[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 81 (Friday, April 25, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22366-22367]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-8885]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-8556-4; Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-ORD-2007-0664]


Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS); Announcement of 
Availability of Literature Searches for IRIS Assessments

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Notice; Announcement of availability of literature searches for 
IRIS assessments; request for information.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing 
the availability of literature searches for three IRIS assessments, 
manganese (CAS No. 7439-9), 1,2,4 trimethylbenzene (CAS No. 95-63-6), 
and 1,3,5-trimethylhenzene (CAS No. 108-67-8) that may be started in 
2008, and requesting scientific information on health effects that may 
result from exposure to these chemical substances. The Integrated Risk 
Information System (IRIS) is an EPA database that contains information 
on human health effects that may result from chronic exposure to 
chemical substances in the environment.
    EPA will accept information related to the specific substances 
included herein as well as any other compounds being assessed by the 
IRIS Program. Please submit any information in accordance with the 
instructions provided below.

ADDRESSES: Please submit relevant scientific information, identified by 
docket ID number EPA-HQ-ORD-2007-0664, online at http://www.regulations.gov (EPA's preferred method); by e-mail to 
[email protected]: by mail to the Office of Environmental Information 
(OEI) Docket (Mail Code: 2822T), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 
1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001 or by hand 
delivery or courier to EPA Docket Center, EPA West, Room 3334, 1301 
Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC, between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. 
Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. Comments on a disk or 
CD-ROM should be formatted in Word or as an ASCII file, avoiding the 
use of special characters and any form of encryption, and may be mailed 
to the mailing address above.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information on the IRIS program, 
contact Dr. Abdel-Razak Kadry, IRIS Program Director, National Center 
for Environmental Assessment, (Mail Code: 8601D), Office of Research 
and Development, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC 
20460; telephone: (703) 347-8545; facsimile: (703) 347-8689; or e-mail: 
[email protected].
    For general questions about access to IRIS, or the content of IRIS, 
please call the IRIS Hotline at (202) 566-1676 or send electronic mail 
inquiries to [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    IRIS is a database of human health effects that may result from 
chronic exposure to various chemical substances found in the 
environment. (EPA notes that information in the IRIS database has no 
preclusive effect and does not predetermine the outcome of any 
rulemaking. When EPA uses such information to support a rulemaking, the 
scientific basis for, and the application of that information are 
subject to comment.) IRIS currently provides information on the chronic 
health effects--both cancer and non-cancer--associated with more than 
500 chemical substances.
    The database includes chemical-specific summaries of qualitative 
and quantitative health information in support of the first two steps 
of the risk assessment process, i.e., hazard identification and dose-
response evaluation. Combined with specific situational exposure 
assessment information, the information in IRIS is an important source 
in evaluating potential public health risks from environmental 
contaminants.

The IRIS Annual Agenda

    The 2008 IRIS agenda was announced in a Federal Register Notice 
(FRN) of December 21, 2007, which can be found on the IRIS Web site at 
http://www.epa.gov/iris. The December 21, 2007, FRN lists all ongoing 
IRIS assessments and 20 assessments that may start in 2008. EPA is 
conducting literature searches for these 20 chemicals. Based on the 
results of the literature searches and as EPA resources allow, 
assessments will be started for those chemicals with data that may 
support development of one or more toxicity values. With the December 
21, 2007, IRIS agenda announcement, EPA also started a new process to 
actively solicit information from the public at the beginning of 
assessment development. As literature searches are completed, the 
results will he posted on the IRIS Web site (http://www.epa.gov/iris). 
The public is invited to review the literature search results and 
submit additional information to EPA. In conjunction with the December 
21, 2007 FRN, EPA posted literature searches for 11 chemicals and 
stated that the availability of additional literature searches would be 
announced in subsequent FRNs.

Request for Public Involvement in IRIS Assessments

    EPA is soliciting public involvement in assessments on the IRIS 
agenda, including new assessments starting in 2008. While EPA conducts 
a thorough literature search for each chemical substance, there may be 
unpublished studies or other primary technical sources that are not 
available through the open literature. EPA would appreciate receiving 
scientific information from the public during the information gathering 
stage for the assessments listed in this notice or any other 
assessments on the IRIS agenda. Interested persons should provide 
scientific analyses, studies, and other pertinent scientific 
information. While EPA is primarily soliciting information on new 
assessments starting in 2008. the

[[Page 22367]]

public may submit information on any chemical substance at any time.
    This notice provides: (1) A list of new IRIS assessments that may 
start in 2008 for which literature searches have recently become 
available; and (2) instructions to the public for submitting scientific 
information to EPA pertinent to the development of these assessments. 
EPA is also announcing the availability of additional literature 
searches on the IRIS Web site (http://www.epa.gov/iris). The public is 
invited to review the literature search results and submit additional 
information to EPA.
    Literature searches are now available for manganese (CAS No. 7439-
9), 1,2,4 trimethylbenzene (CAS No. 95-63-6), and 1,3,5-
trimethylbenzene (CAS No. 108-67-8) at http://www.epa.gov/iris. 
Literature search results were provided on December 21, 2007, at http://www.epa.gov/iris for tert-amyl methyl ether, biphenyl, n-butanol, 
tert-butanol, carbonyl sulfide, diethyl phthalate, diisopropyl ether, 
hexabrornocyclodecane, weathered toxaphene, tungsten, and urea. 
Additional literature searches will be posted as they are completed, 
and their availability will be announced in the Federal Register. 
Instructions on how to submit information are provided below under 
General Information.

General Information

    As of Monday, November 28, 2005, EPA's EDOCKET was replaced by the 
Federal Docket Management System (FDMS), the new federal government-
wide system. FDMS was created to provide a single point of access to 
all federal rulemaking activities. All materials previously found in 
EDOCKET are now available on the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov.

A. How Can I Get Copies of Related Information?

    EPA has established an official public docket for this action under 
Docket ID No. EPA HQ-ORD-2007-0664. The official public docket is the 
collection of materials that is available for public viewing at the 
Office of Environmental Information (OEI) Docket in the EPA Docket 
Center, EPA West, Room 3334, 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 through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The 
telephone number for the Public Reading Room is (202) 566-1744, and the 
telephone number for the OEI Docket is (202) 566-1752.
    An electronic version of the public docket is available through 
EPA's electronic public docket and comment system. EPA Dockets at 
http://www.regulations.gov may be used to submit or view public 
submissions, to access the index listing of the contents of the 
official public docket, and to access those documents in the public 
docket that are available electronically. Once in the system, select 
``search,'' and then key in the appropriate docket identification 
number.
    It is important to note that EPA's policy is that public 
submissions, whether submitted electronically or in paper, will be made 
available for public viewing in EPA's electronic public docket as EPA 
receives them and without change, unless the submission contains 
copyrighted material, confidential business information (CBI), or other 
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Information 
claimed as CBI and other information whose disclosure is restricted by 
statute are not included in the official public docket or in EPA's 
electronic public docket. EPA's policy is that copyrighted material, 
including copyrighted material contained in a public comment, will not 
be placed in EPA's electronic public docket but will be available only 
in printed, paper form in the official public docket. Although not all 
docket materials may be available electronically, you may still access 
any of the publicly available docket materials through the EPA Docket 
Center.

B. How and To Whom Do I Submit Information?

    Information on chemical substances listed in this notice may be 
submitted as provided in the ADDRESSES section. If you submit 
electronic information, EPA recommends that you include your name, 
mailing address, and an e-mail address or other contact information in 
the body of your submission and with any disk or CD-ROM you submit. 
This ensures that you can be identified as the submitter of the 
information and allows EPA to contact you in case EPA cannot read your 
information due to technical difficulties or needs further information 
on the substance of your submission. Any identifying or contact 
information provided in the body of submitted information will be 
included as part of the submission information that is placed in the 
official public docket and made available in EPA's electronic public 
docket. If EPA cannot read your information due to technical 
difficulties and cannot contact you for clarification, EPA may not be 
able to consider your information.
    EPA's preferred method for receiving submissions is via EPA's 
electronic public docket. The electronic public docket system is an 
``anonymous access'' system, which means EPA will not know your 
identity, e-mail address, or other contact information unless you 
provide it in the body of your submission. In contrast to EPA's 
electronic public docket, EPA's electronic mail (e-mail) system is not 
an ``anonymous access'' system. If you send e-mail directly to the 
docket without going through EPA's electronic public docket, your e-
mail address is automatically captured and included as part of the 
submission that is placed in the official public docket and made 
available in EPA's electronic public docket.

    Dated: April 15, 2008.
Peter W. Preuss,
Director, National Center for Environmental Assessment.
[FR Doc. E8-8885 Filed 4-24-08; 8:45 am]
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