[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 99 (Monday, May 24, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 28805-28806]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-12397]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-9154-6]


Science Advisory Board Staff Office; Notification of a Public 
Teleconference and Public Meeting of the SAB Dioxin Review Panel

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The EPA Science Advisory Board (SAB) Staff Office announces a 
teleconference and a face-to-face meeting of the SAB Dioxin Review 
Panel to review EPA's Reanalysis of Key Issues Related to Dioxin 
Toxicity and Response to NAS Comments, External Review Draft.

DATES: There will be a public teleconference on June 24, 2010 from 1 
p.m. to 3:30 p.m. (Eastern Daylight Time). The public meeting will be 
on July 13 from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., July 14 from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., 
and July 15 from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. (Eastern Daylight Time).

ADDRESSES: The teleconference will be conducted by phone only. The 
face-to-face meeting on July 13-15 will be held at The Hilton Embassy 
Row Hotel, 2015 Massachusetts Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20036; 
telephone (202) 265-1600.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Any member of the public wishing to 
obtain information concerning the public teleconference and public 
meeting may contact Dr. Thomas Armitage, Designated Federal Officer 
(DFO), EPA Science Advisory Board Staff Office (1400F), U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., 
Washington, DC 20460; by telephone/voice mail at (202) 343-9995 or via 
e-mail at [email protected]. General information about the SAB, 
as well as any updates concerning the meeting announced in this notice, 
may be found on the SAB Web site at: http://www.epa.gov/sab.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant to the Federal Advisory Committee 
Act (FACA), 5 U.S.C., App. 2, notice is hereby given that the SAB 
Dioxin Review Panel will hold a public teleconference to discuss the 
plans for the subsequent public face-to-face meeting to conduct a peer 
review of EPA's Reanalysis of Key Issues Related to Dioxin Toxicity and 
Response to NAS Comments, External Review Draft (May 2010). The SAB was 
established pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 4365 to provide independent 
scientific and technical advice to the Administrator on the technical 
basis for Agency positions and regulations. The SAB is a Federal 
Advisory Committee chartered under FACA. The SAB will comply with the 
provisions of FACA and all appropriate SAB Staff Office procedural 
policies.
    Background: In 2003, EPA's Office of Research and Development (ORD) 
developed a comprehensive reassessment of the health risks of dioxin 
and related compounds. In 2004, EPA asked the National Research Council 
of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) to review the 2003 dioxin 
reassessment document. In 2006, The NAS published its review and 
identified three areas that required substantial improvement to support 
a scientifically robust risk characterization. These areas were: (1) 
Justification of approaches to dose-response modeling for cancer and 
non-cancer endpoints; (2) transparency and clarity in selection of key 
data sets for analysis; and (3) transparency, thoroughness, and clarity 
in quantitative uncertainty analysis. The full NAS report, including 
recommendations, is available at http://books.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=11688.
    In response to the recommendations presented in the 2006 NAS 
review, the EPA published a ``Science Plan for Activities Related to 
Dioxins in the Environment'' on May 26, 2009. The plan states that EPA 
will prepare a draft report that responds to the recommendations and 
comments in the NAS report and that the SAB will peer review the 
science content of EPA's draft report. Following the SAB review, EPA 
will release the final response to comments report, and focus on 
completion of the 2003 reassessment.
    In response to the request from ORD, the SAB staff office solicited 
nominations of experts and formed a review panel for dioxin [Federal 
Register Notice dated October 15, 2008 (73 FR 61114-61115)]. The SAB 
panel will conduct a review of the May 2010 External Review Draft of 
EPA's Reanalysis of Key Issues Related to Dioxin Toxicity and Response 
to NAS

[[Page 28806]]

Comments. Specifically, the panel is being asked to evaluate: The 
transparency and clarity in the selection of key data sets for dose-
response analysis; the use of toxicokinetics in dose-response modeling 
for cancer and non-cancer endpoints; the derivation of the chronic 
reference dose; cancer assessment; and EPA's comments regarding the 
feasibility of the quantitative uncertainty analysis from the NAS 
evaluation of the 2003 reassessment. The purpose of the teleconference 
is for the panel to be briefed on the EPA draft response to comments 
document and to allow panel members to ask clarifying questions on the 
charge to the panel. During the face-to-face meeting, the panel will 
review the draft EPA document.
    Availability of Meeting Materials: Agendas and materials in support 
of these meetings will be placed on the SAB Web site at http://www.epa.gov/sab in advance of each meeting. For technical questions and 
information concerning EPA's draft document, please contact Dr. Glenn 
Rice at (513) 569-7813, or [email protected].
    Procedures for Providing Public Input: Public comment for 
consideration by EPA's federal advisory committees and panels has a 
different purpose from public comment provided to EPA program offices. 
Therefore, the process for submitting comments to a federal advisory 
committee is different from the process used to submit comments to an 
EPA program office. Federal advisory committees and panels, including 
scientific advisory committees, provide independent advice to EPA. 
Members of the public can submit comments for a Federal advisory 
committee to consider as it develops advice for EPA. They should send 
their comments directly to the Designated Federal Officer for the 
relevant advisory committee. Oral Statements: In general, individuals 
or groups requesting an oral presentation at a public teleconference 
will be limited to three minutes per speaker, with no more than a total 
of 30 minutes for all speakers. At the face-to-face meeting, 
presentations will be limited to five minutes, with no more than a 
total of one hour for all speakers. Each person making an oral 
statement should consider providing written comments as well as their 
oral statement so that the points presented orally can be expanded upon 
in writing. Interested parties should contact Dr. Thomas Armitage, DFO, 
in writing (preferably via e-mail) at the contact information noted 
above, by June 21, 2010 for the teleconference, and by July 7, 2010 for 
the face-to-face meeting, to be placed on the list of public speakers. 
Written Statements: Written statements should be supplied to the DFO 
via e-mail at the contact information noted above, by June 22, 2010 for 
the teleconference, and by July 9, 2010 for the face-to-face meeting so 
that the information may be made available to the Committee members for 
their consideration. Written statements should be supplied in one of 
the following electronic formats: Adobe Acrobat PDF, MS Word, MS 
PowerPoint, or Rich Text files in IBM-PC/Windows 98/2000/XP format. 
Submitters are requested to provide versions of signed documents, 
submitted with and without signatures, because the SAB Staff Office 
does not publish documents with signatures on its Web sites.
    Accessibility: For information on access or services for 
individuals with disabilities, please contact Dr. Thomas Armitage at 
(202) 343-9995 or [email protected]. To request accommodation of 
a disability, please contact Dr. Armitage preferably at least ten days 
prior to the teleconference to give EPA as much time as possible to 
process your request.

    Dated: May 17, 2010.
Anthony F. Maciorowski,
Deputy Director, EPA Science Advisory Board Staff Office.
[FR Doc. 2010-12397 Filed 5-21-10; 8:45 am]
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