[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 27 (Wednesday, February 10, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6658-6661]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-2966]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OPP-2009-0979; FRL-8810-2]


Malathion, Diquat Dibromide, Metam-potassium and Metam-sodium; 
Notice of Receipt of Requests to Amend Pesticide Registrations to 
Delete Uses in Certain Pesticide Registrations

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with section 6(f)(1) of the Federal Insecticide, 
Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), as amended, EPA is issuing a 
notice of receipt of requests by the registrants to voluntarily amend 
their registrations to delete uses in certain pesticide registrations 
containing the pesticides malathion, diquat dibromide, metam-potassium, 
and metam-sodium. The requests would terminate malathion use in or on 
animal premises and barns used for dairy and livestock. The requests 
would terminate diquat dibromide use in or on sorghum and soybean (seed 
crop only). The requests would terminate metam-sodium and metam-
potassium soil fumigant uses (agricultural application) for certain 
products. The requests would not terminate the last malathion, diquat 
dibromide, metam-potassium, and metam-sodium products registered for

[[Page 6659]]

use in the United States. EPA intends to grant these requests at the 
close of the comment period for this announcement unless the Agency 
receives substantive comments within the comment period that would 
merit its further review of the requests, or unless the registrants 
withdraw their requests within this period. Upon acceptance of these 
requests, any sale, distribution, or use of products listed in this 
notice will be permitted only if such sale, distribution, or use is 
consistent with the terms as described in the final order.

DATES:  For malathion products (EPA Registration Nos. 4787-46 and 
67760-40) and diquat dibromide products (EPA Registration No. 100-1061) 
comments must be received on or before March 12, 2010. For metam-sodium 
and metam-potassium products (EPA Registration Nos. 1448-74, 1448-83, 
1448-85, 1448-107, 1448-361, and 1448-362) comments must be received on 
or before August 9, 2010.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by docket identification 
(ID) number EPA-HQ-OPP-2009-0979, 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 docket ID number EPA-HQ-OPP-
2009-0979. 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: Eric Miederhoff, Pesticide Re-
evaluation Division (7508P), Office of Pesticide Programs, 
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., 
Washington, DC 20460-0001; telephone number: (703) 347-8028; fax 
number: (703) 308-7070; 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, 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 on the Receipt of Requests to Amend Registrations to 
Delete Uses

    This notice announces receipt by EPA of requests from several 
registrants requesting that EPA amend product registrations as follows:
    1. In a letter dated December 17, 2009, Cheminova, A/S, and 
Cheminova, Inc.,

[[Page 6660]]

requested that EPA amend its malathion product registrations to delete 
certain uses which are identified in Table 1 of Unit III. Malathion is 
a broad-spectrum organophosphate insecticide.
     2. In a letter dated November 10, 2009, Syngenta Crop Protection, 
Inc., requested that EPA amend its diquate dibromide pesticide product 
registrations to delete certain uses which are identified in Table 1 of 
Unit III. Diquat dibromide is a non-selective contact algicide, 
defoliant, desiccant and herbicide.
    3. In a letter dated October 30, 2009, Buckman Laboratories 
requested that EPA amend its metam-sodium and metam-potassium pesticide 
product registrations to delete certain uses which are identified in 
Table 1 of Unit III. Metam-sodium and metam-potassium are broad-
spectrum fumigants with fungicidal, bactericidal, algicidal, 
herbicidal, insecticidal, nematicidal, and antimicrobial properties.

III. What Action is the Agency Taking?

    This notice announces receipt by EPA of requests from registrants 
to delete uses of malathion, diquat dibromide, metam-potassium, and 
metam-sodium product registrations. The affected products and the 
registrants making the requests are identified in Tables 1 and 2 of 
this unit.
    Under section 6(f)(1)(A) of FIFRA, registrants may request, at any 
time, that their pesticide registrations be canceled or amended to 
terminate one or more pesticide uses. Section 6(f)(1)(B) of FIFRA 
requires that before acting on a request for voluntary cancellation, 
EPA must provide a 30-day public comment period on the request for 
voluntary cancellation or use termination. In addition, section 
6(f)(1)(C) of FIFRA requires that EPA provide a 180-day comment period 
on a request for voluntary cancellation or termination of any minor 
agricultural use before granting the request, unless:
    1. The registrants request a waiver of the comment period, or
    2. The Administrator determines that continued use of the pesticide 
would pose an unreasonable adverse effect on the environment.
    The malathion and diquat dibromide registrants have requested that 
EPA waive the 180-day comment period. EPA will provide a 30-day comment 
period on the proposed requests.
    Unless a request is withdrawn by the registrant within 30 days of 
publication of this notice, or if the Agency determines that there are 
substantive comments that warrant further review of this request, an 
order will be issued amending the affected registrations.
    The metam-potassium and metam-sodium registrant has not requested 
that EPA waive the 180-day comment period. EPA will provide a 180-day 
comment period on the proposed requests.
    Unless a request is withdrawn by the registrant within 180 days of 
publication of this notice, or if the Agency determines that there are 
substantive comments that warrant further review of this request, an 
order will be issued amending the affected registrations.
     Table 1 lists the products with pending requests for amendment of 
the pesticide registrations.

                      Table 1. -- Product Registrations with Pending Requests for Amendment
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         EPA Registration No.                Product Name          Active Ingredient        Delete from Label
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100-1061                               Reglone Desiccant        Diquat dibromide         Sorghum (seed crop
                                        Herbicide                                         only) Soybean (seed
                                                                                          crop only)
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1448-74                                PNMDC                    Metam-potassium          Soil fumigant uses
                                                                                          (agricultural
                                                                                          application)
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1448-83                                SNMDC                    Metam-sodium             Soil fumigant uses
                                                                                          (agricultural
                                                                                          application)
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1448-85                                Busan 1020               Metam-sodium             Soil fumigant uses
                                                                                          (agricultural
                                                                                          application)
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1448-107                               Metam Concentrate        Metam-sodium             Soil fumigant uses
                                                                                          (agricultural
                                                                                          application)
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1448-361                               Busan 1236               Metam-sodium             Soil fumigant uses
                                                                                          (agricultural
                                                                                          application)
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1448-362                               Busan 1180               Metam-potassium          Soil fumigant uses
                                                                                          (agricultural
                                                                                          application)
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4787-46                                Atrapa[reg]8E            Malathion                Animal premise and
                                                                                          barns used for dairy
                                                                                          and livestock
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67760-40                               Fyfanon[reg]57% EC       Malathion                Animal premise and
                                                                                          barns used for dairy
                                                                                          and livestock
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Table 2 includes the names and addresses of record for the 
registrants of the products listed in Table 1 of this unit.

[[Page 6661]]



 Table 2. -- Registrants Requesting Amendments to Delete Uses in Certain
                         Pesticide Registrations
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            EPA Company Number                Company Name and Address
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100                                         Syngenta Crop Protection,
                                             Inc., P.O. Box 18300,
                                             Greensboro, NC 27419-8300
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1448                                        Buckman Laboratories, 1236
                                             N. McLean Blvd., Memphis,
                                             TN 38108-1241
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4787                                        Cheminova, A/S, P.O. Box
                                             110566, One Park Drive,
                                             Suite 150, Research
                                             Triangle Park, NC 27709
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67760                                       Cheminova, Inc., Washington
                                             Office, 1600 Wilson
                                             Boulevard, Suite 700,
                                             Arlington, VA 22209
------------------------------------------------------------------------

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

    Section 6(f)(1) of FIFRA provides that a registrant of a pesticide 
product may at any time request that any of its pesticide registrations 
be canceled or amended to terminate one or more uses. FIFRA further 
provides that, before acting on the request, EPA must publish a notice 
of receipt of any such request in the Federal Register. Thereafter, 
following the public comment period, the Administrator may approve such 
a request.

V. Procedures for Withdrawal of Request

    For malathion products (EPA Registration Nos. 4787-46 and 67760-40) 
and diquat dibromide products (EPA Registration No. 100-1061) 
registrants who choose to withdraw a request for use deletion must 
submit the withdrawal in writing to Eric Miederhoff using the methods 
in ADDRESSES. The Agency will consider written withdrawal requests 
postmarked no later than March 12, 2010.
    For metam-sodium and metam-potassium products (EPA Registration 
Nos. 1448-74, 1448-83, 1448-85, 1448-107, 1448-361, and 1448-362) 
registrants who choose to withdraw a request for use deletion must 
submit the withdrawal in writing to Eric Miederhoff using the methods 
in ADDRESSES. The Agency will consider written withdrawal requests 
postmarked no later than August 9, 2010.
    This written withdrawal of the request for use deletion will apply 
only to the applicable FIFRA section 6(f)(1) request listed in this 
notice. If the products have been subject to a previous cancellation 
action, the effective date of the use deletion amendment and all other 
provisions of any earlier cancellation action are controlling.

VI. Provisions for Disposition of Existing Stocks

    Existing stocks are those stocks of registered pesticide products 
which are currently in the United States and which were packaged, 
labeled, and released for shipment prior to the effective date of the 
cancellation action.
    In any order issued in response to these requests for amendments to 
delete uses, the Agency proposes to include the following provisions 
for the treatment of any existing stocks of the products identified or 
referenced in Table 1 in Unit III. The Agency proposes to authorize 
registrants to sell or distribute products under the previously 
approved labeling for a period of 12 months after approval of the 
revision, unless other restrictions have been imposed.
    If the requests for voluntary use deletions are granted as 
discussed in this unit, the Agency intends to issue a cancellation 
order that will allow persons other than the registrant to continue to 
sell and/or use existing stocks of products whose labels include the 
deleted uses until such stocks are exhausted, provided that such use is 
consistent with the terms of the previously approved labeling on, or 
that accompanied, the product whose label includes the deleted uses. 
The order will specifically prohibit any use of existing stocks that is 
not consistent with such previously approved labeling. The Agency will 
publish the cancellation order in the Federal Register.

List of Subjects

    Environmental protection, Pesticides and pests.


    Dated: February 3, 2010.
Peter Caulkins,
Acting Director, Pesticide Re-evaluation Division, Office of Pesticide 
Programs.
[FR Doc. 2010-2966 Filed 2-9-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-S