[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 244 (Thursday, December 21, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 60599-60601]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-27520]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OPP-2017-0011; FRL-9970-95]


Registration Review; Neonicotinoid Risk Assessments; 
Neonicotinoid Benefits Assessments; Notice of Availability

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: This notice announces the availability of EPA's (or Agency) 
draft ecological non-pollinator risk assessment for the registration 
review of imidacloprid, along with draft human health and non-
pollinator ecological risk assessments for the registration review of 
clothianidin, thiamethoxam, and dinotefuran, and opens a public comment 
period on these assessments. This notice also announces the 
availability of assessments of benefits of neonicotinoid insecticide 
use in cotton and citrus. While EPA typically releases benefits 
assessments along with the proposed interim decisions, EPA is releasing 
and obtaining public comment on these two benefits assessments at an 
earlier stage of the registration review process. These benefits 
assessments will help EPA evaluate the impacts of potential measures to 
reduce certain risks to pollinators identified in previously issued 
preliminary pollinator risk assessments. EPA is not proposing any 
mitigation at this stage, and anticipates that early input and 
information from the public on the benefits of these compounds will be 
helpful as EPA evaluates and considers the risks and the benefits of 
the neonicotinoid insecticides. Finally, EPA is releasing a response to 
public comments on the Agency's 2014 assessment of the benefits of 
neonicotinoid seed treatments to soybean production. This assessment 
and associated comments are available in docket EPA-HQ-OPP-2014-0737. 
Copies of all of the benefits assessments will be placed in the 
individual chemical dockets for each of the four neonicotinoid 
insecticides listed in Table 1 of Unit III.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before February 20, 2018.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by the docket 
identification (ID) number for the specific pesticide of interest 
provided in Table 1 of Unit III, by one of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the online instructions for submitting comments. Do not submit 
electronically any information you consider to be Confidential Business 
Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted 
by statute.
     Mail: OPP Docket, Environmental Protection Agency Docket 
Center (EPA/DC), (28221T), 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 
20460-0001.
     Hand Delivery: To make special arrangements for hand 
delivery or delivery of boxed information, please follow the 
instructions at http://www.epa.gov/dockets/contacts.html.
    Additional instructions on commenting or visiting the docket, along 
with more information about dockets generally, is available at http://www.epa.gov/dockets.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 
    For pesticide specific information contact: The Chemical Review 
Manager for the pesticide of interest identified in Table 1 of Unit 
III.
    For general questions on the registration review program, contact: 
Dana Friedman, Pesticide Re-Evaluation Division (7508P), Office of 
Pesticide Programs, Environmental Protection

[[Page 60600]]

Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20460-0001; telephone 
number: (703) 308-8015; email address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. General Information

A. Does this action apply to me?

    This action is directed to the public in general, and may be of 
interest to a wide range of stakeholders including environmental, human 
health, farm worker, and agricultural advocates; the chemical industry; 
pesticide users; and members of the public interested in the sale, 
distribution, or use of pesticides. Since others also may be 
interested, the Agency has not attempted to describe all the specific 
entities that may be affected by this action. If you have any questions 
regarding the applicability of this action to a particular entity, 
consult the Chemical Review Manager identified in Table 1 of Unit III.

B. What should I consider as I prepare my comments for EPA?

    1. Submitting CBI. Do not submit this information to EPA through 
regulations.gov or email. Clearly mark the part or 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 so marked will not be disclosed except in accordance with 
procedures set forth in 40 CFR part 2.
    2. Tips for preparing your comments. When preparing and submitting 
your comments, see the commenting tips at http://www.epa.gov/dockets/comments.html.
    3. Environmental justice. EPA seeks to achieve environmental 
justice, the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of any group, 
including minority and/or low income populations, in the development, 
implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and 
policies. To help address potential environmental justice issues, the 
Agency seeks information on any groups or segments of the population 
who, as a result of their location, cultural practices, or other 
factors, may have atypical or disproportionately high and adverse human 
health impacts or environmental effects from exposure to the pesticides 
discussed in this document, compared to the general population.

II. Authority

    EPA is conducting its registration review of the chemicals listed 
in Table 1 of Unit III pursuant to section 3(g) of the Federal 
Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) and the Procedural 
Regulations for Registration Review at 40 CFR part 155, subpart C. 
Section 3(g) of FIFRA provides, among other things, that the 
registrations of pesticides are to be reviewed every 15 years. Under 
FIFRA, a pesticide product may be registered or remain registered only 
if it meets the statutory standard for registration given in FIFRA 
section 3(c)(5) (7 U.S.C. 136a(c)(5)). When used in accordance with 
widespread and commonly recognized practice, the pesticide product must 
perform its intended function without unreasonable adverse effects on 
the environment; that is, without any unreasonable risk to man or the 
environment, or a human dietary risk from residues that result from the 
use of a pesticide in or on food.

III. Registration Reviews

    As directed by FIFRA section 3(g), EPA is reviewing the pesticide 
registration for the pesticides listed in Table 1 to ensure that they 
continue to satisfy the FIFRA standard for registration.

                          Table 1--Assessments Being Made Available for Public Comment
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Registration review  case name and                                                Chemical review manager and
                 No.                                  Docket ID No.                     contact information
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Clothianidin, 7620...................  EPA-HQ-OPP-2011-0865                        Thomas Harty,
                                                                                    [email protected], 703-
                                                                                    347-0338.
Dinotefuran, 7441....................  EPA-HQ-OPP-2011-0920                        Steven Snyderman,
                                                                                    [email protected],
                                                                                    703-347-0249.
Imidacloprid, 7605...................  EPA-HQ-OPP-2008-0844                        Steven Snyderman,
                                                                                    [email protected],
                                                                                    703-347-0249.
Thiamethoxam, 7614...................  EPA-HQ-OPP-2011-0581                        Thomas Harty,
                                                                                    [email protected], 703-
                                                                                    347-0338.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Pursuant to 40 CFR 155.53(c), EPA is providing an opportunity, 
through this notice of availability, for interested parties to provide 
comments and input concerning the Agency's draft human health and/or 
ecological risk assessments for the pesticides listed in the Table 1 in 
Unit III. This Notice is announcing the availability of the human 
health risk assessments and the ecological risk assessments for non-
pollinator species for clothianidin, thiamethoxam and dinotefuran. 
Preliminary pollinator-only ecological risk assessments for these 
chemicals were previously issued in May 2017, and are available in the 
individual chemical dockets. For imidacloprid, this Notice is 
announcing the availability of the terrestrial non-pollinator 
ecological assessment. A preliminary pollinator-only risk assessment 
was issued in January 2016, an aquatic species-only ecological risk 
assessment was issued in January 2017, and a human health risk 
assessment was issued in September 2017. All of these assessments were 
previously made available for comment and are available in the 
imidacloprid docket.
    1. Other related information. Additional information on the 
registration review status of the chemicals listed in Table 1, as well 
as information on the Agency's registration review program and on its 
implementing regulation is available at http://www.epa.gov/pesticide-reevaluation.
    2. Information submission requirements. Anyone may submit data or 
information in response to this document. To be considered during a 
pesticide's registration review, the submitted data or information must 
meet the following requirements:
     To ensure that EPA will consider data or information 
submitted, interested persons must submit the data or information 
during the comment period. The Agency may, at its discretion, consider 
data or information submitted at a later date.
     The data or information submitted must be presented in a 
legible and useable form. For example, an English translation must 
accompany any material that is not in English and a written transcript 
must accompany any information submitted as an audiographic or 
videographic record. Written material may be submitted in paper or 
electronic form.

[[Page 60601]]

     Submitters must clearly identify the source of any 
submitted data or information.
     Submitters may request the Agency to reconsider data or 
information that the Agency rejected in a previous review. However, 
submitters must explain why they believe the Agency should reconsider 
the data or information in the pesticide's registration review.
    As provided in 40 CFR 155.58, the registration review docket for 
each pesticide case will remain publicly accessible through the 
duration of the registration review process; that is, until all actions 
required in the final decision on the registration review case have 
been completed.

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

    Dated: November 30, 2017.
Charles Smith,
Acting, Director, Pesticide Re-Evaluation Division, Office of Pesticide 
Programs.
[FR Doc. 2017-27520 Filed 12-20-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P