[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 124 (Thursday, June 28, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35462-35463]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-12569]



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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-8332-9; Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-ORD-2007-0517]


Integrated Science Assessment for Particulate Matter

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Notice; call for information.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Office of 
Research and Development National Center for Environmental Assessment 
(NCEA) is preparing an Integrated Science Assessment (ISA) as part of 
the review of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for 
particulate matter (PM). This ISA is intended to update and revise, 
where appropriate, the scientific assessment presented in the Air 
Quality Criteria for Particulate Matter (PM), EPA/600/P-99/002aF-bF, 
published in October 2004. Interested parties are invited to assist the 
EPA in developing and refining the scientific information base for PM 
by submitting research studies that have been published, accepted for 
publication, or presented at a public scientific meeting.

DATES: All communications and information should be submitted by August 
27, 2007.

ADDRESSES: Information may be submitted electronically, by mail, by 
facsimile, or by hand delivery/courier. Please follow the detailed 
instructions as provided in the section of this notice entitled 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For details on submitting research 
information from the public, contact the Office of Environmental 
Information (OEI) Docket; telephone: 202-566-1752; facsimile: 202-566-
1753; or e-mail: [email protected]. For technical information, contact 
Lori White, PhD, NCEA; telephone: 919-541-3146; facsimile: 919-541-
1818; or e-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Information About the Project

    Section 108(a) of the Clean Air Act (CAA) directs the Administrator 
to identify certain pollutants which ``in his judgment, may reasonably 
be anticipated to endanger public health and welfare'' and whose 
``presence * * * in the ambient air results from numerous or diverse 
mobile or stationary sources'' and to issue air quality criteria for 
them. These air quality criteria are to ``accurately reflect the latest 
scientific knowledge useful in indicating the kind and extent of all 
identifiable effects on public health or welfare which may be expected 
from the presence of [a] pollutant in the ambient air. * * *'' Under 
section 109 of the CAA, EPA establishes National Ambient Air Quality 
Standards (NAAQS) for each pollutant for which EPA has issued criteria. 
Section 109(d) requires periodic review and, if appropriate, revision 
of existing air quality criteria to reflect advances in scientific 
knowledge on the effects of the pollutant on public health and welfare. 
EPA is then to revise the NAAQS, if appropriate, based on the revised 
air quality criteria.
    Particulate matter is one of six principal (or ``criteria'') 
pollutants for which EPA has established NAAQS. Periodically, EPA 
reviews the scientific basis for these standards by preparing an 
Integrated Science Assessment (ISA), historically referred to as an Air 
Quality Criteria Document (AQCD). The ISA and supplementary annexes are 
the scientific bases for the additional technical and policy 
assessments that form the basis for EPA decisions on the adequacy of a 
current NAAQS and the appropriateness of new or revised standards. 
Early steps in this process include announcing the beginning of this 
periodic NAAQS review and the development of the ISA and requesting 
that the public submit scientific literature that they want to bring to 
the attention of the Agency as it begins this process. The Clean Air 
Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC), an independent science advisory 
committee whose function is mandated by section 109(d)(2) of the CAA, 
is charged with independent expert scientific review of EPA's draft 
ISAs. As the process proceeds, the public will have opportunities to 
review and comment on the draft PM ISA. These opportunities will also 
be announced in the Federal Register. Since completion of the 2004 Air 
Quality Criteria for PM, EPA has continued to follow the scientific 
research on PM exposure and its effects on health and the environment. 
On July 21, 2006, EPA published a Provisional Assessment of Recent 
Studies on Health Effects of Particulate Matter Exposure (EPA/600/R-06/
063) which presents findings of EPA's survey and provisional assessment 
of studies relevant to assessing the health effects of PM that were 
published too recently to be included in the 2004 PM AQCD. (71 FR 
41409-10)
    The Agency is interested in obtaining additional new information 
relevant to this review of the NAAQS for PM. We are especially 
interested in information concerning: (a) Toxicological studies of 
effects of controlled exposure to PM on laboratory animals, humans, and 
in vitro systems; (b) epidemiologic (observational) studies of health 
effects associated with ambient exposures of human populations to PM; 
and (c) ecological studies of the effects on agricultural crops and 
natural terrestrial and/or aquatic ecosystems of ambient exposures to 
PM. EPA also seeks recent information in other areas of PM research 
such as chemistry and physics, sources and emissions, analytical 
methodology, transport and transformation in the environment, and 
ambient concentrations. This and other selected literature relevant to 
a review of the NAAQS for PM will be assessed in the forthcoming PM 
ISA. One or more drafts of the PM ISA are expected to be made available 
by EPA for public comment and CASAC review during 2008 and 2009. Other 
opportunities for submission of new peer-reviewed, published (or in-
press) papers will be possible as part of public comment on the 
additional draft documents that will be reviewed by CASAC. As part of 
this review of the PM NAAQS, EPA is also sponsoring a workshop 
entitled, ``Workshop to Discuss Policy-Relevant Science to Inform EPA's 
Integrated Plan for the Review of the Primary Particulate Matter (PM) 
National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS)'' to highlight 
significant new and emerging PM research, and to make recommendations 
to the Agency regarding the design and scope of the review for the 
primary (health-based) PM standards to ensure that it addresses key 
policy-relevant issues and considers the new science that is relevant 
to informing our understanding of these issues. (72 FR 34003-04).

II. How To Submit Information to the Docket at www.regulations.gov.

    Submit your materials, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-ORD-2007-
0517 by one of the following methods:
     http://www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line 
instructions for submitting information.
     E-mail: [email protected].
     Fax: 202-566-1753.
     Mail: Office of Environmental Information (OEI) Docket 
(Mail Code: 2822T), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 
Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460. The phone number is 202-
566-1752.
     Hand Delivery: The OEI Docket is located in the EPA 
Headquarters Docket Center, Room 3334 EPA West Building, 1301 
Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The EPA Docket Center Public 
Reading Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday

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through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the 
Public Reading Room is 202-566-1744. Such deliveries are only accepted 
during the docket's normal hours of operation, and special arrangements 
should be made for deliveries of boxed information.
    If you provide information by mail or hand delivery, please submit 
three copies of the materials. For attachments, provide an index, 
number pages consecutively, and submit an unbound original and three 
copies.
    Instructions: Direct your materials to Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-ORD-
2007-0517. It is EPA's policy to include all submitted materials in the 
public docket without change and to make the information available 
online at http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal 
information provided, unless it 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 http://www.regulations.gov or e-mail. The http://www.regulations.gov Web site 
is an ``anonymous access'' system, which means EPA will not know your 
identity or contact information unless you provide it within the 
submitted materials. If you submit information directly to EPA by e-
mail without going through http://www.regulations.gov, your e-mail 
address will be automatically captured and included as part of the 
information that is placed in the public docket and made available on 
the Internet. If you submit materials electronically, 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 submitted material due to technical difficulties and cannot 
contact you for clarification, EPA may not be able to consider your 
submission. 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: Documents in the docket are listed in the http://www.regulations.gov index. 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 materials, 
such as copyrighted material, are publicly available only in hard copy. 
Publicly available docket materials are available either electronically 
in http://www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the OEI Docket in the 
EPA Headquarters Docket Center.

    Dated: June 22, 2007.
Peter W. Preuss,
Director,National Center for Environmental Assessment.
 [FR Doc. E7-12569 Filed 6-27-07; 8:45 am]
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