[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 243 (Wednesday, December 17, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 76645-76648]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-29773]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OPP-2008-0662; FRL-8391-7]


Pesticide Registration Review; New Dockets Opened for Review and 
Comment; Clossure of the Mevinphos and Azinphos Methyl (AZM) 
Registration Review Cases

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: EPA has established registration review dockets for the 
pesticides listed in the table in Unit III.A. With this document, EPA 
is opening the public comment period for these registration reviews. 
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, the pesticide can perform its 
intended function without unreasonable adverse effects on human health 
or the environment. Registration review dockets contain information 
that will assist the public in understanding the types of information 
and issues that the Agency may consider during the course of 
registration reviews. 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. 
This document also announces the Agency's intent not to open a 
registration review docket for mevinphos. This pesticide does not 
currently have any actively registered pesticide products and is not, 
therefore, scheduled for review under the registration review program.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before March 17, 2009.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments identified by the docket identification 
(ID) number for the specific pesticide of interest provided in the 
table in Unit III.A., 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 Facility'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 the docket ID numbers listed 
in the table in Unit III.A. for the pesticides you are commenting on. 
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

[[Page 76646]]

at http://www.regulations.gov. 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: For pesticide specific information 
contact: The Chemical Review Manager identified in the table in Unit 
III.A. for the pesticide of interest.
    For general information 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: costello.kevin @epa.gov.

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, farmworker, 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.
    3. Environmental justice. EPA seeks to achieve environmental 
justice, the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of any group, 
including minority and/or low income populations, in the development, 
implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and 
policies. To help address potential environmental justice issues, the 
Agency seeks information on any groups or segments of the population 
who, as a result of their location, cultural practices, or other 
factors, may have atypical or disproportionately high and adverse human 
health impacts or environmental effects from exposure to the 
pesticide(s) discussed in this document, compared to the general 
population.

II. Authority

    EPA is initiating its reviews of the pesticides identified in this 
document pursuant to section 3(g) of the Federal Insecticide, 
Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) and the Procedural Regulations 
for Registration Review at 40 CFR part 155, subpart C. Section 3(g) of 
FIFRA provides, among other things, that the registrations of 
pesticides are to be reviewed every 15 years. Under FIFRA section 3(a), 
a pesticide product may be registered or remain registered only if it 
meets the statutory standard for registration given in FIFRA section 
3(c)(5). When used in accordance with widespread and commonly 
recognized practice, the pesticide product must perform its intended 
function without unreasonable adverse effects on the environment; that 
is, without any unreasonable risk to man or the environment, or a human 
dietary risk from residues that result from the use of a pesticide in 
or on food.

III. Registration Reviews

A. What Action is the Agency Taking?

    As directed by FIFRA section 3(g), EPA is reviewing the pesticide 
registrations identified in the table in this unit to assure that they 
continue to satisfy the FIFRA standard for registration--that is, they 
can still be used without unreasonable adverse effects on human health 
or the environment. A pesticide's registration review begins when the 
Agency establishes a docket for the pesticide's registration review 
case and opens the docket for public review and comment. At present, 
EPA is opening registration review dockets for the cases identified in 
the following table.

               Table--Registration Review Dockets Opening
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                                                        Chemical Review
  Registration Review Case Name                       Manager, Telephone
           and Number              Docket ID Number     Number, E-mail
                                                            Address
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2-EEEBC; Case  4031      EPA-HQ-OPP-2008-08  Melanie Biscoe,
                                   02                 (703) 305-7106,
                                                      [email protected]
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[[Page 76647]]

 
Chlorethoxyfos; Case     EPA-HQ-OPP-2008-08  Kelly Ballard,
 7410                              43                 (703) 305-8126,
                                                      [email protected]
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Ethoprop; Case  0106     EPA-HQ-OPP-2008-05  Monica Wait,
                                   60                 (703) 347-8019,
                                                      [email protected]
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Imidacloprid; Case       EPA-HQ-OPP-2008-08  Rusty Wasem,
 7605                              44                 (703) 305-6979,
                                                      [email protected]
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Iron salts; Case  4058   EPA-HQ-OPP-2008-06  Dana L. Friedman,
                                   26                 (703) 347-8827,
                                                      [email protected]
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Methamidophos; Case      EPA-HQ-OPP-2008-08  Susan Bartow,
 0043                              42                 (703) 603-0065,
                                                      [email protected]
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Oxytetracycline; Case    EPA-HQ-OPP-2008-06  Jos[eacute]
 0655                              86                  Gayoso,
                                                      (703) 347-8652,
                                                      [email protected]
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Streptomycin; Case       EPA-HQ-OPP-2008-06  Jos[eacute]
 0169                              87                  Gayoso,
                                                      (703) 347-8652,
                                                      [email protected]
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Tebufenozide; Case       EPA-HQ-OPP-2008-08  Rosanna Louie,
 7416                              24                 (703) 308-0037,
                                                      [email protected]
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The Agency is also announcing that it will not conduct a 
registration review for mevinphos (registration review case 0250) or 
for AZM (registration review case 0235). In October 2006, the Agency 
issued schedules for upcoming registration reviews and included 
mevinphos and AZM as pesticides scheduled for registration review. 
Since first identifying mevinphos as a registration review pesticide, 
the Agency has determined that there are no current mevinphos Section 3 
or Section 24(c) registrations. In addition, on November 16, 2006, the 
Agency issued its final decision on AZM to phase out all remaining uses 
by September 30, 2012. Therefore, the Agency has determined that 
mevinphos and AZM are no longer subject to registration review. 
Registration review dockets will not be opened for mevinphos and AZM, 
and the mevinphos and AZM registration review cases have been closed 
pursuant to 40 CFR 155.42(c).

B. Docket Content

    1. Review dockets. The registration review dockets contain 
information that the Agency may consider in the course of the 
registration review. The Agency may include information from its files 
including, but not limited to, the following information:
     An overview of the registration review case status.
     A list of current product registrations and registrants.
     Federal Register notices regarding any pending 
registration actions.
     Federal Register notices regarding current or pending 
tolerances.
     Risk assessments.
     Bibliographies concerning current registrations.
     Summaries of incident data.
     Any other pertinent data or information.
    Each docket contains a document summarizing what the Agency 
currently knows about the pesticide case and a preliminary work plan 
for anticipated data and assessment needs. Additional documents provide 
more detailed information. During this public comment period, the 
Agency is asking that interested persons identify any additional 
information they believe the Agency should consider during the 
registration reviews of these pesticides. The Agency identifies in each 
docket the areas where public comment is specifically requested, though 
comment in any area is welcome.
    2. Other related information. More information on these cases, 
including the active ingredients for each case, may be located in the 
registration review schedule on the Agency's website at http://www.epa.gov/oppsrrd1/registration_review/schedule.htm. Information on 
the Agency's registration review program and its implementing 
regulation may be seen at http://www.epa.gov/oppsrrd1/registration_review.
    3. Information submission requirements. Anyone may submit data or 
information in response to this document. To be considered during a 
pesticide's registration review, the submitted data or information must 
meet the following requirements:
     To ensure that EPA will consider data or information 
submitted, interested persons must submit the data or information 
during the comment period. The Agency may, at its discretion, consider 
data or information submitted at a later date.
     The data or information submitted must be presented in a 
legible and useable form. For example, an English translation must 
accompany any material that is not in English and a written transcript 
must accompany any information submitted as an audiographic or 
videographic record. Written material may be submitted in paper or 
electronic form.

[[Page 76648]]

     Submitters must clearly identify the source of any 
submitted data or information.
     Submitters may request the Agency to reconsider data or 
information that the Agency rejected in a previous review. However, 
submitters must explain why they believe the Agency should reconsider 
the data or information in the pesticide's registration review.
     As provided in 40 CFR 155.58, the registration review 
docket for each pesticide case will remain publicly accessible through 
the duration of the registration review process; that is, until all 
actions required in the final decision on the registration review case 
have been completed.

List of Subjects

    Environmental protection, Pesticides and pests.

    Dated: December 9, 2008.
 Peter Aculkins,
Director, Special Review and Registration Division, Office of Pesticide 
Programs.
[FR Doc. E8-29773 Filed 12-16-08; 8:45 am]
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