1625-0066 NTVRP Final Rule

Monday,
August 31, 2009

Part III

Department of
Homeland Security
Coast Guard

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33 CFR Parts 151, 155, and 160
Nontank Vessel Response Plans and
Other Vessel Response Plan
Requirements; Proposed Rule

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Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 167 / Monday, August 31, 2009 / Proposed Rules

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND
SECURITY
Coast Guard
33 CFR Parts 151, 155, and 160
[Docket No. USCG–2008–1070]
(RIN 1625–AB27)

Nontank Vessel Response Plans and
Other Vessel Response Plan
Requirements

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AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.
ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.
SUMMARY: The Department of Homeland
Security, United States Coast Guard,
proposes this nontank vessel response
plan rulemaking to further protect the
Nation from the threat of oil spills in the
maritime domain. The rule proposes
regulations requiring owners or
operators of nontank vessels to prepare
and submit oil spill response plans. The
Federal Water Pollution Control Act
defines nontank vessels as selfpropelled vessels of 400 gross tons or
greater that operate on the navigable
waters of the United States, carry oil of
any kind as fuel for main propulsion,
and are not tank vessels. The proposed
rule would specify the content of a
response plan, and among other issues,
address the requirement to plan for
responding to a worst case discharge
and a substantial threat of such a
discharge. Additionally, this proposed
rule would update the international
Shipboard Oil Pollution Emergency
Plan (SOPEP) requirements that apply to
certain nontank vessels and tank
vessels. Finally, this proposed rule
would require vessel owners and
operators to submit their vessel
response plan control number as part of
already required notice of arrival
information. This rulemaking supports
the Coast Guard’s strategic goals of
protection of natural resources and
maritime mobility.
DATES: Comments and related material
must either be submitted to our online
docket via http://www.regulations.gov
on or before November 30, 2009 or reach
the Docket Management Facility by that
date. Comments sent to the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) on
collection of information must reach
OMB on or before November 30, 2009.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments
identified by docket number USCG–
2008–1070 using any one of the
following methods:
(1) Federal eRulemaking Portal:
http://www.regulations.gov.
(2) Fax: 202–493–2251.

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(3) Mail: Docket Management Facility
(M–30), U.S. Department of
Transportation, West Building Ground
Floor, Room W12–140, 1200 New Jersey
Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590–
0001.
(4) Hand delivery: Same as mail
address above, between 9 a.m. and 5
p.m., Monday through Friday, except
Federal holidays. The telephone number
is 202–366–9329.
To avoid duplication, please use only
one of these methods. For instructions
on submitting comments, see the
‘‘Public Participation and Request for
Comments’’ portion of the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section
below.
Collection of Information Comments:
If you have comments on the collection
of information, you must also send
comments to the Office of Information
and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), Office of
Management and Budget. To ensure that
your comments to OIRA are received on
time, the preferred methods are by email to oira_submission@omb.eop.gov
(include the docket number and
‘‘Attention: Desk Officer for Coast
Guard, DHS’’ in the subject line of the
e-mail) or fax at 202–395–6566. An
alternate, though slower, method is by
U.S. mail to the Office of Information
and Regulatory Affairs, Office of
Management and Budget, 725 17th
Street, NW., Washington, DC 20503,
Attn: Desk Officer, U.S. Coast Guard.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If
you have questions on this proposed
rule, call Lieutenant Jarrod DeWitz, U.S.
Coast Guard, Office of Vessel Activities,
Vessel Response Plan Review Team,
telephone (202) 372–1219. You may also
e-mail questions to Jarrod.M.DeWitz@
uscg.mil.
Note: The technical expertise for the
development of this proposed rule is credited
to Commander Rob Smith. If you have
questions on viewing or submitting material
to the docket, call Ms. Renee V. Wright,
Program Manager, Docket Operations,
telephone 202–366–9826.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Table of Contents for Preamble
I. Public Participation and Request for
Comments
A. Submitting Comments
B. Viewing Comments and Documents
C. Privacy Act
D. Public Meeting
II. Abbreviations
III. Background and Purpose
A. Tank and Nontank Vessels—Oil and
Hazardous Substance Discharge
Response Plan Legislation
B. Tank Vessels
C. Nontank Vessels
D. Access to the NVICs

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E. Shipboard Oil Pollution Emergency Plan
(SOPEP)
F. Notice of Arrival Requirements and
Vessel Response Plans
G. Customary International Law: Innocent
Passage and Transit Passage
H. Definition of ‘‘United States’’ for
Purposes of Vessel Response Plan
Requirements
IV. Discussion of Proposed Rule
V. Incorporation by Reference
VI. Regulatory Analyses
A. Executive Order 12866
B. Small Entities
C. Assistance for Small Entities
D. Collection of Information
E. Federalism
F. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act
G. Taking of Private Property
H. Civil Justice Reform
I. Protection of Children
J. Indian Tribal Governments
K. Energy Effects
L. Technical Standards

I. Public Participation and Request for
Comments
We encourage you to participate in
this rulemaking by submitting
comments and related materials. All
comments received will be posted,
without change, to http://
www.regulations.gov and will include
any personal information you have
provided.
A. Submitting Comments
If you submit a comment, please
include the docket number for this
rulemaking (USCG–2008–1070),
indicate the specific section of this
document to which each comment
applies, and give your reason for each
comment. We recommend that you
include your name and a mailing
address, an e-mail address, or a phone
number in the body of your document
so that we can contact you if we have
questions regarding your submission.
You may submit your comments and
material by electronic means, mail, fax,
or delivery to the Docket Management
Facility at the address under ADDRESSES;
but please submit your comments and
material by only one means.
To submit your comment online, go to
http://www.regulations.gov and click on
the ‘‘submit a comment’’ box, which
will then become highlighted in blue.
Insert ‘‘USCG–2008–1070’’ in the
Keyword box, click ‘‘Search’’, and then
click on the balloon shape in the
Actions column. If you submit your
comments by mail or hand delivery,
submit them in an unbound format, no
larger than 81⁄2 by 11 inches, suitable for
copying and electronic filing. If you
submit them by mail and would like to
know that they reached the Facility,
please enclose a stamped, self-addressed
postcard or envelope. We will consider

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Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 167 / Monday, August 31, 2009 / Proposed Rules
all comments and material received
during the comment period and may
change this proposed rule based on your
comments.
B. Viewing Comments and Documents
To view comments, as well as
documents mentioned in this preamble
as being available in the docket, go to
http://www.regulations.gov at any time.
Enter the docket number for this
rulemaking (USCG–2008–1070) in the
Keyword box, and click ‘‘Search’’. If you
do not have access to the internet, you
may view the docket online by visiting
the Docket Management Facility in
Room W12–140 on the ground floor of
the Department of Transportation West
Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE.,
Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m.
and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday,
except Federal holidays. We have an
agreement with the Department of
Transportation to use the Docket
Management Facility.
C. Privacy Act
Anyone can search the electronic
form of 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.). You may review a Privacy
Act notice regarding our public dockets
in the January 17, 2008 issue of the
Federal Register (73 FR 3316).
D. Public Meeting
We plan to hold one or more public
meetings. The time and place of each
public meeting will be announced by a
later notice in the Federal Register.

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II. Abbreviations
2004 Act Coast Guard and Maritime
Transportation Act of 2004 (Pub. L. 108–
293, 118 Stat. 102)
2006 Act Coast Guard and Maritime
Transportation Act of 2006 (Pub. L. 109–
241, 120 Stat. 516)
AMPD Average most probable discharge
BLS Bureau of Labor Statistics
CAP Capability
CFR Code of Federal Regulations
COTP Captain of the Port
DHS Department of Homeland Security
DOT Department of Transportation
EDAC Effective daily application capability
EEZ Exclusive economic zone
eNOAD Electronic Notice of Arrival/
Departure
FOSC Federal On-Scene Coordinator
FWPCA Federal Water Pollution Control
Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 through 1387)
GSA Geographic-specific appendix
IAP Incident Action Plan
IMO International Maritime Organization
IOPP International Oil Pollution Prevention
ISM International Ship Management
ITB Integrated tug barge

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MARPOL International Convention for the
Prevention of Pollution from Ships
MEPC Marine Environment Protection
Committee
MISLE Marine Information for Safety and
Law Enforcement
MMPD Maximum most probable discharge
MOA Memorandum of Agreement
MOU Memorandum of Understanding
MTR Marine transportation-related
NCP National Oil and Hazardous
Substances Pollution Contingency Plan
(also known as National Contingency Plan)
NLS Noxious Liquid Substance
NM Nautical mile
NOA Notice of arrival
NTVRP Nontank vessel response plan
NVIC Navigation and Vessel Inspection
Circular
NVMC National Vessel Movement Center
OCIMF Oil Companies International Marine
Forum
OMB Office of Management and Budget
OPA 90 Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (Pub. L.
101–380, 104 Stat 484)
OSRO Oil spill removal organization
PV Present value
P&I Protection and Indemnity
PREP National Preparedness for Response
Exercise Program
PWSA Ports and Waterways Safety Act
(Pub. L. 92–340, 86 Stat. 424)
QI Qualified individual
SBA Small Business Administration
SLS Saint Lawrence Seaway
SLSDC Saint Lawrence Seaway
Development Corporation
SOPEP Shipboard oil pollution emergency
plans
SMT Spill management team
TVRP Tank vessel response plan
VRP Vessel response plan
UNCLOS United Nations Convention on the
Law of the Sea, 1982
U.S.C. United States Code
WCD Worst case discharge

III. Background and Purpose
This proposed rule is intended to
improve our nation’s pollution response
planning and preparedness posture and
help limit the environmental damage
resulting from nontank vessel marine
casualties.
In recent years, several catastrophic
nontank vessel oil spills have
threatened the marine environment
along the coastal areas of the United
States. Among these spills were—
• The grounding of the M/V NEW
CARISSA on the Oregon coast on
February 4, 1999, during a storm, which
resulted in the loss of the vessel and a
spill of approximately 70,000 gallons of
the 400,000 gallons of ‘‘Bunker C’’ fuel
oil on board;
• The grounding of the M/V
SELENDANG AYU in the Aleutian
Islands of Alaska on December 8, 2004,
during a storm, which resulted in the
loss of the vessel and a spill of
approximately 336,000 gallons of fuel
oil and diesel fuel; and

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• The allision of the M/V COSCO
BUSAN with the San Francisco-Oakland
Bay Bridge in San Francisco Bay on
November 7, 2007, in foggy conditions,
which resulted in severe damage to the
vessel and a spill of approximately
53,000 gallons of fuel oil.
Each of these spills resulted in
damage to the marine environment,
including the loss of fish and wildlife.
The spills have also affected key
maritime industry stakeholders by
disrupting maritime commerce and
normal operations in the affected ports
and waterways.
Groundings, allisions, and collisions
are among the many types of casualties
that may befall any vessel while at sea
or in port. Congress enacted the Oil
Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA 90) (Pub. L.
101–380, 104 Stat 484) following a
series of tank vessel casualties,
including most notably the grounding of
the M/V EXXON VALDEZ on March 24,
1989, on Bligh Reef in Prince William
Sound near Valdez, Alaska. OPA 90,
which applies primarily to tank vessels,
focuses on preventing and mitigating oil
spills via actions in several broad areas,
including Liability and Compensation,
Prevention, Preparedness, Response,
and Research and Development.
Simultaneously at the international
level, the International Maritime
Organization (IMO) enhanced worldwide pollution prevention and response
standards with a series of amendments
to the International Convention for the
Prevention of Pollution from Ships,
1973 (MARPOL 73/78). Finally, in 2004
and 2006, Congress amended the
Federal Water Pollution Control Act
(FWPCA), section 311(j)(5), to require
tank and nontank vessel owners and
operators to prepare and submit oil and
hazardous substance discharge response
plans to the Coast Guard. The following
sections will summarize these domestic
and international pollution
preparedness and planning actions.
A. Tank and Nontank Vessels—Oil and
Hazardous Substance Discharge
Response Plan Legislation
Section 311(j)(5) of the Federal Water
Pollution Control Act, 33 U.S.C.
1321(j)(5), as established by section
4202 of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990;
and as amended by the Coast Guard and
Maritime Transportation Act of 2004
(the 2004 Act), Pub. L. 108–293, 118
Stat. 102, and the Coast Guard and
Maritime Transportation Act of 2006
(the 2006 Act), Pub. L. 109–241, 120
Stat. 516, sets out a statutory mandate
requiring tank and nontank vessel
owners or operators to prepare and
submit oil or hazardous substance
discharge response plans for certain

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vessels operating on the navigable
waters of the United States. A response
plan under this legislation must:
• Be consistent with the requirements
of the National Contingency Plan and
Area Contingency Plans 1;
• Identify the qualified individual
having full authority to implement
removal actions, and require immediate
communications between that
individual and the appropriate Federal
official and the persons providing
personnel and equipment;
• Identify, and ensure by contract or
other approved means the availability
of, private personnel and equipment
necessary to remove to the maximum
extent practicable a worst case discharge
(including a discharge resulting from
fire or explosion), and to mitigate or
prevent a substantial threat of such a
discharge;
• Describe the training, equipment
testing, periodic unannounced drills,
and response actions of persons on the
vessel or at the facility, to be carried out
under the plan to ensure the safety of
the vessel or facility and to mitigate or
prevent the discharge, or the substantial
threat of a discharge;
• Be updated periodically; and
• Be resubmitted for approval of each
significant change.

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B. Tank Vessels
The response plan regulations for tank
vessels were established during a
previous rulemaking (61 FR 1052,
January 12, 1996) and are located at 33
CFR part 155, subpart D. It is important
to briefly discuss those regulations,
because the proposed rule for nontank
vessels is similar to the tank vessel
regulations.
Congress enacted OPA 90 in response
to several marine pollution incidents.
Section 4202 of OPA 90 amended
section 311(j) of the FWPCA (33 U.S.C.
1321(j) by, among other requirements,
requiring tank vessel owners or
operators to prepare and submit a plan
for responding, to the maximum extent
practicable, to a worst case discharge,
and to a substantial threat of such a
discharge of oil or a hazardous
substance. With the exceptions listed in
paragraph (c) of 33 CFR 155.1015, these
tank vessel response plan requirements
apply to each vessel that carries oil in
bulk as cargo or oil cargo residue, and
that:
• Is a vessel of the United States;
• Operates on the navigable waters of
the United States; or
1 FWPCA elements require consistency with 40
CFR 300.210 (Federal contingency plans section of
the National Contingency Plan (NCP)).

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• Transfers oil in a port or place
subject to the jurisdiction of the United
States.
These requirements also apply to each
vessel that engages in oil lightering
operations in the marine environment
beyond the baseline from which the
territorial sea is measured, when the
cargo lightered is destined for a port or
place subject to the jurisdiction of the
United States.
C. Nontank Vessels
On August 9, 2004, the President
signed the Coast Guard and Maritime
Transportation Act of 2004. Section 701
of the 2004 Act amended subsections
311(a) and (j) of the FWPCA by
requiring nontank vessel owners or
operators to prepare and submit oil
discharge response plans no later than
August 8, 2005. The 2004 Act defines a
‘‘nontank vessel’’ as a self-propelled
vessel of 400 gross tons or greater, other
than a tank vessel, that carries oil of any
kind as fuel for main propulsion, and
that is a vessel of the United States or
operates on the navigable waters of the
United States.
In addition to the preparation and
submission of response plans by
nontank vessel owners or operators, the
2004 Act also requires the issuance of
response plan regulations detailing the
requisite components of a response
plan. In consideration of the time
required to publish the regulations, and
in an effort to assist industry in meeting
the August 2005 statutory deadline, the
Coast Guard announced the availability
of the Navigation and Vessel Inspection
Circular 01–05 (NVIC 01–05) in the
Federal Register on February 16, 2005
(70 FR 7955). NVIC 01–05 provides the
public with guidance on the preparation
and submission of oil spill response
plans until regulations are in effect.
Later, on June 24, 2005, the Coast
Guard published further response plan
guidance in a Notice and Request for
Comments (70 FR 36649). That notice
addressed concerns on the size of the
vessel population to be affected by the
2004 Act; Coast Guard’s enforcement of
the 2004 Act; and the Coast Guard’s
actions to assist the public in
conforming to the mandates of the 2004
Act.
In February 2006, as a result of
questions received from the marine
industry, the Coast Guard announced
the availability of Change 1 to NVIC 01–
05 (71 FR 9367, February 23, 2006).
Change 1 to NVIC 01–05 provided
guidance to the public on how to draft
a nontank vessel response plan,
suggested plan content, and addressed
issues of concern regarding the
development of these plans.

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Additionally, NVIC 01–05 Change 1
discusses the Coast Guard process for
issuing Interim Operating Authorization
letters to nontank vessel owners or
operators to document interim
compliance with 33 U.S.C. 1321(j)(5).
Finally, in July 2006, Congress
amended the definition of nontank
vessel in the Coast Guard and Maritime
Transportation Act of 2006 (2006 Act).
Section 608 of the 2006 Act clarified the
tonnage applicability of this statutory
requirement, and therefore this
proposed rule, by setting the tonnage
threshold as 400 gross tons or greater, as
measured under the convention
measurement system in 46 U.S.C. 14302
or the regulatory measurement system of
46 U.S.C. 14502 for vessels not
measured under 46 U.S.C. 14302. The
2006 Act further established that it
applies to vessels that operate on the
navigable waters of the United States,
and it referenced a 12 nm territorial seas
for those navigable waters, as defined in
46 U.S.C. 2101.
D. Access to the NVICs
A copy of the nontank vessel response
plan NVICs can be found in the docket
at http://www.regulations.gov and at
http://www.uscg.mil/hq/g-m/nvic/. For
those individuals without internet
access, a copy of the NVIC may be
obtained by contacting the Vessel
Response Plan (VRP) Program staff at
202–372–1209 or your local U.S. Coast
Guard Sector Office.
E. Shipboard Oil Pollution Emergency
Plan (SOPEP)
In addition to establishing a
regulation for the preparation and
submission of oil spill response plans
for nontank vessels, this proposed rule
would align our domestic shipboard oil
pollution emergency plan (SOPEP)
requirements in 33 CFR 151.26 with the
current international SOPEP
requirements reflected in Annex I of the
International Convention for the
Prevention of Pollution from Ships,
1973, as modified by the Protocol of
1978, as amended (MARPOL Annex I).
MARPOL Annex I contains
international regulations for the
prevention of pollution by oil. The Act
to Prevent Pollution from Ships (33
U.S.C. 1901 et seq.) authorizes the Coast
Guard to administer and enforce
MARPOL Annex I and certain other
MARPOL Annexes.
In 1991, in response to Article 3(1)(a)
of the International Convention on Oil
Pollution Preparedness, Response and
Co-operation, 1990, the Marine
Environment Protection Committee
(MEPC) of the International Maritime
Organization (IMO) adopted MARPOL

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Annex I, Regulation 26. This regulation
established an international requirement
for SOPEPs and set out:
• Procedures to be followed to report
an oil spill;
• Requirements to provide a list of
authorities or persons to be contacted in
the event of an oil pollution incident;
• Requirements to provide a detailed
description of the immediate actions to
mitigate the impact of a spill; and
• Procedures and point of contact
information for coordinating shipboard
action with national and local
authorities in combating a pollution
incident.
In 1994, the Coast Guard issued
regulations requiring all U.S. flag oil
tankers of 150 gross tons and above and
all other U.S. flag ships of 400 gross tons
and above to carry approved SOPEPs
(59 FR 51332, October 7, 1994). These
regulations in 33 CFR part 151
implemented the requirements of
Regulation 26 of MARPOL Annex I and
required foreign oil tankers of 150 gross
tons and above and other foreign ships
of 400 gross tons and above to carry on
board a SOPEP approved by its flag
State as evidence of compliance with
Regulation 26 when in the navigable
waters of the United States.
Since 1994, the Coast Guard has
updated our SOPEP regulations twice.
Once, in 1997, to implement the
provisions of Article 15 of the Protocol
on Environmental Protection to the
Antarctic Treaty and address response
to pollution from vessels (62 FR 18045,
April 14, 1997) and once in 2001, when
we inserted a reference to IMO
Resolution A.851(20) that had
superseded an earlier IMO resolution
(66 FR 55571, November 2, 2001).
In 2004, the IMO MEPC adopted
Resolution MEPC.117(52) that revised
MARPOL Annex I and redesignated
Regulation 26 as Regulation 37. This
revision incorporated new SOPEP
guidelines from IMO Resolution
MEPC.86(44), which are intended to
assist parties to MARPOL Annex I in
developing regulations for domestic
implementation of Regulation 37. These
changes to Regulation 37 pertain to
required SOPEP text, additional
categories addressing steps to control
discharges, crew personnel assignments,
and required notifications. Also,
Regulation 37 requires all oil tankers of
5,000 tons deadweight or more to have
prompt access to computerized, shorebased damage stability and residual
structural strength calculation programs.
While the oil tanker amendment is
already reflected elsewhere in our
domestic regulation, 33 CFR 155.240,
this proposed rule would align our
domestic SOPEP requirements in 33

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CFR 151.26 with the current
international SOPEP requirements
reflected in MARPOL Annex I,
Regulation 37.
F. Notice of Arrival Requirements and
Vessel Response Plans
Under authority of the Ports and
Waterways Safety Act (PWSA) (Pub. L.
92–340, 86 Stat. 424), as amended, the
Coast Guard has established notice of
arrival (NOA) requirements in 33 CFR
part 160. These NOA regulations require
certain vessels bound for a U.S. port or
place to submit information to the Coast
Guard, including information about the
vessel and its voyage.
These NOA regulations do not
currently require submission of the
vessel response plan control number
assigned by the Coast Guard to VRPs.
For purposes of protecting navigation
and the marine environment, this VRPrelated addition to NOA reporting
requirements is being proposed under
authority of section 4 of the PWSA, 33
U.S.C. 1223. This additional
information would better enable the
Coast Guard to determine if a vessel has
an approved VRP geographic-specific
appendix (GSA) for the Captain of the
Port (COTP) zone in which the vessel
intends to call.
G. Customary International Law:
Innocent Passage and Transit Passage
Innocent Passage
The Supreme Court has long held
that, unless no other construction is
possible, statutes of Congress must be
construed consistent with those
principles of international law
recognized by the United States.
Lauritzen v. Larsen, 345 U.S. 571, 578
(1953); Murray v. The Charming Betsey,
6 U.S. (2 Cranch.) 64, 118 (1804). The
Coast Guard interprets ‘‘innocent
passage’’ in territorial seas consistent
with customary international law as
reflected in the 1982 United Nations
Convention on the Law of the Sea
(UNCLOS), principally articles 17
through 21. In 1983, President Reagan
issued policy guidance for the Federal
government, requiring compliance with
the navigational provisions of the
UNCLOS. All subsequent
Administrations have confirmed that
approach to the law of the sea, and have
sought to promote the inclusive rights of
innocent passage and transit passage in
coastal waters worldwide.
Existing vessel response plan
regulations for tank vessels in 33 CFR
part 155, subpart D, apply to vessels that
operate on the navigable waters of the
United States or transfer oil in a port or
place subject to the jurisdiction of the

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United States, but specifically exclude
foreign flag vessels merely engaged in
innocent passage. See 33 CFR
155.1015(c)(7). In this proposed rule, we
are expanding the jurisdictional scope
of the regulations. However, we have
included an exception for foreign
nontank vessels engaged in innocent
passage. See proposed 33 CFR
155.1015(c)(7) and 155.5015(c)(2).
The requirement that a vessel
response plan include geographicspecific appendices for each COTP zone
a vessel transits has caused some
confusion with respect to innocent
passage through our territorial seas,
perhaps because some COTP zones
extend beyond the territorial seas and to
the outer boundary of the exclusive
economic zone (EEZ). See definition of
COTP zone found in 33 CFR 155.1020.
For purposes of nontank vessel response
plan (NTVRP) regulations, our territorial
seas extend out 12 nautical miles (nm)
from the baseline from which the
territorial sea is measured, 33 CFR
2.22(a)(1), while the EEZ normally
extends out 200 nm seaward of the
baseline. 33 CFR 2.30.
If a foreign flag vessel is subject to
Coast Guard regulations requiring it to
have a USCG-approved vessel response
plan, it would also be required to have
a Coast Guard approved geographicspecific appendix for each COTP Zone
where it intends to operate or transit
through. See existing 33 CFR
155.1035(i), 155.1040(j) and 155.1045(i),
and proposed 33 CFR 155.5035(i).
However, a vessel merely engaged in
innocent passage (see proposed 33 CFR
155.1015(c)(7) and 155.5015(c)(2))
transiting through a COTP zone is not
required to submit a vessel response
plan.
If a vessel is departing a foreign port
and is bound for a U.S. port and must
cross through one or several COTP
zones in order to get there, the vessel
would have to have a USCG-approved
vessel response plan and an approved
geographic-specific appendix for each of
the COTP zones that it crosses,
regardless if it intends to call upon the
respective ports within these COTP
zones to transfer cargo, take on bunkers,
or engage in other activities.
Geographic-specific appendices would
need to be submitted and approved for
each COTP zone that a vessel intends to
transit through while calling upon the
United States.
Transit Passage
Transit passage through straits used
for international navigation is a more
inclusive right than innocent passage,
extending to aircraft overflights,
submerged transits, and transits of other

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vessels in their normal mode of
operations. UNCLOS, Arts. 37–39.
International law provides that vessels
passing through U.S. waters in transit
passage may not pollute, conduct any
other activity not having a direct bearing
on transit, or engage in activities
otherwise proscribed by international
law. UNCLOS, Arts. 37–39. In most
respects, however, coastal States may
not suspend or even hamper the right of
vessels to engage in transit passage.
UNCLOS, Art. 44.
The term ‘coastal State’ in this
proposed rule refers to a nation off
whose coast a ship is transiting without
calling at its internal waters, ports, or
roadsteads. The explanation of this term
is provided to assist the reader in
understanding the provisions of this
proposed rule, and is not intended as a
comprehensive definition of this term.
Nor is it to be understood to express a
view as to the jurisdictional competence
or authority of the nation in its capacity
as a coastal State.
One area of the United States where
transit passage is of special concern is
Unimak Pass in the Aleutian Islands.
Unimak Pass is a strait used for
international navigation located on the
Great Circle Route from Asia to the West
Coast of North America. Several
thousand vessels a year use the Pass.
Because the Pass narrows to as little as
10 nm, the 12-nm territorial sea of the
United States overlaps the waters of
Unimak Pass. Although the United
States is not yet Party to UNCLOS, the
United States has long accepted the
navigational provisions of the
Convention, including Art. 34 through
44 relevant to transit passage, as
reflecting the applicable rules of
customary international law. Vessels
transiting Unimak Pass, other straits
used for international navigation, and
their approaches enjoy the right of
transit passage.
The United States may only exercise
jurisdiction over foreign-flagged vessels
engaged in transit passage through
Unimak Pass if the vessel is either
bound to or from a port or place in the
United States, or has engaged in
activities that international law
proscribes, such as intentional acts of
serious pollution. Acknowledging the
applicable rules of customary
international law, we propose to
exclude foreign vessels in transit
passage from VRP requirements when
not bound for, or departing from, the
United States. See proposed 33 CFR
155.1015(c)(7) and 155.5015(c)(2).
Although transit passage applies with
respect to passage through straits, longstanding agreements between nations
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navigation may limit transit rights. For
example, the Saint Lawrence Seaway
(SLS) is part of the Saint Lawrence River
and is an international river governed
by long-standing agreements between
the United States and Great Britain/
Canada. Although, based solely on its
geographic location and its extensive
use for international navigation, it could
potentially be considered an
international strait under which the
right of transit or non-suspendable
innocent passage applies, Part III of
UNCLOS (Straits Used for International
Navigation) simply does not apply to
the Saint Lawrence. The Danube River
and the Turkish Straits offer examples
of international waterways ‘‘in which
passage is regulated in whole or in part
by long-standing international
conventions in force specifically
relating to such straits.’’ UNCLOS, Art.
35(c). Nothing in Part III of UNCLOS
affects the long-standing legal regime in
the Saint Lawrence River.
The international negotiations dealing
with the Saint Lawrence River go back
as far as 1854, with serious additional
discussions or agreements in 1871,
1896, 1902, 1909, 1940, 1952, 1959, and
1963. The Boundary Water Treaty
concluded between the United States
and the United Kingdom (for Canada) of
January 11, 1909, was a particularly
important watershed in the
development of the Saint Lawrence
River regime. The focus of these various
bilateral agreements was on three key
subjects: (1) The use of the river for
navigation; (2) development of its
potential to produce hydro-electric
power; and (3) combating pollution.
The U.S. Congress has enacted several
statutes to carry out its international
responsibilities with respect to the Saint
Lawrence River. Particularly relevant is
the establishment of the Saint Lawrence
Seaway Development Corporation, 33
U.S.C. 981–984, and the International
Joint Commission, 22 U.S.C. 267b–268.
These responsible agencies have issued
implementing regulations. See, e.g., 33
CFR part 401 and 22 CFR part 401.
The U.S. Secretary of Transportation
has delegated authority under Section
1223, 1224, 1225, 1227, 1231, and 1232
of Title 33 U.S.C. to the Administrator
of the Saint Lawrence Seaway
Development Corporation (SLSDC) with
respect to the Saint Lawrence Seaway
(SLS). The United States Coast Guard
has jurisdiction over all remaining
navigable waters of the United States.
The U.S. Coast Guard and the SLSDC
have established a Memorandum of
Understanding (MOU) and a
Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) to
address areas of mutual interest and
joint agency coordination. The current

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MOA was signed in May of 1992 and
was last updated in March of 1997. The
MOA addresses topics of concern such
as policy, communications, ports and
waterways safety, vessel traffic control,
pilotage, pollution, vessel casualties,
aids to navigation, search and rescue,
vessel boardings, and ice breaking. The
recent MOA was signed in February of
2008 and addresses the collection of
pre-arrival information from vessels
entering the SLS system.
Although the SLSDC has exclusive
jurisdiction upon the SLS, the U.S.
Coast Guard will, upon request and
within its resources, assist the SLSDC in
the execution of those responsibilities.
The U.S. Coast Guard is the predesignated Federal On-Scene
Coordinator (FOSC) for oil or hazardous
materials spilled into the U.S. waters of
the SLS. The USCG and the SLSDC have
agreed that, among other goals, the basic
goals of their joint oversight of vessels
navigating upon the SLS is to ensure
that 100 percent of vessels are cleared
in advance of Montreal and to ensure
that the international shipping on the
Great Lakes and the SLS continues to
meet high standards of safety and
environmental protection.
One of the points agreed upon by both
the USCG and the SLSDC are protocols
for both screenings and inspections of
vessels. The SLSDC is authorized to ask
the USCG to receive pre-arrival
information for the SLSDC
electronically using the USCG’s
electronic Notice of Arrival/Departure
(eNOAD) system. In July of 2007, the
SLSDC requested that the USCG
National Vessel Movement Center
(NVMC) be the direct clearinghouse for
arrival information for vessels bound for
the SLS.
Passage through the Saint Lawrence
River and into the Great Lakes is
completely regulated by the existing
bilateral agreements and the
implementing regulations. Although
there is a general presumption both in
international law and in the agreements
that the Saint Lawrence River is freely
open to international navigation, any
vessel operator who wishes to take
advantage of this presumption must
comply with both the applicable U.S.
and Canadian statutory and regulatory
provisions. Therefore, this proposed
rule would apply to vessels transiting
through the Saint Lawrence River.
Jurisdiction of vessels on the
navigable waters of the United States is
clearly conveyed by the FWPCA (33
U.S.C. 1321(j)(5)). Since enforcement of
the PWSA has been delegated to the
SLSDC for the SLS, the Coast Guard
works closely with the SLSDC regarding
how vessels would be prohibited from

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entering the SLS due to noncompliance
with U.S. law.
H. Definition of ‘‘United States’’ for
Purposes of Vessel Response Plan
Requirements
While the FWPCA contains a
definition of ‘‘United States’’, that
definition does not control in this
context. For purposes of vessel oil spill
response plans, for tank and nontank
vessels, the ‘‘United States’’ as defined
in Presidential Proclamation 5928 and
46 U.S.C. 114 establishes the geographic
parameters for determining applicability
of vessel oil spill response plan
requirements as set forth in 33 U.S.C.
132l(j)(5) (as amended). Because both
OPA 90 and the 2006 Act incorporate by
reference definitions of tank vessel and
nontank vessel, respectively, from title
46 of the United States Code, neither the
definition of ‘‘United States’’ as set forth
in OPA 90 (which created § 1321(j)(5)),
nor as set forth in the FWPCA, applies
to vessel oil spill response plan
requirements.
The pertinent portion of the
controlling definition of ‘‘United
States’’, unlike the FWPCA definition,
does not include reference to the ‘‘Trust
Territories of the Pacific Islands’’, but
instead refers to ‘‘the Northern Mariana
Islands, and any other territory or
possession of the United States.’’ 46
U.S.C. 114. Of the former Trust
Territories of the Pacific Islands, only
the Northern Mariana Islands is
considered part of the geographic
definition of the United States for
purposes of this proposed rule.

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IV. Discussion of Proposed Rule
This discussion provides a broad
overview of our proposed changes to
our SOPEP regulations, tank vessel oil
spill response plan regulations, nontank
vessel oil spill response plan
regulations, and notice of arrival
regulations. Immediately following the
overview, we discuss specific sections
of the regulatory text.
Proposed Changes to SOPEP
Regulations
We propose alignment of our existing
SOPEP regulations with current IMO
MARPOL 73/78 Shipboard Oil Pollution
Emergency Plan regulations.
Compliance with our domestic SOPEP
regulations serve as, among other things,
evidence of compliance with IMO
MARPOL 73/78 Annex I Regulations.
The Coast Guard implemented
MARPOL Annex I SOPEP standards in
33 CFR part 151. However, since our
implementation, IMO has made
substantive changes to the international
SOPEP standards. These changes

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resulted in the promulgation of new
IMO SOPEP requirements found at
MARPOL Annex I, Regulation 37
(previously these requirements were
located at Annex I, Regulation 26).
Some of the changes found in
Regulation 37 include: changes to
required SOPEP text; changes to the
categories for addressing steps to control
discharges; changes for crew personnel
assignment requirements; and updates
to the required notifications in the event
of an oil spill. (See generally, IMO
Resolution MEPC.86(44).) Further, the
IMO implemented a new section to
Annex I requiring that all oil tankers of
5,000 tons deadweight or more have
prompt access to computerized, shorebased damage stability and residual
structural strength calculation programs.
(See generally, MEPC.117(52).)
Amending our SOPEP regulations to
reflect changes to the international
standard will, among other things,
negate the need for more than one oil
spill response plan aboard a vessel.
Proposed Changes to Existing Tank
Vessel Response Plan Regulations
We propose amendment to existing
tank vessel response plan regulations
found in 33 CFR part 155, subpart D,
and the associated appendices (B and C)
to ensure the relevant portions of that
part are made applicable to nontank
vessels and those nontank vessels
carrying oil as a cargo.
Proposed Nontank Vessel Response
Plan Regulations
The Coast Guard proposes new oil
spill response plan regulations for
nontank vessels within 33 CFR part 155,
subpart J. This rulemaking will deliver
field-tested and proven regulations to
the nontank vessel community,
facilitating one national planning
standard for applicable vessels. Most of
the criteria that would apply to nontank
vessels (e.g., general plan provisions,
qualified individual (QI) & alternate QI
provisions, training, and exercise
requirements) would remain relatively
consistent with subpart D. However,
there are areas where tank vessel
planning standards would not be
applicable due to the differences in
potential risk posed by nontank vessels.
The proposed resource requirements for
a nontank vessel will be tiered, based on
the vessel’s fuel and cargo oil capacity.
This proposed rule would establish
regulations under 33 U.S.C. 1321(j)(5)
requiring response plans from owners or
operators of nontank vessels, which are
defined by statute as self-propelled
vessels of 400 gross tons or greater that
operate on the navigable waters of the
United States as defined in 46 U.S.C.

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2101(17a), carry oil of any kind as fuel
for main propulsion, and are not tank
vessels. The proposed rule would
specify the content of a response plan,
including the requirement to plan for
responding to a worst case discharge
and a substantial threat of such a
discharge.
Proposed Changes to Notice of Arrival
Regulations in 33 CFR Part 160
We propose to amend 33 CFR part 160
by requiring vessel owners and
operators to submit their vessel
response plan control number as part of
the notice of arrival information.
Section-specific Discussion of Proposed
Rule Part 151 Discussion of Proposed
Changes
Section 151.09

Applicability (SOPEP)

We propose to amend this section to
relieve vessel owners and operators who
satisfy nontank vessel oil spill response
plan requirements under subpart J from
the burden of preparing and
maintaining a separate oil spill response
plan for the purposes of meeting IMO
MARPOL 73/78 Annex I, Regulation 37
Shipboard Oil Pollution Emergency
Plan requirements.
Section 151.26 Shipboard Oil
Pollution Emergency Plans (SOPEP)
We propose to amend this section to
align our SOPEP regulations with IMO
Resolution MEPC.86(44) in the areas of
oil spill reporting, contact information,
mitigation procedures, and response
coordination. Certain language,
including use of the term ‘‘lightening,’’
is taken directly from the SOPEP
development guidelines. Lightening is
the process of making a vessel less
heavy by removing certain items, such
as oil, cargo (liquid or dry), and any
other items that are not permanently
affixed to the vessel. Further, we
propose amending this section so as to
harmonize the data set reporting
requirements for SOPEP and VRP
standards and to clarify the
requirements for identifying the party
responsible for reporting the data. Also,
for the purpose of assisting with the
interpretation of worst case discharge
and the harmonization of our regulation
with MEPC.86(44), we propose
amending this section to clearly
articulate requirements for the
submission of plans, requirements for
drawings and ship-specific details, and
requirements for tank capacity
descriptions. Next, we propose to
amend mitigation activity requirements
so as to align our regulation with
Resolution MEPC.86(44) and harmonize
existing tank vessel response plan

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regulations with the proposed nontank
vessel response plan mitigation
activities. Lastly, we propose to amend
§ 151.26 to align our regulation with
Resolution MEPC.117(52), which
requires oil tankers of 5,000 tons
deadweight or more to have prompt
access to computerized, shore-based
damage stability and residual structural
strength calculation programs.
Sections 151.27 and 151.28 Plan
Submission, Approval, Review, and
Revision
In § 151.27, we propose the removal
of the Coast Guard’s practice of
returning a copy of the approved plan,
however we will continue to issue
approval letters.
In §§ 151.27 and 151.28, we propose
the use of a Coast Guard form entitled
‘‘Application for Approval/Revision of
Vessel Pollution Response Plans’’ (CG–
6083) as an optional alternative to a
cover letter for a plan submission and
approval application. When submitted
properly, this application form would
satisfy the two certification statement
requirements for submission.
Submissions would be sent to the Coast
Guard’s Office of Vessel Activities (CG–
543) and directed to the attention of that
Office’s Vessel Response Plan Review
Team.
Part 155 Subpart D Discussion of
Proposed Changes
Section 155.1020 Tank Vessel
Response Plan (TVRP) Definitions
The vessels carrying oil as a
secondary cargo definition was revised
to direct vessels over the 400 gross tons
limit to subpart J. In revising that
definition, we introduced the term
nontank vessel and have provided a
definition for that term in this section.

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Sections 155.1065 and 155.1070 TVRP
Plan Submission and Review
Procedures
In these sections we proposed
amendments that would reference
subpart J, where applicable, so as to
provide vessel owners and operators
with flexibility in adding nontank
vessels to their existing tank vessel
response plans in an effort to comply
with both subparts D and J.
We propose the use of Coast Guard
form CG–6083. When submitted
properly, this application form would
satisfy the two certification statement
requirements for submission.

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Part 155 Subpart J Discussion of
Proposed Regulations
Section 155.5010 Nontank Vessel
Response Plan (NTVRP) Purpose
In this section, we propose a
description of the purpose of subpart J.
We specifically note that the
requirements set forth in the proposed
rule are for improving oil spill response
preparedness. The specific criteria for
response resources and their arrival
times are not performance standards.
These proposed criteria are to be used
by a vessel owner or operator in
developing a plan to respond to a
vessel’s worst case discharge or threat of
such a discharge. The text in this
section varies slightly from 33 CFR part
155, subpart D, to specifically address
nontank vessel response plans.
Section 155.5012 Deviation From
Response Plan
This section of the proposed rule
describes when an owner or operator of
a nontank vessel may be permitted to
deviate from an approved nontank
vessel oil spill response plan. The
‘‘Chaffee Amendment,’’ section 1144 of
the Coast Guard Authorization Act of
1996 [see Pub. L. 104–324, October 19,
1996, 110 Stat 3901], amended the
FWPCA regarding the use of spill
response plans by stating that an
‘‘owner or operator may deviate from
the applicable response plan if the
President or the Federal On-Scene
Coordinator determines that deviation
from the response plan would provide
for a more expeditious or effective
response to the spill or mitigation of its
environmental effects.’’ See 33 U.S.C.
1321(c)(3)(B). The Coast Guard
interprets section 1144 as applicable to
the use of contracted resources,
qualified individuals, and other
significant deviations from the plan. In
the event of a marine casualty, the Coast
Guard intends to give precedence to the
Incident Action Plan (IAP) as developed
by a Unified Command. The IAP may
also include, as a sub plan, a salvage
response plan, an emergency lightering
plan, a shoreline clean up plan, etc.
Section 155.5015 Applicability
Paragraph (a). In this paragraph, we
propose the applicability of subpart J to
be those vessels that are not tank vessels
carrying oil of any kind as fuel for main
propulsion, that operate on the
navigable waters of the United States,
and are 400 gross tons or greater, as
measured under the convention
measurement system in 46 U.S.C. 14302
or the regulatory measurement system of
46 U.S.C. 14502 for vessels not
measured under 46 U.S.C. 14302.

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Paragraph (b). In this paragraph, we
propose the applicability requirements
for integrated tug barge (ITB) units that
do not carry oil in bulk on the barge.
Paragraph (c). In this paragraph, we
provide a list of vessels the Coast Guard
proposes to exempt from complying
with subpart J. The proposed
exemptions include public vessels,
foreign flag vessels engaged in innocent
passage, certain foreign flag vessels
engaged in transit passage, vessels
carrying oil as a primary cargo, vessels
that are not constructed to carry oil as
fuel or cargo, permanently moored craft,
and inactive vessels.
Public vessels. We exempted public
vessels from subpart J requirements,
because 33 U.S.C. 1321(a) defined
‘‘vessel’’ to exclude public vessels.
Foreign flag vessels engaged in
innocent passage. We proposed
exemption of these vessels because of
our recognition of the customary
international law of the sea, as reflected
in the UNCLOS. Our exemption of these
vessels in this subpart is consistent with
subpart D. For further information
regarding foreign flag vessels engaged in
innocent passage, please see
Background and Purpose, section III.G.
However, the public should take note
that the Coast Guard intends to apply
this proposed rule to foreign flag
nontank vessels engaging in voyages to
or from a port or place subject to the
jurisdiction of the United States.
Further, if a foreign flag vessel is subject
to nontank vessel response plan
requirements of this subpart, that
foreign flag nontank vessel will also be
required to have a Coast Guardapproved geographic-specific appendix
for each COTP zone where it intends to
operate or transit through bound for or
departing from a port or place subject to
the jurisdiction of the United States; this
will be the standard regardless of
whether the foreign flag vessel intends
to call upon the respective ports within
these COTP zones to transfer cargo, take
on bunkers, etc. In contrast, when a
nontank vessel is in innocent passage
(see 33 CFR 155.5015(c)(2)) to a foreign
port and must cross through a COTP
zone (see definition in proposed 33 CFR
155.1020) to get there, the submission
and approval of a USCG vessel response
plan is not required.
Foreign flag vessels engaged in transit
passage. We propose exemption of
foreign flag vessels engaged in transit
passage through a straight used for
international navigation, unless bound
for or departing from a port or place of
the United States. For an in depth
discussion on the Coast Guard’s
interpretation of our proposed rule in

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this area, please see Background and
Purpose, section III.G.
Vessels carrying oil as a primary
cargo. All vessels carrying oil as a
primary cargo that are required to
submit a response plan under subpart D
are exempt from subpart J. If you own
or operate a vessel carrying oil as a
secondary cargo, and that vessel is less
than 400 gross tons, then your vessel
would not be a nontank vessel by
definition, and would be covered by
subpart D (see proposed 33 CFR
155.1020 ‘‘Vessels carrying oil as a
secondary cargo’’).
Vessels not constructed or operated in
such a manner allowing it to carry oil
of any kind. These vessels are proposed
to be exempted, because they pose no
oil spill risk.
Permanently moored craft. We
propose exemptions for those watercraft
that are permanently moored or
rendered incapable of movement
because they do not fit the definition of
‘‘vessel’’ under 1 U.S.C. 3 as interpreted
by Stewart v. Dutra Construction Co.,
543 U.S. 481 (2005). Further, these
watercraft represent minimal risk due to
their immobile status.
Inactive vessels. We propose
exemptions for inactive vessels, as
defined in § 155.5020, which is
described immediately below.
Section 155.5020 Definitions
The definitions in 33 CFR 155.110
and 155.1020 are applicable to nontank
vessel response plans, unless otherwise
defined in § 155.5020.
In § 155.5020, we propose the
following definitions: cargo, contract or
other approved means, fuel, inactive
vessel, integrated tug barge or ITB,
maximum most probable discharge or
MMPD, navigable waters of the United
States, nontank vessel, oil spill removal
organization or OSRO, permanently
moored craft, qualified individual or QI
and alternative qualified individual,
substantial threat of such a discharge,
tier, and worst case discharge or WCD.
A proposed definition of cargo is
introduced in subpart J to clarify that oil
carried in addition to fuel used for
propulsion of the vessel is considered to
be cargo and is subject to the provisions
of subpart J where applicable.
A proposed definition of contract or
other approved means describes the
options for fulfilling the requirement for
contracting or providing response
resources. Paragraph (1) describes a
written contract between a vessel owner
or operator and the particular response
resource provider. Paragraph (2)
proposes requirements for self
certification by the vessel owner or
operator that it can provide the response

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resources required. Paragraph (3)
describes requirements when a vessel
owner or operator chooses an active
membership with a local or regional
response resource provider. Paragraph
(4) is an agreement between the vessel
owner or operator and a resource
provider that the resource provider
intends to commit the agreed upon
resources in the event of a response.
Finally, paragraph (5) specifically
describes when the use of ‘‘other
approved means’’ may be permissible as
a method of ensuring the availability of
response resources in lieu of a contract.
It also describes six proposed categories
of vessels that may be eligible to use
‘‘other approved means’’ as a method of
compliance.
The Coast Guard interprets 33 U.S.C.
1321(j)(5)(D)(iii) as imposing an
obligation for nontank vessel owners
and operators to ensure the availability
of response resources by contract or
other approved means. Thus,
agreements including contracts between
nontank vessel owners or operators and
entities that do not physically control
response equipment or entities that
merely serve as conduits to the owners
of the response equipment will not
satisfy the statutory mandate of 33
U.S.C. 1321(j)(5) nor will such contracts
meet the requirements of proposed
subpart J.
A proposed definition of fuel is
introduced to include oils of any kind,
which may be used to supply power or
lubrication for primary or auxiliary
purposes aboard the vessel in which it
is carried. This definition was drafted to
convey that, when planning for a worst
case discharge, the vessel owner or
operator must include in their analysis
all oils carried aboard as fuel or cargo.
While only vessels that use oil for
primary fuel and not auxiliary fuel are
required to submit nontank vessel
response plans, those nontank vessels
that do carry auxiliary fuel must include
auxiliary fuel in the total fuel capacity
for nontank vessel response planning
volume calculations.
A proposed definition of inactive
vessel is introduced to include those
vessels taken out of service or placed in
a laid up status, maintaining only the
minimum amount of fuel necessary for
the maintenance of the material
condition of the vessel. Such vessels are
not considered to be in operation on the
navigable waters of the United States by
virtue of the minimal threat they pose
to the marine environment in that
status. This section further proposes
that the local Coast Guard Captain of the
Port will determine whether an inactive
vessel poses a threat to the marine

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environment, thereby requiring the
submission of a vessel response plan.
A proposed definition of an integrated
tug barge or ITB is introduced to
describe when these vessels, operating
as a single unit (for example, nontank
barge with machinery and tug) pose the
same level of oil spill threat as a large
freight vessel of the same aggregate
tonnage. Beyond the definition
introduced in § 155.5020, and consistent
with Coast Guard Inspection Guidance
Regarding Integrated Tug Barge
Combinations (NVIC 2–81, Change 1),
an integrated tug barge combination will
be considered an ITB, when the tug:
• Cannot operate with barges other
than those barges specifically designed
for joint operation with the tug; or
• Cannot engage in hawser towing
(does not meet the towline pull stability
criteria or does not have necessary
towing equipment installed); or
• Requires significant reinforcement
of internal structure to accommodate
shelves, wedges or other interlocking
mechanisms; or
• Is restrained in the notch of a barge
to the extent that the speed and weather
operating capabilities of the combined
unit approach those of a single vessel.
A proposed definition of maximum
most probable discharge or MMPD is
introduced to provide that 2,500 barrels
of discharged oil will be considered the
maximum most probable discharge for
those vessels with a fuel and cargo
capacity equal or greater than 25,000
barrels; for those vessels with fuel and
cargo capacity of less than 25,000
barrels, the maximum most probable
discharge will be 10 percent of the
vessel’s fuel and cargo capacity.
Maximum most probable discharge is a
required level of oil spill removal
organization coverage necessary to
address spill scenarios less than a
vessel’s worst case discharge where the
substantial threat of such a discharge
may occur. Maximum most probable
discharge planning standards are
commonly applied to spills resulting
from collisions, allisions, groundings, or
other scenarios where a portion of a
vessel’s oil capacity is discharged or
could be discharged and an appropriate
response is mounted to mitigate the
impact of the resulting spill or to
prevent a discharge from occurring.
A proposed definition of navigable
waters of the United States is
introduced to clarify that for nontank
vessels regulations the territorial seas is
considered to be 12 nm seaward of the
baseline. The authority to require
nontank vessel response plans comes
from sec. 311 of the FWPCA, 33 U.S.C.
1321. Generally, for 33 U.S.C. chapter
26, ‘‘navigable waters’’ means ‘‘the

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waters of the United States, including
the territorial seas,’’ 33 U.S.C. 1362(7).
In 1972, when this ‘‘navigable waters’’
definition first appeared, our territorial
seas were limited to 3 nm in breadth.
(See sec. 502 (8) of FWPCA, Oct. 18,
1972, Pub. L. 92–500, § 2, 86 Stat. 886,
specifically limiting territorial seas to 3
nm.) The Presidential Proclamation No.
5928 of December 27, 1988, which
extended the territorial seas of the
United States to 12 nm, is not construed
to have changed that 3 nm limit.
However, in 2006, Congress revised the
FWPCA and defined nontank vessels to
include self-propelled vessels ‘‘on the
navigable waters of the United States, as
defined in section 2101(17a) of [46
U.S.C.].’’ 33 U.S.C. 1321(a)(26). That
Title 46 navigable waters definition
‘‘includes all waters of the territorial sea
of the United States as described in
Presidential Proclamation No. 5928 of
December 27, 1988,’’ which states 12
nm. 33 CFR 2.22(a)(1). Therefore, while
we generally construe seaward extent of
FWPCA provisions to be limited to 3 nm
out from our territorial sea baseline—see
33 CFR 2.22(a)(2) (limiting territorial
seas to 3 nm) and 2.28(a) (pointing to 3
nm limit of territorial seas when
defining FWPCA contiguous zone)—our
NTVRP regulations would extend out to
12 nm.
A proposed definition of nontank
vessel is introduced that is consistent
with, and derived from, the 2004 and
2006 Acts. Section 701 of the 2004 Act
specified that an owner or operator of a
self-propelled vessel of 400 gross tons or
greater, which is a vessel of the United
States or operates on the navigable
waters of the United States and carries
oil as fuel and is not a tank vessel, must
prepare and submit an oil spill response
plan. Section 608 of the 2006 Act
clarified the tonnage applicability of
this statutory requirement by setting the
tonnage threshold as 400 gross tons or
greater, as measured under the
convention measurement system in 46
U.S.C. 14302 or the regulatory
measurement system of 46 U.S.C. 14502
for vessels not measured under 46
U.S.C. 14302. The 2006 Act further
established that it applies to vessels that
operate on the navigable waters of the
United States, as described in
Presidential Proclamation No. 5928,
December 27, 1988.
A proposed definition of oil spill
removal organization or OSRO is
introduced to describe who or what may
be identified as an OSRO and the
function(s) of an OSRO. This proposed
definition is consistent with the Coast
Guard’s OSRO Classification guidelines.
For more information on the OSRO
classification system, see http://

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www.uscg.mil/hq/nsfweb/nsfcc/ops/
ResponseSupport/RRAB/
informationonclassifiedosros.html.
A proposed definition of permanently
moored craft is introduced to provide
that permanently moored, or otherwise
rendered practically incapable of
transportation or movement, watercraft
would not be considered to be vessels
under subpart J, because they do not
meet the statutory definition in 1 U.S.C.
3, as interpreted by the Supreme Court
in Stewart v. Dutra Construction Co.,
543 U.S. 481 (2005). Stewart v. Dutra
addressed the concept of permanently
moored vessels, and the language used
by the court regarding a description of
such vessels was used to develop the
definition of ‘‘permanently moored
craft’’ and exempt such craft from the
proposed rule. For tank and nontank
vessels, the controlling definition of
vessel is in 46 U.S.C. 115, which cites
1 U.S.C. 3. We propose that
permanently moored craft be excluded
from the nontank vessel response plan
regulations under § 155.5015.
A proposed definition of qualified
individual or QI and alternative
qualified individual is introduced, and
provides that these individuals are
shore-based representatives of a vessel
owner or operator meeting specific
requirements. This proposed definition
is similar to subpart D.
A proposed definition of substantial
threat of such a discharge is introduced
to include a threat of a discharge from
fuel as well as cargo oil, as applicable
to nontank vessels.
A proposed definition of tier is
introduced to describe the combination
of required response resources and
response times within which the
response must arrive on scene.
A proposed definition of worst case
discharge or (WCD) is introduced to
describe the discharge of a vessel’s
entire fuel and cargo oil during adverse
weather conditions.
Section 155.5021 Operating
Restrictions
In this proposed section, we identify
scenarios when a nontank vessel may
not be permitted to operate on the
navigable waters of the United States.
These proposed operating restrictions
are similar to those found in
§ 155.1025(a).
Section 155.5023 Interim Operating
Authorization
In this section, we propose interim
operating authorization for nontank
vessels up to 2 years after the date of
submission of the oil spill response plan
if the owner or operator has received
written authorization from the Coast

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Guard to continue such operations. We
also describe the proposed steps the
vessel owner or operator should
complete to obtain the interim
authorization. These proposed
requirements are aligned with
§ 155.1025(c) and (d).
Section 155.5025
Waiver

One-Time Port

In this section, we propose that an
owner or an operator may seek one-time
authorization to enter a geographicspecific area not covered by the nontank
vessel response plan upon approval by
a cognizant Captain of the Port. This
provision could also be used in an
emergency situation, such as an
impending hurricane, where a vessel
owner or operator may need to enter a
geographic-specific area not covered by
the nontank vessel response plan for a
specified temporary period of time. The
proposed requirements are aligned with
§ 155.1025(e) to ensure consistency of
this proposed procedure with the tank
vessel response plan regulations.
Section 155.5026 Qualified Individual
and Alternate Qualified Individual
In this proposed section, we introduce
the requirement to identify a qualified
individual and an alternate qualified
individual that must be available to the
vessel owner or operator 24 hours a day.
Identification of a qualified individual
and alternate qualified individual is a
statutory requirement from 33 U.S.C.
1321(j)(5) and is consistent with the
existing qualified individual and
alternate qualified individual
requirements of 33 CFR 155.1026.
Section 155.5030 Nontank Vessel
Response Plan Requirements: General
Content
In this proposed section, we describe
the general content of a nontank vessel
response plan. The requirements were
taken directly from the existing tank
vessel requirements of 33 CFR 155.1030,
and modified to fit the requirements of
a nontank vessel. Section 155.5030(h)
proposes that compliance with subpart
J will constitute compliance with 33
CFR 151.26 and Regulation 37 of Annex
I of MARPOL 73/78, eliminating the
need to prepare two separate oil spill
response plans. Lastly, in order to meet
statutory mandates, the general content
of nontank vessel response plan
requirements are proposed to be
consistent with the national
contingency plan (40 CFR part 300.210).

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Section 155.5035 Nontank Vessel
Response Plan Requirements: Specific
Content
In this section, we propose additional
specific content requirements for
nontank vessel response plans. Except
where noted below, the requirements
were taken directly from the existing
tank vessel requirements of § 155.1035
and were modified to fit nontank vessel
requirements and ensure consistency
with § 151.26 requirements for SOPEPs.
Section 155.5035(a)(2) proposes the
submission of the nontank vessel owner
or operator’s mailing address, current email addresses, and telephone number
to facilitate communications that are a
central part of this plan. Section
155.5035(b)(5)(i)(O) adds to the list of
initial notification requirements, details
of the vessel owner or operator’s
pollution insurer, and/or Protection and
Indemnity (P&I) Club and Local
Correspondent, as applicable. Section
155.5035(c) proposes regulations that
align § 151.26 and Regulation 37 of
Annex I of MARPOL 73/78 shipboard
spill mitigation procedures with the
existing requirements for shipboard
mitigation procedures as listed in
§ 155.1035(c). Section 155.5035(e)
proposes an enhanced list of contact
requirements to reflect the full spectrum
of required response resources per
proposed § 155.5050. This proposed
section contains fewer requirements for
nontank vessels with fuel and cargo
capacities less than 2,500 barrels.
Section 155.5035(k) proposes the
additional requirements that U.S.
nontank vessels, certificated for
coastwise or oceans operating routes
must meet for compliance with
Regulation 37 of Annex I of MARPOL
73/78.
Section 155.5050 Response Plan
Development and Evaluation Criteria for
Nontank Vessels Carrying Groups I
Through IV Petroleum Oil
The proposed requirements for the
response plan development and
evaluation criteria for nontank vessels
carrying groups I through IV petroleum
oil as fuel or cargo are contained in this
section. Except where noted below, the
requirements were taken directly from
the existing tank vessel requirements of
§ 155.1050, however modified to
address specific nontank vessel
requirements. To the maximum extent
practicable, a tiered approach is
proposed to classify three separate
categories of NTVRP response resource
requirements based upon a vessel’s fuel
and cargo oil capacity. See the proposed
Table 155.5050(p), Nontank Vessel
Response Plan Required Response

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Resources Matrix, to better understand
the intended tiered strategy.
Paragraph (a) of Section 155.5050
Criteria for Evaluating Operability of
Response Resources
This paragraph of the proposed rule,
which adopts tank vessel criteria from
§ 155.1050(a), identifies criteria that
would need to be used to evaluate the
operability of response resources
identified in a nontank vessel response
plan for specified operating
environments. It directs that the criteria
in 33 CFR part 155’s Appendix B, Table
1 are to be used solely for identification
of appropriate equipment in a response
plan, and it notes these criteria do not
reflect conditions that would limit
response actions or affect normal vessel
operations. Conditions identified in the
Area Contingency Plans for the COTP
zones in which the vessel operates, such
as ice conditions, debris, temperature
ranges, and weather-related visibility,
would also need to be factored in.
Paragraph (b) of Section 155.5050
Operating Environment Reclassification
of Specific Bodies of Water
This paragraph of the proposed rule,
which adopts tank vessel requirements
from § 155.1050(b), notes that a COTP
may reclassify a specific body of water
or location within the COTP zone to a
more stringent operating environment or
a less stringent operating environment
based on the prevailing wave
conditions. Any reclassifications would
be identified in the applicable Area
Contingency Plan.
Paragraph (c) of Section 155.5050
Criteria for Response Equipment
This paragraph, which adopts tank
vessel requirements from § 155.1050(c),
would require that response equipment
meet or exceed the response resource
operating criteria listed in 33 CFR part
155’s Appendix B, Table 1, be capable
of functioning in the applicable
operating environment, and be
appropriate for the petroleum oil
carried.
Paragraph (d) of Section 155.5050
Average Most Probable Discharge
This paragraph of the proposed rule,
like its tank vessel counterpart in
subpart D, § 155.1050(d), would require
nontank vessels that carry groups I
through IV petroleum oil as cargo to
ensure the availability of average most
probable discharge (AMPD) resources by
contract or other approved means.
Nontank vessels that only carry groups
I through IV oil as fuel would not have
to ensure the availability of AMPD
resources by contract or other approved

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44979

means because the facility providing the
bunker to the nontank vessel is already
required to have planned for the AMPD
resources covering the transfer.
However, the owner or operator of a
nontank vessel carrying groups I
through IV oil as fuel would be required
to plan for and identify the response
resources required in § 155.1050(d)(1)
for bunkering or fueling operations.
Identification of a marine
transportation-related (MTR) facility
required to maintain a response plan
under 33 CFR part 154 or a tank vessel’s
oil spill response resources does not
relieve a nontank vessel owner or
operator from the responsibility to
independently identify appropriate
response resources within a COTP zone
to respond to an AMPD. Permission
from the AMPD response provider is not
required for the purpose of listing this
resource in a nontank vessel response
plan for this planning and identification
purpose.
Paragraph (e) of Section 155.5050
Maximum Most Probable Discharge
This paragraph of the proposed rule
adopts tank vessel standards from
§ 155.1050(e), but would impose one
less requirement for nontank vessels
with lower oil capacity. The owner or
operator of a nontank vessel with a
capacity of 250 barrels or greater
carrying groups I through IV petroleum
oil as fuel or cargo would need to
comply with requirements in
§ 155.1050(e) and identify in the
response plan and ensure the
availability of, through contract or other
approved means, the response resources
necessary to respond to a discharge up
to the vessel’s maximum most probable
discharge volume.
Under this paragraph of the proposed
rule, nontank vessels with an oil
capacity of less than 250 barrels would
only be required to identify response
resources planned for in the nontank
vessel response plan to be within the
stipulated response times in the
specified geographic areas, but these
nontank vessels would not be required
to ensure by contract that these
resources be made available.
Submission of a written consent from
the response resource provider to be
listed in the response plan would need
to accompany the plan for approval.
Compliance with these requirements
would be considered to be consistent
with the ‘‘other approved means,’’
paragraph (5) portion of the definition of
‘‘Contract or other approved means’’ in
33 CFR 155.5020.

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Paragraph (f) of Section 155.5050
Worst Case Discharge
This paragraph would adopt
requirements from § 155.1050(f), but
contains some provisions specific to
nontank vessels carrying oil as fuel or
cargo. The owner or operator of a
nontank vessel with a capacity of 2,500
barrels or greater carrying groups I
through IV petroleum oil as fuel or cargo
would need to comply with the
requirements in § 155.1050(f) and
identify in the response plan and ensure
the availability of, through contract or
other approved means, the response
resources necessary to respond to
discharges up to the worst case
discharge volume of oil to the maximum
extent practicable.
Nontank vessels need only plan for
Tier 1 response resources. In proposed
§ 155.5020, tier is defined as the
combination of required response
resources and the times within which
the resources must arrive on the scene,
with the times being prescribed in
§ 155.5050(g) and Tables 5 and 6 of
Appendix B offering guidance on
calculating the response resources
required by a tier for given categories of
area: higher volume port areas, the Great
Lakes, and all other operating
environments.
Nontank vessels with a capacity of
less than 2,500 barrels would not be
required to contract with an OSRO that
has a USCG classification to respond to
a WCD level of response resources in
order to comply with the statute’s
requirement to plan for the vessels’
worst case discharge, because their total
oil capacity can be completely covered
by an OSRO with a USCG maximum
most probable discharge (MMPD)
classification rating. For additional
information on USCG Classified OSROs,
use the following link to download
USCG OSRO Classification matrices:
http://www.uscg.mil/hq/nsfweb/nsfcc/
ops/ResponseSupport/RRAB/
informationonclassifiedosros.html.

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Paragraph (g) of Section 155.5050
1 Response Times

Tier

This paragraph of the proposed rule is
similar to tank vessel requirements in
§ 155.1050(g), but would require
nontank vessels to only plan for Tier 1
response resources and response times:
12 hours for higher volume port areas,
18 hours for the Great Lakes, and 24
hours for all other operating
environments.

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Paragraph (h) of Section 155.5050
Planning Standards for the Mobilization
and Response Times for Required
MMPD and WCD Response Resources
This paragraph of the proposed rule
contains requirements similar to those
in § 155.1050(h) for tank vessels.
Section 155.5050(h) proposes the
planning standards for the mobilization
and response times for maximum most
probable discharge (MMPD) and worst
case discharge (WCD) response
resources.
Consistent with what are currently
required for tank vessel response
coverage, nontank vessels will be
required to ensure that Tier 1 response
resources are capable of being mobilized
and enroute to the scene of a discharge
within 2 hours of notification. The
notification and mobilization of all
required Tier 1 resources must be
accomplished within 30 minutes or
through notification of the qualified
individual.
To use an example, on November 7,
2007, an oil spill response was initiated
in San Francisco Bay in response to oil
spilled from the M/V COSCO BUSAN.
In that incident, the notification of the
required MMPD resources was
accomplished well within 30 minutes,
and initial response resources were on
scene well within the required
timelines.
Initial MMPD response resources
began to arrive on scene within 45
minutes of notification. San Francisco
Bay is considered to be a higher volume
port area (see proposed § 155.5020’s
reference to definitions in § 155.1020),
and 33 CFR part 155’s Appendix B,
paragraph 4.3 stipulates that oil
recovery devices necessary to meet the
applicable maximum most probable
discharge volume planning criteria must
be located such that they can arrive on
scene within 12 hours of the discovery
of a discharge in higher volume port
areas. Therefore, the initial response of
resources to the M/V COSCO BUSAN
incident was well within the planning
standards for such oil spills.
Paragraph (i) of Section 155.5050
Salvage, Emergency Lightering, and
Marine Firefighting Requirements
This proposed paragraph is designed
to be consistent with § 155.1050(j), and
vessels with a capacity of 2,500 barrels
or greater would have to meet salvage,
emergency lightering, and marine
firefighting requirements in subpart I of
33 CFR part 155. Nontank vessels with
a capacity less than 2,500 barrels, but
greater than or equal to 250 barrels,
need only plan for and identify these
response resources in the response plan

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but do not have to ensure these
resources by contract or a previous
funding agreement. Nontank vessels
with a capacity less than 250 barrels
need only plan for and identify salvage
response resources in the response plan,
but do not have to ensure by contract or
a previous funding agreement. See 33
CFR 155.5020, ‘‘Contract or other
approved means,’’ paragraph (5).
Paragraph (j) of Section 155.5050
Dispersants
This proposed paragraph is designed
to be consistent with § 155.1050(k) and
it is proposed that vessels with a
capacity of 2,500 barrels or greater
would be required to ensure the
availability of these response resources
by contract or other approved means.
Only Tier 1 for dispersant effective daily
application capability (EDAC) would
need to be met for nontank vessels.
Nontank vessels with a capacity of less
than 2,500 barrels, but greater than or
equal to 250 barrels, would need to plan
for and identify dispersant response
resources per the other approved means
standard described previously.
Paragraph (k) of Section 155.5050
Aerial Oil Spill Tracking and
Observation Response Resources
This proposed paragraph adopts tank
vessel requirements from § 155.1050(m).
It is proposed that nontank vessels with
a capacity of 2,500 barrels or greater
would be required to ensure the
availability of these response resources
by contract or other approved means.
Nontank vessels with a capacity of
less than 2,500 barrels, but greater than
or equal to 250 barrels, would need to
plan for and identify aerial oil spill
tracking and observation response
resources under the other approved
means standard described previously.
The nontank vessel owner or operator
would also be required to submit a
written consent to be listed in the plan
from the recognized response resource
provider when submitting a plan for
approval or revision. Compliance with
these requirements would be considered
to be consistent with the ‘‘other
approved means,’’ paragraph (5) portion
of the definition of ‘‘Contract or other
approved means’’ in 33 CFR 155.5020.
Paragraph (l) of Section 155.5050
Response Resources Necessary To
Perform Shoreline Protection
Operations
This proposed paragraph adopts
requirements from § 155.1050(n). It
would require the owners and operators
of nontank vessels carrying groups I
through IV petroleum oil as fuel or cargo
with a capacity of 250 barrels or greater

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to identify in the response plan, and
ensure the availability of, through
contract or other approved means,
response resources necessary to perform
shoreline protection operations. The
response resources must include the
quantities of boom listed in 33 CFR part
155’s Appendix B, Table 2, based upon
the specific COTP zones in which the
vessel operates.
Paragraph (m) of Section 155.5050
Shoreline Cleanup Operations
This paragraph of the proposed rule
adopts tank vessel requirements from
§ 155.1050(o). It would require the
owner or operator of a nontank vessel
carrying groups I through IV petroleum
oil as fuel or cargo with a capacity of
250 barrels or greater to identify in the
response plan, and ensure the
availability of, through contract or other
approved means, an oil spill removal
organization capable of effecting a
shoreline cleanup operation
commensurate with the quantity of
emulsified petroleum oil to be planned
for in shoreline cleanup operations.
These shoreline cleanup resources
required would need to be determined
as described in 33 CFR part 155’s
Appendix B.

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Paragraph (n) of Section 155.5050
Practical and Technical Limits of
Response Capabilities
This paragraph of the proposed rule,
which adopts tank vessel criteria from
§ 155.1050(p), notes that Appendix B of
33 CFR part 155 sets out response
capability capacities (caps) that
recognize the practical and technical
limits of response capabilities for which
an individual vessel owner or operator
can contract in advance. Table 6 in
Appendix B lists the contracting caps
that are applicable.
The owner or operator of a nontank
vessel carrying groups I through IV
petroleum oil as fuel or cargo, with a
capacity of 2,500 barrels or greater,
whose required daily recovery capacity
exceeds the applicable contracting caps
in Table 6, would need to identify
commercial sources of additional
equipment equal to twice the cap listed
for Tier 1 or the amount necessary to
reach the calculated planning volume,
whichever is lower, to the extent that
this equipment is available. The
equipment so identified would need to
be capable of arriving on scene no later
than the applicable tier response times
contained in proposed § 155.5050(g) or
as quickly as the nearest available
resource permits. A response plan
would need to identify the specific
sources, locations, and quantities of this

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additional equipment. No contract,
however, would be required.
Paragraph (o) of Section 155.5050
Review of Response Capability Limits
This paragraph of the proposed rule,
which adopts tank vessel criteria from
§ 155.1050(q), notes that the Coast
Guard will continue to evaluate the
environmental benefits, cost efficiency,
and practicality of increasing
mechanical recovery capability
requirements. This continuing
evaluation is part of the Coast Guard’s
long-term commitment to achieving and
maintaining an optimum mix of oil spill
response capability across the full
spectrum of response modes. As best
available technology demonstrates a
need to evaluate or change mechanical
recovery capacities, a review of cap
increases and other requirements
contained within this subpart may be
performed.
Paragraph (p) of Section 155.5050
Nontank Vessel Response Plan Required
Response Resources Matrix
The table in this paragraph of the
proposed rule summarizes nontank
vessel response resources that would be
required under the proposed rule. It
shows the tiered regulatory approach
toward how the requirements of
§ 155.5050 apply to various nontank
vessels with a fuel and cargo capacity of
less than 250 barrels, between 250
barrels and 2,500 barrels, and 2,500
barrels or greater.
Section 155.5052 Response Plan
Development and Evaluation Criteria for
Nontank Vessels Carrying Group V
Petroleum Oil
This section of the proposed rule,
which adopts the tank vessel
requirements of § 155.1052, would
require owners and operators of nontank
vessels that carry group V petroleum oil
as fuel or cargo to provide information
in their plan that identifies procedures
and strategies for responding to
discharges up to a worst case discharge
of group V petroleum oils to the
maximum extent practicable, and that
identifies sources of the equipment and
supplies necessary to locate, recover,
and mitigate such discharges.
The owner or operator would need to
ensure that:
• Any equipment identified in a
response plan is capable of operating in
the conditions expected in the
geographic area(s) in which the nontank
vessel operates, and consider the
limitations identified in the Area
Contingency Plans for the COTP zones
in which the vessel operates;

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• Through contract or other approved
means, equipment identified in this
section, including sonar, sampling
equipment for locating the oil on the
bottom or suspended in the water
column, sorbent boom, silt curtains,
dredges, pumps, or other equipment
necessary to recover oil from the bottom
and shoreline is made available and
capable of being deployed within 24
hours of discovery of a discharge to the
port nearest the area where the vessel is
operating.
The owner or operator of a nontank
vessel carrying group V petroleum oil as
fuel or cargo would also need to identify
in the response plan and ensure the
availability, through contract or other
approved means, a salvage company
with appropriate expertise and
equipment, a company with vessel
firefighting capability that will respond
to casualties in the area(s) in which the
vessel is operating, and that the
intended sources of these resources are
capable of being deployed to the areas
in which the vessel will operate.
In addition, the owner or operator
would be required to identify in the
response plan and ensure the
availability of certain equipment
facilitating ship-to-ship transfers of fuel
or cargo in an emergency, including
fendering equipment, transfer hoses,
portable pumps and ancillary
equipment, and lightering vessels. And
these identified resources would need to
be capable of reaching the locations in
which the vessel operates within 12-to36 hours depending on the type of water
(e.g., inland, offshore, or open ocean).
Section 155.5055 Training
This section of the proposed rule,
which adopts the requirements of
§ 155.1055 for tank vessels, describes
the training requirements that an owner
or operator of a nontank vessel must
identify in his or her plan. The
proposed rule does not require training
in specific subjects or minimum training
periods, but instead it requires a vessel
owner or operator to identify the
training programs they will establish or
adopt to train any person with
responsibilities in the response plan.
The training may vary widely based
on those responsibilities. For example, a
vessel’s master would need different
training than the engineer responsible
for internal cargo transfers, just as the
qualified individual would need
different training than the cleanup
manager in the vessel owner or
operator’s shore-based spill
management team. This proposed
section would require that the training
program identified in the plan
differentiate between training provided

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to vessel personnel and shore-based
personnel. This section points to 33 CFR
155’s Appendix C, described below, as
providing additional training guidance.
Under this proposed section, the
owner or operator of a nontank vessel
would need to maintain records
sufficient to document training and
make them available for inspection
upon request by the Coast Guard, and
ensure that any oil spill removal
organization identified in its response
plan also maintains records sufficient to
document training for the organization’s
personnel. The owner or operator of the
nontank vessel would need to maintain
its training records for 3 years.
Section 155.5060

Exercises

This section of the proposed rule
would require a nontank vessel owner
or operator to conduct, as necessary,
announced and unannounced exercises
to ensure that the plan will function in
an emergency. This proposed section
adopts the minimum exercise
requirements from § 155.1060 for tank
vessels, as well as its requirements to:
• Participate in unannounced
exercises, as directed by the COTP,
• Participate in Area exercises as
directed by the applicable on-scene
coordinator, and
• Maintain adequate records for 3
years following completion of the
exercises.
This proposed section also adopts
§ 155.1060’s provision that compliance
with the National Preparedness for
Response Exercise Program (PREP)
Guidelines will satisfy nontank vessel
response plan exercise requirements, as
will an alternative program that meets
the minimum exercise requirements and
has been approved under alternative
planning criteria in proposed
§ 155.5067.

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Section 155.5062 Inspection and
Maintenance of Response Resources
This proposed section, which adopts
the corresponding tank vessel
requirements in § 155.1062, would
require nontank vessel owners or
operators to ensure that containment
boom, skimmers, vessels, and other
major equipment listed or referenced in
a vessel response plan are periodically
inspected and maintained in good
operating condition, in accordance with
manufacturer’s recommendations and
best commercial practices. This
proposed section notes that the Coast
Guard may visit equipment locations
listed in response plans to:
• Verify that the equipment
inventories exist as represented;

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• Verify that the records of inspection
and maintenance reflect the actual
condition of the equipment; and
• Inspect and require operational
tests of equipment to verify readiness.
Section 155.5065 Procedures for Plan
Submission and Approval
This section of the proposed rule
identifies the procedures for submission
and approval of response plans. The
owner or operator of a nontank vessel
would need to submit a complete vessel
response plan, written in English, along
with a statement certifying that the plan
meets the requirements of subpart J as
well as any applicable requirements in
subparts D, E, F, or G.
In addition, the submission would
need to include a statement specifically
certifying that the ‘‘owner or operator
has ensured the availability of, through
contract or other approved means, the
necessary private resources to respond,
to the maximum extent practicable, to a
worst case discharge or substantial
threat of such a discharge from their
vessel.’’
We propose the use of a Coast Guard
form entitled ‘‘Application for
Approval/Revision of Vessel Pollution
Response Plans’’ (CG–6083) as an
optional alternative to a cover letter for
a plan submission and approval
application. When submitted properly,
this application form would satisfy the
two certification statement requirements
for submission. Submissions would be
sent in paper format to the Coast
Guard’s Office of Vessel Activities (CG–
543), and directed to the attention of
that Office’s Vessel Response Plan
Review Team.
The proposed requirements of
§ 155.5065 are derived from tank vessel
requirements in § 155.1065 to ensure
consistency with the procedures for
vessel response plan submission and
approval, but have been modified to be
consistent with subpart J applicability.
Additionally, appeal and alternative
planning criteria procedures have been
removed and put in their own
respective sections.
Section 155.5067 Alternative Planning
Criteria
This section of the proposed rule
would allow the submission of a request
for acceptance of alternative planning
criteria from the owner or operator of a
vessel who believes that national
planning criteria contained elsewhere in
33 CFR part 155 are inappropriate, and
explains who in the Coast Guard will
grant or deny the request. The proposed
requirements for alternative planning
criteria have been derived from
§ 155.1065(f) and expanded to identify

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essential elements of the request, and to
require the endorsement (either
favorable or unfavorable) of the COTP
with jurisdiction over the geographic
areas at issue before the request may be
considered by the Coast Guard’s Office
of Vessel Activities (CG–543).
There are numerous remote areas in
Alaska, as well as Guam and American
Samoa, where it is noted that the level
of required response resources do not
meet the national planning
requirements even for tank vessels
under subpart D. It is anticipated that
nontank vessels that transit or plan to
transit these remote areas may have
initial difficulty in meeting the
proposed requirements of subpart J.
Once the final regulations are
implemented for subpart J, it is expected
that any vessel owner or operator
required, but unable, to meet the
requirements due to this reason will
meet with the cognizant Coast Guard
Captain of the Port to discuss what
resources are available and what
alternative planning and mitigation
strategies can be put in place to receive
authorization for operations in these
areas. We encourage Area [Planning]
Committees, established under the
National Contingency Plan (40 CFR
300), to address this issue and facilitate
solutions to include recommending
acceptable alternative planning criteria
for nontank vessel response plan
approval and building up required
response resources in applicable areas.
Section 155.5070 Procedures for Plan
Review, Revision, and Amendment
This section of the proposed rule
would require nontank vessel owners or
operators to review their response plans
annually to ensure that the plan
information is current. This review must
occur within one month of the
anniversary date of Coast Guard
approval of the plan. Also, a vessel
owner or operator would be required to
submit a letter to Coast Guard certifying
that they have conducted this review.
These proposed requirements in
§ 155.5070 are derived from § 155.1070
to ensure consistency with the
procedures for tank vessel response plan
review, revision, and amendment
procedures, except for the following. To
be consistent with plan review and
revision requirements in 33 CFR
151.28(a), the owner or operator of a
nontank vessel must submit a letter to
the Coast Guard certifying that the
annual review has been completed. This
certification is necessary even if no
changes have occurred.
We propose the use of a Coast Guard
form entitled ‘‘Application for
Approval/Revision of Vessel Pollution

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Response Plans’’ (CG–6083) as an
optional alternative to a cover letter for
a plan annual review. When submitted
properly, this application form would
satisfy the annual review requirements
found in proposed § 155.5070.
Submissions would be sent to the Coast
Guard’s Office of Vessel Activities, and
directed to the attention of that Office’s
Vessel Response Plan Review Team.

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Section 155.5075 Appeal Procedures
Consistent with tank vessel
procedures in §§ 155.1065(h) and
155.1070(f), we propose allowing a
nontank vessel owner or operator who
disagrees with a deficiency
determination to submit a petition for
reconsideration to the Coast Guard and
to appeal a Coast Guard decision not to
approve the owner or operator’s NTVRP.
A petition for reconsideration of a
deficiency determination would need to
be filed within the period required for
compliance or within 5 days from
receipt of the notice of deficiency
determination to the owner or operator,
whichever date occurs first. For 21 days
following notification that a NTVRP is
not approved, the vessel owner or
operator would be allowed to appeal
that determination to the Assistant
Commandant for Marine Safety,
Security, and Stewardship.
Appendix B of 33 CFR 155
Appendix B of 33 CFR part 155
describes the procedures for identifying
response resources to meet VRP
requirements of subparts D, E, F, and G.
We propose revising Appendix B so that
it also addresses our proposed addition
of NTVRP regulations in subpart J.
In Appendix B paragraphs 1.1, 2.6,
and 2.7, which describe the purpose of
the Appendix and describe equipment
operability and readiness, we simply
propose adding a reference to subpart J.
In paragraph 4.2.2 of Appendix B, we
propose changing the 10 percent
measure from ‘‘total cargo oil capacity’’
to ‘‘total oil capacity’’ in reference to
maximum most probable discharge.
Section 3 of Appendix B deals with
determining response resources
required for the AMPD. In paragraph
3.1, after the words ‘‘vessel owner or
operator,’’ we propose adding the words
‘‘as applicable under the regulations
prescribed in this part.’’ Also, after the
reference to a vessel carrying oil as a
primary cargo, we propose adding ‘‘or a
nontank vessel carrying oil as cargo as
required by subpart J.’’
Section 5 of Appendix B deals with
determining response resources
required for the WCD to the maximum
extent practicable. In paragraphs 5.1,
and 5.3 through 5.7, after the words

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‘‘vessel owner or operator,’’ we propose
adding the words ‘‘as applicable under
the regulations prescribed in this part.’’
In paragraph 5.2, we propose to insert
a reference to § 155.5050(g) when
identifying the applicable tier for
response time.
Section 7 of Appendix B describes
determining the WCD planning
volumes. In paragraphs 7.1, 7.2, and
7.2.4, after the words ‘‘vessel owner or
operator,’’ we propose inserting the
words ‘‘as applicable under the
regulations prescribed in this part.’’ In
paragraph 7.2.3, we propose inserting a
clarifying statement that for nontank
vessels, only Tier 1 is to be used with
the oil recovery resource mobilization
factor in determining the total on-water
oil recovery capacity that must be
identified or contracted for to arrive on
scene within the applicable time for
each response tier. In paragraph 7.2.4,
we propose deleting a sentence on
exceeding the 1993 planning volume
cap that is no longer needed. In
paragraph 7.3.1, we propose changing
‘‘total volume of oil cargo carried’’ to
‘‘total volume of oil carried.’’
Section 8 of Appendix B provides
guidance on determining the availability
of high-rate response methods. In
paragraph 8.1.1, after the words ‘‘vessel
owner or operator,’’ we propose adding
the words ‘‘as applicable under the
regulations prescribed in this part.’’
Appendix C of 33 CFR 155
Appendix C of 33 CFR part 155
provides guidance to owners and
operators of vessels on the development
of the training portions of their response
plans. We propose revising Appendix C
so that it also addresses our proposed
addition of NTVRP regulations in
subpart J.
In Appendix C, section 2, the
elements-to-be-addressed section, we
propose:
• Expanding organizational activities
in paragraph 2.2.3.1 from ‘‘cargo
transfers’’ to ‘‘fuel and cargo transfers’’
in reference to procedures to mitigate or
prevent any discharge or a substantial
threat of a discharge of oil;
• Adding a suspected fuel tank leak
in paragraph 2.2.14 to the list of items
for which action must be taken; and
• Changing information on ‘‘cargoes
handled’’ to information on ‘‘oil
handled’’ in paragraph 2.2.15.
For paragraphs within 2.2.15, we
propose adding ‘‘(including oil carried
as fuel)’’ to paragraph 2.2.15.1 in
reference to cargo material safety data
sheets; and in reference to chemical
properties, special handling procedures,
health and safety hazards, and spill and
firefighting procedures, we propose

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revising ‘‘cargo’’ in paragraphs 2.2.15.2
through 2.2.15.5 to ‘‘all oils carried as
fuel or cargo.’’
33 CFR 160.206 Information Required
in an NOA
The proposed rule would amend 33
CFR part 160 by adding a requirement
for vessel owners or operators to include
the USCG vessel response plan control
number in the notice of arrival
submission. As noted in Section III.F,
the VRP control number would better
enable the Coast Guard to determine if
the vessel has an authorized GSA for
each of the USCG Captain of the Port
Zones through which the vessel intends
to transit. VRP GSA requirements are
contained in proposed 33 CFR
155.5035(i) for nontank vessels, and in
33 CFR 155.1035(i), 155.1040(j), and
155.1045(i) for vessels subject to subpart
D. For those vessels that are covered by
more than one response plan,
submission of the VRP control number
will notify the Coast Guard as to which
plan they are operating under.
V. Incorporation by Reference
Material proposed for incorporation
by reference appears in § 155.5035. You
may inspect this material at U.S. Coast
Guard Headquarters where indicated
under ADDRESSES. Copies of the material
are available from the sources listed in
§ 155.140.
Before publishing a binding rule, we
will submit this material to the Director
of the Federal Register for approval of
the incorporation by reference.
VI. Regulatory Analyses
We developed this proposed rule after
considering numerous statutes and
executive orders related to rulemaking.
Below we summarize our analyses
based on 13 of these statutes or
executive orders.
A. Executive Order 12866
This proposed rule is not a significant
regulatory action under section 3(f) of
Executive Order 12866, Regulatory
Planning and Review, and does not
require an assessment of potential costs
and benefits under section 6(a)(3) of that
Order. OMB has not reviewed it under
that Order.
A combined Regulatory Analysis and
an Initial Regulatory Flexibility
Analysis is available in the docket
where indicated under the ‘‘Public
Participation and Request for
Comments’’ section of this preamble. A
summary of the analysis follows:
The proposed rule would implement
the statutory requirements in 33 U.S.C.
1321(j)(5) for a U.S. and foreign flag
vessel owner or operator to prepare and

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submit an oil spill response plan to the
Coast Guard. The type of vessels
affected would be self-propelled,
nontank vessels of 400 tons or greater as
measured under the convention
measurement system or regulatory
measurement system, which operate on
the navigable waters of the U.S., and
carries oil of any kind as fuel for main
propulsion.
The proposed rule would specify the
content of a response plan, including
the requirement to plan for a response
to a worst-case discharge and a
substantial threat of such a discharge.
The proposed rule would also specify
the procedures for submitting a plan to
the Coast Guard.
There are four cost elements
associated with this proposed rule: (1)
The cost for nontank vessel plan
development, maintenance, and
submission (2) the cost for a nontank
vessel owner or planholder to obtain the
service of an Oil Spill Response
Organization (OSRO), (3) the cost for a
nontank vessel owner or planholder to
contract with a Qualified Individual (QI)
along with a Spill Management Team

(SMT), and (4) the cost for training and
exercises.
We base the cost estimates for plan
development on information contained
in an OMB-approved collection of
information (OMB 1625–0066). We base
the cost estimates associated with
exercises on a combination of
information from the Bureau of Labor
Statistics (BLS), the General Services
Administration, the OMB-approved
collection of information, publicly
available information from OSRO
contractors, and other industry
information. The OSRO and QI/SMT
costs are based upon information that
we received from contacting plan
preparers.
We estimate this proposed rule would
affect about 2,951 U.S. flag vessels and
1,228 associated planholders. We
estimate the proposed rule would also
affect about 9,264 foreign flag vessels
and about 1,544 associated planholders.
We present the costs of this proposed
rule in 2008 dollars and discount these
costs to their present value (PV) over a
10-year period of analysis, 2009–2018,
using 7 and 3 percent discount rates. We

also estimate annualized costs of this
proposed rule over the same 10-year
period of analysis. We estimate the total
10-year PV cost of this proposed rule to
U.S. flag nontank vessel owners and
operators to be about $111.4 million at
a 7 percent discount rate and $134.8
million at a 3 percent discount rate. We
found the training and exercise
requirements to be the most costly
element, or over 90 percent of the total
discounted cost of the proposed rule for
vessel owners. We estimate the total
U.S. annualized cost of this proposed
rule over the 10-year period of analysis
to be about $15.8 million at both
discount rates.
We estimate the total 10-year PV cost
of this proposed rule to foreign flag
nontank vessels owners and operators to
be about $151.6 million at a 7 percent
discount rate and $183.6 million at a 3
percent discount rate. We estimate
annualized costs of this proposed rule to
foreign flag nontank vessel owners and
operators over the 10-year period of
analysis to be about $21.6 million at
both discount rates. See Table 1 below.

TABLE 1—SUMMARY OF TOTAL 10-YEAR DISCOUNTED COSTS OF THE PROPOSED RULE
[2009–2018, 7 and 3 Percent discount rates, $Millions]
Discount rates
Cost item

7 Percent

U.S. vessel costs:
Plan Development ........................................................................................................................................
Contracted OSRO Service ...........................................................................................................................
QI/SMT .........................................................................................................................................................
Training, Drilling, and Exercises ...................................................................................................................
Total U.S. Vessel Cost ..........................................................................................................................
Total U.S. Annualized Cost ...................................................................................................................
Foreign vessel costs:
Plan Development ........................................................................................................................................
Contracted OSRO Service ...........................................................................................................................
QI/SMT .........................................................................................................................................................
Training, Drilling, and Exercises ...................................................................................................................
Total Foreign Vessel Cost .....................................................................................................................
Total Foreign Annualized Cost ..............................................................................................................
Total Cost of Proposed Rule .................................................................................................................

3 Percent

$5.3
0.46
5.7
99.9
111.4
15.8

$6.0
0.56
6.9
121.4
134.8
15.8

6.7
1.5
17.8
125.7
151.6
21.6
263.0

7.5
1.8
21.7
152.6
183.6
21.6
318.4

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Note: Totals may not sum due to rounding.

We estimate the total cost of the
proposed rule to both the U.S. and
foreign fleets over the 10-year period of
analysis to be $263.0 or $318.4 million
at 7 and 3 percent discount rates,
respectively, with an annualized cost of
about $37.4 million at both discount
rates. We expect this proposed rule to
provide quantifiable benefits in the form
of barrels of oil not spilled into the
water in addition to qualitative benefits,
which include improved preparedness
and reaction to an incident, including a
worst-case discharge, and improved

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effectiveness of onboard and shore-side
response activities.
We based quantifiable benefits on a
review of marine casualty cases from
our Marine Information for Safety and
Law Enforcement (MISLE) database for
the period 2002–2006 in order to obtain
casualty reports involving selfpropelled, nontank vessels of 400 gross
tons or greater that operated on the
navigable waters of the U.S. and that
carried oil of any kind as fuel for main
propulsion.
We estimate the proposed rule would
prevent between 2,014 and 2,446 barrels

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of oil from being spilled into the water
during the 10-year period of analysis,
2009–2018. See the regulatory analysis
in the docket for further detail.
B. Small Entities
Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act
(5 U.S.C. 601–612), we have considered
whether this proposed rule would have
a significant economic impact on a
substantial number of small entities.
The term ‘‘small entities’’ comprises
small businesses, not-for-profit
organizations that are independently
owned and operated and are not

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dominant in their fields, and
governmental jurisdictions with
populations of less than 50,000.
We estimate that this proposed rule
would affect about 1,228 U.S.
companies that own approximately
2,951 nontank vessels identified for this
proposed rule. We researched all 1,228
companies and found company-specific
information on 640 of them (about 52
percent). From our analysis, we
determined that 376 (about 59 percent)
entities are small entities based on the
Small Business Administration (SBA)
size criteria of annual revenues and
employment data. These 376 small
entities own 769 vessels or about two
vessels per owner.
Additionally, we found the remaining
588 of the 1,228 companies that we
researched lacked company data such as
revenues and employee size, which
precluded us from using those
companies in our analysis. We assume
that a majority of these 588 companies
may be small entities.
Using publicly available and
proprietary data on owner revenue, we
estimated the initial and annual impact
to small entities as a percentage of
annual revenue. We then determined
the initial and annual cost impact of this
proposed rule on small entities.
We found that the first year cost of the
proposed rule would have a one percent
or less impact on 50 percent of the small
entities that we analyzed. We found that
the first year cost of the proposed rule
would have a 3 percent or less impact
on 68 percent of the small entities that
we analyzed.
We found that the annual cost of the
proposed rule would have a 1 percent
or less impact on 55 percent of the small
entities that we analyzed. We found that
the annual cost of the proposed rule
would have a 3 percent or less impact
on 73 percent of the small entities that
we analyzed.
We are interested in the potential
direct impacts of this proposed rule on
small entities and we request public
comment on these potential direct
impacts. If you think that your business,
organization, or governmental
jurisdiction qualifies as a small entity
and that this rule would have a
significant economic impact on it,
please submit a comment to the Docket
Management Facility at the address
under ADDRESSES. In your comment,
explain why you think it qualifies and
how and to what degree this rule would
economically affect it.
C. Assistance for Small Entities
Under section 213(a) of the Small
Business Regulatory Enforcement
Fairness Act of 1996 (Pub. L. 104–121),

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we want to assist small entities in
understanding this proposed rule so that
they can better evaluate its effects on
them and participate in the rulemaking.
If the proposed rule would affect your
small business, organization, or
governmental jurisdiction and you have
questions concerning its provisions or
options for compliance, please consult
Lieutenant Jarrod DeWitz at (202) 372–
1219 or Jarrod.M.DeWitz@uscg.mil. The
Coast Guard will not retaliate against
small entities that question or complain
about this rule or any policy or action
of the Coast Guard.
Small businesses may send comments
on the actions of Federal employees
who enforce, or otherwise determine
compliance with, Federal regulations to
the Small Business and Agriculture
Regulatory Enforcement Ombudsman
and the Regional Small Business
Regulatory Fairness Boards. The
Ombudsman evaluates these actions
annually and rates each agency’s
responsiveness to small business. If you
wish to comment on actions by
employees of the Coast Guard, call
1–888–REG–FAIR (1–888–734–3247).
D. Collection of Information
This proposed rule would call for a
collection of information under the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44
U.S.C. 3501–3520). As defined in 5 CFR
1320.3(c), ‘‘collection of information’’
comprises reporting, recordkeeping,
monitoring, posting, labeling, and other,
similar actions. The title and
description of the information
collections, a description of those who
must collect the information, and an
estimate of the total annual burden
follow. The estimate covers the time for
reviewing instructions, searching
existing sources of data, gathering and
maintaining the data needed, and
completing and reviewing the
collection.
This rulemaking modifies two
existing OMB-approved collections of
information, 1625–0066 and 1625–0100.
Details are provided below.
OMB Control Number: 1625–0066.
Title: Vessel and Facility Response
Plans (Domestic and Int’l), and
Additional Response Requirements for
Prince William Sound, Alaska.
Summary of the Collection of
Information: A nontank vessel owner or
operator would need to prepare and
submit to the Coast Guard a nontank
vessel response plan in accordance with
proposed 33 CFR part 155, subpart J.
The content of the response plan would
include the requirement to plan for
responding to a worst case discharge
and a substantial threat of such a
discharge. Additionally, submissions of

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international SOPEPs for certain U.S.
flag nontank and tank vessels will
require alignment with updated SOPEP
rules.
Need for Information: The
information is necessary to show
evidence that planholders have properly
planned to prevent or mitigate oil
outflow and to provide information to
the Coast Guard for its use in emergency
response.
Proposed Use of Information: The
Coast Guard will use the information to
determine whether a nontank vessel
response plan meets the requirements.
Description of the Respondents: The
respondents are nontank vessel
response planholders and SOPEP
planholders.
Number of Respondents: The existing
OMB-approved number of respondents
is 9,834. This proposed rule would
increase that number by 772
respondents. The total number of
respondents would be 10,606.
Frequency of Response: The existing
OMB-approved number of responses is
32,675. This proposed rule would
increase that number by 1,453
responses.
Burden of Response: The existing
OMB-approved burden of response is a
range of 3 to 40 hours per NTVRP
activity (i.e., initial plan development,
plan revision, annual recordkeeping,
5-year resubmission).
Estimate of Total Annual Burden: The
existing OMB-approved total annual
burden is 220,559 hours. This proposed
rule would increase that number by
14,415 hours.
OMB Control Number: 1625–0100.
Title: Advance Notice of Vessel
Arrival.
Summary of the Collection of
Information: The Coast Guard requires
pre-arrival notices from certain vessels
entering a port or place of the United
States. This proposed rule would add
one new data element (the VRP control
number) to the 40 data elements that are
currently required by 33 CFR part 160.
Need for Information: In general, the
Coast Guard uses notice of arrival
information to ensure port safety and
security, and to ensure the
uninterrupted flow of commerce. In
particular, the addition of the VRP
control number would enable the Coast
Guard to determine if the vessel has an
authorized GSA for each COTP zone
through which the vessel intends to
transit.
Proposed Use of Information: This
information is required to control vessel
traffic, develop contingency plans, and
enforce regulations.
Description of the Respondents:
Respondents are the owner, agent,

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master, operator, or person in charge of
a vessel that arrives at a port or place
of the United States.
Number of Respondents: The existing
OMB-approved number of respondents
is 9,206. This proposed rule would not
change that number. The total number
of respondents would remain 9,206.
Frequency of Response: The existing
OMB-approved number of responses is
78,538. This proposed rule would not
change that number. The total number
of responses would remain 78,538.
Burden of Response: The existing
OMB-approved burden of response is
approximately 2.5 hours (150 minutes)
per response. The additional burden
imposed by this proposed rule is
estimated to be so minimal that it does
not merit changing the approved
collection. For this collection, we
propose to add one data element, the
VRP control number, to the currently
required 40 data elements for the notice
of arrival. The VRP control number is a
‘‘static’’ data element issued once every
5 years or longer, while some of the 40
other data elements change with each
voyage (such as last port of call, cargo,
or crew list). Therefore, we believe the
150-minute burden currently approved
for this collection more than adequately
covers the post rulemaking 41 data
elements and the burden of response
should remain unchanged.
Estimate of Total Annual Burden: The
existing OMB-approved total annual
burden is 200,039 hours. Because the
additional burden imposed by this
proposed rule is estimated to be so
minimal, it does not merit changing the
approved annual burden. The estimated
total annual burden would remain
200,039 hours.
In addition to this rulemaking, COI
1625–0066 is being revised by two other
Coast Guard rulemakings. These
rulemakings are: (1) Salvage and Marine
Firefighting Requirements; Vessel
Response Plans for Oil [Docket No.
USCG–1998–3417; RIN 1625–AA19];
and (2) Vessel and Facility Response
Plans for Oil: 2003 Removal Equipment
Requirements and Alternative
Technology Revisions [Docket No.
USCG–2001–8661; RIN 1625–AA26].
Once these rulemakings are finalized,
the hour burden for 1625–0066 will
differ from the figures noted above. See
the COI preamble section of each
rulemaking for details on how the hour
burden will differ.
In addition to this rulemaking, COI
1625–0100 is being revised by two other
Coast Guard rulemakings. These
rulemakings are: (1) Vessel
Requirements for Notices of Arrival and
Departure, and Automatic Identification
System [Docket No. USCG–2005–21869;

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RIN 1625–AA99]; and (2) Notification of
Arrival in U.S. Ports; Certain Dangerous
Cargoes; Electronic Submission [Docket
No. USCG–2004–19963; RIN 1625–
AA93]. Once these rulemakings are
finalized, the hour burden for 1625–
0100 will differ from the figures noted
above. See the COI preamble section of
each rulemaking for details on how the
hour burden will differ.
As required by the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C.
3507(d)), we have submitted a copy of
this proposed rule to the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) for its
review of the collection of information.
We ask for public comment on the
proposed collection of information to
help us determine how useful the
information is; whether it can help us
perform our functions better; whether it
is readily available elsewhere; how
accurate our estimate of the burden of
collection is; how valid our methods for
determining burden are; how we can
improve the quality, usefulness, and
clarity of the information; and how we
can minimize the burden of collection.
If you submit comments on the
collection of information, submit them
both to OMB and to the Docket
Management Facility where indicated
under ADDRESSES, by the date under
DATES.
You need not respond to a collection
of information unless it displays a
currently valid control number from
OMB. Before the Coast Guard could
enforce the collection of information
requirements in this proposed rule,
OMB would need to approve the Coast
Guard’s request to collect this
information.
E. Federalism
A rule has implications for federalism
under Executive Order 13132,
Federalism, if it has a substantial direct
effect on State or local governments and
would either preempt State law or
impose a substantial direct cost of
compliance on them. It is well settled
that States may not regulate in
categories reserved for regulation by the
Coast Guard. It is also well settled, that
all of the categories covered in 46 U.S.C.
3306, 3703, 7101, or 8101 (design,
construction, alteration, repair,
maintenance, operation, equipping,
personnel qualification, and manning of
vessels), as well as casualty reporting
and any other category in which
Congress intended the Coast Guard to be
the sole source of government-imposed
vessel obligations, are within the field
foreclosed from regulation by the States.
(See the decision of the Supreme Court
in the consolidated cases of United

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States v. Locke and Intertanko v. Locke,
529 U.S. 89, 120 S.Ct. 1135 (2000)).
This NPRM describes the proposed
standards to which nontank vessel
owners and operators would adhere
when preparing and submitting plans
for responding to a discharge of oil from
their vessels. We have drafted this
proposed rule to ensure that, to the
extent practicable, it is consistent with
any applicable State-mandated response
plan in effect on August 9, 2004. To that
end, we have conducted a search of
State laws addressing NTVRPs and
conclude that no State law would be
preempted when this rule is made final.
That said, we have found that a few
State laws authorize nontank vessel
owners and operators to, among other
options, contract with intermediaries as
a method of complying with State laws
that require nontank vessel owners or
operators to ensure the availability of oil
spill removal organization by contract or
other approved means. Those
intermediaries, generally, do not own
the oil spill removal resources and
usually contract with third-party
companies to fulfill the State
requirement. Our proposed rule does
not allow for the third-party
intermediary option, because we
interpret the OPA 90 to require a direct
contractual relationship between vessel
owners or operators and the
organization owning the oil spill
removal organization. Because the
vessel owner or operator may comply
with both State law and Federal law on
this topic so long as, among other
things, there is a direct contractual
relationship between the vessel owner
or operator and the oil spill removal
organization, we believe this proposed
rule will not preempt the various State
laws on this topic. However, to ensure
that those States that may have an
interest in this rulemaking are provided
with adequate opportunity to comment
upon potential federalism issues, we
will provide separate notice of this
NPRM to the States.
F. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act
The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act
of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1531–1538) requires
Federal agencies to assess the effects of
their discretionary regulatory actions. In
particular, the Act addresses actions
that may result in the expenditure by a
State, local, or tribal government, in the
aggregate, or by the private sector of
$100,000,000 or more in any one year.
Though this proposed rule would not
result in such an expenditure, we do
discuss the effects of this rule elsewhere
in this preamble.

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Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 167 / Monday, August 31, 2009 / Proposed Rules
G. Taking of Private Property

L. Technical Standards

This proposed rule would not effect a
taking of private property or otherwise
have taking implications under
Executive Order 12630, Governmental
Actions and Interference with
Constitutionally Protected Property
Rights.

The National Technology Transfer
and Advancement Act (NTTAA) (15
U.S.C. 272 note) directs agencies to use
voluntary consensus standards in their
regulatory activities unless the agency
provides Congress, through the Office of
Management and Budget, with an
explanation of why using these
standards would be inconsistent with
applicable law or otherwise impractical.
Voluntary consensus standards are
technical standards (e.g., specifications
of materials, performance, design, or
operation; test methods; sampling
procedures; and related management
systems practices) that are developed or
adopted by voluntary consensus
standards bodies.
This proposed rule uses the following
voluntary consensus standards:
• IMO Resolution A.741(18),
International Management Code for the
Safe Operation of Ships and for
Pollution Prevention (International
Safety Management (ISM) Code),
November 4, 1993.
• IMO Resolution A.851(20), General
Principles for Ship Reporting Systems
and Ship Reporting Requirements,
Including Guidelines for Reporting
Incidents Involving Dangerous Goods,
Harmful Substances and/or Marine
Pollutants, November 27, 1997.
• IMO Resolution MSC.104(73),
Adoption of Amendments to the
International Safety Management (ISM)
Code, December 5, 2000.
• Oil Companies International Marine
Forum’s Ship to Ship Transfer Guide
(Petroleum), Fourth Edition 2005. The
proposed sections that reference these
standards and the locations where these
standards are available are listed in
§ 155.140.

H. Civil Justice Reform
This proposed rule meets applicable
standards in sections 3(a) and 3(b)(2) of
Executive Order 12988, Civil Justice
Reform, to minimize litigation,
eliminate ambiguity, and reduce
burden.
I. Protection of Children
We have analyzed this proposed rule
under Executive Order 13045,
Protection of Children from
Environmental Health Risks and Safety
Risks. This rule is not an economically
significant rule and would not create an
environmental risk to health or risk to
safety that might disproportionately
affect children.
J. Indian Tribal Governments
We do not expect this proposed rule
to have tribal implications under
Executive Order 13175, Consultation
and Coordination with Indian Tribal
Governments, because we do not expect
it to have a substantial direct effect on
one or more Indian tribes, on the
relationship between the Federal
Government and Indian tribes, or on the
distribution of power and
responsibilities between the Federal
Government and Indian tribes. We
invite your comments on this
assessment and if tribal implications are
identified during the comment period
we will undertake appropriate
consultations with the affected Indian
tribal officials.

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K. Energy Effects
We have analyzed this proposed rule
under Executive Order 13211, Actions
Concerning Regulations That
Significantly Affect Energy Supply,
Distribution, or Use. We have
determined that it is not a ‘‘significant
energy action’’ under that order because
it is not a ‘‘significant regulatory action’’
under Executive Order 12866 and is not
likely to have a significant adverse effect
on the supply, distribution, or use of
energy. The Administrator of the Office
of Information and Regulatory Affairs
has not designated it as a significant
energy action. Therefore, it does not
require a Statement of Energy Effects
under Executive Order 13211.

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significant environmental impact from
this proposed rule.
List of Subjects
33 CFR Part 151
Administrative practice and
procedure, Oil pollution, Penalties,
Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements, Water pollution control.
33 CFR Part 155
Administrative practice and
procedure, Alaska, Hazardous
substances, Oil pollution, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements.
33 CFR Part 160
Administrative practice and
procedure, Harbors, Hazardous
materials transportation, Marine safety,
Navigation (water), Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements, Vessels,
Waterways.
For the reasons discussed in the
preamble, the Coast Guard proposes to
amend 33 CFR parts 151, 155, and 160
as follows:
PART 151—VESSELS CARRYING OIL,
NOXIOUS LIQUID SUBSTANCES,
GARBAGE, MUNICIPAL OR
COMMERCIAL WASTE, AND BALLAST
WATER
1. The authority citation for part 151
continues to read as follows:
Authority: 33 U.S.C. 1321, 1903, 1908; 46
U.S.C. 6101; Pub. L. 104–227 (110 Stat.
3034); E.O. 12777, 3 CFR, 1991 Comp. p. 351;
Department of Homeland Security Delegation
No. 0170.1.

2. In § 151.09, add a note to paragraph
(c), remove the note following paragraph
(e), and revise paragraph (d) to read as
follows:

M. Environment

§ 151.09

We have analyzed this proposed rule
under Commandant Instruction
M16475.lD and Department of
Homeland Security Management
Directive 023–01, which guide the Coast
Guard in complying with the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969
(NEPA) (42 U.S.C. 4321–4370f), and
have made a preliminary determination
that, under the Commandant
Instruction, this action is not likely to
have a significant effect on the human
environment. A preliminary
environmental analysis checklist
supporting this preliminary
determination is available in the docket
where indicated under the ‘‘Public
Participation and Request for
Comments’’ section of this preamble.
We seek any comments or information
that may lead to the discovery of a

*

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Applicability.

*
*
*
*
(c) * * *
Note to § 151.09(c): The term
‘‘internal waters’’ is defined in § 2.24 of
this chapter.
(d) Sections 151.26 through 151.28—
(1) Do not apply to—
(i) The ships specified in paragraph
(b) of this section;
(ii) Any barge or other ship which is
constructed or operated in such a
manner that no oil in any form can be
carried aboard.
(2) Are considered to be met if a U.S.
flag nontank vessel holds a USCGapproved nontank vessel response plan
and provides evidence of compliance
with 33 CFR part 155, subpart J
requirements.
*
*
*
*
*
3. In § 151.26—

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Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 167 / Monday, August 31, 2009 / Proposed Rules

a. In paragraph (b)(1)(i), remove
‘‘Regulation 26’’ and add ‘‘Regulation
37’’ in its place; and add the words ‘‘as
amended by Resolution MEPC.86(44)’’
immediately after ‘‘MEPC.54(32))’’;
b. Revise paragraph (b)(2) to read as
set out below;
c. Revise paragraphs (b)(3)(i)(A) and
(b)(3)(ii) introductory text to read as set
out below;
d. Redesignate the introductory text of
paragraph (b)(3)(iii)(A) as
(b)(3)(iii)(A)(1), and add paragraphs
(b)(3)(iii)(A)(2) and (b)(3)(iii)(D) to read
as set out below;
e. Revise the introductory text of
paragraph (b)(4)(i) and all of paragraph
(b)(4)(ii) to read as set out below;
f. Revise paragraph (b)(4)(iii)(B), and
add new paragraph (b)(4)(iii)(D) and
(b)(4)(iii)(E) to read as set out below;
g. Revise paragraph (b)(5)(i) to read as
set out below;
h. Remove paragraph (b)(7)(i); and
i. Redesignate paragraphs (b)(7)(ii)
through (b)(7)(vi) as (b)(7)(i) through
(b)(7)(v).
§ 151.26 Shipboard oil pollution
emergency plans.

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*

*
*
*
*
(b) * * *
(2) Preamble. The plan must be
realistic, practical, and easy to use, and
the Preamble section of the plan must
reflect these three features of the plan.
The use of flowcharts, checklists, and
appendices within the plan will aid in
addressing this requirement. This
section must contain an explanation of
the purpose and use of the plan and
indicate how the shipboard plan relates
to other shore-based plans.
Additionally, the Preamble section of
the plan must clearly recognize coastal
States’ rights to approve oil pollution
response in their waters by stating the
following: ‘‘Without interfering with
shipowner’s liability, some coastal
States consider that it is their
responsibility to define techniques and
means to be taken against an oil
pollution incident and approve such
operations that might cause further
pollution, i.e., lightening. States are
entitled to do so under the International
Convention relating to Intervention on
the High Seas in Cases of Oil Pollution
Casualties, 1969 (Intervention
Convention).’’
*
*
*
*
*
(3) * * *
(i) * * *
(A) A discharge of oil above the
permitted level for any reason,
including those for the purpose of
securing the safety of the ship or saving
life at sea;
*
*
*
*
*

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(ii) Information required. This section
of the plan must include a notification
form, such as the one depicted in Table
151.26(b)(3)(ii), that includes all the
data elements required in Resolution
A.851(20) and contains information to
be provided in the initial and follow-up
notifications. The official number of the
vessel and current conditions of the
vessel are to be included. In addition,
the initial notification should include as
much of the information on the form as
possible, and supplemental information,
as appropriate. However, the initial
notification must not be delayed
pending collection of all information.
Copies of the form must be placed at the
location(s) on the ship from which
notification may be made.
*
*
*
*
*
(iii) * * *
(A) * * *
(2) In order to expedite response and
minimize damage from a pollution
incident, it is essential that appropriate
coastal States should be notified
without delay. This process begins with
the initial report required by article 8
and Protocol I of MARPOL 73/78.
*
*
*
*
*
(D) The plan must clearly specify who
will be responsible for informing the
necessary parties from the coastal State
contacts, the port contacts, and the ship
interest contacts.
(4) * * *
(i) Operational spills: The plan must
outline procedures for safe removal of
oil spilled and contained on deck. The
plan must also provide guidance to
ensure proper disposal of recovered oil
and cleanup materials;
*
*
*
*
*
(ii) Spills resulting from casualties:
Casualties should be treated in the plan
as a separate section. The plan should
include various checklists or other
means that will ensure the master
considers all appropriate factors when
addressing the specific casualty
(Reference is made here to the
International Safety Management (ISM)
Code, Section 8.). These checklists must
be tailored to the specific ship and to
the specific product or product types. In
addition to the checklists, specific
personnel assignments for anticipated
tasks must be identified. Reference to
existing fire control plans and muster
lists is sufficient to identify personnel
responsibilities. The following are
examples of casualties that must be
considered:
(A) Grounding;
(B) Fire or explosion;
(C) Collision;
(D) Hull failure;
(E) Excessive list;

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(F) Containment system failure;
(G) Submerged/Foundered;
(H) Wrecked/Stranded; and
(I) Hazardous vapor release.
(iii) * * *
(B) Stability and strength
considerations: The plan should provide
the master with detailed guidance to
ensure that great care in casualty
response must be taken to consider
stability and strength when taking
actions to mitigate the spillage of oil or
the free the vessel if aground.
Information for making damage stability
and longitudinal strength assessments,
or contacting classification societies to
acquire such information, should be
included. Where appropriate, the plan
should provide a list of information for
making damage stability and damage
longitudinal strength assessments. The
damage stability information for oil
tankers and offshore oil barges in 33
CFR 155.240 is required to be provided
in the SOPEP; and
*
*
*
*
*
(D) Mitigating activities: The spill
mitigation requirements of 33 CFR
155.1035(c) must be met for tankships,
the requirements of 33 CFR 155.1040(c)
must be met for unmanned vessels, and
the requirements of 33 CFR 155.5035(c)
must be met for nontank vessels.
Additionally, the following personnel
safety mitigation strategies must be
addressed for all personnel involved:
(1) Assessment and monitoring
activities;
(2) Personnel protection issues;
(3) Protective equipment;
(4) Threats to health and safety;
(5) Containment and other response
techniques;
(6) Isolation procedures;
(7) Decontamination of personnel; and
(8) Disposal of removed oil and cleanup materials; and
(E) Drawings and ship-specific details:
Supporting plans, drawings, and shipspecific details such as a layout of a
general arrangement plan, midship
section, lines or tables of offsets, and
tank tables must be included with the
plan. The plan shall show where current
cargo, bunker or ballast information,
including quantities and specifications,
are available.
(5) National and Local Coordination.
(i) This section of the plan must contain
information to assist the master in
initiating action by the coastal State,
local government, or other involved
parties. This information must include
guidance to assist the master with
organizing a response to the incident,
should a response not be organized by
the shore authorities. Detailed
information for specific areas may be

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Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 167 / Monday, August 31, 2009 / Proposed Rules
included as appendices to the plan. See
33 CFR 151.26(b)(2) (Preamble)
regarding a ship owner’s responsibility
to comply with individual state
requirements for oil spill response.
*
*
*
*
*
4. In § 151.27,
a. Revise paragraphs (e) and (f);
b. Add paragraph (g) to read as set out
below.
§ 151.27

*
*
*
*
(e) If the Coast Guard determines that
the plan meets the requirements of this
section, the Coast Guard will issue an
approval letter. The approval period for
a plan expires 5 years after the approval
date.
(f) If the Coast Guard determines that
the plan does not meet the
requirements, the Coast Guard will
notify the owner or operator of the
plan’s deficiency. The owner or operator
must then resubmit the corrected
portions of the plan, within the time
period specified in the written notice
provided by the Coast Guard.
(g) CG Form ‘‘Application for
Approval/Revision of Vessel Pollution
Response Plans’’ (CG–6083) located at:
https://homeport.uscg.mil/
vrpapplication can be used in lieu of a
cover letter to make initial application
for plan submission and approval.
5. In § 151.28, add paragraph (g) to
read as set out below:
Plan review and revision.

*

*
*
*
*
(g) CG Form ‘‘Application for
Approval/Revision of Vessel Pollution
Response Plans’’ (CG–6083) located at:
https://homeport.uscg.mil/
vrpapplication can be used in lieu of a
cover letter to request the required
resubmission, plan amendment, or
revision and to document the annual
review required by paragraph (a) of this
section.
PART 155—OIL OR HAZARDOUS
MATERIAL POLLUTION PREVENTION
REGULATIONS FOR VESSELS

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6. The authority citation for part 155
is revised to read as follows:
Authority: 3 U.S.C. 301 through 303, 33
U.S.C. 1231, 1321(j); E.O. 11735, 3 CFR,
1971–1975 Comp., p. 793. Sections 155.100
through 155.130, 150.350 through 155.400,
155.430, 155.440, 155.470, 155.1030(j) and
(k), and 155.1065(g) are also issued under 33
U.S.C. 1903(b). Sections 155.480, 155.490,
155.750(e), and 155.775 are also issued under
46 U.S.C. 3703. Section 155.490 also issued
under section 4110(b) of Pub. L. 101–380.
Note: Additional requirements for vessels
carrying oil or hazardous materials are

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7. In § 155.140—
a. Redesignate paragraph (d)(2) as
(d)(4);
b. Add paragraphs (d)(2), (d)(3), and
(d)(5) to read as set out below; and
c. Add paragraph (f)(2) to read as set
out below:
§ 155.140

Plan submission and approval.

*

§ 151.28

contained in 46 CFR parts 30 through 40,
150, 151, and 153.

Incorporation by reference.

*

*
*
*
*
(d) * * *
(2) Resolution A.741(18),
International Management Code for the
Safe Operation of Ships and for
Pollution Prevention (International
Safety Management (ISM) Code),
November 4, 1993, incorporation by
reference approved for § 155.5035.
(3) Resolution A.851(20), General
Principles for Ship Reporting Systems
and Ship Reporting Requirements,
Including Guidelines for Reporting
Incidents Involving Dangerous Goods,
Harmful Substances and/or Marine
Pollutants, November 27, 1997,
incorporation by reference approved for
§ 155.5035.
*
*
*
*
*
(5) Resolution MSC.104(73), Adoption
of Amendments to the International
Safety Management (ISM) Code,
December 5, 2000, incorporation by
reference approved for § 155.5035.
*
*
*
*
*
(f) * * *
(2) Ship to Ship Transfer Guide
(Petroleum), Fourth Edition, 2005,
incorporation by reference approved for
§ 155.5035.
8. In § 155.1015—
a. Revise (c)(7); and
b. Add a note to the end of the section
as set out below.
§ 155.1015

Applicability.

*

*
*
*
*
(c) * * *
(7) Foreign flag vessels engaged in
innocent passage through the territorial
sea or transit passage through a strait
used for international navigation, unless
bound for or departing from a port or
place of the United States;
*
*
*
*
*
Note to § 155.1015: Response plan
requirements for nontank vessels are
found in subpart J of this part.
9. In § 155.1020—
a. Revise the definition for ‘‘vessels
carrying oil as a secondary cargo’’ to
read as set out below; and
b. Add a definition for ‘‘nontank
vessel’’ as set out below.
§ 155.1020

Definitions.

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44989

Nontank vessel means a self-propelled
vessel of 400 gross tons or greater, as
measured under the convention
measurement system in 46 U.S.C. 14302
or the regulatory measurement system of
46 U.S.C. 14502 for vessels not
measured under 46 U.S.C. 14302, that
operates on the navigable waters of the
United States, as defined in 46 U.S.C.
2101(17a), carries oil of any kind as fuel
for main propulsion, and is not a tank
vessel.
*
*
*
*
*
Vessels carrying oil as a secondary
cargo means vessels, other than vessels
that carry oil as a primary cargo, and
nontank vessels, carrying oil in bulk as
cargo or cargo residue pursuant to a
permit issued under 46 CFR 30.01–5,
70.05–30, or 90.05–35; an International
Oil Pollution Prevention (IOPP)
certificate (33 CFR 151.19) or Noxious
Liquid Substance (NLS) certificate
required by 33 CFR 151.33 or 151.35; or
any uninspected vessel that carries oil
in bulk as cargo or cargo residue.
*
*
*
*
*
§ 155.1055

[Amended]

10. In § 155.1055, amend paragraph
(a) by removing the phrase ‘‘§ 155.1035’’
and adding, in its place, the phrase
‘‘§§ 155.1035 or 155.5035’’.
§ 155.1060

[Amended]

11. In § 155.1060, amend paragraph
(a) by removing the phrase ‘‘§§ 155.1035
and 155.1040’’ and adding, in its place,
the phrase ‘‘§§ 155.1035, 155.1040 or
155.5035’’.
12. In § 155.1065—
a. In paragraph (b), remove the phrase
‘‘subparts D, E, F, and G of this part’’
and add, in its place, the phrase
‘‘subparts D, E, F, G, and J of this part,
as applicable,’’.
b. In paragraph (b), add two new
sentences at the end of the paragraph to
read as set out below.
§ 155.1065 Procedures for plan
submission, approval, requests for
acceptance of alternative planning criteria,
and appeal.

*

*
*
*
*
(b) * * * CG Form ‘‘Application for
Approval/Revision of Vessel Pollution
Response Plans’’ (CG–6083) located at:
https://homeport.uscg.mil/vrp
application can be used in lieu of a
cover letter to make initial application
for plan submission and approval.
When submitted properly, this
application form meets the requirement
for a vessel response plan certification
statement as required by this paragraph.
*
*
*
*
*
13. In § 155.1070—

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a. In paragraph (a)(2), add a new
sentence at the end of the paragraph to
read as set out below.
b. Revise paragraph (b) to read as set
out below;
c. Revise paragraphs (c)(1), (c)(2),
(c)(4), (c)(5), and (c)(8) to read as set out
below; and
d. Revise paragraph (d) to read as set
out below:

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§ 155.1070 Procedures for plan review,
revision, amendment, and appeal.

(a) * * *
(2) * * * CG Form ‘‘Application for
Approval/Revision of Vessel Pollution
Response Plans’’ (CG–6083) located at:
https://homeport.uscg.mil/
vrpapplication can be used in lieu of a
cover letter to request the required
resubmission, plan amendment, or
revision and to document the annual
review required by this paragraph (a).
*
*
*
*
*
(b) The owner or operator of a vessel
subject to subparts D, E, F, G, or J of this
part must resubmit the entire plan to the
Coast Guard for approval:
(1) Six months before the end of the
Coast Guard approval period identified
in §§ 155.1065(c) or 155.5065(c); and
(2) Whenever there is a change in the
owner or operator of the vessel, if the
previous owner or operator provided the
certifying statement required by
§ 155.1065(b), then the new owner or
operator must submit a new statement
certifying that the plan continues to
meet the applicable requirements of
subparts D, E, F, G, or J of this part.
(c) * * *
(1) A change in the owner or operator
of the vessel, if that owner or operator
is not the one who provided the
certifying statement required by
§§ 155.1065(b) or 155.5065(b);
(2) A change in the vessel’s operating
area that includes ports or geographic
area(s) not covered by the previously
approved plan. A vessel may operate in
an area not covered in a previously
approved plan upon receipt of written
acknowledgment by the Coast Guard
that a new geographic-specific appendix
has been submitted for approval by the
vessel’s owner or operator and the
certification required in
§§ 155.1025(c)(2) or 155.5023(b) has
been provided;
*
*
*
*
*
(4) A change in the type of oil carried
aboard (oil group) that affects the
required response resources, except as
authorized by the COTP for purposes of
assisting in an oil spill response
activity;
(5) A change in the identification of
the oil spill removal organization(s) or
other response-related resource required

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by §§ 155.1050, 155.1052, 155.1230,
155.2230, 155.5050, or 155.5052 as
appropriate, except an oil spill removal
organization required by §§ 155.1050(d)
or 155.5050(d) that may be changed on
a case-by-case basis for an oil spill
removal organization previously
classified by the Coast Guard, which has
been ensured to be available by contract
or other approved means;
*
*
*
*
*
(8) The addition of a vessel to the
plan. This change must include the
vessel-specific appendix required by
this subpart and the owner or operator’s
certification required in §§ 155.1025(c)
or 155.5023(b); or
*
*
*
*
*
(d) Thirty days in advance of
operation, the owner or operator must
submit any revision or amendments
identified in paragraph (c) of this
section. The certification required in
§§ 155.1065(b) or 155.5065(b) must be
submitted along with the revisions or
amendments.
*
*
*
*
*
14. Add subpart J, consisting of
§§ 155.5010 through 155.5075, to read
as follows:
Subpart J—Nontank Vessel Response
Plans
Sec.
155.5010 Purpose.
155.5012 Deviation from response plan.
155.5015 Applicability.
155.5020 Definitions.
155.5021 Operating restrictions.
155.5023 Interim operating authorization.
155.5025 One-time port waiver.
155.5026 Qualified individual and alternate
qualified individual.
155.5030 Nontank vessel response plan
requirements: general content.
155.5035 Nontank vessel response plan
requirements: specific content.
155.5050 Response plan development and
evaluation criteria for nontank vessels
carrying groups I through IV petroleum
oil.
155.5052 Response plan development and
evaluation criteria for nontank vessels
carrying group V petroleum oil.
155.5055 Training.
155.5060 Exercises.
155.5062 Inspection and maintenance of
response resources.
155.5065 Procedures for plan submission
and approval.
155.5067 Alternative planning criteria.
155.5070 Procedures for plan review,
revision, and amendment.
155.5075 Appeal procedures.

Subpart J—Nontank Vessel Response
Plans
§ 155.5010

Purpose.

The purpose of this subpart is to
establish requirements for oil spill
response plans for nontank vessels. The

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planning criteria in this subpart are
intended for use in nontank vessel oil
spill response plan development and
the identification of resources necessary
to respond to a nontank vessel’s worst
case discharge or substantial threat of
such a discharge. The development of a
nontank vessel response plan prepares
the vessel’s crew and ship management
to respond to an oil spill. The specific
criteria for response resources and their
arrival times are not performance
standards. They are planning criteria
based upon a set of assumptions that
may not exist during an actual oil spill
incident.
§ 155.5012

Deviation from response plan.

The owner or operator of a nontank
vessel required to have a response plan
under this subpart may not deviate from
the approved plan unless the Federal
On-Scene Coordinator determines that
the deviation from the response plan
would provide for a more expeditious or
effective response to the spill or
mitigation of its environmental effects.
§ 155.5015

Applicability.

(a) Except as provided in paragraph
(c) of this section, this subpart applies
to each self-propelled vessel that:
(1) Carries oil of any kind as fuel for
main propulsion;
(2) Is not a tank vessel;
(3) Operates upon the navigable
waters of the United States, as defined
in 46 U.S.C. 2101(17a); and
(4) Is 400 gross tons or more as
measured under the convention
measurement system in 46 U.S.C. 14302
or the regulatory measurement system of
46 U.S.C. 14502 for vessels not
measured under 46 U.S.C. 14302.
(b) For Integrated Tug Barge (ITB)
units that are not certificated as tank
vessels, the tonnage used to determine
applicability of these regulations is the
aggregate tonnage of the ITB
combination, and the oil capacity used
to determine the WCD volume is the
aggregate fuel oil capacity of the ITB
combination.
(c) This subpart does not apply to the
following types of vessels:
(1) Public vessels;
(2) Foreign flag vessels engaged in
innocent passage through the territorial
sea or transit passage through a strait
used for international navigation, unless
bound for or departing from a port or
place of the United States;
(3) Vessels that carry oil as a primary
cargo and are required to submit a
response plan in accordance with 33
CFR part 155, subpart D;
(4) Vessels constructed or operated in
such a manner that no oil in any form
can be carried aboard as fuel for
propulsion or cargo;

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(5) Permanently moored craft; and
(6) Inactive vessels.
Note to § 155.5015: Response plan
requirements for tank vessels are found
in subpart D of this part.

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§ 155.5020

Definitions.

Except as otherwise defined in this
section, the definitions in § 155.110 and
§ 155.1020 apply to this subpart. For the
purposes of this subpart only, the
term—
Cargo means oil, not carried as fuel,
which is carried in bulk, secondary to
the class or type of the vessel and is
transported to, and off-loaded at, a
destination by a vessel. It includes oil or
oil residue carried pursuant to a permit
issued under 46 CFR 30.01–5, 70.05–30,
or 90.05–35; an International Oil
Pollution Prevention (IOPP) certificate
(33 CFR 151.19) or Noxious Liquid
Substance (NLS) certificate required by
33 CFR 151.33 or 151.35; or any
uninspected vessel that carries oil in
bulk as cargo or cargo residue. It does
not include oil that is carried as a
primary cargo.
Contract or other approved means
includes:
(1) A written contractual agreement
between a vessel owner or operator and
a required response resource provider.
The agreement must identify and ensure
the availability of specified personnel
and equipment required under this
subpart within stipulated response
times in the applicable COTP zone or
specified geographic areas;
(2) Certification by the vessel owner
or operator that specified personnel and
equipment required under this subpart
are owned, operated, or under the direct
control of the vessel owner or operator,
and are available within stipulated
response times in the applicable COTP
zone or specified geographic areas;
(3) Active membership with a local or
regional required response resource
provider that has identified specific
personnel and equipment required
under this subpart that are available to
respond to a discharge within stipulated
response times in the COTP zone or
specified geographic areas;
(4) A document that:
(i) Identifies the personnel,
equipment, and services capable of
being provided by the required response
resource provider within stipulated
response times in the COTP zone or
specified geographic areas;
(ii) Sets out the parties’
acknowledgment that the required
response resource provider intends to
commit the resources in the event of a
response;
(iii) Permits the Coast Guard to verify
the availability of the identified

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response resources through tests,
inspections, and exercises; and
(iv) Is referenced in the response plan;
or
(5) With the written consent of the
required response resource provider, the
identification of a required response
resource provider with specified
equipment and personnel that are
available within stipulated response
times in the COTP zone, port area, or
specified geographic area. This
paragraph is ‘‘another approved means’’
for only:
(i) Nontank vessels with a fuel and
cargo oil capacity of less than a 250
barrels for maximum most probable
discharge oil spill removal response
resource requirements per 33 CFR
155.5050(e);
(ii) Nontank vessels that carry group
I through group IV petroleum oils as
fuel or cargo with a capacity of 250
barrels or greater, but less than 2,500
barrels, for salvage, emergency
lightering, and marine firefighting
response resources per 33 CFR
155.5050(i)(2);
(iii) Nontank vessels that carry group
I through group IV petroleum oils as
fuel or cargo with a capacity less than
250 barrels for salvage response
resources in 33 CFR 155.5050(i)(3);
(iv) Nontank vessels that carry group
II through group IV petroleum oils as
fuel or cargo with a capacity of 250
barrels or greater, but less than 2,500
barrels, for dispersant response
resources per 33 CFR 155.5035(i)(10)
and 33 CFR 155.5050(j); and
(v) Nontank vessels that carry groups
I through IV petroleum oils as fuel or
cargo with a capacity of 250 barrels or
greater, but less than 2,500 barrels, for
aerial oil spill tracking to support oil
spill assessment and cleanup activities
per 33 CFR 155.5050(k).
Fuel means all oils of any kind, which
may be used to supply power or
lubrication for primary or auxiliary
purposes aboard the vessel in which it
is carried.
Inactive vessel means a vessel that is
out of service or laid up and has
emptied its tanks of fuel except for the
minimum amount of fuel necessary for
the maintenance of the vessel’s material
condition. Such a vessel is considered
not to be operating on the navigable
waters of the United States for the
purposes of 33 U.S.C. 1321(j)(5), unless
the cognizant COTP determines that it
poses an unacceptable risk to the marine
environment due to the amount of oil
carried for maintenance. A vessel would
not be considered inactive if it carried
oil as a cargo or cargo residue.
Integrated Tug Barge or ITB means
any tug barge combination in which a

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specially designed propulsion unit (tug)
is mated to a cargo unit (barge) of a
compatible special design or where a
propulsion unit (tug) is mated to a cargo
unit (barge) with a specially designed
connection system such that the
combined unit has operating
characteristics and seakeeping
capabilities that exceed, under all
anticipated weather conditions, those of
a tug and barge, where the tug is secured
in the barge notch or on fenders by
means such as wire rope, chains, lines,
or other tackle now commonly used in
offshore towing.
Maximum most probable discharge or
MMPD means a discharge of—
(1) Two thousand five hundred
(2,500) barrels of oil, for vessels with a
fuel and cargo capacity equal to or
greater than 25,000 barrels; or
(2) Ten percent of the vessel’s fuel
and cargo capacity, for vessels with a
fuel and cargo capacity of less than
25,000 barrels.
Navigable waters of the United States
includes all waters of the territorial seas
of the United States, extending 12
nautical miles (nm) seaward of the
baseline, as described in Presidential
Proclamation No. 5928, December 27,
1988.
Nontank vessel means a self-propelled
vessel of 400 gross tons or greater, as
measured under the convention
measurement system in 46 U.S.C. 14302
or the regulatory measurement system of
46 U.S.C. 14502 for vessels not
measured under 46 U.S.C. 14302, that
operates on the navigable waters of the
United States, carries oil of any kind as
fuel for main propulsion, and is not a
tank vessel.
Oil spill removal organization or
OSRO means any person or persons
who own(s) or otherwise control(s) oil
spill removal resources that are
designed for, or are capable of, removing
oil from the water or shoreline. Control
of such resources through means other
than ownership includes leasing or
subcontracting of equipment or, in the
case of trained personnel, by having
contracts, evidence of employment, or
consulting agreements. OSROs provide
response equipment and services,
individually or in combination with
subcontractors or associated contractors,
under contract or other approved
means, directly to an owner or operator
of a vessel or a facility required to have
a response plan under 33 U.S.C.
1321(j)(5). OSROs are able to mobilize
and deploy equipment or trained
personnel and remove, store, and
transfer recovered oil. Persons such as
sales and marketing organizations (e.g.,
distributorships and manufacturer’s

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representatives) that warehouse or store
equipment for sale are not OSROs.
Permanently moored craft means a
watercraft that is not considered to be a
vessel under the rule of construction in
1 U.S.C. 3, because it is not practically
(as opposed to theoretically) used or
capable of being used as a means of
transportation on the water.
P&I Club means a protection and
indemnity insurance group that
provides liability insurance cover for
the vessel owner or operator that would
respond to an oil discharge or
substantial threat of such a discharge by
the vessel.
Public vessel means a vessel owned or
bareboat—chartered and operated by the
United States, or by a State or political
subdivision thereof, or by a foreign
nation, except when such vessel is
engaged in commerce.
Qualified individual or QI and
alternate qualified individual means a
shore-based representative of a vessel
owner or operator who meets the
requirements of 33 CFR 155.5026.
Substantial threat of such a discharge
means any incident involving a vessel
that may create a significant risk of
discharge of fuel or cargo oil. Such
incidents include, but are not limited to,
groundings, allisions, strandings,
collisions, hull damage, fires,
explosions, loss of propulsion,
floodings, on-deck spills, or other
similar occurrences.
Tier means the combination of
required response resources and the
times within which the resources must
arrive on scene. Appendix B of this part,
especially Tables 5 and 6, provide
specific guidance on calculating the
response resources required by a
respective tier. Section 155.5050(g) sets
forth the required times within which
the response resources must arrive on
scene. Tiers are applied to three
categories of areas:
(1) Higher volume port areas;
(2) The Great Lakes; and
(3) All other operating environments,
including rivers and canals, inland,
nearshore, offshore, and open ocean
areas.
Worst case discharge or WCD means
a discharge in adverse weather
conditions of a vessel’s entire fuel and
cargo oil.
§ 155.5021

Operating restrictions.

Nontank vessels subject to this
subpart may not—
(a) Operate upon the navigable waters
of the United States unless in
compliance with a plan approved under
§ 155.5065.
(b) Continue to operate on the
navigable waters of the United States if:

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(1) The Coast Guard determines that
the response resources identified in the
vessel’s certification statement do not
meet the requirements of this subpart;
(2) The contracts or agreements
required in §§ 155.5050 and 155.5052
and the vessel’s certification statement
are no longer valid;
(3) The vessel is not operating in
compliance with the submitted plan; or
(4) The period of the response plan
authorization has expired.
§ 155.5023

Interim operating authorization.

(a) Notwithstanding the requirements
of § 155.5021, a vessel may continue to
operate for up to 2 years after the date
of submission of a response plan
pending approval of that plan, if the
vessel has received written
authorization for continued operations
from the Coast Guard.
(b) To receive this authorization, the
nontank vessel owner or operator must
certify in writing with an original or
electronic signature to the Coast Guard
that the owner or operator has identified
and has ensured, by contract or other
approved means, the availability of the
necessary private resources to respond,
to the maximum extent practicable, to a
worst case discharge or substantial
threat of such a discharge from their
vessel.
(c) Those nontank vessels temporarily
authorized to operate without an
approved plan pending formal Coast
Guard approval must comply with the
provisions of 33 CFR 155.1070(c), (d),
and (e).
§ 155.5025

One-time port waiver.

An owner or operator of a nontank
vessel may be authorized by the
cognizant U.S. Coast Guard Captain of
the Port to have that vessel make one
voyage in a geographic-specific area not
covered by the vessel’s response plan.
All requirements of this subpart must be
met for any subsequent voyages to a
previously requested geographicspecific area. To be considered for a
one-time port waiver, the owner or
operator must certify in writing, prior to
the vessel’s entry into the COTP zone,
that it has met the requirements of 33
CFR 155.1025(e)(1) through (4).
§ 155.5026 Qualified individual and
alternate qualified individual.

The response plan must identify a
qualified individual and at least one
alternate who meet the requirements of
33 CFR 155.1026. The qualified
individual or alternate qualified
individual must be available on a 24hour basis.

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§ 155.5030 Nontank vessel response plan
requirements: general content.

(a) The entire vessel response plan
must be written in English and, if
applicable, in a language that is
understood by the crew members with
responsibilities under the plan.
(b) The plan must cover all geographic
areas of the United States in which the
vessel intends to handle, store, or
transport oil, including port areas and
offshore transit areas.
(c) The nontank vessel response plan
(NTVRP) must be divided into the
following sections:
(1) General information and
introduction;
(2) Notification procedures;
(3) Shipboard spill mitigation
procedures;
(4) Shore-based response activities;
(5) List of contacts;
(6) Training procedures;
(7) Exercise procedures;
(8) Plan review and update
procedures;
(9) Geographic-specific appendix for
each COTP zone in which the vessel or
vessels operate; and
(10) An appendix for vessel-specific
information for the vessel or vessels
covered by the plan.
(d) A vessel owner or operator with
multiple vessels may submit one plan
for each class of vessel (i.e., subpart D—
Manned vessels carrying oil as primary
cargo & unmanned vessels carrying oil
as primary cargo; subpart E—Tankers
loading cargo at a facility permitted
under the Trans-Alaska Pipeline
Authorization Act; subpart F—Vessels
carrying animal fats and vegetable oils
as primary cargo; and subpart G—
Vessels carrying other non-petroleum
oils as a primary cargo) with a separate
vessel-specific appendix for each vessel
covered by the plan and a separate
geographic-specific appendix for each
COTP zone in which the vessel(s) will
operate.
(e) A vessel response plan must be
divided into the sections described in
paragraph (c) of this section unless the
plan is supplemented with a crossreference table to identify the location of
the information required by this
subpart.
(f) The information contained in a
vessel response plan must be consistent
with the:
(1) National Oil and Hazardous
Substances Pollution Contingency Plan
(NCP) (40 CFR part 300) and the Area
Contingency Plan(s) (ACP) in effect on
the date 6 months prior to the
submission date of the response plan; or
(2) More recent NCP and ACP(s).
Note to § 155.5030(f)(1): See diagram
of ‘‘Relationship of Plans’’ at 40 CFR
300.210.

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(g) Copies of the submitted and
approved vessel response plan must be
available as follows:
(1) The owner or operator of all
vessels must ensure that one English
language copy of the plan and the
original Coast Guard approval letter or
notarized copy of the approval letter are
maintained aboard the vessel. If
applicable, additional copies of the
required plan sections must be in the
language understood by crew members
with responsibilities under the plan and
maintained aboard the vessel.
(2) The vessel owner or operator must
also maintain a current copy of the
entire plan and ensure that each person
identified as a qualified individual and
alternate qualified individual in the
plan has a current copy of the entire
plan.
(h) Compliance with this subpart will
also constitute compliance for a U.S.
flag nontank vessel required to submit a
Shipboard Oil Pollution Emergency
Plan (SOPEP) pursuant to 33 CFR
151.09(c) and Regulation 37 of Annex I
of MARPOL 73/78 as long as the
additional requirements listed in
§ 155.5035(k) are met. A U.S. flagged
nontank vessel holding a valid
Certificate of Inspection endorsed for
Coastwise or Oceans operating routes
with authorization to engage on an
international voyage must maintain a
U.S. Coast Guard SOPEP approval letter
per 33 CFR 151.27(e). A separate SOPEP
is not required.

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§ 155.5035 Nontank vessel response plan
requirements: specific content.

(a) General information and
introduction section. This section of the
plan must include:
(1) The vessel’s name, country of
registry, call sign, official number, and
International Maritime Organization
(IMO) international number (if
applicable). If the plan covers multiple
vessels, this information should be
provided for each vessel;
(2) The name, mailing address, e-mail
address, telephone number and
facsimile number, and procedures for
contacting the nontank vessel’s owner
or operator on a 24-hour basis;
(3) A list of the COTP zones, ports,
and offshore transit areas in which the
vessel intends to operate;
(4) A table of contents or index of
sufficient detail to permit personnel
with responsibilities under the response
plan to locate the specific sections of the
plan; and
(5) A record of change(s) page to
record information on plan reviews,
updates, or revisions.

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(b) Notification procedures section.
This section of the plan must include
the following information:
(1) A checklist with all notifications,
including telephone or other contact
numbers, in order of priority to be made
by shipboard or shore-based personnel
and the information needed for those
notifications. Notifications should
include those required by:
(i) MARPOL 73/78 (33 CFR 151.26)
and 33 CFR part 153; and
(ii) Any applicable State.
(2) Identification of the person(s) to be
notified of a discharge or substantial
threat of a discharge of oil. If the
notifications vary due to vessel location,
the persons to be notified also should be
identified in a geographic-specific
appendix. This section should
separately identify:
(i) The individual(s) or organization(s)
to be notified by shipboard personnel;
and
(ii) The individual(s) or
organization(s) to be notified by shorebased personnel.
(3) The procedures for notifying the
qualified individual(s) designated by the
nontank vessel’s owner or operator.
(4) Descriptions of the primary and, if
available, secondary communications
methods by which the notifications
would be made. These should be
consistent with those in
§ 155.5035(b)(1).
(5) The information that is to be
provided in the initial and any followup notifications under paragraph (b)(1)
of this section.
(i) The initial notification may be
submitted in accordance with IMO
Resolution A.851(20), ‘‘General
Principles for Ship Reporting Systems
and Ship Reporting Requirements,
Including Guidelines for Reporting
Incidents Involving Dangerous Goods,
Harmful Substances and/or Marine
Pollutants’’ (Incorporated by reference,
see § 155.140). However, the plan must
specify that the notification include at
least the following information:
(A) Vessel name, country of registry,
call sign, and official number (if any);
(B) Date and time of the incident;
(C) Location of the incident;
(D) Course, speed, and intended track
of vessel;
(E) Radio station(s) and frequencies
guarded;
(F) Date and time of next report;
(G) Type and quantity of oil on board;
(H) Nature and detail of defects,
deficiencies, and damage (e.g., overfill
of tanks, grounding, collision, hull
failure, etc.);
(I) Details of pollution, including
estimate of amount of oil discharged or
threat of discharge;

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(J) Weather and sea conditions on
scene;
(K) Ship size and type;
(L) Actions taken or planned by
persons on scene;
(M) Current conditions of the vessel;
(N) Number of crew and details of
injuries, if any; and
(O) Details of P&I Club and Local
Correspondent, as applicable.
(ii) The plan must state that after
transmission of the initial notification,
as much information as possible that is
essential for the protection of the marine
environment will be reported to the
appropriate on-scene coordinator in
follow-up reports. This information
must include:
(A) Additional details on the type of
oil on board;
(B) Additional details on the
condition of the vessel and ability to
offload cargo and transfer ballast and
fuel;
(C) Additional details on the quantity,
extent, and movement of the pollution
and whether the discharge is
continuing;
(D) Any changes in the on-scene
weather or sea conditions; and
(E) Actions being taken with regard to
the discharge and the movement of the
ship.
(6) Identification of the person(s) to be
notified of a vessel casualty potentially
affecting the seaworthiness of a vessel
and the information to be provided by
the vessel’s crew to shore-based
personnel to facilitate the assessment of
damage stability and stress.
(c) Shipboard spill mitigation
procedures section. This section of the
plan must include:
(1) Procedures for the crew to mitigate
or prevent any discharge or a substantial
threat of a discharge of oil resulting
from shipboard operational activities
associated with internal or external oil
transfers. Responsibilities of vessel
personnel should be identified by job
title and licensed/unlicensed position, if
applicable. These procedures should
address personnel actions in reference
to:
(i) Internal transfer system leak;
(ii) Fuel tank overflow;
(iii) Suspected tank or hull leak;
(iv) Assessment and monitoring
activities;
(v) Personnel protection issues;
(vi) Protective equipment;
(vii) Threats to health and safety;
(viii) Containment and other response
techniques;
(ix) Isolation procedures;
(x) Decontamination of personnel; and
(xi) Disposal of removed oil and
clean-up materials.
(2) Procedures in the order of priority
for the crew to mitigate or prevent any

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discharge or a substantial threat of a
discharge in the event of a casualty or
emergency as listed below in paragraphs
(c)(2)(i) through (x) of this section.
These procedures should be listed
separately and reference specific vessel
checklists required by the International
Ship Management (ISM) Code, Section 8
(Resolution A.741(18), as amended by
Resolution MSC.104(73)) (Incorporated
by reference, see § 155.140), or other
means that will ensure consideration of
all appropriate factors when addressing
a specific casualty. In addition to the
checklists, specific personnel
assignments for anticipated tasks must
be identified. Reference to existing fire
control plans and muster lists is
sufficient to identify personnel
responsibilities in the following
scenarios:
(i) Grounding or stranding;
(ii) Explosion or fire, or both;
(iii) Collision or allision;
(iv) Hull failure;
(v) Excessive list;
(vi) Containment system failure;
(vii) Submerged and foundered;
(viii) Wrecked and stranded;
(ix) Hazardous vapor release; and
(x) Equipment failure (e.g., main
propulsion, steering gear, etc.).
(3) Procedures for the crew to deploy
discharge removal equipment if the
vessel is equipped with such
equipment.
(4) The procedures for internal
transfers of fuel in an emergency.
(5) The procedures for ship-to-ship
transfers of fuel in an emergency:
(i) The format and content of the shipto-ship transfer procedures should be
consistent with the ‘‘Ship to Ship
Transfer Guide (Petroleum),’’ Fourth
Edition 2005, published jointly by the
International Chamber of Shipping and
the Oil Companies International Marine
Forum (OCIMF) (Incorporated by
reference, see § 155.140).
(ii) The procedures should identify
the specific response resources
necessary to carry out the transfers,
including:
(A) Fendering equipment (ship-toship only);
(B) Transfer hoses and connection
equipment;
(C) Portable pumps and ancillary
equipment;
(D) Lightering or fuel removal and
mooring masters (ship-to-ship only);
and
(E) Vessel and barge brokers (ship-toship only);
(iii) Reference may be made to a
separate fuel oil transfer procedure and
lightering plan carried aboard the
vessel, if safety considerations are
summarized in the plan;

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(iv) The location of all equipment and
fittings, if any, carried aboard the vessel
to perform the transfers should be
identified;
(6) The procedures and arrangements
for emergency towing, including the
rigging and operation of any emergency
towing equipment, if any, carried
aboard the vessel;
(7) The location, crew responsibilities,
and procedures for use of shipboard
equipment that might be carried to
mitigate an oil discharge;
(8) The crew’s responsibility, if any,
for recordkeeping and sampling of
spilled oil. Any requirements for
sampling must address safety
procedures to be followed by the crew;
(9) The crew’s responsibilities, if any,
to initiate a response and supervise
shore-based response resources;
(10) Damage stability and hull stress
considerations when performing
shipboard mitigation measures. This
section of the plan should identify and
describe:
(i) Activities in which the crew is
trained and qualified to execute absent
shore-based support or advice; and
(ii) The information to be collected by
the vessel’s crew to facilitate shorebased assistance.
(11) Location of vessel plans
necessary to perform salvage, stability,
and hull stress assessments.
(i) The owner or operator should
ensure that a copy of these plans are
maintained ashore by either the vessel
owner or operator or the vessel’s
recognized classification society, unless
the vessel has prearranged for a shorebased damage stability and residual
strength calculation program with the
vessel’s baseline strength and stability
characteristics pre-entered. The
response plan should indicate the shore
location and 24-hour access procedures
of the calculation program or the
following plans, where available:
(A) General arrangement plan;
(B) Midship section plan;
(C) Lines plan or table of offsets;
(D) Tank tables;
(E) Load line assignment; and
(F) Light ship characteristics.
(ii) The plan should identify the shore
location and 24-hour access procedures
for the computerized, shore-based
damage stability and residual structural
strength calculation programs, if
available.
(12) Procedures for implementing
personnel safety mitigation strategies for
all personnel involved. These
procedures may contain more, but the
following must be addressed:
(i) Assessment and monitoring
activities;
(ii) Personnel protection issues;

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(iii) Protective equipment;
(iv) Threats to health and safety;
(v) Containment and other response
techniques;
(vi) Isolation procedures;
(vii) Decontamination of personnel;
and
(viii) Disposal of removed oil and
clean-up materials.
(d) Shore-based response activities
section. This section of the plan should
include the following information:
(1) The qualified individual’s
responsibilities and authority, including
immediate communication with the
Federal On-Scene Coordinator and
notification of the oil spill removal
organization(s) identified in the plan.
(2) If applicable, procedures for
transferring responsibility for direction
of response activities from vessel
personnel to the shore-based spill
management team.
(3) The procedures for coordinating
the actions of the nontank vessel owner
or operator or qualified individual with
the predesignated Federal On-Scene
Coordinator responsible for overseeing
or directing those actions.
(4) The organizational structure that
would be used to manage the response
actions. This structure should include
the following functional areas and
information for key components within
each functional area:
(i) Command and control;
(ii) Public information;
(iii) Safety;
(iv) Liaison with government
agencies;
(v) Spill response operations;
(vi) Planning;
(vii) Logistics support; and
(viii) Finance.
(5) The responsibilities of, duties of,
and functional job descriptions for each
oil spill management team position
within the organizational structure
identified in paragraph (d)(4) of this
section.
(e) List of contacts. The name,
location, and 24-hour contact
information for the following key
individuals and organizations must be
included in this section of the response
plan or, if more appropriate, in a
geographic-specific appendix and
referenced in this section of the
response plan:
(1) Vessel owner or operator.
(2) Qualified individual and alternate
qualified individual for the vessel’s area
of operation.
(3) Applicable insurance
representatives or surveyors for the
vessel’s area of operation.
(4) The vessel’s local agent(s) for the
vessel’s area of operation.
(5) Person(s) within the oil spill
removal organization to notify for

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activation of that oil spill removal
organization for the three spill scenarios
identified in paragraph (i)(5) of this
section for the vessel’s area of operation.
(6) Person(s) within the identified
response organization to notify for
activating the organizations to provide:
(i) The required emergency lightering
and fuel offloading required by
§§ 155.5050(i) and 155.5052 as
applicable;
(ii) The required salvage and marine
firefighting required by §§ 155.5050(i)
and 155.5052 as applicable;
(iii) The required dispersant response
equipment required by § 155.5050(j), as
applicable; and
(iv) The required aerial oil spill
tracking and observation resources
required by § 155.5050(k), as applicable.
(7) Person(s) to notify for activation of
the spill management team for the spill
response scenarios identified in
paragraph (i)(5) of this section for the
vessel’s area of operation.
(f) Training procedures. This section
of the response plan must address the
training procedures and programs of the
nontank vessel owner or operator to
meet the requirements in § 155.5055.
(g) Exercise procedures. This section
of the response plan must address the
exercise program to be carried out by
the nontank vessel owner or operator to
meet the requirements in § 155.5060.
(h) Plan review, update, revision,
amendment, and appeal procedure.
This section of the response plan must
address:
(1) The procedures to be followed by
the nontank vessel owner or operator to
meet the requirements of §§ 155.5070
and 155.5075; and
(2) The procedures to be followed for
any post-discharge review of the plan to
evaluate and validate its effectiveness.
(i) Geographic-specific appendices for
each COTP zone in which a vessel
operates. A geographic-specific
appendix must be included for each
COTP zone identified. The appendices
must include the following information
or identify the location of such
information within the plan:
(1) A list of the geographic areas (port
areas, rivers and canals, Great Lakes,
inland, nearshore, offshore, and open
ocean areas) in which the vessel intends
to handle, store, or transport oil as fuel
or cargo within the applicable COTP
zone.
(2) The volume and group of oil on
which the required level of response
resources is calculated.
(3) Required Federal or State
notifications applicable to the
geographic areas in which a vessel
operates.
(4) Identification of the qualified
individuals.

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(5) Identification of the oil spill
removal organization(s) that are
identified and ensured available,
through contract or other approved
means, and the spill management team
to respond to the following spill
scenarios, as applicable:
(i) Average most probable discharge.
(ii) Maximum most probable
discharge.
(iii) Worst case discharge.
(iv) Nontank vessels with a capacity
less than 250 barrels must plan for and
identify maximum most probable
discharge response resources in the
response plan but do not have to ensure
by contract or a previous funding
agreement. Submission of a written
consent for plan listing from the
recognized response resource provider
must accompany the plan for approval
or revision. This is considered an
acceptable ‘‘other approved means.’’ See
33 CFR 155.5020, ‘‘Contract or other
approved means,’’ paragraph (5).
(6) The organization(s) identified to
meet the requirements of paragraph
(i)(5) of this section must be capable of
providing the equipment and supplies
necessary to meet the requirements of
§§ 155.5050 and 155.5052, as
appropriate, and sources of trained
personnel to continue operation of the
equipment and staff the oil spill
removal organization, required response
resource providers and spill
management team identified for the first
seven days of the response.
(7) The geographic-specific appendix
must list the response resources and
related information required under
§§ 155.5050, 155.5052, and Appendix B
of this part, as appropriate.
(8) If an oil spill removal organization
has been evaluated by the Coast Guard
and its capability has been determined
to equal or exceed the response
capability needed by the vessel, the
appendix may identify only the
organization and their applicable
classification and not the information
required in paragraph (i)(7) of this
section. This information is subject to
USCG verification at any time during
the validity of the vessel response plan.
(9) The appendix must also separately
list the companies identified to provide
the salvage, emergency lightering, and
marine firefighting resources required in
this subpart. The appendix must list the
response resources and related
information required in paragraph (7) of
this section. This information is subject
to USCG verification at any time during
the validity of the vessel response plan.
(i) Nontank vessels with a capacity
less than 2,500 barrels, but greater than
or equal to 250 barrels, need only plan
for and identify salvage, emergency

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44995

lightering, and marine firefighting
response resources in the response plan
but do not have to ensure by contract or
a previous funding agreement.
Submission of a written consent for plan
listing from the recognized response
resource provider must accompany the
plan for approval or revision. This is
considered an acceptable ‘‘other
approved means.’’ See 33 CFR 155.5020,
‘‘Contract or other approved means,’’
paragraph (5).
(ii) Nontank vessels with a capacity
less than 250 barrels need only plan for
and identify salvage response resources
in the response plan but do not have to
ensure by contract or a previous funding
agreement. Submission of a written
consent for plan listing from the
recognized response resource provider
must accompany the plan for approval
or revision. This is considered an
acceptable ‘‘other approved means.’’ See
33 CFR 155.5020, ‘‘Contract or other
approved means,’’ paragraph (5).
(10) For nontank vessels with a
capacity of 2,500 barrels or greater that
carry group II through group IV
petroleum oils as fuel or cargo and that
operate in waters where dispersant use
pre-authorization agreements exist, the
appendix must also separately list the
resource providers and specific
resources, including appropriately
trained dispersant-application
personnel, necessary to provide, if
appropriate, the dispersant capabilities
required in this subpart. All resource
providers and resources must be
available by contract or other approved
means. The dispersant resources to be
listed within this section must include
the following:
(i) Identification of each primary
dispersant staging site to be used by
each dispersant-application platform to
meet the requirements of § 155.5050(j)
of this chapter;
(ii) Identification of the platform type,
resource provider, location, and
dispersant payload for each dispersantapplication platform identified.
Location data must identify the distance
between the platform’s home base and
the identified primary dispersantstaging site(s) for this section.
(iii) For each unit of dispersant
stockpile required to support the
effective daily application capacity
(EDAC) of each dispersant-application
platform necessary to sustain each
intended response tier of operation,
identify the dispersant product resource
provider, location, and volume.
Location data must include the distance
from the stockpile to the primary staging
sites where the stockpile would be
loaded on to the corresponding
platforms. If an oil spill removal

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organization has been evaluated by the
Coast Guard and its capability has been
determined to meet the response
capability needed by the owner or
operator, the section may identify the
oil spill removal organization only, and
not the information required in
paragraphs (i)(10)(i) through (i)(10)(iii)
of this section.
(iv) Nontank vessels with an oil
capacity of 250 barrels or greater, but
less than 2,500 barrels, that carry group
II through group IV petroleum oils as
fuel or cargo and that operate in waters
where dispersant use pre-authorization
agreements exist, need only plan for and
identify dispersant response resources
but not ensure their availability by
contract. Submission of a written
consent from the dispersant response
resource provider must accompany the
plan for approval or revision. This is
considered an acceptable ‘‘other
approved means.’’ See 33 CFR 155.5020,
‘‘Contract or other approved means,’’
paragraph (5).
(11) For nontank vessels with a fuel
and cargo capacity of 2,500 barrels or
greater not operating exclusively on the
inland rivers of the United States, the
appendix must also separately list the
resource providers and specific
resources necessary to provide oil spill
tracking capabilities required in this
subpart. The oil spill tracking resources
to be listed within this section must
include the following:
(i) The identification of a resource
provider; and
(ii) The type and location of aerial
surveillance aircraft that have been
ensured available, through contract or
other approved means, to meet the oil
spill tracking requirements of
§ 155.1050(k) of this chapter.
(iii) Nontank vessels with a capacity
of 250 barrels or greater, but less than
2,500 barrels, need only plan for and
identify aerial oil spill tracking response
resources in the response plan, but do
not have to ensure by contract or a
previous funding agreement.
Submission of a written consent for plan
listing from the recognized response
resource provider must accompany the
plan for approval or revision. This is
considered an acceptable ‘‘other
approved means.’’ See 33 CFR 155.5020,
‘‘Contract or other approved means,’’
paragraph (5).
(j) Appendices for vessel-specific
information. This section of the plan
must include for each vessel covered by
the plan the following information, as
applicable:
(1) List of the vessel’s principal
characteristics.
(2) Capacities of all cargo, fuel, lube
oil, ballast, and fresh water tanks.

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(3) The total volume and groups of oil
that would be involved in the:
(i) Maximum most probable
discharge; and
(ii) Worst case discharge.
(4) Diagrams showing location of all
cargo, fuel, lube oil, and slop tanks, as
applicable.
(5) General arrangement plan (can be
maintained separately aboard the vessel
providing the response plan identifies
the specific location).
(6) Midships section plan (can be
maintained separately aboard the vessel
providing the response plan identifies
the specific location).
(7) Cargo and fuel piping diagrams
and pumping plan, as applicable (can be
maintained separately aboard the vessel
providing the response plan identifies
the specific location).
(8) Damage stability data (can be
maintained separately, providing the
response plan identifies the specific
location).
(9) Location of cargo and fuel stowage
plan for vessel.
(10) Location of information on the
name, description, physical and
chemical characteristics, health and
safety hazards, and spill and firefighting
procedures for the fuel or cargo oil
aboard the vessel. A material safety data
sheet meeting the requirements of 29
CFR 1910.1200, cargo information
required by 33 CFR 154.310, or
equivalent, will meet this requirement.
This information can be maintained
separately.
(k) Required appendices for MARPOL
73/78 Annex I, Regulation 37,
Shipboard Oil Pollution Emergency Plan
(SOPEP) information. U.S. flag vessels
not certificated for coastwise or oceans
operating routes and foreign flag vessels
that are in compliance with Regulation
37 of Annex I or MARPOL 73/78 are not
required to comply with this paragraph.
An owner or operator of a U.S. flag
vessel constructed or certificated for
coastwise or oceans operating routes,
but that does not engage in international
voyages, may request to be exempted
from compliance with this paragraph
through submission of a certified
statement, attesting same, to
Commandant, Office of Vessel Activities
(CG–543), which must accompany the
new nontank vessel response
submission or resubmission. U.S. flag
vessels that must comply with this
paragraph must label the cover of their
nontank vessel response plan as a
MARPOL 73/78 Annex I, Regulation 37
Shipboard Oil Pollution Emergency
Plan (SOPEP) and USCG Nontank
Vessel Response Plan. The following
information is required to be submitted

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consistent with Regulation 37 of Annex
I of MARPOL 73/78 and 33 CFR 151.26:
(1) The introductory text required by
33 CFR 151.26(b)(1).
(2) The preamble statement regarding
the purpose of the plans and how the
plan relates to other shore-related plans
as required by 33 CFR 151.26(b)(2).
(3) The information on authorities or
persons to be contacted in the event of
an oil pollution incident as required 33
CFR 151.26(b)(3)(iii). This information
must also clearly specify who will be
responsible for informing the necessary
parties from the coastal State contacts,
the port contacts, and the ship interest
contact. This information must include:
(i) An appendix containing coastal
State contacts for those coastal States in
which the vessel regularly transits the
exclusive economic zone. The appendix
should list those agencies or officials of
administrations responsible for
receiving and processing pollution
incident reports;
(ii) An appendix of port contacts for
those ports at which the vessel regularly
calls; and
(iii) For Antarctica, reports must also
be directed to any Antarctic station that
may be affected in accordance with 33
CFR 151.26(b)(3)(iii)(C).
(4) Include the procedures and point
of contact on the ship for coordinating
shipboard activities with national and
local authorities in combating an oil
spill incident in accordance with 33
CFR 151.26(b)(5). The plan should
address the need to contact the coastal
State to advise them of action(s) being
implemented and determine what
authorization(s), if any, are needed.
(5) Required information lists in
separate appendices per 33 CFR
151.26(b)(6)(ii).
§ 155.5050 Response plan development
and evaluation criteria for nontank vessels
carrying groups I through IV petroleum oil.

(a) Criteria for evaluating operability
of response resources. The criteria used
to evaluate the operability of response
resources identified in a nontank vessel
response plan for specified operating
environments must be in accordance
with 33 CFR 155.1050(a).
(b) Operating environment
reclassification of specific bodies of
water. COTP reclassification of a
specific body of water or location within
the COTP zone must be in accordance
with 33 CFR 155.1050(b).
(c) Criteria for response equipment.
Response equipment must:
(1) Meet or exceed the criteria listed
in Table 1 of Appendix B of this part;
(2) Be capable of functioning in the
applicable operating environment; and
(3) Be appropriate for the petroleum
oil carried.

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(d) Average most probable discharge.
The owner or operator of a nontank
vessel that carries groups I through IV
petroleum as cargo must identify in the
response plan and ensure the
availability of, through contract or other
approved means, the response resources
that will respond to a discharge up to
the vessel’s average most probable
discharge (AMPD). Nontank vessels that
carry oil as cargo must meet the
requirements for average most probable
discharge coverage, as applicable, per 33
CFR 155.1050(d). Nontank vessels that
only carry groups I through IV oil as fuel
do not have to ensure the availability of
average most probable discharge
resources by contract or other approved
means, but must plan for and identify
response resources required in
§ 155.1050(d)(1) and list this
information in the applicable
geographic-specific appendix for
bunkering or fueling operations.
Permission or acknowledgment from the
listed resource providers is not required.
Their contact information is for nontank
vessel owner or operator reference
purposes only. Listing of a marine
transportation-related facility’s or a
bunker supplier’s AMPD resources is
not authorized, as these AMPD
resources are already required by either
33 CFR 154.545, § 154.1045(c), or
§ 155.1050(d)(2).
(e) Maximum most probable
discharge. The owner or operator of a
nontank vessel with a capacity of 250
barrels or greater carrying groups I
through IV petroleum oil as fuel or cargo
must identify in the response plan and
ensure the availability of, through
contract or other approved means, the
response resources necessary to respond
to a discharge up to the vessel’s
maximum most probable discharge
volume. For the purposes of meeting the
requirements of this paragraph, the
standards listed in 33 CFR 155.1050(e)
must be met. Nontank vessels with a
capacity less than 250 barrels must plan
for and identify maximum most
probable discharge response resources
in the response plan but do not have to
ensure by contract or a previous funding
agreement. Submission of a written
consent for plan listing from the
recognized response resource provider
must accompany the plan for approval
or revision. This is considered an
acceptable ‘‘other approved means.’’ See
33 CFR 155.5020, ‘‘Contract or other
approved means,’’ paragraph (5).
(f) Worst case discharge. The owner or
operator of a nontank vessel with a
capacity of 2,500 barrels or greater
carrying groups I through IV petroleum
oil as fuel or cargo must identify in the
response plan and ensure the

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availability of, through contract or other
approved means, the response resources
necessary to respond to discharges up to
the worst case discharge volume of the
oil to the maximum extent practicable.
For the purposes of meeting this
paragraph, the standards listed in 33
CFR 155.1050(f) must be met. Nontank
vessels need only plan for Tier 1
response resources.
(g) Tier 1 response times. Response
equipment identified to respond to a
worst case discharge should be capable
of arriving on scene within the times
specified in this paragraph for the
applicable response tier in a higher
volume port area, Great Lakes, and in
other areas. Response times for this tier,
from the time of discovery of a
discharge, are found in Table
155.5050(g).

TABLE 155.5050(G)—RESPONSE
TIMES FOR TIER 1
Tier 1
Higher volume port area .................
Great Lakes ....................................
All other operating environments,
including rivers and canals, inland, nearshore, offshore, and
open ocean areas.

12 hrs.
18 hrs.
24 hrs.

(h) Planning standards for the
mobilization and response times for
required MMPD and WCD response
resources. For the purposes of arranging
for maximum most probable discharge
(MMPD) or worst case discharge (WCD)
response resources through contract or
other approved means, response
equipment identified for plan credit
should be capable of being mobilized
and enroute to the scene of a discharge
within 2 hours of notification. The
notification procedures identified in the
plan should provide for notification and
authorization for mobilization of
response resources:
(1) Either directly or through the
qualified individual; and
(2) Within 30 minutes of a discovery
of a discharge or substantial threat of
discharge.
(i) Salvage, emergency lightering, and
marine firefighting requirements. The
owner or operator of a nontank vessel
carrying groups I through IV petroleum
oil as fuel or cargo must plan for
salvage, emergency lightering, and
marine firefighting response resources.
(1) Nontank vessels with a capacity of
2,500 barrels or greater must meet the
salvage, emergency lightering, and
marine firefighting requirements found
in subpart I of this part.
(2) Nontank vessels with a capacity
less than 2,500 barrels, but greater than

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44997

or equal to 250 barrels, need only plan
for and identify salvage, emergency
lightering, and marine firefighting
response resources in the response plan
but do not have to ensure by contract or
a previous funding agreement.
Submission of a written consent for plan
listing from the recognized response
resource provider must accompany the
plan for approval or revision. This is
considered an acceptable ‘‘other
approved means.’’ See 33 CFR 155.5020,
‘‘Contract or other approved means,’’
paragraph (5).
(3) Nontank vessels with a capacity
less than 250 barrels need only plan for
and identify salvage response resources
in the response plan but do not have to
ensure by contract or a previous funding
agreement. Submission of a written
consent for plan listing from the
recognized response resource provider
must accompany the plan for approval
or revision. This is considered an
acceptable ‘‘other approved means.’’ See
33 CFR 155.5020, ‘‘Contract or other
approved means,’’ paragraph (5).
(j) Dispersants. The owner or operator
of a nontank vessel carrying groups II
through IV petroleum oil as fuel or cargo
with a capacity of 2,500 barrels or
greater that operates in any area preauthorized for dispersant use must
identify in their response plan, and
ensure the availability of, through
contract or other approved means,
response resources capable of
conducting dispersant operations within
those areas. The standards of 33 CFR
155.1050(k) must be met. Only Tier 1 for
dispersant effective daily application
capability (EDAC) must be met for
nontank vessels. Nontank vessels with a
capacity less than 2,500 barrels, but
greater than or equal to 250 barrels,
need only plan for and identify
dispersant response resources in the
response plan but do not have to ensure
by contract or a previous funding
agreement. Submission of a written
consent for plan listing from the
recognized response resource provider
must accompany the plan for approval
or revision. This is considered an
acceptable ‘‘other approved means.’’ See
33 CFR 155.5020, ‘‘Contract or other
approved means,’’ paragraph (5).
(k) Aerial oil spill tracking and
observation response resources. The
owner or operator of a nontank vessel
carrying groups I through IV petroleum
oil as fuel or cargo with a capacity of
2,500 barrels or greater must identify in
the response plan, and ensure their
availability, through contract or other
approved means, response resources
necessary to provide aerial oil spill
tracking to support oil spill assessment
and cleanup activities. The standards of

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33 CFR 155.1050(l) must be met.
Nontank vessels operating exclusively
on the inland rivers of the United States
are not required to comply with this
paragraph. Nontank vessels with a
capacity of 250 barrels or greater, but
less than 2,500 barrels, need only plan
for and identify aerial oil tracking
response resources in the response plan
but do not have to ensure by contract or
a previous funding agreement.
Submission of a written consent for plan
listing from the recognized response
resource provider must accompany the
plan for approval or revision. This is
considered an acceptable ‘‘other
approved means.’’ See 33 CFR 155.5020,
‘‘Contract or other approved means,’’
paragraph (5).
(l) Response resources necessary to
perform shoreline protection operations.
The owner or operator of a nontank
vessel carrying groups I through IV
petroleum oil as fuel or cargo with a
capacity of 250 barrels or greater must
identify in the response plan, and
ensure the availability of, through
contract or other approved means,
response resources necessary to perform
shoreline protection operations. The
response resources must include the
quantities of boom listed in Table 2 of
appendix B of this part, based upon the
specific COTP zones in which the vessel
operates.
(m) Shoreline cleanup operations.
The owner or operator of a nontank
vessel carrying groups I through IV
petroleum oil as fuel or cargo with a
capacity of 250 barrels or greater must

identify in the response plan, and
ensure the availability of, through
contract or other approved means, an oil
spill removal organization capable of
effecting a shoreline cleanup operation
commensurate with the quantity of
emulsified petroleum oil to be planned
for in shoreline cleanup operations. The
shoreline cleanup resources required
must be determined as described in
appendix B of this part.
(n) Practical and technical limits of
response capabilities. Appendix B of
this part sets out response capability
capacities (caps) that recognize the
practical and technical limits of
response capabilities for which an
individual vessel owner or operator can
contract in advance. Table 6 in
appendix B lists the contracting caps
that are applicable. The owner or
operator of a nontank vessel carrying
groups I through IV petroleum oil as
fuel or cargo, with a capacity of 2,500
barrels or greater, whose required daily
recovery capacity exceeds the
applicable contracting caps in Table 6,
must identify commercial sources of
additional equipment equal to twice the
cap listed for each tier or the amount
necessary to reach the calculated
planning volume, whichever is lower, to
the extent that this equipment is
available. The equipment so identified
must be capable of arriving on scene no
later than the applicable tier response
times contained in § 155.5050(g) or as
quickly as the nearest available resource
permits. A response plan must identify
the specific sources, locations, and

quantities of this additional equipment.
No contract is required.
(o) Review of response capability
limits. The Coast Guard will continue to
evaluate the environmental benefits,
cost efficiency, and practicality of
increasing mechanical recovery
capability requirements. This
continuing evaluation is part of the
Coast Guard’s long term commitment to
achieving and maintaining an optimum
mix of oil spill response capability
across the full spectrum of response
modes. As best available technology
demonstrates a need to evaluate or
change mechanical recovery capacities,
a review of cap increases and other
requirements contained within this
subpart may be performed. Any changes
in the requirements of this section will
occur through a rulemaking process.
During this review, the Coast Guard will
determine if established caps remain
practicable and if increased caps will
provide any benefit to oil spill recovery
operations. The review will include, at
least, an evaluation of:
(1) Best available technologies for
containment and recovery;
(2) Oil spill tracking technology;
(3) High rate response techniques;
(4) Other applicable response
technologies; and
(5) Increases in the availability of
private response resources.
(p) Nontank vessel response plan
required response resources matrix.
Table 155.5050(p) is a summary of the
nontank vessel response plan required
response resources.

TABLE 155.5050(P)—NONTANK VESSEL RESPONSE PLAN REQUIRED RESPONSE RESOURCES MATRIX
Nontank vessel’s fuel and cargo
oil capacity

AMPD

MMPD

WCD

Salvage

Emergency
lightering

Fire fighting

Dispersant 3

Aerial
tracking 4

Shoreline
protection

2,500 barrels or greater ...............
Less than 2,500 barrels, but
greater than or equal to 250
barrels.
Less than 250 barrels ..................

NO 1 ...
NO 1 ...

YES ....
YES ....

YES ....
NO .....

YES ........
YES 2 ......

YES ............
YES 2 ..........

YES ............
YES 2 ..........

YES ............
YES 2 ..........

YES ............
YES 2 ..........

YES ............
YES ............

YES.
YES.

NO 1 ...

YES 2 ..

NO .....

YES 2 ......

NO ..............

NO ..............

NO ..............

NO ..............

NO ..............

NO.

Shore line
cleanup

1 For

nontank vessels carrying oil as fuel only. Nontank vessels carrying oil as cargo must meet AMPD response resources in 33 CFR 155.5050(d) as applicable.
2 For nontank vessels with a fuel and cargo capacity less than 2,500 barrels, the indicated response resources that must be located within the stipulated response
times in the specified geographic areas need only be identified and planned for in the nontank vessel response plan, but not ensured available by contract. Submission of a written consent from the response resource provider must accompany the plan for approval. This is considered an acceptable ‘‘other approved means.’’ See
33 CFR 155.5020, ‘‘Contract or other approved means,’’ paragraph (5).
3 Dispersant response resources are only required for waters where dispersant pre-authorization has been authorized IAW the Area Contingency Plan. See 33 CFR
155.5050(j).
4 Aerial oil spill tracking response resources are not required on Rivers.

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§ 155.5052 Response plan development
and evaluation criteria for nontank vessels
carrying group V petroleum oil.

Owners and operators of nontank
vessels that carry group V petroleum oil
as fuel or cargo must meet the
requirements of 33 CFR 155.1052.
§ 155.5055

Training.

(a) A nontank vessel response plan
submitted to meet the requirements of
§ 155.5035 must identify the training to

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be provided to persons having
responsibilities under the plan,
including members of the vessel crew,
the qualified individual, and the spill
management team. The training program
must differentiate between that training
provided to vessel personnel and that
training provided to shore-based
personnel. Appendix C of this part
provides additional guidance regarding
training.

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(b) A nontank vessel owner or
operator must comply with the vessel
response plan training requirements of
33 CFR 155.1055(b) through (f).
§ 155.5060

Exercises.

(a) A nontank vessel owner or
operator required by § 155.5035 to have
a response plan must conduct exercises
as necessary to ensure that the plan will
function in an emergency. Both

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announced and unannounced exercises
must be included.
(b) A nontank vessel owner or
operator must comply with the vessel
response plan exercise requirements of
33 CFR 155.1060.
§ 155.5062 Inspection and maintenance of
response resources.

The owner or operator of a nontank
vessel required to submit a response
plan under this part must comply with
the response resource inspection and
maintenance requirements of 33 CFR
155.1062.

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§ 155.5065 Procedures for plan
submission and approval.

(a) An owner or operator of a nontank
vessel to which this subpart applies
must submit one complete English
language copy, in paper format, of a
nontank vessel response plan to
Commandant, Office of Vessel Activities
(CG–543), U.S. Coast Guard
Headquarters, 2100 Second Street, SW.,
Washington, DC 20593–0001, Attn:
Vessel Response Plan Review Team.
The plan must be submitted at least 60
days before the vessel intends to operate
upon the navigable waters of the United
States.
(b) The owner or operator of a
nontank vessel must include a statement
certifying that the nontank vessel
response plan meets the applicable
requirements of this subpart and the
requirements of subparts D, E, F, and G
if applicable. The owner or operator
must also include a statement certifying
that the owner or operator has ensured
the availability of, through contract or
other approved means, the necessary
private resources to respond, to the
maximum extent practicable, to a worst
case discharge or substantial threat of
such a discharge from their vessel as
required under this subpart. CG Form
‘‘Application for Approval/Revision of
Vessel Pollution Response Plans’’ (CG–
6083) located at: http://
homeport.uscg.mil/vrpapplication can
be used in lieu of a cover letter to make
initial application for plan submission
and approval. When submitted
properly, this application form meets
the requirement for a vessel response
plan certification statement as required
by this paragraph.
(c) If the Coast Guard determines that
the plan meets all requirements of this
subpart, the Coast Guard will notify the
vessel owner or operator with an
approval letter. The plan will be valid
for a period of 5 years from the date of
approval, conditional upon satisfactory
annual updates.
(d) If the Coast Guard reviews the
plan and determines that it does not

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meet all of the requirements, the Coast
Guard will notify the vessel owner or
operator of the nontank vessel response
plan deficiencies. The nontank vessel
owner or operator must then resubmit
the revised plan or corrected portions or
pages of the plan, within the time
period specified in the written notice
provided by the Coast Guard.
§ 155.5067

Alternative planning criteria.

(a) When the owner or operator of a
nontank vessel believes that national
planning criteria contained elsewhere in
this part are inappropriate to the vessel
for the areas in which it is intended to
operate, the owner or operator may
request acceptance of alternative
planning criteria by the Coast Guard.
Submission of an alternative planning
criteria request must be made 120 days
before the vessel intends to operate
under the proposed alternative, or as
soon as is practicable. The alternative
planning criteria request must be
endorsed by the COTP with jurisdiction
over the geographic area(s) affected
before being considered by
Commandant, Office of Vessel Activities
(CG–543), for the review and approval
of the respective nontank vessel
response plan. In any case, the request
must be received by CG–543 with an
endorsement by the respective COTP no
later than 45 days before the vessel
intends to operate under the alternative
planning criteria.
(b) The alternative planning criteria
request should detail all elements of the
nontank plan where deviations from the
requirements in this subpart are being
proposed or have not been met.
Response equipment, techniques, or
procedures identified in the alternative
planning criteria request should be
submitted in accordance with the
evaluation criteria of appendix B of this
part. The request should contain at a
minimum:
(1) Reason(s) and supporting
information for the alternative planning
criteria request;
(2) Identification of regulations
necessitating the alternative planning
criteria request;
(3) Proposals for alternative
procedures, methods, or equipment
standards, where applicable, to provide
for an equivalent level of planning,
response, or pollution mitigation
strategies;
(4) Prevention and mitigation
strategies that ensure low risk of spills
and adequate response measures as a
result of the alternative planning
criteria; and
(5) Environmental and economic
impact assessments of the effects.

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(c) The granting or denial of an
alternative planning criteria request will
be decided by Commandant, Office of
Vessel Activities (CG–543), and will be
issued in writing.
§ 155.5070 Procedures for plan review,
revision, and amendment.

(a) The owner or operator of a
nontank vessel must review the nontank
vessel response plan annually and
submit a letter to Commandant, Office
of Vessel Activities (CG–543) certifying
that the review has been completed.
This review must occur within one
month of the anniversary date of Coast
Guard approval of the plan.
(b) A nontank vessel response plan
prepared and submitted under this
subpart must be revised and amended,
as necessary, in accordance with
§ 155.1070.
§ 155.5075

Appeal procedures.

(a) A nontank vessel owner or
operator who disagrees with a
deficiency determination may submit a
petition for reconsideration to the
Assistant Commandant for Marine
Safety, Security and Stewardship,
Commandant (CG–5), Coast Guard
Headquarters, 2100 Second Street, SW.,
Washington, DC 20593–0001, within the
time period required for compliance or
within seven days from the date of
receipt of the Coast Guard notice of a
deficiency determination, whichever is
less. After considering all relevant
material presented, the Coast Guard will
notify the vessel owner or operator of
the final decision.
(1) Unless the vessel owner or
operator petitions for reconsideration of
the Coast Guard’s decision, the vessel’s
owner or operator must correct the
response plan deficiencies within the
period specified in the Coast Guard’s
initial determination.
(2) If the vessel owner or operator
petitions the Coast Guard for
reconsideration, the effective date of the
Coast Guard notice of deficiency
determination may be delayed pending
a decision by the Coast Guard. Petitions
to the Coast Guard must be submitted in
writing, via the Coast Guard official who
issued the requirement to amend the
response plan, within five days of
receipt of the notice.
(b) Within 21 days of notification that
a nontank vessel response plan is not
approved, the vessel owner or operator
may appeal that determination to the
Assistant Commandant for Marine
Safety, Security and Stewardship. This
appeal must be submitted in writing to
Commandant (CG–5), Coast Guard, 2100
Second Street, SW., Washington, DC
20593–0001.

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15. In appendix B to Part 155,
a. Revise paragraphs 1.1, 2.6, 2.7, 3.1,
4.2.2, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.4, 5.5, 5.6, 5.7, 7.1,
7.2, 7.2.3, 7.2.4, and 7.3.1; and
b. Add paragraph 8.1.1 to read as
follows:
Appendix B To Part 155—Determining
and Evaluating Required Response
Resources for Vessel Response Plans
*

*

*

*

*

1.1 The purpose of this appendix is to
describe the procedures for identifying
response resources to meet the requirements
of subparts D, E, F, G, and J of this part.
These guidelines will be used by the vessel
owner or operator in preparing the response
plan and by the Coast Guard to review vessel
response plans. Response plans submitted
under subparts F and G of this part will be
evaluated under the guidelines in section 2
and Table 1 of this appendix.

*

*

*

*

*

2.6 The requirements of subparts D, E, F,
G, and J of this part establish response
resource mobilization and response times.
The location that the vessel operates farthest
from the storage location of the response
resources must be used to determine whether
the resources are capable of arriving on scene
within the time required. A vessel owner or
operator shall include the time for
notification, mobilization, and travel time of
resources identified to meet the maximum
most probable discharge and Tier 1 worst
case discharge requirements. For subparts D
and E of this part, Tier 2 and 3 resources
must be notified and mobilized as necessary
to meet the requirements for arrival on scene.
An on-water speed of 5 knots and a land
speed of 35 miles per hour is assumed,
unless the vessel owner or operator can
demonstrate otherwise.
2.7 For subparts D, E, and J of this part,
in identifying equipment, the vessel owner or
operator must list the storage location,
quantity, and manufacturer’s make and
model, unless the oil spill removal
organization(s) providing the necessary
response resources have been evaluated by
the Coast Guard, and their capability has
been determined to equal or exceed the
response capability needed by the vessel. For
oil recovery devices, the effective daily
recovery capacity, as determined using
section 6 of this appendix, must be included.
For boom, the overall boom height (draft plus
freeboard) must be included. A vessel owner
or operator is responsible for ensuring that
the identified boom has compatible
connectors.

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3.1 A vessel owner or operator must
identify and ensure, by contract or other
approved means, that sufficient response
resources are available to respond to the 50barrel average most probable discharge at the
point of an oil transfer involving a vessel that
carries oil as a primary cargo or a nontank
vessel carrying oil as cargo. The equipment
must be designed to function in the operating
environment at the point of oil transfer.
These resources must include—

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4.2.2

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Ten percent of the total oil capacity.

*

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5.1 A vessel owner or operator, as
applicable under the regulations prescribed
in this part, must identify and ensure, by
contract or other approved means, that
sufficient response resources are available to
respond to the worst case discharge of oil to
the maximum extent practicable. Section 7 of
this appendix describes the method to
determine the required response resources.
5.2 Oil spill recovery devices identified
to meet the applicable worst case discharge
planning volume must be located such that
they can arrive at the scene of a discharge
within the time specified for the applicable
response tier listed in §§ 155.1050(g) and
155.5050(g).
5.3 The effective daily recovery capacity
for oil recovery devices identified in a
response plan must be determined using the
criteria in section 6 of this appendix. A
vessel owner or operator, as applicable under
the regulations prescribed in this part, shall
identify the storage locations of all
equipment that must be used to fulfill the
requirements for each tier.
5.4 A vessel owner or operator, as
applicable under the regulations prescribed
in this part, must identify the availability of
temporary storage capacity to meet the
requirements of section 9.2 of this appendix.
If available storage capacity is insufficient to
meet this requirement, then the effective
daily recovery capacity must be downgraded
to the limits of the available storage capacity.
5.5 When selecting response resources
necessary to meet the response plan
requirements, the vessel owner or operator,
as applicable under the regulations
prescribed in this part, must ensure that a
portion of those resources are capable of
being used in close-to-shore response
activities in shallow water. The following
percentages of the on-water response
equipment identified for the applicable
geographic area must be capable of operating
in waters of 6 feet or less depth:
(i) Open ocean—none.
(ii) Offshore—10 percent.
(iii) Nearshore, inland, Great Lakes, and
rivers and canals—20 percent.
5.6 In addition to oil spill recovery
devices and temporary storage capacity, a
vessel owner or operator, as applicable under
the regulations prescribed in this part, must
identify in the response plan and ensure the
availability of, through contract or other
approved means, sufficient boom that can
arrive on scene within the required response
times for oil containment and collection. The
specific quantity of boom required for
collection and containment will depend on
the specific recovery equipment and
strategies employed. Table 2 of this appendix
lists the minimum quantities of additional
boom required for shoreline protection that a
vessel owner or operator shall identify in the
response plan and ensure the availability of,
through contract or other approved means.
5.7 A vessel owner or operator, as
applicable under the regulations prescribed
in this part, must also identify in the
response plan and ensure, by contract or
other approved means, the availability of an
oil spill removal organization capable of

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responding to a shoreline cleanup operation
involving the calculated volume of
emulsified oil that might impact the affected
shoreline. The volume of oil for which a
vessel owner or operator should plan for
should be calculated through the application
of factors contained in Tables 3 and 4 of this
appendix. The volume calculated from these
tables is intended to assist the vessel owner
or operator in identifying a contractor with
sufficient resources. This planning volume is
not used explicitly to determine a required
amount of equipment and personnel.

*

*

*

*

*

7.1 A vessel owner or operator, as
applicable under the regulations prescribed
in this part, must plan for a response to a
vessel’s worst case discharge oil planning
volume. The planning for on-water recovery
must take into account a loss of some oil to
the environment due to evaporations and
natural dissipation, potential increases in
volume due to emulsification, and the
potential for deposit of some oil on the
shoreline.
7.2 The following procedures must be
used to calculate the planning volume used
by a vessel owner or operator, as applicable
under the regulations prescribed in this part,
for determining required on-water recovery
capacity:

*

*

*

*

*

7.2.3 The adjusted volume is multiplied
by the on-water oil recovery resource
mobilization factor found in Table 5 of this
appendix from the appropriate operating area
and response tier to determine the total onwater oil recovery capacity in barrels per day
that must be identified or contracted for to
arrive on scene within the applicable time for
each response tier. Three tiers are specified.
For higher volume port areas, the contracted
tiers of resources must be located such that
they can arrive on scene within 12, 36, and
60 hours of the discovery of an oil discharge.
For the Great Lakes, these tiers are 18, 42,
and 66 hours. For rivers and canals, inland,
nearshore, and offshore, these tiers are 24, 48,
and 72 hours. For the open ocean area, these
tiers are 24, 48, and 72 hours with an
additional travel time allowance of 1 hour for
every additional 5 nautical miles from shore.
For nontank vessels, only Tier 1 is specified.
7.2.4 The resulting on-water recovery
capacity in barrels per day for each tier is
used to identify response resources necessary
to sustain operations in the applicable
geographic area. The equipment must be
capable of sustaining operations for the time
period specified in Table 3 of this appendix.
A vessel owner or operator, as applicable
under the regulations prescribed in this part,
shall identify and ensure the availability of,
through contract or other approved means,
sufficient oil spill recovery devices to
provide the effective daily oil recovery
capacity required. If the required capacity
exceeds the applicable cap described in
Table 6 of this appendix, then a vessel owner
or operator must contract only for the
quantity of resources required to meet the
cap, but shall identify sources of additional
resources as indicated in § 155.1050(p). For
a vessel that carries multiple groups of oil,
the required effective daily recovery capacity

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for each group is calculated and summed
before applying the cap.

*

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*

*

7.3.1 The following must be determined:
The total volume of oil carried; the
appropriate group for the type of petroleum
oil carried [persistent (groups II, III, and IV)
or non-persistent (group I)]; and the
geographic area(s) in which the vessel
operates. For a vessel carrying different oil
groups, each group must be calculated
separately. Using this information, Table 3 of
this appendix must be used to determine the
percentages of the total oil volume to be used
for shoreline cleanup resource planning.

Appendix C to Part 155—Training
Elements for Oil Spill Response Plans

*

§ 160.206

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17. The authority citation for part 160
continues to read as follows:

2.2.3.1 Operational activities associated
with internal or external fuel and cargo
transfers;

*

8.1.1 A vessel owner or operator, as
applicable under the regulations prescribed
in this part, must plan either for a dispersant
capacity to respond to a vessel’s worst case
discharge (WCD) of oil, or for the amount of
the dispersant resource capability as required
by § 155.1050(k)(3) of this chapter, whichever
is the lesser amount. When planning for the
cumulative application capacity that is
required, the calculations should account for
the loss of some oil to the environment due
to natural dissipation causes (primarily
evaporation). The following procedure
should be used to determine the cumulative
application requirements:

*

PART 160—PORTS AND WATERWAYS
SAFETY—GENERAL

Authority: 33 U.S.C. 1223, 1231; 46 U.S.C.
Chapter 701; Department of Homeland
Security Delegation No. 0170.1. Subpart C is
also issued under the authority of 33 U.S.C.
1225 and 46 U.S.C. 3715.

*

2.2.14 Actions to take, in accordance with
designated job responsibilities, in the event
of a transfer system leak, tank overflow, or
suspected fuel or cargo tank or hull leak.
2.2.15 Information on the oil handled by
the vessel or facility, including familiarity
with:
2.2.15.1 Cargo material safety data sheets
(including oil carried as fuel);
2.2.15.2 Chemical characteristics of all
oils carried as fuel or cargo;
2.2.15.3 Special handling procedures for
all oils carried as fuel or cargo;
2.2.15.4 Health and safety hazards
associated with all oils carried as fuel or
cargo; and
2.2.15.5 Spill and firefighting procedures
for all oils carried as fuel or cargo.

*

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16. In appendix C to Part 155—
a. Revise paragraphs 2.2.3.1, 2.2.14,
2.2.15, 2.2.15.1, 2.2.15.2, 2.2.15.3,
2.2.15.4, and 2.2.15.5 to read as follows:

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[Amended]

18. In § 160.206, in Table 160.206—
a. In Required information column,
after item (1)(viii), add ‘‘(ix) USCG
Vessel Response Plan Control Number,
if applicable’’ and
b. In each of remaining three columns
of the newly added row (1)(ix), add an
‘‘X’’.
Dated: August 14, 2009.
Lincoln D. Stroh,
Captain, U.S. Coast Guard, Acting Director
of Prevention Policy.
[FR Doc. E9–20310 Filed 8–28–09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910–15–P

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31AUP2