Pyrethrins/Pyrethroid Cumulative Risk Assessment; Notice of Availability, 69726-69728 [2011-29089]

Agencies

• ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 217 (Wednesday, November 9, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 69726-69728]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-29089]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OPP-2011-0746; FRL-8888-9]


Pyrethrins/Pyrethroid Cumulative Risk Assessment; Notice of 
Availability

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces the availability of EPA's cumulative 
risk assessment for the naturally occurring pyrethrins and synthetic 
pyrethroid pesticides (often collectively called the `pyrethroids') and 
opens a public comment period on this document and other supporting 
documents which are available in the docket. The Food Quality 
Protection Act of 1996 (FQPA) requires the EPA to consider available 
information concerning the cumulative effects on human health resulting 
from exposure to multiple chemicals that have a common mechanism of 
toxicity when making regulatory decisions. The Agency has identified a 
common mechanism of toxicity for the naturally occurring pyrethrins and 
synthetic pyrethroid pesticides, and has conducted a screening-level 
cumulative risk assessment for all pesticidal uses for the pyrethroids. 
Based on this assessment, EPA has concluded that the cumulative risks 
from existing pyrethroid uses are below the Agency's level of concern. 
Because this cumulative assessment uses a number of very conservative 
assumptions, EPA is providing an opportunity, through this notice, for 
interested parties to provide comments and input on any additional 
information that may be used to further refine the very conservative 
nature of this cumulative risk assessment.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before January 9, 2012.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments identified by the docket identification 
(ID) number EPA-HQ-OPP-2011-0746, by one of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the on-line instructions for submitting 
comments.
     Mail: Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) 
Regulatory Public Docket (7502P), Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 
Pennsylvania Ave. NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001.
     Delivery: OPP Regulatory Public Docket (7502P), 
Environmental Protection Agency, Rm. S-4400, One Potomac Yard (South 
Bldg.), 2777 S. Crystal Dr., Arlington, VA. Deliveries are only 
accepted during the Docket Facility's normal hours of operation (8:30 
a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays). 
Special arrangements should be made for deliveries of boxed 
information. The Docket Facility telephone number is (703) 305-5805.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to the docket ID number EPA-HQ-
OPP-2011-0746. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be 
included in the docket without change and may be made available on-line 
at https://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 through regulations.gov or 
email. The 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 email 
comment directly to EPA without going through regulations.gov, your 
email address will be automatically captured and included as part of 
the comment that is placed in the 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 docket index 
available at https://www.regulations.gov. 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, is not placed on the Internet 
and will be publicly available only in hard copy form. Publicly 
available docket materials are available either in the electronic 
docket at https://www.regulations.gov, or, if only available in hard 
copy, at the OPP Regulatory Public Docket in Rm. S-4400, One Potomac 
Yard (South Bldg.), 2777 S. Crystal Dr., Arlington, VA. The hours of 
operation of this Docket Facility are from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday 
through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The Docket Facility telephone 
number is (703) 305-5805.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For pesticide specific information 
contact: Dana L. Friedman, Chemical Review Manager, Pesticide Re-
evaluation Division (7508P), Office of Pesticide Programs, 
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW., 
Washington, DC 20460-0001; telephone number: (703) 347-8827; fax 
number: (703) 308-7070; email address: friedman.dana@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. General Information

 A. Does this action apply to me?

    This action is directed to the public in general, and may be of 
interest to a wide range of stakeholders including environmental, human 
health, farm worker, and agricultural advocates; the chemical industry; 
pesticide users; and members of the public interested in the sale, 
distribution, or use of pesticides. Since others also may be 
interested, the Agency has not attempted to describe all the specific 
entities that may be affected by this action. If you have any questions 
regarding the applicability of this action to a particular entity, 
consult the chemical review manager listed under FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT.

 B. What should I consider as I prepare my comments for EPA?

    1. Submitting CBI. Do not submit this information to EPA through 
regulations.gov or email. Clearly mark the part or all of the 
information that you claim to be CBI. For CBI information in a disk or 
CD-ROM that you mail to EPA, mark the outside of the disk or CD-ROM as 
CBI and then identify electronically within the disk or CD-ROM the 
specific information that is claimed as CBI. In addition to one 
complete version of the comment that includes information claimed as 
CBI, a copy of the comment that does not contain the information 
claimed as CBI must be submitted for inclusion in the public docket. 
Information so marked will not be disclosed except in accordance with 
procedures set forth in 40 CFR part 2.
    2. Tips for preparing your comments. When submitting comments, 
remember to:
    i. Identify the document by docket ID number and other identifying 
information (subject heading, Federal Register date and page number).
    ii. Follow directions. The Agency may ask you to respond to 
specific questions or organize comments by referencing a Code of 
Federal Regulations (CFR) part or section number.
    iii. Explain why you agree or disagree; suggest alternatives and 
substitute language for your requested changes.
    iv. Describe any assumptions and provide any technical information 
and/or data that you used.
    v. If you estimate potential costs or burdens, explain how you 
arrived at your estimate in sufficient detail to allow for it to be 
reproduced.
    vi. Provide specific examples to illustrate your concerns and 
suggest alternatives.

[[Page 69728]]

    vii. Explain your views as clearly as possible, avoiding the use of 
profanity or personal threats.
    viii. Make sure to submit your comments by the comment period 
deadline identified.
    3. Environmental justice. EPA seeks to achieve environmental 
justice, the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of any group, 
including minority and/or low income populations, in the development, 
implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and 
policies. To help address potential environmental justice issues, the 
Agency seeks information on any groups or segments of the population 
who, as a result of their location, cultural practices, or other 
factors, may have atypical or disproportionately high and adverse human 
health impacts or environmental effects from exposure to the pesticides 
discussed in this document, compared to the general population.

II. Authority

    Section 408(b)(2)(D)(v) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act 
(FFDCA) directs the Agency to consider available information on the 
cumulative risk from substances sharing a common mechanism of toxicity. 
On June 30, 2011, the Agency determined that the naturally occurring 
pyrethrins and synthetic pyrethroid pesticides share a common mechanism 
of toxicity. This determination can be found in the document entitled 
``Draft Science Policy Paper for the Proposed Common Mechanism Grouping 
for the Pyrethrins and Synthetic Pyrethroids,'' which is available in 
the docket EPA-HQ-OPP-2011-0746.

List of Subjects

    Environmental protection, Cumulative Risk Assessment, Pesticides 
and pests, Pyrethrins and Pyrethroids.

    Dated: October 28, 2011.
Richard P. Keigwin, Jr.,
Director, Pesticide Re-evaluation Division, Office of Pesticide 
Programs.
[FR Doc. 2011-29089 Filed 11-8-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P