[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 213 (Monday, November 4, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 67183-67185]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-28006]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-7403-8]


Preliminary Administrative Determination Document on the Question 
of Whether Ferric Ferrocyanide Is One of the ``Cyanides'' Within the 
Meaning of the List of Toxic Pollutants Under the Clean Water Act

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of availability of new information and reopening of 
comment period.

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SUMMARY: On January 25, 2001, EPA published a notice announcing a 
preliminary administrative determination document on whether Ferric 
Ferrocyanide is one of the ``cyanides'' within the meaning of the list 
of toxic pollutants under the Clean Water Act. The comment period ended 
on July 10, 2001. Today's action reopens the comment period for an 
additional 60 days for a limited purpose.

DATES: Comments will be accepted through December 4, 2002.

ADDRESSES: Send your comments by mail to ``Ferric Ferrocyanide; 
Preliminary Administrative Determination'' Comment Clerk (W-00-24), 
Water Docket (4101T), U. S.

[[Page 67184]]

Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, 
Washington, DC, 20460. You may also submit comments electronically or 
through hand delivery or courier. Follow the detailed instruction in I. 
B.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information and to request 
a copy of the administrative determination, contact Marion Kelly, 
USEPA, Engineering and Analysis Division (4303T), Office of Science and 
Technology, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC, 20460; or 
call (202) 566-1045; or fax (202) 566-1053; or e-mail 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. General Information

A. How Can I Get Copies of This Document and Other Related Information?

    1. Docket. EPA has established an official public docket for this 
action under Docket ID No. W-00-24. The official public docket is the 
collection of materials that is available for public viewing at the 
Water Docket in the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), EPA West, Room B102, 
1301 Constitution Ave., NW, Washington, DC. The EPA Docket Center 
Public Reading Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the Public 
Reading Room is (202) 566-1744, and the telephone number for the Water 
Docket is (202) 566-2426.
    2. Electronic Access. You may access this Federal Register document 
electronically through the EPA Internet under the ``Federal Register'' 
listings at http://www.epa.gov/fedrgstr/.
    An electronic version of the public docket is available through 
EPA's electronic public docket and comment system, EPA Dockets. You may 
use EPA Dockets at http://www.epa.gov/edocket/ to submit or view public 
comments, access the index listing of the contents of the official 
public docket, and to access those documents in the public docket that 
are available electronically. Once in the system, select ``search,'' 
then key in the appropriate docket identification number.
    Certain types of information will not be placed in the EPA Dockets. 
Information claimed as CBI and other information whose disclosure is 
restricted by statute, which is not included in the official public 
docket, will not be available for public viewing in EPA's electronic 
public docket. EPA's policy is that copyrighted material will not be 
placed in EPA's electronic public docket but will be available only in 
printed, paper form in the official public docket. Although not all 
docket materials may be available electronically, you may still access 
any of the publicly available docket materials through the docket 
facility identified in I.A.1.
    For public commenters, it is important to note that EPA's policy is 
that public comments, whether submitted electronically or in paper, 
will be made available for public viewing in EPA's electronic public 
docket as EPA receives them and without change, unless the comment 
contains copyrighted material, CBI, or other information whose 
disclosure is restricted by statute. When EPA identifies a comment 
containing copyrighted material, EPA will provide a reference to that 
material in the version of the comment that is placed in EPA's 
electronic public docket. The entire printed comment, including the 
copyrighted material, will be available in the public docket.
    Public comments submitted on computer disks that are mailed or 
delivered to the docket will be transferred to EPA's electronic public 
docket. Public comments that are mailed or delivered to the Docket will 
be scanned and placed in EPA's electronic public docket. Where 
practical, physical objects will be photographed, and the photograph 
will be placed in EPA's electronic public docket along with a brief 
description written by the docket staff.

B. How and To Whom Do I Submit Comments?

    You may submit comments electronically, by mail, or through hand 
delivery/courier. To ensure proper receipt by EPA, identify the 
appropriate docket identification number in the subject line on the 
first page of your comment. Please ensure that your comments are 
submitted within the specified comment period. Comments received after 
the close of the comment period will be marked ``late.'' EPA is not 
required to consider these late comments. However, late comments may be 
considered if time permits.
    1. Electronically. If you submit an electronic comment as 
prescribed below, EPA recommends that you include your name, mailing 
address, and an e-mail address or other contact information in the body 
of your comment. Also include this contact information on the outside 
of any disk or CD ROM you submit, and in any cover letter accompanying 
the disk or CD ROM. This ensures that you can be identified as the 
submitter of the comment and allows EPA to contact you in case EPA 
cannot read your comment due to technical difficulties or needs further 
information on the substance of your comment. EPA's policy is that EPA 
will not edit your comment, and any identifying or contact information 
provided in the body of a comment will be included as part of the 
comment that is placed in the official public docket, and made 
available in EPA's electronic public docket. If EPA cannot read your 
comment due to technical difficulties and cannot contact you for 
clarification, EPA may not be able to consider your comment.
    i. EPA Dockets. Your use of EPA's electronic public docket to 
submit comments to EPA electronically is EPA's preferred method for 
receiving comments. Go directly to EPA Dockets at http://www.epa.gov/edocket, and follow the online instructions for submitting comments. 
Once in the system, select ``search,'' and then key in Docket ID No. 
OW-2002-0036. The system is an ``anonymous access'' system, which means 
EPA will not know your identity, e-mail address, or other contact 
information unless you provide it in the body of your comment.
    ii. E-mail. Comments may be sent by electronic mail (e-mail) to [email protected] Attention Docket ID No. OW-2002-0036. In contrast to 
EPA's electronic public docket, EPA's e-mail system is not an 
``anonymous access'' system. If you send an e-mail comment directly to 
the Docket without going through EPA's electronic public docket, EPA's 
e-mail system automatically captures your e-mail address. E-mail 
addresses that are automatically captured by EPA's e-mail system are 
included as part of the comment that is placed in the official public 
docket, and made available in EPA's electronic public docket.
    iii. Disk or CD ROM. You may submit comments on a disk or CD ROM 
that you mail to the mailing address identified in I.B.2. These 
electronic submissions will be accepted in WordPerfect or ASCII file 
format. Avoid the use of special characters and any form of encryption.
    2. By Mail. Send an original and three of copies of your comments 
to: Water Docket , Environmental Protection Agency, Mailcode: 4101T, 
1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, DC, 20460, Attention Docket ID 
No. W-00-24 (Electronic Docket No. OW-2002-0036).
    3. By Hand Delivery or Courier. Deliver your comments to: Water 
Docket in the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), EPA West, Room B102, 1301 
Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC., Attention Docket ID No. W-00-
24 (Electronic Docket No. OW-2002-0036).

[[Page 67185]]

Such deliveries are only accepted during the Docket's normal hours of 
operation as identified in I.A.1.

C. How Should I Submit CBI to the Agency?

    Do not submit information that you consider to be CBI 
electronically through EPA's electronic public docket or by e-mail. You 
may claim information that you submit to EPA as CBI by marking any part 
or all of that information as CBI (if you submit CBI on disk or CD ROM, 
mark the outside of the disk or CD ROM as CBI and then identify 
electronically within the disk or CD ROM the specific information that 
is CBI). Information so marked will not be disclosed except in 
accordance with procedures set forth in 40 CFR part 2.
    In addition to one complete version of the comment that includes 
any information claimed as CBI, a copy of the comment that does not 
contain the information claimed as CBI must be submitted for inclusion 
in the public docket and EPA's electronic public docket. If you submit 
the copy that does not contain CBI on disk or CD ROM, mark the outside 
of the disk or CD ROM clearly that it does not contain CBI. Information 
not marked as CBI will be included in the public docket and EPA's 
electronic public docket without prior notice. If you have any 
questions about CBI or the procedures for claiming CBI, please consult 
the person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section.

II. Subject of Notice

    On January 25, 2001, EPA published a notice announcing availability 
of the preliminary administrative determination document (66 FR 7759). 
While EPA initially scheduled a 60 day comment period (to end March 12, 
2001), EPA received requests for additional time to provide comments. 
EPA reopened the comment period for an additional 90 days (66 FR 14581, 
March 13, 2001) and then extended the comment period until July 10, 
2001 (66 FR 29800, June 1, 2001).
    On March 1, 2001, Narragansett Electric Company (``Narragansett'') 
submitted a request for Agency records under the Freedom of Information 
Act (FOIA) relating to the preliminary administrative determination and 
records concerning the interpretation of the term ``cyanides.'' EPA 
released some documents and withheld others pursuant to discretionary 
exclusions under the FOIA. Narragansett appealed the withholding of 
documents. EPA and Narragansett agreed to a settlement of the appeal 
based on EPA's release of 29 of the withheld documents and access to 
other historical documentation. These records include scientific 
articles, reports, legal briefs and memoranda pertaining to the 
development of the Toxic Pollutant List and effluent guidelines. 
Recently, Narragansett requested that EPA reopen the comment period on 
the preliminary administrative determination in order to allow for 
comment on these recently released records.
    In response to this request, EPA has placed these documents in the 
docket and is reopening the comment period to allow public comment on 
the records released pursuant to the FOIA as they relate to the 
determination of whether ferric ferrocyanide (FFC) is one of the 
``cyanides'' within the meaning of EPA regulations promulgated pursuant 
to section 307(a) of the Clean Water Act. These documents are 
designated in the index to Docket W-00-24, section F, numbers 1-199 and 
in the index to the electronic docket (OW-2002-0036) as numbers 1-199. 
In addition, on October 3, 2002, EPA officials met with representatives 
of Narragansett where Narragansett presented a document concerning some 
of the recently released records. This document has also been placed in 
the docket and is designated as number 207 in the index to the Docket 
W-00-24, section F and in the index to the electronic docket (OW-2002-
0036) as number 207. By placing these documents in the docket and 
reopening the comment period with respect to these documents, EPA is 
not conceding that any of the documents are necessarily relevant to the 
final administrative determination nor are they necessarily a part of 
the administrative record.
    In addition, EPA has gathered additional documents that may affect 
the final determination, independent of the FOIA request, and has 
placed these in the docket for public review and comment. These 
documents are recently-published scientific articles, and appear in the 
Docket W-00-24, section F as numbers 200-206 and in the index to the 
electronic docket (OW-2002-0036) as numbers 200-206. Today's action 
makes these records available for public comment.
    EPA is hereby requesting comment on whether any of these newly-
released records or other documents provide additional information that 
is relevant to the final determination on whether FFC is one of the 
``cyanides'' within the list of toxic pollutants promulgated under 
section 307(a) of the Clean Water Act, and, if so, whether and how such 
document or documents should affect EPA's final administrative 
determination regarding FFC.

    Dated: October 29, 2002.
G. Tracy Mehan, III,
Assistant Administrator for Water.
[FR Doc. 02-28006 Filed 11-1-02; 8:45 am]
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