[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 175 (Wednesday, September 10, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53370-53371]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-22936]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[OPP-2003-0313; FRL-7326-3]


EPA-USDA Committee to Advise on Reassessment and Transition; 
Notice of Public Meeting

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY:  The Environmental Protection Agency-United States Department 
of Agriculture Committee to Advise on Reassessment and Transition (EPA-
USDA CARAT) will hold a public meeting on October 1-2, 2003. An agenda 
is being developed and will be posted by September 22, 2003, on EPA's 
website. This meeting will focus on recent case studies for the 
following selected commodities: Almonds, carrots,

[[Page 53371]]

cranberries, peaches, potatoes, and walnuts. This first round of case 
studies was selected because of current pest management problems either 
from regulatory action, pest resistance, or a lack of adequate control 
measures. The CARAT Transition Work Group met on July 17-18, 2003, to 
discuss these case studies and to develop recommendations for 
presentation to EPA and USDA at this meeting.

DATES:  The meeting will be held on Wednesday, October 1, 2003, from 9 
a.m. to 5 p.m., and Thursday, October 2, 2003, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

ADDRESSES:  The meeting will be held at the Hotel Washington, 515 
Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Washington, DC. The telephone number to the 
hotel is (202) 638-5900. The Hotel Washington is approximately 
21/89/21/13/23/85/83/8 blocks from the Metro Center Station 
and about a 15 minute taxi ride from Ronald Reagan Washington National 
Airport.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Margie Fehrenbach, Office of Pesticide 
Programs, Mail code 7501C, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 
Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: 703-
308-4775; fax number: 703-308-4776; e-mail address: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. General Information

A. Does this Action Apply to Me?

    This action is directed to the public in general; however, persons 
may be interested who work in agricultural settings or persons who are 
concerned about implementation of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, 
and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA); the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act 
(FFDCA); and the amendments to both of these major pesticide laws by 
the Food Quality Protection Act (FQPA) of 1996. Since other entities 
may also be interested, the Agency has not attempted to describe all 
the specific entities that may be affected by this action. If you have 
any questions regarding the applicability of this action to a 
particular entity, consult the person listed under FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT. Potentially affected entities may include but are 
not limited to: Agricultural workers and farmers; pesticide industry 
and trade associations; environmental, consumer and farmworker groups; 
pesticide users and growers; pest consultants; State, local and Tribal 
governments; academia; public health organizations; food processors; 
and the public. If you have any questions regarding the applicability 
of this action to a particular entity, consult the person listed under 
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

B. 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 identification (ID) number OPP-2003-0313. The 
official public docket consists of the documents specifically 
referenced in this action, any public comments received, and other 
information related to this action. Although a part of the official 
docket, the public docket does not include Confidential Business 
Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted 
by statute. The official public docket is the collection of materials 
that is available for public viewing at the Public Information and 
Records Integrity Branch (PIRIB), Rm. 119, Crystal Mall 2, 
1921 Jefferson Davis Hwy., Arlington, VA. This docket facility is open 
from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal 
holidays. The docket telephone number is (703) 305-5805.
    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 agenda is being developed and will be posted by September 22, 
2003, on EPA's website at www.epa.gov/pesticides/carat.
    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 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. 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 Unit I.B.1. 
Once in the system, select ``search,'' then key in the appropriate 
docket ID number.

II. Background

    The Committee to Advise on Reassessment and Transition (CARAT) was 
established in accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act to 
provide advice and counsel to the Administrator of EPA and the 
Secretary of Agriculture regarding strategic approaches for pest 
management planning and tolerance reassessment for pesticides as 
required by the Food Quality Protection Act of 1996 (FQPA). Through 
CARAT, EPA and the USDA are working together to ensure smooth 
implementation of FQPA through use of sound science, consultation with 
stakeholders, increased transparency, and reasonable transition for 
agriculture. CARAT is composed of a balanced group of participants from 
the following sectors: Pesticide user, grower and commodity groups; 
industry and trade associations; food processors and distributors; 
environmental/public interest and farmworker groups; Federal, State and 
Tribal governments; public health organizations; and academia. The 
CARAT Work Group on Transition was established to identify barriers to 
the development and adoption by users of new, safer and effective pest 
management techniques and to formulate recommendations for Federal 
agency actions that, in partnership with the range of stakeholders, 
will reduce or eliminate these barriers.

III. How Can I Request to Participate in this Meeting?

    This meeting will be open to the public. Opportunity will be 
provided for questions and comments by the public. Any person who 
wishes to file a written statement may do so before or after the 
meeting. These statements will become part of the permanent record and 
will be available for public inspection at the address listed under 
Unit I.B.1.

List of Subjects

    Environmental protection, Agricultural workers, Agriculture, 
Chemicals, Foods, Pesticides, Pests, Risk assessment.


    Dated: September 2, 2003.
Jim Jones,
Director, Office of Pesticide Programs.
[FR Doc. 03-22936 Filed 9-9-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-S