[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 217 (Thursday, November 12, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 58287-58289]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-26822]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OPP-2009-0803; FRL-8796-5]


Pseudomonas Fluorescens; Receipt of Application for Emergency 
Exemption, Solicitation of Public Comment

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: EPA has received a quarantine exemption request from the 
United States Department of Interior's Bureau of Reclamation to use the 
pesticide Pseudomonas fluorescens CL145A (ATCC 55799) to treat 
dams, water distribution (e.g., canals, pipes and plumbing), water 
treatment, water pumping facilities, irrigation and power generation 
facilities infested with invasive quagga and zebra mussels and 
associated reservoirs, water holding marinas and watercraft, 
recreational facilities (e.g., beaches, boat launches), fish hatcheries 
and fish protection facilities (e.g., fish ladders and screens). The 
applicant proposes the use of a new chemical which has not been 
registered by the EPA. EPA is soliciting public comment before making 
the decision whether or not to grant the exemption.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before November 27, 2009.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by docket identification 
(ID) number EPA-HQ-OPP-2009-0803, 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.

[[Page 58288]]

     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 docket ID number EPA-HQ-OPP-
2009-0803. 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 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: Andrew Ertman, Registration Division 
(7505P), Office of Pesticide Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, 
1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001; telephone 
number: (703) 308-9367; fax number: (703) 605-0781; e-mail address: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. General Information

A. Does this Action Apply to Me?

    You may be potentially affected by this action if you are an 
agricultural producer, food manufacturer, or pesticide manufacturer. 
Potentially affected entities may include, but are not limited to:
     Crop production (NAICS code 111).
     Animal production (NAICS code 112).
     Food manufacturing (NAICS code 311).
     Pesticide manufacturing (NAICS code 32532).
    This listing is not intended to be exhaustive, but rather provides 
a guide for readers regarding entities likely to be affected by this 
action. Other types of entities not listed in this unit could also be 
affected. The North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) 
codes have been provided to assist you and others in determining 
whether this action might apply to certain entities. 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 
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:
    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 
discussed in this document, compared to the general population.

II. What Action is the Agency Taking?

    Under section 18 of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and 
Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) (7 U.S.C. 136p), at the discretion of the 
Administrator, a Federal or State agency may be exempted from any 
provision of FIFRA if the Administrator determines that emergency 
conditions exist which require the exemption. The United States 
Department of Interior's Bureau of Reclamation has requested the 
Administrator to issue a quarantine exemption for the use of 
Pseudomonas fluorescens CL145A to treat dams, water distribution (e.g., 
canals, pipes and

[[Page 58289]]

plumbing), water treatment, water pumping facilities, irrigation and 
power generation facilities infested with invasive quagga and zebra 
mussels and associated reservoirs, water holding marinas and 
watercraft, recreational facilities (e.g., beaches, boat launches), 
fish hatcheries and fish protection facilities (e.g., fish ladders and 
screens). Information in accordance with 40 CFR part 166 was submitted 
as part of this request.
    As part of this request, the applicant asserts that mussel 
infestations are causing physical obstruction of flow in water 
conveyance systems, ranging from roughening to complete blockage. 
Intake structures such as pipes and screens are becoming clogged, 
reducing delivery capacities, pumping capabilities, and hydropower 
generation functions. Flow obstruction from mussel settlement at 
Reclamation facilities has caused a significant increase in the 
frequency of high temperature alarms in cooling systems, requiring 
shut-downs for maintenance. It is often necessary to replace plugged 
equipment to avoid lengthy interruptions in operations. Invasive 
mussels affect all submerged components, conduits and other structures 
such as trashracks, fish screens, raw water distribution systems for 
turbine cooling, fire suppression systems, water intakes (service, 
domestic, and irrigation), irrigation canals, gauging stations, weirs, 
gates, diffuser gratings, drains, and virtually all types of 
instrumentation in contact with raw water. Chemical degradation 
(corrosion) of infrastructure is also resulting from mussel fouling of 
metallic structures and equipment. These impacts are increasing both in 
degree and frequency. The ongoing proliferation and dispersion of 
mussel populations threatens to seriously impact Reclamation 
operations, resulting in the interruption of hydropower and water 
delivery at significant economic costs.
     Method of Application: MOI 401 (the product containing Pseudomonas 
fluorescens CL145A) will be applied using standard aquatic pesticide 
application equipment and or similar equipment commonly used for 
chemical injection in drinking water treatment. This includes equipment 
such as sprayers, mixers, injection pumps and/or weighted hoses. The 
material will be contained and transported in totes or appropriate 
plastic chemical application barrels. Application will be flow of 
volume based. For enclosed and confined systems (i.e. canals, 
irrigation, and pipes), treated water flow rates and chemical injection 
pump flow rates can be measured by using flow meters and hand flow 
measurements. Turbidity measurements before and after application can 
be used as a surrogate to measure actual applied product.
     Maximum Rate of Application: Up to 200 ppm for up to 24 hours per 
treatment.
     Maximum Number of Applications: Maximum of 12 applications of MOI 
401 end use product (84059-L) per site.
     Maximum Amount of Pesticide to be Used: 60,000 kg active 
ingredient, which equals approximately 411,000 kg of end use product.
     Maximum Volume to be Treated: Based on the maximum amount of 
pesticide to be used and the treatment rate of 200 mg a.i./L, the 
maximum volume of water that will be treated will be 1.67 acre-feet.
    This notice does not constitute a decision by EPA on the 
application itself. The regulations governing section 18 of FIFRA 
require publication of a notice of receipt of an application for a 
quarantine exemption proposing use of a new chemical (i.e., an active 
ingredient) which has not been registered by EPA.
The notice provides an opportunity for public comment on the 
application.
    The Agency, will review and consider all comments received during 
the comment period in determining whether to issue the quarantine 
exemption requested by the United States Department of Interior's 
Bureau of Reclamation.

List of Subjects

    Environmental protection, Pesticides and pests.


    Dated: October 29, 2009.
G. Jeffrey Herndon,
Acting Director, Registration Division, Office of Pesticide Programs.

[FR Doc. E9-26822 Filed 11-10-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-S