[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 174 (Thursday, September 10, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46589-46591]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-21822]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OAR-2007-0492; FRL-8955-2]


Release of Draft Documents Related to the Review of the National 
Ambient Air Quality Standards for Particulate Matter

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Availability of draft documents for public comment.

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SUMMARY: On or about September 4, 2009, the Office of Air Quality 
Planning and Standards (OAQPS) of EPA is making available for public 
comment two draft assessment documents: Risk Assessment to Support the 
Review of the PM Primary National Ambient Air Quality Standards--
External Review Draft and Particulate Matter Urban-Focused Visibility 
Assessment--External Review Draft. These draft documents describe the 
quantitative analyses that are being conducted as part of the review of 
the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for particulate 
matter (PM).

DATES: Comments should be submitted on or before October 15, 2009.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-
OAR-2007-0492, by one of the following methods:
     http://www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line 
instructions for submitting comments.
     E-mail: Comments may be sent by electronic mail (e-mail) 
to [email protected], Attention Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2007-
0492.
     Fax: Fax your comments to 202-566-9744, Attention Docket 
ID. No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2007-0492.
     Mail: Send your comments to: Air and Radiation Docket and 
Information Center, Environmental Protection Agency, Mailcode: 2822T, 
1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460, Attention Docket ID 
No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2007-0492.
     Hand Delivery or Courier: Deliver your comments to: EPA 
Docket Center, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Room 3334, 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-OAR-
2007-0492. The 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 
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.
    Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the http://www.regulations.gov index. 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

[[Page 46590]]

material, such as copyrighted material, will be publicly available only 
in hard copy. Publicly available docket materials are available either 
electronically in http://www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the Air 
Docket in the EPA Docket Center, EPA West, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution 
Ave., NW., Washington, DC. This Docket Facility is open from 8:30 a.m. 
to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The 
Docket telephone number is 202-566-1742; fax 202-566-9744.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For questions related to the draft 
document titled, Risk Assessment to Support the Review of the PM 
Primary National Ambient Air Quality Standards: External Review Draft 
(September 2009), please contact Dr. Zachary Pekar, Office of Air 
Quality Planning and Standards (Mail code C504-06), U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC 27711; e-mail: 
[email protected]; telephone: 919-541-3704; fax: 919-541-0237.
    For questions related to the draft document titled, Particulate 
Matter Urban-Focused Visibility Assessment--External Review Draft 
(September 2009), please contact Ms. Vicki Sandiford, Office of Air 
Quality Planning and Standards (Mail code C504-06), U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC 27711; e-mail: 
[email protected]; telephone: 919-541-2629; fax: 919-541-0237.
    For questions related to the preliminary draft document, Policy 
Assessment for the Review of the Particulate Matter National Ambient 
Air Quality Standards: Preliminary Draft (September 2009), please 
contact Ms. Beth Hassett-Sipple, Office of Air Quality Planning and 
Standards (Mail code C504-06), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 
Research Triangle Park, NC 27711; e-mail: [email protected]; 
telephone: 919-541-4605; fax: 919-541-0237.

General Information

A. What Should I Consider as I Prepare My Comments for EPA?

    1. Submitting CBI. Do not submit this information to EPA through 
http://www.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:
     Identify the rulemaking by docket number and other 
identifying information (subject heading, Federal Register date and 
page number).
     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.
     Explain why you agree or disagree; suggest alternatives 
and substitute language for your requested changes.
     Describe any assumptions and provide any technical 
information and/or data that you used.
     If you estimate potential costs or burdens, explain how 
you arrived at your estimate in sufficient detail to allow for it to be 
reproduced.
     Provide specific examples to illustrate your concerns, and 
suggest alternatives.
     Make sure to submit your comments by the comment period 
deadline identified.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under section 108(a) of the Clean Air Act 
(CAA), the Administrator identifies and lists certain pollutants which 
``cause or contribute to air pollution which may reasonably be 
anticipated to endanger public health or welfare.'' The EPA then issues 
air quality criteria for these listed pollutants, which are commonly 
referred to as ``criteria pollutants.'' The air quality criteria are to 
``accurately reflect the latest scientific knowledge useful in 
indicating the kind and extent of all identifiable effects on public 
health or welfare which may be expected from the presence of [a] 
pollutant in the ambient air, in varying quantities.'' Under section 
109 of the CAA, EPA establishes primary (health-based) and secondary 
(welfare-based) NAAQS for pollutants for which air quality criteria are 
issued. Section 109(d) of the CAA requires periodic review and, if 
appropriate, revision of existing air quality criteria. The revised air 
quality criteria reflect advances in scientific knowledge on the 
effects of the pollutant on public health or welfare. The EPA is also 
required to periodically review and revise the NAAQS, if appropriate, 
based on the revised criteria.
    Air quality criteria have been established for PM and NAAQS have 
been established for PM2.5 and PM10, to provide 
protection from fine and coarse particles, respectively. Presently, EPA 
is reviewing the air quality criteria and NAAQS for PM. The EPA's 
overall plan and schedule for this review is presented in the 
Integrated Review Plan for the National Ambient Air Quality Standards 
for Particulate Matter.\1\ A draft of the integrated review plan was 
released for public review and comment in October 2007 and was the 
subject of a consultation with the CASAC on November 30, 2007 (72 FR 
63177; November 8, 2007). Comments received from that consultation and 
from the public were considered in finalizing the plan and in beginning 
the review of the air quality criteria.
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    \1\ EPA 452R-08-004; March 2008; Available: http://www.epa.gov/ttn/naaqs/standards/pm/s_pm_2007_pd.html.
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    As part of EPA's review of the primary (health-based) and secondary 
(welfare-based) PM NAAQS, the Agency is conducting quantitative 
assessments characterizing (1) the health risks associated with 
exposure to ambient PM and (2) urban visibility impairment associated 
with PM. The EPA's plans for conducting these assessments, including 
the proposed scope and methods of the analyses, were presented in two 
planning documents titled, Particulate Matter National Ambient Air 
Quality Standards: Scope and Methods Plan for Health Risk and Exposure 
Assessment and Particulate Matter National Ambient Air Quality 
Standards: Scope and Methods Plan for Urban Visibility Impact 
Assessment (henceforth, Scope and Methods Plans).\2\ These documents 
were released for public comment in February 2009 and were the subject 
of a consultation with the CASAC on April 2, 2009 (74 FR 11580; March 
18, 2009). Comments received from the CASAC consultation (Samet, 2009) 
\3\ as well as public comments on the Scope and Methods Plans have been 
considered in developing the draft assessment documents being released 
at this time.
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    \2\ EPA-452/P-09-001 and -002; February 2009; Available: http://www.epa.gov/ttn/naaqs/standards/pm/s_pm_2007_pd.html.
    \3\ See http://yosemite.epa.gov/sab/sabproduct.nsf/4620a620d0120f93852572410080d786/350899ec134552948525746600691de5!OpenDocument.
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    The draft documents announced today convey the approaches taken to 
assess exposures to ambient PM and to characterize associated health 
risks or urban visibility impairment, as well as present the initial 
key results, observations, and related uncertainties associated with 
the quantitative analyses performed. These draft

[[Page 46591]]

documents will be available on or about September 4, 2009, through the 
Agency's Technology Transfer Network (TTN) Web site at http://www.epa.gov/ttn/naaqs/standards/pm/s_pm_index.html. These documents 
may be accessed in the ``Documents from Current Review'' section under 
``Risk and Exposure Assessments.'' The EPA is soliciting advice and 
recommendations from the CASAC by means of a review of the draft 
documents at an upcoming public meeting of the CASAC scheduled in 
Chapel Hill, NC. Information about this public meeting, including the 
date and location, will be published as a separate notice in the 
Federal Register. Following the CASAC meeting, EPA will consider 
comments received from the CASAC and the public in preparing revisions 
to these assessment documents.
    In addition, on or about September 15, 2009, EPA will make 
available a third draft document: Policy Assessment for the Review of 
the National Ambient Air Quality Standards: Preliminary Draft. The 
development of this document is a result of recent changes to the NAAQS 
review process. On May 21, 2009, Administrator Jackson called for key 
changes to the NAAQS review process including reinstating a policy 
assessment document that contains staff analyses of the scientific 
bases for alternative policy options for consideration by senior Agency 
management prior to rulemaking. This document, which builds upon the 
historical ``Staff Paper,'' will serve to ``bridge the gap'' between 
the scientific information and the judgments required of the 
Administrator in determining whether it is appropriate to retain or 
revise the standards. In conjunction with this change, EPA will no 
longer issue a policy assessment in the form of an Advance Notice of 
Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR).\4\
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    \4\ See http://www.epa.gov/ttn/naaqs/review.html for a copy of 
Administrator Jackson's May 21, 2009 memorandum and for additional 
information on the NAAQS review process.
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    The preliminary draft Policy Assessment (PA) builds upon 
information presented in the Integrated Science Assessment for 
Particulate Matter (Second External Review Draft) \5\ and the two draft 
assessment documents described above. This preliminary draft PA will 
include several chapters but is not intended to be a complete draft PA 
document in that it will not include staff conclusions on a range of 
policy options that could be appropriate for the Administrator to 
consider concerning whether, and if so how, to revise the primary and 
secondary PM NAAQS. It is instead being released for informational 
purposes to facilitate a discussion with CASAC on the overall 
structure, areas of focus, and level of detail to be included in an 
external review draft of the document, which EPA plans to release for 
CASAC review and public comment later this year.
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    \5\ EPA/600/R-08/139B; July 2009; Available: http://www.epa.gov/ttn/naaqs/standards/pm/s_pm_2007_isa.html.
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    The preliminary draft PA may be accessed online through EPA's TTN 
Web site at http://www.epa.gov/ttn/naaqs/standards/pm/s_pm_index.html. This document may be accessed in the ``Documents from 
Current Review'' section under ``Policy Assessments.'' The discussion 
with CASAC on this preliminary draft PA will be held at the same 
meeting that CASAC will review of the second draft ISA and the two 
draft assessment documents described above.
    The draft documents briefly described above do not represent and 
should not be construed to represent any final EPA policy, viewpoint, 
or determination. The EPA will consider any public comments submitted 
in response to this notice when revising the documents.

    Dated: September 2, 2009.
Jeffrey S. Clark,
Acting Director, Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards.
[FR Doc. E9-21822 Filed 9-9-09; 8:45 am]
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