[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 99 (Monday, May 22, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32089-32090]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-12914]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL -6704-9]


Science Advisory Board; Emergency Notification of Public Advisory 
Committee Meeting

    Pursuant to the Federal Advisory Committee Act, Public Law 92-463, 
notice is hereby given that a subcommittee of the US EPA Science 
Advisory Board (SAB) will hold a public meeting on the date and time 
noted. All times noted are Eastern Standard Time. SAB meetings are open 
to the public, however, seating is limited and available on a first 
come basis. Important Notice: Documents that are the subject of SAB 
reviews are normally available from the originating EPA office and are 
not available from the SAB Office--information concerning availability 
of documents from the relevant Program Office is included below.

Environmental Engineering Committee (EEC) Teleconference Meeting--
June 5, 2000

    The Subcommittee on the Diffusion and Adoption of Innovations in 
Environmental Protection of the Science Advisory Board's (SAB) 
Environmental Engineering Committee (EEC) will conduct a public 
teleconference meeting on June 5, 2000 between the hours of 1 and 3 
(Eastern Standard Time). The meeting will be coordinated through a 
conference call connection in room 6013 in the USEPA, Ariel Rios 
Building North, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, D.C. 20004. 
The public is encouraged to attend the meeting in the conference room 
noted above, however, the public may also attend through a telephonic 
link if lines are available. Additional instructions about how to 
participate in the conference call can be obtained by calling Ms. Diana 
Pozun one week prior to the meeting (May 28, 2000) at (202) 564-4544, 
or via e-mail at [email protected].
    Purpose of the Meeting--Purpose of the Public Teleconference. The 
purpose of the public teleconference is to clarify the charge questions 
for a public workshop being planned for June 28, 2000 and to identify 
any additional background materials that panel members may need to 
provide advice to the Agency.
    The workshop will be a consultative Workshop on the Diffusion and 
Adoption of Innovations in Environmental Protection. The purpose of the 
workshop is to identify how the use of data, theories, and research 
methods derived from the study of the social process of diffusion and 
adoption of innovations may improve the adoption of innovative 
approaches to environmental protection: (a) Within EPA; (b) by state, 
tribal, and local government partners; and (c) by corporate and non-
governmental organization partners in environmental protection. EPA 
program offices will consider the advice of the workshop panel members 
in developing strategies to encourage adoption of new strategies for 
environmental protection especially in the areas of watershed 
protection, pollution prevention and EPA's Multimedia Strategy for 
Priority Persistent, Bioaccumulative, and Toxic (PBT) Pollutants, and 
use of social science tools and cultural profiling.
    Charge to the Workshop--The panelists will consider the following 
charge questions:
    (a) What are the different principal process models available for 
understanding the diffusion process and are some of them more 
appropriate to the EPA program areas under discussion than others?
    (1) What is the role of information and information flow in 
diffusion and adoption of innovations? How critical are they and how 
can EPA learn to make them more effective?
    (2) What have we learned about designing appropriate incentives for 
facilitating the adoption process?
    (3) How important are social networks to the process of diffusion 
and adoption of innovation? How can EPA recognize and use them?
    (4) What can EPA learn from diffusion efforts undertaken by other 
partners in environmental protection (state and local agencies, tribes, 
non-governmental organizations, and corporations)?
    (b) What are the principal barriers to diffusion and adoption of 
innovations in selected EPA program areas? Are there some 
characteristics intrinsic to certain innovations that make them 
difficult to diffuse?
    (c) How can EPA effectively measure the success of its efforts to 
encourage diffusion and adoption of innovations?
    Availability of Review Materials: The following documents related 
to EPA's watershed approach can be found on the Internet or contact 
Louise Wise, telephone 202-260-9108; or via email at 
[email protected].
    (a) U.S. EPA. 1996. Watershed Approach Framework, (EPA840-S-96-
001), Office of Water (4501F), U.S. EPA, Washington, DC, on the 
Internet at http://www.epa.gov/OWOW/watershed/framework.html.
    (b) U. S. EPA. 1997. Statewide Watershed Management Facilitation, 
(EPA841-R-97-011), Office of Water (4503F), U.S. EPA, Washington, DC., 
on the Internet at http://www.epa.gov/OWOW/watershed/wacademy/its08/.
    (c) U. S. EPA. 1997. Top 10 Watershed Lessons Learned, (EPA840-F-
97-001), Office of Water (4501F), U.S. EPA, Washington, DC., on the 
Internet at http://www.epa.gov/OWOW/lessons/.
    (d) Office of Wetlands, Oceans, & Watersheds, Features, on the 
Internet at http://www.epa.gov/OWOW/highlight.html.
    The following documents related to EPA's Multimedia Strategy for 
Priority Persistent, Bioaccumulative, and Toxic (PBT) Pollutants are 
available from Thomas Murray, telephone (202)260-1876; or via email at 
[email protected]:
    (a) Issue Statement.
    (b) Persistent, Bioaccumulative, and Toxic Chemicals Initiative, 
description on the Internet at http://www.epa.gov/pbt.
    The following documents related to Social Science Tools: Cultural 
Profiling are available via mail or email from Theresa Trainor, 
telephone (202) 260-3009; or via e-mail at [email protected]:
    (a) The Social Sciences and Environmental Protection: Experiences 
and Opportunities at the U.S. EPA (Mark Wamsley, July 1999).
    (b) Community Cultural Profiling Guide: Understanding a Community's 
Sense of Place Fact Sheet.
    (c) Community Profile of Nebraska's Central Platte River Region, A 
joint project between The Nature Conservancy and the United States 
Environmental Protection Agency, November 1, 1999.
    For Further Information--Any member of the public wishing further 
information concerning this meeting or wishing to submit brief oral 
comments must contact Dr. Angela Nugent, Designated Federal Officer, 
Science Advisory Board (1400A), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 
1200

[[Page 32090]]

Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20460; telephone (202) 564-
4562; FAX (202) 501-0582; or via e-mail at [email protected]. 
Requests for oral comments must be in writing (e-mail, fax or mail) and 
received by Dr. Nugent no later than noon Eastern Time on May 28, 2000.

Providing Oral or Written Comments at SAB Meetings

    It is the policy of the Science Advisory Board to accept written 
public comments of any length, and to accommodate oral public comments 
whenever possible. The Science Advisory Board expects that public 
statements presented at its meetings will not be repetitive of 
previously submitted oral or written statements. Oral Comments: In 
general, each individual or group requesting an oral presentation at a 
face-to-face meeting will be limited to a total time of ten minutes. 
For teleconference meetings, opportunities for oral comment will 
usually be limited to no more than three minutes per speaker and no 
more than fifteen minutes total. Deadlines for getting on the public 
speaker list for a meeting are given above. Speakers should bring at 
least 35 copies of their comments and presentation slides for 
distribution to the reviewers and public at the meeting. Written 
Comments: Although the SAB accepts written comments until the date of 
the meeting (unless otherwise stated), written comments should be 
received in the SAB Staff Office at least one week prior to the meeting 
date so that the comments may be made available to the committee for 
their consideration. Comments should be supplied to the appropriate DFO 
at the address/contact information noted above in the following 
formats: one hard copy with original signature, and one electronic copy 
via e-mail (acceptable file format: WordPerfect, Word, or Rich Text 
files (in IBM-PC/Windows 95/98 format). Those providing written 
comments and who attend the meeting are also asked to bring 35 copies 
of their comments for public distribution.
    General Information--Additional information concerning the Science 
Advisory Board, its structure, function, and composition, may be found 
on the SAB Website (http://www.epa.gov/sab) and in The FY1999 Annual 
Report of the Staff Director which is available from the SAB 
Publications Staff at (202) 564-4533 or via fax at (202) 501-0256. 
Committee rosters, draft Agendas and meeting calendars are also located 
on our website.
    Meeting Access--Individuals requiring special accommodation at this 
meeting, including wheelchair access to the conference room, should 
contact the DFO at least five business days prior to the meeting so 
that appropriate arrangements can be made.

    Dated: May 17, 2000.
Donald G. Barnes,
Staff Director, Science Advisory Board.
[FR Doc. 00-12914 Filed 5-19-00; 8:45 am]
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