NOAA ENC

NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION

US5MD43M - POTOMAC RIVER, LOWER CEDAR POINT TO MATTAWOMAN CREEK


INDEX:

NOTE A
HORIZONTAL DATUM
AUTHORITIES
AIDS TO NAVIGATION
CAUTION - USE OF RADIO SIGNALS (LIMITATIONS)
ADMINISTRATION AREA
WARNING - PRUDENT MARINER
SMALL CRAFT WARNINGS
POLLUTION REPORTS
SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION
CAUTION - TEMPORARY CHANGES
CAUTION - FISH TRAP AREAS AND STRUCTURES
RADAR REFLECTORS
NOAA WEATHER RADIO BROADCASTS
CAUTION - SUBMARINE PIPELINES AND CABLES
CAUTION - USACE HYDROGRAPHIC SURVEYS
WATER LEVELS, CURRENTS, AND TIDES
OYSTER AQUACULTURE
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
COMMENTS REQUESTED


NOTES:

NOTE A
Navigation regulations are published in Chapter 2, U.S. Coast Pilot 3. Additions or revisions to Chapter 2 are published in the Notice to Mariners. Information concerning the regulations may be obtained at the Office of the Commander, 5th Coast Guard District in Portsmouth, Virginia or at the Office of the District Engineer, Corps of Engineers in Baltimore, Maryland.
Refer to charted regulation section numbers.


HORIZONTAL DATUM
The NOAA ENC references the World Geodetic System of 1984 (WGS-84). For charting purposes, the horizontal control of the current realization of WGS-84 is functionally equivalent to the International Terrestrial Reference Frame 2020 (ITRF2020) at the meter level for charts at scales of 1:5,000 or smaller.


AUTHORITIES
Hydrography and topography by the National Ocean Service, Coast Survey, with additional data from the Corps of Engineers, Geological Survey, and U.S. Coast Guard.


AIDS TO NAVIGATION
Consult U.S. Coast Guard Light List for supplemental information concerning aids to navigation. 


CAUTION - USE OF RADIO SIGNALS (LIMITATIONS)
Limitations on the use of radio signals as aids to marine navigation can be found in the U.S. Coast Guard Light Lists and National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency Publication 117. Radio direction-finder bearings to commercial broadcasting stations are subject to error and should be used with caution.


ADMINISTRATION AREA
The entire extent of this ENC cell falls within the limits of an Administration Area. This area covers land, internal waters, and territorial sea. The territorial sea is a maritime zone over which the United States exercises sovereignty extending to the airspace as well as to its bed and subsoil. For more information, please refer to the Coast Pilot.


WARNING - PRUDENT MARINER
The prudent mariner will not rely solely on any single aid to navigation, particularly on floating aids. See U.S. Coast Guard Light List and U.S. Coast Pilot for details.


SMALL CRAFT WARNINGS
During the boating season small-craft warnings will be displayed from sunrise to sunset on Maryland Marine Police Cruisers while underway in Maryland waters of the Chesapeake Bay and tributaries.


POLLUTION REPORTS
Report all spills of oil and hazardous substances to the National Response Center via 1-800-424-8802 (toll free), or to the nearest U.S. Coast Guard facility if telephone communication is impossible (33 CFR 153).


SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION
Consult U.S. Coast Pilot 3 for important supplemental information.


CAUTION - TEMPORARY CHANGES
Temporary changes or defects in aids to navigation are not indicated. See local Notice to Mariners. During some winter months or when endangered by ice, certain aids to navigation are replaced by other types or removed. For details see U.S. Coast Guard Light List.


CAUTION - FISH TRAP AREAS AND STRUCTURES
Mariners are warned that numerous uncharted duck blinds and fishing structures, some submerged, may exist in the fish trap areas. Such structures are not charted unless known to be permanent. Regulations to assure clear passage to and through dredged and natural channels, and to established landings, are prescribed by the Corps of Engineers in the Code of Federal Regulations. Definite limits of fish trap areas have been established in some areas. Where definite limits have not been prescribed, the location of fishing structures is restricted only by the regulations.


RADAR REFLECTORS
Radar reflectors have been placed on many floating aids to navigation. Individual radar reflector identification on these aids has been omitted from this chart.


NOAA WEATHER RADIO BROADCASTS
The NOAA Weather Radio stations listed below provide continuous weather broadcasts.
The reception range is typically 20 to 40 nautical miles from the antenna site, but can be as much as 100 nautical miles for stations at high elevations.

Manassas, VA  	       KHB-36	162.550 MHz
Fredericksburg, VA     WZ-2527  162.425 MHz
Heathsville, VA	       WXM-57   162.400 MHz
Washington, DC	       WNG-736  162.450 MHz


CAUTION - SUBMARINE PIPELINES AND CABLES
Additional uncharted submarine pipelines and submarine cables may exist within the area of this chart. Not all submarine pipelines and submarine cables are required to be buried, and those that were originally buried may have become exposed. Mariners should use extreme caution when operating vessels in depths of water comparable to their draft in areas where pipelines and cables may exist, and when anchoring, dragging, or trawling. Covered wells may be marked by lighted or unlighted buoys.


CAUTION - USACE HYDROGRAPHIC SURVEYS
USACE conducts hydrographic surveys to monitor navigation conditions. These surveys are not intended to detect underwater features. Undetected features hazardous to surface navigation may exist in federal channels, as might shoaling, particularly along the edges of channels. For more information visit https://navigation.usace.army.mil/Survey/Hydro/ .


WATER LEVELS, CURRENTS, AND TIDES
Real-time water levels, tide predictions, and tidal current predictions are available on the internet from NOAA's Center for Operational Oceanographic Products and Services (CO-OPS) at https://tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/water_level_info.html and https://tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/currents_info.html .


OYSTER AQUACULTURE
Oyster bed aquaculture leases may exist within the limits of this chart. Mariners are cautioned that numerous markers may exist and watermen may be active in the area. Caution should be exercised when navigating in or near these areas, not to anchor or ground, in order to avoid damage to the beds. Depths may be shallower than the soundings shown. For more information, contact the local department of natural resources.


ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Additional information can be obtained at www.nauticalcharts.noaa.gov .


COMMENTS REQUESTED
NOAA encourages users to submit inquiries, discrepancies, or comments about this chart via NOAA's ASSIST tool at https://www.nauticalcharts.noaa.gov/customer-service/assist/ .


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