[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 18 (Friday, January 27, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5332-5334]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-01712]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OPP-2017-0720; FRL-10524-01-OCSPP]


Pesticide Registration Review; Pesticide Dockets Opened for 
Review and Comment; Notice of Availability

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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[[Page 5333]]

SUMMARY: This notice announces the availability of the EPA's 
preliminary work plans for the following chemicals: abscisic acid, 
Bacillus thuringiensis Cry1Ac in MON 87701 soybean, fluensulfone. With 
this document, the EPA is opening the public comment period for 
registration review for these chemicals.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before March 28, 2023.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by docket identification 
(ID) number EPA-HQ-OPP-2017-0720, through the Federal eRulemaking 
Portal at https://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. Additional 
instructions on commenting and visiting the docket, along with more 
information about dockets generally, is available at https://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 in Unit IV.
    For general questions on the registration review program, contact: 
Melanie Biscoe, Pesticide Re-Evaluation Division (7508P), Office of 
Pesticide Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania 
Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20460-0001; telephone number: (202) 566-0701; 
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 in Unit IV.

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

    1. Submitting CBI. Do not submit this information to the 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 the 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 https://www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets.
    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. Background

    Registration review is the EPA's periodic review of pesticide 
registrations to ensure that each pesticide continues to satisfy the 
statutory standard for registration, that is, the pesticide can perform 
its intended function without unreasonable adverse effects on human 
health or the environment. Registration review dockets contain 
information that will assist the public in understanding the types of 
information and issues that the agency may consider during the course 
of registration reviews. As part of the registration review process, 
the Agency has completed preliminary workplans for all pesticides 
listed in Table 1 in Unit IV. Through this program, the EPA is ensuring 
that each pesticide's registration is based on current scientific and 
other knowledge, including its effects on human health and the 
environment.

III. Authority

    The EPA is conducting its registration review of the chemicals 
listed in Table 1 in Unit IV 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.

IV. Registration Reviews

A. What action is the Agency taking?

    A pesticide's registration review begins when the agency 
establishes a docket for the pesticide's registration review case and 
opens the docket for public review and comment. Pursuant to 40 CFR 
155.50, this notice announces the availability of the EPA's preliminary 
work plans for the pesticides shown in Table 1 and opens a 60-day 
public comment period on the work plans.

                     Table 1--Preliminary Work Plans Being Made Available for Public Comment
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                                                                          Chemical review manager and contact
  Registration review case name and No.          Docket ID No.                        information
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Abscisic Acid Case Number 6310..........  EPA-HQ-OPP-2022-0784.......  Andrew Queen, [email protected], (202)
                                                                        566-1539.
Bacillus thuringiensis Cry1Ac in MON      EPA-HQ-OPP-2022-0543.......  Michael Glikes, [email protected],
 87701 Soybean Case Number 6600.                                        (703) 231-6499.
Fluensulfone Case Number 7464...........  EPA-HQ-OPP-2022-0438.......  Kelsi Grogan, [email protected], (202)
                                                                        566-2228.
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B. Docket Content

    The registration review docket contains information that the agency 
may consider in the course of the registration review. The agency may 
include information from its files including, but not limited to, the 
following information:
     An overview of the registration review case status.
     A list of current product registrations and registrants.
     Federal Register notices regarding any pending 
registration actions.
     Federal Register notices regarding current or pending 
tolerances.
     Risk assessments.
     Bibliographies concerning current registrations.
     Summaries of incident data.
     Any other pertinent data or information.
    Each docket contains a document summarizing what the agency 
currently knows about the pesticide case and a preliminary work plan 
for anticipated data and assessment needs. Additional documents provide 
more detailed information. During this public comment period, the 
agency is asking that interested persons identify any additional 
information they believe the agency should consider during the 
registration reviews of these pesticides. The agency identifies in each 
docket the areas where public comment is specifically requested, though 
comment in any area is welcome.
    The registration review final rule at 40 CFR 155.50(b) provides for 
a minimum 60-day public comment period on all preliminary registration 
review work plans. This comment period is intended to provide an 
opportunity for public input and a mechanism for initiating any 
necessary changes to a pesticide's workplan. All comments should be 
submitted using the methods in ADDRESSES and must be received by the 
EPA on or before the closing date. These comments will become part of 
the docket for the pesticides included in Table 1 in Unit IV. Comments 
received after the close of the comment period will be marked ``late.'' 
The EPA is not required to consider these late comments.
    The agency will carefully consider all comments received by the 
closing date and may provide a ``Response to Comments Memorandum'' in 
the docket. The final registration review work plan will explain the 
effect that any comments had on the final work plan and provide the 
agency's response to significant comments.
    Background on the registration review program is provided at: 
https://www.epa.gov/pesticide-reevaluation.
    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 136 et seq.

    Dated: January 23, 2023.
Mary Elissa Reaves,
Director, Pesticide Re-Evaluation Division, Office of Pesticide 
Programs.
[FR Doc. 2023-01712 Filed 1-26-23; 8:45 am]
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