Environmental Protection Agency November 2, 2015 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Notice is hereby given that the State of Oklahoma is revising its approved Public Water System Supervision (PWSS) program. Oklahoma has adopted the Revised Total Coliform Rule (RTCR) by reference under Title 252 Chapter 631 Subchapters 1-3 of the Oklahoma Administrative Code Pertaining to the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality Pubic Water Supply Operation. EPA has reviewed and approved the RTCR primacy application submitted by Oklahoma. Therefore, EPA intends to approve this PWSS program revision package, which gives the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality primary enforcement responsibility for implementing the Revised Total Coliform Rule for all public water systems regulated by the state.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will host a meeting of the Interagency Steering Committee on Radiation Standards (ISCORS) on Monday, November 9, 2015 in Washington, DC. The purpose of ISCORS is to foster early resolution and coordination of regulatory issues associated with radiation standards. Member agencies include: EPA; the Nuclear Regulatory Commission; and Departments of Energy; Defense; Transportation; Homeland Security; Health and Human Services; and Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Observer agencies include: The Office of Science and Technology Policy, Office of Management and Budget, Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, as well as state representatives from Arizona and Pennsylvania. ISCORS maintains several objectives: (1) Facilitate a consensus on allowable levels of radiation risk to the public and workers; (2) promote consistent and scientifically sound risk assessment and risk management approaches in setting and implementing standards for occupational and public protection from ionizing radiation; (3) promote completeness and coherence of Federal standards for radiation protection; and (4) identify interagency radiation protection issues and coordinate their resolution. ISCORS meetings include presentations by Subcommittee Chairs and discussions of current radiation protection issues. Committee meetings normally involve pre-decisional intra-governmental discussions and, as such, are normally not open for observation by members of the public or media. This particular ISCORS meeting is open to all interested members of the public. Time will be reserved on the agenda for members of the public to provide comments.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing a meeting of the National Drinking Water Advisory Council (NDWAC), as authorized under the Safe Drinking Water Act. The meeting is scheduled for November 17, 18 and 19, 2015. The NDWAC typically considers issues associated with drinking water protection and public drinking water systems. During this meeting, the NDWAC will focus discussions on developing recommendations for the EPA Administrator on the Lead and Copper National Primary Drinking Water RegulationLong Term Revisions.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is finalizing a limited approval and limited disapproval of, and other actions on, revisions to the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) portion of the applicable state implementation plan (SIP) for the State of Arizona (State or Arizona) under the Clean Air Act (CAA or Act). These revisions submitted by Arizona are primarily intended to serve as a replacement of ADEQ's existing SIP-approved rules for the issuance of New Source Review (NSR) permits for stationary sources, including review and permitting of major and minor sources under the Act. After a lengthy stakeholder process, the State submitted a NSR program for SIP approval that satisfies most of the applicable CAA and NSR regulatory requirements, and which will significantly update ADEQ's existing SIP- approved NSR program. It also represents an overall strengthening of ADEQ's SIP-approved NSR program by clarifying and enhancing the NSR requirements for major and minor stationary sources. This final action updates the applicable plan while allowing ADEQ to remedy certain deficiencies in ADEQ's rules.

EPA is finalizing updates and revisions to the existing worker protection regulation for pesticides. This final rule will enhance the protections provided to agricultural workers, pesticide handlers, and other persons under the Worker Protection Standard (WPS) by strengthening elements of the existing regulation, such as training, notification, pesticide safety and hazard communication information, use of personal protective equipment, and the providing of supplies for routine washing and emergency decontamination. EPA expects this final rule to prevent unreasonable adverse effects from exposure to pesticides among agricultural workers and pesticide handlers, vulnerable groups (such as minority and low-income populations, child farmworkers, and farmworker families) and other persons who may be on or near agricultural establishments, and to mitigate exposures that do occur. In order to reduce compliance burdens for family-owned farms, in the final rule EPA has expanded the existing definition of ``immediate family'' and continued the existing exemption from many provisions of the WPS for owners and members of their immediate families.