[Federal Register: June 3, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 106)]
[Notices]
[Page 32604-32606]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr03jn05-71]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[OW-2004-0026; FRL-7920-8]
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to OMB for
Review and Approval; Comment Request; Baseline Standards and Best
Management Practices for the Coal Mining Point Source Category--Coal
Remining Subcategory and Western Alkaline Coal Mining Subcategory
(Renewal), EPA ICR Number 1944.03, OMB Control Number 2040-0239
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501
et seq.), this document announces that an Information Collection
Request (ICR) has been forwarded to the Office
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of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. This is a
request to renew an existing approved collection. This ICR is scheduled
to expire on May 31, 2005. Under OMB regulations, the Agency may
continue to conduct or sponsor the collection of information while this
submission is pending at OMB. This ICR describes the nature of the
information collection and its estimated burden and cost.
DATES: Additional comments may be submitted on or before July 5, 2005.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, referencing docket ID number OW-2004-
0026, to (1) EPA online using EDOCKET (our preferred method), by e-mail
to OW-Docket@epa.gov, or by mail to: EPA Docket Center, Environmental
Protection Agency, Water Docket, Mail Code 4101T, 1200 Pennsylvania
Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460, and (2) OMB at: Office of Information
and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget (OMB),
Attention: Desk Officer for EPA, 725 17th Street, NW., Washington, DC
20503.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jack Faulk, Mail Code 4203M,
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.,
Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: 202-564-0768; fax number: 202-
564-6431; e-mail address: faulk.jack@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: EPA has submitted the following ICR to OMB
for review and approval according to the procedures prescribed in 5 CFR
1320.12. On August 30, 2004 (69 FR 52883), EPA sought comments on this
ICR pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.8(d). EPA received no comments.
EPA has established a public docket for this ICR under Docket ID
No. OW-2004-0026, which is available for public viewing at the Water
Docket in the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), EPA West, Room B102, 1301
Constitution Ave., 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 Reading
Room is (202) 566-1744, and the telephone number for the Water Docket
is (202) 566-2426. An electronic version of the public docket is
available through EPA Dockets (EDOCKET) at http://www.epa.gov/edocket.
Use EDOCKET to submit or view public comments, access the index listing
of the contents of the public docket, and to access those documents in
the public docket that are available electronically. Once in the
system, select ``search,'' then key in the docket ID number identified
above.
Any comments related to this ICR should be submitted to EPA and OMB
within 30 days of this notice. EPA's policy is that public comments,
whether submitted electronically or in paper, will be made available
for public viewing in EDOCKET as EPA receives them and without change,
unless the comment contains copyrighted material, CBI, or other
information whose public disclosure is restricted by statute. When EPA
identifies a comment containing copyrighted material, EPA will provide
a reference to that material in the version of the comment that is
placed in EDOCKET. The entire printed comment, including the
copyrighted material, will be available in the public docket. Although
identified as an item in the official docket, information claimed as
CBI, or whose disclosure is otherwise restricted by statute, is not
included in the official public docket, and will not be available for
public viewing in EDOCKET. For further information about the electronic
docket, see EPA's Federal Register notice describing the electronic
docket at 67 FR 38102 (May 31, 2002), or go to http://www.epa.gov/edocket
.
Title: Baseline Standards and Best Management Practices for the
Coal Mining Point Source Category--Coal Remining Subcategory and
Western Alkaline Coal Mining Subcategory (Renewal)
Abstract: This ICR presents estimates of the burden and costs to
the regulated community (i.e., coal remining sites and western alkaline
surface coal mining sites) and NPDES permit control authorities for
data collection and record keeping associated with modeling, Best
Management Practice (BMP) implementation, baseline monitoring, and
performance monitoring requirements of the Coal Mining Point Source--
Coal Remining Subcategory and Western Alkaline Coal Mining Subcategory
Effluent Limitations Guidelines (40 CFR 434.70 and 434.80).
Coal remining is the mining of surface mine lands, underground mine
lands, and coal refuse piles that have been previously mined and
abandoned. Acid mine drainage from abandoned coal mines is a
significant problem in Appalachia, with approximately 1.1 million acres
of abandoned coal mine lands and over 9,700 miles of streams polluted
by acid mine drainage.
During the remining process, acid forming materials are removed
with the extraction of the coal, pollution abatement BMPs are
implemented under applicable regulatory requirements, and the abandoned
mine land is reclaimed. During remining, many of the problems
associated with abandoned mine land, such as dangerous highwalls,
vertical openings, and abandoned coal refuse piles can be corrected
without using public funds.
The remining regulations include a requirement that the operator
implement BMPs to demonstrate the potential to improve water quality.
The site-specific BMPs will be incorporated into a pollution abatement
plan. Data collection and record keeping requirements under this
Subcategory will include baseline determination, annual monitoring and
reporting for pre-existing discharges and a description of site-
specific BMPs. In most cases, EPA believes that the BMP requirements
for the pollution abatement plan will be satisfied by an approved SMCRA
plan.
Western alkaline coal mines include surface and underground mining
operations located in the interior western United States. EPA estimates
that 46 mine sites will be affected by this subcategory, representing
2% of the total number of U.S. coal mines, but accounting for 1/3 of
U.S. coal production.
The subcategory establishes nonnumeric limitations on the amount of
sediment that can be discharged from coal mine reclamation areas. In
lieu of numeric standards, the mine operator must develop a site-
specific sediment control plan for surface reclamation areas
identifying BMP design, construction, and maintenance specifications
and expected effectiveness. The operator will be required to
demonstrate, using models accepted by the regulatory authority, that
implementation of the BMPs will ensure that average annual sediment
levels in drainage from reclamation areas would not exceed predicted
natural background levels of sediment discharges at that site. Data
collection and record keeping requirements under this Subcategory will
include a description of site-specific sediment control BMPs and
watershed model results. EPA believes that plans developed to comply
with SMCRA requirements will usually fulfill the EPA requirements for
sediment control plans.
EPA does not expect that any confidential business information or
trade secrets will be required from coal mining operators as part of
this ICR. If information submitted in conjunction with this ICR were to
contain confidential business information, the respondent has the
authority to request that the information be treated as confidential
business information. All data so designated will be handled by
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EPA pursuant to 40 CFR part 2. This information will be maintained
according to procedures outlined in EPA's Security Manual Part III,
Chapter 9, dated August 9, 1976. Pursuant to section 308(b) of the CWA,
effluent data may not be treated as confidential.
An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required
to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a
currently valid OMB control number. The OMB control numbers for EPA's
regulations in 40 CFR are listed in 40 CFR part 9 and are identified on
the form and/or instrument, if applicable.
Burden Statement: The annual public reporting and recordkeeping
burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 21
hours per response for the coal remining sites and 405 hours annually
for the ten state NPDES permitting authorities. No additional burden is
projected for the 46 western alkaline coal mining sites. Burden means
the total time, effort, or financial resources expended by persons to
generate, maintain, retain, or disclose or provide information to or
for a Federal agency. This includes the time needed to review
instructions; develop, acquire, install, and utilize technology and
systems for the purposes of collecting, validating, and verifying
information, processing and maintaining information, and disclosing and
providing information; adjust the existing ways to comply with any
previously applicable instructions and requirements; train personnel to
be able to respond to a collection of information; search data sources;
complete and review the collection of information; and transmit or
otherwise disclose the information.
Respondents/Affected Entities: Entities potentially affected by
this action are coal remining sites with pre-existing discharges;
western alkaline coal mining sites with sediment control; and NPDES
permit control authorities.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 88.
Frequency of Response: varies (generally ranging between monthly
and annually).
Estimated Total Annual Hour Burden: 5,685.
Estimated Total Annual Cost: $340,000, includes $0 annualized
capital or O&M costs.
Changes in the Estimates: There is decrease in burden hours and
responses currently identified in the OMB Inventory of Approved ICR
Burdens due to an adjustment. The previous ICR had mistakenly used 3-
year burden hours to calculate associated costs, this renewal ICR
corrects this error and reports the annual burden estimates.
Dated: May 18, 2005.
Oscar Morales,
Director, Collection Strategies Division.
[FR Doc. 05-11101 Filed 6-2-05; 8:45 am]
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