[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 89 (Tuesday, May 8, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 27057-27059]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-11048]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OW-2012-0217; FRL-9669-1]


Request for Nominations of Drinking Water Contaminants for the 
Fourth Contaminant Candidate List

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice and request for public comment.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is requesting 
nominations of chemical and microbial contaminants for possible 
inclusion in the fourth drinking water Contaminant Candidate List (CCL 
4). EPA is also requesting supporting information that has been made 
available since the development of the third CCL (CCL 3), or existing 
information that was not considered for CCL 3, which shows that the 
nominated contaminant may have an adverse health effect on people and 
occurs or is likely to occur in public water systems.

DATES: Nominations must be received on or before June 22, 2012.

ADDRESSES: Submit your nominations by one of the following methods:
     To the CCL 4 Nominations Web site: http://water.epa.gov/scitech/drinkingwater/dws/ccl/ccl4.cfm by following the on-line 
instructions for submitting nominations.
     Mail: Water Docket, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 
Mailcode: 2822T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW., Washington, DC 20460. 
Identify your nominations by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OW-2012-0217.
     Hand Delivery: Water Docket, U.S. EPA Docket Center (EPA/
DC). Such deliveries are only accepted during the Docket's normal hours 
of operation, and special arrangements should be made for deliveries of 
boxed information. The EPA Docket Center, Water Docket is located in 
Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW., Washington, DC 20004. The 
telephone number for the Water Docket is (202) 566-2426.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For general information contact the 
EPA Safe Drinking Water Hotline at (800) 426-4791 or email: [email protected]. For technical questions about this notice and/or inquires 
regarding EPA's CCL 4 Nominations Web site, please contact Clifton 
Townsend, Standards and Risk Management Division, Office of Ground 
Water and Drinking Water, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 
Pennsylvania Ave. NW., MC:4607M, Washington, DC 20460; telephone 
number: (202) 564-1576; email address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. General Information

A. Does this action apply to me?

    This notice does not impose any requirements on anyone; it only 
requests drinking water contaminant candidate nominations and provides 
information on how the public can submit nominations to the agency.

B. How can I get copies of this document and other related information?

    1. Docket. EPA has established a docket for this action under 
Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OW-2012-0217. Publicly available docket materials 
are available either electronically through www.regulations.gov or in 
hard copy at the Water Docket in the EPA Docket Center (see ADDRESSES 
section)
    2. Electronic Access. You may access this Federal Register document 
electronically through the EPA Web site under the ``Federal Register'' 
listings at http://www.epa.gov/fedrgstr/.

II. Background

A. What is the CCL?

    The CCL is a list of contaminants that are currently not subject to 
any proposed or promulgated national primary drinking water 
regulations, that are known or anticipated to occur in public water 
systems, and which may require regulation under the Safe Drinking Water 
Act (SDWA). EPA uses this list of unregulated contaminants to help the 
agency determine whether it should regulate a specific contaminant and 
to prioritize research and data collection efforts. SDWA requires that 
EPA publish the CCL every five years (SWDA Section 1412(b)(1)). EPA is 
also required to consult with the scientific community and provide 
notice and opportunity for public comment prior to publication of the 
CCL.
    SDWA also requires EPA to determine whether to regulate at least 
five contaminants from the CCL every five years (SWDA Section 
1412(b)(1)) with a national primary drinking water regulation (NPDWR). 
In making a determination to regulate a contaminant, SDWA specifies 
that three criteria must be met:
    1. The contaminant may have an adverse effect on the health of 
persons;
    2. The contaminant is known to occur or there is a substantial 
likelihood that the contaminant will occur in public water systems with 
a frequency and at levels of public health concern; and
    3. In the sole judgment of the Administrator, regulation of such 
contaminant presents a meaningful opportunity for health risk reduction 
for persons served by public water systems.

B. How did EPA develop previous contaminant candidate lists?

    EPA published the first CCL (CCL 1), which contained 60 chemical 
and microbiological contaminants, on March 2, 1998 (63 FR 10273). EPA 
consulted with the scientific community and the National Drinking Water 
Advisory Council (NDWAC) on the process used to develop CCL 1. Based on 
the NDWAC recommendations, the agency developed and used screening and 
evaluation criteria to identify the list of chemical contaminants for 
CCL 1. For microbiological contaminants, the agency followed the NDWAC 
recommendations and sought external expertise to identify and select 
potential waterborne pathogens. The agency convened a workshop of 
microbiologists and public health experts who developed criteria for 
screening and

[[Page 27058]]

evaluation and subsequently developed an initial list of potential 
microbiological contaminants. On July 18, 2003 (68 FR 42897), EPA 
announced its final regulatory determination for 9 of the 60 
contaminants listed on CCL 1 and concluded that sufficient data and 
information were available to make the determination not to regulate 
these 9 contaminants (8 chemicals and 1 microbial) with an NPDWR.
    EPA published the second CCL (CCL 2) on February 24, 2005 (70 FR 
9071), and carried forward the remaining 51 chemical and microbial 
contaminants listed on CCL 1. On July 30, 2008 (73 FR 44251), EPA 
announced its final regulatory determination for 11 of the 51 
contaminants listed on CCL 2 and concluded that sufficient data and 
information were available to make the determination not to regulate 
these 11 contaminants with an NPDWR.
    EPA published the third CCL (CCL 3), which listed 116 contaminants, 
on October 8, 2009 (74 FR 51850). In developing CCL 3, EPA improved and 
built upon the process that was used for CCL 1 and CCL 2. EPA based the 
new CCL 3 process on substantial expert input and recommendations from 
the National Academy of Science's (NAS) National Research Council (NRC) 
and the National Drinking Water Advisory Council (NDWAC) as well as 
input from the public. Based on these consultations and input, EPA 
developed a multi-step process to select candidates for the final CCL 
3, which included the following key steps:
    (a) Identification of a broad universe of ~7,500 potential drinking 
water contaminants (the CCL 3 Universe);
    (b) screening the CCL 3 Universe to a preliminary CCL (PCCL) of 
~600 contaminants based on the potential to occur in public water 
systems and the potential for public health concern; and
    (c) evaluation of the PCCL contaminants based on a more detailed 
review of the occurrence and health effects data to identify a final 
list of 116 CCL 3 contaminants.
    A complete summary of the key steps used to identify contaminants 
for CCL 3 and a more detailed discussion of the analyses and decisions 
made to develop the final CCL 3 can be found in the draft and final CCL 
3 Federal Register notices (73 FR 9628, February 21, 2008, and 74 FR 
51850, October 8, 2009, respectively) and related supporting documents. 
More information can also be found on the CCL 3 Web site: http://water.epa.gov/scitech/drinkingwater/dws/ccl/ccl3.cfm.
    The agency is currently in the process of further evaluating CCL 3 
contaminants to determine whether any of these contaminants require 
regulation with an NPDWR.

C. What data sources did EPA use to identify contaminants for the CCL 
3?

    A complete summary of how EPA evaluated data sources to identify 
chemical contaminants for the CCL 3 can be found in the draft and final 
CCL 3 Federal Register notices (73 FR 9628, February 21, 2008, and 74 
FR 51850, October 8, 2009, respectively). A list of the data sources 
used to evaluate contaminants for the CCL 3 as well as a more detailed 
summary of the process EPA used to evaluate data sources can be found 
in the CCL 3 support document (Contaminant Candidate List 3 Chemicals: 
Identifying the Universe (EPA 815-R-09-006)). These documents can be 
found on the Web at: http://water.epa.gov/scitech/drinkingwater/dws/ccl/ccl3_processflowdiagram.cfm or in the CCL 3 docket (docket number 
EPA-HQ-OW-2007-1189) at www.regulations.gov.
    A summary of how EPA evaluated data sources to identify microbial 
contaminants for CCL 3 can be found in the draft and final CCL 3 
Federal Register notices (73 FR 9628, February 21, 2008, and 74 FR 
51850, October 8, 2009, respectively), as well as the CCL 3 support 
document, Contaminant Candidate List 3 Microbes: Identifying the 
Universe (EPA 815-R-R-09-004), which can be found on the Web at: http://water.epa.gov/scitech/drinkingwater/dws/ccl/upload/CCL3MicrobesUniverse_7_22_09.pdf or in the CCL 3 docket (docket 
number EPA-HQ-OW-2007-1189) at www.regulations.gov.
    EPA will use the nominations process to ensure that the CCL 4 
process captures emerging chemicals and pathogens.

D. Why is EPA soliciting contaminant nominations?

    EPA is requesting contaminant nominations from the public to ensure 
that contaminants that may not be identified for consideration as part 
of the CCL process are considered.
    While NAS and NDWAC recommended that the CCL be a data driven, 
step-wise approach to classifying contaminants, these experts also 
recognized the importance of providing an additional pathway for the 
public to identify new and emerging contaminants that may not be 
identified in an evaluation of the data sources. A public nominations 
process allows the agency to consider new and emerging contaminants 
that might not otherwise be considered because new information has not 
been widely reported or recorded.
    Following the recommendations of NAS and NDWAC, the agency 
implemented a process to screen and identify contaminants for inclusion 
in the CCL 3. The nominated contaminants will be considered as EPA 
evaluates contaminants for inclusion on the CCL 4.

III. EPA CCL Nominations Process

    This contaminant nominations process is the first opportunity to 
make nominations to the CCL 4. The agency will also accept nominations 
during the notice and comment period following EPA's publication of the 
draft CCL 4.

A. How can stakeholders, other agencies, industry and the public 
nominate contaminants for the CCL 4?

    EPA's preferred method for submission of contaminant nominations is 
through the EPA CCL 4 Nomination Web site. Interested parties can also 
nominate chemicals, microbes or other materials for consideration on 
the new CCL by sending information electronically or in hard copy to 
EPA. Do not submit confidential business information (CBI) through 
email. If you wish to submit CBI, first contact EPA (see FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT section) for instructions on how to submit CBI. 
When submitting a nomination, it is preferred that the nominators 
include a name, affiliation, phone number, mailing address, and email 
address; however, this information is not required and nominations can 
be submitted anonymously. The nominator should also address the 
following questions for each contaminant nominated to the CCL:
    1. What is the contaminant's name, CAS number, and/or common 
synonym (if applicable)?
    2. What factors make this contaminant a priority for the CCL 4 
process (e.g., widespread occurrence; anticipated toxicity to humans; 
potentially harmful effects to susceptible populations (e.g., children, 
elderly or immunocompromised); potentially contaminated source water 
(surface or ground water) and/or finished water; release to air, land 
and/or water; contaminant is manufactured in large quantities with a 
potential to occur in source waters)?
    3. What are the new significant health effects and occurrence data 
that are available since CCL 3, or existing information that was not 
considered in CCL 3, which you believe supports the CCL requirement(s) 
that a contaminant may have an adverse effect on the health

[[Page 27059]]

of persons and is known or anticipated to occur in public water 
systems?
    4. Please provide complete citations, including author(s), title, 
journal and date. Contact information for the primary investigator 
would also be helpful.

B. How do I submit nominations through EPA's nominations Web site?

    The Web site is designed to provide key information to the agency, 
as described in Section III.A of this notice, for each contaminant 
nominated to the CCL process.
    The Web address where you can nominate a contaminant is http://water.epa.gov/scitech/drinkingwater/dws/ccl/ccl4.cfm

C. How do I submit nominations in hard copy?

    You may submit nominations through the mail. To allow full agency 
consideration of your nomination, please ensure that your nominations 
are received or postmarked by midnight June 22, 2012. The addresses for 
submittal of nominations by mail are listed in the ADDRESSES section of 
this document.

D. What will happen to my nominations after I submit them?

    The agency will evaluate the information available for the 
nominated contaminants to determine the appropriateness of inclusion on 
the CCL 4. EPA does not intend to respond to the nominations directly 
or individually. The agency will publish a document summarizing the 
nominations received along with the draft CCL 4 list.

IV. References

    Copies of these documents are found at www.regulations.gov, Docket 
ID No. EPA-OW-2012-0217.

NAS 2001. National Academy of Sciences, National Research Council. 
2001. Classifying Drinking Water Contaminants for Regulatory 
Consideration. National Academy Press. Washington, DC. Available at 
http://books.nap.edu/books/0309074088/html/index.html.
NDWAC 2004. National Drinking Water Advisory Council. National 
Drinking Water Advisory Council Report on the CCL Classification 
Process to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, May 18, 2004. 
Available at http://www.epa.gov/safewater/ndwac/pdfs/report_ccl_ndwac_07-06-04.pdf.
USEPA. 2008. Drinking Water Contaminant Candidate List 3--Draft 
Notice. Federal Register. Vol, 73. No 35. p. 9628. February 21, 
2008.
USEPA. 2009a. SAB Advisory on EPA's Draft Third Drinking Water 
Contaminant List (CCL 3). EPA-SAB-09-011. January 2009. http://yosemite.epa.gov/sab/sabproduct.nsf/WebProjectsbyNameBOARD!OpenView.
USEPA. 2009b. Summary of Nominations for the Third Contaminants 
Candidate List. EPA 815-R-09-011. Final. August, 2009.
USEPA. 2009c. Final Contaminant Candidate List 3 Chemicals: 
Identifying the Universe. EPA. 815-R-09-006. August, 2009.
USEPA. 2009d. Final Contaminant Candidate List 3 Microbes: 
Identifying the Universe. EPA. 815-R-09-004. August, 2009.

    Dated: April 27, 2012.
Nancy K. Stoner,
Acting Assistant Administrator, Office of Water.
[FR Doc. 2012-11048 Filed 5-7-12; 8:45 am]
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