[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 30 (Thursday, February 13, 2014)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 8644-8645]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-03116]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 50

[FRL-9906-45-ORD; Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-ORD-2013-0620 and Docket ID No. 
EPA-HQ-OAR-2014-0128]


Notice of Workshop in Support of the Review of the Secondary 
National Ambient Air Quality Standards for Oxides of Nitrogen and 
Sulfur

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of workshop.

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SUMMARY: EPA is announcing a ``Workshop to Discuss Policy-Relevant 
Science to Inform EPA's Review of the Secondary National Ambient Air 
Quality Standards (NAAQS) for Oxides of Nitrogen and Sulfur.'' This 
workshop is being organized by EPA's Office of Research and 
Development's, National Center for Environmental Assessment (NCEA) and 
the Office of Air and Radiation's, Office of Air Quality Planning and 
Standards (OAQPS). The workshop will be held March 4-6, 2014, in 
Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, and it will be open to 
attendance by interested public observers on a first-come, first-served 
basis up to the limits of available space.

DATES: The workshop will be held March 4-6, 2014. The pre-registration 
deadline is February 28, 2014.

ADDRESSES: The workshop will be held at U.S. EPA, 109 T.W. Alexander 
Drive, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina. An EPA contractor, ICF 
International, is providing logistical support for the workshop. Please 
register by going to: https://sites.google.com/site/soxnoxkickoffworkshop/.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Please direct questions regarding 
workshop registration or logistics to Courtney Skuce at: [email protected] or by phone at: 919-293-1660. For technical 
information, contact Tara Greaver, Ph.D., NCEA; telephone: 919-541-
2435; or email: [email protected] or Ginger Tennant, OAQPS; 
telephone: 919-541-4072; or email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Information About the Workshop

    Section 108(a) of the Clean Air Act directs the Administrator to 
issue ``air quality criteria'' for certain air pollutants. These air 
quality criteria are to ``accurately reflect the latest scientific 
knowledge useful in indicating the kind and extent of all identifiable 
effects on public health or welfare, which may be expected from the 
presence of such pollutant in the ambient air. . . .'' Under section 
109 of the Act, EPA is then to establish National Ambient Air Quality 
Standards (NAAQS) for each pollutant for which EPA has issued criteria. 
Section 109(d) of the Act subsequently requires periodic review and, if 
appropriate, revision of existing air quality criteria to reflect 
advances in scientific knowledge on the effects of the pollutant on 
public health and welfare. EPA is also to revise the NAAQS, if 
appropriate, based on the revised air quality criteria.
    NOX and SOX are two of six ``criteria'' 
pollutants for which EPA has established NAAQS. Periodically, EPA 
reviews the scientific basis for these standards by preparing an 
Integrated Science Assessment (ISA). The ISA, along with additional 
technical and policy assessments conducted by OAQPS, form the basis for 
EPA decisions on the adequacy of existing NAAQS and the appropriateness 
of new or revised standards.
    This workshop is designed to inform the planning for EPA's recently 
initiated review of the secondary (welfare-based) NAAQS for Oxides of 
Nitrogen and Sulfur. The Federal Register notice issuing EPA's call for 
information for the recently initiated review is available at: http://www.epa.gov/ttn/naaqs/standards/no2so2sec/2013_fr.html. Consistent 
with the NAAQS review process, the workshop will provide an opportunity 
for those attending to highlight key science issues that they consider 
relevant to EPA's review of the standards (referred to as ``policy-

[[Page 8645]]

relevant issues''). More information on the NAAQS review process is 
provided at: http://www.epa.gov/ttn/naaqs/. In workshop discussions, 
scientific experts will be expected to highlight significant new and 
emerging research on oxides of nitrogen and sulfur and make 
recommendations to the Agency regarding the design and scope of this 
review. The goal of the workshop is to ensure that EPA focuses on the 
key issues relevant to EPA's review of the NAAQS and considers the most 
meaningful new science to inform our understanding of these issues. 
Workshop discussions will provide important input as EPA considers the 
appropriate design and scope of major elements of the review that will 
inform the Agency's policy assessment. These elements include an 
integrated review plan (IRP) identifying the key policy-relevant 
issues; an integrated science assessment (ISA); and a risk and exposure 
assessment (REA). We intend that workshop discussions will build upon 
the following three publications:
     Secondary National Ambient Air Quality Standards for 
Nitrogen Dioxide; Final Rule (40 CFR part 50 [EPA-HQ-OAR-2007-1145], 
April 3, 2012). The preamble to the final rule included detailed 
discussions of policy-relevant issues central to the last review.
     Integrated Science Assessment for Oxides of Nitrogen and 
Sulfur--Ecological Criteria (EPA 600/R-08/082F, December 2008).
     Risk and Exposure Assessment to Support the Review of the 
NO2 Primary National Ambient Air Quality Standard (EPA 452/
R-09/008a, September 2009).
    You can obtain copies of these and other related documents at: 
http://www.epa.gov/ttn/naaqs/standards/no2so2sec/index.html.
    Drawing from the workshop discussions, EPA will develop a draft 
IRP. The IRP, in addition to summarizing the schedule and process for 
the review, will present approaches for evaluating the relevant 
scientific information; assessing risks to the environment; and 
addressing the key policy-relevant issues. The Clean Air Scientific 
Advisory Committee (CASAC) will be asked to review the draft IRP, and 
the public will have the opportunity to comment on it as well. The 
final IRP will be used as a framework to guide the review.

    Dated: February 4, 2014.
Abdel Razak M. Kadry,
Acting Deputy Director, National Center for Environmental Assessment.
[FR Doc. 2014-03116 Filed 2-12-14; 8:45 am]
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