Environmental Protection Agency August 2005 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In accordance with section 6(f)(1) of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), EPA announced in theFederal Register of July 20, 2005, a notice of receipt of an irrevocable request for an amendment by the Hartz Mountain Corporation to delete a use for EPA Registration Number 2596-151. The document inadvertently omitted a sentence from the DATES unit and omitted the ADDRESSES unit. This document corrects those errors.

The Environmental Protection Agency is finalizing its proposed action to grant a petition submitted by the United States Department of Energy, Richland Operations Office (Energy) to exclude (or `delist') from regulation as listed hazardous waste certain mixed waste (`petitioned waste') following treatment at the 200 Area Effluent Treatment Site (200 Area ETF) on the Hanford Facility, Richland, Washington. This action conditionally grants the exclusion based on an evaluation of waste stream-specific and treatment process information provided by Energy. Wastes meeting the conditions of this exclusion are exempt from the requirements of hazardous waste regulations under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) of 1976 as amended. In finalizing this action, EPA has concluded that Energy's petitioned waste does not meet any of the criteria under which the wastes were originally listed, and that there is no reasonable basis to believe other factors exist which could cause the waste to be hazardous.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this document announces that an Information Collection Request (ICR) has been forwarded to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. This is a request to renew an existing approved collection for the Water Quality Standards Regulation. This ICR is scheduled to expire on August 31, 2005. Under OMB regulations, the Agency may continue to conduct or sponsor the collection of information while this submission is pending at OMB. This ICR describes the nature of the information collection and its estimated burden.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or Agency) is today granting two site-specific treatment standard variances from the Land Disposal Restrictions (LDR) treatment standards to Chemical Waste Management, Chemical Services LLC (CWM), and to Heritage Environmental Services LLC (Heritage), to treat a selenium-bearing hazardous waste from the glass manufacturing industry. This final rule follows a proposed rule and a subsequent request for comment. These facilities intend to treat and dispose of selenium-bearing hazardous waste from Guardian Industries Corp. (Guardian) at their RCRA permitted facilities in Model City, New York and Indianapolis, Indiana, respectively. Based on treatment data on a new proprietary chemical stabilization technology provided by Heritage, EPA is issuing variances so that both facilities may treat the Guardian waste to an alternate treatment standard of 11 mg/L selenium, as measured by the TCLP. Upon promulgation of this final rule, CWM and Heritage may dispose of the treated waste in permitted RCRA Subtitle C landfills, provided they meet the applicable LDR treatment standards for any other hazardous constituents in the waste. EPA is granting these variances because the chemical properties of the wastes differ significantly from the waste used to establish the current LDR standard for selenium (5.7 mg/L, as measured by the Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP)), and the petitions have adequately demonstrated that the waste cannot be treated to meet this treatment standard.

On April 30, 2004, EPA published the first phase of its final rule to implement the 8-Hour Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) (Phase 1 Rule). At that same time, EPA also published 8-hour ozone designations for all areas of the country. For most areas, the 8-hour ozone designations became effective on June 15, 2004. The Phase 1 Rule provided that the 1-hour ozone NAAQS would no longer apply (i.e., would be revoked) for an area 1 year following the effective date of the area's designation for the 8-hour ozone NAAQS. This rule codifies the revocation of the 1-hour standard for those areas with effective 8-hour ozone designations. Because the Phase 1 Rule, as modified in a recent reconsideration rule, also provided that certain 1-hour nonattainment and maintenance obligations that applied as of the effective date of designation for the 8-hour NAAQS remain in place for an area, we are retaining the tables in 40 CFR part 81 that identify each area's 1-hour designation and classification status as of the effective date of the 8-hour designation for the area. The regulatory changes do not modify the tables for Early Action Compact areas for which the 1-hour NAAQS continues to apply. In addition, today's rule makes a technical correction to the last sentence in 40 CFR 51.905(c)(1) to reference 40 CFR part 81, subpart C as identifying the boundaries of areas and the area designations and classifications for the 1-hour ozone NAAQS that were in place as of the effective date of designation of the area for the 8-hour NAAQS. This rule eliminates the reservation of subpart E of part 81 for the above identification purpose.

Since the amendments of October 1988, the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) has required payment of an annual maintenance fee to keep pesticide registrations in effect. The fee due January 15, 2005 has gone unpaid for 831 registrations. Section 4(i)(5)(G) of FIFRA provides that the Administrator may cancel these registrations by order and without a hearing; orders to cancel all 831 of these registrations have been issued within the past few days.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region III is publishing a direct final notice of deletion of the Rhinehart Tire Fire Dump Superfund Site (Site), located near Winchester (Frederick County), Virginia, from the National Priorities List (NPL). The NPL, promulgated pursuant to section 105 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980, as amended (CERCLA), is Appendix B of 40 CFR part 300, which is the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP). This direct final notice of deletion is being published by EPA with the concurrence of the Commonwealth of Virginia, through the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (VDEQ), because EPA has determined that all appropriate response actions under CERCLA have been completed and, therefore, further remedial action pursuant to CERCLA is not appropriate.

EPA is proposing to take direct final action approving State Implementation Plan (SIP) revisions submitted by the State of Utah. On October 19, 2004, the Governor of Utah submitted revisions to Utah's Rule R307-110-12, ``Section IX, Control Measures for Area and Point Sources, Part C, Carbon Monoxide,'' which incorporates a revised maintenance plan for the Salt Lake City carbon monoxide (CO) maintenance area for the CO National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS). The revised maintenance plan contains revised transportation conformity budgets for the years 2005 and 2019. In addition, the Governor submitted revisions to Utah's Rule R307-110-33, ``Section X, Vehicle Inspection and Maintenance Program, Part C, Salt Lake County,'' which incorporates a revised vehicle inspection and maintenance program for Salt Lake County. EPA is proposing approval of the Salt Lake City CO revised maintenance plan, the revised transportation conformity budgets, the revised vehicle inspection and maintenance program for Salt Lake County, and the revisions to rules R307-110-12 and R307-110- 33. This action is being taken under section 110 of the Clean Air Act. In the ``Rules and Regulations'' section of this Federal Register, EPA is approving the State's SIP revisions as a direct final rule without prior proposal because the Agency views this as a noncontroversial SIP revision and anticipates no adverse comments. A detailed rationale for the approval is set forth in the preamble to the direct final rule. If EPA receives no adverse comments, EPA will not take further action on this proposed rule. If EPA receives adverse comments, EPA will withdraw the direct final rule and it will not take effect. EPA will address all public comments in a subsequent final rule based on this proposed rule. EPA will not institute a second comment period on this action. Any parties interested in commenting must do so at this time. Please note that if EPA receives adverse comment on an amendment, paragraph, or section of this rule and if that provision may be severed from the remainder of the rule, EPA may adopt as final those provisions of the rule that are not the subject of an adverse comment.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act, this document announces that an Information Collection Request (ICR) has been forwarded to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. This is a request to renew an existing approved collection. This ICR is scheduled to expire on August 31, 2005. Under OMB regulations, the Agency may continue to conduct or sponsor the collection of information while this submission is pending at OMB. This ICR describes the nature of the information collection and its estimated burden and cost.

EPA is proposing to approve a State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision submitted by the Governor of Colorado with a letter dated April 12, 2004. This revision replaces an August 19, 1998, submittal from the Governor and updates the Long-Term Strategy of the Visibility SIP to establish strategies, activities, and plans that constitute reasonable progress toward the National visibility goal. In the ``Rules and Regulations'' section of this Federal Register, EPA is approving the State's SIP revision as a direct final rule without prior proposal because the Agency views this as a controversial SIP revision and anticipates no adverse comments. A detailed rationale for the approval is set forth in the preamble to the direct final rule. If EPA receives no adverse comments, EPA will not take further action on this proposed rule. If EPA receives adverse comments, EPA will withdraw the direct final rule and it will not take effect. EPA will address all public comments in a subsequent final rule based on this proposed rule. EPA will not institute a second comment period on this action. Any parties interested in commenting must do so at this time. Please note that if EPA receives adverse comment on an amendment, paragraph, or section of this rule and if that provision may be severed from the remainder of the rule, EPA may adopt as final those provisions of the rule that are not the subject of an adverse comment.