[Federal Register: April 16, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 74)]
[Notices]
[Page 20638-20640]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr16ap08-53]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[EPA-HQ-OPP-2004-0402; FRL-8359-6]
Pentachlorophenol Revised Risk Assessments; Notice of
Availability and Solicitation of Risk Reduction Options
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: This notice announces the availability of EPA's revised risk
assessments for the restricted use antimicrobial pesticide
pentachlorophenol (PCP) and its micro-contaminants, dioxin/furan (CDDs/
CDFs) and hexachlorobenzene (HCB). In addition, this notice solicits
public comment on risk reduction options for PCP and its micro-
contaminants CDDs/CDFs and HCB, and an initial impacts and/or
preliminary benefits assessment (Phase 5 of 6-Phase Process). The
public is encouraged to suggest risk management ideas or proposals to
address the risks identified. EPA is developing a Reregistration
Eligibility Decision (RED) for PCP through the full, 6-Phase public
participation process that the Agency uses to involve the public in
developing pesticide reregistration and tolerance reassessment
decisions. Through these programs, EPA is ensuring that all pesticides
meet current health and safety standards.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before June 16, 2008.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by docket identification
(ID) number EPA-HQ-OPP-2004-0402, by one of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the on-line instructions for submitting comments.
Mail: Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) Regulatory Public
Docket (7502P), Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania
Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001.
Delivery: OPP Regulatory Public Docket (7502P),
Environmental Protection Agency, Rm. S-4400, One Potomac Yard (South
Bldg.), 2777 S. Crystal Dr., Arlington, VA. Deliveries are only
accepted during the Docket's normal hours of operation (8:30 a.m. to 4
p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays). Special
arrangements should be made for deliveries of boxed information. The
Docket Facility telephone number is (703) 305-5805.
Instructions: Direct your comments to docket ID number EPA-HQ-OPP-
2004-
[[Page 20639]]
0402. 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 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.
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, is not placed on the Internet and will be publicly available
only in hard copy form. Publicly available docket materials are
available either in the electronic docket at http://
www.regulations.gov, or, if only available in hard copy, at the OPP
Regulatory Public Docket in Rm. S-4400, One Potomac Yard (South Bldg.),
2777 S. Crystal Dr., Arlington, VA. The hours of operation of this
Docket Facility are from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday,
excluding legal holidays. The Docket Facility telephone number is (703)
305-5805.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sherrie Kinard, Antimicrobials
Division (7510P), Office of Pesticide Programs, Environmental
Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-
0001; telephone number: (703) 305-0563; fax number: (703) 308-6467; e-
mail address: kinard.sherrie @epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. General Information
A. Does this Action Apply to Me?
This action is directed to the public in general, and may be of
interest to a wide range of stakeholders including environmental, human
health, and agricultural advocates; the chemical industry; pesticide
users; and members of the public interested in the sale, distribution,
or use of pesticides. Since others also may be interested, the Agency
has not attempted to describe all the specific entities that may be
affected by this action. If you have any questions regarding the
applicability of this action to a particular entity, consult the 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 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 may ask you to respond to
specific questions or organize comments by referencing a Code of
Federal Regulations (CFR) part or section number.
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
A. What Action is the Agency Taking?
EPA is making available the Agency's revised risk assessments,
initially issued for comment through a Federal Register notice
published on March 30, 2005 (70 FR 16276) (FRL-7707-1 ); a response to
comments; and related documents for pentachlorophenol. EPA also is
soliciting public comment on potential risk reduction options for
pentachlorophenol, and a preliminary benefits assessment for identified
risks of concern. EPA developed the risk assessments for
pentachlorophenol and its micro-contaminants, dioxins/furans and HCB,
as part of its public process for making pesticide reregistration
eligibility and tolerance reassessment decisions. Through these
programs, EPA is ensuring that pesticides meet current standards under
the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) and the
Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA), as amended by the Food
Quality Protection Act of 1996 (FQPA).
Pentachlorophenol is a general biocide which is used extensively in
the United States (as is its salt, sodium pentachlorophenate or NaPCP)
as a wood preservative. The production of pentachlorophenol for wood
preserving began on an experimental basis in the 1930s. In 1947, nearly
7 million pounds of PCP were reported to have been used in the United
States by the commercial wood preserving industry. Pentachlorophenol
was one of the most widely used biocides in the United States prior to
regulatory actions to cancel and restrict certain non-wood preservative
uses in 1987. Prior to the 1987 Federal Register Notice (Vol. 52, No.
13) which cancelled and restricted certain non-wood uses of
pentachlorophenol, it was registered for use as a herbicide, defoliant,
mossicide, and as a disinfectant. The 1987 notice also specified
maximum allowable amounts of HCB and dioxins/furans that
[[Page 20640]]
could be present in formulations of pentachlorophenol.
Indoor applications of pentachlorophenol are prohibited in
accordance with the restrictions indicated in the U.S.EPA Position
Document 4 for Wood Preservative Pesticides: Creosote,
Pentachlorophenol and Inorganic Arsenicals (1984, amended 1986). The
use of pentachlorophenol to treat wood intended for use in interiors is
prohibited, except for a few low exposure uses (i.e., those support
structures which are in contact with the soil in barns, stables, and
similar sites and are subject to decay or insect infestation).
Pentachlorophenol is a restricted use pesticide for sale and use by
certified applicators only. There are currently eight active products
registered that contain pentachlorophenol (Chemical Code 063001). There
are approximately 60 million utility-owned wood poles and 54 million
crossarms in service across the United States that have been treated
with wood preservatives (mainly pentaclorophenol and creosote).
Approximately 36 million of the wood poles in service have been treated
with pentachlorophenol, and approximately 96% of the crossarms in
service were treated. An estimated 3% of the treated poles are replaced
annually with freshly treated poles.
EPA is providing an opportunity, through this notice, for
interested parties to provide risk management proposals or otherwise
comment on risk management for pentachlorophenol and its micro-
contaminants. Risks of concern associated with the use of
pentachlorophenol are long-term dermal non-cancer risks for the
pressure treatment operator mixing/loading/applying the liquid
formulations and for the pressure treatment assistant mixing/loading/
applying the liquid and the crystalline formulations. Dermal non-cancer
risks of concern range from a MOE of 79 to a MOE of 230 with the target
MOE of 300. Estimated cancer risks for handlers are of concern for the
same 3 scenarios with cancer risks ranging from 4.9E\-\4 to
7.9E\-\5. Estimated cancer risks resulting from exposure to
pentachlorophenols micro-contaminants dioxins/furans exceed the level
of concern for the pressure treatment loader operator, pressure
treatment test borer, general helpers, and electrical utility linemen.
Cancer risks of concern range from 3.0E\-\5 to 8.0E\-
\5 for these scenarios. In targeting these risks of concern,
the Agency is soliciting information on effective and practical risk
reduction measures.
EPA is applying the principles of public participation to all
pesticides undergoing reregistration and tolerance reassessment. The
Agency's Pesticide Tolerance Reassessment and Reregistration; Public
Participation Process, published in the Federal Register on May 14,
2004, (69 FR 26819) (FRL-7357-9) explains that in conducting these
programs, EPA is tailoring its public participation process to be
commensurate with the level of risk, extent of use, complexity of
issues, and degree of public concern associated with each pesticide.
Due to its uses, risks, and other factors, pentachlorophenol is being
reviewed through the full 6-Phase public participation process.
All comments should be submitted using the methods in ADDRESSES,
and must be received by EPA on or before the closing date. Comments and
proposals will become part of the Agency Docket for pentachlorophenol.
Comments received after the close of the comment period will be marked
``late''. EPA is not required to consider these late comments.
After considering comments received, EPA will develop and issue the
pentachlorophenol RED.
B. What is the Agency's Authority for Taking this Action?
Section 4(g)(2) of FIFRA, as amended, directs that, after
submission of all data concerning a pesticide active ingredient, ``the
Administrator shall determine whether pesticides containing such active
ingredient are eligible for reregistration,'' before calling in product
specific data on individual end-use products and either reregistering
products or taking other ``appropriate regulatory action.''
List of Subjects
Environmental protection, Pesticides and pests, Antimicrobials,
Pentachlorophenol, Penta.
Dated: April 8, 2008.
Frank Sanders,
Director, Antimicrobial Division, Office of Pesticide Programs.
[FR Doc. E8-8174 Filed 4-15-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-S