[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 241 (Monday, December 17, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 71405-71407]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-24371]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OECA-2007-0468; FRL-8507-6]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to OMB for 
Review and Approval; Comment Request; Environmental Impact Assessment 
of Nongovernmental Activities in Antarctica (Renewal); EPA ICR No. 
1808.05, OMB Control No. 2020-0007

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) (44 
U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this document announces that an Information 
Collection Request (ICR) has been forwarded to the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. This is a request to renew an 
existing approved collection. The ICR, which is abstracted below, 
describes the nature of the information collection and its estimated 
burden and cost.

DATES: Additional comments may be submitted on or before January 16, 
2008.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, referencing Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OECA-
2007-0468, to (1) EPA online using www.regulations.gov (our preferred 
method), by email to [email protected], or by mail to: EPA Docket 
Center, Environmental Protection Agency, Enforcement and Compliance 
Docket; Environmental Protection Agency; Mailcode: 2822T, 1200 
Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460, and (2) OMB by mail to: 
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB), Attention: Desk Officer for EPA, 725 17th Street, NW., 
Washington, DC 20503.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Aimee Hessert, NEPA Compliance 
Division, Office of Federal Activities, (Mail Code 2252A), 
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., 
Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: (202) 564-0993; fax number: 
(202) 564-0072; e-mail address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: EPA has submitted the following ICR to OMB 
for review and approval according to the procedures prescribed in 5 CFR 
1320.12. On June 12, 2007 (72 FR 32292), EPA sought comments on this 
ICR pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.8(d). EPA received 1 comment during the 
comment period, which is addressed in the ICR. Any additional comments 
on this ICR should be submitted to EPA and OMB within 30 days of this 
notice.
    EPA has established a public docket for this ICR under Docket ID 
No. EPA-HQ-OECA-2007-0468, which is available for online viewing at 
www.regulations.gov, or in person viewing at the Enforcement and 
Compliance Docket in the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), EPA West, Room 
3334, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The EPA/DC Public 
Reading Room is open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the Reading Room is 
202-566-1744, and the telephone number for the Enforcement and 
Compliance Docket is 202-564-7152.
    Use EPA's electronic docket and comment system at 
www.regulations.gov, to submit or view public comments, access the 
index listing of the contents of the docket, and to access those 
documents in the docket that are available electronically. Once in the 
system, select ``docket search,'' then key in the docket ID number 
identified above. Please note that EPA's policy is that public 
comments, whether submitted electronically or in paper, will be made 
available for public viewing at www.regulations.gov as EPA receives 
them and without change, unless the comment contains copyrighted 
material, Confidential Business Information (CBI), or other information 
whose public disclosure is restricted by statute. For further 
information about the electronic docket, go to www.regulations.gov.
    Title: Environmental Impact Assessment of Nongovernmental 
Activities in Antarctica (Renewal).
    ICR numbers: EPA ICR No. 1808.05, OMB Control No. 2020-0007.
    ICR Status: This ICR is scheduled to expire on December 31, 2007. 
Under OMB regulations, the Agency may continue to conduct or sponsor 
the collection of information while this submission is pending at OMB. 
An Agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to 
respond to, a collection of information, unless it displays a currently 
valid OMB control number. The OMB control numbers for EPA's regulations 
in title 40 of the CFR, after appearing in the Federal Register when 
approved, are listed in 40 CFR part 9, are displayed either by 
publication in the Federal Register or

[[Page 71406]]

by other appropriate means, such as on the related collection 
instrument or form, if applicable. The display of OMB control numbers 
in certain EPA regulations is consolidated in 40 CFR part 9.
    Abstract: The Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) regulations 
at 40 CFR part 8, Environmental Impact Assessment of Nongovernmental 
Activities in Antarctica (Final Rule), were promulgated pursuant to the 
Antarctic Science, Tourism, and Conservation Act of 1996 (Act), 16 
U.S.C. 2401 et seq., as amended, 16 U.S.C. 2403a, which implements the 
Protocol on Environmental Protection (Protocol) to the Antarctic Treaty 
of 1959 (Treaty). The Final Rule provides for assessment of the 
environmental impacts of nongovernmental activities in Antarctica, 
including tourism, for which the United States is required to give 
advance notice under Paragraph 5 of Article VII of the Treaty, and for 
coordination of the review of information regarding environmental 
impact assessments received from other Parties under the Protocol. The 
requirements of the Final Rule apply to operators of nongovernmental 
expeditions organized or proceeding from the territory of the United 
States to Antarctica and include commercial and non-commercial 
expeditions. Expeditions may include ship-based tours; yacht, skiing or 
mountaineering expeditions; privately funded research expeditions; and 
other nongovernmental activities. The Final Rule does not apply to 
individual U.S. citizens or groups of citizens planning travel to 
Antarctica on an expedition for which they are not acting as an 
operator. (Operators, for example, typically acquire use of vessels or 
aircraft, hire expedition staff, plan itineraries, and undertake other 
organizational responsibilities.) The Final rule provides 
nongovernmental operators with the specific requirements they need to 
meet in order to comply with the requirements of Article 8 and Annex I 
to the Protocol. The provisions of the Final Rule are intended to 
ensure that potential environmental effects of nongovernmental 
activities undertaken in Antarctica are appropriately identified and 
considered by the operator during the planning process and that to the 
extent practicable appropriate environmental safeguards which would 
mitigate or prevent adverse impacts on the Antarctic environment are 
identified by the operator.
    Environmental Documentation. Persons subject to the Final Rule must 
prepare environmental documentation to support the operator's 
determination regarding the level of environmental impact of the 
proposed expedition. Environmental documentation includes a Preliminary 
Environmental Review Memorandum (PERM), an Initial Environmental 
Evaluation (IEE), or a Comprehensive Environmental Evaluation (CEE). 
The environmental document is submitted to the Office of Federal 
Activities (OFA). If the operator determines that an expedition may 
have: (1) Less than a minor or transitory impact, a PERM needs to be 
submitted no later than 180 days before the proposed departure to 
Antarctica; (2) no more than minor or transitory impacts, an IEE needs 
to be submitted no later than 90 days before the proposed departure; or 
(3) more than minor or transitory impacts, a CEE needs to be submitted. 
Operators who anticipate such activities are encouraged to consult with 
EPA as soon as possible regarding the date for submittal of the CEE. 
(Article 3(4), of Annex I of the Protocol requires that draft CEEs be 
distributed to all Parties and the Committee for Environmental 
Protection 120 days in advance of the next Antarctic Treaty 
Consultative Meeting (ATCM) at which the CEE may be addressed.)
    The Protocol and the Final Rule also require an operator to employ 
procedures to assess and provide a regular and verifiable record of the 
actual impacts of an activity which proceeds on the basis of an IEE or 
CEE. The record developed through these measures needs to be designed 
to: (a) Enable assessments to be made of the extent to which 
environmental impacts of nongovernmental expeditions are consistent 
with the Protocol; and (b) provide information useful for minimizing 
and mitigating those impacts and, where appropriate, on the need for 
suspension, cancellation, or modification of the activity. Moreover, an 
operator needs to monitor key environmental indicators for an activity 
proceeding on the basis of a CEE. An operator may also need to carry 
out monitoring in order to assess and verify the impact of an activity 
for which an IEE would be prepared. For activities that require an IEE, 
an operator should be able to use procedures currently being 
voluntarily utilized by operators to provide the required information. 
Should an activity require a CEE, the operator should consult with EPA 
to: (a) Identify the monitoring regime appropriate to that activity, 
and (b) determine whether and how the operator might utilize relevant 
monitoring data collected by the U.S. Antarctic Program. OFA would 
consult with the National Science Foundation and other interested 
Federal agencies regarding the monitoring regime.
    In cases of emergency related to the safety of human life or of 
ships, aircraft, equipment and facilities of high value, or the 
protection of the environment which would require an activity to be 
undertaken without completion of the documentation procedures set out 
in the Final Rule, the operator would need to notify the Department of 
State within 15 days of any activities which would have otherwise 
required preparation of a CEE, and provide a full explanation of the 
activities carried out within 45 days of those activities. (During the 
time the Interim Final and Final Rules have been in effect, there were 
no emergencies requiring notification by U.S. operators. An Interim 
Final Rule was in effect from April 30, 1997, until replaced on 
December 6, 2001, by the Final Rule).
    Environmental documents (e.g., PERM, IEE, CEE) are submitted to 
OFA. Environmental documents are reviewed by OFA, in consultation with 
the National Science Foundation and other interested Federal agencies, 
and also made available to other Parties and the public as required 
under the Protocol or otherwise requested. OFA notifies the public of 
document availability via the World Wide Web at: http://www.epa.gov/compliance/nepa/international/antarctica/index.html. The types of 
nongovernmental activities currently being carried out (e.g., ship-
based tours, land-based tours, flights, and privately funded research 
expeditions) are typically unlikely to have impacts that are more than 
minor or transitory, thus an IEE is the typical level of environmental 
documentation submitted. For the 1997-1998 through 2003-2004 austral 
summer seasons during the time the Interim Final Rule and Final Rule 
have been in effect, all respondents submitted IEEs with the exception 
of one PERM. Paperwork reduction provisions in the Final Rule that are 
used by the operators include: (a) Incorporation of material in the 
environmental document by referring to it in the IEE, (b) inclusion of 
all proposed expeditions by one operator within one IEE; (c) use of one 
IEE to address expeditions being carried out by more than one operator; 
and (d) use of multi-year environmental documentation to address 
proposed expeditions for a period of up to five consecutive austral 
summer seasons.
    Coordination of Review of Information Received from Other Parties 
to the Treaty. The Final Rule also provides for the coordination of 
review of information received from other Parties and the public 
availability of that information including: (1) A

[[Page 71407]]

description of national procedures for considering the environmental 
impacts of proposed activities; (2) an annual list of any IEEs and any 
decisions taken in consequence thereof; (3) significant information 
obtained and any action taken in consequence thereof with regard to 
monitoring from IEEs to CEEs; and (4) information in a final CEE. This 
provision fulfills the United States' obligation to meet the 
requirements of Article 6 of Annex I to the Protocol. The Department of 
State is responsible for coordination of these reviews of drafts with 
interested Federal agencies, and for public availability of documents 
and information. This portion of the Final Rule does not impose 
paperwork requirements on any nongovernmental person subject to U.S. 
regulation.
    An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required 
to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a 
currently valid OMB control number. The OMB control numbers for EPA's 
regulations in 40 CFR are listed in 40 CFR Part 9 and are identified on 
the form and/or instrument, if applicable.
    Burden Statement: The annual public reporting and recordkeeping 
burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 1663 
hours annually, or 72 hours per response. Burden means the total time, 
effort, or financial resources expended by persons to generate, 
maintain, retain, or disclose or provide information to or for a 
Federal agency. This includes the time needed to review instructions; 
develop, acquire, install, and utilize technology and systems for the 
purposes of collecting, validating, and verifying information, 
processing and maintaining information, and disclosing and providing 
information; adjust the existing ways to comply with any previously 
applicable instructions and requirements which have subsequently 
changed; train personnel to be able to respond to a collection of 
information; search data sources; complete and review the collection of 
information; and transmit or otherwise disclose the information.
    Respondents/Affected Entities: Most operators are ship-based or 
land-based tour operators. The SIC Code for Tour Operators is 4725 and 
the NAICS Code is 561520.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 23.
    Frequency of Response: Annually.
    Estimated Total Annual Hour Burden: 1663 hours.
    Estimated Total Annual Cost: $133,916, includes $4,219 annualized 
capital or O&M costs.
    Changes in the Estimates: There is an increase of 115 hours in the 
total estimated burden currently identified in the OMB Inventory of 
Approved ICR Burdens. This increase is the result of an increase in the 
number of respondents anticipated during the 3-year ICR renewal period 
and the level of environmental documentation EPA anticipates the 
respondents will submit.

    Dated: December 6, 2007.
Sara Hisel-McCoy,
Director, Collection Strategies Division.
 [FR Doc. E7-24371 Filed 12-14-07; 8:45 am]
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