Draft Criteria for Product Category Rules To Support the Label Program for Low Embodied Carbon Construction Materials; Notice of Availability, Webinar and Request for Comment, 15868-15870 [2024-04593]

Download as PDF 15868 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 44 / Tuesday, March 5, 2024 / Notices Home Page on the internet, this information is available on eLibrary. The full text of this document is available on eLibrary in PDF and Microsoft Word format for viewing, printing, and/or downloading. To access this document in eLibrary, type the docket number excluding the last three digits of this document in the docket number field. User assistance is available for eLibrary and the Commission’s website during normal business hours from FERC Online Support at 202–502–6652 (toll free at 1–866–208–3676) or email at ferconlinesupport@ferc.gov, or the Public Reference Room at (202) 502– 8371, TTY (202) 502–8659. Email the Public Reference Room at public.referenceroom@ferc.gov. The Commission’s Office of Public Participation (OPP) supports meaningful public engagement and participation in Commission proceedings. OPP can help members of the public, including landowners, environmental justice communities, Tribal members and others, access publicly available information and navigate Commission processes. For public inquiries and assistance with making filings such as interventions, comments, or requests for rehearing, the public is encouraged to contact OPP at (202) 502–6595 or OPP@ ferc.gov. Dated: February 28, 2024. Debbie-Anne A. Reese, Acting Secretary. of the Oil and Gas Extraction Point Source Category located and discharging to the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) of the Eastern Gulf of Mexico. The permit covers discharges from exploration, development, and production facilities located in, and discharging to, all federal waters of the eastern portion of the Gulf of Mexico seaward of the outer boundary of the territorial seas. It covers existing and new source facilities with operations located on federal leases occurring in water depths seaward of 200 meters, occurring offshore the coasts of Alabama and Florida. The western boundary of the coverage area is demarcated by Mobile and Visoca Knoll lease blocks located seaward of the outer boundary of the territorial seas from the coasts of Mississippi and Alabama. Individual permits will be issued for operating facilities on lease blocks traversed by and shoreward of the 200-meter water depth. This permit will be issued on the date it is published in the Federal Register and become effective at the end of the 30 day notice. DATES: Ms. Bridget Staples, EPA Region 4, WD, NPDES Section, by telephone at (404) 562–9783 or by email at Staples.Bridget@epa.gov. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: On June 9, 2023, EPA published in the Federal Register the proposed draft permit and supporting documents (88 FR 37878) entitled Notice of Draft National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) General Permit for the Eastern Portion of the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) of the Gulf of Mexico (GEG460000) and subsequently an extension of the comment period to 90 total days (see 88 FR 43562). A copy of the Region’s final permit, responses to comments document and other supporting documentation may be found online at https://www.epa.gov/ npdes-permits/eastern-gulf-mexicooffshore-oil-gas-npdes-permits. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: [FR Doc. 2024–04637 Filed 3–4–24; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6717–01–P ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY [FRL–10164–02–R4] Final National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) General Permit for New and Existing Sources and New Dischargers in the Offshore Subcategory of the Oil and Gas Extraction Category for the Eastern Portion of the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) of the Gulf of Mexico Kathlene Butler, Director, Water Division. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). ACTION: Notice of final NPDES general permit issuance. AGENCY: [FR Doc. 2024–04575 Filed 3–4–24; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6560–50–P The Director of the Water Division, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 4 provides in this notice the reissuing of the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) General Permit (GEG460000) for existing and new sources and new dischargers in the Offshore Subcategory lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1 SUMMARY: VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:50 Mar 04, 2024 Jkt 262001 PO 00000 Frm 00061 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY [EPA–HQ–OPPT–2024–0075; FRL–11746– 01–OCSPP] Draft Criteria for Product Category Rules To Support the Label Program for Low Embodied Carbon Construction Materials; Notice of Availability, Webinar and Request for Comment Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). ACTION: Notice. AGENCY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing the availability of and seeking public comment on a draft document titled ‘‘EPA Criteria for Product Category Rules to Support the Label Program for Low Embodied Carbon Construction Materials’’ (PCR Criteria) and is announcing a webinar on March 21, 2024. The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) authorized $100 million to EPA to develop a program to identify and label construction materials and products that have substantially lower embodied carbon, in coordination with the General Services Administration (GSA) and the Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). SUMMARY: DATES: Webinar: March 21, 2024, 1–2 p.m. EST. Registration: To receive the webcast meeting link and audio teleconference information before the meeting, you must register by 12 p.m. on March 21, 2024. Special Accommodations: To allow EPA time to process your request for special accommodations, please submit your request to EPA by 5 p.m. EST on March 7, 2024. Written comments: Submit your comments on or before April 4, 2024. ADDRESSES: Webinar: Register online at https://www.zoomgov.com/webinar/ register/WN_ wE6i2h3qQc6WghXIDu7WFg. Special Accommodations: Please contact the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. Written comments: Submit your comments, identified by docket identification (ID) number EPA–HQ– OPPT–2024–0075, through 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. Additional E:\FR\FM\05MRN1.SGM 05MRN1 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 44 / Tuesday, March 5, 2024 / Notices 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: Peter Bacas, Data Gathering & Analysis Division (4410G), Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20460–0001; telephone number: (202) 566–0549; email address: bacas.peter@ epa.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: I. Executive Summary A. Does this action apply to me? This is directed to the public in general. This notice may be of specific interest to Product Category Rule (PCR) Program Operators, PCR Committee members (trade associations, NGOs, material producers), Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) community members and PCR review panels. EPA will use this document to determine if PCRs are eligible to be used under EPA’s Label Program for Low Embodied Carbon Construction Materials. Other interested stakeholders may include manufacturers of construction materials and products, Federal purchasers, institutional purchasers, private sector entities with large real estate portfolios, State and local governments and Tribal Nations purchasers, real estate developers, architects and engineers, standards development organizations, and construction trade groups and construction professionals. lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1 B. What is the Agency’s authority for taking this action? IRA section 60116, 26 U.S.C. 55 et seq., authorized $100 million to EPA to develop a program to identify and label construction materials and products that have substantially lower embodied carbon, in coordination with the GSA and the FHWA. C. What action is the Agency taking? The Agency is requesting comment on the document titled ‘‘Criteria for Product Category Rules to Support the Label Program for Low Embodied Carbon Construction Materials’’ (PCR Criteria), which is available in the docket. EPA is requesting feedback on the PCR Criteria, which will enable the development of robust Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) to be used for setting thresholds for the label program. EPA is also announcing a stakeholder engagement opportunity through a webinar. During the webinar EPA will give an informational presentation on the PCR Criteria. VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:50 Mar 04, 2024 Jkt 262001 D. What should I consider as I prepare my comments? 1. Submitting CBI. Do not submit CBI to EPA through https:// www.regulations.gov or email. If you wish to include CBI in your comment, please follow the applicable instructions at https://www.epa.gov/dockets/ commenting-epa-dockets#rules and clearly mark the part or all of the information that you claim to be 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 and/or 40 CFR part 703, as applicable. 2. Tips for preparing your comments. When preparing and submitting your comments, see the commenting tips at https://www.epa.gov/dockets/ commenting-epa-dockets.html. II. Background An increasing number of U.S. Federal, State, and local government procurement policies, as well as large institutional procurement policies, are aimed at driving down greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions related to construction materials. These policies often require manufacturers to disclose the embodied carbon of the materials and products they produce to be eligible for procurement. Embodied carbon refers to the amount of GHG emissions associated with the extraction, production, transport and manufacturing of materials and products. The IRA, passed by Congress and signed into law in August 2022, leverages Federal procurement and funding of buildings and infrastructure to catalyze markets for American-made construction materials and products with lower embodied carbon (also known as embodied greenhouse gas emissions). IRA section 60116 provided EPA with $100 million to develop and carry out a program to identify and label construction materials and products that have substantially lower levels of embodied greenhouse gas emissions associated with all relevant stages of production, use, and disposal, as compared to estimated industry averages of similar materials or products. EPA is committed to developing a label program that creates an easy and reliable way for purchasers to identify and procure such lower embodied carbon construction materials and products. Standardizing and PO 00000 Frm 00062 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 15869 improving the quality of data provided in product Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs), including by establishing consistent PCR criteria, is an essential step in the development of the label program. An EPD is a disclosure document that discloses key environmental impacts of a product’s life, as outlined in a PCR. A PCR is a set of guidelines that determine what data should be gathered and how it will be evaluated when conducting the life cycle analysis used to create the EPD. PCRs act as the guardrails by providing specific rules, requirements, and guidelines for calculating and reporting environmental data for a product. Current data quality requirements and PCR process development approaches lack the consistency, transparency and oversight measures required by the Federal Government. Therefore, EPA’s PCR Criteria document builds on existing standardization efforts in order to ensure high quality, consistent and transparent data and processes are used to develop the documents which will ultimately be used to set thresholds and certify products under the label program. Existing documents used to create EPA’s PCR Criteria include the Agency’s ‘‘Framework for the Assessment of Environmental Performance Standards and Ecolabels for Federal Purchasing’’ (https:// www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/ 2022-02/updated-framework_ 020222.pdf), The ‘‘Product Category Rule Development Initiative’s Guidance for PCR Development’’ (https:// cfpub.epa.gov/si/si_public_record_ report.cfm?dir; EntryId=259406&Lab=NRMRL) and the American Center for Life Cycle Assessment (ACLCA) guidance titled ‘‘2022 ACLCA PCR Guidance—Process and Methods Toolkit, Version May 2022’’ (https://aclca.org/wp-content/ uploads/2022-ACLCA-PCR-Guidance_ v1_Introduction_05252022.pdf) (‘‘ACLCA PCR Guidance of 2022’’). Much of EPA’s PCR Criteria document is based on the 2022 ACLCA PCR Guidance, primarily focusing on the second checklist at the data source level of conformance. However, the 2022 ACLCA PCR Guidance published prior to a Federal mandate to develop an embodied carbon label. As such, EPA’s PCR Criteria document includes additional information needed to support EPA’s Label Program for Low Embodied Carbon Materials and Products given the Federal Government’s needs associated with public procurement, data specification, and other related items. EPA received public feedback on actions needed to improve PCRs and E:\FR\FM\05MRN1.SGM 05MRN1 15870 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 44 / Tuesday, March 5, 2024 / Notices EPDs in response to a request comment on a document titled ‘‘Request for Information (RFI) to Support New Inflation Reduction Act Programs to Lower Embodied Greenhouse Gas Emissions Associated with Construction Materials and Products (January 19, 2023)’’ (https://www.regulations.gov/ docket/EPA-HQ-OPPT-2022-0924/ document), as well as Federal subject matter feedback and support from the Department of Transportation’s Federal Highways Administration, the General Services Administration, the Department of Energy, the Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology, and others. See 88 FR 5002, January 26, 2023 (FRL– 10439–01–OCSPP). III. Request for Public Comment A. What feedback does EPA hope to gain from the public comments? EPA seeks feedback on whether the draft PCR Criteria adequately addresses existing gaps in data quality and standardization related to the PCRs to ensure robust, consistent, and representative EPDs are available to support the label program. EPA is also seeking input on the level of effort needed for PCRs to conform. EPA also welcomes specific input on each draft PCR criterion. B. What is the request for information? EPA encourages all potentially interested parties, including individuals, governmental and nongovernmental organizations, non-profit organizations, academic institutions, research institutions, and private sector entities to comment on the PCR Criteria. To the extent possible, the Agency asks commenters to please cite any public data related to or that supports responses, and to the extent permissible, describe any supporting data that is not publicly available. Authority: 26 U.S.C. 55 et seq. Dated: February 29, 2024. Jennie Romer, Deputy Assistant Administrator, Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention. [FR Doc. 2024–04593 Filed 3–4–24; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6560–50–P lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1 ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY [EPA–HQ–OGC–2024–0098; FRL–11789–01– OGC] Proposed Consent Decree, Clean Air Act Citizen Suit Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). AGENCY: VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:50 Mar 04, 2024 Jkt 262001 Notice of proposed consent decree; request for public comment. ACTION: In accordance with the Clean Air Act, as amended (‘‘CAA’’ or ‘‘the Act’’), notice is given of a proposed consent decree to address lawsuits filed by Our Children’s Earth Foundation (‘‘Plaintiff’’) in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California: Our Children’s Earth Foundation v. Michael S. Regan, No. 3:23–cv–04955–WHA (N.D. Cal.). Plaintiff filed a complaint alleging that the Administrator failed to perform certain non-discretionary duties in accordance with the Act to take final action on state implementation plan (‘‘SIP’’) revisions submitted by the States of Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and Utah. Certain claims included in the Complaint were acted upon by Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or were withdrawn by the State during the pendency of the suit, and the proposed consent decree would establish deadlines for EPA to sign a notice of final rulemaking on the remaining claims. DATES: Written comments on the proposed consent decree must be received by April 4, 2024. ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA–HQ– OGC–2024–0098, online at https:// www.regulations.gov (EPA’s preferred method). Follow the online instructions for submitting comments. Instructions: All submissions received must include the Docket ID number for this action. Comments received may be posted without change to https:// www.regulations.gov, including any personal information provided. For detailed instructions on sending comments and additional information on the rulemaking process, see the ‘‘Additional Information about Commenting on the Proposed Consent Decree’’ heading under the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kyle Durch, Air and Radiation Law Office, Office of General Counsel, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; telephone (202) 564–1809; email address Durch.Kyle@epa.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: SUMMARY: I. Obtaining a Copy of the Proposed Consent Decree The official public docket for this action (identified by Docket ID No. EPA–HQ–OGC–2024–0098) contains a copy of the proposed consent decree. The official public docket is available for public viewing at the Office of PO 00000 Frm 00063 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 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. The electronic version of the public docket for this action contains a copy of the proposed consent decree and is available through https:// www.regulations.gov. You may use https://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.’’ II. Additional Information About the Proposed Consent Decree The proposed consent decree would establish deadlines for EPA to take final action pursuant to CAA section 110(k) on certain SIP submissions by the States of Arizona, Colorado, and Utah. First, the proposed consent decree would require EPA to take final action on six SIP revisions submitted by the State of Arizona by December 15, 2024: (1) Arizona’s Redesignation Request/ Maintenance Plan addressing the 1971 sulfur dioxide NAAQS in the Hayden planning area, submitted on or around June 27, 2002; (2) Maricopa County Air Quality District’s Rule 350 Storage and Transfer of Organic Liquids (NonGasoline) at an Organic Liquid Distribution Facility, submitted on or around December 3, 2020; (3) Maricopa County Air Quality District’s Rule 351 Storage and Loading of Gasoline at Bulk Gasoline Plants and at Bulk Gasoline Terminals, submitted on or around December 3, 2020; (4) Maricopa County Air Quality District’s Rule 352 Gasoline Cargo Tank Testing and Use, submitted on or around December 3, 2020; (5) Maricopa County Air Quality District’s Rule 353 Storage and Loading of Gasoline at a Gasoline Dispensing Facility, submitted on or around December 3, 2020; and (6) Arizona’s Infrastructure SIP addressing the 2015 ozone NAAQS, submitted on or about September 24, 2018. Second, the proposed consent decree would require EPA to take final action on eight SIP revisions submitted by the State of Arizona by December 15, 2025: (1) Hayden PM10 Plan, Arizona’s attainment plan, submitted on or about E:\FR\FM\05MRN1.SGM 05MRN1

Agencies

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 44 (Tuesday, March 5, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15868-15870]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-04593]


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

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OPPT-2024-0075; FRL-11746-01-OCSPP]


Draft Criteria for Product Category Rules To Support the Label 
Program for Low Embodied Carbon Construction Materials; Notice of 
Availability, Webinar and Request for Comment

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing the 
availability of and seeking public comment on a draft document titled 
``EPA Criteria for Product Category Rules to Support the Label Program 
for Low Embodied Carbon Construction Materials'' (PCR Criteria) and is 
announcing a webinar on March 21, 2024. The Inflation Reduction Act 
(IRA) authorized $100 million to EPA to develop a program to identify 
and label construction materials and products that have substantially 
lower embodied carbon, in coordination with the General Services 
Administration (GSA) and the Department of Transportation's Federal 
Highway Administration (FHWA).

DATES: 
    Webinar: March 21, 2024, 1-2 p.m. EST.
    Registration: To receive the webcast meeting link and audio 
teleconference information before the meeting, you must register by 12 
p.m. on March 21, 2024.
    Special Accommodations: To allow EPA time to process your request 
for special accommodations, please submit your request to EPA by 5 p.m. 
EST on March 7, 2024.
    Written comments: Submit your comments on or before April 4, 2024.

ADDRESSES: Webinar: Register online at https://www.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_wE6i2h3qQc6WghXIDu7WFg.
    Special Accommodations: Please contact the person listed under FOR 
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
    Written comments: Submit your comments, identified by docket 
identification (ID) number EPA-HQ-OPPT-2024-0075, through 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. Additional

[[Page 15869]]

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: Peter Bacas, Data Gathering & Analysis 
Division (4410G), Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention, 
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, 
DC 20460-0001; telephone number: (202) 566-0549; email address: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Executive Summary

A. Does this action apply to me?

    This is directed to the public in general. This notice may be of 
specific interest to Product Category Rule (PCR) Program Operators, PCR 
Committee members (trade associations, NGOs, material producers), Life 
Cycle Assessment (LCA) community members and PCR review panels. EPA 
will use this document to determine if PCRs are eligible to be used 
under EPA's Label Program for Low Embodied Carbon Construction 
Materials. Other interested stakeholders may include manufacturers of 
construction materials and products, Federal purchasers, institutional 
purchasers, private sector entities with large real estate portfolios, 
State and local governments and Tribal Nations purchasers, real estate 
developers, architects and engineers, standards development 
organizations, and construction trade groups and construction 
professionals.

B. What is the Agency's authority for taking this action?

    IRA section 60116, 26 U.S.C. 55 et seq., authorized $100 million to 
EPA to develop a program to identify and label construction materials 
and products that have substantially lower embodied carbon, in 
coordination with the GSA and the FHWA.

C. What action is the Agency taking?

    The Agency is requesting comment on the document titled ``Criteria 
for Product Category Rules to Support the Label Program for Low 
Embodied Carbon Construction Materials'' (PCR Criteria), which is 
available in the docket. EPA is requesting feedback on the PCR 
Criteria, which will enable the development of robust Environmental 
Product Declarations (EPDs) to be used for setting thresholds for the 
label program. EPA is also announcing a stakeholder engagement 
opportunity through a webinar. During the webinar EPA will give an 
informational presentation on the PCR Criteria.

D. What should I consider as I prepare my comments?

    1. Submitting CBI. Do not submit CBI to EPA through https://www.regulations.gov or email. If you wish to include CBI in your 
comment, please follow the applicable instructions at https://www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets#rules and clearly mark the 
part or all of the information that you claim to be 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 and/or 40 CFR part 703, as 
applicable.
    2. Tips for preparing your comments. When preparing and submitting 
your comments, see the commenting tips at https://www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets.html.

II. Background

    An increasing number of U.S. Federal, State, and local government 
procurement policies, as well as large institutional procurement 
policies, are aimed at driving down greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions 
related to construction materials. These policies often require 
manufacturers to disclose the embodied carbon of the materials and 
products they produce to be eligible for procurement. Embodied carbon 
refers to the amount of GHG emissions associated with the extraction, 
production, transport and manufacturing of materials and products.
    The IRA, passed by Congress and signed into law in August 2022, 
leverages Federal procurement and funding of buildings and 
infrastructure to catalyze markets for American-made construction 
materials and products with lower embodied carbon (also known as 
embodied greenhouse gas emissions). IRA section 60116 provided EPA with 
$100 million to develop and carry out a program to identify and label 
construction materials and products that have substantially lower 
levels of embodied greenhouse gas emissions associated with all 
relevant stages of production, use, and disposal, as compared to 
estimated industry averages of similar materials or products. EPA is 
committed to developing a label program that creates an easy and 
reliable way for purchasers to identify and procure such lower embodied 
carbon construction materials and products. Standardizing and improving 
the quality of data provided in product Environmental Product 
Declarations (EPDs), including by establishing consistent PCR criteria, 
is an essential step in the development of the label program. An EPD is 
a disclosure document that discloses key environmental impacts of a 
product's life, as outlined in a PCR. A PCR is a set of guidelines that 
determine what data should be gathered and how it will be evaluated 
when conducting the life cycle analysis used to create the EPD. PCRs 
act as the guardrails by providing specific rules, requirements, and 
guidelines for calculating and reporting environmental data for a 
product.
    Current data quality requirements and PCR process development 
approaches lack the consistency, transparency and oversight measures 
required by the Federal Government. Therefore, EPA's PCR Criteria 
document builds on existing standardization efforts in order to ensure 
high quality, consistent and transparent data and processes are used to 
develop the documents which will ultimately be used to set thresholds 
and certify products under the label program. Existing documents used 
to create EPA's PCR Criteria include the Agency's ``Framework for the 
Assessment of Environmental Performance Standards and Ecolabels for 
Federal Purchasing'' (https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2022-02/updated-framework_020222.pdf), The ``Product Category Rule 
Development Initiative's Guidance for PCR Development'' (https://cfpub.epa.gov/si/si_public_record_report.cfm?dir;EntryId=259406&Lab=NRMRL) and the 
American Center for Life Cycle Assessment (ACLCA) guidance titled 
``2022 ACLCA PCR Guidance--Process and Methods Toolkit, Version May 
2022'' (https://aclca.org/wp-content/uploads/2022-ACLCA-PCR-Guidance_v1_Introduction_05252022.pdf) (``ACLCA PCR Guidance of 
2022'').
    Much of EPA's PCR Criteria document is based on the 2022 ACLCA PCR 
Guidance, primarily focusing on the second checklist at the data source 
level of conformance. However, the 2022 ACLCA PCR Guidance published 
prior to a Federal mandate to develop an embodied carbon label. As 
such, EPA's PCR Criteria document includes additional information 
needed to support EPA's Label Program for Low Embodied Carbon Materials 
and Products given the Federal Government's needs associated with 
public procurement, data specification, and other related items.
    EPA received public feedback on actions needed to improve PCRs and

[[Page 15870]]

EPDs in response to a request comment on a document titled ``Request 
for Information (RFI) to Support New Inflation Reduction Act Programs 
to Lower Embodied Greenhouse Gas Emissions Associated with Construction 
Materials and Products (January 19, 2023)'' (https://www.regulations.gov/docket/EPA-HQ-OPPT-2022-0924/document), as well as 
Federal subject matter feedback and support from the Department of 
Transportation's Federal Highways Administration, the General Services 
Administration, the Department of Energy, the Department of Commerce's 
National Institute of Standards and Technology, and others. See 88 FR 
5002, January 26, 2023 (FRL-10439-01-OCSPP).

III. Request for Public Comment

A. What feedback does EPA hope to gain from the public comments?

    EPA seeks feedback on whether the draft PCR Criteria adequately 
addresses existing gaps in data quality and standardization related to 
the PCRs to ensure robust, consistent, and representative EPDs are 
available to support the label program. EPA is also seeking input on 
the level of effort needed for PCRs to conform. EPA also welcomes 
specific input on each draft PCR criterion.

B. What is the request for information?

    EPA encourages all potentially interested parties, including 
individuals, governmental and non-governmental organizations, non-
profit organizations, academic institutions, research institutions, and 
private sector entities to comment on the PCR Criteria. To the extent 
possible, the Agency asks commenters to please cite any public data 
related to or that supports responses, and to the extent permissible, 
describe any supporting data that is not publicly available.
    Authority: 26 U.S.C. 55 et seq.

    Dated: February 29, 2024.
Jennie Romer,
Deputy Assistant Administrator, Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution 
Prevention.
[FR Doc. 2024-04593 Filed 3-4-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P

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