[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 56 (Monday, March 24, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15994-15995]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-06369]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OAR-2004-0077; FRL-9908-60-OAP]


Proposed Information Collection Request; Comment Request; 
Significant New Alternatives Policy (SNAP) Program (Renewal); EPA ICR 
No. 1596.08, OMB Control No. 2060-0226

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is planning to 
submit an information collection request (ICR), ``Significant New 
Alternatives Policy (SNAP) Program (40 CFR part 82, subpart G) 
(Renewal)'' (EPA ICR No. 1596.08, OMB Control No. 2060-0226) to the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval in 
accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). 
Before doing so, EPA is soliciting public comments on specific aspects 
of the proposed information collection as described below. This is a 
proposed extension of the ICR, which is currently approved through 
August 31, 2014. An Agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is 
not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it 
displays a currently valid OMB control number.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before May 23, 2014.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, referencing Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-
2004-0077, online using www.regulations.gov (our preferred method), by 
email to [email protected] or by mail to: EPA Docket Center, 
Environmental Protection Agency, Mail Code 28221T, 1200 Pennsylvania 
Ave. NW., Washington, DC 20460.
    EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included in the 
public docket without change including any personal information 
provided, unless the comment includes profanity, threats, information 
claimed to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other 
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rebecca von dem Hagen, Environmental 
Protection Agency, Stratospheric Protection Division, Office of 
Atmospheric Programs, MC 6205J, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 
Pennsylvania Ave. NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: (202) 
343-9445; fax number: (202) 343-2362;

[[Page 15995]]

email address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Supporting documents which explain in detail 
the information that the EPA will be collecting are available in the 
public docket for this ICR. The docket can be viewed online at 
www.regulations.gov or in person at the EPA Docket Center, WJC West, 
Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW., Washington, DC. The telephone 
number for the Docket Center is 202-566-1744. For additional 
information about EPA's public docket, visit http://www.epa.gov/dockets.
    Pursuant to section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act 
(PRA), EPA is soliciting comments and information to enable it to: (i) 
evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is necessary 
for the proper performance of the functions of the Agency, including 
whether the information will have practical utility; (ii) evaluate the 
accuracy of the Agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed 
collection of information, including the validity of the methodology 
and assumptions used; (iii) enhance the quality, utility, and clarity 
of the information to be collected; and (iv) minimize the burden of the 
collection of information on those who are to respond, including 
through the use of appropriate automated electronic, mechanical, or 
other technological collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses. EPA 
will consider the comments received and amend the ICR as appropriate. 
The final ICR package will then be submitted to OMB for review and 
approval. At that time, EPA will issue another Federal Register notice 
to announce the submission of the ICR to OMB and the opportunity to 
submit additional comments to OMB.
    Abstract: Information collected under this rulemaking is necessary 
to implement the requirements of the Significant New Alternatives 
Policy (SNAP) program for evaluating and regulating substitutes for 
ozone-depleting chemicals being phased out under the stratospheric 
ozone protection provisions of the Clean Air Act (CAA) and globally 
under the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer. 
Under CAA Section 612, EPA is authorized to identify and restrict the 
use of substitutes for class I and class II ozone-depleting substances 
where EPA determines other alternatives are available or potentially 
available that reduce overall risk to human health and the environment. 
The SNAP program, based on information collected from the 
manufacturers, formulators, and/or sellers of such substitutes, 
identifies acceptable substitutes. Responses to the collection of 
information are mandatory under Section 612 for anyone who sells or, in 
certain cases, uses substitutes for an ozone-depleting substance after 
April 18, 1994, the effective date of the final rule. Measures to 
protect confidentiality of information collected under the SNAP program 
are based on EPA's confidentiality regulations (40 CFR 2.201 et seq., 
or Subpart B). Submitters may designate all or portions of their forms 
or petitions as confidential. EPA requires the submitters to 
substantiate their claim of confidentiality. Under CAA Section 114(c), 
emissions information may not be claimed as confidential.
    To develop the lists of acceptable and unacceptable substitutes, 
the Agency must assess and compare ``overall risks to human health and 
the environment'' posed by use of substitutes in the context of 
particular applications. EPA requires submission of information 
covering a wide range of health and environmental factors. These 
include intrinsic properties such as physical and chemical information, 
ozone depleting potential, global warming potential, toxicity, and 
flammability, and use-specific data such as substitute applications, 
process description, environmental release data, exposure data during 
use of a substitute, environmental fate and transport, and cost 
information. Once a completed submission has been received, a 90 day 
review period under the SNAP program will commence. Any substitute 
which is a new chemical must also be submitted to the Agency under the 
Premanufacture Notice program under the Toxic Substances Control Act 
(TSCA). Alternatives that will be used as sterilants must be filed 
jointly with EPA's Office of Pesticide Programs and with SNAP.
    Form Numbers: 1265-07.
    Respondents/affected entities: Manufacturers, importers, 
formulators and processors of substitutes for ozone-depleting 
substances.
    Respondent's obligation to respond: Mandatory (40 CFR 82.176).
    Estimated number of respondents: 221 (per year).
    Frequency of response: Annual.
    Total estimated burden: 6,683 hours (per year). Burden is defined 
at 5 CFR 1320.03(b).
    Total estimated cost: $476,742, which includes $22,281 annualized 
capital or O&M costs.
    Changes in Estimates: The Agency anticipates that the total 
estimated respondent burden will stay substantially the same, or 
decrease compared with the ICR currently approved by OMB.
    The Agency anticipates a slight increase in the number of 
submissions to the SNAP program as a result of increased efforts to 
identify and adopt climate-friendly alternatives; however, the Agency 
also anticipates that the respondent burden for each individual 
submission will decrease. In recent years, many SNAP submissions have 
been received for widely-used and well understood chemicals being 
applied in new uses. One example of this is the submission of propane 
for us in household refrigerators. Additional work is necessary to 
ensure the safe use of these chemicals, but new toxicology studies are 
not required. The Agency expects that trend to continue. Recent 
listings for a number of substitutes have included use conditions, but 
these use conditions are consistent with requirements in industry 
standards and EPA expects such efforts (e.g., equipment testing and 
marking) to be standard industry practice. The Agency also anticipates 
a decrease in burden due to fewer respondents keeping records for 
alternatives that are acceptable subject to narrowed use limits.

    Dated: March 12, 2014.
Sarah Dunham,
Director, Office of Atmospheric Programs.
[FR Doc. 2014-06369 Filed 3-21-14; 8:45 am]
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