[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 178 (Wednesday, September 14, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56754-56756]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-23516]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OPP-2011-0586; FRL-8887-6]


Petition Requesting Ban on Use and Production of Atrazine; Notice 
of Availability

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: EPA is seeking public comment on a request from the 
environmental advocacy group Save the Frogs that EPA ban the use and 
production of atrazine.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before November 14, 2011.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by docket identification 
(ID) number EPA-HQ-OPP-2011-0586, 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.

[[Page 56755]]

    Instructions: Direct your comments to docket ID number EPA-HQ-OPP-
2011-0586. 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 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 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: Melanie Biscoe, Pesticide Re-
evaluation Division (7508P), Office of Pesticide Programs, 
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., 
Washington, DC 20460-0001; telephone number: (703) 305-7106; fax 
number: (703) 308-8005; 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 manufacture, 
distribute, sell, or use pesticides; are an environmental, human 
health, or agricultural advocate; or are a general member of the 
public. Potentially affected entities may include, but are not limited 
to:
     Pesticide Manufacturers (NAICS code 325320), e.g., 
herbicides manufacturing.
     Pesticides, agricultural, merchant wholesalers and lawn 
care supplies merchant wholesalers (NAICS code 424910).
     Corn farming (NAICS codes 111150, 111219).
     Sorghum farming (NAICS code 111199).
     Sugarcane farming (NAICS code 111930).
     Environment, conservation, and wildlife organizations 
(NAICS code 813312).
    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 
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. What action is the Agency taking?

    EPA seeks public comment on a petition from environmental advocacy 
group Save the Frogs requesting that EPA ban the use and production of 
atrazine. This petition, available in EPA-HQ-OPP-2011-0586, was 
submitted on May 6, 2011 during a meeting with Save the Frogs founder 
Dr. Kerry Kriger. The presentation and participant list from the 
meeting is also available in docket EPA-HQ-OPP-2011-0586.
    The Save the Frogs petition includes over 10,000 signatures; select 
statements from the public; and two brief summaries of published 
literature, one by Dr. Jason Rohr and one by Dr. Tyrone Hayes that is 
co-authored by 39 other scientists.
    In conjunction with this petition, EPA received nearly 50,000 
emails from supporters of the Center for Biological Diversity and the 
Natural Resources Defense Council requesting that EPA ``immediately 
take steps to phase out atrazine use in the United States,'' stating 
that atrazine poses an unreasonable risk to the environment. The emails 
express concern for impacts on amphibians and other aquatic species as 
well as concern for potential risks to human health.
    Information on EPA's regulation of atrazine with regard to 
amphibians,

[[Page 56756]]

aquatic ecosystems and human health can be found on its atrazine Web 
page: http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/reregistration/atrazine/atrazine_update.htm.
    The Agency asks that comments on the Save the Frogs petition's 
request to ban the use and production of atrazine be submitted to 
docket EPA-HQ-OPP-2011-0586 within 60 days. EPA will review all 
comments submitted before responding to the petition.

List of Subjects

    Environmental protection, pesticides, and pests.

    Dated: September 6, 2011.
Richard P. Keigwin, Jr.,
Director, Pesticide Re-evaluation Division, Office of Pesticide 
Programs.
[FR Doc. 2011-23516 Filed 9-13-11; 8:45 am]
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