[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 248 (Wednesday, December 27, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 77742-77743]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-22146]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-8262-3]


Science Advisory Board Staff Office; EPA Clean Air Scientific 
Advisory Committee (CASAC); CASAC Ozone Review Panel Notification of a 
Public Advisory Committee Meeting (Teleconference)

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 teleconference of 
the Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC) Ozone Review Panel 
(CASAC Panel) to review EPA's Final Review of the National Ambient Air 
Quality Standards for Ozone: Policy Assessment of Scientific and 
Technical Information (Final Ozone Staff Paper, January 2007), focusing 
on Chapter 6 (The Primary O3 NAAQS) and Chapter 8 (The Secondary O3 
NAAQS).

DATE: The teleconference meeting will be held on Monday, January 29, 
2007, from 1 to 5 p.m. (Eastern Time).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Any member of the public who wishes to 
obtain the teleconference call-in number and access code; submit a 
written or brief oral statement (three minutes or less); or receive 
further information concerning this teleconference meeting, must 
contact Mr. Fred Butterfield, Designated Federal Officer (DFO). Mr. 
Butterfield may be contacted at the EPA Science Advisory Board (1400F), 
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., 
Washington, DC 20460; or 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 SAB can be found on the EPA 
Web site at http://www.epa.gov/sab.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Background: The CASAC, which is comprised of 
seven members appointed by the EPA Administrator, was established under 
section 109(d)(2) of the Clean Air Act (CAA or Act) (42 U.S.C. 7409) as 
an independent scientific advisory committee. The CASAC provides 
advice, information and recommendations on the scientific and technical 
aspects of issues related to air quality criteria and NAAQS under 
sections 108 and 109 of the Act. The CASAC is chartered under the 
Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), as amended, 5 U.S.C., App. The 
CASAC Ozone Review Panel consists of the seven CASAC members 
supplemented by subject-matter-experts. The CASAC Ozone Review Panel 
provides advice and recommendations to EPA concerning ozone and related 
photochemical oxidants in ambient air. The Panel complies with the 
provisions of FACA and all appropriate SAB Staff Office procedural 
policies.
    Section 109(d)(1) of the CAA requires that the Agency periodically 
review and revise, as appropriate, the air quality criteria and the 
national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) for the six ``criteria'' 
air pollutants, including ambient ozone. Pursuant to sections 108 and 
109 of the Act, EPA is in the process of reviewing the ozone NAAQS, 
which the Agency most recently revised in July 1997. EPA's Office of 
Air Quality

[[Page 77743]]

Planning and Standards (OAQPS), within the Office of Air and Radiation 
(OAR), will publish a Final Ozone Staff Paper as part of its review of 
the ozone NAAQS. The Final Ozone Staff Paper evaluates the policy 
implications of the key scientific and technical information contained 
in the Agency's final Air Quality Criteria for Ozone and Related 
Photochemical Oxidants, Volumes I, II, and III, (EPA/600/R-05/004aF-cF, 
February 2006), and identifies critical elements that EPA believes 
should be considered in its review of the ozone NAAQS. The Ozone Staff 
Paper is intended to ``bridge the gap'' between the scientific review 
contained in the Ozone Air Quality Criteria Document (AQCD) and the 
public health and welfare policy judgments required of the EPA 
Administrator in reviewing the ozone NAAQS. EPA solicited advice and 
recommendations from the CASAC Panel on the First Draft Ozone Staff 
Paper (November 2005) in a public meeting on December 8, 2005, in 
Durham, NC. The CASAC's letter to the EPA Administrator (EPA-CASAC-CON-
06-003, dated February 16, 2006) is posted on the SAB Web Site at 
http://www.epa.gov/sab/pdf/casac_con_06_003.pdf. In addition, EPA 
solicited the Panel's advice and recommendations on the Second Draft 
Ozone Staff Paper (July 2006) in a public meeting on August 24-25, 
2006, in Durham, NC. The CASAC's letter to the Administrator (EPA-
CASAC-07-001, dated October 24, 2006) is posted on the SAB Web site at 
http://www.epa.gov/sab/pdf/casac-07-001.pdf. In that letter, the CASAC 
indicated it would review the Agency's Final Ozone Staff Paper and 
offer additional, unsolicited advice to the Agency on Chapter 6 (The 
Primary O3 NAAQS) and Chapter 8 (The Secondary O3 NAAQS). The purpose 
of such advice is to advise EPA as it develops a proposed rule for 
ozone and related photochemical oxidants. This teleconference meeting 
continues the CASAC Ozone Review Panel's advisory activities in the 
current review cycle for the ozone NAAQS.
    Technical Contact: Any questions concerning the Agency's Final 
Ozone Staff Paper should be directed to Dr. Dave McKee, OAQPS, at 
phone: (919) 541-5288, or e-mail: [email protected].
    Availability of Meeting Materials: The Final Ozone Staff Paper will 
be posted on or about January 5, 2007 on the Agency's Technology 
Transfer Network (TTN) Web site at http://www.epa.gov/ttn/naaqs/standards/ozone/s_o3_index.html. The document may be accessed in the 
``Documents for Current Review'' section under ``Staff Papers.'' A copy 
of the draft agenda and other materials for this CASAC teleconference 
will be posted on the SAB Web site at: http://www.epa.gov/sab/panels/casacorpanel.html prior to the meeting.
    Procedures for Providing Public Input: Interested members of the 
public may submit relevant written or oral information for the CASAC 
Ozone Review Panel to consider during the advisory process. Oral 
Statements: In general, individuals or groups requesting an oral 
presentation at a public teleconference will be limited to three 
minutes per speaker, with no more than a total of 30 minutes for all 
speakers. Interested parties should contact Mr. Butterfield, CASAC DFO, 
in writing (preferably via e-mail), by January 22, 2007, at the contact 
information noted above, to be placed on the list of public speakers 
for this meeting. Written Statements: Written statements should be 
received in the SAB Staff Office by January 26, 2007, so that the 
information may be made available to the CASAC Panel for their 
consideration prior to this teleconference. Written statements should 
be supplied to the DFO in the following formats: one hard copy with 
original signature, and one electronic copy via e-mail (acceptable file 
format: Adobe Acrobat PDF, WordPerfect, MS Word, MS PowerPoint, or Rich 
Text files in IBM-PC/Windows 98/2000/XP format).
    Accessibility: For information on access or services for 
individuals with disabilities, please contact Mr. Butterfield at the 
phone number or e-mail address noted above, preferably at least ten 
days prior to the meeting, to give EPA as much time as possible to 
process your request.

    Dated: December 19, 2006.
Vanessa Vu,
Director, EPA Science Advisory Board Staff Office.
[FR Doc. E6-22146 Filed 12-26-06; 8:45 am]
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