[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 36 (Wednesday, February 25, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8537-8539]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-4060]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-8398-8]
Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Renewal of
Several Currently Approved Collections; Comment Request
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) (44
U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this document announces that EPA is planning to
submit requests to renew several currently approved Information
Collection Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
The ICRs are specifically identified in this document by their
corresponding titles, EPA ICR numbers, OMB Control numbers, and related
docket identification (ID) numbers. Before submitting these ICRs to OMB
for review and approval, EPA is soliciting comments on specific aspects
of the information collection activities.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before April 27, 2009.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by the docket ID number for
the corresponding ICR as identified in this document, by one of the
following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the on-line instructions for submitting comments.
Mail: Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) Regulatory Public
Docket (7502P), Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania
Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20460-0001.
Delivery: OPP Regulatory Public Docket (7502P),
Environmental Protection Agency, Rm. S-4400, One Potomac Yard (South
Bldg.), 2777 S. Crystal Dr., Arlington, VA. Deliveries are only
accepted during the Docket's normal hours of operation (8:30 a.m. to 4
p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays). Special
arrangements should be made for deliveries of boxed information. The
Docket Facility telephone number is (703) 305-5805.
Instructions: Direct your comments to the docket ID number for the
corresponding ICR as identified in this document. EPA's policy is that
all comments received will be included in the docket without change and
may be made available on-line at http://www.regulations.gov, including
any personal information provided, unless the comment includes
information claimed to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or
other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not
submit information that you consider to be CBI or otherwise protected
through regulations.gov or e-mail. The regulations.gov website is an
``anonymous access'' system, which means EPA will not know your
identity or contact information unless you provide it in the body of
your comment. If you send an e-mail comment directly to EPA without
going through regulations.gov, your e-mail address will be
automatically captured and included as part of the comment that is
placed in the docket and made available on the Internet. If you submit
an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you include your name and
other contact information in the body of your comment and with any disk
or CD-ROM you submit. If EPA cannot read your comment due to technical
difficulties and cannot contact you for clarification, EPA may not be
able to consider your comment. Electronic files should avoid the use of
special characters, any form of encryption, and be free of any defects
or viruses.
Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the docket index
available in http://www.regulations.gov. Although listed in the index,
some information is not publicly available, e.g., CBI or other
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other
material, such as copyrighted material, is not placed on the Internet
and will be publicly available only in hard copy form. Publicly
available docket materials are available either in the electronic
docket at http://www.regulations.gov, or, if only available in hard
copy, at the OPP Regulatory Public Docket in Rm. S-4400, One Potomac
Yard (South Bldg.), 2777 S. Crystal Dr., Arlington, VA. The hours of
operation of this Docket Facility are from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday
through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The Docket Facility telephone
number is (703) 305-5805.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lily Negash, Field and External
Affairs Division (7506P), Office of Pesticide Programs, Environmental
Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-
0001; telephone number: (703) 347-8515; fax number: (703) 305-5884; e-
mail address: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. What Information is of Particular Interest to the EPA?
Pursuant to section 3506(c) (2) (A) of PRA, EPA specifically
solicits comments and information to enable it to:
1. Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the Agency,
including whether the information will have practical utility.
2. Evaluate the accuracy of the Agency's estimates of the burden of
the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the
methodology and assumptions used.
3. Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to
be collected.
4. Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those
who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or
other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic
submission of responses. In particular, EPA is requesting comments from
very small businesses (those that employ less than 25) on examples of
specific additional efforts that EPA could make to reduce the paperwork
burden for very small businesses affected by this collection.
II. What Should I Consider when I Prepare My Comments for EPA?
You may find the following suggestions helpful for preparing your
comments:
1. Explain your views as clearly as possible and provide specific
examples.
2. Describe any assumptions that you used.
3. Provide copies of any technical information and/or data you used
that support your views.
4. If you estimate potential burden or costs, explain how you
arrived at the estimate that you provide.
5. Provide specific examples to illustrate your concerns.
6. Offer alternative ways to improve the collection activity.
7. Make sure to submit your comments by the deadline identified
under DATES.
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8. To ensure proper receipt by EPA, be sure to identify the docket
ID number assigned to this action in the subject line on the first page
of your response. You may also provide the name, date, and Federal
Register citation.
III. What Do I Need to Know About PRA?
An Agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required
to respond to, a collection of information subject to PRA approval
unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. The OMB
control numbers for EPA's regulations in title 40 of the Code of
Federal Regulations (CFR), after appearing in the preamble of the final
rule, are further displayed either by publication in the Federal
Register or by other appropriate means, such as on the related
collection instruments or form, if applicable. The display of OMB
control numbers for certain EPA regulations is consolidated in a list
at 40 CFR 9.1.
Under PRA, burden means the total time, effort, or financial
resources expended by persons to generate, maintain, retain, or
disclose or provide information to or for a Federal agency. This
includes the time needed to review instructions; develop, acquire,
install, and utilize technology and systems for the purposes of
collecting, validating, and verifying information, processing and
maintaining information, and disclosing and providing information;
adjust the existing ways to comply with any previously applicable
instructions and requirements which have subsequently changed; train
personnel to be able to respond to a collection of information; search
data sources; complete and review the collection of information; and
transmit or otherwise disclose the information.
IV. Which ICRs Are Being Renewed?
EPA is planning to submit a number of currently approved ICRs to
OMB for review and approval under PRA. In addition to specifically
identifying the ICRs by title and corresponding ICR, OMB and docket ID
numbers, this unit provides a brief summary of the information
collection activity and the Agency's estimated burden. The Supporting
Statement for each ICR, a copy of which is available in the
corresponding docket, provides a more detailed explanation.
A. Docket ID Number EPA-HQ-OPP-2008-0927
Title: Tolerance Petitions for Food/Feed Crops and New Inert
Ingredients.
ICR numbers: EPA ICR No. 0597.10, OMB Control No. 2070-0024.
ICR status: The approval for this ICR is scheduled to expire on
November 30, 2009.
Affected entities: Entities potentially affected by this ICR
include individuals or entities engaged in activities related to the
registration of a pesticide product, which may be identified by the
North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) code 325320.
Abstract: This information collection will enable EPA to collect
adequate data to support the establishment of pesticide tolerances
pursuant to section 408 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act
(FFDCA). A pesticide may not be used on food or feed crops unless EPA
has established a tolerance for the pesticide residues on that crop or
established an exemption from the requirement to have a tolerance.
Responses to this collection are required to obtain tolerances or
exemptions from tolerances for pesticides used on food or feed crops,
pursuant to section 408 of FFDCA, 21 U.S.C. 346a, as amended by the
Food Quality Protection Act (FQPA) (Public Law 104-170). CBI submitted
to EPA in response to this information collection is protected from
disclosure under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide
Act (FIFRA) section 10.
This ICR only applies to the information collection activities
associated with the submission of a petition for a tolerance action. It
is EPA's responsibility to ensure that the maximum residue levels
likely to be found in or on food/feed crops are safe for human
consumption through a careful review and evaluation of residue
chemistry and toxicology data. In addition, it must ensure that
adequate enforcement of the tolerance can be achieved through the
testing of submitted analytical methods. If the data are adequate for
EPA to determine that there is a reasonable certainty that no harm will
result from aggregate exposure, the Agency will establish the tolerance
or grant an exemption from the requirement of a tolerance.
Burden statement: The annual public reporting and recordkeeping
burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 1,739
hours per response. The ICR, a copy of which is available in the
docket, provides a detailed explanation of this estimate, which is only
briefly summarized here:
Estimated total number of potential respondents: 103.
Frequency of response: As needed.
Estimated total average number of responses for each respondent: 1.
Estimated total annual burden hours: 179,117.
Estimated total annual costs: $14,712,005. This ICR does not
involve any capital investment or maintenance and operational costs.
Changes in the estimates from the last approval: The renewal of
this ICR will result in an overall decrease of 79,783 hours in the
total estimated respondent burden identified in the currently approved
ICR. The thirty-one percent decrease from previous years, reflects the
average number of tolerance petitions received by EPA in the past three
years (2006, 2007, and 2008). This change is an adjustment.
B. Docket ID Number EPA-HQ-OPP-2008-0917
Title: Standards for Pesticide Containers and Containment.
ICR numbers: EPA ICR No. 1632.03, OMB Control No. 2070-0133.
ICR status: The approval for this ICR is scheduled to expire on
November 30, 2009.
Affected entities: Entities potentially affected by this ICR
include pesticide registrants and businesses who formulate pesticide
products or pesticide formulation intermediates (NAICS code 325320),
farm supply wholesalers (NAICS code 422910), swimming pool applicators
(classified under NAICS codes 561790, 453998, and 235990), and
agricultural (aerial and ground) commercial applicators (classified
under NAICS code 115112).
Abstract: This information collection request covers the
information collection activities associated with the container design
and residue removal requirements and containment structure
requirements.
With respect to the container design and residue removal
requirements, the information collection activities are associated with
the requirement that businesses subject to the container regulations
(pesticide registrants) and repackaging regulations (pesticide
registrants and refillers) maintain records of test data, cleaning
procedures, certain data when a container is refilled, and other
supporting information. These records are subject to both call-in by
EPA and on-site inspection by EPA and its representatives. EPA has not
established a regular schedule for the collection of these records, and
there is no reporting.
With respect to the containment structure requirements, the
information collection activities are associated with the requirement
that businesses subject to the containment structure regulations
maintain records of the: 1) Monthly inspection and maintenance of each
containment structure and all stationary bulk containers; 2) duration
over which
[[Page 8539]]
non-stationary bulk containers holding pesticide and not protected by a
secondary containment unit remain at the same location; and 3)
construction date of the containment structure. The businesses subject
to the containment structure regulations include agrichemical retailers
and refilling establishments, custom blenders and commercial
applicators of agricultural pesticides. The records have to be
maintained by the owners and operators of such businesses. There is no
regular schedule for the collection of either of these records, nor
does EPA anticipate a call-in of records at some future date. Instead,
the records would be available to inspectors to ensure that businesses
are in compliance with containment requirements. These inspections are
generally conducted by the states, who enforce FIFRA regulations
through cooperative agreements with EPA.
Burden statement: The annual public reporting and recordkeeping
burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 7.4
hours per response. The ICR, a copy of which is available in the
docket, provides a detailed explanation of this estimate, which is only
briefly summarized here:
Estimated total number of potential respondents: 23,586. This
includes 1,804 registrant facilities, 16,795 agricultural pesticide
refillers, 322 swimming pool supply companies, and 4,665 facilities
requiring secondary containment.
Frequency of response: On occasion. There is no regular reporting
involved. This ICR only involves recordkeeping requirements.
Estimated total average number of responses for each respondent: 1.
Estimated total annual burden hours: 174,550.5 hours. This includes
139,563 hours for container design and residue removal requirements and
34,987.5 hours for containment structure requirements.
Estimated total annual costs: $6,124,953. This includes $4,902,723
for container design and residue removal requirements and $1,222,230
for containment structure requirements.
Changes in the estimates from the last approval: The renewal of
this ICR will result in an overall increase of 122,493.5 hours in the
total estimated respondent burden identified in the currently approved
ICR. When the information collection associated with this ICR was
approved in 2006, the burden hours were adjusted to reflect only the
burden associated with initial rule familiarization and state requests
to use their containment regulations in lieu of Federal regulations - a
total of 52,057 hours. These were the only burdens that were imposed by
the pesticide container and containment regulations during the course
of that approval. EPA was instructed to revise the estimates, upon
resubmission, to reflect the burden imposed in 2009 and beyond because
of compliance with the requirements. This change is an adjustment.
V. What is the Next Step in the Process for These ICRs?
EPA will consider the comments received and amend the individual
ICRs as appropriate. The final ICR packages will then be submitted to
OMB for review and approval pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.12. EPA will issue
another Federal Register notice pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.5(a) (1) (iv) to
announce the submission of these ICRs to OMB and the opportunity for
the public to submit additional comments for OMB consideration. If you
have any questions about any of these ICRs or the approval process in
general, please contact the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT.
List of Subjects
Environmental protection, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
Dated: February 17, 2009.
James Jones,
Acting Assistant Administrator, Office of Prevention, Pesticides and
Toxic Substances.
[FR Doc. E9-4060 Filed 2-24-09; 8:45 am]
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