[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 206 (Wednesday, October 26, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 61819-61820]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-21367]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[OW-2004-0032; FRL-7988-5]
RIN 2040-AE76


Extension of Comment Period for the Preliminary 2006 Effluent 
Guidelines Program Plan

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Extension of comment period.

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SUMMARY: EPA is extending the comment period for the Agency's completed 
2005 annual review and pending 2006 annual reviews of existing effluent 
limitations guidelines and pretreatment standards under the Clean Water 
Act (CWA) sections 301(d), 304(b), 304(g), and 307(b), and the 
Preliminary 2006 Effluent Guidelines Program Plan under CWA section 
304(m). EPA is also extending a second comment period on the draft 
Strategy for National Clean Water Industrial Regulations (``draft 
Strategy'') (67 FR 71165; November 29, 2002). EPA noticed the start of 
these comment periods on August 29, 2005 (70 FR 51042). In response to 
requests from several stakeholders, this action extends both comment 
periods for 30 days.

DATES: EPA must receive your comments on or before November 28, 2005.

ADDRESSES: Identify your comments, data and information relating to the 
Agency's draft Strategy; by Docket ID No. OW-2002-0020. Identify all 
other comments, data and information relating to the August 29, 2005 
notice by Docket ID No. OW-2004-0032. Submit your comments, data and 
information by one of the following methods:
    A. Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow 
the on-line instructions for submitting comments.
    B. Agency Web site: http://www.epa.gov/edocket. EDOCKET, EPA's 
electronic public docket and comment system, is EPA's preferred method 
for receiving comments, data, and information. Follow the on-line 
instructions for submitting comments.
    C. E-mail: [email protected].
    D. Mail: Water Docket, Environmental Protection Agency, Mailcode: 
4101T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460, Attention 
Docket ID No. OW-2004-0032. For comments, data, and information on the 
draft Strategy, use Docket ID No. OW-2002-0020.
    E. Hand Delivery: Water Docket, EPA Docket Center, EPA West, Room 
B102, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC, Attention Docket ID 
No. OW-2004-0032. Use Docket ID No. OW-2002-0020 for comments, data, 
and information on the draft Strategy. Such deliveries are only 
accepted during the Docket's normal hours of operation, and special 
arrangements should be made for deliveries of boxed information.
    Instructions: Direct your comments, data, and information to Docket 
ID No. OW-2004-0032. For comments, data, and information on the draft 
Strategy, use Docket ID No. OW-2002-0020. EPA's policy is that all 
comments, data, and information received will be included in the public 
docket without change and may be made available online at http://www.epa.gov/edocket, including any personal information provided, 
unless the material includes information claimed to be Confidential 
Business Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is 
restricted by statute. Do not submit through EDOCKET, regulations.gov, 
or e-mail information that you consider to be CBI or otherwise 
protected. The EPA EDOCKET and the federal regulations.gov Web sites 
are ``anonymous access'' systems, which

[[Page 61820]]

means EPA will not know your identity or contact information unless you 
provide it in the body of your comment. If you send an e-mail comment 
directly to EPA without going through EDOCKET or regulations.gov, your 
e-mail address will be automatically captured and included as part of 
the comment that is placed in the public docket and made available on 
the Internet. If you submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that 
you include your name and other contact information in the body of your 
comment and with any disk or CD-ROM you submit. 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. Electronic 
files should avoid the use of special characters, any form of 
encryption, and be free of any defects or viruses. For additional 
information about EPA's public docket visit EDOCKET on-line or see the 
Federal Register of May 31, 2002 (67 FR 38102). For additional 
instructions on obtaining access to comments, go to section I.B of the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.
    Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the EDOCKET index 
at http://www.epa.gov/edocket. Although listed in the index, some 
information is not publicly available, i.e., CBI or other information 
whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such 
as copyrighted material, is not placed on the Internet and will be 
publicly available only in hard copy form. Publicly available docket 
materials are available either electronically in EDOCKET or in hard 
copy at the Water Docket, EPA/DC, EPA West, Room B102, 1301 
Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The Public Reading Room is open 
from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding Federal 
holidays. The telephone number for the Public Reading Room is (202) 
566-1744, and the telephone number for the Water Docket is (202) 566-
2426.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Carey A. Johnston at (202) 566-
1014 or [email protected], or Ms. Jan Matuszko at (202) 566-1035 
or [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On August 29, 2005 (70 FR 51042), EPA 
solicited comment on the Agency's completed 2005 annual review and 
pending 2006 annual reviews of existing effluent limitations guidelines 
and pretreatment standards under CWA sections 301(d), 304(b), 304(g), 
and 307(b), and the Preliminary 2006 Effluent Guidelines Program Plan 
under CWA section 304(m). EPA also opened a second comment period on 
the draft Strategy for National Clean Water Industrial Regulations 
(``draft Strategy'') (see 67 FR 71165, November 29, 2002). The August 
29, 2005 notice describes: (1) The Agency's 2005 annual review of 
existing effluent limitations guidelines and pretreatment standards 
under the Clean Water Act (CWA) sections 301(d), 304(b), 304(g), and 
307(b); (2) EPA's review of indirect dischargers without categorical 
pretreatment standards to identify potential new categories for 
pretreatment standards under CWA sections 304(g) and 307(b); and (3) 
the preliminary 2006 effluent guidelines program plan under CWA section 
304(m) (``Plan''). EPA anticipates completing the final 2006 Plan by 
August 2006. As required by CWA section 304(m), the final Plan will: 
(1) Present a schedule for EPA's annual review of existing effluent 
guidelines under CWA section 304(b) and a schedule for any effluent 
guidelines revisions; and (2) identify industries for which EPA has not 
promulgated effluent guidelines but may decide to do so through 
rulemaking and a schedule for these rulemakings.
    The original comment deadline was October 28, 2005. Numerous 
stakeholders have requested an extension to the comment period in order 
to adequately understand and provide comments. Additionally, one 
commenter requested more time due to the difficulty of coordinating 
with Gulf Coast facilities that were recently incapacitated by 
hurricanes Rita and Katrina. This action extends the comment period for 
30 days.

    Dated: October 20, 2005.
Benjamin H. Grumbles,
Assistant Administrator for Water.
[FR Doc. 05-21367 Filed 10-25-05; 8:45 am]
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