Environmental Protection Agency February 15, 2007 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing the availability of the final ``Nanotechnology White Paper'' (EPA/100/ B-07/001, February 2007). The purpose of the White Paper is to inform EPA management of the science issues and needs associated with nanotechnology, to support related EPA program office needs, and to communicate these nanotechnology science issues to stakeholders and the public. Nanotechnology is the understanding and control of matter at dimensions of roughly 1 to 100 nanometers, where unique phenomena enable novel applications. Encompassing nanoscale science, engineering and technology, nanotechnology involves imaging, measuring, modeling and manipulating matter at this length scale. At the nanoscale, the physical, chemical and biological properties of materials may differ in fundamental and valuable ways from the properties of individual atoms and molecules or bulk matter. Nanotechnology presents new opportunities to improve how we measure, monitor, manage and minimize contaminants in the environment. New generations of nanomaterials will evolve and with them new and possibly unforeseen environmental issues. The White Paper provides a basic description of nanotechnology, why EPA is interested in it, potential environmental benefits of nanotechnology, risk assessment issues specific to nanotechnology, and a discussion of responsible development of nanotechnology and the Agency's statutory mandates. The paper then provides an extensive review of research needs for both environmental applications and implications of nanotechnology. To help EPA focus on priorities for the near term, the paper concludes with staff recommendations for addressing science issues and research needs, and includes prioritized research needs within most risk assessment topic areas (e.g., human health effects research, fate and transport research). In addition, the White Paper includes as Appendix C ``EPA's Nanotechnology Research Framework.'' The Nanotechnology Research Framework outlines how EPA will strategically focus its own research program to provide key information on potential environmental impacts from human or ecological exposure to nanomaterials in a manner that complements other federal, academic, and private-sector research activities. The Framework was developed by a cross agency team as a follow-up effort to the White Paper. The White Paper and Framework note the importance of complementing EPA's own research program by collaborating with other researchers.

The EPA is proposing to approve revisions to the State Implementation Plan (SIP) for the Albuquerque/Bernalillo County, New Mexico, area that were submitted to EPA by the Governor of New Mexico on May 24, 2006. The proposed revisions modify the Prevention of Significant Deterioration and Nonattainment New Source Review (NNSR) regulations in the SIP. They were submitted to make the area's PSD and NNSR rules consistent with Federal NNSR and PSD revised regulations, which were promulgated by EPA on December 31, 2002 (67 Federal Register (FR) 80186) and reconsidered with minor changes on November 7, 2003 (68 FR 63021) (collectively, these Federal actions are called the ``2002 New Source Review (NSR) Reform Rules''). The revisions include provisions for baseline emissions calculations, an actual-to-projected-actual methodology for calculating emissions changes, options for plantwide applicability limits (PALs), and recordkeeping and reporting requirements. We are proposing to approve these revisions pursuant to section 110, part C, and part D of the Federal Clean Air Act (Act).