Environmental Protection Agency June 2007 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

EPA expressed environmental concerns about the impacts to fishery and cultural resources and impacts related to contaminated soils. Rating EC2.

Under Section 10(a)(2) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is giving notice of a meeting of the Total Coliform Rule Distribution System Advisory Committee (TCRDSAC). The purpose of this meeting is to discuss the charge for the Advisory Committee, the purpose, efficacy, and applicability of the Total Coliform Rule (TCR), determine the availability of data and research to better understand the potential public health impact of the degradation of water quality in distribution systems, and discuss existing data sources and potential analyses to support the advisory committee. The TCR provides public health protection from microbial contamination in drinking water, while indicating the adequacy of treatment and the integrity of the drinking water distribution system. EPA committed to begin the process of revising the TCR as part of the 6-year review requirements of the Safe Drinking Water Act. EPA believes that an opportunity for implementation improvement exists in revising the TCR; the Agency plans to assess the effectiveness of the current TCR in reducing public health risk and what technically supportable alternative/additional monitoring strategies are available to improve implementation while maintaining or improving public health protection. Attendees will discuss the current TCR and its objectives, develop consensus recommendations on potential opportunities for improvements to the current rule, and discuss available data on distribution systems. Attendees will also discuss the proposed scope, possible discussion topics, and protocols for the Total Coliform Rule/ Distribution System Advisory Committee.

This document removes duplicate entries in terminology of certain commodity terms listed under 40 CFR part 180, subpart C. EPA is taking this action to establish a uniform listing of commodity terms.

In the Federal Register notice dated April 9, 2007 (72 FR 17551), EPA posted a Notice of Settlement under Section 122(h) of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA), concerning the Anaconda/Milgo Superfund Site located in Miami, Dade County, Florida. In the body of the settlement one of the settling PRPs, Dade Metals Corporation, was mistakenly not listed as one of the settling parties. EPA has amended the settlement to add Dade Metals Corporation. The past cost portion of the settlement remains unchanged.

EPA is announcing that the comment period on the proposed rule amendments for the Standards of Performance for Petroleum Refineries, published on May 14, 2007, is being extended until August 27, 2007.

The EPA is taking final action to extend the deferral of the effective date of the 8-hour ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) designation for the Denver Early Action Compact (EAC) from July 1, 2007 to September 14, 2007. The EAC areas have agreed to reduce ground-level ozone pollution earlier than the Clean Air Act (CAA) requires. On November 29, 2006, EPA extended the deferred effective date for the Denver EAC area from December 31, 2006, to July 1, 2007. In that final rulemaking, EPA noted that there were issues with Denver's EAC that would need to be addressed before EPA would extend their deferral until April 15, 2008. The action extending the deferral to July 2007 was challenged, and the parties are discussing settlement. EPA is now issuing a short further deferral to preserve the status quo as settlement discussion take place. EPA is issuing at this time a short further deferral of the effective date of Denver's designation for the 8-hour ozone standard from July 1, 2007 to September 14, 2007.

The EPA's Science Advisory Board (SAB) Staff Office is announcing two public teleconferences of the SAB Hypoxia Advisory Panel to discuss revisions to its draft advisory report concerning the hypoxic zone in the Gulf of Mexico.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region II is issuing a notice of intent to delete the Mannheim Avenue Dump Superfund Site (Site) located in Galloway Township, New Jersey from the National Priorities List (NPL) and requests public comments on this notice of intent. The NPL, promulgated pursuant to section 105 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) of 1980, as amended, is found at Appendix B of 40 CFR part 300, which is the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP). The EPA and the State of New Jersey, through the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, have determined that all appropriate response actions under CERCLA, including operation and maintenance and five-year reviews, have been completed. However, this deletion does not preclude future actions under Superfund. In the ``Rules and Regulations'' Section of today's Federal Register, we are publishing a direct final notice of deletion of the Mannheim Avenue Dump Superfund Site without prior notice of intent to delete because we view this as a noncontroversial revision and anticipate no adverse comment. We have explained our reasons for this deletion in the preamble to the direct final deletion. If we receive no adverse comment(s) on this notice of intent to delete or the direct final notice of deletion, we will not take further action on this notice of intent to delete. If we receive adverse comment(s), we will withdraw the direct final notice of deletion and it will not take effect. We will, as appropriate, address all public comments in a subsequent final deletion notice based on this notice of intent to delete. We will not institute a second comment period on this notice of intent to delete. Any parties interested in commenting must do so at this time. For additional information, see the direct final notice of deletion which is located in the Rules section of this Federal Register.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Region 2, is issuing a Notice of Intent to Delete the Grand Street Mercury Superfund Site (Site) from the National Priorities List (NPL) and requests public comment on this action. The Grand Street Mercury Site is located in the city of Hoboken, Hudson County, New Jersey. The NPL is Appendix B of the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP), 40 CFR part 300, which EPA promulgated pursuant to Section 105 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA), as amended. EPA and the State of New Jersey, through the Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP), have determined that all appropriate remedial actions have been completed and no further remedial actions are required. In addition, EPA and NJDEP have determined that the cleanup goals attained at this Site are protective of public health and the environment.

As required by the Federal Advisory Committee Act, Public Law 92-463, the Environmental Protection Agency is announcing four meetings of the Federal Advisory Committee on Detection and Quantitation Approaches and Uses in Clean Water Act (CWA) Programs (FACDQ).

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this notice announces that EPA is planning to submit a request to renew three existing Information Collection Requests (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Before submitting the ICRs to OMB for review and approval, EPA is soliciting comments on specific aspects of the information collections as described at the beginning of SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.

Pursuant to the provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act, Public Law 92-463, notice is hereby given that the next meeting of the Children's Health Protection Advisory Committee (CHPAC) will be held July 17-19, 2007 at RESOLVE, Washington, DC. The CHPAC was created to advise the Environmental Protection Agency on science, regulations, and other issues relating to children's environmental health.

This notice announces Agency approval of applications to register the pesticide products Canadian Wilderness Oil, Fresh Cab, Technical DV 74, and Polyversum, containing active ingredients not included in any previously registered products pursuant to the provisions of section 3(c)(5) of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), as amended.

This regulation establishes tolerances for residues of buprofezin in or on fruit, stone, group 12, except apricot and peach; and apricot. EPA is also revising existing tolerances for residues of buprofezin in or on canistel; grape; mango; papaya; sapodilla; sapote, black; sapote, mamey; and star apple; and deleting the existing tolerance for ``grape, raisin'' that is no longer needed as a result of this action. Interregional Research Project No. 4 requested these tolerances under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA).

EPA proposes to approve a revision to the Iowa State Implementation Plan (SIP). The purpose of this revision is to update the Polk County Board of Health Rules and Regulations, Chapter V, Air Pollution. These revisions reflect updates to the Iowa statewide rules previously approved by EPA and will ensure consistency between the applicable local agency rules and Federally-approved rules.

EPA is proposing to approve the actions of the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality (IDEQ) an the Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) to address the provisions of Clean Air Act section 110(a)(2)(D)(i) for the 8-hour ozone and PM2.5 National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). These provisions require each state to submit a State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision that prohibits emissions that adversely affect another state's air quality through interstate transport. EPA is proposing to approve IDEQ's and Ecology's SIP revisions because they adequately address the four distinct elements related to the impact of interstate transport of air pollutants for their states. These include prohibiting emissions that contribute significantly to nonattainment of the NAAQS in another state, interfere with maintenance of the NAAQS by another state, interfere with plans in another state to prevent significant deterioration of air quality, or interfere with efforts of another state to protect visibility.

This document announces the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) responses to Agency Clearance requests, in compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). 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. The OMB control numbers for EPA's regulations are listed in 40 CFR part 9 and 48 CFR chapter 15.

In accordance with section 113(g) of the Clean Air Act, as amended (``Act''), 42 U.S.C. 7413(g), notice is hereby given of a proposed settlement agreement, to address a lawsuit filed by Environmental Defense, Natural Resources Defense Council, and Sierra Club (hereinafter ``Petitioners''): Environmental Defense et al. v. Environmental Protection Agency, No. 06-1164 (DC Cir.). On or about May 9, 2006, Petitioners filed a complaint challenging EPA's Transportation Conformity Hot-Spot Final Rule, alleging that the rule failed to satisfy the Clean Air Act's transportation conformity criteria, that it permitted EPA to issue particulate matter (PM) hot-spot guidance without following required procedures, and that it withdrew a motor vehicle emissions factor model for use in PM hot-spot analysis without following required procedures. Under the terms of the proposed settlement agreement, Petitioners agree to dismiss the claim relating to issuance of PM hot-spot guidance once EPA provides public notice of and an opportunity to comment on such guidance.

On behalf of the National Dredging Team, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is requesting comment on the National Dredging Policy and the National Dredging Team's 2003 Action Agenda for Dredged Material Management. The National Dredging Policy was developed by a Federal Interagency Working Group, which was convened by the U.S. Department of Transportation in the early 1990s to investigate and recommend methods to improve the dredging review process. The Group identified the need for a unified national dredging policy to guide in the development of recommendations and to focus Federal agency commitments. The findings and principles described in the National Dredging Policy have been embraced by the Group's participating agencies. The National Dredging Team (NDT), a Federal interagency group co-chaired by the EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), published its Dredged Material Management: Action Agenda for the Next Decade in 2003. This Action Agenda lays out 22 recommended actions to guide the National Dredging Team and support implementation of the National Dredging Policy. At the request of the Cabinet-level Committee on the Marine Transportation System, the NDT is currently reviewing the National Dredging Policy, as well as the NDT's Action Agenda, to reaffirm their adequacy in support of the U.S. Marine Transportation System.

EPA expressed environmental concerns about impacts to groundwater, and recommended the evaluation and selection of a reduced- size alternative and a commitment to green building practices. Rating EC2.