[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 41 (Tuesday, March 2, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9825-9826]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-4626]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-7629-5; Docket ID No. RCRA-2004-0001]


Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response; Announcement of 
Listening Sessions

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: EPA will hold listening sessions on March 23, 2004, in State 
College, Pennsylvania; April 13, 2004, in Dallas, Texas; and April 22, 
2004, in Vincennes, Indiana. These three listening sessions are 
opportunities for interested parties to provide EPA with information on 
the practices of placing coal combustion byproducts in coal mines and 
at surface impoundments and landfills, including non-coal mine sites. 
EPA is interested in obtaining information on benefits and problems 
associated with the practices. Placement of coal combustion byproducts 
at coal mines is currently regulated under any of three scenarios: (1) 
Regulated by federal or State agencies operating under authority of the 
federal Surface Mining Reclamation and Control Act (SMCRA) administered 
by the U.S. Department of the Interior; (2) regulated by State agencies 
operating under State mining or solid waste laws; or (3) a combination 
of these. EPA is in the process of considering whether Resource 
Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) subtitle D or SMCRA authorities or 
some combination of both are most appropriate to regulate placement at 
coal mines. For placement of coal combustion byproducts at surface 
impoundments and landfills, including non-coal mine sites, EPA is in 
the process of developing regulations under subtitle D of RCRA. At 
these listening sessions, officials from the U.S. Department of the 
Interior and State mining and solid waste agencies will be present, 
along with EPA officials.

DATES: The listening session dates are:
    1. March 23, 2004, in State College, Pennsylvania.
    2. April 13, 2004, in Dallas, Texas.
    3. April 22, 2004, in Vincennes, Indiana.

[[Page 9826]]


ADDRESSES: The listening session locations are:
    1. State College, Pennsylvania--the Nittany Lion Inn, 200 West Park 
Ave., State College, PA.
    2. Dallas, Texas--Fairmont Hotel, 1717 N. Akard St., Dallas, TX.
    3. Vincennes, Indiana--Quality Inn Vincennes, 600 Old Wheatland 
Rd., Vincennes, IN.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bonnie Robinson, Office of Solid 
Waste, Mail Code 5306W, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 
Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone number (703) 
308-8429; fax number (703) 308-8686; 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 or live at or near facilities at which coal 
combustion byproducts are generated or placed, or persons who are 
concerned about implementation of the Federal Resource Conservation and 
Recovery Act (RCRA) or the Federal Surface Mining Control and 
Reclamation Act (SMCRA).

B. How Can I Obtain Related Information?

    1. Docket. EPA has established an official public docket for this 
action under Docket ID No. RCRA-2004-0001. 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 OSWER 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 
OSWER Docket is (202) 566-0270.
    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 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 above. Once in 
the system, select ``search,'' then key in the appropriate docket ID 
number.
    You may access EPA information electronically at the EPA Web site 
www.epa.gov/epaoswer/other/fossil/index.htm.

II. Background

    For placement of coal combustion byproducts at coal mines, EPA is 
in the process of considering whether RCRA subtitle D or SMCRA 
authorities or some combination of both are most appropriate to ensure 
protection of human health and the environment. For placement of coal 
combustion byproducts at surface impoundments and landfills, including 
non-coal mine sites, EPA is in the process of developing regulations 
under RCRA subtitle D. These EPA actions and the background for them 
were initially described in EPA's Notice of Regulatory Determination on 
Wastes From the Combustion of Fossil Fuels (65 FR 32214-32237, May 22, 
2000). This Regulatory Determination, an associated Report to Congress, 
and other related documents may be accessed at the Web site identified 
above. In this process EPA has contacted State and Federal regulatory 
agencies, the coal mining and coal combustion industries, and the 
public to learn of issues associated with the several practices. These 
three listening sessions are further opportunity for the public to 
provide EPA with information on these practices involving coal 
combustion byproducts.
    To register to speak at one of these three listening sessions, you 
should contact the person listed above under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT. To speak at one of the listening sessions, you should register 
no later than seven calendar days prior to the listening session. At 
each listening session, speakers' speaking time will be limited 
according to the number of persons registering to speak. If you are 
unable to register to speak, EPA will attempt to accommodate you after 
the registered speakers have spoken. There is no limitation on the 
amount of written material which can be provided to EPA at the 
listening sessions. EPA plans for each listening session to begin at 
6:30 p.m. and end at 9 p.m. If the number of registered speakers 
indicates the need to extend to a later hour, EPA will do so.

    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 6901-6991i.

    Dated: February 23, 2004.
Robert Springer,
Director, Office of Solid Waste.
[FR Doc. 04-4626 Filed 3-1-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P