Pesticide Chemicals; Registration Review; Draft Human Health and Ecological Risk Assessment; Notice of Availability., 37312-37314 [2014-15481]

Agencies

• ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 126 (Tuesday, July 1, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37312-37314]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-15481]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OPP-2014-0459; FRL-9912-39]


Pesticide Chemicals; Registration Review; Draft Human Health and 
Ecological 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 draft human 
health and ecological risk assessments for the registration review of 
chlorfenapyr, fenoxaprop-p-ethyl, flumiclorac-pentyl, maleic hydrazide, 
sulfentrazone, and tebuthiuron and opens a public comment period on 
these documents. Registration review is EPA's periodic review of 
pesticide registrations to ensure that each pesticide continues to 
satisfy the statutory standard for registration, that is, the pesticide 
can perform its intended function without unreasonable adverse effects 
on human health or the environment. As part of the registration review 
process, the Agency has completed draft human health and ecological 
risk assessments, including an endangered species assessment, for all 
uses of the previously listed pesticide chemicals. After reviewing 
comments received during the public comment period, EPA will issue 
revised risk assessments, explain any changes to the draft risk 
assessments, and respond to comments and may request public input on 
risk mitigation before completing proposed registration review 
decisions for the previously listed pesticide chemicals. Through this 
program, EPA is ensuring that each pesticide's registration is based on 
current scientific and other knowledge, including its effects on human 
health and the environment.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before September 2, 2014.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by docket identification 
(ID) number for the specific pesticide of interest provided in the 
table in Unit III.A., by one of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the online instructions for submitting comments. Do not submit 
electronically any information you consider to be Confidential Business 
Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted 
by statute.
     Mail: OPP Docket, Environmental Protection Agency Docket 
Center (EPA/DC), (28221T), 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 
20460-0001.
     Hand Delivery: To make special arrangements for hand 
delivery or delivery of boxed information, please follow the 
instructions at https://www.epa.gov/dockets/contacts.html.
    Additional instructions on commenting or visiting the docket, along 
with more information about dockets generally, is available at https://www.epa.gov/dockets.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
    For pesticide specific information contact: The Chemical Review 
Manager identified in the table in Unit III.A. for the pesticide of 
interest.
    For general questions on the registration review program, contact: 
Richard Dumas, Pesticide Re-Evaluation Division (7508P), Office of 
Pesticide Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania 
Ave. NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001; telephone number: (703) 305-8015; 
email address: dumas.richard@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

[[Page 37313]]

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.
    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

    EPA is conducting its registration review of chlorfenapyr, 
fenoxaprop-p-ethyl, flumiclorac-pentyl, maleic hydrazide, 
sulfentrazone, and tebuthiuron pursuant to section 3(g) of the Federal 
Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) and the Procedural 
Regulations for Registration Review at 40 CFR part 155, subpart C. 
Section 3(g) of FIFRA provides, among other things, that the 
registrations of pesticides are to be reviewed every 15 years. Under 
FIFRA, a pesticide product may be registered or remain registered only 
if it meets the statutory standard for registration given in FIFRA 
section 3(c)(5). When used in accordance with widespread and commonly 
recognized practice, the pesticide product must perform its intended 
function without unreasonable adverse effects on the environment; that 
is, without any unreasonable risk to man or the environment, or a human 
dietary risk from residues that result from the use of a pesticide in 
or on food.

III. Registration Reviews

 A. What action is the Agency taking?

    As directed by FIFRA section 3(g), EPA is reviewing the pesticide 
registrations for chlorfenapyr, fenoxaprop-p-ethyl, flumiclorac-pentyl, 
maleic hydrazide, sulfentrazone, and tebuthiuron to ensure that they 
continue to satisfy the FIFRA standard for registration--that is, that 
these pesticides can still be used without unreasonable adverse effects 
on human health or the environment.
    Pursuant to 40 CFR 155.53(c), EPA is providing an opportunity, 
through this notice of availability, for interested parties to provide 
comments and input concerning the Agency's draft human health and 
ecological risk assessments for chlorfenapyr, fenoxaprop-p-ethyl, 
flumiclorac-pentyl, maleic hydrazide, sulfentrazone, and tebuthiuron. 
Such comments and input could address, among other things, the Agency's 
risk assessment methodologies and assumptions, as applied to these 
draft risk assessments. The Agency will consider all comments received 
during the public comment period and make changes, as appropriate, to 
the draft human health and ecological risk assessments. EPA will then 
issue revised risk assessments, explain any changes to the draft risk 
assessments, and respond to comments. In the Federal Register notice 
announcing the availability of the revised risk assessments, if the 
revised risk assessments indicate risks of concern, the Agency may 
provide a comment period for the public to submit suggestions for 
mitigating the risk identified in the revised risk assessments. At 
present, EPA is releasing registration review draft risk assessments 
for the pesticide cases identified in the following table and further 
described after the table.

                                   Registration Review Draft Risk Assessments
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                                                                                     Chemical review manager,
  Registration review case name and            Pesticide docket ID No.             telephone number, and email
                 No.                                                                         address
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chlorfenapyr (Case 7419-1)..........  EPA-HQ-OPP-2010-0467.....................  Margaret Hathaway, (703) 305-
                                                                                  5076,
                                                                                  hathaway.margaret@epa.gov.
Fenoxaprop-p-ethyl (Case 7209)......  EPA-HQ-OPP-2007-0437.....................  Molly Clayton, (703) 603-0522,
                                                                                  clayton.molly@epa.gov.
Flumiclorac-pentyl (Case 7232)......  EPA-HQ-OPP-2009-0084.....................  Tracy Perry, (703) 308-0128,
                                                                                  perry.tracy@epa.gov.
Maleic hydrazide (Case 0381)........  EPA-HQ-OPP-2009-0387.....................  Ricardo Jones, (703) 347-0493,
                                                                                  jones.ricardo@epa.gov.
Sulfentrazone (Case 7231)...........  EPA-HQ-OPP-2009-0624.....................  Christina Scheltema, (713) 308-
                                                                                  2201,
                                                                                  scheltema.christina@epa.gov.
Tebuthiuron (Case 0054).............  EPA-HQ-OPP-2009-0327.....................  Joel Wolf, (703) 347-0228,
                                                                                  wolf.joel@epa.gov.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

     Chlorfenapyr. Chlorfenapyr is an insecticide/
miticide used to control a wide range of mites and insects such as 
caterpillars, centipedes, thrips, fungus gnats, ants, cockroaches, 
beetles, bed bugs, silverfish, spiders, and termites. Chlorfenapyr is 
registered for use on greenhouse food and non-food crops, and as an 
insecticide/termiticide for use on indoor and outdoor residential 
sites, food/feed handling areas, indoor and outdoor commercial sites 
(including sewers), and indoor medical sites. EPA has completed a draft 
human health risk assessment for all chlorfenapyr uses. In addition, 
the Agency has determined that there is limited outdoor environmental 
exposure from the use of chlorfenapyr and has come to a no-effect 
determination for endangered species.
     Fenoxaprop-p-ethyl. Fenoxaprop-p-ethyl is an 
herbicide used to control weeds on barley, cotton, rice, soybeans, and 
wheat. It is also registered for non-agricultural use on conservation 
reserve lands, ornamentals, rights-of-way, and turf. EPA has completed 
draft human

[[Page 37314]]

health and ecological risk assessments, including a screening-level 
listed species assessment, for all fenoxaprop-p-ethyl uses. EPA 
acknowledges that further refinements to the listed species assessment 
will be completed in future revisions and requests public comment on 
specific areas that will reduce the uncertainties associated with the 
characterization of risk to listed species identified in the current 
assessment.
     Flumiclorac-pentyl. Flumiclorac-pentyl is a 
post-emergence herbicide registered for use on field corn, soybeans, 
cotton, and a variety of non-cropped areas. EPA has completed draft 
human health and ecological risk assessments, including a screening-
level listed species assessment, for all flumiclorac-pentyl uses. EPA 
acknowledges that further refinements to the listed species assessment 
will be completed in future revisions and requests public comment on 
specific areas that will reduce the uncertainties associated with the 
characterization of risk to listed species identified in the current 
assessment.
     Maleic Hydrazide. Maleic hydrazide is an 
herbicide and plant growth regulator used on tobacco, potatoes, onions, 
non-bearing citrus, turf, utility and highway rights-of-way, airports, 
industrial land, lawns, recreational areas, ornamental shade trees and 
ornamental plants. EPA has completed draft human health and ecological 
risk assessments, including a screening-level listed species 
assessment, for all maleic hydrazide uses. EPA acknowledges that 
further refinements to the listed species assessment will be completed 
in future revisions and requests public comment on specific areas that 
will reduce the uncertainties associated with the characterization of 
risk to listed species identified in the current assessment.
    Sulfentrazone. Sulfentrazone is an herbicide 
registered for use to control a variety of broadleaf weeds on several 
agricultural crops, ornamental turf/plants, residential lawns, and 
recreational areas such as golf courses. EPA has completed draft human 
health and ecological risk assessments, including a screening-level 
listed species assessment, for all sulfentrazone uses. EPA acknowledges 
that further refinements to the listed species assessment will be 
completed in future revisions and requests public comment on specific 
areas that will reduce the uncertainties associated with the 
characterization of risk to listed species identified in the current 
assessment.
    Tebuthiuron. Tebuthiuron is a systemic, 
relatively non-selective herbicide used to control broadleaf and woody 
weeds, grasses and brush on feed crop sites (pasture and rangeland) and 
a variety of non-food crop sites. EPA has completed draft human health 
and ecological risk assessments, including a screening-level listed 
species assessment, for all tebuthiuron uses. EPA acknowledges that 
further refinements to the listed species assessment will be completed 
in future revisions and requests public comment on specific areas that 
will reduce the uncertainties associated with the characterization of 
risk to listed species identified in the current assessment.
    1. Other related information. Additional information on 
chlorfenapyr, fenoxaprop-p-ethyl, flumiclorac-pentyl, maleic hydrazide, 
sulfentrazone, and tebuthiuron is available for each pesticide at 
https://www.epa.gov/pesticides/chemicalsearch/ and in each chemical's 
individual docket listed in the table in Unit III.A. Information on the 
Agency's registration review program and its implementing regulation is 
available at https://www2.epa.gov/pesticide-reevaluation.
    2. Information submission requirements. Anyone may submit data or 
information in response to this document. To be considered during a 
pesticide's registration review, the submitted data or information must 
meet the following requirements:
     To ensure that EPA will consider data or information 
submitted, interested persons must submit the data or information 
during the comment period. The Agency may, at its discretion, consider 
data or information submitted at a later date.
     The data or information submitted must be presented in a 
legible and useable form. For example, an English translation must 
accompany any material that is not in English and a written transcript 
must accompany any information submitted as an audiographic or 
videographic record. Written material may be submitted in paper or 
electronic form.
     Submitters must clearly identify the source of any 
submitted data or information.
     Submitters may request the Agency to reconsider data or 
information that the Agency rejected in a previous review. However, 
submitters must explain why they believe the Agency should reconsider 
the data or information in the pesticide's registration review.
    As provided in 40 CFR 155.58, the registration review docket for 
each pesticide case will remain publicly accessible through the 
duration of the registration review process; that is, until all actions 
required in the final decision on the registration review case have 
been completed.

List of Subjects

    Environmental protection, Pesticides and pests, Chlorfenapyr, 
Fenoxaprop-p-ethyl, Flumiclorac-pentyl, Maleic hydrazide, 
Sulfentrazone, and Tebuthiuron.

    Dated: June 24, 2014.
Richard P. Keigwin, Jr.,
Director, Pesticide Re-Evaluation Division, Office of Pesticide 
Programs.
[FR Doc. 2014-15481 Filed 6-30-14; 8:45 am]
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