[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 89 (Tuesday, May 10, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-11195]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: May 10, 1994]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR PART 180

[OPP-300338; FRL-4777-5]
RIN No. 2070-AC18

 

Diethylene Glycol; Tolerance Exemption

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: This document proposes to amend the current exemption from the 
requirement of a tolerance for residues of diethylene glycol by 
expanding its use as an inert ingredient, to read ``deactivator, 
adjuvant for formulations used before crop emerges from the soil.'' 
Texaco Chemical Co. requested this regulation.

DATES: Comments, identified by the document control number [OPP-
300338], must be received on or before June 9, 1994.

ADDRESSES: By mail, submit written comments to: Public Response and 
Program Resources Branch, Field Operations Division (7506C), Office of 
Pesticide Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, 401 M St., SW., 
Washington, DC 20460. In person, deliver comments to: Rm. 1128, Crystal 
Mall, Bldg. #2, 1921 Jefferson Davis Hwy., Arlington, VA 22202.
    Information submitted as a comment concerning this document may be 
claimed confidential by marking any part or all of that information as 
``Confidential Business Information'' (CBI). Information so marked will 
not be disclosed except in accordance with procedures set forth in 40 
CFR part 2. A copy of the comment that does not contain CBI must be 
submitted for inclusion in the public record. Information not marked 
confidential will be included in the public docket by the EPA without 
prior notice. The public docket is available for public inspection in 
Rm. 1128 at the address given above, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday 
through Friday, excluding legal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: By mail: Tina Levine, Registration 
Support Branch, Registration Division (7505W), Office of Pesticide 
Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, 401 M St., SW., Washington, 
DC 20460. Office location and telephone number: 2800 Crystal Drive, 
North Tower, Arlington, VA 22202, (703)-308-8393.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Texaco Chemical Co., P.O. Box 27707, 
Houston, TX 77227-7707, has submitted pesticide petition (PP) 2E4191 to 
EPA requesting that the Administrator, pursuant to section 408(e) of 
the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA), 21 U.S.C. 346a(e), 
propose to amend 40 CFR 180.1001(d) by amending the current exemption 
from the requirement of a tolerance for residues of diethylene glycol 
by expanding its use as an inert ingredient, to read ``deactivator, 
adjuvant for formulations used before crop emerges from the soil.''
    Inert ingredients are all ingredients that are not active 
ingredients as defined in 40 CFR 153.125, and include, but are not 
limited to, the following types of ingredients (except when they have a 
pesticidal efficacy of their own): solvents such as alcohols and 
hydrocarbons; surfactants such as polyoxyethylene polymers and fatty 
acids; carriers such as clay and diatomaceous earth; thickeners such as 
carrageenan and modified cellulose; wetting, spreading, and dispersing 
agents; propellants in aerosol dispensers; microencapsulating agents; 
and emulsifiers. The term ``inert'' is not intended to imply 
nontoxicity; the ingredient may or may not be chemically active.
    The data submitted in the petition and other relevant material have 
been evaluated. As part of the EPA policy statement on inert 
ingredients published in the Federal Register of April 22, 1987 (52 FR 
13305), the Agency established data requirements which will be used to 
evaluate the risks posed by the presence of an inert ingredient in a 
pesticide formulation. Exemptions from some or all of the requirements 
may be granted if it can be determined that the inert ingredient will 
present minimal or no risk.
    The Agency has decided that the data normally required to support a 
proposed tolerance exemption for diethylene glycol will not need to be 
submitted because the addition of the adjuvant use in pesticide 
formulations applied to preemergent crops only will not significantly 
increase exposure to this inert ingredient. EPA has found that, when 
used in accordance with good agricultural practice, this ingredient 
does not pose a risk to human health or the environment. Therefore, EPA 
proposes that the exemption from the requirement of a tolerance be 
established as set forth below.
    Any person who has registered or submitted an application for 
registration of a pesticide, under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, 
and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) as amended, which contains any of the 
ingredients listed herein, may request within 30 days after publication 
of this document in the Federal Register that this rulemaking proposal 
be referred to an Advisory Committee in accordance with section 408(e) 
of the FFDCA.
    Interested persons are invited to submit written comments on the 
proposed regulation. Comments must bear a notation indicating the 
document control number, [OPP-300338]. All written comments filed in 
response to this petition will be available in the Public Response and 
Program Resources Branch, at the address given above from 8 a.m. to 4 
p.m., Monday through Friday, except legal holidays.
    The Office of Management and Budget has exempted this rule from the 
requirements of section 3 of Executive Order 12866.
    Pursuant to the requirements of the Regulatory Flexibility Act 
(Pub. L. 96-354, 94 Stat. 1164, 5 U.S.C. 601-612), the Administrator 
has determined that regulations establishing new tolerances or raising 
tolerance levels or establishing exemptions from tolerance requirements 
do not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of 
small entities. A certification statement to this effect was published 
in the Federal Register of May 4, 1981 (46 FR 24950).

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 180

    Environmental protection, Administrative practice and procedure, 
Agricultural commodities, Pesticides and pests, Recording and 
recordkeeping requirements.

Dated: April 27, 1994.

Stephanie R. Irene,
Acting Director, Registration Division, Office of Pesticide Programs.

    Therefore, it is proposed that 40 CFR part 180 be amended as 
follows:

PART 180--[AMENDED]

    1. The authority citation for part 180 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 21 U.S.C. 346a and 371.

    2. Section 180.1001(d) is amended by adding and alphabetically 
inserting the inert ingredient, to read as follows:


Sec. 180.1001   Exemptions from the requirement of a tolerance.

* * * * *
    (d) *  *  *

------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Inert ingredients            Limits                   Uses          
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                        
                                 *******                                
Diethylene glycol........  ..................  Deactivator, adjuvant for
                                                formulations used before
                                                crop emerges from soil. 
                                                                        
                                 *******                                
------------------------------------------------------------------------

* * * * *

[FR Doc. 94-11195 Filed 5-9-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-F