[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 182 (Wednesday, September 20, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48714-48715]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-23325]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[EPA/OSW-FR-95-FRL-5298-8]
Procedures for Submission of Recycled Content Products
Information to EPA
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.
ACTION: Notice and request for information.
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SUMMARY: This notice explains the procedures for interested persons to
(1) suggest items for EPA to consider for designation in the updates of
the Comprehensive Guideline for Procurement of Products Containing
Recovered Materials (CPG) and (2) provide information for EPA to use in
developing or revising its recommendations for recovered materials
content levels contained in the Recovered Materials Advisory Notices
(RMANs) that accompany the CPG updates. Specifically, this notice
describes the types of information EPA is interested in receiving as
well as how to submit information to EPA concerning designation of
items or recovered materials content levels. This information will be
considered by the Agency when issuing revisions to the items designated
in the CPG and recommendations in the RMANs.
DATES: EPA will accept the information described below from December 1,
1995 through February 29, 1996.
ADDRESSES: Commenters must send an original and two copies of their
written comments referencing docket number F-95-CPGN-FFFFF to: RCRA
Information Center (RIC), Office of Solid Waste (5305W), U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency Headquarters, 401 M Street, SW.,
Washington, DC 20460. Comments may also be submitted electronically
through the Internet to: RCRA-D[email protected]. Comments in
electronic format should also be identified by the docket number F-95-
CPGN-FFFFF. All electronic comments must be submitted as an ASCII file
avoiding the use of special characters and any form of encryption. All
comments, including those submitted electronically, will be available
for viewing in the RIC, located in Room M2616 at the address listed
above. The RIC is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday,
excluding federal holidays. To review docket materials, the public must
make an appointment by calling (202) 260-9327. The public may copy a
maximum of 100 pages from any regulatory docket at no charge.
Additional copies cost $.15/page.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For general information, contact the
RCRA Hotline at 1-800-424-9346 or TDD 1-800-553-7672 (hearing
impaired). In the Washington metropolitan area, call 703-412-9610 or
TDD 703-412-3323.
For more detailed information on specific aspects of this Notice,
contact Terry Grist, (703)308-7257, Office of Solid Waste (5306W), U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency, 401 M Street, SW., Washington, DC
20460.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
In Section 6002 of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
(RCRA), Congress established a program to promote recycling by
increasing purchases of products containing recovered materials.
Section 6002 requires EPA to designate products that may be produced
with recovered materials and to recommend practices for buying these
products containing recovered materials. Once a product is designated,
Federal, state and local agencies and their contractors that use
appropriated Federal funds to purchase the items, must purchase them
with the highest recovered materials content level practicable (see 59
FR 18857, April 20, 1995).
On October 20, 1993, President Clinton further addressed the need
to develop markets for recovered materials in Executive Order 12873 (58
FR 5491, October 22, 1993). The Executive Order directed EPA to
designate procurement items in a Comprehensive Procurement Guideline
(CPG) and to recommend content levels in Recovered Materials Advisory
Notices (RMANs). EPA published the CPG and RMAN on May 1, 1995 (see 60
FR 21370-21394). The CPG designates 19 items made from recovered
materials that procuring agencies must purchase as well as includes the
five items previously designated by EPA. The RMAN identifies the range
of the recovered materials content levels within which each designated
item is now available. The items are listed in seven product
categories: Paper and Paper Products, Vehicular Products, Construction
Products, Transportation Products, Park and Recreation Products,
Landscaping Products, and Non-Paper Office Products. The CPG also
contains an eighth category, Miscellaneous Products, for future
designations that do not fall within the other categories.
Executive Order 12873 also directed EPA to designate additional
items annually and to update the recommended recovered material content
ranges periodically. To aid in this process, in the proposed CPG the
Agency solicited public comments on procedures that would allow the
public to (1) Suggest items for designation in future updates of the
CPG and (2) provide information on products made from recovered
materials (see 59 FR 18861, April 20, 1994). EPA asked for, but did not
receive, comments on these procedures. EPA believes that the
solicitation of public input will broaden the information that the
Agency can consider in designating items and recommending recovered
materials content levels for designated items. This notice explains
these procedures.
II. Procedures for Providing Recycled Content Product Information to
EPA
Once a year, EPA plans to issue a Federal Register notice asking
for information on products containing recovered materials. The
timeframe specified in each notice will be chosen to allow the Agency
sufficient time to review the information for consideration in the
ensuing update to the CPG and RMAN. Throughout the period designated in
the Notice, interested parties will be able to suggest items containing
recovered materials for EPA to designate, recommend recovered materials
content levels, and suggest revisions to EPA's recommendations for
purchasing existing designated items containing recovered materials.
Respondents may rely on existing information including brochures, sales
manuals and specifications, as long as this information addresses the
types of information listed in section III below.
[[Page 48715]]
EPA will consider the submitted information we receive for future
updates or revisions to the CPG and recommended materials content
levels. Submission of information and/or requests for consideration for
a new item designation or recommended content levels does not guarantee
that EPA will designate that item or revise a recommended materials
content level.
III. Today's Request for Information
Today, EPA is announcing that it will accept information from
December 1, 1995 through February 29, 1996 about products containing
recovered materials. EPA invites respondents to provide information on
products in all product categories, with one exception. The exception
is products addressed by EPA's previous designation of ``paper and
paper products.'' On March 15, 1995, EPA issued a draft Paper Products
Recovered Materials Advisory Notice (60 FR 14182), which contained
draft updates to EPA's 1988 recommendations for the recovered materials
content of paper and paper products. Today's notice does not re-open
the comment period on the Paper Products RMAN. Rather, EPA will accept
information only on paper products that fall outside the scope of the
draft Paper Products RMAN.
Respondents should submit information as described above under
ADDRESSES. The Agency will provide written confirmation of receipt of
submitted materials.
EPA requests that respondents provide information regarding the
seven areas listed below.
(1) Barriers to Purchasing Products Containing Recovered Materials:
--What government specifications, standards, purchasing policies, or
purchasing procedures preclude government agencies from purchasing the
item containing recovered materials?
(2) Use of Materials in Solid Waste:
--Is the item made using a material that represents a significant
portion of the solid waste stream or presents a solid waste disposal
problem?
(3) Economic and Technological Feasibility and Performance:
--Does the item perform as well as necessary to meet a procuring
agency's needs?
--Are there government, ASTM or other consensus standards or
specifications that would enable a procuring agency to buy the item
containing recovered materials?
--Is the item available at a reasonable price considering normal market
fluctuations?
(4) Impact of Government Procurement:
--Is the item purchased in appreciable quantities by the Federal
government or by state and local governments?
(5) Availability and Competition:
--Is the item available from an adequate number of sources to ensure
competition?
--Is the item generally available, rather than available in a limited
market area?
(6) Recovered Materials Content Levels:
--What levels of recovered materials content are used in the product?
--Is the recovered materials content postconsumer material? What
percentage is postconsumer?
(7) Source of information:
--What is the source of the information provided (e.g., industry
studies, technical journals)? Where can purchasing agencies purchase
the item? Provide the vendor's company name, address, contact name and
phone number.
The first area, barriers to procurement of products containing
recovered materials, derives from the underlying objective of RCRA
section 6002 which is to use the Federal government's purchasing power
to develop markets for materials diverted or recovered from solid
waste. It is EPA's intention that, by issuing procurement guidelines,
we will help remove barriers to increasing the procurement of products
containing recovered materials.
The next four areas of information relate to the key criteria that
RCRA section 6002 requires EPA to consider. The sixth area will be used
by EPA in recommending recovered materials content levels or other
relevant information to assist procuring agencies in purchasing new or
existing designated items. The final area of information will be used
by EPA to obtain additional information, if needed, and to prepare
lists of vendors of designated items for use by procuring agencies.
To reduce the volume of information to be reviewed and stored, EPA
requests that respondents not submit the following types of
information: video tapes, item samples, and material samples. Also,
respondents should not submit confidential business information because
the Agency considers the information supporting its guideline program
to be public information. Respondents do not need to resend information
to EPA if that information was submitted to the Municipal and
Industrial Solid Waste Division of EPA within the last two years.
Dated: September 11, 1995.
Elizabeth A. Cotsworth,
Acting Director, Office of Solid Waste.
[FR Doc. 95-23325 Filed 9-19-95; 8:45 am]
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