[Federal Register: February 13, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 30)]
[Notices]
[Page 8309-8311]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr13fe08-66]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-8528-3]
Notice of Availability of the Nanomaterial Research Strategy
External Review Draft and Expert Peer Review Meeting
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of document availability and external peer review
meeting.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. Environmental Protection is announcing the
availability of a draft report titled, Draft Nanomaterial Research
Strategy (EPA/600/S-08/002), which was prepared by EPA's Office of
Research and Development (ORD). EPA is also announcing that Versar,
Inc., an EPA contractor for external peer review, will convene a panel
of experts and will organize and conduct an independent expert external
peer meeting April 11, 2008, to review the draft document. Versar, Inc.
invites the public to register to attend this meeting as observers. In
addition, Versar, Inc. invites the public to give oral comments or
provide written comments at the external peer review meeting regarding
the draft document under review. The expert panel will review the draft
document and consider public comments received prior to the meeting in
the official public docket for this activity under docket ID number
EPA-HQ-ORD-2008-0114 as well as comments made by the public at the
meeting. The draft document is available through http://www.regulations.gov and at http://es.epa.gov/ncer/nano/publications/
index.html. In preparing a final document, EPA will consider Versar,
Inc.'s report of the comments and recommendations from the external
peer-review meeting, as well as public comments. EPA plans to issue a
final research strategy for nanomaterials in 2008.
The public release of this draft document is solely for the purpose
of seeking public comment and external peer review. This draft research
strategy does not represent and should not be construed to represent
any EPA policy, viewpoint, or determination.
[[Page 8310]]
DATES: The peer review panel meeting will begin on April 11, 2008, at 9
a.m. and end at 5 p.m. The public comment period begins on February 7,
2008, and ends 30-days after publication in the Federal Register.
Technical comments should be in writing and must be received by EPA 30-
days after publication of the Federal Register Notice.
ADDRESSES: The independent expert external peer review meeting will be
held at the Westin Alexandria, located at 400 Courthouse Square,
Alexandria, VA; telephone 703-253-8600. Members of the public may
attend the meeting as observers, and there will be a limited time for
comments from the public in the afternoon. Space is limited, and
reservations will be accepted on a first-come-first-served basis. To
attend this meeting, register by April 4, 2008, by visiting http://epa.versar.com/nanostrategy
or contact Ms.Gina Casciano of Versar,
Inc., 6850 Versar Center, Springfield, VA, 22151, at 703-642-6813, and
via e-mail at GCasciano@Versar.com. You will be asked for your name,
contact information, the organization you represent, and your title.
Please indicate if you intend to make an oral statement during the
public comment period at the meeting.
You may also submit comments prior to the meeting, identified by
Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-ORD-2008-0114, by one of the following methods:
http://www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line
instructions for submitting comments.
E-mail: ORD.Docket@epa.gov.
Mail: ORD Docket, Environnemental Protection Agency,
Mailcode: 28221T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460.
Hand Delivery: EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), Room B102, EPA
West Building, 1301 Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460,
Attention Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-ORD-2008-0114. Deliveries are only
accepted from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding
legal holidays. Special arrangements should be made for deliveries of
boxed information. If you provide comments by mail or hand delivery,
please submit three copies of the comments. For attachments, provide
and index, number pages consecutively with the comments, and submit an
unbound original and three copies.
Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-ORD-
2008-0114. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included
in the public docket without change and may be made available online at
http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information
provided, unless the comment includes information claimed to be
Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose
disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit information that you
consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through http://www.regulations.gov or e-mail. The http://www.regulations.gov Web site
is an ``anonymous access'' system, which means EPA will not know your
identity or contact information unless you provide it in the body of
your comment. If you send an e-mail comment directly to EPA, without
going through http://www.regulations.gov, your e-mail address will be
automatically captured and included as part of the comment that is
placed in the public docket and made available on the Internet. If you
submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you include your name
and other contact information in the body of your comment and with any
disk or CD-ROM you submit. If EPA cannot read your comment due to
technical difficulties and cannot contact you for clarification, EPA
may not be able to consider your comment. Electronic files should avoid
the use of special characters, any form of encryption, and be free of
any defects or viruses.
Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the http://www.regulations.gov
index. Although listed in the index, some
information is not publicly available, e.g., CBI or other information
whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such
as copyrighted material, will be publicly available only in hard copy.
Publicly available docket materials are available either electronically
in http://www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the ORD Docket, EPA/
DC, EPA West, Room B102, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC.
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
ORD Docket is (202) 566-1752.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions regarding logistics for the
external peer review meeting should be directed to Ms. Gina Casciano,
Versar, Inc., 6850 Versar Center, Springfield, VA, 22151; telephone:
703-642-6813; or via e-mail at GCasciano@Versar.com. For questions
regarding the draft document, please contact Dr. Nora Savage, Office of
Research and Development, Mailcode 8722F, Telephone 202-343-9858, fax
number 202-233-0678, savage.nora@epa.gov; or Dr. Randy Wentsel Office
of Research & Development, Mail Code 8101R, Telephone 202-564-3214, fax
number 202-564-3214, email wentsel.randy@epa.gov; Environmental
Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: EPA is submitting the Draft Nanomaterial
Research Strategy for independent, external peer review. Public
comments received in the docket will be shared with the external peer
review panel for their consideration. Although EPA is under no
obligation to do so, EPA may consider comments received after the close
of the comment period. The public release of this draft document is
solely for the purpose of seeking public comment and peer review. This
draft research strategy does not represent and should not be construed
to represent any EPA policy, viewpoint, or determination.
The Draft Nanomaterial Research Strategy identifies research needs
and outlines research for environmental implications; recognizing the
latter need for exploring environmental applications of nanotechnology
that can inform the appropriate regulatory and policy decisions for
nanotechnology. The draft research strategy provides a discussion of
research to be conducted both in-house and extramurally to understand
the impact of engineered nanomaterials. The purpose of this strategy is
to guide the EPA's Office of Research and Development (ORD) program in
nanomaterial research. The strategy builds on and is consistent with
the foundation of scientific needs identified in the report by the
Nanotechnology Environmental and Health Implications (NEHI) Workgroup
(NSTC, 2006), and on the EPA White Paper on Nanotechnology (EPA, 2007).
Special attention is given to EPA's role among Federal Agencies in
addressing data needs for hazard assessment, risk assessment, and risk
management relevant to the EPA mission and regulatory responsibilities.
ORD will use the NRS and incorporate these research activities into the
multi-year planning process.
ORD has identified four key research themes and seven key
scientific questions addressing each of the research themes where we
can provide leadership for the Federal government research program and
support the science needs of the Agency. The themes are: (1) Sources,
fate, transport, and exposure; (2) human health and
[[Page 8311]]
ecological research; (3) risk assessment methods and case studies; and
(4) preventing and Mitigating Risks. Supplemental information is
provided in a number of appendices. Following the expert external peer
review, EPA plans to issue a final research strategy on nanotechnology
in mid-2008.
Dated: February 1, 2008.
Kevin Teichman,
Acting Deputy Assistant Administrator for Science, Office of Research
and Development.
[FR Doc. E8-2697 Filed 2-12-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P