[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 61 (Friday, March 28, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16669-16671]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-6408]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OW-2004-0027, FRL-8548-5]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request; Information Collection Request for Cooling Water 
Intake Structures New Facility Final Rule (Renewal); EPA ICR No. 
1973.04, OMB Control No. 2040-0241

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 EPA is planning to 
submit a request to renew an existing approved Information Collection 
Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). This ICR is 
scheduled to expire on June 30, 2008. Before submitting the ICR to OMB 
for review and approval, EPA is soliciting comments on specific aspects 
of the proposed information collection as described below.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before May 27, 2008.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OW-
2004-0027, by one of the following methods:
     http://www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line 
instructions for submitting comments.
     E-mail: [email protected].
     Mail: Water Docket, Environmental Protection Agency, 
Mailcode: 2822T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 
20460.
     Hand Delivery: EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), EPA West, Room 
3334, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. Such deliveries are 
only accepted during the Docket's normal hours of operation, and 
special arrangements should be made for deliveries of boxed 
information.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OW-2004-
0027. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included in 
the public docket without change and may be made available online 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 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 in the body of 
your comment. If you send an e-mail comment directly to EPA without 
going through http://www.regulations.gov, your e-mail address will be 
automatically captured and included as part of the comment that is 
placed in the public 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

[[Page 16670]]

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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Janelle Christian, Water Permits 
Division, Office of Wastewater Management, Mail Code: 4203M, 
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., 
Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: 202-564-9954; fax number: 202-
564-9541; e-mail address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

How Can I Access the Docket and/or Submit Comments?

    EPA has established a public docket for this ICR under Docket ID 
No. EPA-HQ-OW-2004-0027, which is available for online viewing at 
http://www.regulations.gov, or in person viewing at the Water 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 Water Docket is 202-566-2426.
    Use http://www.regulations.gov to obtain a copy of the draft 
collection of information, submit or view public comments, access the 
index listing of the contents of the docket, and to access those 
documents in the public docket that are available electronically. Once 
in the system, select ``search,'' then key in the docket ID number 
identified in this document.

What Information Is EPA Particularly Interested in?

    Pursuant to section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, EPA specifically 
solicits comments and information to enable it to:
    (i) Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the Agency, 
including whether the information will have practical utility;
    (ii) Evaluate the accuracy of the Agency's estimate of the burden 
of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of 
the methodology and assumptions used;
    (iii) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information 
to be collected; and
    (iv) Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those 
who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated 
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic 
submission of responses. In particular, EPA is requesting comments from 
very small businesses (those that employ less than 25) on examples of 
specific additional efforts that EPA could make to reduce the paperwork 
burden for very small businesses affected by this collection.

What Should I Consider When I Prepare My Comments for EPA?

    You may find the following suggestions helpful for preparing your 
comments:
    1. Explain your views as clearly as possible and provide specific 
examples.
    2. Describe any assumptions that you used.
    3. Provide copies of any technical information and/or data you used 
that support your views.
    4. If you estimate potential burden or costs, explain how you 
arrived at the estimate that you provide.
    5. Offer alternative ways to improve the collection activity.
    6. Make sure to submit your comments by the deadline identified 
under DATES.
    7. To ensure proper receipt by EPA, be sure to identify the docket 
ID number assigned to this action in the subject line on the first page 
of your response. You may also provide the name, date, and Federal 
Register citation.

What Information Collection Activity or ICR Does This Apply to?

    Affected entities: Entities potentially affected by this action are 
new facilities that are point sources (i.e., subject to an NPDES 
permit) that use or propose to use a cooling water intake structure 
(CWIS), have at least one cooling water intake structure that uses at 
least 25 percent (measured on an average monthly basis) of the water 
withdrawn for cooling purposes, withdraw the water from surface waters, 
and have a design intake flow greater than two million gallons per day 
(MGD). Generally, facilities that meet these criteria fall into two 
major groups: New power producing facilities and new manufacturing 
facilities. Power producers affected by the final rule are likely to be 
both utility and nonutility power producers since they typically have 
large cooling water requirements. EPA identified four categories of 
manufacturing facilities that tend to require large amounts of cooling 
water: paper and allied products, chemical and allied products, 
petroleum and coal products, and primary metals. However, the New 
Facility Rule is not limited to manufacturers in these sectors; any new 
manufacturer that meets the criteria above is subject to the rule.
    Title: Information Collection Request for Cooling Water Intake 
Structures New Facility Final Rule (Renewal).
    ICR numbers: EPA ICR No. 1973.04, OMB Control No. 2040-0241.
    ICR status: This ICR is currently scheduled to expire on June 30, 
2008. 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 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 section 316(b) New Facility Rule requires the 
collection of information from new facilities that use a CWIS and meet 
the other eligibility requirements. Section 316(b) of the CWA requires 
that any standard established under section 301 or 306 of the CWA and 
applicable to a point source must require that the location, design, 
construction and capacity of CWISs at that facility reflect the best 
technology available (BTA) for minimizing adverse environmental impact. 
See 66 FR 65256. Such impact occurs as a result of impingement (where 
fish and other aquatic life are trapped on technologies at the entrance 
to cooling water intake structures) and entrainment (where aquatic 
organisms, eggs, and larvae are taken into the cooling system, passed 
through the heat exchanger, and then pumped back out with the discharge 
from the facility). The rule establishes standard requirements 
applicable to the location, design, construction, and capacity of 
cooling water intake structures at new facilities. These requirements 
seek to minimize the adverse environmental impact associated with the 
use of CWISs.
    Burden Statement: The annual average reporting and record keeping 
burden for the collection of information by facilities responding to 
the section 316(b) New Facility Rule is estimated to

[[Page 16671]]

be 1,885 hours per respondent (i.e., an annual average of 113,084 hours 
of burden divided among an anticipated annual average of 60 
facilities). The State reporting and record keeping burden for the 
review, oversight, and administration of the rule is estimated to 
average 111 hours per respondent (i.e., an annual average of 5,125 
hours of burden divided among an anticipated 46 States on average per 
year). 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.
    The ICR provides a detailed explanation of the Agency's estimate, 
which is only briefly summarized here:
    Estimated total number of potential respondents: 68 facilities and 
46 States and Territories.
    Frequency of response: Annual reports and application every 5 
years.
    Estimated total average number of responses for each respondent: 
5.3 for facilities (317 annual average responses for an average of 60 
facility respondents) and 6.1 for States and Territories (280 annual 
average responses for an average of 46 State respondents).
    Estimated total annual burden hours: 118,209 (113,084 for 
facilities and 5,125 for States and Territories).
    Estimated total annual costs: $8.5 million per year. This includes 
an estimated burden cost of $6.7 and an estimated cost of $1.8 for 
capital investment or maintenance and operational costs.

Are There Changes in the Estimates From the Last Approval?

    There is an increase of 41,941 hours in the total estimated 
respondent burden compared with that identified in the ICR currently 
approved by OMB. This increase is due to the addition of the newly 
built facilities, as well as the continued performance of annual 
activities by facilities that received their permit during the previous 
ICR approval periods. In addition, this ICR includes additional 
repermitting burden and costs which were not in the currently approved 
ICR (EPA ICR Number: 1973.03) because more facilities are entering the 
renewal phase of their permits.

What Is the Next Step in the Process for This ICR?

    EPA will consider the comments received and amend the ICR as 
appropriate. The final ICR package will then be submitted to OMB for 
review and approval pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.12. At that time, EPA will 
issue another Federal Register notice pursuant to 5 CFR 
1320.5(a)(1)(iv) to announce the submission of the ICR to OMB and the 
opportunity to submit additional comments to OMB. If you have any 
questions about this ICR or the approval process, please contact the 
technical person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

    Dated: March 20, 2008.
James A. Hanlon,
Director, Office of Wastewater Management.
 [FR Doc. E8-6408 Filed 3-27-08; 8:45 am]
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