[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 15 (Wednesday, January 23, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3969-3970]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-875]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OPP-2007-1165; FRL-8346-2]


Chlorantraniliprole; Receipt of Application for Emergency 
Exemption, Solicitation of Public Comment

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: EPA has received a specific exemption request from the 
Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry to use the pesticide 
chlorantraniliprole (CAS No. 500008-45-7) to treat up to 160,000 acres 
of rice to control rice water weevil.
    The applicant proposes the use of a new chemical which has not been 
registered by EPA. EPA is soliciting public comment before making the 
decision whether or not to grant the exemption.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before February 7, 2008.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by docket identification 
(ID) number EPA-HQ-OPP-2007-1165, by one of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the on-line instructions for submitting comments.
     Mail: Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) Regulatory Public 
Docket (7502P), Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania 
Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001.
     Delivery: OPP Regulatory Public Docket (7502P), 
Environmental Protection Agency, Rm. S-4400, One Potomac Yard (South 
Bldg.), 2777 S. Crystal Dr., Arlington, VA. Deliveries are only 
accepted during the Docket's normal hours of operation (8:30 a.m. to 4 
p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays). Special 
arrangements should be made for deliveries of boxed information. The 
Docket Facility telephone number is (703) 305-5805.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to docket ID number EPA-HQ-OPP-
2007-1165. 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.
    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, is not placed on the Internet and will be publicly available 
only in hard copy form. Publicly available docket materials are 
available either in the electronic docket at http://www.regulations.gov, or, if only available in hard copy, at the OPP 
Regulatory Public Docket in Rm. S-4400, One Potomac Yard (South Bldg.), 
2777 S. Crystal Dr., Arlington, VA. The hours of operation of this 
Docket Facility are from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
excluding legal holidays. The Docket Facility telephone number is (703) 
305-5805.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Marcel Howard, Registration Division 
(7505P), Office of Pesticide Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, 
1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001; telephone 
number: (703) 305-6784; fax number: (703) 605-0781; e-mail address: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

[[Page 3970]]

I. General Information

A. Does this Action Apply to Me?

    You may be potentially affected by this action if you are an 
agricultural producer, food manufacturer, or pesticide manufacturer. 
Potentially affected entities may include, but are not limited to:
     Crop production (NAICS code 111).
     Animal production (NAICS code 112).
     Food manufacturing (NAICS code 311).
     Pesticide manufacturing (NAICS code 32532).
    This listing 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. To determine 
whether you or your business may be affected by this action, you should 
carefully examine the applicability provisions in Unit II. If you have 
any questions regarding the applicability of this action to a 
particular entity, consult the 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 
www.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 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?

    Under section 18 of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and 
Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) (7 U.S.C. 136p), at the discretion of the 
Administrator, a Federal or State agency may be exempted from any 
provision of FIFRA if the Administrator determines that emergency 
conditions exist which require the exemption. The Louisiana Department 
of Agriculture and Forestry has requested the Administrator to issue a 
specific exemption for the use of chlorantraniliprole on rice seed to 
control rice water weevil. Information in accordance with 40 CFR part 
166 was submitted as part of this request.
    As part of this request, the Applicant asserts that rice water 
weevil infestations are becoming a severe pest problem in Louisiana. 
The favorable climatic conditions, abundant native habitat, persistent 
larvae population throughout growing season, and inadequate pest 
management options against the larvae of rice water weevil have allowed 
for the proliferation of this pest. In addition, the currently 
registered insecticides most effective against rice water weevil are 
highly toxic to crawfish, a major economic commodity of Louisiana co-
cultivated in rice fields or adjacent to them. The use of 
chlorantraniliprole is justified by reference to the following factors: 
(1) The severity of the rice water weevil as a pest of rice in 
Louisiana; (2) the inadequacy of the insecticides currently registered 
for use in rice against rice water weevil; (3) the expected reduced 
negative impact on crawfish production; (4) efficacious demonstration 
against the larvae of rice water weevil; and 5) the potential for 
incidental control of minor, sporadic rice pests. Economic losses can 
occur due to the removal of root tissue in young rice plants by the 
larvae of rice water weevil, resulting in decreased grain yield at 
harvest. The Applicant states that significant economic losses will be 
suffered without the requested use.
    The Applicant proposes to make no more than a single application of 
chlorantraniliprole per acre, at seeding, on maximum of 160,000 acres 
of rice in the state of Louisiana. Chlorantraniliprole will be applied 
to rice seeds at certified seed treatment facilities only. The use 
would begin after March 1, 2008 and end before August 1, 2008. A 
maximum of 6,875 gallons of formulated product (32,320 lbs. active 
ingredient) could be used under this exemption, if authorized.
    This notice does not constitute a decision by EPA on the 
application itself. The regulations governing section 18 of FIFRA 
require publication of a notice of receipt of an application for a 
specific exemption proposing use of a new chemical (i.e., an active 
ingredient) which has not been registered by EPA. The notice provides 
an opportunity for public comment on the application.
    The Agency will review and consider all comments received during 
the comment period in determining whether to issue the specific 
exemption requested by the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and 
Forestry.

List of Subjects

    Environmental protection, Pesticides and pests.

    Dated: January 4, 2008.
Daniel J. Rosenblatt,
Acting Director, Registration Division, Office of Pesticide Programs.

[FR Doc. E8-875 Filed 1-22-08; 8:45 am]
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