[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 60 (Wednesday, March 28, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 18806-18807]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-7443]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OPP-2012-0172; FRL-9341-7]


Fluxapyroxad; Receipt of Application for Emergency Exemption for 
Use on Rice in Louisiana, Solicitation of Public Comment

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: EPA has received a specific exemption request from the 
Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry to use the pesticide 
fluxapyroxad (CAS No. 907204-31-3) to treat up to 40,000 acres of rice 
to control sheath blight caused by the fungus, Rhizoctonia solani. The 
applicant proposes the use of a new chemical which has not been 
registered by the EPA. EPA is soliciting public comment before making 
the decision whether or not to grant the exemption.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before April 12, 2012.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by docket identification 
(ID) number EPA-HQ-OPP-2012-0172, by one of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the online 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-
2012-0172. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included 
in the 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 regulations.gov or email. 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 email comment 
directly to EPA without going through regulations.gov, your email 
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: Debra Rate, Registration Division 
(7505P), Office of Pesticide Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, 
1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001; telephone 
number: (703) 306-0309; fax number: (703) 605-0781; email 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 are an 
agricultural producer, food manufacturer, or pesticide manufacturer. 
Potentially affected entities may include, but are not limited to:
     Crop production (NAICS code 111).
     Animal production (NAICS code 112).
     Food manufacturing (NAICS code 311).
     Pesticide manufacturing (NAICS code 32532).
    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 
www.regulations.gov or email. 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

[[Page 18807]]

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.
    3. Environmental justice. EPA seeks to achieve environmental 
justice, the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of any group, 
including minority and/or low income populations, in the development, 
implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and 
policies. To help address potential environmental justice issues, the 
Agency seeks information on any groups or segments of the population 
who, as a result of their location, cultural practices, or other 
factors, may have atypical or disproportionately high and adverse human 
health impacts or environmental effects from exposure to the 
pesticide(s) discussed in this document, compared to the general 
population.

II. What action is the Agency taking?

    Under section 18 of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and 
Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) (7 U.S.C. 136p), at the discretion of the 
Administrator, a Federal or State agency may be exempted from any 
provision of FIFRA if the Administrator determines that emergency 
conditions exist which require the exemption. Louisiana Department of 
Agriculture and Forestry has requested the Administrator to issue a 
specific exemption for the use of fluxapyroxad on rice to control 
sheath blight caused by the fungus Rhizoctonia solani. Information in 
accordance with 40 CFR part 166 was submitted as part of this request.
    As part of this request, the applicant asserts that fluxapyroxad is 
needed to control sheath blight in rice caused by the fungus 
Rhizoctonia solani. Rhizoctonia solani has developed resistance to the 
fungicides typically used to control the resulting sheath blight, thus 
leading to a lack of alternative and effective control practices. 
Without the requested chemical control, fluxapyroxad, Louisiana has 
stated that economic losses to rice growers could range from 21% to 
27%, with as much as 50% on very susceptible varieties. An additional 
10% to 15% reduction in grain quality could also be experienced.
    The Applicant proposes to make no more than two applications per 
year at a rate of 4.5 oz. formulated product (0.087 lb fluxapyroxad)/
acre/application to a maximum of 40,000 acres of rice during the 2012 
growing season in the state of Louisiana. At total of 2,812.5 gallons 
(6,960 lbs fluxpyroxad) may be used.
    This notice does not constitute a decision by EPA on the 
application itself. The regulations governing section 18 of FIFRA 
require publication of a notice of receipt of an application for a 
specific exemption proposing use of a new chemical (i.e., an active 
ingredient) which has not been registered by EPA. The notice provides 
an opportunity for public comment on the application.
    The Agency, will review and consider all comments received during 
the comment period in determining whether to issue the specific 
exemption requested by the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and 
Forestry.

List of Subjects

    Environmental protection, Pesticides and pests.

    Dated: March 16, 2012.
Lois Rossi,
Director, Registration Division, Office of Pesticide Programs.
[FR Doc. 2012-7443 Filed 3-27-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P