[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 54 (Monday, March 21, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15988-15989]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-05871]


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

 ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-9628-01-OA]


Request for Nominations for the Science Advisory Board 
Radionuclide Cancer Risk Coefficients Review Panel

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Science Advisory 
Board (SAB) Staff Office requests public nominations of scientific 
experts to form a Panel to review the draft EPA document titled Cancer 
Risk Coefficients for Environmental Exposure to Radionuclides (Federal 
Guidance Report No. 16). This draft document is an update to Federal 
Guidance Report No. 13, and provides new radionuclide-specific cancer 
risk coefficients for incidence and mortality associated with internal 
radionuclide exposure from ingestion and inhalation, and external 
exposure to radionuclides distributed in air, water, and soil.

DATES: Nominations should be submitted by April 11, 2022 per the 
instructions below.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Any member of the public wishing 
further information regarding this Notice and Request for Nominations 
may contact Dr. Diana Wong, Designated Federal Officer (DFO), EPA 
Science Advisory Board Staff Office by telephone/voice mail (202) 564-
2049, or email at [email protected]. General information concerning 
the EPA SAB can be found at the EPA SAB website at https://sab.epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Background: The SAB (42 U.S.C. 4365) is a chartered Federal 
Advisory Committee that provides independent scientific and technical 
peer review, advice, and recommendations to the EPA Administrator on 
the technical basis for EPA actions. As a Federal Advisory Committee, 
the SAB conducts business in accordance with the Federal Advisory 
Committee Act (FACA) (5 U.S.C. App. 2) and related regulations. The SAB 
Staff Office is forming an expert panel, the Radionuclide Cancer Risk 
Coefficients (RCRC) Review Panel, under the auspices of the Chartered 
SAB. The RCRC Review Panel will provide advice through the chartered 
SAB. The SAB and the RCRC Review Panel will comply with the provisions 
of FACA and all appropriate SAB Staff Office procedural policies.
    The Radionuclide Cancer Risk Coefficients (RCRC) Review Panel will 
conduct the review of Cancer Risk Coefficients for Environmental 
Exposure to Radionuclides (Federal Guidance Report No. 16) prepared by 
the EPA's Office of Radiation and Indoor Air. Federal Guidance Report 
No. 16 (FGR 16) is part of a series designed to provide technical 
information for use in implementing radiation protection programs. FGR 
16 provides radionuclide-specific cancer risk coefficients for 
incidence and mortality associated with internal radionuclide exposure 
from ingestion and inhalation, and external exposure to radionuclides 
distributed in air, water, and soil.
    Federal Guidance Report No. 13 (1999) provided cancer risk 
coefficients for environmental exposures to approximately 835 
radionuclides. FGR 16 updates and expands the set of risk coefficients 
to 1,252 radionuclides. FGR 16 includes updated dosimetric data, 
biokinetic models, nuclear decay data, usage rates, U.S. population 
statistics, and cancer models from EPA Radiogenic Cancer Risk Models 
and Projections for the U.S. Population (2011), known as the ``Blue 
Book.'' FGR 16 is intended for audiences who need to estimate risks to 
the U.S. population from environmental exposures to radionuclides.
    Request for Nominations: The SAB Staff Office is seeking 
nominations of nationally and internationally recognized scientists, 
mathematicians, and engineers with demonstrated expertise and 
experience in the following disciplines: Radionuclide biokinetic 
modeling, radiation epidemiology, computational dosimetry, 
radiobiology, and statistics/biostatistics.
    Process and Deadline for Submitting Nominations: Any interested 
person or organization may nominate qualified individuals in the areas 
of expertise described above for possible service on the SAB Panel. 
Individuals may self-nominate. Nominations should be submitted in 
electronic format (preferred) using the online nomination form on the 
SAB website at https://sab.epa.gov (see the ``Public Input on 
Membership'' list under ``Committees, Panels, and Membership''). To be 
considered, nominations should include the information requested below. 
EPA values and welcomes diversity. All qualified candidates are 
encouraged to apply regardless of sex, race, disability or ethnicity. 
Nominations should be submitted in time to arrive no later than April 
11, 2022.
    The following information should be provided on the nomination 
form: Contact information for the person making the nomination; contact 
information for the nominee; and the disciplinary and specific areas of 
expertise of the nominee. Nominees will be contacted by the SAB Staff 
Office and will be asked to provide a recent curriculum vitae and a 
narrative biographical summary that includes: Current position; 
educational background; research activities; sources of research 
funding for the last two years; and recent service on other national 
advisory committees or national professional organizations. Persons 
having questions about the nomination procedures, or who are unable to 
submit nominations through the SAB website, should contact the DFO at 
the contact information noted above. The names and biosketches of 
qualified nominees identified by respondents to this Federal Register 
notice, and additional experts identified by the SAB Staff Office, will 
be posted in a List of Candidates for the Panel on the SAB website at 
https://sab.epa.gov. Public comments on the List of Candidates will be 
accepted for 21 days. The public will be requested to provide relevant 
information or other documentation on nominees that the SAB Staff 
Office should consider in evaluating candidates.
    For the EPA SAB Staff Office, a balanced review panel includes 
candidates who possess the necessary domains of knowledge, the relevant 
scientific perspectives (which, among other factors, can be influenced 
by work history and affiliation), and the collective breadth of 
experience to adequately address the charge. In forming the expert 
panel, the SAB Staff Office will consider public comments on the Lists 
of Candidates, information provided by the candidates themselves, and 
background information independently gathered by the SAB Staff Office. 
Selection criteria to be used for panel membership include: (a) 
Scientific and/or technical expertise, knowledge, and experience 
(primary factors); (b) availability and willingness

[[Page 15989]]

to serve; (c) absence of financial conflicts of interest; (d) absence 
of an appearance of a loss of impartiality; (e) skills working in 
committees, subcommittees and advisory panels; and (f) for the panel as 
a whole, diversity of expertise and scientific points of view.
    The SAB Staff Office's evaluation of an absence of financial 
conflicts of interest will include a review of the ``Confidential 
Financial Disclosure Form for Environmental Protection Agency Special 
Government Employees'' (EPA Form 3110-48). This confidential form is 
required and allows government officials to determine whether there is 
a statutory conflict between a person's public responsibilities (which 
include membership on an EPA federal advisory committee) and private 
interests and activities, or the appearance of a loss of impartiality, 
as defined by federal regulation. The form may be viewed and downloaded 
through the ``Ethics Requirements for Advisors'' link on the SAB 
website at https://sab.epa.gov. This form should not be submitted as 
part of a nomination.
    The approved policy under which the EPA SAB Office selects members 
for subcommittees and review panels is described in the following 
document: Overview of the Panel Formation Process at the Environmental 
Protection Agency Science Advisory Board (EPA-SAB-EC-02-010), which is 
posted on the SAB website at https://sab.epa.gov.

Thomas H. Brennan,
Director, Science Advisory Board Staff Office.
[FR Doc. 2022-05871 Filed 3-18-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P