[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 77 (Thursday, April 21, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22394-22395]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-9686]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-9298-6]


Science Advisory Board Staff Office; Notification of a Public 
Teleconferences of the Science Advisory Board Panel for Review of 
Hydraulic Fracturing Study Plan

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or Agency) Science 
Advisory Board (SAB) Staff Office announces two public teleconferences 
of the SAB Panel to discuss its draft report of the review of EPA's 
Draft Hydraulic Fracturing Study Plan.

DATES: Two public teleconference calls will be held on Thursday, May 
19, 2011 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. and on Wednesday, May 25, 2011 from 1 
p.m. to 5 p.m. (Eastern Time).

ADDRESSES: The public teleconferences will be conducted by telephone 
only.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Any member of the public wishing 
further information regarding this Notice and these public 
teleconferences may contact Mr. Edward Hanlon, Designated Federal 
Officer (DFO), SAB Staff Office, by telephone/voice mail at (202) 564-
2134; by fax at (202) 565-2098 or via e-mail at [email protected]. 
General information concerning the EPA Science Advisory Board can be 
found at the EPA SAB Web site at http://www.epa.gov/sab. Any inquiry 
regarding EPA's Draft Hydraulic Fracturing Study Plan should be 
directed to Ms. Susan Burden, EPA Office of Research and Development 
(ORD), at [email protected] or (202) 564-6308. Media inquiries 
regarding EPA's Draft Hydraulic Fracturing Study Plan should be

[[Page 22395]]

directed to Ms. Amy Dewey, EPA Office of Public Affairs (OPA), at 
[email protected] or (202) 564-7816.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Background: 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 
the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), 5 U.S.C., App. 2. Pursuant 
to FACA and EPA policy, notice is hereby given that the SAB Panel will 
hold two public teleconferences to provide an independent review of 
EPA's Draft Hydraulic Fracturing Study Plan.
    Hydraulic fracturing generates vertical and horizontal fractures in 
underground geologic formations to facilitate extraction of gas (or 
oil) from the subsurface. The general process involves drilling a 
vertical well, in many cases extending the well bore horizontally into 
the formation, removing water, injecting hydraulic fracturing fluids 
and then extracting the natural gas along with separation and 
management of fluids. To respond to concerns voiced by the public and 
meet a Congressional request, the EPA Office of Research and 
Development (ORD) initiated a study on the potential impacts of 
hydraulic fracturing on drinking water resources. At a public face-to-
face meeting on April 7-8, 2010, the SAB Environmental Engineering 
Committee (EEC) augmented with other SAB members evaluated and 
commented on ORD's proposed scope of study and key research questions 
regarding the potential public health and drinking water resource 
issues that may be associated with hydraulic fracturing [Federal 
Register Notice dated March 18, 2010 (75 FR 13125)]. On June 24, 2010 
the SAB provided the EPA Administrator with an advisory report entitled 
Advisory on EPA's Research Scoping Document Related to Hydraulic 
Fracturing, EPA-SAB-10-009.
    ORD's next step was to develop a draft Study Plan for its hydraulic 
fracturing research. The SAB formed a new Hydraulic Fracturing Study 
Plan Review Panel which met on March 7-8, 2011 to discuss and evaluate 
ORD's Draft Hydraulic Fracturing Study Plan. [Federal Register Notice 
dated February 9, 2011 (76 FR 7199-7180)]. Materials from the March 
2011 meeting are posted on the SAB Web site at http://yosemite.epa.gov/sab/sabproduct.nsf/MeetingCal/153AC7DF8D2626F98525781000648075?OpenDocument. The purpose of the May 
19, 2011 and May 25, 2011 teleconference calls is for the SAB Panel to 
discuss its draft review report that was developed based on consensus 
views reached at the March 7-8, 2011 meeting.
    Availability of Meeting Materials: The agenda and materials in 
support of these teleconference calls will be placed on the EPA SAB Web 
site at http://www.epa.gov/sab in advance of the teleconference calls.
    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. Input from the public to the SAB will 
have the most impact if it provides specific scientific or technical 
information or analysis for SAB to consider or if it relates to the 
clarity or accuracy of the technical information. Members of the public 
wishing to provide comment should contact the Designated Federal 
Officer for the relevant advisory committee directly.
    Oral Statements: Members of the public have opportunity to provide 
oral statements during the May 19, 2011 teleconference call. In 
general, individuals requesting an oral presentation during the May 19, 
2011 public teleconference will be limited to three minutes per 
speaker. Interested parties should contact Mr. Edward Hanlon, DFO, in 
writing (preferably via e-mail), at the contact information noted 
above, by May 12, 2011 to be placed on the list of public speakers for 
the teleconference.
    Written Statements: Written statements should be received in the 
SAB Staff Office by May 12, 2011 so that the information may be made 
available to the Panel for their consideration. Written statements 
should be supplied to the DFO in electronic format via e-mail 
(acceptable file formats: Adobe Acrobat PDF, WordPerfect, MS Word, MS 
PowerPoint, or Rich Text files in IBM-PC/Windows 98/2000/XP format). It 
is the SAB Staff Office general policy to post written comments on the 
Web page prior to the advisory meeting or teleconference. Submitters 
are requested to provide an unsigned version of each document because 
the SAB Staff Office does not publish documents with signatures on its 
Web sites. Members of the public should be aware that their personal 
contact information, if included in any written comments, may be posted 
to the SAB Web site. Copyrighted material will not be posted without 
explicit permission of the copyright holder.
    Accessibility: For information on access or services for 
individuals with disabilities, please contact Mr. Edward Hanlon at the 
phone number or e-mail address noted above, preferably at least ten 
days prior to the meeting, to give EPA as much time as possible to 
process your request.

    Dated: April 15, 2011.
Anthony F. Maciorowski,
Deputy Director, EPA Science Advisory Board Staff Office.
[FR Doc. 2011-9686 Filed 4-20-11; 8:45 am]
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