[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 60 (Thursday, March 29, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14805-14807]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-5813]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[EPA-HQ-OPPT-2007-0148; FRL-8120-8]
Commodity-Grade Mercury: Notice of Stakeholder Panel Process,
Notice of Public Meeting, and Solicitation of Public Comment
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency, in conjunction with other
Federal agencies and offices, is announcing a stakeholder panel process
to provide approaches for management of non-Federal supplies of
commodity-grade mercury. The need for management arises from concern
that some mercury supplies may ultimately be released into the
environment, resulting in human exposure with the potential to cause
adverse health effects. A stakeholder panel will hold a series of
meetings with the kickoff meeting in Washington, DC on May 8, 2007. EPA
invites the public to submit written comments to the EPA on the issues
the stakeholder panel will address. Stakeholder panel meetings will be
open to the public and there will be opportunity for public comment at
each meeting. Information on the public meetings will be available at
http://www.epa.gov/mercury/roadmap.htm.
DATES: Meeting: The first meeting will be held on May 8, 2007, from 9
a.m. to 5 p.m., in Washington, DC. Dates of future meetings will be
announced on http://www.epa.gov/mercury/roadmap.htm.
Participation: Requests to participate in the meeting must be
received on or before April 12, 2007. See also Unit IV. of the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.
Special Accommodations: To request accommodation of a disability,
please contact the technical person listed under FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT, preferably at least 10 days prior to the meeting,
to give EPA as much time as possible to process your request.
Comments: Comments must be received on or before September 30,
2007.
ADDRESSES: Meeting: The first meeting will be held at Marriott Learning
Complex, Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, 1300
Pennsylvania Ave., NW. (Federal Triangle), Washington, DC.
Participation: Requests to participate in the meeting must be sent
to the technical person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
See also Unit IV. of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.
Comments: Submit your comments, identified by docket identification
(ID) number EPA-HQ-OPPT-2007-0148, by one of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the on-line instructions for submitting comments.
Mail: Document Control Office (7407M), Office of Pollution
Prevention and Toxics (OPPT), Environmental Protection Agency, 1200
Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001.
Hand Delivery: OPPT Document Control Office (DCO), EPA
East Bldg., Rm. 6428, 1201 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC.
Attention: Docket ID Number EPA-HQ-OPPT-2007-0148. The DCO is open from
8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The
telephone number for the DCO is (202) 564-8930. Such deliveries are
only accepted during the DCO's normal hours of operation, and special
arrangements should be made for deliveries of boxed information.
Instructions: Direct your comments to docket ID number EPA-HQ-OPPT-
2007-0148. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included
in the docket without change and may be made available on-line 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 regulations.gov or e-
mail. The regulations.gov website 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 regulations.gov,
your e-mail address will be automatically captured and included as part
of the comment that is
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placed in the 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 docket index
available in regulations.gov. To access the electronic docket, go to
http://www.regulations.gov, select ``Advanced Search,'' then ``Docket
Search.'' Insert the docket ID number where indicated and select the
``Submit'' button. Follow the instructions on the regulations.gov
website to view the docket index or access available documents.
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 electronically at http://www.regulations.gov, or, if only available in hard copy, at the OPPT
Docket. The OPPT Docket is located in the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC) at
Rm. 3334, EPA West Bldg., 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC.
The EPA/DC Public Reading Room hours of operation are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30
p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding Federal holidays. The telephone
number of the EPA/DC Public Reading Room is (202) 566-1744, and the
telephone number for the OPPT Docket is (202) 566-0280. Docket visitors
are required to show photographic identification, pass through a metal
detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed
through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be
provided an EPA/DC badge that must be visible at all times in the
building and returned upon departure.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For general information contact: Colby
Lintner, Regulatory Coordinator, Environmental Assistance Division
(7408M), Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics, Environmental
Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-
0001; telephone number: (202) 554-1404; e-mail address: [email protected].
For technical information contact: Joshua Novikoff, National
Program Chemicals Division (7404T), Office of Pollution Prevention and
Toxics, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.,
Washington, DC 20460-0001; telephone number: (202) 566-0502; e-mail
address: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
I. General Information
A. Does this Action Apply to Me?
You may be potentially affected by this action if your work
involves commodity-grade mercury, mercury by-products, or mercury
waste. Potentially affected entities may include, but are not limited
to:
Chlor-alkali manufacturers (NAICS code 325181), e.g.
facilities that use mercury processes.
Metals mining companies (NAICS code 2122), e.g. gold
mines.
Mercury recovery facilities (NAICS code 562920), i.e.,
facilities that recover elemental mercury from waste.
Waste Treatment and Disposal (NAICS code 5622), e.g.
treatment, storage, and disposal facilities that manage hazardous
mercury waste.
Public Administration (NAICS code 92), e.g. State and
local agencies responsible for municipal waste.
This listing is not intended to be exhaustive, but rather provides
a guide for readers regarding entities likely to be affected by this
action. Other types of entities not listed in this unit could also be
affected. The North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS)
codes have been provided to assist you and others in determining
whether this action might apply to certain entities. If you have any
questions regarding the applicability of this action to a particular
entity, consult the technical person listed under FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT.
B. What Should I Consider as I Prepare My Comments for EPA?
1. Submitting CBI. Do not submit this information to EPA through
regulations.gov or e-mail. 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 EPA, mark the outside of the disk or CD-ROM
that you mail to 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 submitting comments,
remember to:
i. Identify the document by docket ID number and other identifying
information (subject heading, Federal Register date and page number).
ii. Follow directions. The Agency is asking you to respond to
specific questions.
iii. Explain why you agree or disagree; suggest alternatives and
substitute language for your requested changes.
iv. Describe any assumptions and provide any technical information
and/or data that you used.
v. If you estimate potential costs or burdens, explain how you
arrived at your estimate in sufficient detail to allow for it to be
reproduced.
vi. Provide specific examples to illustrate your concerns and
suggest alternatives.
vii. Explain your views as clearly as possible, avoiding the use of
profanity or personal threats.
viii. Make sure to submit your comments by the comment period
deadline identified.
II. Background
In EPA's Roadmap for Mercury (July 2006), EPA committed to working
with other Federal agencies to initiate a process with technical
experts and interested parties to assess options for managing domestic
elemental, commodity-grade mercury surpluses. In order to meet this
commitment, a stakeholder process has been established to provide the
Federal Government with input on a reasonable range of options and an
assessment of these options. The options will apply to the commodity-
grade mercury in the United States not held by the Federal Government.
The stakeholder panel process is supported by EPA and its Federal
partners: Department of Commerce, Department of Defense, Department of
Energy, Department of the Interior, Department of State, and the
Executive Office of the President (Office of Management and Budget,
Council on Environmental Quality, Office of Science and Technology
Policy, and Office of the U.S. Trade Representative). The stakeholder
panel will consist of a balanced mix of representatives from academia,
industry (e.g., chlor-alkali, mining, mercury brokers), non-
governmental organizations (NGOs), and States. Representatives from
various
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Federal agencies will serve as technical advisors, and will provide
background information and technical support to the stakeholder panel
as needed. Composition of the stakeholder panel may vary somewhat by
meeting, depending on which topics will be discussed. This notice is
not a solicitation for stakeholder panel participants.
EPA anticipates that the stakeholder panel will meet on several
occasions over a 6-month period. The meetings will be open to the
public, with opportunities for the public to make oral comments to the
stakeholder panel.
EPA will ask the stakeholder panel to consider two questions:
1. How should the various non-Federal stocks of commodity-grade
mercury be managed both in the short term and the long term?
2. How do current and future supply and demand affect this
determination for each of the various stocks?
For more information, see the EPA background paper, entitled
Options for Managing U.S. Non-Federal Supplies of Commodity-Grade
Mercury. To access the background paper, see ADDRESSES.
III. Issues for Public Comment
EPA invites the public to send written comments on the same two
questions addressed to the stakeholder panel:
1. How should the various non-Federal stocks of commodity-grade
mercury be managed both in the short term and the long term?
2. How do current and future supply and demand affect this
determination for each of the various stocks?
EPA advises commenters to use the background paper as they prepare
comments. The background paper is entitled Options for Managing U.S.
Non-Federal Supplies of Commodity-Grade Mercury. To access the
background paper, see ADDRESSES.
IV. How Can I Request to Participate in the Meeting?
Persons interested in attending the public meeting are encouraged
to pre-register and state whether they intend to make an oral comment.
Pre-registration assists in planning adequate seating and in securing
access to the building. Oral comments should address the two questions
in the charge to the stakeholder panel which are found in Unit II. To
pre-register, provide your name, organization, telephone number, and
the docket ID number EPA-HQ-OPPT-2007-0148 to the technical person
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. Pre-registration requests
must be received on or before April 12, 2007. Do not submit any
information in your pre-registration that is considered CBI.
Oral comments will be scheduled in the order the requests are
received by EPA. EPA may need to limit the length of oral comments to
allow for participation by all parties.
EPA requests that oral comments be included in the docket. Please
follow the instructions under ADDRESSES.
List of Subjects
Environmental protection, Chemicals, Hazardous substances, Mercury.
Dated: March 22, 2007.
Wendy C. Hamnett,
Acting Assistant Administrator, Office of Prevention, Pesticides and
Toxic Substances.
[FR Doc. E7-5813 Filed 3-28-07; 8:45 am]
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