Environmental Protection Agency 2007 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

EPA is taking direct final action to approve revisions to the North Carolina State Implementation Plan (SIP). On February 16, 2005, the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources submitted revisions to the Mecklenburg County Air Pollution Control Ordinance (MCAPCO) to be incorporated into the Mecklenburg County portion of the North Carolina SIP. The revisions include changes to MCAPCO 2.0902, ``Applicability,'' and 2.0933, ``Petroleum Liquid Storage in External Floating Roof Tanks.'' These changes were made to maintain consistency with State and federal regulations, and are part of Mecklenburg County's strategy to attain and maintain the 8-hour ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS), by reducing precursors to ozone. EPA is approving this SIP revision pursuant to section 110 of the Clean Air Act (CAA).

This notice announces receipt of an application 264-EUP-RUG from Bayer CropScience (BCS) requesting an experimental use permit (EUP) for the plant-incorporated protectants, Bacillus thuringiensis Cry2Ae protein and the genetic material necessary for its production (pTEM12) in Event GHB119 or GHB714 cotton plants and the Bacillus thuringiensis Cry1Ab protein and the genetic material necessary for its production (pTDL004 or pTDL008) in Event T303-3 or T304-40 cotton plants. The Agency has determined that the application may be of regional and national significance. Therefore, in accordance with 40 CFR 172.11(a), the Agency is soliciting comments on this application.

EPA is proposing to approve a redesignation request and State Implementation Plan (SIP) revisions submitted by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) is requesting that the Centre County ozone nonattainment area (State College Area) be redesignated as attainment for the 8-hour ozone national ambient air quality standard (NAAQS). EPA is proposing to approve the ozone redesignation request for State College Area. In conjunction with its redesignation request, PADEP submitted a SIP revision consisting of a maintenance plan for State College Area that provides for continued attainment of the 8-hour ozone NAAQS for at least 10 years after redesignation. EPA is proposing to make a determination that the State College Area has attained the 8-hour ozone NAAQS, based upon three years of complete, quality-assured ambient air quality ozone monitoring data for 2004-2006. EPA's proposed approval of the 8-hour ozone redesignation request is based on its determination that the State College Area has met the criteria for redesignation to attainment specified in the Clean Air Act. In addition, PADEP submitted a 2002 base year inventory for the State College Area which EPA is proposing to approve as a SIP revision. EPA is also providing information on the status of its adequacy determination for the motor vehicle emission budgets (MVEBs) that are identified in the State College Area maintenance plan for purposes of transportation conformity, which EPA is also proposing to approve. EPA is proposing approval of the redesignation request, and the maintenance plan and the 2002 base year inventory SIP revisions in accordance with the requirements of the Clean Air Act.

EPA is proposing to approve a site specific revision to the Minnesota State Implementation Plan (SIP) for particulate matter less than 10 microns (PM-10) for Lafarge North America Corporation (Lafarge), Childs Road Terminal located in Saint Paul, Ramsey County, Minnesota. In its December 18, 2006, submittal, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) requested that EPA approve Lafarge's federally enforceable state operating permit into the Minnesota PM SIP, and to revoke the previously approved Administrative Order for Lafarge from the PM-10 SIP.

EPA is proposing to approve a State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision submitted by the State of New Hampshire. This SIP submittal contains revisions to the carbon monoxide (CO) maintenance plan for Nashua, New Hampshire. Specifically, New Hampshire has revised the contingency plan portion of the original maintenance plan. The intended effect of this action is to propose approval of this revision to the Nashua CO maintenance plan. This action is being taken in accordance with the Clean Air Act.

This document corrects an error pertaining to the Motor Vehicle Emissions Budgets (MVEBs) for Belmont County, Ohio (Wheeling, WV-OH). The 2009 MVEB for oxides of nitrogen (NOX) from the proposed rule was incorrect in the final action. This final rule corrects that error.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501 et. seq.), this document announces that EPA is planning to submit a request to renew an existing approved Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). This ICR is scheduled to expire on January 31, 2008. Before submitting the ICR to OMB for review and approval, EPA is soliciting comments on specific aspects of the proposed information collection as described below.

EPA is taking direct final action on ``Update of Continuous Instrumental Test Methods: Technical Amendments'' to correct errors in a recent final rule that amended five instrumental test methods and was published on May 15, 2006. As published, the amendments contained inadvertent errors and provisions that need to be clarified. We are correcting errors and clarifying portions of the amendments to reflect the intent of the rule and to make them more understandable by affected parties.

EPA is proposing two optional methods for relative accuracy audits of mercury monitoring systems installed on combustion flue gas streams and several amendments to related mercury monitoring provisions. In specific, this action proposes two optional mercury (Hg) emissions test methods for potential use in conjunction with an existing regulatory requirement for Hg emissions monitoring specified in the Federal Register on May 18, 2005, as well as several revisions to the mercury monitoring provisions themselves. Since that Federal Register publication, EPA has received numerous comments concerning the desirability of EPA evaluating and allowing use of the measurement techniques addressed in the two optional methods in lieu of the methods identified in the cited Federal Register publication, as they can produce equally acceptable measures of the relative accuracy achieved by Hg monitoring systems. This action would allow use of these two optional methods entirely at the discretion of the owner or operator of an affected emission source in place of the two currently specified methods. This also proposes to amend Performance Specification 12A by adding Methods 30A and 30B to the list of reference methods acceptable for measuring Hg concentration and to amend the Hg monitoring provisions of May 18, 2005, to reflect technical insights since gained by EPA which will help to facilitate their implementation including clarification and increased regulatory flexibility for affected sources.

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 consent decree, to address a lawsuit filed by Sierra Club (``Plaintiff'') in the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin: Sierra Club v. Johnson, No. 07-C-0154-S (W.D. WI). Plaintiff filed a deadline suit to compel the Administrator to respond to two administrative petitions seeking EPA's objection to CAA Title V operating permits issued by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources to Louisiana Pacific Corporation's Tomahawk facility and the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Walnut Street Heating Plant. Under the terms of the proposed consent decree, EPA has agreed to respond to Plaintiff's petitions within ten (10) days after the entry of this decree by the Court, and Plaintiff has agreed to dismiss their suit with prejudice. In addition, EPA has agreed to pay Plaintiff a specified amount in settlement for attorneys' fees in this matter.

This regulation amends 40 CFR 180.940(a), the exemption from the requirement of a tolerance for residues of Quaternary Ammonium Compounds, di-n-Alkyl (C8-10) dimethyl ammonium chloride, average molecular weight (in amu) 332 to 361 on food contact surfaces when applied/used in public eating places, dairy processing equipment, and food-processing equipment and utensils by increasing the allowable use solution concentrations of quaternary compounds. Lonza Inc. submitted a petition to EPA under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act requesting an increase in the concentrations of quaternary compounds in end-use products eligible for the exemption. As amended, the regulation will exempt solutions from the requirement of a tolerance residues resulting from contact with surfaces treated with solutions where the end use concentration of the specific quaternary compounds does not exceed 240 parts per million (ppm) of active quaternary ammonium compounds, and the end-use concentration of all quaternary chemicals in the solution does not exceed 400 ppm of active quaternary compound.

The EPA is proposing to approve a Tribal Implementation Plan submitted by the Mohegan Tribe of Indians of Connecticut. The TIP establishes an enforceable cap on nitrogen oxide emissions from stationary sources owned by the Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority and located within the external boundaries of the Mohegan Reservation. This action is intended to help attain the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for ground-level ozone. This action is being taken in accordance with the Clean Air Act.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing that Eastern Research Group, Inc. (ERG), an EPA contractor for external scientific review, will convene an independent panel of experts and organize and conduct a peer-review workshop, to review the external review draft document titled, ``Child-Specific Exposure Factors Handbook'' (EPA/600/R-06/096A). EPA provided an opportunity for public comment on the draft document from October 2006 to January 2007. The draft document was prepared by the National Center for Environmental Assessment (NCEA) within EPA's Office of Research and Development. The ``Child-Specific Exposure Factors Handbook'' provides a summary of statistical data on various exposure factors used in assessing children's exposures, including: Drinking water consumption; soil ingestion and mouthing behavior; inhalation rates; dermal factors including skin surface area and soil adherence factors; consumption of retail and home-grown foods; breast milk intake; and human activity pattern data. Once completed, this report will serve as a resource for exposure assessors for estimating children's exposures. An interim final version of this handbook was published in 2002. This updated version provides analysis of exposure factors data using the age groups for children recommended in the EPA document entitled, ``Guidance on Selecting Age Groups for Monitoring and Assessing Childhood Exposures to Environmental Contaminants'' (EPA/630/P-03/003F) (Available on line at https://cfpub.epa.gov/ncea/cfm/recordisplay.cfm?deid=146583). EPA released this draft document in October 2006, solely for the purpose of pre-dissemination peer review under applicable information quality guidelines. This document has not been formally disseminated by EPA. It does not represent and should not be construed to represent any Agency policy or determination. In preparing a final report, EPA will consider the public comments submitted to EPA's docket during the public comment period, and the contractor's report of the external peer-review workshop, including any oral public comments received at the workshop.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) established the Clean Air Act Advisory Committee (CAAAC) on November 19, 1990, to provide independent advice and counsel to EPA on policy issues associated with implementation of the Clean Air Act of 1990. The Committee advises on economic, environmental, technical scientific, and enforcement policy issues. Dates & Addresses: Open meeting notice; Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. App. 2 section 10(a)(2), notice is hereby given that the Clean Air Act Advisory Committee will hold its next open meeting on Thursday September, 20, 2007 from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Double Tree Hotel at 300 Army Navy Drive, in Arlington, Virginia. Seating will be available on a first come, first served basis. The Economic Incentives and Regulatory Innovations subcommittee will meet on September 19, 2007 from 8:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. The Permits, New Source Review and Toxics subcommittee will meet on September 19, 2007 from approximately 12:45 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. The Mobile Source Technical Review subcommittee will meet on September 19, 2007 from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. These meetings will also be at the Double Tree Hotel. There will also be a teleconference call of the full Clean Air Act Advisory Committee on September 24, 2007 from approximately 1-3 p.m. The agenda for the CAAAC full committee meeting on September 20, 2007 and the teleconference contact information for the September 24, 2007 will be posted on the Clean Air Act Advisory Committee Web site at https://www.epa.gov/oar/caaac/. Inspection of Committee Documents: The Committee agenda and any documents prepared for the meeting will be publicly available at the meeting. Thereafter, these documents, together with CAAAC meeting minutes, will be available by contacting the Office of Air and Radiation Docket and requesting information under docket OAR-2004-0075. The Docket office can be reached by telephoning 202-260-7548; FAX 202- 260-4400.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this document announces that EPA is planning to submit a request to renew an existing approved Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). This ICR is scheduled to expire on February 29, 2008. Before submitting the ICR to OMB for review and approval, EPA is soliciting comments on specific aspects of the proposed information collection as described below.

Pursuant to the provisions of the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 552a), the Office of Inspector General, Environmental Protection Agency is giving notice that it proposes to delete and transfer an existing system of records for the IG Operations and Records System (SORN EPA-41). This system was used to support EPA's Personnel Security function when that function was assigned to the EPA Office of Inspector General. The system was used to track the status of EPA Personnel with sensitive clearances and individuals undergoing background checks for sensitive positions. This module of the EPA OIG's Inspector General Operations and Records (IGOR) System has been removed from the EPA's production server and is no longer available for data input, reports or processing. The EPA Personnel Security Function has been transferred to EPA's Office of Administration and Resources Management (OARM). Tracking of the Personnel Security Function is currently managed in a sub-system of the Office of Administration Services (OAS), Office of Administration Services Information System (OASIS). The SORN for this IGOR sub-module (EPA-41) has been transferred to the OAS OASIS system.

The Red Dog Mine is an operating mine located in northwestern Alaska, approximately 82 miles north of Kotzebue. The mine is operated by Teck Cominco Alaska Incorporated (TCAK) under an Operating Agreement with the NANA Regional Corporation, the landowner. The Red Dog Mine includes an open pit lead-zinc mine, mill, tailings impoundment, waste rock storage areas, and support facilities. Lead and zinc concentrates are trucked 52 miles from the mine site to the DeLong Mountain Regional Transportation System port facility located on the Chukchi Sea. Nineteen miles of the road passes through Cape Krusenstern National Monument. The mine has been operating since 1989. TCAK has proposed to begin mining, by 2010, the Aqqaluk deposit which is an extension of the existing mine. TCAK proposes to use the existing mill, tailings impoundment, support facilities, road, and port site. The Aqqaluk deposit would extend the life of the Red Dog Mine to approximately 2031. The Red Dog Mine project was evaluated in a previous EIS that was issued in 1984. Permits by the applicable state and federal regulatory programs were issued and the mine proceeded to development and operations. The 1984 EIS did not evaluate impacts from mining the Aqqaluk deposit, therefore EPA determined that a supplemental EIS will be prepared for the Aqqaluk proposal. In addition the supplemental EIS will discuss whether significant impacts or changes occurred that were not anticipated in the 1984 EIS. The administrative actions that the supplemental EIS must address include modifying an existing EPA Clean Water Act (CWA) National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) new source permit for the mine site and issuing a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers CWA Section 404 permit. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the National Park Service, the State of Alaska Department of Natural Resources, the Northwest Arctic Borough, and nine tribal governments (Buckland, Kiana, Kivalina, Kobuk, Kotzebue, Noatak, Noorvik, Selawik, Shungnak) are participating as cooperating agencies in the NEPA process. The Maniilaq Association, a tribal consortium that provides health, social, and tribal services to the region, will represent the nine tribal governments throughout the NEPA process. Alternatives: The supplemental EIS will evaluate the ``no action'' alternative. Additional alternatives will be developed in response to issues raised during the scoping process. For example, there may be waste rock and tailings disposal alternatives, water management alternatives, and/or mine closure alternatives that will be evaluated. Scoping: The public scoping period begins with the publication of this Notice and concludes October 15, 2007. EPA invites Federal agencies, Native Tribes, State and local governments, and members of the public to comment on the scope of the supplemental EIS. Scoping meetings for the purpose of identifying issues to be evaluated in the supplemental EIS will be held in Anchorage on October 2, in Kotzebue on October 3, in Noatak on October 4, and in Kivalina on October 5. The exact locations and times of the meetings will be announced in local papers. The public is invited to attend and identify issues that should be addressed in the SEIS. A scoping document that explains in greater detail the project and alternatives identified at this time will be sent to known interested parties. The public can obtain a copy of the scoping document at the project Web site, www.reddogseis.com, or by contacting Patty McGrath at the phone number, e-mail address, and mailing address listed above in this notice. How to Comment: EPA invites public comment on the proposed scope of this supplemental EIS. Comments may be submitted by mail, electronic mail, or fax, to Patty McGrath at the contact information above, by close of business October 15, 2007. Estimated Date of EIS Release: Summer 2008. Responsible Official: Elin D. Miller, Regional Administrator.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing the public comment period for the draft document titled, ``Integrated Science Assessment for Oxides of NitrogenHealth Criteria; First External Review Draft'' (EPA/600/R-07/099). The draft document was prepared by the National Center for Environmental Assessment within EPA's Office of Research and Development as part of the Agency's review of the air quality criteria for oxides of nitrogen and the primary (health-based) national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) for nitrogen dioxide (NO2). EPA is releasing this draft document solely for the purpose of seeking comment from the public and the Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC). It does not represent and should not be construed to represent any Agency policy, viewpoint, or determination. EPA will consider any public comments submitted in accordance with this notice when revising the document.

The EPA is approving a State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision submitted by the State of Connecticut. This revision establishes early fine particulate (PM2.5) transportation conformity emission budgets for the Connecticut portion of the New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, NY-NJ-CT PM2.5 nonattainment area. This action is being taken under the Clean Air Act.

This notice announces the availability of new information and data contained in three documents that the Agency is requesting public comments on concerning the management of coal combustion wastes (CCW) in landfills and surface impoundments. The Agency is seeking public comments on how, if at all, this additional information should affect the Agency's decisions as it continues to follow-up on its Regulatory Determination for CCW disposed of in landfills and surface impoundments. The three documents that the Agency is requesting comment on include: a joint U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and EPA report entitled, Coal Combustion Waste Management at Landfills and Surface Impoundments, 1994-2004; a draft risk assessment conducted by EPA on the management of CCW in landfills and surface impoundments; and EPA's damage case assessment. The Agency solicits comments on the extent to which the damage case information, the results of the risk assessment, and the new liner and ground water monitoring information from the DOE/ EPA report should affect the Agency's decisions. EPA is also requesting direct comment on the draft risk assessment document to help inform a planned peer review. In addition, the Agency has included in the Docket to this Notice of Data Availability (NODA) a rulemaking petition submitted by a number of citizens' groups and several approaches, one prepared by the electric utility industry and the other prepared by a number of citizens' groups, regarding the management of CCW. The Agency will consider all the information provided through this notice, the comments and new information submitted on this notice, as well as the results of a subsequent peer review of the risk assessment as it continues to follow-up on its Regulatory Determination for CCW disposed of in landfills and surface impoundments.

Pursuant to the Federal Advisory Committee Act, Public Law 92- 463, the Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development (ORD), gives notice of one meeting of the Board of Scientific Counselors (BOSC) Executive Committee.

EPA has established registration review dockets for the following pesticides: Fenoxaprop-P-ethyl, case 7209, and etofenprox, case 7407. With this document, EPA is opening the public comment period for these registration reviews. Registration review is EPA's periodic review of pesticide registrations to ensure that each pesticide continues to satisfy the statutory standard for registration, that is, the pesticide can perform its intended function without unreasonable adverse effects on human health or the environment. Registration review dockets contain information that will assist the public in understanding the types of information and issues that the Agency may consider during the course of registration reviews. Through this program, EPA is ensuring that each pesticide's registration is based on current scientific and other knowledge, including its effects on human health and the environment.

This document proposes to establish an exemption from the requirement of a tolerance for residues of dibasic esters (DBE; CAS Reg. No. 95481-62-2) under 40 CFR 180.1277 when used as an inert ingredient solvent material/anti-freeze microencapsulated at 10% weight/weight (W/W) or less in pesticide formulations with the active ingredient cyfluthrin. Whitmire Micro-Gen Research Laboratories, Inc. submitted a petition to EPA under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA), as amended by the Food Quality Protection Act of 1996 (FQPA), requesting an exemption from the requirement of a tolerance. New data were received by EPA after the publication of the petitoner's Notice of Filing, therefore, EPA is providing the public with an additional opportunity to comment on the petitioner's request in this proposed rule.