[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 236 (Wednesday, December 9, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 76481-76482]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-31055]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OPP-2015-0301; FRL-9939-34]


Pesticide Emergency Exemptions; Agency Decisions and State and 
Federal Agency Crisis Declarations

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: EPA has granted or denied emergency exemptions under the 
Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) for use of 
pesticides as listed in this notice. The exemptions or denials were 
granted during the period July 1, 2015 to September 30, 2015 to control 
unforeseen pest outbreaks.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Susan Lewis, Registration Division 
(7505P), Office of Pesticide Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, 
1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001; main telephone 
number: (703) 305-7090; 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. 
The following list of North American Industrial Classification System 
(NAICS) codes is not intended to be exhaustive, but rather provides a 
guide to help readers determine whether this document applies to them. 
Potentially affected entities may include:
    [emsp14]Crop production (NAICS code 111).
    [emsp14]Animal production (NAICS code 112).
    [emsp14]Food manufacturing (NAICS code 311).
    [emsp14]Pesticide manufacturing (NAICS code 32532).
    If you have any questions regarding the applicability of this 
action to a particular entity, consult the person listed at the end of 
the emergency exemption or denial.

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

    The docket for this action, identified by docket identification 
(ID) number EPA-HQ-OPP-2015-0301 is available at http://www.regulations.gov or at the Office of Pesticide Programs Regulatory 
Public Docket (OPP Docket) in the Environmental Protection Agency 
Docket Center (EPA/DC), West William Jefferson Clinton Bldg., Rm. 3334, 
1301 Constitution Ave. NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001. The 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 OPP 
Docket is (703) 305-5805. Please review the visitor instructions and 
additional information about the docket available at http://www.epa.gov/dockets.

II. Background

    EPA has granted or denied emergency exemptions to the following 
State and Federal agencies. The emergency exemptions may take the 
following form: Crisis, public health, quarantine, or specific. EPA has 
also listed denied emergency exemption requests in this notice.
    Under FIFRA section 18 (7 U.S.C. 136p), EPA can authorize the use 
of a pesticide when emergency conditions exist. Authorizations 
(commonly called emergency exemptions) are granted to State and Federal 
agencies and are of four types:
    1. A ``specific exemption'' authorizes use of a pesticide against 
specific pests on a limited acreage in a particular State. Most 
emergency exemptions are specific exemptions.
    2. ``Quarantine'' and ``public health'' exemptions are emergency 
exemptions issued for quarantine or public health purposes. These are 
rarely requested.
    3. A ``crisis exemption'' is initiated by a State or Federal agency 
(and is confirmed by EPA) when there is insufficient time to request 
and obtain EPA permission for use of a pesticide in an emergency.
    EPA may deny an emergency exemption: If the State or Federal agency 
cannot demonstrate that an emergency exists, if the use poses 
unacceptable risks to the environment, or if EPA cannot reach a 
conclusion that the proposed pesticide use is likely to result in ``a 
reasonable certainty of no harm'' to human health, including exposure 
of residues of the pesticide to infants and children.
    If the emergency use of the pesticide on a food or feed commodity 
would result in pesticide chemical residues, EPA establishes a time-
limited tolerance meeting the ``reasonable certainty of no harm 
standard'' of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA).
    In this document: EPA identifies the State or Federal agency 
granted the exemption or denial, the type of exemption, the pesticide 
authorized and the pests, the crop or use for which authorized, number 
of acres (if applicable), and the duration of the exemption. EPA also 
gives the Federal Register citation for the time-limited tolerance, if 
any.

III. Emergency Exemptions and Denials

A. U.S. States and Territories

California
Department of Environmental Protection
    Crisis exemption: On August 27, 2015 the California Department of 
Environmental Protection declared a crisis for the use of 
methoxyfenozide on rice to control armyworms.
Delaware
Department of Agriculture
    Specific Exemption: EPA authorized the use of dinotefuran on pome 
fruit and stone fruit to control the brown marmorated stinkbug; July 
16, 2015 to October 15, 2015.
Florida
Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
    Specific Exemption: EPA authorized the use of streptomycin sulfate 
on

[[Page 76482]]

grapefruit to control citrus canker; July 1, 2015 to July 1, 2016.
Kentucky
Department of Agriculture
    Specific Exemption: EPA authorized the use of sulfoxaflor on 
sorghum to control sugarcane aphid; August 10, 2015 to November 30, 
2015.
Maryland
Department of Agriculture
    Specific Exemption: EPA authorized the use of dinotefuran on pome 
fruit and stone fruit to control the brown marmorated stinkbug; July 
16, 2015 to October 15, 2015.
Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
    Crisis exemptions: On July 7, 2015 the Maryland Department of 
Health and Mental Hygiene declared crisis exemptions for the use of 
ethylene oxide, formaldehyde, hydrogen peroxide, paracetic acid, and 
sodium hypochlorite to inactivate Bacillus anthracis (anthrax) spores 
in laboratories that processed samples originating from Dugway Proving 
Ground potentially containing viable anthrax spores.
Michigan
Department of Agriculture and Rural Development
    Specific Exemption: EPA authorized the use of dinotefuran on pome 
fruit and stone fruit to control the brown marmorated stinkbug; July 
16, 2015 to November 30, 2015.
Mississippi
Department of Agriculture and Commerce
    Denial: On July 27, 2015 EPA denied the use of a pesticide product 
containing the active ingredient thiamethoxam on sorghum to control 
sugarcane aphid. This request was denied because the Agency determined 
the situation did not meet criteria to be considered an urgent and non-
routine situation, and a specific exemption under section 18 was not 
justified.
New Jersey
Department of Environmental Protection
    Specific Exemptions: EPA authorized the use of dinotefuran on pome 
fruit and stone fruit to control the brown marmorated stinkbug; 
September 15, 2015 to October 15, 2015.
    EPA authorized the use of bifenthrin on apple, peach and nectarine 
to control the brown marmorated stinkbug; September 21, 2015 to October 
15, 2015.
New Mexico
Department of Agriculture
    Specific Exemption: EPA authorized the use of sulfoxaflor on 
sorghum to control sugarcane aphid; August 28, 2015 to November 30, 
2015.
New York
Department of Environmental Conservation
    Specific Exemption: EPA authorized the use of bifenthrin on apple, 
peach and nectarine to control the brown marmorated stinkbug; July 30, 
2015 to October 15, 2015.
North Carolina
Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
    Specific Exemptions: EPA authorized the use of dinotefuran on pome 
fruit and stone fruit to control the brown marmorated stinkbug; July 
16, 2015 to October 15, 2015.
    EPA authorized the use of sulfoxaflor on sorghum to control 
sugarcane aphid; July 16, 2015 to November 30, 2015.
Pennsylvania
Department of Agriculture
    Specific Exemption: EPA authorized the use of dinotefuran on pome 
fruit and stone fruit to control the brown marmorated stinkbug; July 
16, 2015 to October 15, 2015.
South Dakota
Department of Agriculture
    Specific Exemption: EPA authorized the use of hop beta acids on 
beehives to control the varroa mite; August 19, 2015 to December 31, 
2015.
Tennessee
Health Department
    Crisis exemption: On July 29, 2015 the Tennessee Health Department 
declared a crisis for the use of hydrogen peroxide to inactivate 
Bacillus anthracis (anthrax) spores in laboratories that processed 
samples originating from Dugway Proving Ground potentially containing 
viable anthrax spores.
Virginia
Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
    Specific Exemption: EPA authorized the use of dinotefuran on pome 
fruit and stone fruit to control the brown marmorated stinkbug; July 
16, 2015 to October 15, 2015.
West Virginia
Department of Agriculture
    Specific Exemption: EPA authorized the use of dinotefuran on pome 
fruit and stone fruit to control the brown marmorated stinkbug; July 
16, 2015 to October 15, 2015.

B. Federal Departments and Agencies

Department of Agriculture
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
    Quarantine Exemptions: EPA authorized the use of sodium chlorite to 
produce chlorine dioxide gas for decontamination of poultry facilities 
from avian influenza virus; August 4, 2015 to August 4, 2018.
    EPA authorized the use of sodium hypochlorite on surfaces to 
decontaminate from foot and mouth disease, African swine flu and 
classical swine flu; September 17, 2015 to September 17, 2018.
    EPA authorized the uses of sodium hypochlorite and sodium hydroxide 
to decontaminate surfaces potentially exposed to prions, the causal 
agents of transmissible spongiform encephalitic diseases in livestock; 
September 25, 2015 to September 25, 2018.

    Authority:  7 U.S.C. 136 et seq.

    Dated: December 2, 2015.
Susan Lewis,
Director, Registration Division, Office of Pesticide Programs.
[FR Doc. 2015-31055 Filed 12-8-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P