[Federal Register: February 22, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 36)]
[Notices]
[Page 9797-9798]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr22fe08-61]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-8531-6; Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2007-1145]
Draft Integrated Science Assessment for Oxides of Nitrogen and
Sulfur--Environmental Criteria and Annexes
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of an extension of the public comment period for draft
Integrated Science Assessment for Oxides of Nitrogen and Sulfur--
Environmental Criteria and Annexes.
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SUMMARY: The EPA is announcing an extension of the public comment
period for the draft document titled, ``Integrated Science Assessment
for Oxides of Nitrogen and Sulfur--Environmental Criteria; First
External Review Draft'' (EPA 600/R-07/145A), and ``Annexes for the
Integrated Science Assessment for Oxides of Nitrogen and Sulfur--
Environmental Criteria; First External Review Draft'' (EPA 600/R-07/
145bA).
The draft document was prepared by the National Center for
Environmental Assessment within EPA's Office of Research and
Development as part of the Agency's review of the secondary (welfare-
based) national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) for nitrogen
dioxide (NO2) and sulfur dioxide (SO2). EPA is
releasing this draft document solely for the purpose of seeking comment
from the public and the Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee
(CASAC).
The document is being distributed solely for the purpose of pre-
dissemination review under applicable information quality guidelines.
It does not represent and should not be construed to represent any
Agency policy, viewpoint, or determination. EPA will consider any
public comments submitted in accordance with this notice when revising
the document.
DATES: The public comment period began on December 21, 2007. This
notice announces the extension of the deadline for public comment from
February 21, 2008, to March 28, 2008. Comments must be received on or
before March 28, 2008.
ADDRESSES: The draft, ``Integrated Science Assessment for Oxides of
Nitrogen and Sulfur--Environmental Criteria and Annexes 1-10; First
External Review Draft,'' are available primarily via the Internet on
the National Center for Environmental Assessment's home page under the
Recent Additions and Publications menus at http://www.epa.gov/ncea. A
limited number of CD-ROM or paper copies will be available. Contact Ms.
Emily Lee by phone: 919-541-4169, facsimile: 919-541-1818, or e-mail:
(lee.emily@epa.gov) to request either of the documents. Please provide
your name, your mailing address, and the draft document title,
``Integrated Science Assessment for Oxides of Nitrogen and Sulfur--
Environmental Criteria; First External Review Draft'' (EPA/600/R-07/
145A) to facilitate processing of your request. Comments may be
submitted electronically via http://www.regulations.gov, by mail, by
facsimile, or by hand delivery/courier. Please follow the detailed
instructions provided in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this
notice.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Emily Lee, NCEA; telephone: 919-
541-4169, facsimile: 919-541-1818, or e-mail: lee.emily@epa.gov. For
technical information, contact Tara Greaver, Ph.D., NCEA; telephone:
919-541-2435; facsimile: 919-541-1818; or e-mail: Greaver.Tara@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Information About the Document
Section 108(a) of the Clean Air Act directs the Administrator to
identify certain pollutants which ``may reasonably be anticipated to
endanger public health and welfare'' and to issue air quality criteria
for them. These air quality criteria are to ``accurately reflect the
latest scientific knowledge useful in indicating the kind and extent of
all identifiable effects on public health or welfare which may be
expected from the presence of [a] pollutant in the ambient air.''
Under section 109 of the Act, EPA is then to establish national
ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) for each pollutant for which EPA
has issued criteria. Section 109(d) of the Act subsequently requires
periodic review and, if appropriate, revision of existing air quality
criteria to reflect advances in scientific knowledge on the effects of
the pollutant on public health and welfare. EPA is also to revise the
NAAQS, if appropriate, based on the revised air quality criteria.
Oxides of nitrogen and sulfur are two of six principal (or
``criteria'') pollutants for which EPA has established air quality
criteria and NAAQS. EPA periodically reviews the scientific basis for
these standards by preparing an Integrated Science Assessment (ISA)
(formerly called an Air Quality Criteria Document). The ISA and
supplementary annexes, in conjunction with additional technical and
policy assessments, provide the scientific basis for EPA decisions on
the adequacy of a current NAAQS and the appropriateness of new or
revised standards. The Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC),
an independent science advisory committee established pursuant to
section 109 of the Clean Air Act and part of the EPA's Science Advisory
Board (SAB), provides independent scientific advice on NAAQS matters,
including advice on EPA's draft ISAs.
EPA formally initiated its current review of the criteria for
oxides of nitrogen and sulfur in December 2005 (70 FR 73236) and May
2006 (71 FR 28023) respectively, requesting the submission of recent
scientific information on specified topics. In the initial stages of
the criteria reviews, EPA recognized the merit of integrating the
science assessment for these two pollutants due to their combined
effects on atmospheric chemistry, deposition processes, and
environment-related public welfare effects. In July 2007 (72 FR 34004),
a workshop was held to discuss, with invited scientific experts,
initial draft materials prepared in the
[[Page 9798]]
development of the ISA and supplementary annexes for oxides of nitrogen
and sulfur. EPA's ``Draft Plan for Review of the Secondary National
Ambient Air Quality Standards for Nitrogen Dioxide and Sulfur Dioxide''
was made available in September 2007 for public comment and was
discussed by the Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC) via a
publicly accessible teleconference consultation on October 30, 2007 (72
FR 57568). The Plan is available on EPA's Web site: http://www.epa.gov/
ttn/naaqs/standards/no2so2sec/cr_pd.html.
The draft, ``Integrated Science Assessment for Oxides of Nitrogen
and Sulfur--Environmental Criteria; First External Review Draft,'' will
be discussed by CASAC at a future public meeting; public comments that
have been received prior to the public meeting will be provided to the
CASAC review panel. A future Federal Register notice will inform the
public of the exact date and time of that CASAC meeting.
II. How To Submit Information to the Docket
Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2007-
1145 by one of the following methods:
http://www.regulations.gov: Follow the online instructions
for submitting comments.
E-mail: ORD.Docket@epa.gov.
Fax: 202-566-1753.
Mail: Office of Environmental Information (OEI) Docket
(Mail Code: 2822T), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200
Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460. The phone number is
202-566-1752.
Hand Delivery: The OEI Docket is located in the EPA
Headquarters Docket Center, EPA West Building, Room 3334, 1301
Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC. The EPA Docket Center 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. Such deliveries are only accepted during
the docket's normal hours of operation, and special arrangements should
be made for deliveries of boxed information.
If you provide comments by mail or hand delivery, please submit one
unbound original with pages numbered consecutively, and three copies of
the comments. For attachments, provide an 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-OAR-
2007-1145. Please ensure that your comments are submitted within the
specified comment period. Comments received after the closing date will
be marked ``late,'' and may only be considered if time permits. It is
EPA's policy to include all comments it receives in the public docket
without change and to make the comments available online at http://
www.regulations.gov, including any personal information provided,
unless a 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. For additional information about EPA's public docket visit the
EPA Docket Center homepage at http://www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm.
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 hardcopy at the OEI Docket in the
EPA Headquarters Docket Center.
Dated: February 12, 2008.
Rebecca Clark,
Director, National Center for Environmental Assessment.
[FR Doc. E8-3370 Filed 2-21-08; 8:45 am]
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