[Federal Register: March 13, 2007 (Volume 72, Number 48)]
[Notices]
[Page 11356-11358]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr13mr07-50]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-8287-1]
Science Advisory Board Staff Office, Request for Nominations for
Review of Multi-Agency Radiation Survey and Assessment of Materials and
Equipment Manual (MARSAME)
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The EPA Science Advisory Board (SAB) Staff Office is
requesting nominations to augment expertise to the SAB's Radiation
Advisory Committee (RAC) to review the December 2006 draft of the
Multi-Agency Radiation Survey and Assessment of Materials and Equipment
Manual (MARSAME), which is a supplement to the Multi-Agency Radiation
Survey and Site Assessment Manual (MARSSIM). MARSAME provides
information on planning, conducting, evaluating, and documenting
radiological disposition surveys for the assessment of materials and
equipment.
DATES: Nominations should be submitted by April 3, 2007 per the
instructions below.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Any member of the public wishing
further information regarding this Request for Nominations may contact
Dr. K. Jack Kooyoomjian, Designated Federal Officer (DFO), via
telephone/voice mail at (202) 343-9984; via e-mail at
kooyoomjian.jack@epa.gov or at the U.S. EPA Science Advisory Board
(1400F), 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460. General
information about the SAB can be found in the SAB Web site at http://www.epa.gov/sab.
The EPA technical contact for this review is Dr. Mary
E. Clark, who may be contacted via
[[Page 11357]]
telephone at (202) 343-9348 or by e-mail at clark.marye@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background: The December 2006 draft Multi-Agency Radiation Survey
and Assessment of Materials and Equipment Manual (MARSAME) is a
supplement to the Multi-Agency Radiation Survey and Site Assessment
Manual (MARSSIM) (EPA 402-R-970-016, Rev. 1, August 2000 and June 2001
update). The scope of MARSSIM was limited to surface soils and building
surfaces. The MARSAME supplement addresses materials and equipment
(M&E) potentially affected by radioactivity, including metals,
concrete, tools, equipment, piping, conduit, furniture and dispersible
bulk materials such as trash, rubble, roofing materials, and sludge.
M&E may be containers and packages in general commerce or from licensed
radioactivity users. The wide variety of M&E requires additional
flexibility in the survey process, and this flexibility is incorporated
into MARSAME.
The MARSAME draft document has been developed collaboratively by
four Federal agencies having authority and control over radioactive
materials: the Department of Defense (DOD), Department of Energy (DOE),
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC). MARSAME encourages an effective use of resources, and
when finalized, will be a multi-agency consensus document. MARSAME was
developed collaboratively by the MARSSIM Work Group over the past five
years by technical staff of the four Federal agencies having authority
for control of radioactive materials (60 FR 12555; March 7, 1995).
The EPA's Science Advisory Board (SAB) previously provided advice
on MARSAME (EPA-SAB-RAC-CON-03-002, dated Feb 27, 2003); EPA-SAB-RAC-
CON-04-001, dated February 9, 2004); MARSSIM (EPA-SAB-RAC-97-008, dated
September 30, 1997), and MARLAP (Multi-Agency Radiological Laboratory
Analytical Protocols), (EPA-SAB-RAC-03-009, dated June 10, 2003). On
behalf of the four participating Federal agencies, EPA's Office of
Radiation and Indoor Air (ORIA) is requesting that the SAB peer review
the draft MARSAME manual dated December, 2006. The aforementioned SAB
reports may be found on the SAB's Web site (http://www.epa.gov/sab in
the reports listings). Relevant background information on MARSAME can
be found at http://www.marsame.org The draft MARSAME manual may be found at http://epa.gov/radiation/marssim/publicpreview.htm#obtain.
w.htm#obtain.
provide comments on the MARSAME draft manual. The Panel will review the
technical acceptability of the MARSAME approach for environmental
radiological surveys, appropriate disposition of M&E to contain
radionuclide concentrations or radioactivity above background, the
technical acceptability of the statistical methodology, and the
adequacy of procedures for determining measurement uncertainty,
detectability, and quantifiability.
Request for Nominations: The SAB Staff Office is requesting
nominations to augment expertise to the Radiation Advisory Committee
(RAC) to review the MARSAME draft manual. The augmented RAC will
provide advice through the chartered SAB, and will comply with the
provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) and all
appropriate SAB procedural policies. To supplement expertise on the
RAC, the SAB Staff Office is seeking individuals with nationally
recognized radiation expertise and knowledge of the MARSAME topic such
that the entire Panel will possess expertise and knowledge in the
following areas in a materials and equipment (M&E) setting:
(1) Statistics applicable to radiological surveys of M&E;
(2) Radioactive waste management with emphasis on after market
materials recycling, decommissioning/cleanup of radiation sites, and
facilities operations experience at large as well as small radiological
sites;
(3) Instrumentation for radiation detection with emphasis on
Measurement Quality Objectives (MQOs) as well as scan-only and in-situ
survey techniques and instrumentation;
(4) Radiation data management with emphasis on Data Quality
Assessment (DQA) and Data Quality Objective (DQO) protocols; and
(5) General radiation health safety and worker protection
specializing in facility operation safety, clean-up, and
decommissioning a large site or facility (e.g., a nuclear waste storage
facility or a nuclear power plant).
Process and Deadline for Submitting Nominations: Any interested
person or organization may nominate qualified individuals to add
expertise to the Radiation Advisory Committee (RAC) in the areas of
expertise described above. Nominations should be submitted in
electronic format through the SAB Web site at the following URL: http://www.epa.gov/sab
; or directly via the Form for Nominating Individuals
to Panels of the EPA Science Advisory Board link found at URL: http://www.epa.gov/sab/panels/paneltopics.html.
Please follow the instructions
for submitting nominations carefully. To be considered, nominations
should include all of the information required on the associated forms.
Anyone unable to submit nominations using the electronic form and who
has any questions concerning the nomination process may contact Dr. K.
Jack Kooyoomjian, DFO, as indicated above in this notice. Nominations
should be submitted in time to arrive no later than April 3, 2007.
For nominees to be considered, please include: Contact information;
a curriculum vitae; a biosketch of no more than two paragraphs
(containing information on the nominee's current position, educational
background, areas of expertise and research activities, service on
other advisory committees and professional societies; the candidate's
special expertise related to the panel being formed; and sources of
recent grant and/or contract support).
The EPA SAB Staff Office will acknowledge receipt of nominations.
The names and biosketches of qualified nominees identified by
respondents to the Federal Register notice and additional experts
identified by the SAB Staff will be posted on the SAB Web site at:
http://www.epa.gov/sab. Public comments on this ``Short List'' of
candidates will be accepted for 21 calendar 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 subcommittee or 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
establishing the final Radiation Advisory Committee (RAC), the SAB
Staff Office will consider public comments on the ``Short List'' of
candidates, information provided by the candidates themselves, and
background information independently gathered by the SAB Staff Office.
Specific criteria to be used for Panel membership include: (a)
Scientific and/or technical expertise, knowledge, and experience
(primary factors); (b) availability and willingness to serve; (c)
absence of financial conflicts of interest; (d) absence of an
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appearance of a lack of impartiality; and (e) skills working in
committees, subcommittees and advisory panels; and, for the Panel as a
whole, (f) diversity of, and balance among, scientific expertise,
viewpoints, etc.
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 Special Government Employees Serving on
Federal Advisory Committees at the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency'' (EPA Form 3110-48). This confidential form allows Government
officials to determine whether there is a statutory conflict between
that person's public responsibilities (which includes membership on an
EPA Federal advisory committee) and private interests and activities,
or the appearance of a lack of impartiality, as defined by Federal
regulation. The form may be viewed and downloaded from the following
URL address: http://www.epa.gov/sab/pdf/epaform3110-48.pdf.
The approved policy under which the EPA SAB Office selects
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 Web site at: http://www.epa.gov/sab/pdf/ec02010.pdf.
Dated: March 5, 2007.
Anthony F. Maciorowski,
Deputy Director, EPA Science Advisory Board Staff Office.
[FR Doc. E7-4562 Filed 3-12-07; 8:45 am]
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