Notice of Workshop and Call for Information on Integrated Science Assessment for Oxides of Sulfur, 27387-27388 [2013-11197]
Download as PDF
Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 91 / Friday, May 10, 2013 / Notices
Abstract for [WDS–145]
Q: Does EPA approve the alternative
testing request to allow sources subject
to the New Source Performance
Standard for New Residential Wood
Heaters at 40 CFR part 60, subpart AAA,
to use the Canadian test protocol CSA
B415, to determine thermal energy
efficiency ratings for wood stoves and
pellet stoves per the guidelines at 40
CFR part 60.636(i)(3) in lieu of the
default efficiency ratings (63 percent for
noncatalytic wood heaters, 72 percent
for catalytic wood heaters, and 78
percent for pellet stoves)?
A: Yes. EPA approves the alternative
testing for manufacturers of wood
heaters and pellets to use CSA B415 to
determine thermal efficiency ratings for
compliance with 40 CFR part 60,
subpart AAA. The CSA B415 testing
must be conducted by an EPA
accredited laboratory and use the higher
heating value of the fuel.
Dated: April 17, 2013.
Lisa Lund,
Director, Office of Compliance.
[FR Doc. 2013–11204 Filed 5–9–13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
[FRL–9812–5; Docket ID No. EPA–HQ–ORD–
2013–0357]
Notice of Workshop and Call for
Information on Integrated Science
Assessment for Oxides of Sulfur
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of Workshop; Call for
Information.
AGENCY:
The U.S. EPA Office of
Research and Development’s National
Center for Environmental Assessment
(NCEA) is preparing an Integrated
Science Assessment (ISA) as part of the
review of the primary National Ambient
Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for
oxides of sulfur (SOX) (for which the
indicator is sulfur dioxide [SO2]). This
ISA will update the scientific
assessment presented in the Integrated
Science Assessment for Sulfur Oxides—
Health Criteria (EPA 600/R–08/047F),
published in September 2008. Interested
parties are invited to assist the EPA in
developing and refining the scientific
information base for the review of the
NAAQS for SOX by submitting recent
research studies that have been
published, accepted for publication, or
presented at a public scientific meeting.
The EPA is also announcing that a
workshop entitled ‘‘Kickoff Workshop
mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
SUMMARY:
VerDate Mar<15>2010
18:05 May 09, 2013
Jkt 229001
to Inform EPA’s Review of the Primary
SO2 NAAQS’’ is being organized by
NCEA and the EPA Office of Air and
Radiation’s Office of Air Quality
Planning and Standards (OAQPS). The
workshop will be held June 12–13,
2013, in Research Triangle Park, North
Carolina. The workshop will be open to
attendance by interested public
observers on a first-come, first-served
basis up to the limits of available space.
Additionally, in the near future, the
EPA Scientific Advisory Board (SAB)
will be forming a Clean Air Scientific
Advisory Committee (CASAC) panel for
the SO2 NAAQS health review.
DATES: The workshop will be held on
June 12–13, 2013. All communications
and information submitted in response
to the call for information should be
received by EPA by June 10, 2013.
ADDRESSES: The workshop will be held
at U.S. EPA, 109 T.W. Alexander Drive,
Research Triangle Park, North Carolina.
An EPA contractor, ICF International, is
providing logistical support for the
workshop. Please register by going to
https://sites.google.com/site/
soxkickoffworkshop/. The preregistration deadline is May 31, 2013.
Please direct questions regarding
workshop registration or logistics to
Whitney Kihlstrom at
EPA_NAAQS_Workshop@icfi.com or by
phone at 919–293–1646. For specific
questions regarding technical aspects of
the workshop see the section of this
notice entitled FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT.
Information in response to the call for
information may be submitted
electronically, by mail, by facsimile, or
by hand delivery/courier. Please follow
the detailed instructions as provided in
the section of this notice entitled
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For
details on the period for submission of
research information from the public,
contact the Office of Environmental
Information (OEI) Docket; telephone:
202–566–1752; facsimile: 202–566–
9744; or email: Docket_ORD@epa.gov.
For technical information, contact Tom
Long, Ph.D., NCEA; telephone: 919–
541–1880; facsimile: 919–541–2985; or
email: long.tom@epa.gov or Amy
Lamson, Ph.D., OAQPS; telephone: 919–
541–4383 or email:
lamson.amy@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Information About the Project
Section 108(a) of the Clean Air Act
directs the Administrator to issue ‘‘air
quality criteria’’ for certain air
pollutants. These air quality criteria are
to ‘‘accurately reflect the latest scientific
PO 00000
Frm 00024
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
27387
knowledge useful in indicating the kind
and extent of all identifiable effects on
public health or welfare, which may be
expected from the presence of such
pollutant in the ambient air. . . .’’
Under section 109 of the Act, EPA is
then to establish National Ambient Air
Quality Standards (NAAQS) for each
pollutant for which EPA has issued
criteria. Section 109(d) of the Act
requires EPA to review periodically,
and, if appropriate, to revise existing air
quality criteria to reflect advances in
scientific knowledge on the effects of
the pollutant on public health and
welfare. EPA is also to determine
whether it is appropriate to revise the
NAAQS based on the revised air quality
criteria.
Oxides of Sulfur (SOX) are one of six
‘‘criteria’’ pollutants for which EPA has
established NAAQS. Periodically, EPA
reviews the scientific basis for these
standards by preparing an Integrated
Science Assessment (ISA). The ISA,
along with additional technical and
policy assessments conducted by
OAQPS, form the scientific and
technical bases for EPA decisions on the
adequacy of the SO2 NAAQS and the
appropriateness of revising that
standard.
At the start of a NAAQS review, EPA
issues an announcement of the review
and notes the initiation of the
development of the ISA. At that time,
EPA also issues a request that the public
submit scientific literature that they
want to bring to the attention of the
Agency for consideration in the review
process. CASAC, an independent
scientific advisory committee whose
role is mandated by the Clean Air Act,
is charged with independent expert
scientific review of EPA’s draft ISAs. As
the process proceeds, the public will
have opportunities to review and
comment on draft SOX ISAs. These
opportunities will also be announced in
the Federal Register.
For the review of the primary SO2
NAAQS being initiated by this notice,
the Agency is interested in obtaining
additional new information, particularly
concerning toxicological studies of
effects of controlled exposure to SOX on
laboratory animals, humans, and in
vitro systems as well as epidemiologic
(observational) studies of health effects
associated with ambient exposures of
human populations to SOX. EPA also
seeks recent information in other areas
of SOX research such as chemistry and
physics, sources and emissions,
analytical methodology, transport and
transformation in the environment, and
ambient concentrations. This and other
selected literature relevant to a review
E:\FR\FM\10MYN1.SGM
10MYN1
27388
Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 91 / Friday, May 10, 2013 / Notices
mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
of the SO2 NAAQS will be assessed in
the forthcoming SOX ISA.
As part of this review of the SO2
NAAQS, EPA intends to sponsor a
workshop on June 12–13, 2013, in
Research Triangle Park, North Carolina
to highlight significant new and
emerging SOX research, and to make
recommendations to the Agency
regarding the design and scope of the
review for the primary (health-based)
SO2 standards to ensure that it
addresses key policy-relevant issues and
considers the new science that is
relevant to informing our understanding
of these issues. In addition, other
opportunities for submission of new
peer-reviewed, published (or in-press)
papers will be possible as part of public
comment on the draft ISAs that will be
reviewed by CASAC. Workshop
discussions are intended to build upon
three prior publications or events (see
https://www.epa.gov/ttn/naaqs/
standards/so2/s_so2_index.html to
obtain a copy of these and other related
documents):
• Primary National Ambient Air
Quality Standard for Sulfur Dioxide;
Final Rule (40 CFR Parts 50, 53, and 58,
June 22, 2010). The preamble to the
final rule included detailed discussions
of policy-relevant issues central to the
last review.
• Integrated Science Assessment for
Sulfur Oxides—Health Criteria (EPA
600/R–08/047F, September 2008).
• Risk and Exposure Assessment to
Support the Review of the SO2 Primary
National Ambient Air Quality Standard
(EPA 452/R–09/007, July 2009).
Based in large part on the input
received during this workshop, EPA
will develop a draft integrated review
plan for the SOX review that will outline
the schedule, process, and approaches
for evaluating the relevant scientific
information and addressing the key
policy-relevant issues to be considered
in this review. CASAC will be asked to
conduct a consultation with the Agency
on the draft integrated review plan, and
the public will have the opportunity to
comment on it as well. The final
integrated review plan will be used to
frame each of the major elements of the
SOX review under the NAAQS review
process: An integrated science
assessment, a risk/exposure assessment,
and a policy assessment.
II. How To Submit Technical Comments
to the Docket
Submit your comments, identified by
Docket ID No. EPA–HQ–ORD–2013–
0357 by one of the following methods:
• www.regulations.gov: Follow the
on-line instructions for submitting
comments.
VerDate Mar<15>2010
18:05 May 09, 2013
Jkt 229001
• Email: Docket_ORD@epa.gov.
• Fax: 202–566–9744.
• Mail: Office of Environmental
Information (OEI) Docket (Mail Code:
28221T), U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue
NW., Washington, DC 20460. The phone
number is 202–566–1752.
• Hand Delivery: The OEI Docket is
located in the EPA Headquarters Docket
Center, EPA West Building, Room 3334,
1301 Constitution Avenue NW.,
Washington, DC. The EPA Docket
Center Public Reading Room is open
from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday
through Friday, excluding Federal
holidays. The telephone number for the
Public Reading Room is 202–566–1744.
Such deliveries are only accepted
during the docket’s normal hours of
operation, and special arrangements
should be made for deliveries of boxed
information. If you provide comments
by mail or hand delivery, please submit
three copies of the comments. For
attachments, provide an index, number
pages consecutively with the comments,
and submit an unbound original and
three copies.
Instructions: Direct your comments to
Docket ID No. EPA–HQ–ORD–2013–
0357. Please ensure that your comments
are submitted within the specified
comment period. Comments received
after the closing date will be marked
‘‘late,’’ and may only be considered if
time permits. It is EPA’s policy to
include all comments it receives in the
public docket without change and to
make the comments available online at
www.regulations.gov, including any
personal information provided, unless a
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 www.regulations.gov
or email. The 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 email
comment directly to EPA without going
through www.regulations.gov, your
email 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,
PO 00000
Frm 00025
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
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. For additional information
about EPA’s public docket visit the EPA
Docket Center homepage at
www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm.
Docket: Documents in the docket are
listed in the 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 materials, such as
copyrighted material, are publicly
available only in hard copy. Publicly
available docket materials are available
either electronically in
www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at
the OEI Docket in the EPA Headquarters
Docket Center.
Dated: May 2, 2013.
Debra B. Walsh,
Acting Director, National Center for
Environmental Assessment.
[FR Doc. 2013–11197 Filed 5–9–13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE
CORPORATION
Proposed Agency Information
Collection Activities: Proposed
Collection Renewal; Comment Request
Re Occasional Qualitative Surveys
Federal Deposit Insurance
Corporation (FDIC).
ACTION: Notice and request for comment.
AGENCY:
The FDIC, as part of its
continuing effort to reduce paperwork
and respondent burden, invites the
general public and other Federal
agencies to take this opportunity, as
required by the Paperwork Reduction
Act of 1995 (4 U.S.S. chapter 35), to
comment on renewal of its generic
information collection entitled,
‘‘Occasional Qualitative Surveys’’ (OMB
No. 3064–0127).
DATES: Comments must be submitted on
or before July 9, 2013.
ADDRESSES: Interested parties are
invited to submit written comments. All
comments should refer to the name of
the collection. Comments may be
submitted by any of the following
methods:
• https://www.FDIC.gov/regulations/
laws/federal/propose.html.
• Email: comments@fdic.gov.
• Mail: Leneta G. Gregorie
(202.898.3719), Counsel, Federal
Deposit Insurance Corporation, 550 17th
Street NW., Room NY–5050,
Washington, DC 20429.
SUMMARY:
E:\FR\FM\10MYN1.SGM
10MYN1
Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 91 (Friday, May 10, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 27387-27388]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-11197]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-9812-5; Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-ORD-2013-0357]
Notice of Workshop and Call for Information on Integrated Science
Assessment for Oxides of Sulfur
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of Workshop; Call for Information.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. EPA Office of Research and Development's National
Center for Environmental Assessment (NCEA) is preparing an Integrated
Science Assessment (ISA) as part of the review of the primary National
Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for oxides of sulfur
(SOX) (for which the indicator is sulfur dioxide
[SO2]). This ISA will update the scientific assessment
presented in the Integrated Science Assessment for Sulfur Oxides--
Health Criteria (EPA 600/R-08/047F), published in September 2008.
Interested parties are invited to assist the EPA in developing and
refining the scientific information base for the review of the NAAQS
for SOX by submitting recent research studies that have been
published, accepted for publication, or presented at a public
scientific meeting.
The EPA is also announcing that a workshop entitled ``Kickoff
Workshop to Inform EPA's Review of the Primary SO2 NAAQS''
is being organized by NCEA and the EPA Office of Air and Radiation's
Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards (OAQPS). The workshop will
be held June 12-13, 2013, in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina.
The workshop will be open to attendance by interested public observers
on a first-come, first-served basis up to the limits of available
space.
Additionally, in the near future, the EPA Scientific Advisory Board
(SAB) will be forming a Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC)
panel for the SO2 NAAQS health review.
DATES: The workshop will be held on June 12-13, 2013. All
communications and information submitted in response to the call for
information should be received by EPA by June 10, 2013.
ADDRESSES: The workshop will be held at U.S. EPA, 109 T.W. Alexander
Drive, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina. An EPA contractor, ICF
International, is providing logistical support for the workshop. Please
register by going to https://sites.google.com/site/soxkickoffworkshop/.
The pre-registration deadline is May 31, 2013. Please direct questions
regarding workshop registration or logistics to Whitney Kihlstrom at
EPA_NAAQS_Workshop@icfi.com or by phone at 919-293-1646. For specific
questions regarding technical aspects of the workshop see the section
of this notice entitled FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
Information in response to the call for information may be
submitted electronically, by mail, by facsimile, or by hand delivery/
courier. Please follow the detailed instructions as provided in the
section of this notice entitled SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For details on the period for
submission of research information from the public, contact the Office
of Environmental Information (OEI) Docket; telephone: 202-566-1752;
facsimile: 202-566-9744; or email: Docket_ORD@epa.gov. For technical
information, contact Tom Long, Ph.D., NCEA; telephone: 919-541-1880;
facsimile: 919-541-2985; or email: long.tom@epa.gov or Amy Lamson,
Ph.D., OAQPS; telephone: 919-541-4383 or email: lamson.amy@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Information About the Project
Section 108(a) of the Clean Air Act directs the Administrator to
issue ``air quality criteria'' for certain air pollutants. These air
quality criteria are to ``accurately reflect the latest scientific
knowledge useful in indicating the kind and extent of all identifiable
effects on public health or welfare, which may be expected from the
presence of such pollutant in the ambient air. . . .'' Under section
109 of the Act, EPA is then to establish National Ambient Air Quality
Standards (NAAQS) for each pollutant for which EPA has issued criteria.
Section 109(d) of the Act requires EPA to review periodically, and, if
appropriate, to revise existing air quality criteria to reflect
advances in scientific knowledge on the effects of the pollutant on
public health and welfare. EPA is also to determine whether it is
appropriate to revise the NAAQS based on the revised air quality
criteria.
Oxides of Sulfur (SOX) are one of six ``criteria''
pollutants for which EPA has established NAAQS. Periodically, EPA
reviews the scientific basis for these standards by preparing an
Integrated Science Assessment (ISA). The ISA, along with additional
technical and policy assessments conducted by OAQPS, form the
scientific and technical bases for EPA decisions on the adequacy of the
SO2 NAAQS and the appropriateness of revising that standard.
At the start of a NAAQS review, EPA issues an announcement of the
review and notes the initiation of the development of the ISA. At that
time, EPA also issues a request that the public submit scientific
literature that they want to bring to the attention of the Agency for
consideration in the review process. CASAC, an independent scientific
advisory committee whose role is mandated by the Clean Air Act, is
charged with independent expert scientific review of EPA's draft ISAs.
As the process proceeds, the public will have opportunities to review
and comment on draft SOX ISAs. These opportunities will also
be announced in the Federal Register.
For the review of the primary SO2 NAAQS being initiated
by this notice, the Agency is interested in obtaining additional new
information, particularly concerning toxicological studies of effects
of controlled exposure to SOX on laboratory animals, humans,
and in vitro systems as well as epidemiologic (observational) studies
of health effects associated with ambient exposures of human
populations to SOX. EPA also seeks recent information in
other areas of SOX research such as chemistry and physics,
sources and emissions, analytical methodology, transport and
transformation in the environment, and ambient concentrations. This and
other selected literature relevant to a review
[[Page 27388]]
of the SO2 NAAQS will be assessed in the forthcoming
SOX ISA.
As part of this review of the SO2 NAAQS, EPA intends to
sponsor a workshop on June 12-13, 2013, in Research Triangle Park,
North Carolina to highlight significant new and emerging SOX
research, and to make recommendations to the Agency regarding the
design and scope of the review for the primary (health-based)
SO2 standards to ensure that it addresses key policy-
relevant issues and considers the new science that is relevant to
informing our understanding of these issues. In addition, other
opportunities for submission of new peer-reviewed, published (or in-
press) papers will be possible as part of public comment on the draft
ISAs that will be reviewed by CASAC. Workshop discussions are intended
to build upon three prior publications or events (see https://www.epa.gov/ttn/naaqs/standards/so2/s_so2_index.html to obtain a copy
of these and other related documents):
Primary National Ambient Air Quality Standard for Sulfur
Dioxide; Final Rule (40 CFR Parts 50, 53, and 58, June 22, 2010). The
preamble to the final rule included detailed discussions of policy-
relevant issues central to the last review.
Integrated Science Assessment for Sulfur Oxides--Health
Criteria (EPA 600/R-08/047F, September 2008).
Risk and Exposure Assessment to Support the Review of the
SO2 Primary National Ambient Air Quality Standard (EPA 452/
R-09/007, July 2009).
Based in large part on the input received during this workshop, EPA
will develop a draft integrated review plan for the SOX
review that will outline the schedule, process, and approaches for
evaluating the relevant scientific information and addressing the key
policy-relevant issues to be considered in this review. CASAC will be
asked to conduct a consultation with the Agency on the draft integrated
review plan, and the public will have the opportunity to comment on it
as well. The final integrated review plan will be used to frame each of
the major elements of the SOX review under the NAAQS review
process: An integrated science assessment, a risk/exposure assessment,
and a policy assessment.
II. How To Submit Technical Comments to the Docket
Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-ORD-2013-
0357 by one of the following methods:
www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line instructions for
submitting comments.
Email: Docket_ORD@epa.gov.
Fax: 202-566-9744.
Mail: Office of Environmental Information (OEI) Docket
(Mail Code: 28221T), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200
Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20460. The phone number is 202-
566-1752.
Hand Delivery: The OEI Docket is located in the EPA
Headquarters Docket Center, EPA West Building, Room 3334, 1301
Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC. The EPA Docket Center Public
Reading Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through
Friday, excluding Federal holidays. The telephone number for the Public
Reading Room is 202-566-1744. Such deliveries are only accepted during
the docket's normal hours of operation, and special arrangements should
be made for deliveries of boxed information. If you provide comments by
mail or hand delivery, please submit three copies of the comments. For
attachments, provide an index, number pages consecutively with the
comments, and submit an unbound original and three copies.
Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-ORD-
2013-0357. Please ensure that your comments are submitted within the
specified comment period. Comments received after the closing date will
be marked ``late,'' and may only be considered if time permits. It is
EPA's policy to include all comments it receives in the public docket
without change and to make the comments available online at
www.regulations.gov, including any personal information provided,
unless a 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 www.regulations.gov or email. The
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 email comment
directly to EPA without going through www.regulations.gov, your email
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. For additional
information about EPA's public docket visit the EPA Docket Center
homepage at www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm.
Docket: Documents in the docket are listed in the
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 materials,
such as copyrighted material, are publicly available only in hard copy.
Publicly available docket materials are available either electronically
in www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the OEI Docket in the EPA
Headquarters Docket Center.
Dated: May 2, 2013.
Debra B. Walsh,
Acting Director, National Center for Environmental Assessment.
[FR Doc. 2013-11197 Filed 5-9-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P