[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 110 (Thursday, June 9, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33746-33748]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-11466]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[OW-2005-0006, FRL-7922-9]


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request; Willingness To Pay Survey for Section 316(b) Phase III 
Cooling Water Intake Structures: Instrument, Pre-Test, and 
Implementation, EPA ICR Number 2155.02

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 
et seq.), this document announces that EPA is planning to submit a 
proposed Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB). This is a request for a new collection. 
Before submitting the ICR to OMB for review and approval, EPA is 
soliciting comments on specific aspects of the proposed information 
collection as described below.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before August 8, 2005.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, referencing docket ID number OW-

[[Page 33747]]

2005-0006, to EPA online using EDOCKET (our preferred method), by email 
to [email protected], or by mail to: EPA Docket Center, Environmental 
Protection Agency, Water Docket, EPA West, 4101T, 1200 Pennsylvania 
Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Erik Helm, Office of Science and 
Technology, 4303T, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania 
Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: 202-566-1066; fax 
number: 202-566-1054; e-mail address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: EPA has established a public docket for this 
ICR under Docket ID number OW-2005-0006, which is available for public 
viewing at the Water 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 Reading Room is (202) 566-1744, and the telephone number for 
the Water Docket is (202) 566-2426. An electronic version of the public 
docket is available through EPA Dockets (EDOCKET) at http://www.epa.gov/edocket. Use EDOCKET to obtain a copy of the draft 
collection of information, submit or view public comments, access the 
index listing of the contents of the public docket, and to access those 
documents in the public docket that are available electronically. Once 
in the system, select ``search,'' then key in the docket ID number 
identified above.
    Any comments related to this ICR should be submitted to EPA within 
60 days of this notice. EPA's policy is that public comments, whether 
submitted electronically or in paper, will be made available for public 
viewing in EDOCKET as EPA receives them and without change, unless the 
comment contains copyrighted material, CBI, or other information whose 
public disclosure is restricted by statute. When EPA identifies a 
comment containing copyrighted material, EPA will provide a reference 
to that material in the version of the comment that is placed in 
EDOCKET. The entire printed comment, including the copyrighted 
material, will be available in the public docket. Although identified 
as an item in the official docket, information claimed as CBI, or whose 
disclosure is otherwise restricted by statute, is not included in the 
official public docket, and will not be available for public viewing in 
EDOCKET. For further information about the electronic docket, see EPA's 
Federal Register notice describing the electronic docket at 67 FR 38102 
(May 31, 2002), or go to http://www.epa.gov./edocket.
    Affected entities: Entities potentially affected by this action are 
individuals/households.
    Title: Willingness to Pay Survey for section 316(b) Phase III 
Cooling Water Intake Structures: Instrument, Pre-test, and 
Implementation.
    Abstract: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is in the 
process of developing new regulations to provide national performance 
standards for controlling impacts from cooling water intake structures 
(CWIS) for Phase III facilities under section 316(b) of the Clean Water 
Act (CWA). The facilities considered Phase III facilities under section 
316(b) regulations are facilities that withdraw water for cooling 
purposes from rivers, streams, lakes, reservoirs, estuaries, oceans, or 
other waters of the United States, and that are either existing 
electrical generators with cooling water intake structures that are 
designed to withdraw 50 million gallons of water per day (MGD) or less, 
or existing manufacturing and industrial facilities. The regulation 
also establishes section 316(b) requirements for new offshore oil and 
gas extraction facilities. EPA has previously published final section 
316(b) regulations that address new facilities (Phase I) on December 
18, 2001 (66 FR 65256) and existing large power producers (Phase II) on 
July 9, 2004 (69 FR 41576). See 40 CFR Part 125, Subparts I and J, 
respectively.
    As required under Executive Order 12866, EPA is conducting economic 
impact and cost-benefit analyses for the section 316(b) regulation for 
Phase III facilities. Comprehensive, appropriate estimates of total 
resource value include both use and non-use values, such that the 
resulting total social benefit estimates may be compared to total 
social cost. Developing comprehensive quantified benefit estimates for 
the section 316(b) regulation requires consideration of non-use values 
because nearly all (96 percent) of impingement and entrainment losses 
at CWIS consist of either forage species, or non-landed recreational 
and commercial species that do not have direct uses or, as a result, 
direct use values. Although individuals do not use these resources 
directly, they may nevertheless be affected by changes in resource 
status or quality, such that they would be willing to pay to maintain 
these resources. It is generally accepted that non-use values may be 
substantial in some cases, and that failure to recognize such values 
may lead to improper inferences regarding policy benefits and costs. 
Many public comments on the proposed section 316(b) regulation for 
Phase II facilities and the Phase II Notice of Data Availability 
suggested that a properly designed and conducted stated preference, or 
contingent valuation (CV), survey would be the most appropriate and 
acceptable method to estimate the non-use benefits of the rule.\1\ 
Stated preference survey methodology is the generally accepted means to 
estimate non-use values. Stated preference surveys use carefully 
designed questions to elicit respondents' willingness to pay (WTP) for 
particular ecological improvements, based on their responses to either 
discrete choice or open-ended questions regarding hypothetical resource 
improvements or programs. Such improvements may include increased 
protection of aquatic habitats or species with particular attributes.
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    \1\ For detail see ``Phase II--Large Existing Electric 
Generating Plants Response to Public Comment,'' U.S. EPA, 2004. 
Available at: http://www.epa.gov/waterscience/316b/commentph2.htm.
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    To assess public policy significance or importance of the 
ecological gains from the section 316(b) regulation for Phase III 
facilities, EPA proposes to conduct a stated preference study to 
measure non-use benefits of reduced fish losses at CWIS due to the 
regulation. The study would focus on a broad range of aquatic species, 
including forage fish and a variety of fish species harvested by 
commercial and recreational fishermen. Additionally, the survey will 
include a revealed preference/contingent behavior component to measure 
how changes in fish populations affect recreational activities such as 
angling. The results of the survey would be used to estimate the non-
use benefits and recreational benefits of the proposed 316(b) 
regulation.
    The stated preference component of the survey will ask respondents 
to choose how they would vote, if presented with two different 
hypothetical regulatory options characterized by [a] changes in annual 
impingement and entrainment losses of fish and other organisms, [b] 
effects on long-term fish populations, [c] effects on recreational and 
commercial catch, and [d] an unavoidable cost of living increase for 
the respondent's household. Respondents will be allowed to ``vote'' for 
one of the presented regulatory options, or to choose not to vote for 
either option. The stated preference component of the survey will also 
ask respondents to answer questions about their reasons for voting, 
their level of concern about various policy issues, and

[[Page 33748]]

their affiliations and recreational activities.
    The revealed preference/contingent behavior survey component will 
be administered only to respondents who indicate that they participate 
in water-based recreational activities that are potentially affected by 
changes in fish populations. This component will ask respondents about 
their recent recreational activities, and ask how many additional trips 
(if any) they would take to their most recently visited recreation site 
each year if fish populations and catch rates (for anglers) increased 
by a specified amount. It will also ask respondents whether they would 
choose to visit the site of their last recreational trip or a similar 
site with higher fish populations and catch rates that is further from 
their home.
    Survey subjects will be randomly selected from a representative 
national panel of respondents maintained by Knowledge Networks, an 
online survey company. Subjects will be asked to complete a web-based 
questionnaire. Participation in the survey is voluntary. EPA intends to 
administer the survey to a total of 4,400 persons, including 500 
persons that will take part in an initial survey pilot. EPA chose a 
web-based survey format because it is the most cost-effective method 
available to conduct a large statistically-based survey covering a wide 
geographic region in a relatively short time frame. To avoid potential 
sampling biases associated with the web-based survey methodology, the 
survey sample will be stratified by geographical region, and within 
each region, by demographic variables including age, education, 
Hispanic ethnicity, race, gender, and household income.
    To assist in the development of this stated preference survey, EPA 
has requested approval from the Office of Management and Budget to 
conduct a series of twelve focus groups with a total of 96 respondents 
(see EPA ICR number 2155.01). These focus groups will be conducted 
following standard, accepted practices in the stated preference 
literature. The focus groups will allow EPA to better understand the 
public's perceptions and attitudes concerning fishery resources, to 
frame and define survey questions, to pretest draft survey questions, 
to test for and eliminate or reduce potential biases that may be 
associated with stated preference methodology, and to ensure that both 
researchers and respondents have similar interpretations of survey 
language and scenarios.
    An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required 
to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a 
currently valid OMB control number. The OMB control numbers for EPA's 
regulations in 40 CFR are listed in 40 CFR part 9.
    The EPA would like to solicit comments to:
    (i) Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the Agency, 
including whether the information will have practical utility;
    (ii) Evaluate the accuracy of the Agency's estimate of the burden 
of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of 
the methodology and assumptions used;
    (iii) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information 
to be collected; and
    (iv) Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those 
who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated 
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic 
submission of responses.
    Burden Statement: EPA estimates that the total public reporting and 
record keeping burden for the 4,400 individuals/households who respond 
to the survey will be 3,227 hours, for an average of 44 minutes per 
respondent. The estimated total cost burden to respondents is $57,144. 
EPA estimates that there will be no capital and operating and 
maintenance cost burden. This survey is one-time activity.
    Burden means the total time, effort, or financial resources 
expended by persons to generate, maintain, retain, or disclose or 
provide information to or for a Federal agency. This includes the time 
needed to review instructions; develop, acquire, install, and utilize 
technology and systems for the purposes of collecting, validating, and 
verifying information, processing and maintaining information, and 
disclosing and providing information; adjust the existing ways to 
comply with any previously applicable instructions and requirements; 
train personnel to be able to respond to a collection of information; 
search data sources; complete and review the collection of information; 
and transmit or otherwise disclose the information.

    Dated: June 3, 2005.
Ephraim S. King,
Director, Office of Science and Technology.
[FR Doc. 05-11466 Filed 6-8-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P