33 CFR § 64.31 - Determination of hazard to navigation.

---
identifier: "/us/cfr/t33/s64.31"
source: "ecfr"
legal_status: "authoritative_unofficial"
title: "33 CFR § 64.31 - Determination of hazard to navigation."
title_number: 33
title_name: "Navigation and Navigable Waters"
section_number: "64.31"
section_name: "Determination of hazard to navigation."
chapter_name: "COAST GUARD, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY"
subchapter_number: "C"
subchapter_name: "AIDS TO NAVIGATION"
part_number: "64"
part_name: "MARKING OF STRUCTURES, SUNKEN VESSELS AND OTHER OBSTRUCTIONS"
positive_law: false
currency: "2026-04-05"
last_updated: "2026-04-05"
format_version: "1.1.0"
generator: "[email protected]"
authority: "14 U.S.C. 503; 33 U.S.C. 409; 42 U.S.C. 9118; 43 U.S.C. 1333; 46 U.S.C. 70034; Department of Homeland Security Delegation No. 0170.1."
regulatory_source: "CGD 78-156, 48 FR 11267, Mar. 17, 1983, unless otherwise noted."
cfr_part: "64"
---


# 64.31 Determination of hazard to navigation.

In determining whether an obstruction is a hazard to navigation for the purposes of marking, the District Commander considers, but is not limited to, the following factors:

(a) Location of the obstruction in relation to the navigable channel and other navigational traffic patterns;

(b) Navigational difficulty in the vicinity of the obstruction;

(c) Depth of water over the obstruction, fluctuation of the water level, and other hydrologic characteristics in the area;

(d) Draft, type, and density of vessel traffic or other marine activity in the vicinity of the obstruction;

(e) Physical characteristics of the obstruction;

(f) Possible movement of the obstruction;

(g) Location of the obstruction in relation to other obstructions or aids to navigation;

(h) Prevailing and historical weather conditions;

(i) Length of time that the obstruction has been in existence;

(j) History of vessel incidents involving the obstruction; and

(k) Whether the obstruction is defined as a hazard to navigation under other statutes or regulations.

[CGD 91-031, 57 FR 43403, Sept. 21, 1992]