[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 34 (Wednesday, February 20, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9320-9322]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-2785]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OPP-2007-1160; FRL-8348-7]


Ammonium Thiosulfate; Reregistration Eligibility Decision; Notice 
of Availability

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces the availability of EPA's Reregistration 
Eligibility Decision (RED) for the pesticide ammonium thiosulfate, and 
opens a public comment period on this document, related risk 
assessments, and other support documents. EPA has reviewed the 
pesticide ammonium thiosulfate through a modified, streamlined version 
of the public participation process that the Agency uses to involve the 
public in developing pesticide reregistration and tolerance 
reassessment decisions. Through these programs, EPA is ensuring that 
all pesticides meet current health and safety standards.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before April 21, 2008.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by docket identification 
(ID) number EPA-HQ-OPP-2007-1160, 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-
2007-1160. 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.

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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: Tom Myers, Special Review and 
Reregistration Division (7508P), Office of Pesticide Programs, 
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., 
Washington, DC 20460-0001; telephone number: (703) 308-8589; fax 
number: (703) 308-7070; e-mail address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. General Information

A. Does this Action Apply to Me?

    This action is directed to the public in general, and may be of 
interest to a wide range of stakeholders including environmental, human 
health, and agricultural advocates; the chemical industry; pesticide 
users; and members of the public interested in the sale, distribution, 
or use of pesticides. Since others also may be interested, the Agency 
has not attempted to describe all the specific entities that may be 
affected by this action. 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 
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. Background

A. What Action is the Agency Taking?

    Under section 4 of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and 
Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), EPA is reevaluating existing pesticides to 
ensure that they meet current scientific and regulatory standards. 
Using a modified, streamlined version of its public participation 
process, EPA has completed a RED for the pesticide, ammonium 
thiosulfate under section 4(g)(2)(A) of FIFRA. Ammonium thiosulfate is 
an inorganic thiosulfate herbicide used to kill oxalis and spurge weeds 
on lawns in the western United States. There is one registered ammonium 
thiosulfate product registered in the U.S. Two other pesticides are 
included in the inorganic thiosulfate case: Potassium thiosulfate and 
calcium thiosulfate. There are currently no active potassium 
thiosulfate or calcium thiosulfate products registered in the US. EPA 
has determined that the database to support reregistration is 
substantially complete and the products containing ammonium thiosulfate 
will be eligible for reregistration, provided label language outlined 
in the RED is incorporated onto ammonium thiosulfate labels. Upon 
submission of any required product specific data under section 
4(g)(2)(B) of FIFRA and any necessary changes to the registration and 
labeling (either to address any concerns identified in the RED or as a 
result of product specific data), EPA will make a final reregistration 
decision under section 4(g)(2)(C) of FIFRA for products containing 
ammonium thiosulfate.
    EPA is applying the principles of public participation to all 
pesticides undergoing reregistration and tolerance reassessment. The 
Agency's Pesticide Tolerance Reassessment and Reregistration; Public 
Participation Process, published in the Federal Register on May 14, 
2004, (69 FR 26819) (FRL-7357-9) explains that in conducting these 
programs, the Agency is tailoring its public participation process to 
be commensurate with the level of risk, extent of use, complexity of 
issues, and degree of public concern associated with each pesticide. 
EPA can expeditiously reach decisions for pesticides like ammonium 
thiosulfate, which pose few risk concerns, have low use, affect few 
stakeholders, and require

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little risk mitigation. Once EPA assesses uses and risks for such 
pesticides, the Agency may go directly to a decision and prepare a 
document summarizing its findings, such as the ammonium thiosulfate 
RED.
    The reregistration program is being conducted under congressionally 
mandated timeframes, and EPA recognizes the need both to make timely 
decisions and to involve the public in finding ways to effectively 
mitigate pesticide risks. Ammonium thiosulfate, however, poses no risks 
that require mitigation. The Agency therefore is issuing the ammonium 
thiosulfate RED, its risk assessments, and related support materials 
simultaneously for public comment. The comment period is intended to 
provide an opportunity for public input and a mechanism for initiating 
any necessary amendments to the RED. All comments should be submitted 
using the methods in ADDRESSES, and must be received by EPA on or 
before the closing date. These comments will become part of the Agency 
Docket for ammonium thiosulfate. Comments received after the close of 
the comment period will be marked ``late.'' EPA is not required to 
consider these late comments.
    EPA will carefully consider all comments received by the closing 
date and will provide a Response to Comments Memorandum in the Docket 
and regulations.gov. If any comment significantly affects the document, 
EPA also will publish an amendment to the RED in the Federal Register. 
In the absence of substantive comments requiring changes, the ammonium 
thiosulfate RED will be implemented as it is now presented.

B. What is the Agency's Authority for Taking this Action?

    Section 4(g)(2) of FIFRA, as amended, directs that, after 
submission of all data concerning a pesticide active ingredient, ``the 
Administrator shall determine whether pesticides containing such active 
ingredient are eligible for reregistration,'' before calling in product 
specific data on individual end-use products and either reregistering 
products or taking other ``appropriate regulatory action.''

List of Subjects

    Environmental protection, Pesticides and pests.


    Dated: January 30, 2008.
Steven Bradbury,
Director, Special Review and Reregistration Division, Office of 
Pesticide Programs.
[FR Doc. E8-2785 Filed 2-19-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-S