[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 231 (Friday, December 1, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 69564-69565]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-20294]


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

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-8249-9]


An Inventory of Sources and Environmental Releases of Dioxin-Like 
Compounds in the United States for the Years 1987, 1995 and 2000

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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

SUMMARY: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing 
the availability of a final report titled, ``An Inventory of Sources 
and Environmental Releases of Dioxin-Like Compounds in the United 
States for the Years 1987, 1995 and 2000'' (EPA/600/P-03/002F), which 
was prepared by the National Center for Environmental Assessment (NCEA) 
within EPA's Office of Research and Development (ORD).

DATES: This document will be available on or about December 1, 2006.

ADDRESSES: The document will be available electronically through the 
NCEA Web site at http://www.epa.gov/ncea. A limited number of paper 
copies will be available from the EPA's National Service Center for 
Environmental Publications (NSCEP), P.O. Box 42419, Cincinnati, OH 
45242; telephone: 1-800-490-9198; facsimile: 302-604-3408; e-mail: 
lmit.com">nscep@bps-lmit.com. Please provide your name, your mailing address, the 
title and the EPA number of the requested publication.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The Technical Information Staff, 
National Center for Environmental Assessment/Washington Office (8623D), 
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., 
Washington, DC 20460. Telephone: 202-564-3261; fax: 202-565-0050; e-
mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The purpose of this report is to present a 
comprehensive inventory and overview of sources and environmental 
releases of dioxin-like compounds in the United States. The major 
identified sources of environmental releases of dioxin-like compounds 
are grouped into six broad categories: Combustion sources, metals 
smelting, refining and process sources, chemical manufacturing sources, 
natural sources, and environmental reservoirs. Estimates of annual 
releases to land, air, and water are presented for each source category 
and summarized for reference years 1987, 1995 and 2000. The 
quantitative results are expressed in terms of the toxicity equivalent 
(TEQ) of the mixture of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxin (CDD) and 
polychlorinated dibenzofuran (CDF) compounds present in environmental 
releases using a procedure sanctioned by the World Health Organization 
(WHO) in 1998. This TEQ procedure translates the complex mixture of 
CDDs and CDFs characteristic of environmental releases into an 
equivalent toxicity concentration of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-
dioxin (2,3,7,8-TCDD), the most toxic member of this class of 
compounds. Using this WHO procedure, the annual releases of 
TEQDF-WHO98 to the U.S. environment over the 
three reference years are 13,965 g in 1987, 3,444 g in 1995, and 1,422 
g in 2000. This analysis indicates that between reference years 1987 
and 2000, there was approximately a 90% reduction in the releases of 
dioxin-like compounds to the circulating environment of the United 
States from all known sources combined. In 1987 and 1995, the leading 
source of dioxin emissions to the U.S. environment was municipal waste 
combustion; however, because of reductions in dioxin emissions from 
municipal waste combustors, it dropped to the fourth ranked source in 
2000. Burning of domestic refuse in backyard burn barrels remained 
fairly constant over the years, but in 2000, it emerged as the largest 
source of dioxin emissions to the U.S. environment.


[[Page 69565]]


    Dated: November 22, 2006.
George Alapas,
Deputy Director, National Center for Environmental Assessment.
 [FR Doc. E6-20294 Filed 11-30-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P