Science Advisory Board Staff Office; Notification of an Upcoming Meeting of the Science Advisory Board; Ecological Processes and Effects Committee, 41696-41697 [E9-19759]

Download as PDF jlentini on DSKJ8SOYB1PROD with NOTICES 41696 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 158 / Tuesday, August 18, 2009 / Notices Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA–HQ–ORD–2009– NNNN. EPA’s policy is that all comments received will be included in the public docket without change and may be made available online at http: //www.regulations.gov, including any personal information provided, unless the comment includes information claimed to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit information that you consider to be CBI or otherwise protected by statute through https:// www.regulations.gov or e-mail. The https://www.regulations.gov Web site is an ‘‘anonymous access’’ system, which means EPA will not know your identity or contact information unless you provide it in the body of your comment. If you send an e-mail comment directly to EPA, without going through https:// www.regulations.gov, your e-mail address will be automatically captured and included as part of the comment that is placed in the public docket and made available on the Internet. If you submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you include your name and other contact information in the body of your comment and with any disk or CD–ROM you submit. If EPA cannot read your comment due to technical difficulties and cannot contact you for clarification, EPA may not be able to consider your comment. Electronic files should avoid the use of special characters, any form of encryption, and be free of any defects or viruses. Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the https:// www.regulations.gov index. Although listed in the index, some information is not publicly available, e.g., CBI or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such as copyrighted material, will be publicly available only in hard copy. Publicly available docket materials are available either electronically in https://www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the ORD Docket, EPA/DC, EPAWest, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The Public Reading Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the Public Reading Room is (202) 566–1744, and the telephone number for the ORD Docket is (202) 566–1752. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gary Bangs, Risk Assessment Forum, Mail Code 8105R, Environmental Protection VerDate Nov<24>2008 16:30 Aug 17, 2009 Jkt 217001 Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: (202) 564–6667; fax number: (202) 564–2070, E-mail: bangs.gary@epa.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Various stakeholders, inside and outside the Agency, have called for a more comprehensive characterization of risks, including uncertainties, in protecting more sensitive or vulnerable populations and life stages. Therefore, the Office of the Science Advisor of the EPA, together with EPA’s Science Policy Council and members of EPA’s Risk Assessment Forum (RAF), identified a need to examine the use of probabilistic approaches in Agency risk assessment and risk management. An RAF Technical Panel developed this paper and the manager’s summary to provide a general overview of the value of probabilistic analyses and similar or related methods, and some examples of current applications across the Agency. The purpose of these papers is not only to describe potential and actual uses of these tools in the risk decision process, but also to encourage their further implementation in human, ecological and environmental risk analysis and related decision making. The enhanced use of probabilistic analyses to characterize uncertainty in assessments would not only reflect external scientific advice on how to further advance EPA risk assessment science, but will also help to address specific challenges faced by managers and improve confidence in Agency decisions. The draft document was prepared by the Probabilistic Risk Analysis Technical Panel of EPA’s Risk Assessment Forum and has undergone internal peer review. Dated: August 4, 2009. Kevin Teichman, Acting EPA Science Advisor. [FR Doc. E9–19755 Filed 8–17–09; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6560–50–P ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY [FRL–8946–7] Science Advisory Board Staff Office; Notification of an Upcoming Meeting of the Science Advisory Board; Ecological Processes and Effects Committee AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). ACTION: Notice. SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or Agency) Science PO 00000 Frm 00023 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 Advisory Board (SAB) Staff Office announces a public meeting of the SAB Ecological Processes and Effects Committee to conduct a review of EPA’s draft guidance document, Empirical Approaches for Nutrient Criteria Derivation. DATES: The meeting dates are Wednesday, September 9, 2009 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Eastern Time), Thursday, September 10, 2009 from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Eastern Time) and Friday, September 11, 2009 from 8:30 a.m. to 12 noon (Eastern Time). ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at the Marriott at Metro Center Hotel, 775 12th Street, NW., Washington, DC 20005. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Members of the public who wish to obtain further information about this meeting must contact Dr. Thomas Armitage, Designated Federal Officer (DFO). Dr. Armitage may be contacted at the EPA Science Advisory Board (1400F), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460; or via telephone/voice mail; (202) 343–9995; fax (202) 233–0643; or e-mail at armitage.thomas@epa.gov. Any inquiry regarding EPA’s draft guidance document, Empirical Approaches for Nutrient Criteria Derivation, should be directed to Ms. Ifeyinwa Davis of EPA’s Office of Water at davis.ifeyinwa@epa.gov or (202) 566– 1096. General information about the EPA SAB, as well as any updates concerning the meeting announced in this notice, may be found on the SAB Web site at https://www.epa.gov/sab. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant to the Federal Advisory Committee Act, Public Law 92–463, notice is hereby given that the SAB Ecological Processes and Effects Committee will hold a public meeting to conduct a peer review of EPA’s draft guidance document, Empirical Approaches for Nutrient Criteria Derivation. The SAB was established by 42 U.S.C. 4365 to provide independent scientific and technical advice to the Administrator on the technical basis for Agency positions and regulations. The SAB is a Federal Advisory Committee chartered under the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), as amended, 5 U.S.C., App. 2. The SAB will comply with the provisions of FACA and all appropriate SAB Staff Office procedural policies. Background: EPA’s Office of Water (OW) is responsible for deriving national recommended water quality criteria that serve as guidance to States to assist them in establishing water E:\FR\FM\18AUN1.SGM 18AUN1 jlentini on DSKJ8SOYB1PROD with NOTICES Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 158 / Tuesday, August 18, 2009 / Notices quality standards. Nutrients (i.e., nitrogen and phosphorus) have been one of the leading causes of surface water quality impairment in the U.S. Therefore, development of numeric nutrient criteria and assisting States in the adoption of numeric nutrient criteria into their water quality standards is a high priority for OW. EPA published peer reviewed technical guidance for developing nutrient criteria for lakes and reservoirs in April 2000, rivers and streams in July 2000, estuaries and coastal marine waters in October 2001, and Wetlands in June 2008. These guidance documents are available at the following Web site at https:// www.epa.gov/waterscience/criteria/ nutrient/guidance/. The basic analytical approaches for nutrient criteria derivation described in these previously published guidance documents include: (1) The reference condition approach, (2) stressorresponse analysis, and (3) mechanistic modeling. Because many states are currently pursuing the use of empirically-derived stressor-response relationships as the basis for developing numeric nutrient endpoints for water quality standards, OW has developed the draft guidance document, Empirical Approaches for Nutrient Criteria Derivation, to augment EPA’s published guidance manuals. OW has asked the Science Advisory Board to review the draft guidance document and comment on the technical soundness of proposed empirical approaches as the basis for future development of numeric nutrient criteria. On April 27, 2009 the SAB Staff Office published a Federal Register Notice (74 FR 19084–19085) requesting public nominations of scientists in fields such as ecology, biology, environmental science, risk assessment, statistics, and zoology to augment the SAB Ecological Processes and Effects Committee. In particular, the SAB Staff Office requested nominations of scientists with specialized knowledge and expertise in the use of empiricallyderived stressor-response relationships to develop nutrient assessment endpoints. The augmented Ecological Processes and Effects Committee will conduct the review of EPA’s draft Empirical Approaches for Nutrient Criteria Derivation. Availability of Meeting Materials: The meeting agenda, SAB Committee roster, charge to the Committee, and other meeting material will be posted on the SAB Web site at https://www.epa.gov/sab in advance of the meeting. Procedures for Providing Public Input: Interested members of the public may submit relevant written or oral VerDate Nov<24>2008 16:30 Aug 17, 2009 Jkt 217001 information on the topic of this advisory activity, and/or the group conducting the activity, for the SAB to consider during the advisory process. Oral Statements: In general, individuals or groups requesting an oral presentation at a public meeting will be limited to five minutes per speaker. Interested parties should contact Dr. Armitage, DFO, in writing (preferably via e-mail) at the contact information noted above by September 1, 2009 to be placed on a list of public speakers for the meeting. Written Statements: Written statements should be received in the SAB Staff Office no later than September 4, 2009 so that the information may be made available to the SAB Committee members for their consideration. Written statements should be supplied to the DFO in the following formats: One hard copy with original signature, and one electronic copy via e-mail (acceptable file format: Adobe Acrobat PDF, WordPerfect, MS Word, MS PowerPoint, or Rich Text files in IBM–PC/Windows 98/2000/XP format). Submitters are requested to provide two versions of each document submitted with and without signatures, because the SAB Staff Office does not publish documents with signatures on its Web sites. Accessibility: For information on access or services for individuals with disabilities, please contact Dr. Armitage at the phone number or e-mail address noted above, preferably at least ten days prior to the meeting to give EPA as much time as possible to process your request. Dated: August 11, 2009. Anthony F. Maciorowski, Deputy Director, EPA Science Advisory Board Staff Office. [FR Doc. E9–19759 Filed 8–17–09; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6560–50–P ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY [FRL–8946–6] Science Advisory Board Staff Office; Notification of a Meeting of the Science Advisory Board Drinking Water Committee AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency. ACTION: Notice. SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Science Advisory Board (SAB) Staff Office announces a public face-to-face meeting of the SAB Drinking Water Committee (DWC) to provide advice on the Agency’s draft PO 00000 Frm 00024 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 41697 Protocol for Microbial Risk Assessment to Support Human Health Protection for Water-Based Media and to discuss its draft advisory report on the Agency’s supporting analysis for the proposed revised Total Coliform Rule. DATES: The SAB will hold the public face-to-face meeting on September 21, 2009 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Eastern Time) and will continue on September 22, 2009 from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. (Eastern Time). ADDRESSES: The September 21–22, 2009 face-to-face meeting will be held at the SAB Conference Center, 1025 F Street, NW., Room 3705, Washington, DC 20004. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Any member of the public wishing to obtain general information concerning this public meeting should contact Mr. Aaron Yeow, Designated Federal Officer (DFO), EPA Science Advisory Board (1400F), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460; via telephone/voice mail: (202) 343–9878; fax: (202) 233–0643; or e-mail at yeow.aaron@epa.gov. General information concerning the EPA Science Advisory Board can be found on the SAB Web site at https://www.epa.gov/ sab. Pursuant to the Federal Advisory Committee Act, 5 U.S.C., App. 2 (FACA), notice is hereby given that the SAB Drinking Water Committee (DWC) will hold a public meeting to provide advice on the Agency’s draft Protocol for Microbial Risk Assessment to Support Human Health Protection for Water-Based Media and to discuss its draft advisory report on the Agency’s supporting analysis for the proposed revised Total Coliform Rule. The SAB was established pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 4365 to provide independent scientific and technical advice to the Administrator on the technical basis for Agency positions and regulations. The SAB is a Federal Advisory Committee chartered under FACA. The SAB will comply with the provisions of FACA and all appropriate EPA and SAB Staff Office procedural policies. Background: EPA’s Office of Water (OW) is responsible for protecting human health and the environment from contaminants in water. To achieve this goal, OW conducts risk assessments that apply scientific principles and methods to determine the nature and magnitude of health risks from contaminant exposures. OW performs microbial risk assessments (MRA) to support new regulations for microbial SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: E:\FR\FM\18AUN1.SGM 18AUN1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 158 (Tuesday, August 18, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 41696-41697]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-19759]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-8946-7]


Science Advisory Board Staff Office; Notification of an Upcoming 
Meeting of the Science Advisory Board; Ecological Processes and Effects 
Committee

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or Agency) Science 
Advisory Board (SAB) Staff Office announces a public meeting of the SAB 
Ecological Processes and Effects Committee to conduct a review of EPA's 
draft guidance document, Empirical Approaches for Nutrient Criteria 
Derivation.

DATES: The meeting dates are Wednesday, September 9, 2009 from 9 a.m. 
to 5 p.m. (Eastern Time), Thursday, September 10, 2009 from 8:30 a.m. 
to 5 p.m. (Eastern Time) and Friday, September 11, 2009 from 8:30 a.m. 
to 12 noon (Eastern Time).

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at the Marriott at Metro Center 
Hotel, 775 12th Street, NW., Washington, DC 20005.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Members of the public who wish to 
obtain further information about this meeting must contact Dr. Thomas 
Armitage, Designated Federal Officer (DFO). Dr. Armitage may be 
contacted at the EPA Science Advisory Board (1400F), U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460; 
or via telephone/voice mail; (202) 343-9995; fax (202) 233-0643; or e-
mail at armitage.thomas@epa.gov. Any inquiry regarding EPA's draft 
guidance document, Empirical Approaches for Nutrient Criteria 
Derivation, should be directed to Ms. Ifeyinwa Davis of EPA's Office of 
Water at davis.ifeyinwa@epa.gov or (202) 566-1096. General information 
about the EPA SAB, as well as any updates concerning the meeting 
announced in this notice, may be found on the SAB Web site at https://www.epa.gov/sab.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant to the Federal Advisory Committee 
Act, Public Law 92-463, notice is hereby given that the SAB Ecological 
Processes and Effects Committee will hold a public meeting to conduct a 
peer review of EPA's draft guidance document, Empirical Approaches for 
Nutrient Criteria Derivation. The SAB was established by 42 U.S.C. 4365 
to provide independent scientific and technical advice to the 
Administrator on the technical basis for Agency positions and 
regulations. The SAB is a Federal Advisory Committee chartered under 
the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), as amended, 5 U.S.C., App. 
2. The SAB will comply with the provisions of FACA and all appropriate 
SAB Staff Office procedural policies.
    Background: EPA's Office of Water (OW) is responsible for deriving 
national recommended water quality criteria that serve as guidance to 
States to assist them in establishing water

[[Page 41697]]

quality standards. Nutrients (i.e., nitrogen and phosphorus) have been 
one of the leading causes of surface water quality impairment in the 
U.S. Therefore, development of numeric nutrient criteria and assisting 
States in the adoption of numeric nutrient criteria into their water 
quality standards is a high priority for OW. EPA published peer 
reviewed technical guidance for developing nutrient criteria for lakes 
and reservoirs in April 2000, rivers and streams in July 2000, 
estuaries and coastal marine waters in October 2001, and Wetlands in 
June 2008. These guidance documents are available at the following Web 
site at https://www.epa.gov/waterscience/criteria/nutrient/guidance/. The basic analytical approaches for nutrient criteria 
derivation described in these previously published guidance documents 
include: (1) The reference condition approach, (2) stressor-response 
analysis, and (3) mechanistic modeling. Because many states are 
currently pursuing the use of empirically-derived stressor-response 
relationships as the basis for developing numeric nutrient endpoints 
for water quality standards, OW has developed the draft guidance 
document, Empirical Approaches for Nutrient Criteria Derivation, to 
augment EPA's published guidance manuals. OW has asked the Science 
Advisory Board to review the draft guidance document and comment on the 
technical soundness of proposed empirical approaches as the basis for 
future development of numeric nutrient criteria.
    On April 27, 2009 the SAB Staff Office published a Federal Register 
Notice (74 FR 19084-19085) requesting public nominations of scientists 
in fields such as ecology, biology, environmental science, risk 
assessment, statistics, and zoology to augment the SAB Ecological 
Processes and Effects Committee. In particular, the SAB Staff Office 
requested nominations of scientists with specialized knowledge and 
expertise in the use of empirically-derived stressor-response 
relationships to develop nutrient assessment endpoints. The augmented 
Ecological Processes and Effects Committee will conduct the review of 
EPA's draft Empirical Approaches for Nutrient Criteria Derivation.
    Availability of Meeting Materials: The meeting agenda, SAB 
Committee roster, charge to the Committee, and other meeting material 
will be posted on the SAB Web site at https://www.epa.gov/sab in advance 
of the meeting.
    Procedures for Providing Public Input: Interested members of the 
public may submit relevant written or oral information on the topic of 
this advisory activity, and/or the group conducting the activity, for 
the SAB to consider during the advisory process.
    Oral Statements: In general, individuals or groups requesting an 
oral presentation at a public meeting will be limited to five minutes 
per speaker. Interested parties should contact Dr. Armitage, DFO, in 
writing (preferably via e-mail) at the contact information noted above 
by September 1, 2009 to be placed on a list of public speakers for the 
meeting. Written Statements: Written statements should be received in 
the SAB Staff Office no later than September 4, 2009 so that the 
information may be made available to the SAB Committee members for 
their consideration. Written statements should be supplied to the DFO 
in the following formats: One hard copy with original signature, and 
one electronic copy via e-mail (acceptable file format: Adobe Acrobat 
PDF, WordPerfect, MS Word, MS PowerPoint, or Rich Text files in IBM-PC/
Windows 98/2000/XP format). Submitters are requested to provide two 
versions of each document submitted with and without signatures, 
because the SAB Staff Office does not publish documents with signatures 
on its Web sites.
    Accessibility: For information on access or services for 
individuals with disabilities, please contact Dr. Armitage at the phone 
number or e-mail address noted above, preferably at least ten days 
prior to the meeting to give EPA as much time as possible to process 
your request.

    Dated: August 11, 2009.
Anthony F. Maciorowski,
Deputy Director, EPA Science Advisory Board Staff Office.
[FR Doc. E9-19759 Filed 8-17-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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