[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 101 (Friday, May 25, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 29317-29319]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-10117]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OPPT-2007-0279; FRL-8130-7]


Army Chemical Agent Rocket Incinerator Approval to Dispose of 
Polychlorinated Biphenyls under the Toxic Substances Control Act; 
Notice of Application to Renew, Data Availability, and Modification of 
Existing Approval

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Department of the Army (Army) has applied to renew an 
approval to dispose of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) under the Toxic 
Substances Control Act (TSCA). The renewal would allow the Army to 
continue to incinerate M55 chemical agent rockets containing PCBs using 
the Deactivation Furnace Systems (DFS). This action announces: EPA's 
consideration of the Army's application, the availability of trial burn 
data that will inform EPA's consideration, and the modification of the 
public participation condition of the Army's existing approval. EPA is 
requesting comments on the renewal application and trial burn data.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before June 11, 2007].

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by docket identification 
(ID) number EPA-HQ-OPPT-2007-0279, by one of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the on-line instructions for submitting comments.
     Mail: Document Control Office (7407M), Office of Pollution 
Prevention and Toxics (OPPT), Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 
Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001.
     Hand Delivery: OPPT Document Control Office (DCO), EPA 
East Bldg., Rm. 6428, 1201 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. 
Attention: Docket ID Number EPA-HQ-OPPT-2007-0279. The DCO is open from 
8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The 
telephone number for the DCO is (202) 564-8930. Such deliveries are 
only accepted during the DCO's normal hours of operation, and special 
arrangements should be made for deliveries of boxed information.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to docket ID number EPA-HQ-OPPT-
2007-0279. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included 
in the docket without change and may be made available on-line at 
http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information 
provided, unless the comment includes information claimed to be 
Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose 
disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit information that you 
consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through regulations.gov or e-
mail. The regulations.gov website is an ``anonymous access'' system, 
which 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 regulations.gov, 
your e-mail address will be automatically captured and included as part 
of the comment that is placed in the 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 the EPA Docket Center 
homepage at http://www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm.
    Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the docket index 
available in regulations.gov. To access the electronic docket, go to 
http://www.regulations.gov, select ``Advanced Search,'' then ``Docket 
Search.'' Insert the docket ID number where indicated and select the 
``Submit'' button. Follow the instructions on the regulations.gov 
website to view the docket index or access available documents. 
Although listed in the index, some information is not publicly 
available, e.g., CBI or other information whose disclosure is 
restricted by statute. Certain other material, such as copyrighted 
material, will be publicly available only in hard copy. In this 
instance, because of the enormity of the volume of data, EPA has posted 
a summary (entitled ``Executive Summary'') of the trial burn report 
from each facility. If the interested party needs more information than 
is found in the Executive Summary, complete trial burn data is 
available on compact disc (CD). To obtain a CD, please contact the 
technical information contact listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT. Publicly available docket materials are available 
electronically at http://www.regulations.gov, or, if only available in 
hard copy, at the OPPT Docket. The OPPT Docket is located in the EPA 
Docket Center (EPA/DC) at Rm. 3334, EPA West Bldg., 1301 Constitution 
Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The EPA/DC Public Reading Room hours of 
operation are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding 
Federal holidays. The telephone number of the EPA/DC Public Reading 
Room is (202) 566-1744, and the telephone number for the OPPT Docket is 
(202) 566-0280. Docket visitors are required to show photographic 
identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor 
log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and 
subject to search. Visitors will be provided an EPA/DC badge that must 
be visible at all times in the building and returned upon departure.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For general information contact: Colby 
Lintner, Regulatory Coordinator, Environmental Assistance Division 
(7408M), Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics, Environmental 
Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-
0001; telephone number: (202) 554-1404; e-mail address: [email protected].
    For technical information contact: Hiroshi Dodohara, National 
Program Chemicals Division (7404T), Office of Pollution Prevention and 
Toxics, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., 
Washington,

[[Page 29318]]

DC 20460-0001; telephone number: (202) 566-0507; e-mail address: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. General Information

A. Does this Action Apply to Me?

    Potentially affected entities may include, but are not limited to:
     Department of the Army (NAICS code 928110).
     Residents or homeowners located near the affected 
incinerators.
    This list is not intended to be exhaustive, but rather provides a 
guide for readers regarding entities likely to be affected by this 
action. Other types of entities not listed in this unit could also be 
affected. The North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) 
codes have been provided to assist you and others in determining 
whether this action might apply to certain entities. If you have any 
questions regarding the applicability of this action to a particular 
entity, consult the technical person listed under FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT.

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

    1. Submitting CBI. Do not submit this information to EPA through 
regulations.gov or e-mail. Clearly mark the part or all of the 
information that you claim to be CBI. For CBI information in a disk or 
CD-ROM that you mail to EPA, mark the outside of the disk or CD-ROM 
that you mail to EPA, 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 claimed as CBI. In addition to one complete version 
of the comment that includes 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. Information so marked 
will not be disclosed except in accordance with procedures set forth in 
40 CFR part 2.
    2. Tips for preparing your comments. When submitting comments, 
remember to:
    i. Identify the document by docket ID number and other identifying 
information (subject heading, Federal Register date and page number).
    ii. Follow directions. The Agency may ask you to respond to 
specific questions or organize comments by referencing a Code of 
Federal Regulations (CFR) part or section number.
    iii. Explain why you agree or disagree; suggest alternatives and 
substitute language for your requested changes.
    iv. Describe any assumptions and provide any technical information 
and/or data that you used.
    v. If you estimate potential costs or burdens, explain how you 
arrived at your estimate in sufficient detail to allow for it to be 
reproduced.
    vi. Provide specific examples to illustrate your concerns and 
suggest alternatives.
    vii. Explain your views as clearly as possible, avoiding the use of 
profanity or personal threats.
    viii. Make sure to submit your comments by the comment period 
deadline identified.

II. What Action is the Agency Taking?

A. Background

    In 2002, EPA issued a PCB disposal approval under TSCA section 6(e) 
and 40 CFR 761.70(d) to the Army to allow for the incineration of M55 
chemical agent rockets containing PCBs using Deactivation Furnace 
Systems (DFS). The existing approval is included in the docket for this 
notice. The approval allows for the disposal to occur at four separate 
facilities: Anniston Chemical Agent Disposal Facility, Anniston Army 
Depot, Anniston, Alabama (ANCDF); Pine Bluff Chemical Agent Disposal 
Facility, Pine Bluff Arsenal, Pine Bluff, Arkansas (PBCDF); Tooele 
Chemical Agent Disposal Facility, Deseret Chemical Depot, Tooele, Utah 
(TOCDF); and Umatilla Chemical Agent Disposal Facility, Umatilla 
Chemical Depot, near Hermiston, Oregon (UMCDF). The Army has now 
applied to renew that approval, which is currently set to expire July 
6, 2007. The Army's renewal application only applies to PBCDF and 
UMCDF; the other two facilities have completed operations.

B. Application for Renewal

    EPA is considering the Army's request for renewal. The renewal 
would allow the Army to continue to incinerate M55 chemical agent 
rockets containing PCBs using DFS at the remaining two sites. Based on 
the trial burn results, EPA believes the conditions in the current TSCA 
approval are necessary and adequate to ensure proper disposal of PCBs 
in compliance with TSCA. However, both PBCDF and UMCDF are currently 
operating under Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) permits 
as well as the existing PCB approval. These RCRA permits impose several 
of the same operating conditions as are required by the current TSCA 
approval. Thus, in order to coordinate the requirements of the two 
programs, EPA does not plan to include the duplicative conditions in 
the renewed TCSA approval. EPA intends for the renewal to only retain 
the operating conditions from the current TSCA approval that are more 
stringent than those provided in the RCRA permits. These more stringent 
conditions, combined with the condition that the facilities maintain 
valid RCRA permits, will ensure proper disposal of PCBs in compliance 
with TSCA. For example, EPA plans to retain a target value for the 
secondary combustor operating temperature based on conditions during 
the trial burn. In addition, the carbon monoxide concentration in the 
flue gas that triggers the automatic waste feed cutoff (AWFCO) would be 
100 parts per million based on real time, with a 5-minute delay.

C. Availability of Trial Burn Data

    This action also announces the availability of trial burn data from 
PBCDF and UMCDF. The current approval required certain sampling for 
PCBs at each DFS unit:
    1. Stack sampling for PCBs.
    2. Sampling of kiln/HDC (heated discharge conveyor) residue.
    3. Cyclone residue.
    4. Scrubber brine for PCB analysis.
    The purpose of the trial burns was to demonstrate whether the DFS 
units meet the PCB incinerator performance standards. These results 
showed that the standards were met, and the data are now available.

D. Approval Modification

    Condition 1.d.(3) of the existing approval, provides that: ``EPA 
will hold a public meeting in each community after the trial burn data 
in each respective facility becomes available.'' (A copy of Condition 
1.d.(3) is available in the docket for this document.) Effective at the 
time of publication of this notice, EPA is hereby modifying the 
existing approval to remove that condition for the remainder of the 
approval. Meetings were conducted before and after-trial-burn data 
became available at ANCDF and TOCDF, but participation was very limited 
at the post-trial-burn meetings. No members of the public appeared at 
meetings previously held at PBCDF and UMCDF. Based on the lack of 
public participation, EPA is changing the public participation process 
to include a broader audience and a 15-day opportunity for comment. 
Trial burn data will be available to the public through the docket and 
in lieu of conducting additional public meetings at PBCDF and UMCDF, 
EPA is allowing for the submission of comments, in written or 
electronic format.


[[Page 29319]]



List of Subjects

    Environmental protection, Hazardous substances, Polychlorinated 
biphenyls (PCBs), Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

    Dated: May 21, 2007.
Wendy C. Hamnett,
Acting Director, Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics.
[FR Doc. E7-10117 Filed 5-24-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-S