Proposed Information Collection Request; Comment Request; Water Quality Standards Regulation (Renewal), 27981-27983 [2018-13027]

Download as PDF Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 116 / Friday, June 15, 2018 / Notices Pinal Central Energy Center, LLC ..................................................................................................................................................... Trishe Wind Ohio, LLC ..................................................................................................................................................................... NRG Cottonwood Tenant LLC ........................................................................................................................................................... SP Sandhills Solar, LLC ..................................................................................................................................................................... SP Butler Solar, LLC .......................................................................................................................................................................... SP Pawpaw Solar, LLC ...................................................................................................................................................................... SP Decatur Parkway Solar, LLC ........................................................................................................................................................ Camilla Solar Energy LLC .................................................................................................................................................................. NC 102 Project LLC ............................................................................................................................................................................ 64KT 8ME LLC ................................................................................................................................................................................... I Squared Capital ................................................................................................................................................................................ I Squared Capital ................................................................................................................................................................................ June 8, 2018. Take notice that during the month of May 2018, the status of the abovecaptioned entities as Exempt Wholesale Generators or Foreign Utility Companies became effective by operation of the Commission’s regulations. 18 CFR 366.7(a) (2017). DATES: Dated: June 8, 2018. Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary. [FR Doc. 2018–12877 Filed 6–14–18; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6717–01–P DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Project No. 14876–000] sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES Western Minnesota Municipal Power Authority; Notice of Preliminary Permit Application Accepted for Filing and Soliciting Comments, Motions To Intervene, and Competing Applications On April 19, 2018, Western Minnesota Municipal Power Authority filed an application for a preliminary permit, pursuant to section 4(f) of the Federal Power Act (FPA), proposing to study the feasibility of the Gregory County Pumped Storage Project to be located on Lake Francis Case on the Missouri River, near the township of Lucas, in Gregory, Charles Mix, and Brule Counties, South Dakota. The sole purpose of a preliminary permit, if issued, is to grant the permit holder priority to file a license application during the permit term. A preliminary permit does not authorize the permit holder to perform any land-disturbing activities or otherwise enter upon lands or waters owned by others without the owners’ express permission. The proposed project would consist of the following: (1) A new 1,200-acre earthen embankment levee (upper reservoir) having a total storage capacity of 50,000 acre-feet with an operating elevation level of between 2,045 feet mean sea level (msl) and 2,087 feet msl; (2) a new 550-foot-long by 120-foot-wide by 100-foot-high reinforced concrete VerDate Sep<11>2014 17:11 Jun 14, 2018 Jkt 244001 powerhouse containing eight new 150megawatt (MW) turbine units for a total plant rating of 1,200 MW; (3) thirty new 15-foot-wide by 20-foot-deep reinforced concrete trashracks with an open bar spacing of 3.75 inches; (4) two new 6,000-foot-long, 32-foot-diameter reinforced concrete penstocks; (5) two new 120-foot-high, 40-foot-diameter reinforced concrete surge tanks connected to each penstock; (6) the existing 102,000-acre Lake Francis Case (lower reservoir) with a storage capacity of 5,494,000 acre-feet at normal maximum operation elevation of 1,355 feet msl; (7) a new 6,000-foot-long, horse-shoe configured tailrace tunnel that daylights to a 350-foot-long tailrace channel (upstream of the trashrack) from the powerhouse to Lake Francis Case; (8) a new 200-foot by 360-foot substation on top of the powerhouse containing four step-up transformers; (9) a new 21-mile-long, 345-kilovolt (kV) transmission line extending from the project substation to the existing Lake Platte substation (the point of interconnection); and (10) appurtenant facilities. The estimated annual generation of the Gregory County Pumped Storage Project would be 3,500 gigawatt-hours. Applicant Contact: Mr. Raymond J. Wahle, Missouri River Energy Services, 3724 W. Avera Drive, P.O. Box 88920, Sioux Falls, SD 57109; phone: (605) 330–6963. FERC Contact: Tyrone Williams; phone: (202) 502–6331. Deadline for filing comments, motions to intervene, competing applications (without notices of intent), or notices of intent to file competing applications: 60 days from the issuance of this notice. Competing applications and notices of intent must meet the requirements of 18 CFR 4.36. The Commission strongly encourages electronic filing. Please file comments, motions to intervene, notices of intent, and competing applications using the Commission’s eFiling system at https:// www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling.asp. Commenters can submit brief comments up to 6,000 characters, without prior registration, using the eComment system PO 00000 Frm 00033 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 27981 EG18–61–000 EG18–62–000 EG18–63–000 EG18–64–000 EG18–65–000 EG18–66–000 EG18–67–000 EG18–68–000 EG18–69–000 EG18–70–000 FC18–3–000 FC18–4–000 at https://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/ ecomment.asp. You must include your name and contact information at the end of your comments. For assistance, please contact FERC Online Support at FERCOnlineSupport@ferc.gov, (866) 208–3676 (toll free), or (202) 502–8659 (TTY). In lieu of electronic filing, please send a paper copy to: Secretary, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First Street NE, Washington, DC 20426. The first page of any filing should include docket number P–14876–000. More information about this project, including a copy of the application, can be viewed or printed on the ‘‘eLibrary’’ link of Commission’s website at https:// www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/elibrary.asp. Enter the docket number (P–14876) in the docket number field to access the document. For assistance, contact FERC Online Support. Dated: June 8, 2018. Kimberly D. Bose, Secretary. [FR Doc. 2018–12881 Filed 6–14–18; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6717–01–P ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY [EPA–HQ–OW–2011–0465; FRL–9979–51– OW] Proposed Information Collection Request; Comment Request; Water Quality Standards Regulation (Renewal) Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). ACTION: Notice. AGENCY: The Environmental Protection Agency is planning to submit an information collection request (ICR), ‘‘Water Quality Standards Regulation (Renewal)’’ (EPA ICR No. 0988.13, OMB Control No. 2040–0049) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act. Before doing so, the EPA is soliciting public comments on specific aspects of the proposed information collection as SUMMARY: E:\FR\FM\15JNN1.SGM 15JNN1 sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES 27982 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 116 / Friday, June 15, 2018 / Notices described below. This ICR renews the Water Quality Standards Regulation ICR (most recently approved in 2016) and consolidates the burden and costs associated with activities previously reported in ICRs for two recent rules affecting the WQS program: The Water Quality Standards Regulatory Revisions (approved in 2015), and the Revised Interpretation of Clean Water Act Tribal Provision (approved in 2016). An Agency may not conduct or sponsor and a person is not required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before August 14, 2018. ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, referencing Docket ID No. EPA–HQ– OW–2011–0465, online using www.regulations.gov (our preferred method), by email to ow-docket@ epa.gov, or by mail to: EPA Docket Center, Environmental Protection Agency, Mail Code 28221T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20460. The EPA’s policy is that all comments received will be included in the public docket without change including any personal information provided unless the comment includes profanity, threats, information claimed to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tanyan Bailey, Office of Water, Office of Science and Technology, Standards and Health Protection Division, (4305T), Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: 202–564– 3133; fax number: 202–566–0409; email address: bailey.tanyan@epa.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Supporting documents which explain in detail the information that the EPA would be collecting are available in the public docket for this Information Collection Request (ICR) (Docket ID No. EPA–HQ–OW–2011–0465). The docket can be viewed online at www.regulations.gov or in person at the EPA Docket Center, WJC West, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW, Washington, DC. The telephone number for the Docket Center is 202–566–1744. For additional information about the EPA’s public docket, visit https:// www.epa.gov/dockets. Pursuant to section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA), the EPA is soliciting comments and information to enable it to: (i) Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper VerDate Sep<11>2014 17:11 Jun 14, 2018 Jkt 244001 performance of the functions of the Agency, including whether the information will have practical utility; (ii) evaluate the accuracy of the Agency’s estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (iii) enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and, (iv) minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses. The EPA will consider the comments received and amend the proposed ICR as appropriate. The final ICR package will then be submitted to OMB for review and approval. At that time, the EPA will issue another Federal Register notice to announce the submission of the ICR to OMB and the opportunity to submit additional comments to OMB. Abstract: Water quality standards (WQS) under the Clean Water Act (hereafter referred to as ‘‘the Act’’) are provisions of state,1 tribal,2 or federal law which consist of designated uses for waters of the United States, water quality criteria to protect those uses, and antidegradation requirements. WQS are established to protect public health or welfare, protect and enhance the quality of water, and serve the purposes of the Clean Water Act. Such standards serve the dual purposes of establishing the water quality goals for water bodies and serving as the regulatory basis for the establishment of water quality-based treatment controls and strategies beyond technology-based levels of treatment required by sections 301(b) and 306 of the Act. The WQS Regulation establishes the framework for states and authorized tribes to adopt standards, and for the EPA to review and approve or disapprove them. For the purposes of this ICR, the WQS Regulation consists of 40 CFR part 131 (Water Quality Standards), and portions of part 132 (Water Quality Guidance for the Great Lakes System) that are related to WQS.3 This ICR is for information collections 1 ‘‘States’’ in the EPA’s WQS Regulation and in this document includes the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. 2 ‘‘Tribes’’ in this document refers to federally recognized tribes and ‘‘authorized tribes’’ refers to those federally recognized Indian tribes with authority to administer a CWA WQS program. 3 These portions include 40 CFR 132.3, appendices A, B, C, D, E, and Procedures 1 and 2 of appendix F. PO 00000 Frm 00034 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 needed to implement the WQS Regulation and required to obtain or retain benefits (e.g., relaxed regulatory requirements) under the WQS Regulation. This ICR renews the WQS Regulation ICR, OMB control no. 2040–0049, expiration date 6/30/2019, and consolidates the burden and costs associated with activities previously reported in two related ICRs, which upon OMB approval will be discontinued as separate ICRs: D The WQS Regulatory Revisions ICR, OMB control no. 2040–0286, expiration date 12/31/2018; and, D The Revised Interpretation of Clean Water Act Tribal Provision ICR, OMB control no. 2040–0289, expiration date 7/31/2019. This ICR renewal and consolidation describes the estimated burden for states, authorized tribes and certain Great Lakes dischargers associated with the information collections related to: Implementation of the requirements of 40 CFR part 131 (Water Quality Standards); implementation of the WQS portions of the 40 CFR part 132 (Water Quality Guidance for the Great Lakes System); tribal applications to be treated in a similar manner as a state (TAS); and, tribal requests for dispute resolution under CWA section 518(e). This ICR also covers periodic requests for voluntary WQS information from, or voluntary participation in workgroups by, state and tribes to ensure efficient and effective administration of the WQS program and further cooperative federalism. Form Numbers: None. Respondents/affected entities: Potential respondents to this ICR include: The 50 states, the District of Columbia, five territories, authorized tribes with EPA-approved Water Quality Standards (44 tribes as of May 2018), and a total of 18 additional tribal respondents over the three-year duration of the ICR (based on six additional tribal respondents expected to apply per year for TAS to administer the WQS program). In addition, an estimated total of 258 dischargers located in the Great Lakes watershed over the three-year duration of this ICR (based on an estimated 86 dischargers per year) could apply for certain forms of regulatory relief. The total number of potential respondents is thus 376. This corresponds to 2,693 responses per year (see draft Supporting Statement in the docket for this ICR). Respondent’s obligation to respond: Some collections in this ICR are mandatory; some are required to obtain or retain benefits (e.g., relaxed regulatory requirements) pursuant to the E:\FR\FM\15JNN1.SGM 15JNN1 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 116 / Friday, June 15, 2018 / Notices WQS Regulation; and, some are voluntary. Estimated number of respondents: 2,693. Frequency of response: Variable depending on type of information collected (once every three years; annually; on occasion or as necessary; or, only once). Total estimated burden: From 376,097 to 514,987 hours per year. Burden is defined at 5 CFR 1320.03(b). Total estimated cost: From $17,103,064 to $23,173,945 of labor costs per year, and $263,520 of operations and maintenance costs per year. There are no annualized capital costs. Changes in Estimates: There is a decrease of 226,040 hours in the total upper estimates of respondent burden compared with the combined burden of the three ICRs currently approved by OMB and consolidated in this ICR. This decrease reflects adjustments made to the EPA’s burden estimates based on experience gained since the previous ICRs were approved. Dated: June 6, 2018. Deborah G. Nagle, Acting Director, Office of Science and Technology. [FR Doc. 2018–13027 Filed 6–14–18; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6560–50–P ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY [EPA–OW–2018–0270; FRL–9979–53–OW] Announcement of the Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) New England Community Engagement Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). ACTION: Notice of an event. AGENCY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will kick off the Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) community engagements with a two-day event in Exeter, New Hampshire. The goal of the event is to allow the EPA to hear directly from New England communities to understand ways the Agency can best support the work that is being done at the state, local, and tribal level. For more information on the event, visit the EPA’s PFAS website: https://www.epa.gov/pfas/pfascommunity-engagement. During the recent PFAS National Leadership Summit, the EPA announced plans to visit communities to hear directly from those impacted by PFAS. This engagement is the next step in the EPA’s commitment to address challenges with sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES SUMMARY: VerDate Sep<11>2014 17:11 Jun 14, 2018 Jkt 244001 PFAS. The EPA anticipates that the community engagements will provide valuable insight for the agency’s efforts moving forward. For more information, go to the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this notice. DATES: The event will be held on June 25–26, 2018. On June 25, a listening session will be held at 4:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., eastern time. A working session will be held on June 26 from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., eastern time. ADDRESSES: The two-day event will be held at the Exeter High School, 1 Blue Hawk Drive, Exeter, New Hampshire 03833. If you are unable to attend the New England Community Engagement, you will be able to submit comments at https://www.regulations.gov: Enter Docket ID No. EPA–OW–2018–0270. Citizens are encouraged to send written statements to the public docket. Follow the online instructions for submitting comments. Once submitted, comments cannot be edited or withdrawn. The EPA may publish any comment received to its public docket. Do not submit electronically any information you consider to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Multimedia submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be accompanied by a written comment. The written comment is considered the official comment and should include discussion of all points you wish to make. The EPA will generally not consider comments or comment contents located outside of the primary submission (i.e. on the web, cloud, or other file sharing system). For additional submission methods, the full EPA public comment policy, information about CBI or multimedia submissions, and general guidance on making effective comments, please visit https://www2.epa.gov/dockets/ commenting-epa-dockets. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Doug Gutro, EPA New England Headquarters (Mail Code ORAO1–1), 5 Post Office Square, Suite 100, Boston, MA 02109–3912; telephone number: 617–918–1021; fax number: 617–918– 0021; email address: Gutro.Doug@ epa.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Details about Participating in the Event: The public is invited to speak during the June 25 listening session. Those interested in speaking can sign up for a 3-minute speaking slot on EPA’s website at https://www.epa.gov/ pfas/pfas-community-engagement. Please check this website for event materials as they become available, including a full agenda, leading up to the event. PO 00000 Frm 00035 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 27983 The PFAS National Leadership Summit: On May 22–23, 2018, the EPA hosted the PFAS National Leadership Summit. During the summit, participants worked together to share information on ongoing efforts to characterize risks from PFAS, develop monitoring and treatment/cleanup techniques, identify specific near-term actions (beyond those already underway) that are needed to address challenges currently facing states and local communities, and develop risk communication strategies that will help communities to address public concerns regarding PFAS. The EPA wants to ensure the public that their input is valuable and meaningful. Using information from the National Leadership Summit, public docket, and community engagements, the EPA plans to develop a PFAS Management Plan for release later this year. A summary of the New England Community Engagement will be made available to the public following the event on the EPA’s PFAS Community Engagement website at: https:// www.epa.gov/pfas/pfas-communityengagement. Dated: June 11, 2018. Eric Burneson, Acting Director, Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water. [FR Doc. 2018–12911 Filed 6–14–18; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6560–50–P ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY [ER–FRL–9039–8] Environmental Impact Statements; Notice of Availability Responsible Agency: Office of Federal Activities, General Information (202) 564–7156 or https://www2.epa.gov/ nepa/. Weekly receipt of Environmental Impact Statements Filed 06/04/2018 Through 06/08/2018 Pursuant to 40 CFR 1506.9. Notice Section 309(a) of the Clean Air Act requires that EPA make public its comments on EISs issued by other Federal agencies. EPA’s comment letters on EISs are available at: https:// cdxnodengn.epa.gov/cdx-enepa-public/ action/eis/search. EIS No. 20180129, Final, FTA, CA, Geary Corridor Bus Rapid Transit Project, Under 23 U.S.C. 139(n)(2), FTA has issued a single document that consists of a final environmental impact statement and record of E:\FR\FM\15JNN1.SGM 15JNN1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 116 (Friday, June 15, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 27981-27983]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-13027]


=======================================================================
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OW-2011-0465; FRL-9979-51-OW]


Proposed Information Collection Request; Comment Request; Water 
Quality Standards Regulation (Renewal)

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency is planning to submit an 
information collection request (ICR), ``Water Quality Standards 
Regulation (Renewal)'' (EPA ICR No. 0988.13, OMB Control No. 2040-0049) 
to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval in 
accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act. Before doing so, the EPA 
is soliciting public comments on specific aspects of the proposed 
information collection as

[[Page 27982]]

described below. This ICR renews the Water Quality Standards Regulation 
ICR (most recently approved in 2016) and consolidates the burden and 
costs associated with activities previously reported in ICRs for two 
recent rules affecting the WQS program: The Water Quality Standards 
Regulatory Revisions (approved in 2015), and the Revised Interpretation 
of Clean Water Act Tribal Provision (approved in 2016). An Agency may 
not conduct or sponsor and a person is not required to respond to a 
collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB 
control number.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before August 14, 2018.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, referencing Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OW-
2011-0465, online using www.regulations.gov (our preferred method), by 
email to [email protected], or by mail to: EPA Docket Center, 
Environmental Protection Agency, Mail Code 28221T, 1200 Pennsylvania 
Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20460.
    The EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included in 
the public docket without change including any personal information 
provided unless the comment includes profanity, threats, information 
claimed to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other 
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tanyan Bailey, Office of Water, Office 
of Science and Technology, Standards and Health Protection Division, 
(4305T), Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, 
Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: 202-564-3133; fax number: 202-
566-0409; email address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Supporting documents which explain in detail 
the information that the EPA would be collecting are available in the 
public docket for this Information Collection Request (ICR) (Docket ID 
No. EPA-HQ-OW-2011-0465). The docket can be viewed online at 
www.regulations.gov or in person at the EPA Docket Center, WJC West, 
Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW, Washington, DC. The telephone 
number for the Docket Center is 202-566-1744. For additional 
information about the EPA's public docket, visit https://www.epa.gov/dockets.
    Pursuant to section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act 
(PRA), the EPA is soliciting comments and information to enable it to: 
(i) Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the Agency, 
including whether the information will have practical utility; (ii) 
evaluate the accuracy of the Agency's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used; (iii) enhance the quality, utility, 
and clarity of the information to be collected; and, (iv) minimize the 
burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, 
including through the use of appropriate automated electronic, 
mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms 
of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of 
responses. The EPA will consider the comments received and amend the 
proposed ICR as appropriate. The final ICR package will then be 
submitted to OMB for review and approval. At that time, the EPA will 
issue another Federal Register notice to announce the submission of the 
ICR to OMB and the opportunity to submit additional comments to OMB.
    Abstract: Water quality standards (WQS) under the Clean Water Act 
(hereafter referred to as ``the Act'') are provisions of state,\1\ 
tribal,\2\ or federal law which consist of designated uses for waters 
of the United States, water quality criteria to protect those uses, and 
antidegradation requirements. WQS are established to protect public 
health or welfare, protect and enhance the quality of water, and serve 
the purposes of the Clean Water Act. Such standards serve the dual 
purposes of establishing the water quality goals for water bodies and 
serving as the regulatory basis for the establishment of water quality-
based treatment controls and strategies beyond technology-based levels 
of treatment required by sections 301(b) and 306 of the Act. The WQS 
Regulation establishes the framework for states and authorized tribes 
to adopt standards, and for the EPA to review and approve or disapprove 
them. For the purposes of this ICR, the WQS Regulation consists of 40 
CFR part 131 (Water Quality Standards), and portions of part 132 (Water 
Quality Guidance for the Great Lakes System) that are related to 
WQS.\3\ This ICR is for information collections needed to implement the 
WQS Regulation and required to obtain or retain benefits (e.g., relaxed 
regulatory requirements) under the WQS Regulation.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ ``States'' in the EPA's WQS Regulation and in this document 
includes the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, the 
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and 
the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
    \2\ ``Tribes'' in this document refers to federally recognized 
tribes and ``authorized tribes'' refers to those federally 
recognized Indian tribes with authority to administer a CWA WQS 
program.
    \3\ These portions include 40 CFR 132.3, appendices A, B, C, D, 
E, and Procedures 1 and 2 of appendix F.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    This ICR renews the WQS Regulation ICR, OMB control no. 2040-0049, 
expiration date 6/30/2019, and consolidates the burden and costs 
associated with activities previously reported in two related ICRs, 
which upon OMB approval will be discontinued as separate ICRs:
    [ssquf] The WQS Regulatory Revisions ICR, OMB control no. 2040-
0286, expiration date 12/31/2018; and,
    [ssquf] The Revised Interpretation of Clean Water Act Tribal 
Provision ICR, OMB control no. 2040-0289, expiration date 7/31/2019.
    This ICR renewal and consolidation describes the estimated burden 
for states, authorized tribes and certain Great Lakes dischargers 
associated with the information collections related to: Implementation 
of the requirements of 40 CFR part 131 (Water Quality Standards); 
implementation of the WQS portions of the 40 CFR part 132 (Water 
Quality Guidance for the Great Lakes System); tribal applications to be 
treated in a similar manner as a state (TAS); and, tribal requests for 
dispute resolution under CWA section 518(e). This ICR also covers 
periodic requests for voluntary WQS information from, or voluntary 
participation in workgroups by, state and tribes to ensure efficient 
and effective administration of the WQS program and further cooperative 
federalism.
    Form Numbers: None.
    Respondents/affected entities: Potential respondents to this ICR 
include: The 50 states, the District of Columbia, five territories, 
authorized tribes with EPA-approved Water Quality Standards (44 tribes 
as of May 2018), and a total of 18 additional tribal respondents over 
the three-year duration of the ICR (based on six additional tribal 
respondents expected to apply per year for TAS to administer the WQS 
program). In addition, an estimated total of 258 dischargers located in 
the Great Lakes watershed over the three-year duration of this ICR 
(based on an estimated 86 dischargers per year) could apply for certain 
forms of regulatory relief. The total number of potential respondents 
is thus 376. This corresponds to 2,693 responses per year (see draft 
Supporting Statement in the docket for this ICR).
    Respondent's obligation to respond: Some collections in this ICR 
are mandatory; some are required to obtain or retain benefits (e.g., 
relaxed regulatory requirements) pursuant to the

[[Page 27983]]

WQS Regulation; and, some are voluntary.
    Estimated number of respondents: 2,693.
    Frequency of response: Variable depending on type of information 
collected (once every three years; annually; on occasion or as 
necessary; or, only once).
    Total estimated burden: From 376,097 to 514,987 hours per year. 
Burden is defined at 5 CFR 1320.03(b).
    Total estimated cost: From $17,103,064 to $23,173,945 of labor 
costs per year, and $263,520 of operations and maintenance costs per 
year. There are no annualized capital costs.
    Changes in Estimates: There is a decrease of 226,040 hours in the 
total upper estimates of respondent burden compared with the combined 
burden of the three ICRs currently approved by OMB and consolidated in 
this ICR. This decrease reflects adjustments made to the EPA's burden 
estimates based on experience gained since the previous ICRs were 
approved.

    Dated: June 6, 2018.
Deborah G. Nagle,
Acting Director, Office of Science and Technology.
[FR Doc. 2018-13027 Filed 6-14-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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