[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 133 (Wednesday, July 13, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 40345-40348]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-13779]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[OPP-2005-0151; FRL-7724-9]


Simazine Risk Assessments and Risk Reduction Options; Notice of 
Availability

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces the availability of EPA's human health 
and environmental fate and effects risk assessments and related 
documents for the chlorinated triazine pesticide simazine, and opens a 
public comment period on these documents. The public is encouraged to 
suggest risk management ideas or proposals to address the risks 
identified. EPA is developing an Interim Reregistration Eligibility 
Decision (IRED) for simazine through a modified, 4-Phase public 
participation process that the Agency uses to involve the public in 
developing pesticide reregistration and tolerance reassessment 
decisions. Through these programs, EPA is ensuring that all pesticides 
meet current health and safety standards.

DATES: Comments, identified by docket identification (ID) number OPP-
2005-0151, must be received on or before September 12, 2005.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be submitted electronically, by mail, or 
through hand delivery/courier. Follow the detailed instructions as 
provided in Unit I. of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Diane Sherman, Special Review and 
Reregistration Division (7508C), Office of Pesticide Programs, 
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., 
Washington, DC 20460-0001; telephone number: (703) 308-0128 fax number: 
(703) 305-8041; e-mail address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

[[Page 40346]]

I. General Information

A. Does this Action Apply to Me?

    This action is directed to the public in general, and may be of 
interest to a wide range of stakeholders including environmental, human 
health, and agricultural advocates; the chemical industry; pesticide 
users; and members of the public interested in the sale, distribution, 
or use of pesticides. Since others also may be interested, the Agency 
has not attempted to describe all the specific entities that may be 
affected by this action. If you have any questions regarding the 
applicability of this action to a particular entity, consult the person 
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

B. How Can I Get Copies of this Document and Other Related Information?

    1. Docket. EPA has established an official public docket for this 
action under docket ID number OPP-2005-0151. 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 Public Information and Records Integrity Branch (PIRIB), Rm. 119, 
Crystal Mall 2, 1801 S. Bell St., Arlington, VA. This docket 
facility is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
excluding legal holidays. The docket telephone number is (703) 305-
5805.
    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 submit or 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. Once in the system, select ``search,'' 
then key in the appropriate docket ID number.
    Certain types of information will not be placed in the EPA Dockets. 
Information claimed as CBI and other information whose disclosure is 
restricted by statute, which is not included in the official public 
docket, will not be available for public viewing in EPA's electronic 
public docket. EPA's policy is that copyrighted material will not be 
placed in EPA's electronic public docket but will be available only in 
printed, paper form in the official public docket. To the extent 
feasible, publicly available docket materials will be made available in 
EPA's electronic public docket. When a document is selected from the 
index list in EPA Dockets, the system will identify whether the 
document is available for viewing in EPA's electronic public docket. 
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 in Unit I.B.1. EPA intends to work 
towards providing electronic access to all of the publicly available 
docket materials through EPA's electronic public docket.
    For public commenters, it is important to note that EPA's policy is 
that public comments, whether submitted electronically or in paper, 
will be made available for public viewing in EPA's electronic public 
docket as EPA receives them and without change, unless the comment 
contains copyrighted material, CBI, or other information whose 
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 EPA's 
electronic public docket. The entire printed comment, including the 
copyrighted material, will be available in the public docket.
    Public comments submitted on computer disks that are mailed or 
delivered to the docket will be transferred to EPA's electronic public 
docket. Public comments that are mailed or delivered to the docket will 
be scanned and placed in EPA's electronic public docket. Where 
practical, physical objects will be photographed, and the photograph 
will be placed in EPA's electronic public docket along with a brief 
description written by the docket staff.

C. How and to Whom Do I Submit Comments?

    You may submit comments electronically, by mail, or through hand 
delivery/courier. To ensure proper receipt by EPA, identify the 
appropriate docket ID number in the subject line on the first page of 
your comment. Please ensure that your comments are submitted within the 
specified comment period. Comments received after the close of the 
comment period will be marked ``late.'' EPA is not required to consider 
these late comments. If you wish to submit CBI or information that is 
otherwise protected by statute, please follow the instructions in Unit 
I.D. Do not use EPA Dockets or e-mail to submit CBI or information 
protected by statute.
    1. Electronically. If you submit an electronic comment as 
prescribed in this unit, EPA recommends that you include your name, 
mailing address, and an e-mail address or other contact information in 
the body of your comment. Also include this contact information on the 
outside of any disk or CD ROM you submit, and in any cover letter 
accompanying the disk or CD ROM. This ensures that you can be 
identified as the submitter of the comment and allows EPA to contact 
you in case EPA cannot read your comment due to technical difficulties 
or needs further information on the substance of your comment. EPA's 
policy is that EPA will not edit your comment, and any identifying or 
contact information provided in the body of a comment will be included 
as part of the comment that is placed in the official public docket, 
and made available in EPA's electronic public docket. If EPA cannot 
read your comment due to technical difficulties and cannot contact you 
for clarification, EPA may not be able to consider your comment.
    i. EPA Dockets. Your use of EPA's electronic public docket to 
submit comments to EPA electronically is EPA's preferred method for 
receiving comments. Go directly to EPA Dockets at http://www.epa.gov/edocket/, and follow the online instructions for submitting comments. 
Once in the system, select ``search,'' and then key in docket ID number 
OPP-2005-0151. The system is an ``anonymous access'' system, which 
means EPA will not know your identity, e-mail address, or other contact 
information unless you provide it in the body of your comment.
    ii.  E-mail. Comments may be sent by e-mail to [email protected], 
Attention: Docket ID Number OPP-2005-0151. In contrast to EPA's 
electronic public docket, EPA's e-mail system is not an ``anonymous 
access'' system. If you send an e-mail comment directly to the docket 
without going through EPA's electronic public docket, EPA's e-mail 
system automatically captures your e-mail address. E-mail addresses 
that are automatically captured by EPA's e-mail system are included as 
part of the comment that is placed in the official public docket, and 
made available in EPA's electronic public docket.
    iii. Disk or CD ROM. You may submit comments on a disk or CD ROM 
that you mail to the mailing address

[[Page 40347]]

identified in Unit I.C.2. These electronic submissions will be accepted 
in WordPerfect or ASCII file format. Avoid the use of special 
characters and any form of encryption.
    2.  By mail. Send your comments to: Public Information and Records 
Integrity Branch (PIRIB) (7502C), Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP), 
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., 
Washington, DC 20460-0001, Attention: Docket ID Number OPP-2005-0151.
    3. By hand delivery or courier. Deliver your comments to: Public 
Information and Records Integrity Branch (PIRIB), Office of Pesticide 
Programs (OPP), Environmental Protection Agency, Rm. 119, Crystal Mall 
2, 1801 S. Bell St., Arlington, VA, Attention: Docket ID 
Number OPP-2005-0151. Such deliveries are only accepted during the 
docket's normal hours of operation as identified in Unit I.B.1.

D. How Should I Submit CBI to the Agency?

    Do not submit information that you consider to be CBI 
electronically through EPA's electronic public docket or by e-mail. You 
may claim information that you submit to EPA as CBI by marking any part 
or all of that information as CBI (if you submit CBI on disk or CD ROM, 
mark the outside of the disk or CD ROM as CBI and then identify 
electronically within the disk or CD ROM the specific information that 
is CBI). Information so marked will not be disclosed except in 
accordance with procedures set forth in 40 CFR part 2.
    In addition to one complete version of the comment that includes 
any information claimed as CBI, a copy of the comment that does not 
contain the information claimed as CBI must be submitted for inclusion 
in the public docket and EPA's electronic public docket. If you submit 
the copy that does not contain CBI on disk or CD ROM, mark the outside 
of the disk or CD ROM clearly that it does not contain CBI. Information 
not marked as CBI will be included in the public docket and EPA's 
electronic public docket without prior notice. If you have any 
questions about CBI or the procedures for claiming CBI, please consult 
the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

E. What Should I Consider as I Prepare My Comments for EPA?

    You may find the following suggestions helpful for preparing your 
comments:
    1. Explain your views as clearly as possible.
    2. Describe any assumptions that you used.
    3. Provide any technical information and/or data you used that 
support your views.
    4. If you estimate potential burden or costs, explain how you 
arrived at your estimate.
    5. Provide specific examples to illustrate your concerns.
    6. Offer alternatives.
    7. Make sure to submit your comments by the comment period deadline 
identified.
    8. To ensure proper receipt by EPA, identify the appropriate docket 
ID number in the subject line on the first page of your response. It 
would also be helpful if you provided the name, date, and Federal 
Register citation related to your comments.

II. Background

A. What Action is the Agency Taking?

    EPA is releasing for public comment its human health and 
environmental fate and effects risk assessments for simazine, and 
soliciting public comment on risk management ideas or proposals. 
Simazine is a systemic herbicide that is usually applied to soil, 
absorbed through leaves and roots, and acts by inhibiting 
photosynthesis within the targeted plant. It is widely used as a 
selective herbicide to control most annual grasses and broadleaf weeds 
before they emerge or after removal of weed growth. The Agency 
developed these risk assessments and the risk characterization for 
simazine through a modified version of its public process for making 
pesticide reregistration eligibility and tolerance reassessment 
decisions. Through these programs, EPA is ensuring that pesticides meet 
current standards under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and 
Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) and the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act 
(FFDCA), as amended by the Food Quality Protection Act of 1996 (FQPA).
    Simazine is a chlorinated triazine class herbicide, a class which 
also includes the pesticides atrazine and propazine. Registered uses 
for simazine include pre-plant use or use in established fields of a 
variety of food and feed crops including fruit and nut crops in 
addition to field crops. Nonagricultural uses for simazine include 
application at forestry sites and as nonselective weed control on 
noncrop land. Simazine is also registered for use on turfgrass, which 
includes residential use on lawns. There is an additional registration 
for simazine as an algicide in ornamental ponds and aquariums of 1,000 
gallons or less. End-use product formulations containing simazine 
include granules, pellets, dry flowables, wettable powders, 
emulsifiable concentrates, flowable concentrates, and ready-to-use 
liquids. These product formulations may be applied on the ground by 
broadcast across an area, as a spot treatment, or in rows, which is 
also referred to as band treatment. Some product formulations can also 
be applied by aerial broadcast.
    EPA is providing an opportunity, through this notice, for 
interested parties to provide comments and input on the Agency's risk 
assessments for simazine. Such comments and input could address, for 
example, the availability of additional data to further refine the risk 
assessments, such as crop-specific or regional use information, or 
could address the Agency's risk assessment methodologies and 
assumptions as applied to this specific pesticide.
    Through this notice, EPA also is providing an opportunity for 
interested parties to provide risk management proposals or otherwise 
comment on risk management for simazine. The major potential human 
health risks of concern associated with the use of simazine include the 
following for select use scenarios and subpopulations: chronic risks 
from dietary exposure from drinking water, short-term risks from dermal 
and inhalation residential exposure, and short- and intermediate-term 
risks from dermal and inhalation occupational exposure. The major 
potential ecological risks of concern include acute risks to aquatic 
and terrestrial plants and chronic risks to birds and mammals. 
Potential ecological risks are also present for some Federally listed 
threatened and endangered species. A summary of these potential risks 
of concern as well as specific questions for which the Agency is 
requesting public input, are provided in a separate document available 
in the simazine docket titled Request for Additional Information and 
Risk Management Suggestions for the Reregistration of Simazine. In 
targeting these risks of concern, the Agency solicits information on 
effective and practical risk reduction measures.
    EPA seeks to achieve environmental justice, the fair treatment and 
meaningful involvement of all people, regardless of race, color, 
national origin, or income, in the development, implementation, and 
enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies. To help 
address potential environmental justice issues, the Agency seeks 
information on any groups or segments of the population who, as a 
result of their location, cultural practices, or other factors, may 
have atypical, unusually high exposure to

[[Page 40348]]

simazine, compared to the general population.
    EPA is applying the principles of public participation to all 
pesticides undergoing reregistration and tolerance reassessment. The 
Agency's Pesticide Tolerance Reassessment and Reregistration; Public 
Participation Process, published in the Federal Register on May 14, 
2004, (69 FR 26819)(FRL-7357-9) explains that in conducting these 
programs, the Agency is tailoring its public participation process to 
be commensurate with the level of risk, extent of use, complexity of 
the issues, and degree of public concern associated with each 
pesticide. For simazine, a modified, 4-Phase process with 1 comment 
period and ample opportunity for public consultation seems appropriate 
in view of its refined risk assessments and the relatively limited risk 
management issues associated with simazine. However, if as a result of 
comments received during this comment period EPA finds that additional 
issues warranting further discussion are raised, the Agency may 
lengthen the process and include a second comment period, as needed. 
The decisions presented in the IRED may be supplemented by further risk 
mitigation measures when EPA considers its cumulative assessment of the 
chlorinated triazine pesticides.
    All comments should be submitted using the methods in Unit I. of 
the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION, and must be received by EPA on or before 
the closing date. Comments will become part of the Agency Docket for 
simazine. Comments received after the close of the comment period will 
be marked ``late.'' EPA is not required to consider these late 
comments.

B. What is the Agency's Authority for Taking this Action?

    Section 4(g)(2) of FIFRA as amended directs that, after submission 
of all data concerning a pesticide active ingredient, ``the 
Administrator shall determine whether pesticides containing such active 
ingredient are eligible for reregistration,'' before calling in product 
specific data on individual end-use products and either reregistering 
products or taking other ``appropriate regulatory action.''
    Section 408(q) of the FFDCA, 21 U.S.C. 346a(q), requires EPA to 
review tolerances and exemptions for pesticide residues in effect as of 
August 2, 1996, to determine whether the tolerance or exemption meets 
the requirements of section 408(b)(2) or (c)(2) of FFDCA. This review 
is to be completed by August 3, 2006.

List of Subjects

    Environmental protection, Pesticides and pests.

    Dated: July 7, 2005.
Peter Caulkins,
Acting Director, Special Review and Reregistration Division, Office of 
Pesticide Programs.
[FR Doc. 05-13779 Filed 7-12-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-S