[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 45 (Friday, March 7, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 10557-10558]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-5682]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[OPP-00472; FRL-5591-8]
Pesticides Worker Protection Standards; Request for Comments on
Renewal of Agency Information Collection Activities
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: This notice announces that the following Information
Collection Request (ICR) is coming up for renewal. This ICR, entitled
``Pesticides Worker Protection Standard Training and Notification,''
EPA ICR No. 1759.02, OMB No. 2070-0148, will expire on May 31, 1997.
Before submitting the renewal packages to the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB), EPA is soliciting comments on specific aspects of the
collection as described below.
Dates: Comments must be submitted on or before May 6, 1997.
ADDRESSES: Submit written comments identified by the docket control
number OPP-00472 and the appropriate ICR number by mail to: Public
Response Section, Field Operations Division (7506C), Office of
Pesticide Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, 401 M St., SW.,
Washington, DC 20460. In person, bring comments directly to the OPP
docket which is located in Rm. 1132 of Crystal Mall #2, 1921 Jefferson
Davis Highway, Arlington, VA. Copies of the complete ICR and
accompanying appendices may be obtained from the OPP docket at the
above address or by contacting the person whose name appears under FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
Comments and data may also be submitted electronically by sending
electronic mail (e-mail) to: [email protected]. Electronic
comments must be submitted as an ASCII file avoiding the use of special
characters and any form or encryption. Comments and data will also be
accepted on disks in WordPerfect 5.1 file format or ASCII file format.
All comments and data in electronic form must be identified by the
docket control number ``OPP-00472'' and the appropriate ICR number. No
Confidential Business Information (CBI) should be submitted through e-
mail. Electronic comments on this document may be filed online at many
Federal Depository Libraries. Additional information on electronic
submissions can be found in Unit III. of this document.
Information submitted as a comment concerning this document may be
claimed confidential by marking any part or all of that information as
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 may be disclosed publicly
by EPA without prior notice. All written comments will be available for
public inspection in Rm. 1132 at the Virginia address given above from
8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ellen Kramer, Policy and Special
Projects Staff, Office of Pesticide Programs, Environmental Protection
Agency, Mail Code (7501C), 401 M St., SW., Washington, DC 20460,
Telephone: (703) 305-6475, e-mail: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Electronic Availability: Electronic copies of this document and the ICR
are available from the EPA home page at the Environmental Sub-Set entry
for this document under ``Regulations'' (http://www.epa.gov/fedrgstr/).
I. Information Collection Requests
EPA is seeking comments on the following Information Collection
Request (ICR).
Title: Pesticides Worker Protection Standard Training and
Notification (40 CFR Parts 156 and 170).
ICR Numbers: EPA No. 1759.02 and OMB No. 2070-0148.
Expiration Date: Current OMB approval expires on May 31, 1997.
Affected Entities: Parties affected by this information collection
are agricultural employers, including employers in farms as well as
nursery, forestry, and greenhouse establishments.
Abstract: EPA is responsible for the regulation of pesticides under
the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). The
Worker Protection Standard (WPS) for agricultural pesticides, 40 CFR
part 170 and 40 CFR part 156, subpart K, includes requirements for
protection of agricultural workers and pesticide handlers from hazards
of pesticides used on farms, on forests, in nurseries, and in
greenhouses. 40 CFR part 170 contains the standard and workplace
practices and 40 CFR part 156 prescribes the statements that must be
placed on the pesticide label and in pesticide labeling. The WPS
workplace practices are designed to reduce or eliminate exposure to
pesticides and establish procedures for responding to exposure-related
emergencies. The practices include prohibitions against applying
pesticides in a way that would cause exposure to workers and others; a
waiting period before workers can return to areas treated with
pesticides (restricted entry period); basic safety
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training and distribution and posting of information about pesticide
hazards, as well as pesticide application information; arrangements for
the supply of soap, water, and towels in case of pesticide exposure;
and provisions for emergency assistance.
Prior to September 1995, the WPS information collection activities
were covered under OMB ICR No. 2070-0060. In September 1995, however,
OMB approved an ICR that consolidated all the WPS information
collection activities under a new ICR (EPA No. 1759; OMB No. 2070-
0148). The information collection activity associated with the
pesticides WPS includes a voluntary program to verify that training has
been provided; the WPS provisions for display of basic pesticide safety
information and pesticide-specific treatment (application) information
at a central location on the agricultural establishment; the provisions
requiring that employers provide employees with pesticide-specific
treatment (application) information in the form of oral or written
(posted) notification; the provisions that require the actual training
for which the verification program was established or that basic
pesticide safety information be provided to employees who have not
completed the full WPS pesticide safety training and before they enter
a treated area; the provisions requiring that pesticide handler
employers provide pesticide-specific information to agricultural
employers prior to treatment, that pesticide handler employers provide
notification to handler employees regarding the safe operation and
repair of equipment to be used in handling activities, and that
pesticide handler employers provide emergency information on pesticide
treatments to employees believed to be poisoned or those treating them;
and the provisions requiring that employers provide employees with
notification when exceptions/exemptions to the early entry restrictions
are being implemented. (The major WPS labeling program was a one-time
collection and is completed. Registrants of EPA-registered products may
request that the Agency amend their previously approved label. Future
requests from registrants for label amendments are covered as part of
routine label amendments under a separate ICR approved by OMB under
2070-0060 (EPA ICR No. 277)).
The WPS requires that agricultural employers assure that
agricultural workers and pesticide handlers are trained in basic
pesticide safety practices to reduce the risk of pesticide poisoning
and other injuries. The EPA Training Verification Program is intended
to achieve this by requiring the issuance of safety information to
workers and handlers. Upon the completion of the training, the WPS
provides for the issuance of ``EPA-Approved Worker Protection Standard
Training Certificates'' to workers and handlers to allow employers to
verify that workers and handlers have received WPS safety training. The
initial burden for this collection activity (24,990 burden hours) is
predicted to taper off to a much lower annual burden.
Burden Statement: The annual respondent burden for providing the
notifications associated with this activity is estimated to total
3,443,705 hours, including all third party WPS training and
notification requirements, such as provisions requiring employers to
provide employees pesticide-specific treatment (application)
information in the form of oral or written notification, provisions
requiring that employers assure that employees receive basic pesticide
safety information or training, a voluntary program to verify training
and relieve duplication of training, provisions requiring handler
notification to employers regarding pesticide treatments (applications)
and provision for emergency information on pesticide treatments, and
provisions requiring employers to notify employees when an exception/
exemption to the WPS is being implemented.
II. Request for Comments
The Agency would appreciate any comments or information that could
be used to:
(i) Evaluate whether the proposed collections of information
described above are necessary for the proper performance of the
functions of the Agency, including whether the information will have
practical utility.
(ii) Evaluate the accuracy of the Agency's estimates of the burdens
of the proposed collections of information.
(iii) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information
to be collected.
(iv) Minimize the burden of the collections of information on those
who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated
or electronic collection technologies or other forms of information
technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses.
The Agency is particularly interested in comments and information
about the burden estimates, including examples that could be used to
reflect the burdens imposed. Send comments regarding these matters, or
any other aspect of these information collections, including
suggestions for reducing the burdens, to the docket under ADDRESSES
listed above.
III. Public Record
A record has been established for this action under docket control
number ``OPP-00472'' (including comments and data submitted
electronically as described below). A public version of this record,
including printed, paper versions of electronic comments, which does
not include any information claimed as CBI, is available for inspection
from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal
holidays. The public record is located in Rm. 1132 of the Public
Response and Program Resources Branch, Field Operations Division
(7506C), Office of Pesticide Programs, Environmental Protection Agency,
Crystal Mall #2, 1921 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, VA.
Electronic comments can be sent directly to EPA at:
[email protected]
Electronic comments must be submitted as an ASCII file avoiding the
use of special characters and any form of encryption.
The official record for this action, as well as the public version,
as described above will be kept in paper form. Accordingly, EPA will
transfer all comments received electronically into printed, paper form
as they are received and will place the paper copies in the official
record which will also include all comments submitted directly in
writing. The official record is the paper record maintained at the
address in ADDRESSES at the beginning of this document.
List of Subjects
Environmental protection, Information collection requests,
Pesticides, and Worker protection standards.
Dated: February 28, 1997.
Lynn R. Goldman,
Assistant Administrator for Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic
Substances.
[FR Doc. 97-5682 Filed 3-6-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-F