[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 177 (Friday, September 12, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53735-53736]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-23272]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-7557-8]


Science Advisory Board Staff Office; Ecological Processes and 
Effects Committee; Notification of Public Advisory Committee Meeting; 
Consultation on EPA's Strategy on Suspended and Bedded Sediments; 
Discussion of EPEC Activities in Fiscal Year 2004

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Science Advisory 
Board Staff Office (SAB), Ecological Processes and Effects Committee 
(EPEC) will hold a face-to-face meeting to conduct a consultation on 
EPA's strategy for developing water-quality criteria for suspended and 
bedded sediments. In addition, EPEC members will discuss EPEC 
activities for fiscal year 2004.

DATES: The meeting will begin on Thursday, October 2, 3003, at 8:30 am 
(Eastern Time) and adjourn no later than 5:30 pm that day.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held in Washington, DC. Location of the 
meeting will be announced on the SAB Web site, http://www.epa/sab. For 
further information concerning the meeting, please contact Dr. L. 
Joseph Bachman (see contact information below).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Any member of the public wishing 
further information concerning this meeting must contact Dr. L. Joseph 
Bachman, Designated Federal Officer, USEPA Science Advisory Board Staff 
Office, (1400A), 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20460; 
telephone/voice mail at (202) 564-3968; fax at (202) 501-0582; or via 
e-mail at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Action: Pursuant to the Federal Advisory 
Committee Act, Public Law 92-463, notice is hereby given that the 
Ecological Processes and Effects Committee (EPEC) of the U.S. EPA 
Science Advisory Board (SAB) will meet on Thursday October 2, to hold a 
consultation on EPA's strategy for developing water-quality criteria 
for suspended and bedded sediments. In addition, EPEC members will 
discuss possible EPEC activities for fiscal year 2004. The meeting is 
open to the public; however, seating is limited and available on a 
first come basis.
    Availability of the Meeting Materials: Any meeting materials will 
be made available from the EPA's Office of Water (OW) and the Office of 
Research Development (ORD). The proposed agenda for the meeting will be 
posted approximately 10 calendar days prior to the meeting at the SAB's 
Web site at http://www.epa.gov/sab/panels/epecsabspanel.htm. Links to 
available meeting materials will also be posted at this location. For 
questions and information concerning the agenda, please contact Dr. L. 
Joseph Bachman (see contact information above).

Background for Consultation on Suspended and Bedded Sediments

    The Ecological Processes and Effects Committee (EPEC) of the EPA 
Science Advisory Board was asked by the Health and Ecological Criteria 
Division of the Office of Science and Technology, Office of Water, to 
provide a consultation on potential approaches on a strategy for 
developing water-quality criteria for Suspended and Bedded Sediments 
(SABS). A request for nominations for consultant panel members to 
provide additional expertise to EPEC appeared in the Federal Register 
on July 30, 2003 (68 FR 44758-44760). That request contained a more 
detailed description of the regulatory context of the SABS issue and 
the scientific approaches being considered in the strategy development.
    In 1976, EPA issued a water quality criteria recommendation under 
the Clean Water Act for solids and turbidity. For a variety of reasons, 
the States seldom use this criterion. It is questionable whether this 
criterion would achieve intended protection for all different 
designated uses for water bodies. SABS occurs naturally in streams in a 
wide range of concentrations--levels that might be perfectly normal in 
one water body could be indicative of impairment in another.
    Although most States currently have water quality criteria that can 
be applied to manage SABS, these are typically based on turbidity, 
suspended solids or settleable solids, and their effectiveness for 
dealing with all water quality impairments caused by SABS, especially 
as benchmarks for aquatic life protection based on natural levels, is 
questionable. In recent consultations with State representatives, the 
need for new water quality criteria for SABS or methodologies for 
deriving them on a site-specific basis was identified as one of the 
highest priorities for the water quality criteria program. As a result, 
the EPA Office of Water has concluded that to better manage SABS in all 
types of water bodies and for all designated uses, State and Tribal 
water quality managers

[[Page 53736]]

need new and updated water quality criteria and information for SABS.
    Charge: While many questions and much research remain, EPA seeks 
the opportunity for a consultation with the Science Advisory Board to 
gain advice and recommendations on the best potential approaches to 
developing water quality criteria for suspended and bedded sediments as 
will be described in the draft discussion paper entitled Developing 
Water Quality Criteria for Suspended and Bedded Sediments (SABS)--
Potential Approaches. The Office of Water is also seeking 
recommendations on additional criteria development approaches for 
different types of water body uses, other than aquatic life, and is 
also seeking advice on any potential criteria derivation methodology 
not included in the discussion paper.
    More Specific Consultation Questions:
    (1) Is it a legitimate premise that SABS in natural amounts 
(background levels) are beneficial to ecosystems and therefore water 
quality criteria should attempt to simulate background levels or 
natural regimes?
    (2) Can SABS criteria be stratified by water body type or by some 
other scheme? If by water body-type, by what level of classification--
lotic and lacustrine? Rivers and streams, wetlands, lakes/reservoirs 
and estuaries/coastal areas? Other? If some other classification scheme 
is necessary, what type and how much resolution must it have?
    (3) Should a water quality criterion for SABS include components 
that address turbidity, suspended solids, and deposited solids.
    (4) Can biological assessments and biocriteria play a role in SABS 
criteria? If so, what role?
    (5) Should EPA reconsider the inclusion of organic particulate 
material in its definition of suspended and bedded sediments?
    (6) Which of the EPA proposed criteria methods do you believe have 
the greatest potential? Why? Which ones should EPA pursue further?
    (7) Do any of the recent efforts of the States or other Countries 
hold promise for a national criteria method?
    If SABS criteria are established to protect aquatic life in water 
bodies, is it reasonable to assume that these criteria will be 
stringent enough to also protect other uses of the water body 
(recreation, industrial water intake, drinking water source, etc.)
    Providing Oral or Written Comments at SAB Meetings: It is the 
policy of the EPA Science Advisory Board Staff Office (SAB) to accept 
written public comments of any length, and to accommodate oral public 
comments whenever possible. The EPA SAB 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 (unless 
otherwise indicated). Interested parties should contact the DFO at 
least one week prior to the meeting in order to be placed on the public 
speaker list for the meeting. Speakers may attend the meeting and 
provide comment up to the meeting time. 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 review panel for their consideration. 
Comments should be supplied to Dr. L. Joseph Bachman at the contact 
information provided in this notice in the following formats: One hard 
copy with original signature, and one electronic copy via e-mail 
(acceptable file format: Adobe Acrobat, WordPerfect, Word, or Rich Text 
files (in IBM-PC/Windows 95/98/XP/2000 format). Those providing written 
comments and who attend the meeting are also asked to bring 35 copies 
of their comments for public distribution.
    Meeting Access--Individuals requiring any additional special 
accommodation at this meeting should contact the DFO indicated above 
for this FR notice, at least five business days prior to the meeting so 
that appropriate arrangements can be made.

    Dated: September 8, 2003.
Vanessa T. Vu,
Director, EPA Science Advisory Board Staff Office.
[FR Doc. 03-23272 Filed 9-11-03; 8:45 am]
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