[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 72 (Monday, April 15, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22257-22260]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-08666]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[EPA-HQ-OAR-2007-0268; FRL-9707-2]
Updates to Protective Action Guides Manual: Protective Action
Guides (PAGs) and Planning Guidance for Radiological Incidents
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of document availability for interim use and public
comment.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: As part of its mission to protect human health and the
environment, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) publishes
protective action guides to help federal, state, local and tribal
emergency response officials make radiation protection decisions during
emergencies. EPA, in coordination with a multi-agency working group
within the Federal Radiological Preparedness Coordinating Committee
(FRPCC), is proposing updates to the 1992 Manual of Protective Action
Guides and Protective Actions for Nuclear Incidents, referred to as
``The 1992 PAG Manual'' (EPA 400-R-92-001, May 1992).
The updated guidance in this revised 2013 PAG Manual--Protective
Action Guides and Planning Guidance for Radiological Incidents (``2013
PAG Manual'' hereafter) applies the PAGs to incidents other than just
nuclear power plant accidents, updates the radiation dosimetry and dose
calculations based on current science and incorporates late phase
guidance.
While there is no drinking water PAG provided in the proposal, the
Agency continues to seek input on this. The newly proposed 2013 PAG
Manual is available for interim use and review at www.regulations.gov.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before July 15, 2013.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-
OAR-2007-0268, by one of the following methods--
www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line instructions for
submitting comments.
Email: to [email protected]; Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-
OAR-2007-0268.
Fax: (202) 566-1741
Mail: Air and Radiation Docket and Information Center,
Environmental Protection Agency, Mail Code: 6102T, 1200 Pennsylvania
Ave NW., Washington, DC 20460.
Instructions: Direct your comments to Attn: Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-
OAR-2007-0268. The Agency's policy is that all comments received will
be included in the public docket without change and may be made
available online at 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
www.regulations.gov or email. The www.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 www.regulations.gov, your email address will be
automatically captured and included as part of the comment that is
placed in the public docket and made available on the Internet. If you
submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you
[[Page 22258]]
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. For additional
information about EPA's public docket, visit the EPA Docket Center
homepage at http://www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm.
Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the
www.regulations.gov index. 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, will be publicly available only in hard copy.
EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket ID No. [EPA-
HQ-OAR-2007-0268; FRL-9707-2]. Publicly available docket materials are
available either electronically through www.regulations.gov or in hard
copy at the Air and Radiation Docket in the EPA Docket Center, (EPA/DC)
EPA West, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave NW., Washington, DC 20004.
The EPA Docket Center Public Reading Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to
4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The
telephone number for the Public Reading Room is (202) 566-1744 and the
telephone number for the Air and Radiation Docket is (202) 566-1742. In
accordance with EPA's regulations at 40 CFR Part 2 and in accordance
with normal EPA docket procedures, if copies of any docket materials
are requested, a reasonable fee may be charged for photocopying.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sara DeCair, Radiation Protection
Division, Center for Radiological Emergency Management, Mail Code
6608J, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue
NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: (202) 343-9108 ; fax
number: (202) 343-2304; Email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
A. What authority does EPA have to provide Protective Action Guidance?
The historical and legal basis of EPA's role in the 2013 PAG Manual
begins with Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970, in which the
Administrator of EPA assumed all the functions of the Federal Radiation
Council (FRC), including the charge to ``* * * advise the President
with respect to radiation matters, directly or indirectly affecting
health, including guidance for all federal agencies in the formulation
of radiation standards and in the establishment and execution of
programs of cooperation with states.'' (Reorg. Plan No. 3 of 1970, sec.
2(a) (7), 6(a) (2); Sec. 274.h of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as
amended (AEA), codified at 42 U.S.C. 2021(h)). Recognizing this role,
FEMA directed EPA in their Radiological Emergency Planning and
Preparedness Regulations to ``establish Protective Action Guides (PAGs)
for all aspects of radiological emergency planning in coordination with
appropriate federal agencies.'' (44 CFR 351.22(a)). FEMA also tasked
EPA with preparing ``guidance for state and local governments on
implementing PAGs, including recommendations on protective actions
which can be taken to mitigate the potential radiation dose to the
population.''(44 CFR 351.22(b)). All of this information was to ``be
presented in the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) `Manual of
Protective Action Guides and Protective Actions for Nuclear
Incidents.'''(44 CFR 351.22(b)).
Additionally, section 2021(h) charged the Administrator with
performing ``such other functions as the President may assign to him
[or her] by Executive order.'' Executive Order 12656 states that the
Administrator shall ``[d]evelop, for national security emergencies,
guidance on acceptable emergency levels of nuclear radiation * * *.''
(Executive Order No. 12656, sec.1601(2)). EPA's role in PAGs
development was reaffirmed by the National Response Framework, Nuclear/
Radiological Incident Annex of June 2008.
B. What is the PAG Manual: Protective Action Guides and Planning
Guidance for Radiological Incidents?
The 2013 PAG Manual provides federal, state and local emergency
management officials with guidance for responding to radiological
emergencies. A protective action guide (PAG) is the projected dose to
an individual from a release of radioactive material at which a
specific protective action to reduce or avoid that dose is recommended.
Emergency management officials use PAGs for making decisions regarding
actions to protect the public from exposure to radiation during an
emergency. Such actions include, but are not limited to, evacuation,
shelter-in-place, temporary relocation, and food restrictions.
Development of the PAGs was based on the following essential
principles, which also apply to the selection of any protective action
during an incident--
Prevent acute effects.
Balance protection with other important factors and ensure
that actions result in more benefit than harm.
Reduce risk of chronic effects.
The 2013 PAG Manual is not a legally binding regulation or standard
and does not supersede any environmental laws; PAGs are not intended to
define ``safe'' or ``unsafe'' levels of exposure or contamination. This
guidance does not address or impact site cleanups occurring under other
statutory authorities such as the United States Environmental
Protection Agency's (EPA) Superfund program, the Nuclear Regulatory
Commission's (NRC) decommissioning program, or other federal or state
cleanup programs. As indicated by the use of non-mandatory language
such as ``may,'' ``should'' and ``can,'' the 2013 Manual only provides
recommendations and does not confer any legal rights or impose any
legally binding requirements upon any member of the public, states, or
any other federal agency. Rather, the 2013 PAG Manual recommends
projected radiation doses at which specific actions may be warranted in
order to reduce or avoid that dose. The 2013 PAG Manual is designed to
provide flexibility to be more or less restrictive as deemed
appropriate by decision makers based on the unique characteristics of
the incident and the local situation.
C. What updates are in the 2013 PAG Manual?
The draft updates to the 1992 PAG Manual were developed by a multi-
agency Subcommittee of the Federal Radiological Preparedness
Coordinating Committee (FRPCC) and are published by EPA with
concurrence from the Department of Energy (DOE); the Department of
Defense (DoD); the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), including the
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA); the Nuclear Regulatory
Commission; the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS),
including both the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the Food and
Drug Administration (FDA); the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA);
and the Department of Labor (DOL).
The 2013 PAG Manual focuses on the following key objectives--
Clarify that the 1992 PAGs and protective actions are
useful for all radiological and nuclear scenarios of concern, based
both on the 1991 symposium, ``Implementation of Protective Actions for
Radiological Incidents at Other Than Nuclear Power Reactors'' and the
2008 interagency ``Planning Guidance for Protection and
[[Page 22259]]
Recovery Following Radiological Dispersal Device (RDD) and Improvised
Nuclear Device (IND) Incidents.'' \1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Planning Guidance for Protection and Recovery Following
Radiological Dispersal Device (RDD) and Improvised Nuclear Device
(IND) Incidents, DHS/FEMA (73 FR 45029, Aug 1, 2008).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Refer the reader to DOE's Federal Radiological Monitoring
and Assessment Center (FRMAC) Assessment Manuals \2\ for calculation
methods and measurable derived response levels (DRLs) and other
appropriate dose assessment methods so that PAGs are implemented using
the latest science.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ See: http://www.nv.doe.gov/nationalsecurity/homelandsecurity/frmac/manuals.aspx.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Refer users to the current Food PAGs published in FDA's
``Accidental Radioactive Contamination of Human Food and Animal Feeds:
Recommendations for State and Local Agencies,'' as issued in 1998.\3\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ Accidental Radioactive Contamination of Human Food and
Animal Feeds: Recommendations for State and Local Agencies, FDA (63
FR 43402, Aug 13, 1998).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Recommend a simplified PAG approach for administering
potassium iodide (KI) as a supplementary protective action based on FDA
guidance issued in 2001.\4\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ Guidance: Potassium Iodide as a Thyroid Blocking Agent in
Radiation Emergencies, FDA (66 FR 64046, Dec. 11, 2001).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Provide basic planning guidance on reentry, cleanup and
waste disposal.
Substantively incorporate the 2008 ``Planning Guidance for
Protection and Recovery Following Radiological Dispersal Device (RDD)
and Improvised Nuclear Device (IND) Incidents'' particularly for late
phase cleanup after a nationally significant radiological incident,
like a disaster at a NPP, an RDD or an IND. The 2008 RDD-IND Planning
Guidance will remain in effect until the PAG Manual, with public
comments incorporated, is finalized for use.
Streamline the Manual to enhance usability, while
retaining the 1992 PAG Manual in its entirety as a historical online
reference.
D. What should I consider as I prepare my comments for EPA?
1. Submitting Confidential Business Information (CBI)
Do not submit this information to EPA through www.regulations.gov
or email. Clearly mark 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 marked as CBI 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--
Identify the rulemaking by docket number, subject heading,
Federal Register date and page number.
Follow directions--EPA may ask you to respond to specific
questions or organize comments by referencing the chapter number.
Explain why you agree or disagree; suggest alternatives
and substitute language for your requested changes.
Describe any assumptions and provide any technical
information and/or data that you used.
If you estimate potential costs or burdens, explain how
you arrived at your estimate in sufficient detail to allow it to be
reproduced.
Illustrate your concerns with specific examples and
suggest alternatives.
Explain your views as clearly as possible, avoiding the
use of profanity or personal threats.
Make sure to submit your comments by the comment period
deadline identified.
E. What specific comments are being sought?
While all comments regarding any aspect of the 2013 PAG Manual are
welcome, comments on the following issues are specifically requested--
Issues across the scope of the entire 2013 PAG Manual:
To implement the PAGs, the reader is referred to dose
calculations in the Federal Radiological Monitoring and Assessment
Center (FRMAC) Assessment Manuals. The Assessment Manuals are updated
with current International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP)
dosimetry models (i.e., ICRP 60 series) and dose coefficients. The
FRPCC also encourages the use of computational tools such as DOE's
Turbo FRMAC, RESRAD RDD and NRC's RASCAL or other appropriate tools and
methods to implement the PAGs. We request comment on the usefulness of
this approach and seek feedback on how to facilitate implementation of
these methods in emergency management plans.
The Agency recognizes a short-term emergency drinking
water guide may be useful for public health protection in light of the
Fukushima nuclear power plant accident, which impacted some Japanese
drinking water supplies. Input on the appropriateness of, and possible
values for, a drinking water PAG is being sought.
FDA's 1998 food guidance is incorporated by reference.
Since it is already final and published, comments are not requested on
the Food PAGs.
Chapter 2--Early Phase:
The most substantive PAG change in the Early Phase is the
2001 guidance from the FDA that lowers the threshold for administration
of potassium iodide (KI) to the public from 25 rem projected adult
thyroid dose to 5 rem projected child thyroid dose. Chapter 2 includes
a streamlined implementation scheme based on FDA's guidance. Please
comment on the usefulness of this simplified guidance in the text of
Chapter 2.
The skin and thyroid evacuation thresholds were removed to
avoid confusion with the KI threshold. The skin and thyroid doses were
5 and 50 times higher, respectively, than the 1 to 5 rem whole-body
dose guideline. Please comment specifically on the appropriateness of
not retaining the skin and thyroid evacuation thresholds.
Chapter 3--Intermediate Phase:
The most substantive PAG change in the Intermediate Phase
is the removal of the 5 rem over 50 years relocation PAG which was
potentially being confused with long term cleanup. Please comment on
the appropriateness of this change.
As an extension of the PAGs, new guidance on reentry to
relocation areas is provided to inform plans and procedures to protect
workers and members of the public as the Intermediate Phase progresses.
Please comment on the format and utility of this material.
Please comment on whether it would be useful to develop a
new, combined Intermediate Phase PAG considering all exposure pathways
to potentially simplify decision making.
Chapter 4--Late Phase:
A brief planning guidance on the cleanup process is
included. Please comment on the usefulness of this information, as well
as how it might best be implemented in state, tribal and local plans.
It should be noted that the extent and scope of contamination as a
result of an NPP, RDD or IND incident may be at a much larger scale
than a site or facility decommissioning or remedial cleanup normally
experienced under established regulatory frameworks.
[[Page 22260]]
Lesser radiological incidents may be well addressed under existing
emergency response and environmental cleanup programs.
A suggested process and organization for approaching the
late phase cleanup is provided from the 2008 RDD-IND Planning Guidance.
Please comment on the merging of that guidance with the 2013 PAG
Manual.
Basic planning guidance on approaching radioactive waste
disposal is included. Please comment on this material and how it should
be implemented in emergency response and recovery plans at all levels
of government.
After considering public comments as appropriate, EPA intends to
issue a final PAG Manual which will supersede the 1992 PAG Manual and
the 2008 RDD-IND Planning Guidance.
Dated: April 5, 2013.
Bob Perciasepe,
Acting Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2013-08666 Filed 4-12-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P