persons to present

comments and information concerning

the bridge alternative under

consideration.

DATES: The hearing will start 7 p.m. on

Tuesday, February 8, and Thursday,

February 10, 2000 and display materials

will be available beginning at 5:30 p.m.

on these dates. Comments must be

received by February 25, 2000. Requests

to speak at either hearing and requests

for services must be received by

February 1, 2000.

ADDRESSES: The hearing on February 8

will be held at Best Western Potomac

View, 6400 Oxon Hill Road, Oxon Hill,

Maryland 20745. On February 10, the

hearing will be at Radisson Hotel—Old

Town Alexandria, 901 North Fairfax

Street, Alexandria, Virginia 22314.

Written comments may be submitted to,

and will be available for examination

between 7:30 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday

through Friday, except Federal holidays,

at the office of the Commander (Aowb),

Fifth Coast Guard District, 431 Crawford

Street, Portsmouth, Virginia 23703–

5004. Please submit all comments in an

unbound format, no larger than 8 by 11

inches, suitable for copying and

electronic filing. Persons wanting

acknowledgement of receipt of

comments should enclose a stamped,

self-addressed postcard or envelope.

Requests to speak at either hearing

and requests to be placed on the project

mailing lists may be submitted to Ms.

Norine Walker, P.E., at the Woodrow

Wilson Bridge Center, 1800 Duke Street,

Suite 200, Alexandria, Virginia 22314 or

6009 Oxon Hill Road, Suite 410, Oxon

Hill, Maryland 20745.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr.

John Gerner, Project Manager (FHWA),

Woodrow Wilson Bridge Center, 1800

Duke Street, Suite 200, Alexandria,

Virginia 22314 (703 519–9800); Mr. N.E.

Mpras, Chief, Office of Bridge

Administration, Commandant (G–OPT),

U.S. Coast Guard, 2100 Second Street,

SW, Washington, DC 20593 (202 267–

0368); or Ms. Ann Deaton, Chief, Bridge

Administration Branch, Fifth Coast

Guard District, Federal Building, 431

Crawford Street, Portsmouth, Virginia

23704–5004 (757 398–6222).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

The Federal Highway Administration

(FHWA) proposes to replace the

Woodrow Wilson Bridge over the

Potomac River and to modify the

associated roadway and interchanges in

a 7.5 mile section of I–95/I–495 (Capital

Beltway) from west of Telegraph Road

(VA 241) in Virginia to east of Indian

Head Highway (MD 210) in Maryland.

The western portion of the project

corridor is located in Fairfax County

and the City of Alexandria in Virginia.

The drawspans on the Woodrow Wilson

Bridge are located in the southern tip of

the District of Columbia. The eastern

portion of the corridor is located in

Prince George’s County, Maryland. The

purpose of the proposed action is to

address existing capacity constraints,

safety, and structural deficiencies

associated with the Woodrow Wilson

Bridge, and to enhance vehicular

mobility in the corridor while

addressing environmental and

community concerns.

The new Woodrow Wilson Bridge

will replace the existing bridge with two

new, parallel, double leaf, bascule

drawbridges, each with a 366-foot span

and a clearance of 70 feet over the

navigation channel. One span will carry

eastbound traffic and the other

westbound traffic, and the structure will

be constructed approximately 30 feet

south of the existing bridge. The

westbound span, carrying the inner loop

of the Capital Beltway, would be 124

feet wide, including a 12-foot wide

pedestrian/bicycle facility with a 2-foot

wide barrier. The eastbound span,

carrying the outer loop of the Capital

Beltway, would be 110 feet wide. Eleven

‘‘V’’-shaped, concrete piers will support

the bridges. The bridges will be

protected at the navigational channel by

twelve, 45-foot diameter, sheet pile

dolphins with a pipe pile supported,

concrete guideway with fendering north

and south of the bridge piers. The

bridges would include a total of 12 lanes

(six lanes in each direction). Each bridge

is 4,100 feet long, over Maryland water,

with a total length of 6,075 feet.

The FHWA is the lead Federal agency

for the environmental documentation

for this project. The Coast Guard has

been involved as a cooperating agency

during the preparation of the Draft

Supplemental Environmental Impact

Statement (DSEIS). The U.S. Coast

Guard is the Federal agency responsible

802 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 4 / Thursday, January 6, 2000 / Notices

for protecting the freedom of navigation

with due consideration being given to

the quality of the human environment

and by taking a balanced approach to

total transportation systems, both land

and water modes. The Coast Guard must

ensure that proposed bridge projects

provide for the reasonable needs of

present and prospective marine

transportation. Interested and affected

parties are requested to express their

views, in writing, on the impacts of the

construction of the proposed bridges on

navigation and the quality of the human

environment, including impacts on

historic, recreational, endangered

species, and wetlands, giving sufficient

detail to establish a clear understanding

of their reasons for support of or

opposition to the proposed work.

Procedural

Individuals and representatives of

organizations that wish to present

testimony at either Hearing or who want

to be placed on the project mailing list,

may submit a request to Ms. Norine

Walker, P.E., at the Woodrow Wilson

Bridge Center, 1800 Duke Street, Suite

200, Alexandria, Virginia 22314 or 6009

Oxon Hill Road, Suite 410, Oxon Hill,

Maryland 20745. Requests to speak

should be received no later than

February 1, 2000 in order to ensure

proper schedule of the hearing.

Attendees at the hearing who wish to

present testimony and have not

previously made a request to do so, will

follow those on the previously

established list. Brochures and forms for

written comments will be sent to those

on the mailing list. Written statements

and other exhibits in lieu of or in

addition to oral presentation at the

Hearing may be submitted to Ms.

Walker at the address under ADDRESSES

until February 25, 2000, in order to be

included in the Public Hearing

Transcript.

Information on Services for Individuals

With Disabilities

Appropriate auxiliary aids and

services for qualified individuals with

disabilities or non-English speaking

persons will be provided upon request.

Please submit requests for these services

to Ms. Norine Walker, at the address

under ADDRESSES in writing or by

calling either of the Woodrow Wilson

Bridge Centers at 703–519–9800 or 301–

686–0000 or fax request to 703–548–

4593 or 301–868–0001 or teletype to 1–

800–735–2258 (MD Statewide toll free).

Any requests for an oral or sign

language interpreter must be received by

February 1, 2000.

Dated: December 30, 1999.

George K. Frick, Jr.,

Acting Division Administrator, Federal

Highway Administration.

Terry M. Cross,

Rear Admiral, U.S. Coast Guard, Director of

Operations Policy.

[FR Doc. 00–258 Filed 1–5–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910–22–M

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Coast Guard

[USCG 1999–6722]

Merchant Marine Personnel Advisory

Committee

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DOT.

ACTION: Notice of meetings.

SUMMARY: The Merchant Marine

Personnel Advisory Committee

(MERPAC) and its working groups will

meet to discuss various issues relating

to the training and fitness of merchant

marine personnel. MERPAC advises the

Secretary of Transportation on matters

relating to the training, qualifications,

licensing, certification and fitness of

seamen serving in the U.S. merchant

marine. All meetings will be open to the

public.

DATES: MERPAC will meet on Tuesday,

January 25, 2000, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

and on Wednesday, January 26, 2000,

from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. These meetings

may adjourn early if all business is

finished. Written material and requests

to make oral presentations should reach

the Coast Guard on or before January 11,

2000. Requests to have a copy of your

material distributed to each member of

the committee or subcommittee should

reach the Coast Guard on or before

January 4, 2000.

ADDRESSES: MERPAC will meet on both

days in Room A–300 of the Maritime

Institute of Technology and Graduate

Studies (MITAGS), 5700 Hammonds

Ferry Road, Linthicum Heights, MD

21090. Further directions regarding the

location of MITAGS may be obtained by

contacting Ms. Kate Gossard of MITAGS

at (410) 859–5700. Send written

material and requests to make oral

presentations to Commander Steven J.

Boyle, Commandant (G–MSO–1), U.S.

Coast Guard Headquarters, 2100 Second

Street SW, Washington, DC 20593–0001.

This notice is available on the Internet

at http://dms.dot.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Commander Steven J. Boyle, Executive

Director of MERPAC, or Mr. Mark C.

Gould, Assistant to the Executive

Director, telephone 202–267–0229, fax

202–267–4570, or e-mail

mgould@comdt.uscg.mil.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notice of

these meetings is given under the

Federal Advisory Committee Act, 5

U.S.C. App. 2.

Agenda of January 25, 2000, Meeting

The full committee will meet to

discuss the objectives for the meeting.

The committee will then break up into

the following working groups: the

working group on the International

Convention on the Standards of

Training, Certification and

Watchkeeping (STCW), specifically

addressing the Assessment of

Proficiencies as Mandated by the

Amended 1995 STCW Convention; the

working group on the Methods of

Demonstrating Competence in Crisis

Management and Human Behavior, and;

the working group on Simulator

Standards for Demonstrating

Competence in Ratings Forming Part of

a Navigational Watch. New working

groups may be formed to address any

new issues or tasks. At the end of the

day, the working groups will make a

report to the full committee on what has

been accomplished in their meetings.

No action will be taken on these reports

on this date.

Agenda of January 26, 2000, Meeting

The agenda includes the following:

(1) Introduction.

(2) Working Group Reports.

(a) Assessment of Proficiencies as

Mandated by the Amended 1995 STCW

Convention

(b) Methods of Demonstrating

Competence in Crisis Management and

Human Behavior

(c) Simulator Standards for

Demonstrating Competence in Ratings

Forming Part of a Navigational Watch

(3) Other items to be discussed:

(a) Standing Committee—Prevention

Through People

(b) STCW developments

(c) Other items brought up for

discussion by the committee or the

public

Procedural

Both meetings are open to the public.

Please note that the meetings may

adjourn early if all business is finished.

At the Chair’s discretion, members of

the public may make oral presentations

during the meetings. If you would like

to make an oral presentation at a

meeting, please notify the Executive

Director no later than January 11, 2000.

Written material for distribution at a

meeting should also reach the Coast

Guard no later than January 11, 2000. If

you would like a copy of your material

distributed to each member of the