[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 37 (Thursday, February 25, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8694-8696]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-3842]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OW-2008-0719, FRL-9118-2]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request; Animal Sectors; EPA ICR No. 1989.07; OMB Control No. 
2040-0250

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 
et seq.), this notice announces that EPA is planning to submit a 
request to renew an existing approved Information Collection Request 
(ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). This ICR is 
scheduled to expire on July 31, 2012. Before submitting the ICR to OMB 
for review and approval, EPA is soliciting comments on specific aspects 
of the proposed information collection as described below.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before April 26, 2010.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-

[[Page 8695]]

OW-2008-0719, by one of the following methods:
     http://www.regulations.gov: Follow the online instructions 
for submitting comments.
     E-mail: [email protected] (Identify Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-
OW-2008-0719 in the subject line).
     Mail: Water Docket, Environmental Protection Agency, 
Mailcode: 4203M, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460. 
Please include a total of three copies.
     Hand Delivery: EPA Docket Center, EPA West, Room 3334, 
1301 Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460. 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 identified by the Docket ID No. 
EPA-HQ-OW-2008-0719. 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 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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Amelia Letnes, State and Regional 
Branch, Water Permits Division, OWM Mail Code: 4203M, Environmental 
Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460; 
telephone number: (202) 564-5627; e-mail address: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

How Can I Access the Docket and/or Submit Comments?

    EPA has established a public docket for this ICR under Docket ID 
No. EPA-HQ-OW-2008-0719, which is available for online viewing at 
http://www.regulations.gov, or in person viewing at the Water Docket in 
the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), EPA West, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution 
Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The EPA/DC Public Reading Room is open from 
8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. 
The telephone number for the Reading Room is 202-566-1744, and the 
telephone number for the Water Docket is 202-566-2426.
    Use http://www.regulations.gov to obtain a copy of the draft 
collection of information, submit or view public comments, access the 
index listing of the contents of the docket, and to access those 
documents in the public docket that are available electronically. Once 
in the system, select ``search,'' then key in the docket ID number 
identified in this document.

What Information Is EPA Particularly Interested in?

    Pursuant to section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, EPA specifically 
solicits comments and information to enable it to:
    (i) Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the Agency, 
including whether the information will have practical utility;
    (ii) Evaluate the accuracy of the Agency's estimate of the burden 
of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of 
the methodology and assumptions used;
    (iii) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information 
to be collected; and
    (iv) Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those 
who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated 
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic 
submission of responses. In particular, EPA is requesting comments from 
very small businesses (those that employ less than 25) on examples of 
specific additional efforts that EPA could make to reduce the paperwork 
burden for very small businesses affected by this collection.

What Should I Consider When I Prepare My Comments for EPA?

    You may find the following suggestions helpful for preparing your 
comments:
    1. Explain your views as clearly as possible and provide specific 
examples.
    2. Describe any assumptions that you used.
    3. Provide copies of technical information/data you used that 
support your views.
    4. If you estimate potential burden or costs, explain how you 
arrived at the estimate that you provide.
    5. Offer alternative ways to improve the collection activity.
    6. Make sure to submit your comments by the deadline identified 
under DATES.
    7. To ensure proper receipt by EPA, be sure to identify the docket 
ID number assigned to this action in the subject line on the first page 
of your response. You may also provide the name, date, and Federal 
Register citation.

What Information Collection Activity or ICR Does This Apply to?

    Affected Entities: Entities potentially affected by this action are 
concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) as specified in section 
502(14) of the Clean Water Act, 33 U.S.C. 1362(14) and defined in the 
NPDES regulations at 40 CFR 122.23 and a subset of facilities engaged 
in aquatic animal production defined in 40 CFR part 451.
    Title: Animal Sectors ICR.
    ICR Number: EPA ICR No. 1989.07, OMB Control No. 2040-0250.
    ICR Status: This ICR is currently scheduled to expire on July 31, 
2012. An Agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not 
required to respond to, a collection of information, unless it displays 
a currently valid OMB control number. The OMB control numbers for EPA's 
regulations in title 40 of the CFR, after appearing in the Federal 
Register when approved, are listed in 40 CFR part 9, and are displayed 
either by publication in the Federal Register or by other appropriate 
means, such as on the related collection instrument or form, if 
applicable. The display of OMB control numbers in certain EPA 
regulations is consolidated in 40 CFR part 9.
    Abstract: The purpose of this ICR is to consolidate, streamline, 
and update EPA's concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) and 
concentrated aquatic animal production (CAAP) facility ICRs into the 
currently approved ICR for CAFOs (OMB Control No.:

[[Page 8696]]

2040-0250). The two ICRs that are being consolidated in this ICR are: 
(1) NPDES and ELG Regulatory Revisions for Concentrated Animal Feeding 
Operations (Final Rule) (OMB Control No. 2040-0250); and (2) 
Concentrated Aquatic Animal Production (CAAP) Effluent Guidelines (OMB 
Control No. 2040-0258). Additionally, two activities reported in the 
NPDES Program ICR (OMB Control No. 2040-0004) that are directly related 
with CAAP facilities or CAFOs will be incorporated in this ICR. (The 
two activities are the Permit Application for CAAP facilities using 
form 2B and Other Noncompliance Reports for CAFOs.)
    Burden Statement: The individual ICRs provide a detailed 
explanation of the Agency's estimate before update and consolidation, 
which is only briefly summarized here on Tables 1 and 2. The frequency 
of response for these ICRs varies from once to ongoing.

                                Table 1--ICRs Responses, Burden, and Cost Summary
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                                                                                                    Annual cost
       OMB ICR No.          EPA ICR No.            Title          Annual  number   Annual burden      burden
                                                                   of  responses      (hours)        (dollars)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2040-0250...............         1989.06  NPDES and ELG                  179,483       2,998,603       7,780,524
                                           Regulatory Revisions
                                           for Concentrated
                                           Animal Feeding
                                           Operations (Final
                                           Rule).
2040-0258...............         2087.03  Concentrated Aquatic               734          44,196               0
                                           Animal Production
                                           Point Source Category
                                           Effluent Guidelines
                                           Reporting and
                                           Recordkeeping
                                           Requirements.
2040-0004...............         0229.19  NPDES program ICR.....             385           1,341               0
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                                 Table 2--ICRs Respondents and Averages Summary
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                                                                                      Average
                                                                     Number of       number of
       OMB ICR No.          EPA ICR No.            Title             potential     responses for   Average hours
                                                                    respondents        each        per response
                                                                                    respondent
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2040-0250...............         1989.06  NPDES and ELG                   20,729             8.7            16.7
                                           Regulatory Revisions
                                           for Concentrated
                                           Animal Feeding
                                           Operations (Final
                                           Rule).
2040-0258...............         2087.03  Concentrated Aquatic               245             3.0            60.2
                                           Animal Production
                                           Point Source Category
                                           Effluent Guidelines
                                           Reporting and
                                           Recordkeeping
                                           Requirements.
2040-0004...............         0229.19  NPDES program ICR.....             242             1.6             3.5
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    After the consolidation and update are completed, the agency 
estimates a burden of 2,810,266 hours annually for 22,844 operator 
respondents at a cost of $63.6 million ($56.7 million burden cost and 
$6.9 million capital and O&M cost). Burden for the state respondents 
will be 463,412 hours annually at a cost of $10.0 million ($8.1 million 
burden cost and $1.8 million capital and O&M cost). Updated agency 
burden will be 15,188 hours annually at a cost of $0.8 million. The 
annual reporting and record-keeping burden for this collection of 
information is estimated to average 1.1 hours per response.
    Burden means the total time, effort, or financial resources 
expended by persons to generate, maintain, retain, or disclose or 
provide information to or for a Federal agency. This includes the time 
needed to review instructions; develop, acquire, install, and utilize 
technology and systems for the purposes of collecting, validating, and 
verifying information, processing and maintaining information, and 
disclosing and providing information; adjust the existing ways to 
comply with any previously applicable instructions and requirements 
which have subsequently changed; train personnel to be able to respond 
to a collection of information; search data sources; complete and 
review the collection of information; and transmit or otherwise 
disclose the information.
    Change in Burden: The current burden approved by OMB for the two 
ICRs being consolidated plus the activities from the NPDES Program ICR 
being migrated to this ICR is 3,044,140 hours. This consolidated ICR 
estimates a total burden that is 229,537 hours more than the currently 
approved burden for the same ICRs. This increase in burden corresponds 
to 7.5 percent of the overall burden. The main cause of increase is 
that the animal agricultural industry has continued to change. These 
changes have included further growth and consolidation, which has 
resulted in a greater number of AFOs that meet the size threshold for 
being defined as a Large CAFO. The projections also reflect more robust 
estimates from States and EPA regions on numbers of CAFOs in each. EPA 
estimates that the industry will grow at an average annual rate of 5.6% 
over the life of this ICR; with permitted CAFOs growing at an average 
annual rate of 6.0%.

What Is the Next Step in the Process for This ICR?

    EPA will consider the comments received and amend the ICR as 
appropriate. The final ICR package will then be submitted to OMB for 
review and approval pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.12. At that time, EPA will 
issue another Federal Register notice pursuant to 5 CFR 
1320.5(a)(1)(iv) to announce the submission of the ICR to OMB and the 
opportunity to submit additional comments to OMB. If you have any 
questions about this ICR or the approval process, please contact the 
technical person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

    Dated: February 16, 2010.
James A. Hanlon,
Director, Office of Wastewater Management.
[FR Doc. 2010-3842 Filed 2-24-10; 8:45 am]
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