Proposed Joint Stipulation, Endangered Species Act Claims, 63865-63866 [2018-26903]
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Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 238 / Wednesday, December 12, 2018 / Notices
Dated: November 28, 2018.
Daniel D. Opalski,
Director Office of Water and Watersheds, EPA
Region 10.
[FR Doc. 2018–26916 Filed 12–11–18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
[EPA–HQ–OGC–2018–0745; FRL–9987–80–
OGC]
Proposed Joint Stipulation,
Endangered Species Act Claims
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of proposed stipulation;
request for public comment.
AGENCY:
In accordance with the EPA
Administrator’s October 16, 2017,
Directive Promoting Transparency and
Public Participation in Consent Decrees
and Settlement Agreements, notice is
hereby given of a proposed joint
stipulation and proposed stipulated
notice of dismissal in the United States
District Court for the Northern District
of California in the case of Ellis, et al.,
v. Keigwin, et al., No. 3:13–cv–01266.
On May 8, 2017, the court issued an
order on summary judgment dismissing
claims against EPA under the Federal
Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide
Act (‘‘FIFRA’’), but finding that EPA
failed to perform duties mandated by
the Endangered Species Act (‘‘ESA’’) to
consult with the United States Fish and
Wildlife Service (‘‘FWS’’) regarding 59
EPA-approved pesticide products
containing either of the insecticidal
active ingredients clothianidin or
thiamethoxam. The parties are
proposing to reach a settlement in the
form of a joint stipulation on the
appropriate remedy for the court’s
finding of liability. Among other
provisions, the joint stipulation would
set a June 30, 2022, deadline for EPA to
complete ESA effects determination for
EPA’s registration reviews of
clothianidin and thiamethoxam and, as
appropriate, request initiation of any
ESA consultations with FWS that EPA
may determine to be necessary as a
result of those effects determinations.
EPA is also taking comment on a
proposed stipulated notice of dismissal
that would be entered with the court
following execution of the joint
stipulation.
amozie on DSK3GDR082PROD with NOTICES1
SUMMARY:
Written comments on the
proposed joint stipulation and
stipulated notice of dismissal must be
received by January 11, 2019.
DATES:
VerDate Sep<11>2014
18:39 Dec 11, 2018
Jkt 247001
Submit your comments,
identified by Docket ID number EPA–
HQ–OGC–2018–0745 online at
www.regulations.gov (EPA’s preferred
method). For comments submitted at
www.regulations.gov, follow the online
instructions for submitting comments.
Once submitted, comments cannot be
edited or removed from
www.regulations.gov. 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 generally
will 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, please
contact the person identified in the FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section.
For 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:
Mark Dyner, Pesticides and Toxic
Substances Law Office (2333A), Office
of General Counsel, U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania
Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20460;
telephone: (202) 564–1754; email
address: dyner.mark@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
ADDRESSES:
I. Additional Information About the
Proposed Joint Stipulation and
Stipulated Notice of Dismissal
On March 21, 2013, Plaintiffs (several
beekeepers and public interest
organizations) filed suit in the United
States District Court for the Northern
District of California. Plaintiffs brought
claims alleging that EPA had improperly
denied a petition to suspend products
containing clothianidin and that EPA’s
registration of certain clothianidin and
thiamethoxam products violated certain
registration requirements of FIFRA, and
violated section 7(a)(2) of the ESA
because EPA had failed to consult with
FWS prior to issuing the registrations.
On May 8, 2017, the court granted EPA’s
summary judgment motion with respect
to the FIFRA claims and partially
granted Plaintiffs’ summary judgment
motion with respect to the ESA claims,
finding that EPA had failed to comply
PO 00000
Frm 00041
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
63865
with the consultation requirements of
section 7(a)(2) with respect to 59
clothianidin and thiamethoxam
products. In its order, the court also
directed the parties to develop a briefing
schedule for determining the
appropriate remedy and, concurrently,
to schedule a settlement conference to
determine whether the parties could
settle the remedy proceeding outside of
court.
The proposed stipulation and
stipulated notice of dismissal would
settle the remedy proceeding.
Specifically, paragraph two of the
proposed stipulation provides that EPA
would agree to complete ESA effects
determinations by June 30, 2022, for its
FIFRA registration reviews of
clothianidin and thiamethoxam and, as
appropriate, request initiation of any
necessary ESA consultations with the
Services. As provided in paragraph
three of the proposed stipulation, EPA
would also agree to initiate informal
consultation with the Services to begin
an informal dialogue between the
agencies prior to EPA completing its
effects determinations.
In addition, as described in paragraph
one of the proposed stipulation,
defendant-intervenors Syngenta, Bayer
and Valent (the registrants of products
containing clothianidin and
thiamethoxam) have agreed to request
that EPA voluntarily cancel the
following 12 specific products that
contain either clothianidin or
thiamethoxam under section 6(f)(1) of
FIFRA:
1. Adage Premier Seedcare, EPA Reg.
No. 100–1450.
2. Adage Deluxe, EPA Reg. No. 100–
1449.
3. Avicta Complete Corn 500, EPA
Reg. No. 100–1399.
4. TMX–MXM–FDL–TBZ FS, EPA
Reg. No. 100–1426.
5. Inovate Seed Protectant, EPA Reg.
No. 59639–176.
6. Inovate Neutral Seed Protectant
Reg. No. 59639–187.
7. Emesto Quantum, EPA Reg. No.
264–1125.
8. Flower Rose & Shrub Care III, EPA
Reg No. 72155–95.
9. V10170 0.25G GL, EPA Reg. No.
59639–164.
10. Meridian 0.14G, EPA Reg. No.
100–1346.
11. Meridian 0.20G, EPA Reg. No.
100–1341.
12. Aloft GC G Insecticide, Reg. No.
59639–214.
For a period of thirty (30) days
following the date of publication of this
document, the Agency will accept
written comments relating to the
proposed joint stipulation and
E:\FR\FM\12DEN1.SGM
12DEN1
63866
Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 238 / Wednesday, December 12, 2018 / Notices
stipulated notice of dismissal from
persons who are not named as parties to
the litigation in question. If so
requested, EPA will also consider
holding a public hearing on whether to
agree to the proposed joint stipulation
and stipulated notice of dismissal. EPA
or the Department of Justice may
withdraw or withhold consent to the
proposed joint stipulation or proposed
stipulated notice of dismissal if the
comments disclose facts or
considerations that indicate that such
consent is inappropriate, improper,
inadequate, or inconsistent with the
requirements of the ESA or FIFRA.
Unless EPA or the Department of Justice
determines that consent should be
withdrawn, the terms of the proposed
stipulation and stipulated notice of
dismissal will be affirmed.
II. Additional Information About
Commenting on the Proposed
Stipulation and Stipulated Notice of
Dismissal
amozie on DSK3GDR082PROD with NOTICES1
A. How can I get a copy of the proposed
stipulated order of partial dismissal?
The official public docket for this
action (identified by EPA–HQ–OGC–
2018–0745) contains a copy of the
proposed stipulation and proposed
order of dismissal. The official public
docket is available for public viewing at
the Office of Environmental Information
(OEI) Docket in the EPA Docket Center,
EPA West, Room 3334, 1301
Constitution Ave. 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
legal holidays. The telephone number
for the Public Reading Room is (202)
566–1744, and the telephone number for
the OEI Docket is (202) 566–1752.
An electronic version of the public
docket is available on EPA’s website at
https://www.epa.gov/ogc/proposedconsent-decrees-and-draft-settlementagreements and through
www.regulations.gov. You may use
www.regulations.gov to submit or view
public comments, access the index
listing of the contents of the official
public docket, and access those
documents in the public docket that are
available electronically. Once in the
system, key in the appropriate docket
identification number then select
‘‘search.’’ It is important to note that
EPA’s policy is that public comments,
whether submitted electronically or in
paper, will be made available for public
viewing online at www.regulations.gov
without change, unless the comment
contains copyrighted material, CBI, or
other information whose disclosure is
restricted by statute. Information
claimed as CBI and other information
whose disclosure is restricted by statute
is not included in the official public
docket or in the electronic public
docket.
EPA’s policy is that copyrighted
material, including copyrighted material
contained in a public comment, will not
be placed in EPA’s electronic public
docket but will be available only in
printed, paper form in the official public
docket. Although not all docket
materials may be available
electronically, you may still access any
of the publicly available docket
materials through the EPA Docket
Center.
electronically is EPA’s preferred method
for receiving comments. The electronic
public docket system is an ‘‘anonymous
access’’ system, which means EPA will
not know your identity, email address,
or other contact information unless you
provide it in the body of your comment.
In contrast to EPA’s electronic public
docket, EPA’s electronic mail (email)
system is not an ‘‘anonymous access’’
system. If you send an email comment
directly to the Docket without going
through www.regulations.gov, your
email address is automatically captured
and included as part of the comment
that is placed in the official public
docket, and made available in EPA’s
electronic public docket.
B. How and to whom do I submit
comments?
You may submit comments as
provided in the ADDRESSES section.
Please ensure that your comments are
submitted within the specified comment
period.
If you submit an electronic comment,
EPA recommends that you include your
name, mailing address, and an email
address or other contact information in
the body of your comment and with any
disk or CD–ROM you submit. This
ensures that you can be identified as the
submitter of the comment and allows
EPA to contact you in case EPA cannot
read your comment due to technical
difficulties or needs further information
on the substance of your comment. Any
identifying or contact information
provided in the body of a comment will
be included as part of the comment that
is placed in the official public docket,
and made available in EPA’s electronic
public docket. 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.
Use of the www.regulations.gov
website to submit comments to EPA
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS
COMMISSION
Dated: December 4, 2018.
Joseph E. Cole,
Associate General Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2018–26903 Filed 12–11–18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
Open Commission Meeting,
Wednesday, December 12, 2018
December 4, 2018.
The Federal Communications
Commission will hold an Open Meeting
on the subjects listed below on
Wednesday, December 12, 2018 which
is scheduled to commence at 10:30 a.m.
in Room TW–C305, at 445 12th Street
SW, Washington, DC.
Because of the closure of the federal
government for a National Day of
Mourning for President George H.W.
Bush on Wednesday, December 5, the
Commission has determined that it is in
the public interest to delay the onset of
the sunshine period prohibition
contained in Section 1.1203 of the
Commission’s rules, 47 CFR 1.1203.
Accordingly, consistent with Section
1.1200(a) of the Commission’s rules, 47
CFR 1.1200(a), the Commission has
modified its rules so that the sunshine
period prohibition will begin at 11:59
p.m. on Thursday, December 6, rather
than at 11:59 p.m. on Wednesday,
December 5.
Item No.
Bureau
Subject
1 ......................
WIRELESS TELE-COMMUNICATIONS ..
Title: Use of Spectrum Bands Above 24 GHz For Mobile Radio Services (GN
Docket No. 14–177).
Summary: The Commission will consider a Report and Order that would adopt
service rule changes for the Upper 37 GHz (37.6–38.6 GHz), 39 GHz (38.6–40
GHz), and 47 GHz (47.2–48.2 GHz) bands, and would provide for an incentive
auction mechanism that would offer contiguous blocks of spectrum in the Upper
37 GHz and 39 GHz bands and additional spectrum in the 47 GHz band.
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18:39 Dec 11, 2018
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Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 238 (Wednesday, December 12, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 63865-63866]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-26903]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[EPA-HQ-OGC-2018-0745; FRL-9987-80-OGC]
Proposed Joint Stipulation, Endangered Species Act Claims
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of proposed stipulation; request for public comment.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: In accordance with the EPA Administrator's October 16, 2017,
Directive Promoting Transparency and Public Participation in Consent
Decrees and Settlement Agreements, notice is hereby given of a proposed
joint stipulation and proposed stipulated notice of dismissal in the
United States District Court for the Northern District of California in
the case of Ellis, et al., v. Keigwin, et al., No. 3:13-cv-01266. On
May 8, 2017, the court issued an order on summary judgment dismissing
claims against EPA under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and
Rodenticide Act (``FIFRA''), but finding that EPA failed to perform
duties mandated by the Endangered Species Act (``ESA'') to consult with
the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (``FWS'') regarding 59 EPA-
approved pesticide products containing either of the insecticidal
active ingredients clothianidin or thiamethoxam. The parties are
proposing to reach a settlement in the form of a joint stipulation on
the appropriate remedy for the court's finding of liability. Among
other provisions, the joint stipulation would set a June 30, 2022,
deadline for EPA to complete ESA effects determination for EPA's
registration reviews of clothianidin and thiamethoxam and, as
appropriate, request initiation of any ESA consultations with FWS that
EPA may determine to be necessary as a result of those effects
determinations. EPA is also taking comment on a proposed stipulated
notice of dismissal that would be entered with the court following
execution of the joint stipulation.
DATES: Written comments on the proposed joint stipulation and
stipulated notice of dismissal must be received by January 11, 2019.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID number EPA-HQ-
OGC-2018-0745 online at www.regulations.gov (EPA's preferred method).
For comments submitted at www.regulations.gov, follow the online
instructions for submitting comments. Once submitted, comments cannot
be edited or removed from www.regulations.gov. 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
generally will 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, please contact
the person identified in the For Further Information Contact section.
For 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: Mark Dyner, Pesticides and Toxic
Substances Law Office (2333A), Office of General Counsel, U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington,
DC 20460; telephone: (202) 564-1754; email address: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Additional Information About the Proposed Joint Stipulation and
Stipulated Notice of Dismissal
On March 21, 2013, Plaintiffs (several beekeepers and public
interest organizations) filed suit in the United States District Court
for the Northern District of California. Plaintiffs brought claims
alleging that EPA had improperly denied a petition to suspend products
containing clothianidin and that EPA's registration of certain
clothianidin and thiamethoxam products violated certain registration
requirements of FIFRA, and violated section 7(a)(2) of the ESA because
EPA had failed to consult with FWS prior to issuing the registrations.
On May 8, 2017, the court granted EPA's summary judgment motion with
respect to the FIFRA claims and partially granted Plaintiffs' summary
judgment motion with respect to the ESA claims, finding that EPA had
failed to comply with the consultation requirements of section 7(a)(2)
with respect to 59 clothianidin and thiamethoxam products. In its
order, the court also directed the parties to develop a briefing
schedule for determining the appropriate remedy and, concurrently, to
schedule a settlement conference to determine whether the parties could
settle the remedy proceeding outside of court.
The proposed stipulation and stipulated notice of dismissal would
settle the remedy proceeding. Specifically, paragraph two of the
proposed stipulation provides that EPA would agree to complete ESA
effects determinations by June 30, 2022, for its FIFRA registration
reviews of clothianidin and thiamethoxam and, as appropriate, request
initiation of any necessary ESA consultations with the Services. As
provided in paragraph three of the proposed stipulation, EPA would also
agree to initiate informal consultation with the Services to begin an
informal dialogue between the agencies prior to EPA completing its
effects determinations.
In addition, as described in paragraph one of the proposed
stipulation, defendant-intervenors Syngenta, Bayer and Valent (the
registrants of products containing clothianidin and thiamethoxam) have
agreed to request that EPA voluntarily cancel the following 12 specific
products that contain either clothianidin or thiamethoxam under section
6(f)(1) of FIFRA:
1. Adage Premier Seedcare, EPA Reg. No. 100-1450.
2. Adage Deluxe, EPA Reg. No. 100-1449.
3. Avicta Complete Corn 500, EPA Reg. No. 100-1399.
4. TMX-MXM-FDL-TBZ FS, EPA Reg. No. 100-1426.
5. Inovate Seed Protectant, EPA Reg. No. 59639-176.
6. Inovate Neutral Seed Protectant Reg. No. 59639-187.
7. Emesto Quantum, EPA Reg. No. 264-1125.
8. Flower Rose & Shrub Care III, EPA Reg No. 72155-95.
9. V10170 0.25G GL, EPA Reg. No. 59639-164.
10. Meridian 0.14G, EPA Reg. No. 100-1346.
11. Meridian 0.20G, EPA Reg. No. 100-1341.
12. Aloft GC G Insecticide, Reg. No. 59639-214.
For a period of thirty (30) days following the date of publication
of this document, the Agency will accept written comments relating to
the proposed joint stipulation and
[[Page 63866]]
stipulated notice of dismissal from persons who are not named as
parties to the litigation in question. If so requested, EPA will also
consider holding a public hearing on whether to agree to the proposed
joint stipulation and stipulated notice of dismissal. EPA or the
Department of Justice may withdraw or withhold consent to the proposed
joint stipulation or proposed stipulated notice of dismissal if the
comments disclose facts or considerations that indicate that such
consent is inappropriate, improper, inadequate, or inconsistent with
the requirements of the ESA or FIFRA. Unless EPA or the Department of
Justice determines that consent should be withdrawn, the terms of the
proposed stipulation and stipulated notice of dismissal will be
affirmed.
II. Additional Information About Commenting on the Proposed Stipulation
and Stipulated Notice of Dismissal
A. How can I get a copy of the proposed stipulated order of partial
dismissal?
The official public docket for this action (identified by EPA-HQ-
OGC-2018-0745) contains a copy of the proposed stipulation and proposed
order of dismissal. The official public docket is available for public
viewing at the Office of Environmental Information (OEI) Docket in the
EPA Docket Center, EPA West, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. 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 legal
holidays. The telephone number for the Public Reading Room is (202)
566-1744, and the telephone number for the OEI Docket is (202) 566-
1752.
An electronic version of the public docket is available on EPA's
website at https://www.epa.gov/ogc/proposed-consent-decrees-and-draft-settlement-agreements and through www.regulations.gov. You may use
www.regulations.gov to submit or view public comments, access the index
listing of the contents of the official public docket, and access those
documents in the public docket that are available electronically. Once
in the system, key in the appropriate docket identification number then
select ``search.'' It is important to note that EPA's policy is that
public comments, whether submitted electronically or in paper, will be
made available for public viewing online at www.regulations.gov without
change, unless the comment contains copyrighted material, CBI, or other
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Information
claimed as CBI and other information whose disclosure is restricted by
statute is not included in the official public docket or in the
electronic public docket.
EPA's policy is that copyrighted material, including copyrighted
material contained in a public comment, will not be placed in EPA's
electronic public docket but will be available only in printed, paper
form in the official public docket. Although not all docket materials
may be available electronically, you may still access any of the
publicly available docket materials through the EPA Docket Center.
B. How and to whom do I submit comments?
You may submit comments as provided in the ADDRESSES section.
Please ensure that your comments are submitted within the specified
comment period.
If you submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you
include your name, mailing address, and an email address or other
contact information in the body of your comment and with any disk or
CD-ROM you submit. This ensures that you can be identified as the
submitter of the comment and allows EPA to contact you in case EPA
cannot read your comment due to technical difficulties or needs further
information on the substance of your comment. Any identifying or
contact information provided in the body of a comment will be included
as part of the comment that is placed in the official public docket,
and made available in EPA's electronic public docket. 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.
Use of the www.regulations.gov website to submit comments to EPA
electronically is EPA's preferred method for receiving comments. The
electronic public docket system is an ``anonymous access'' system,
which means EPA will not know your identity, email address, or other
contact information unless you provide it in the body of your comment.
In contrast to EPA's electronic public docket, EPA's electronic mail
(email) system is not an ``anonymous access'' system. If you send an
email comment directly to the Docket without going through
www.regulations.gov, your email address is automatically captured and
included as part of the comment that is placed in the official public
docket, and made available in EPA's electronic public docket.
Dated: December 4, 2018.
Joseph E. Cole,
Associate General Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2018-26903 Filed 12-11-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P