[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 227 (Friday, November 26, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68901-68902]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-26165]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-7842-6]


Science Advisory Board Staff Office Clean Air Scientific Advisory 
Committee (CASAC); Notification of Advisory Meeting of the CASAC 
Ambient Air Monitoring and Methods (AAMM) Subcommittee

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or Agency) Science 
Advisory Board (SAB) Staff Office announces a public meeting of the 
Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee's (CASAC) Ambient Air 
Monitoring and Methods (AAMM) Subcommittee (Subcommittee) to conduct an 
advisory meeting for the purpose of providing advice and 
recommendations on the implementation aspects of the Agency's National 
Ambient Air Monitoring Strategy.

DATES: The meeting will be held on December 15, 2004, from 9 a.m. to 4 
p.m. (eastern time).
    Location: The meeting will take place at the SAB Conference Center, 
1025 F Street, NW., Suite 3700, Washington, DC 20004. A publicly-
accessible teleconference line will be available for the entire 
meeting.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Any member of the public who wishes to 
obtain the teleconference call-in numbers and access codes; would like 
to submit written or brief oral comments (5 minutes or less); or wants 
further information concerning this meeting, must contact Mr. Fred 
Butterfield, Designated Federal Officer (DFO), EPA Science Advisory 
Board (1400F), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania 
Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460; via telephone/voice mail: (202) 343-
9994; fax: (202) 233-0643; or e-mail at: [email protected]. 
General information concerning the CASAC or the EPA Science Advisory 
Board can be found on the EPA Web site at: http://www.epa.gov/sab.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: CASAC and the AAMM Subcommittee: The CASAC, 
which comprises seven

[[Page 68902]]

members appointed by the EPA Administrator, was established under 
section 109(d)(2) of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7409) as an 
independent scientific advisory committee, in part to provide advice, 
information and recommendations on the scientific and technical aspects 
of issues related to air quality criteria and national ambient air 
quality standards (NAAQS) under sections 108 and 109 of the Act. The 
CASAC, which is administratively located under the SAB Staff Office, is 
a Federal advisory committee chartered under the Federal Advisory 
Committee Act (FACA), as amended, 5 U.S.C., App.
    The SAB Staff Office established the CASAC AAMM Subcommittee as a 
standing subcommittee to provide the EPA Administrator, through the 
CASAC, with advice and recommendations, as necessary, on topical areas 
related to ambient air monitoring, methods and networks. The 
Subcommittee complies with the provisions of FACA and all appropriate 
SAB Staff Office procedural policies.
    Background: In late 2002, EPA's Office of Air Quality Planning and 
Standards (OAQPS), located within the Office of Air and Radiation 
(OAR), finalized its draft National Ambient Air Monitoring Strategy 
(NAAMS or Strategy). OAQPS subsequently requested that the CASAC review 
the draft NAAMS document and provide advice and recommendations to the 
Agency on the technical bases and design aspects of the Strategy. The 
SAB Staff Office announced the formation of the NAAMS Subcommittee of 
the CASAC on November 5, 2002 (67 FR 67403). The CASAC NAAMS 
Subcommittee held a public meeting in Research Triangle Park, North 
Carolina, on July 8-9, 2003 (68 FR 34945, June 11, 2003) to conduct 
this review of the draft Strategy document. The primary recommendations 
of the CASAC NAAMS Subcommittee, through the chartered CASAC, included 
a request for an implementation plan, and added emphasis on rural- and 
ecosystem-oriented monitoring, support for the National Core Monitoring 
Network (NCore) Level 1 program, and training and quality assurance to 
enhance data consistency across the Nation. The CASAC NAAMS 
Subcommittee's complete report from this review is found on the SAB Web 
page at URL: http://www.epa.gov/sab/pdf/casacl04001.pdf. OAQPS updated 
the NAAMS document after the CASAC's review of the Strategy. The 
revision incorporated EPA's responses to the CASAC NAAMS Subcommittee's 
recommendations.
    Earlier this year, the SAB Staff Office announced (69 FR 19180, 
April 12, 2004) the formation of the CASAC AAMM Subcommittee. This 
subcommittee replaced the former CASAC NAAMS Subcommittee. 
Subsequently, OAQPS asked the CASAC AAMM Subcommittee to conduct an 
advisory meeting for the purpose of providing advice and 
recommendations on the implementation plan for its updated final draft 
NAAMS.
    Any questions concerning EPA's National Ambient Air Monitoring 
Strategy or the draft implementation plan should be directed to Dr. 
Rich Scheffe, OAQPS, at phone: 919-541-4650, or e-mail at: 
[email protected]; or to Mr. Tim Hanley, OAQPS, at phone: (919) 541-
4417; or e-mail: [email protected].
    Availability of Meeting Materials: OAQPS has posted written review 
and supplementary materials for this advisory meeting of the CASAC AAMM 
Subcommittee on EPA's Ambient Monitoring Technology Information Center 
(AMTIC) Web site. The document to be reviewed by the Subcommittee, 
i.e., the implementation plan found in Chapter 11 of the Agency's final 
draft National Ambient Air Monitoring Strategy document, is found at 
URL: http://www.epa.gov/ttn/amtic/files/ambient/monitorstrat/section11.pdf. The entire final draft NAAMS document itself, which was 
updated following the July 2003 meeting of the former CASAC NAAMS 
Subcommittee, is posted as supplementary information at the following 
URL: http://www.epa.gov/ttn/amtic/files/ambient/monitorstrat/allstrat.pdf. Additional background materials for this meeting are 
found on the ``CASAC File Area'' page of the AMTIC Web site at URL: 
http://www.epa.gov/ttn/amtic/casacinf.html. Furthermore, the SAB Staff 
Office will post a copy of the final agenda and charge to the 
Subcommittee for this advisory meeting on the SAB Web site at: http://www.epa.gov/sab (under ``Meeting Agendas''), and the CASAC AAMM 
Subcommittee page at: http://www.epa.gov/sab/panels/casac_aamm_subcom.html, respectively, in advance of the Subcommittee's meeting.
    Providing Oral or Written Comments at SAB Meetings: It is the 
policy of the SAB Staff Office to accept written public comments of any 
length, and to accommodate oral public comments whenever possible. The 
SAB Staff Office 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 meeting or teleconference will be 
limited to a total time of five minutes (unless otherwise indicated). 
Requests to provide oral comments must be in writing (e-mail, fax or 
mail) and received by Mr. Butterfield no later than noon Eastern Time 
five business days prior to the meeting in order to reserve time on the 
meeting agenda. Speakers should bring at least 75 copies of their 
comments and presentation slides for distribution to the reviewers and 
public at the meeting. Written Comments: Although the SAB Staff Office 
accepts written comments until the date of the meeting (unless 
otherwise stated), written comments should be received in the SAB Staff 
Office no later than noon Eastern Time five business days prior to the 
meeting so that the comments may be made available to the CASAC PM 
Review Panel for their consideration. Comments should be supplied to 
Mr. Butterfield (preferably via e-mail) at the address/contact 
information noted above, as follows: one hard copy with original 
signature, and one electronic copy via e-mail (acceptable file format: 
Adobe Acrobat PDF, WordPerfect, Word, or Rich Text files (in IBM-PC/
Windows 98/2000/XP format)). Those providing written comments and who 
attend the meeting in person are also asked to bring 75 copies of their 
comments for public distribution.
    Meeting Access: Individuals requiring special accommodation at this 
meeting, including wheelchair access to the conference room, should 
contact Mr. Butterfield at the phone number or an e-mail address noted 
above at least five business days prior to the meeting so that 
appropriate arrangements can be made.

    Dated: November 16, 2004.
Vanessa T. Vu,
Director, EPA Science Advisory Board Staff Office.
[FR Doc. 04-26165 Filed 11-24-04; 8:45 am]
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