[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 14 (Thursday, January 22, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Page 3135]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-1374]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-7612-3]


National Dialogue on EPA's Draft Report on the Environment, 2004

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of public meeting.

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SUMMARY: The Office of Environmental Information, the Office of 
Research and Development and EPA's Regional Offices are conducting 
national dialogue sessions with a broad spectrum of stakeholders to 
solicit feedback on the Draft Report on the Environment issued June 26, 
2003. EPA conducted 5 sessions in November and December 2003 and 
invited representatives from State governments, tribes, academia, non-
governmental organizations, local agencies and business and industry. 
The meetings were announced in the October 15, 2003 Federal Register 
and were held in Chicago, Atlanta, San Francisco, Seattle and Dallas. 
EPA plans to conduct an additional session in Philadelphia on February 
12, 2004. Interested members of the general public may attend the 
meeting and will have an opportunity to provide comment at an appointed 
time during the session. Because space is limited, those planning to 
attend must RSVP to the individual listed in the FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT no later than one week before the meeting. The 
information contact will also provide the specific meeting location as 
well as directions.

DATES: The date for the dialogue session is February 12, 2004, from 9 
a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dawn Banks-Waller, Office of 
Environmental Information, Office of Information Analysis and Access, 
Environmental Analysis Division, (2842T), U.S. EPA, 1200 Pennsylvania 
Ave NW., Washington DC 20460. Telephone (202) 566-0625, fax (202) 566-
1066 or e-mail [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On June 26, 2003, EPA released the Draft 
Report on the Environment (RoE) and its accompanying Technical 
Document. The report presents its first-ever national picture of the 
U.S. environment. The report describes what EPA knows--and doesn't 
know--about the current state of the environment at the national level, 
and how the environment is changing. The report highlights the progress 
our nation has made in protecting its air, water, and land resources 
and describes the measure that can be used to track the status of the 
environment and human health.
    EPA has issued the report as a draft to stimulate dialogue and 
invite input into developing and improving environmental indicators in 
the future. The national dialogue sessions are a first step in 
soliciting feedback on the report and will focus on:
    [sbull] Assessing the quality, structure, relevance, 
appropriateness of, and needed improvements to the reports,
    [sbull] Identifying additional or new questions/indicators, changes 
in indicators, gaps, indicator improvements, etc., and
    [sbull] Assessing the use of the report for planning and decision 
making.
    Feedback obtained from these sessions will be used to shape the 
next and future editions of the Report.
    To view, download, or order hardcopies of the RoE and the Technical 
Document or to provide comments on the documents, please visit the EPA 
Environmental Indicators Initiative Web site at http://www.epa.gov/indicators/roe/.

    Dated: January 12, 2004.
Mike Flynn,
Director, Office of Information Analysis and Access.
[FR Doc. 04-1374 Filed 1-21-04; 8:45 am]
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