Environmental Protection Agency December 2008 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or the Agency) is amending the Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) rule in order to provide increased clarity, to tailor requirements to particular industry sectors, and to streamline certain requirements for those facility owners or operators subject to the rule, which should result in greater protection to human health and the environment. Specifically, this final rule: Exempts hot-mix asphalt (HMA), pesticide application equipment and related mix containers, and heating oil containers at single-family residences from the SPCC rule; amends the definition of ``facility'' to clarify the existing flexibility associated with describing a facility's boundaries; amends the facility diagram requirement to provide additional flexibility; defines ``loading/unloading rack'' to clarify the equipment subject to the provisions for facility tank car and tank truck loading/unloading racks, as well as amends the provisions for this equipment; provides streamlined requirements for a subset of qualified facilities; amends the general secondary containment requirement to provide more clarity; exempts non-transportation-related tank trucks from the sized secondary containment requirements; amends the security requirements; amends the integrity testing requirements to allow greater flexibility in the use of industry standards; amends the integrity testing requirements for containers that store animal fats or vegetable oils and meet certain criteria; streamlines a number of requirements for onshore oil production facilities; and exempts underground oil storage tanks at nuclear power generation facilities. EPA is also providing clarification in the preamble to this final rule on additional issues raised by the regulated community and, in a separate action in the Federal Register of November 26, 2008, (73 FR 72016), the Agency is proposing a new compliance date for farms.

EPA is announcing a 30-day public comment period for the draft document titled, ``An Exposure Assessment of Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers'' (EPA/600/R-08/086A). The document was prepared by the National Center for Environmental Assessment within EPA's Office of Research and Development. The document provides a comprehensive assessment of the exposure of Americans to polybrominated diphenyl ethers, PBDEs, a class of brominated flame retardants. It includes chapters on use and production of PBDEs, environmental fate, environmental and exposure media concentrations, and an exposure assessment including background exposures and exposures to special populations. EPA is releasing this draft document 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. EPA will consider any public comments submitted in accordance with this notice when revising the document.

EPA is announcing that the comment period on the proposed rule for Performance Specification 17, ``Specifications and Test Procedures for Continuous Parameter Monitoring Systems at Stationary Sources'' and Procedure 4, ``Quality Assurance Requirements for Continuous Parameter Monitoring Systems at Stationary Sources'' published on October 9, 2008, is extended to February 5, 2009. This comment period extension also applies to the amendments proposed along with Performance Specification 17 and Procedure 4 for continuous parameter monitoring systems. EPA received requests for an extension to the comment period from the American Chemistry Council and the Coalition for Responsible Waste Incineration. The reason given for the request for the extension was the need for additional time to review the proposed rules and assess their impact on subject sources. Since the additional time is expected to afford commenters the ability to prepare and submit more comprehensive and detailed comments, EPA finds the requests for an extension of the comment period reasonable. One commenter also requested a 60-day extension to the deadline for requesting a public hearing on the proposed rule. No specific, compelling reason was provided for granting this request; therefore EPA finds the request for extending the deadline for requesting a public hearing on the proposal not reasonable.

This notice announces the Agency's receipt of several initial filings of pesticide petitions proposing the establishment or modification of regulations for residues of pesticide chemicals in or on various commodities.

This notice announces the Agency's receipt of several initial filings of pesticide petitions proposing the establishment or modification of regulations for residues of pesticide chemicals in or on various commodities.

This notice announces EPA's order for the amendments to terminate uses, voluntarily requested by the registrant and accepted by the Agency, of products containing the pesticide malathion, pursuant to section 6(f)(1) of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), as amended. This cancellation order follows an October 8, 2008 Federal Register Notice of Receipt of Request (73 FR 58952) (FRL-8384-1) from the malathion registrant to voluntarily terminate uses of their malathion product registrations. For the affected product registrations, this cancellation order terminates malathion use in or on commercial storage/warehouse premises (excluding stored grain facilities such as silos), commercial transportation facilities - feed/food - empty, commercial transportation facilities - nonfeed/nonfood, commercial/ institutional/industrial premises/equipment (indoor), commercial/ institutional/industrial premises/equipment (outdoor), dairies/cheese processing plant equipment (food contact), eating establishments, food processing plants (excluding stored grain facilities such as silos), golf course turf, greenhouse - empty, indoor hard surfaces, indoor premises, residential dust formulations, residential lawns (broadcast), residential pressurized can formulations, and sewage systems. These are not the last malathion products registered for use in the United States. In the October 8, 2008 Notice, EPA indicated that it would issue an order implementing the amendment to terminate uses, unless the Agency received substantive comments within the 30-day comment period that would merit its further review of these requests, or unless the registrant withdrew their request within this period. The Agency received comments on the notice but none merited its further review of the requests. Further, the registrant did not withdraw their request. Accordingly, EPA hereby issues in this notice a cancellation order granting the requested amendments to terminate uses. Any distribution, sale, or use of the malathion products subject to this cancellation order is permitted only in accordance with the terms of this order, including any existing stocks provisions.

This notice announces receipt of applications to register pesticide products containing new active ingredients not included in any currently registered products pursuant to the provisions of section 3(c)(4) of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), as amended.

On March 24, 2008, EPA received a Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) section 21 petition from numerous organizations and individuals concerned about risks to human health and the environment from exposure to formaldehyde in composite wood products, specifically hardwood plywood, particleboard, and medium density fiberboard. In response to that petition, EPA decided to initiate a proceeding to investigate whether and what type of regulatory or other action might be appropriate to protect against risks posed by formaldehyde emitted from these and other pressed wood products. This document commences that proceeding by describing EPA's initial steps in that investigation and requesting comment, information, and data relating to formaldehyde emissions from pressed wood products. This document also announces five public meetings that EPA has scheduled in order to obtain additional stakeholder input.

This notice announces the availability of EPA's response to public comments concerning EPA's July 17, 2008 public notice announcing the availability of EPA's decision to add Corpus Christi Bay (Segment 2481) to the Texas 2008 section 303(d) list. On July 17, 2008 EPA published a notice in the Federal Register at 73 FR 41069 providing the public the opportunity to review its decision to add Corpus Christi Bay to the Texas 2008 section 303(d) list as required by EPA's public participation regulations (40 CFR part 25). Based on its review of public comments received in response to this public notice, EPA has decided to maintain the listing of Corpus Christi Bay on the State's 303(d) list but has amended the scope of the listing to geographically define the impairment as restricted to only the Ropes Park and Cole Park Beach portions of Corpus Christi Bay as presently delineated by the Texas Beach Watch Program. Likewise, EPA has re-categorized the listing of the Ropes Park and Cole Park Beach portions of Corpus Christi Bay in category 5c of the State's integrated report. The basis for these decisions is described in EPA's response to public comments and EPA's letter, dated November 12, 2008, to Mr. Mark Vickery, Executive Director, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ).

EPA is proposing to amend the national emission standards for electric arc furnace (EAF) steelmaking facilities that are area sources of hazardous air pollutants published on December 28, 2007. The amendments to the area source standards for EAF steelmaking facilities would clarify applicability of the opacity limit, make the performance test requirements for particulate matter consistent with requirements in the new source performance standards for EAF steelmaking facilities, allow title V test data to be used to demonstrate compliance, and revise the definition of ``scrap provider'' to include electric are furnace steelmaking facilities that own and operate a scrap shredder. In the ``Rules and Regulations'' section of this Federal Register, we are amending the area source standards for EAF steelmaking facilities as a direct final rule without a prior proposed rule. If we receive no adverse comment, we will not take further action on this proposed rule.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Science Advisory Board (SAB) Staff Office announces a public teleconference of the chartered Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC) to consider and approve the CASAC Panel's draft report regarding its peer review of EPA's Risk and Exposure Assessment for Review of the Secondary National Ambient Air Quality Standards for Oxides of Nitrogen and Oxides of Sulfur: First Draft (August 2008). The CASAC will also discuss the Agency's schedule and process for National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) review of criteria pollutants with EPA's Office of Air and Radiation and Office (OAR) and Office of Research and Development (ORD).

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) (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. The ICR, which is abstracted below, describes the nature of the information collection and its estimated burden and cost.

On September 15, 1997, EPA adopted new source performance standards (NSPS) and emission guidelines (EG) for hospital/medical/ infectious waste incinerators (HMIWI). The NSPS and EG were established under sections 111 and 129 of the Clean Air Act (CAA or Act). The Sierra Club and the Natural Resources Defense Council (Sierra Club) filed suit in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (the Court) challenging EPA's methodology for adopting the regulations. On March 2, 1999, the Court remanded the rule to EPA for further explanation of the Agency's reasoning in determining the minimum regulatory ``floors'' for new and existing HMIWI. The Court did not vacate the regulations, so the NSPS and EG remain in effect and were fully implemented by September 2002. On February 6, 2007, EPA published a proposed response to the Court's remand and a proposed response to the CAA section 129(a)(5) requirement to review the NSPS and EG every 5 years. However, following recent court decisions and receipt of public comments regarding that proposal, we chose to re-assess our response to the Court's remand. Therefore, this action provides the results of EPA's reassessment in the form of another proposed response to the Court's remand and solicits public comment regarding it. This re-proposal also satisfies the CAA section 129(a)(5) requirement to conduct a review of the standards every 5 years.