Atlantic Maritime Academy

On November 23, 2005, the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) published a Notice of Intent; Notice of Public Meeting; and Request for Comments in the Federal Register (Volume 70, Number 225, page 70862) concerning the preparation of a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) as part of the environmental planning process for a Nationwide Automatic Identification System (NAIS).

The NAIS project was initiated as a component of implementing the Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002. Implementation of the NAIS, in part, involves installing Automatic Identification System (AIS) equipment and related support systems on and around communications towers or other structures along 95,000 miles of coastline and inland rivers. The NAIS project is being conducted to provide the USCG with the capability to receive and distribute information from shipboard AIS equipment in order to enhance Maritime Domain Awareness. The project will provide detection and identification of vessels carrying AIS equipment approaching or operating in the maritime domain where little or no vessel tracking currently exists.

Publication of this notice begins a scoping process that identifies and determines the scope of environmental issues to be addressed in the PEIS. This notice requests public participation in the scoping process and provides information on how to participate. The section of the Federal Register containing the PIES notice can be accessed via the Internet at http://dmses.dot.gov/docimages/p83/373427.pdf