Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 184 / Monday, September 25, 2017 / Notices 44697 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In 

accordance with the provisions of 49 

U.S.C. 5103(c), the Acting Administrator 

for the Pipeline and Hazardous 

Materials Safety Administration 

(PHMSA), hereby declares that an 

emergency exists that warrants issuance 

of a Waiver of the Hazardous Materials 

Regulations (HMR, 49 CFR parts 171– 

180) to persons conducting operations 

under the direction of Environmental 

Protection Agency (EPA) Region 6 (1445 

Ross Avenue, Dallas, TX 75202) within 

the Hurricane and Tropical Storm 

Harvey disaster and emergency areas of 

Texas and Louisiana. The Waiver is 

granted to support EPA in taking 

appropriate actions to prepare for, 

respond to, and recover from a threat to 

public health, welfare, or the 

environment caused by actual or 

potential oil and hazardous materials 

incidents resulting from Hurricane and 

Tropical Storm Harvey. 

On August 25, 2017, the President 

issued a Major Disaster Declaration for 

Hurricane Harvey for affected counties 

in Texas (DR–4332); and an Emergency 

Declaration for Tropical Storm Harvey 

for affected counties in Louisiana (EM– 

3382) on August 28, 2017. This Waiver 

Order covers all counties identified in 

both declarations, as amended. Pursuant 

to 49 U.S.C. 5103(c), PHMSA has 

authority delegated by the Secretary (49 

CFR 1.97(b)(3)) to waive compliance 

with any part of the HMR provided that 

the grant of the waiver is: (1) In the 

public interest; (2) not inconsistent with 

the safety of transporting hazardous 

materials; and (3) necessary to facilitate 

the safe movement of hazardous 

materials into, from, and within an area 

of a major disaster or emergency that 

has been declared under the Robert T. 

Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency 

Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.). 

Given the continuing impacts caused 

by Hurricane and Tropical Storm 

Harvey, PHMSA’s Acting Administrator 

has determined that regulatory relief is 

in the public interest and necessary to 

ensure the safe transportation in 

commerce of hazardous materials while 

EPA executes its recovery and cleanup 

efforts in Texas and Louisiana. 

Specifically, PHMSA’s Acting 

Administrator finds that issuing this 

Waiver Order will allow EPA to conduct 

its emergency support function under 

the National Response Framework to 

safely remove, transport, and dispose of 

hazardous materials. By execution of 

this Waiver Order, persons conducting 

operations under the direction of EPA 

Region 6 within the Hurricane/Tropical 

Storm Harvey disaster and emergency 

areas of Texas and Louisiana are 

authorized to offer and transport nonradioactive hazardous materials under 

alternative safety requirements imposed 

by EPA Region 6 when compliance with 

the HMR is not practicable. Under this 

Waiver Order, non-radioactive 

hazardous materials may be transported 

to staging areas within 50 miles of the 

point of origin. Further transportation of 

the hazardous materials from staging 

areas must in be full compliance with 

the HMR. 

This Waiver Order is effective 

September 1, 2017, and shall remain in 

effect for 30 days from the date of 

issuance. 

Drue Pearce, 

Acting Administrator, Pipeline and 

Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. 

[FR Doc. 2017–20357 Filed 9–22–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–60–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Pipeline and Hazardous Materials 

Safety Administration 

[Docket No. PHMSA–2017–0109; Notice No. 

2017–09] 

Hazardous Materials: Emergency 

Waiver No. 3 

AGENCY: Pipeline and Hazardous 

Materials Safety Administration 

(PHMSA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of emergency waiver 

order. 

SUMMARY: The Pipeline and Hazardous 

Materials Safety Administration is 

issuing an emergency waiver order to 

persons conducting operations under 

the direction of Environmental 

Protection Agency Region 4 or United 

States Coast Guard 7th District within 

the Hurricane Irma emergency area of 

Georgia. This Waiver Order is effective 

September 10, 2017, and shall remain in 

effect for 30 days from the date of 

issuance. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Adam Horsley, Deputy Assistant Chief 

Counsel for Hazardous Materials Safety, 

Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety 

Administration, telephone: (202) 366– 

4400. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

In accordance with the provisions of 

49 U.S.C. 5103(c), the Acting 

Administrator for the Pipeline and 

Hazardous Materials Safety 

Administration (PHMSA), hereby 

declares that an emergency exists that 

warrants issuance of a Waiver of the 

Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR, 

49 CFR parts 171–180) to persons 

conducting operations under the 

direction of Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) Region 4 (61 Forsyth 

Street SW., Atlanta, GA 30303) or 

United States Coast Guard (USCG) 7th 

District (Brickell Plaza Federal Building, 

909 SE 1st Avenue, Miami, FL 33131– 

3050) within the Hurricane Irma 

emergency area of Georgia. The Waiver 

is granted to support EPA and USCG in 

taking appropriate actions to prepare 

for, respond to, and recover from a 

threat to public health, welfare, or the 

environment caused by actual or 

potential oil and hazardous materials 

incidents resulting from Hurricane Irma. 

On September 8, 2017, the President 

issued an Emergency Declaration for 

Hurricane Irma for the counties of 

Appling, Atkinson, Bacon, Brantley, 

Bryan, Bulloch, Burke, Camden, 

Candler, Charlton, Chatham, Clinch, 

Coffee, Echols, Effingham, Emanuel, 

Evans, Glynn, Jenkins, Jeff Davis, 

Liberty, Long, McIntosh, Pierce, 

Screven, Tattnall, Toombs, Treutlen, 

Wayne, and Ware in Georgia (EM–3387). 

This Waiver Order covers all areas 

identified in the declaration, as 

amended. Pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 5103(c), 

PHMSA has authority delegated by the 

Secretary (49 CFR 1.97(b)(3)) to waive 

compliance with any part of the HMR 

provided that the grant of the waiver is: 

(1) In the public interest; (2) not 

inconsistent with the safety of 

transporting hazardous materials; and 

(3) necessary to facilitate the safe 

movement of hazardous materials into, 

from, and within an area of a major 

disaster or emergency that has been 

declared under the Robert T. Stafford 

Disaster Relief and Emergency 

Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.). 

Given the continuing impacts caused 

by Hurricane Irma, PHMSA’s Acting 

Administrator has determined that 

regulatory relief is in the public interest 

and necessary to ensure the safe 

transportation in commerce of 

hazardous materials while EPA and 

USCG execute their recovery and 

cleanup efforts in Georgia. Specifically, 

PHMSA’s Acting Administrator finds 

that issuing this Waiver Order will 

allow EPA and USCG to conduct their 

emergency support function under the 

National Response Framework to safely 

remove, transport, and dispose of 

hazardous materials. By execution of 

this Waiver Order, persons conducting 

operations under the direction of EPA 

Region 4 or USCG 7th District within 

the Hurricane Irma emergency area of 

Georgia are authorized to offer and 

transport non-radioactive hazardous 

materials under alternative safety 

requirements imposed by EPA Region 4 

or USCG 7th District when compliance 

with the HMR is not practicable. Under 

this Waiver Order, non-radioactive 


asabaliauskas on DSKBBXCHB2PROD with NOTICES
44698 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 184 / Monday, September 25, 2017 / Notices 

hazardous materials may be transported 

to staging areas within 50 miles of the 

point of origin. Further transportation of 

the hazardous materials from staging 

areas must be in full compliance with 

the HMR. 

This Waiver Order is effective 

September 10, 2017, and shall remain in 

effect for 30 days from the date of 

issuance. 

Drue Pearce, 

Acting Administrator, Pipeline and 

Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. 

[FR Doc. 2017–20355 Filed 9–22–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–60–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Pipeline and Hazardous Materials 

Safety Administration 

[Docket No. PHMSA–2016–0128] 

Pipeline Safety: Meeting of the 

Voluntary Information-Sharing System 

Working Group 

AGENCY: Pipeline and Hazardous 

Materials Safety Administration 

(PHMSA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: This notice announces a 

public meeting of the Voluntary 

Information-Sharing System (VIS) 

Working Group. The VIS Working 

Group will convene to continue the 

discussion on the need for, and the 

identification of, a voluntary 

information-sharing system. 

DATES: The VIS Working Group will 

meet on November 29, 2017, from 8:30 

a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and on November 30, 

2017, from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., ET. 

Members of the public who wish to 

attend in person are asked to register no 

later than November 19, 2017. 

Individuals requiring accommodations, 

such as sign language interpretation or 

other ancillary aids, are asked to notify 

the working group by November 22, 

2017. For additional information see the 

ADDRESSES section. 

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at 

the Hilton Arlington, 950 North Stafford 

Street, Arlington, Virginia 22203. The 

meeting agenda and any additional 

information will be published on the 

following VIS Working Group and 

registration page at: https://

primis.phmsa.dot.gov/meetings/ 

MtgHome.mtg?mtg=126. 

The meeting will not be web cast; 

however, any documents presented will 

be available on the meeting Web site 

and posted on the E-Gov Web site: 

http://www.regulations.gov under 

docket number PHMSA–2016–0128 

within 30 days following the meeting. 

Public Participation 

This meeting will be open to the 

public. Members of the public who wish 

to attend in person are asked to register 

at: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/ 

meetings/MtgHome.mtg?mtg=126 to 

facilitate entry and guarantee seating. 

Members of the public who attend in 

person will also be provided an 

opportunity to make a statement during 

the meeting. 

Services for Individuals with 

Disabilities: The public meeting will be 

physically accessible to people with 

disabilities. Individuals requiring 

accommodations, such as sign language 

interpretation or other ancillary aids, are 

asked to notify Cheryl Whetsel at 

cheryl.whetsel@dot.gov. 

Written comments: Written comments 

on the meeting may be submitted to the 

docket in the following ways: 

E-Gov Web site: http://

www.regulations.gov. This site allows 

the public to enter comments on any 

Federal Register notice issued by any 

agency. 

Fax: 1–202–493–2251. 

Mail: Docket Management Facility; 

U.S. Department of Transportation 

(DOT), 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., 

West Building, Room W12–140, 

Washington, DC 20590–0001. 

Hand Delivery: Room W12–140 on the 

ground level of the DOT West Building, 

1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., 

Washington, DC, between 9:00 a.m. and 

5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, 

except on Federal holidays. 

Instructions: Identify the docket 

number PHMSA–2016–0128 at the 

beginning of your comments. Note that 

all comments received will be posted 

without change to www.regulations.gov, 

including any personal information 

provided. You should know that anyone 

is able to search the electronic form of 

all comments received into any of our 

dockets by the name of the individual 

submitting the comment (or signing the 

comment, if submitted on behalf of an 

association, business, labor union, etc.). 

Therefore, you may want to review 

DOT’s complete Privacy Act Statement 

in the Federal Register published on 

April 11, 2000, (65 FR 19477) or view 

the Privacy Notice at 

www.regulations.gov before submitting 

any such comments. 

Docket: For access to the docket or to 

read background documents or 

comments, go to http://

www.regulations.gov at any time or to 

Room W12–140 on the ground level of 

the DOT West Building, 1200 New 

Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC, 

between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., 

Monday through Friday, except Federal 

holidays. 

If you wish to receive confirmation of 

receipt of your written comments, 

please include a self-addressed, 

stamped postcard with the following 

statement: ‘‘Comments on PHMSA– 

2016–0128.’’ The Docket Clerk will date 

stamp the postcard prior to returning it 

to you via the U.S. mail. 

Privacy Act Statement 

DOT may solicit comments from the 

public regarding certain general notices. 

DOT posts these comments, without 

edit, including any personal information 

the commenter provides, to 

www.regulations.gov, as described in 

the system of records notice (DOT/ALL– 

14 FDMS), which can be reviewed at 

www.dot.gov/privacy. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

information about the meeting, contact 

Cheryl Whetsel by phone at 202–366– 

4431 or by email at cheryl.whetsel@

dot.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

The VIS Working Group is a recently 

created advisory committee established 

in accordance with Section 10 of the 

Protecting our Infrastructure of 

Pipelines and Enhancing Safety Act of 

2016 (Pub. L. 114–183), the Federal 

Advisory Committee Act of 1972 (5 

U.S.C., App. 2, as amended), and 41 

CFR 102–3.50(a). On December 15, 

2016, the Secretary of Transportation 

(the Secretary) appointed 24 members to 

the committee. The first committee 

meeting convened on December 19, 

2016, to conduct committee and staff 

introductions, review the mandate 

requirements, review the committee 

charter and bylaws, introduce the 

concept of voluntary informationsharing, and discuss plans for future 

meetings. The last committee meeting 

was on June 29–30, 2017, to discuss 

existing integrity management 

regulations, assessment types and tools, 

geographic information system pipeline 

data, operator implementation, and the 

potential need for short-term 

subcommittees. 

II. Meeting Details and Agenda 

The VIS Working Group agenda will 

include briefings on topics such as the 

mission and objective of the VIS effort, 

best practices, examples of existing 

information-sharing systems, safety 

management systems, and the 

establishment of subcommittees. As part 

of its work, the committee will 

ultimately provide recommendations to 


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