[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 170 (Wednesday, September 3, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46491-46492]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-23359]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-5887-2]


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request; Information Collection Request Number 0820.06: 
Hazardous Waste Generator Standards

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 
et seq.), this notice announces that EPA is planning to submit the 
following proposed Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office 
of Management and Budget (OMB):
    Hazardous Waste Generator Standards, EPA ICR Number 0820.06, OMB 
Control Number 2050-0035, current expiration date February 20, 1998. 
Before submitting the ICR to OMB for review and approval, EPA is 
soliciting comments on specific aspects of the proposed information 
collection as described below.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before November 3, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Commenters must send an original and two copies of their 
comments referencing docket number F-97-HGIP-FFFFF to RCRA Docket 
Information Center, Office of Solid Waste (5305W), U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency Headquarters (EPA HQ), 401 M Street, SW, Washington, 
DC 20460. Hand deliveries of comments should be made to the Arlington, 
VA, address listed below. Comments may also be submitted electronically 
by sending electronic mail through the Internet to: rcra-
[email protected]. Comments in electronic format should also be 
identified by the docket number F-97-HGIP-FFFFF. All electronic 
comments must be submitted as an ASCII file avoiding the use of special 
characters and any form of encryption.
    Public comments and supporting materials are available for viewing 
in the RCRA Information Center (RIC), located at Crystal Gateway 1, 
1235 Jefferson Davis Highway, first floor, Arlington, VA. 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 (703) 603-9230. The public may copy a maximum of 
100 pages from any regulatory docket at no charge. Additional copies 
cost $.15/page.
    Copies of the original ICR may be requested from the docket address 
and phone number listed above or may be found on the Internet. On the 
Internet, access the main EPA gopher menu and locate the directory: EPA 
Offices and Regions/Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response 
(OSWER)/Office of Solid Waste (RCRA/hazardous waste-RCRA Subtitle C/
generators.
    Follow these instructions to access the information electronically:
    Gopher: gopher.epa.gov
    WWW: http://www.epa.gov
    The official record for this action will be kept in paper form. 
Accordingly, EPA will transfer all comments received electronically 
into paper form and place them in the official record, which will also 
include all comments submitted directly in writing. The official record 
is the paper record maintained in the RCRA Information Center (the RIC 
address is listed above in this section).


[[Page 46492]]


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 technical information, contact Ann Codrington 
at (703) 308-8825 or Bryan Groce at (703) 308-8750.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

    Affected entities: Entities potentially affected by this action are 
generators of hazardous wastes; transporters who commingle wastes with 
different Department of Transportation descriptions; and importers or 
exporters of hazardous wastes.
    Title: Hazardous Waste Generator Standards, OMB Control No. 2050-
0035; EPA ICR No. 0820.06. expiring 2/20/98.
    Abstract: In the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), as 
amended, Congress directed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 
(EPA) to implement a comprehensive program for the safe management of 
hazardous waste. The core of the national waste management program is 
the regulation of hazardous waste from generation to transport to 
treatment and eventual disposal, or from ``cradle to grave.'' Section 
3001(d) of RCRA requires EPA to develop standards for small quantity 
generators. Section 3002 of RCRA among other things states that EPA 
shall establish requirements for hazardous waste generators regarding 
recordkeeping practices. Section 3002 also requires EPA to establish 
standards on appropriate use of containers by generators.
    Finally, section 3017 of RCRA specifies requirements for 
individuals exporting hazardous waste from the United States, including 
a notification of the intent to export, and an annual report 
summarizing the types, quantities, frequency, and ultimate destination 
of all exported hazardous waste (additional reporting requirements for 
exporters and importers of recyclable materials are covered under ICR 
Number 1647.01).
    This ICR targets four categories of informational requirements in 
part 262: pre-transport requirements for both large (LQG) and small 
(SQG) quantity generators (including the generator pre-transport 
requirements referenced in 40 CFR part 265), air emission standards 
requirements for LQGs (referenced in 40 CFR part 265, subparts I and 
J), recordkeeping and reporting requirements for LQGs and SQGs, and 
export requirements for LQGs and SQGs (i.e., notification of intent to 
export and annual reporting).
    This collection of information is necessary to help generators and 
EPA (1) identify and understand the waste streams being generated and 
the hazards associated with them, (2) determine whether employees have 
acquired the necessary expertise to perform their jobs, and (3) 
determine whether LQGs have developed adequate procedures to respond to 
unplanned sudden or non-sudden releases of hazardous waste or hazardous 
constituents to air, soil, or surface water. This information is also 
needed to help EPA determine whether tank systems are operated in a 
manner that is fully protective of human health and the environment and 
to ensure that releases to the environment are managed quickly and 
efficiently.
    Additionally, this information contributes to EPA's goal of 
preventing contamination of the environment from hazardous waste 
accumulation practices, including contamination from equipment leaks 
and process vents. Export information is needed to ensure that (1) 
foreign governments consent to U.S. exported wastes, (2) exported waste 
is actually managed at facilities listed in the original notifications, 
and (3) documents are available for compliance audits and enforcement 
actions. In general, these requirements contribute to EPA's goal of 
preventing contamination of the environment.
    An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required 
to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a 
currently valid OMB control number. The OMB control numbers for EPA's 
regulations are listed in 40 CFR part 9 and 48 CFR Chapter 15.
    EPA would like to solicit comments to:
    (i) 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;
    (ii) Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden 
of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of 
the methodology and assumptions used;
    (iii) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information 
to be collected; and
    (iv) 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.
    Burden Statement: The estimated number of likely respondents under 
this collection of information is 244,932 (20,932 LQGs and 224,000 
SQGs). The bottom line annual reporting and recordkeeping burden to 
respondents under this collection of information is 282,696 hours. The 
average annual public reporting burden per response for LQGs under this 
collection of information is estimated to range from 21 minutes to 32 
hours, and the average annual public reporting burden per response for 
SQGs is estimated to range from 21 minutes to 7 hours. The average 
annual recordkeeping burden per response for LQGs under this collection 
of information is estimated to range from 27 minutes to 1 hour, and the 
average annual recordkeeping burden per response for SGQs is estimated 
to range from 18 minutes to 45 minutes. The total average annual burden 
cost for all generators, collectively is: $13, 544, 854 in labor costs; 
$29,692 in capital costs; and $1,837,612 in annual O&M costs (O&M costs 
include a purchase of service component). 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; 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.

    Dated: August 15, 1997.
Elizabeth Cotsworth,
Acting Director, Office of Solid Waste.
[FR Doc. 97-23359 Filed 9-2-97; 8:45 am]
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