[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 169 (Friday, August 29, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 50958-50960]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-20152]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OPP-2008-0506; FRL-8378-6]


Sodium Hydroxide (Mineral Bases, Strong) and Capric (Decanoic) 
Acid; Antimicrobial Registration Review Final Work Plans and Proposed 
Registration Review Decisions; Notice of Availability

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces the availability of EPA's Final Work 
Plans and Proposed Registration Review Decisions for the pesticides 
cases Capric (Decanoic) Acid and Sodium Hydroxide (Mineral Bases, 
Strong), and opens a public comment period on the proposed registration 
review decisions. Registration review is EPA's periodic review of 
pesticide registrations to ensure that each pesticide continues to 
satisfy the statutory standard for registration, that is, that the 
pesticide can perform its intended function without unreasonable 
adverse effects on human health or the environment. Through this 
program, EPA is ensuring that each pesticide's registration is based on 
current scientific and other knowledge, including its effects on human 
health and the environment.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before October 28, 2008.

ADDRESSES:  Submit your comments, identified by docket identification 
(ID) numbers EPA-HQ-OPP-2007-0922 for Sodium Hydroxide (Mineral Bases, 
Strong) and EPA-HQ-OPP-2007-1040 for Capric (Decanoic) Acid, 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 numbers and the 
regulatory contacts listed under Table 1 for each of the cases to which 
you are submitting a comment. 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

[[Page 50959]]

holidays. The Docket Facility telephone number is (703) 305-5805.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information about the pesticides 
included in this document, contact the specific Chemical Review Manager 
as identified in the table in Unit II. for the pesticide of interest.
    For general questions on the registration review program, contact 
Kevin Costello, Special Review and Reregistration Division (7508P), 
Office of Pesticide Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 
Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001; telephone number: 
(703) 305-5026; fax number: (703) 308-8090; 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, farm worker, 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?

    This notice opens a 60-day public comment period on the subject 
proposed registration review decisions. The Agency is proposing 
registration review decisions for the pesticide cases shown in the 
following Table.

         Registration Review Dockets -- Proposed final decisions
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                                                      Regulatory Contact
  Registration Review Case Name    Pesticide Docket       name, Phone
           and Number                  ID Number        Number, E-mail
                                                            Address
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Case 4065; Sodium Hydroxide       EPA-HQ-OPP-2007-09  Diane Isbell;
 (Mineral Bases, Strong)           22                  (703) 308-8154;
                                                      [email protected]
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Case 5038; Capric (Decanoic)Acid  EPA-HQ-OPP-2007-10  Eliza Blair; (703)
                                   40                  308-7279
                                                      [email protected]
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The dockets for registration review of these pesticide cases 
include earlier documents related to the registration review of the 
subject cases. For example, the review opened with the posting of a 
Summary Document, containing a Preliminary Work Plan (PWP), for public 
comment. Because no comments were received, and because the Agency 
required no further risk assessments to complete registration review of 
these cases, the Final Work Plan and Proposed Decision were combined 
into a single document. The documents in the initial docket described 
the Agency's rationale for not conducting new risk assessments for the 
registration review of Sodium Hydroxide (Mineral Bases, Strong) and 
Capric (Decanoic) Acid. These proposed registration review decisions 
now included in the dockets continue to be supported by those 
rationales included in documents in the initial dockets. Following 
public comment, the Agency will issue a final registration review 
decision for each case.
    The registration review program is being conducted under 
congressionally mandated time frames, and EPA recognizes the need both 
to make timely decisions and to involve the public. Section 3(g) of the 
Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) as amended 
in 1996 required EPA to establish by regulation procedures for 
reviewing pesticide registrations, originally with a goal of reviewing 
each pesticide's registration every 15 years to ensure that a pesticide 
continues to meet the FIFRA standard for registration. The Agency's 
final rule to implement this program was issued in August 2006 and 
became effective in October 2006 and appears at 40 CFR part 155.40 et 
seq. The Pesticide Registration Improvement Act of 2003 (``PRIA'') was 
amended and extended in September 2007. FIFRA as amended by PRIA in 
2007 requires EPA to complete registration review decisions by October 
1, 2022 for all pesticides registered as of October 1, 2007. The 
registration review final rule provides for a minimum 60-day public 
comment period for all proposed registration review decisions. This 
comment period is intended to provide an opportunity for public input 
and a mechanism for initiating any necessary amendments to the proposed 
decision(s). 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 Dockets for Sodium 
Hydroxide

[[Page 50960]]

(Mineral Bases, Strong) and Capric (Decanoic) Acid. Comments received 
after the close of the comment period will be marked ``late.'' EPA is 
not required to consider these late comments. The Agency will carefully 
consider all comments received by the closing date and will provide a 
Response to Comments Memorandum in the Dockets and www.regulations.gov. 
The final registration review decisions will explain the effect that 
any comments have had on the decisions.
    Background on the registration review program is provided at: 
http://www.epa.gov/oppsrrd1/registration_review/. Quick links to 
earlier documents related to the registration review of this pesticide 
are provided at: http://www.epa.gov/oppsrrd1/registration_review/reg_review_status.htm/.

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

    FIFRA Section 3(g) and 40 CFR part 155.40 et seq. provide authority 
for this action.

List of Subjects

    Environmental protection, Pesticides and pests, Antimicrobials, 
capric acid, sodium hydroxide, Registration review.

    Dated: August 22, 2008.
Frank Sanders,
Director, Antimicrobials Division, Office of Pesticide Programs.
[FR Doc. E8-20152 Filed 8-28-08; 8:45 am]
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