[Federal Register: July 22, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 139)]
[Notices]
[Page 36202-36204]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr22jy09-66]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[EPA-HQ-OPP-2009-0365; FRL-8425-4]
Azinphos-methyl; Notice of Receipt of Request for Label
Amendments
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: EPA is seeking public comment on a June 18, 2009 request by
azinphos-methyl (AZM) registrants to amend their registrations to
change the rate reductions outlined in the November 16, 2006 final
decision for some of the remaining uses of AZM, and to extend the use
of aerial application on blueberries in Michigan through the end of the
AZM phase out in 2012. On November 16, 2006, EPA issued a final
decision to phase out all uses of AZM not later than September 30, 2012
and to require certain interim risk mitigation measures through label
changes. Risk mitigation measures in the final decision include buffer
zones around water bodies and occupied structures, application rate
reductions, and stewardship programs. The request by the registrants is
a request to change some of the rate reductions and certain application
practices that have been required through the end of the AZM phaseout;
the registrants have not requested to extend the use of AZM beyond the
September 30, 2012 cancellation date for the remaining uses of AZM.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before September 21, 2009.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments identified by the docket identification
(ID) number EPA-HQ-OPP-2009-0365, 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 Facility'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 the docket ID number EPA-HQ-
OPP-2009-0365. 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 at http://www.regulations.gov. 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
[[Page 36203]]
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: Tom Myers, Chemical Review Manager,
Special Review and Reregistration Division (7508P), Office of Pesticide
Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.,
Washington, DC 20460-0001; telephone number: (703) 308-8589; fax
number: (703) 308-7070; e-mail address: myers.tom@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, farm worker, 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 on the Receipt of Requests for AZM Label Amendments
AZM is an organophosphate insecticide that was first registered in
the United States in 1959. On November 16, 2006, EPA issued a
determination that due to farm worker and ecological risks all
remaining uses of AZM will be phased out by 2012. The AZM registrants,
at the request of EPA, submitted registration amendment and voluntary
cancellation requests to terminate certain uses in 2007 and 2009 and
cancel all remaining AZM product registrations in 2012, subject to
certain terms and conditions. A cancellation order for the remaining
uses of AZM was published in the Federal Register on February 20, 2008
(73 FR 9328) (FRL-8349-8). A correction of typographical errors in the
February 20, 2008 Federal Register notice was issued on March 26, 2008
(73 FR 16006) (FRL-8355-1). Subject to the terms and conditions
described in Unit II. of the February 20, 2008 notice, the AZM product
registrations were cancelled and amended as follows: Use of AZM
products on Brussels sprouts and nursery stock was prohibited as of
September 30, 2008. Use of AZM products on walnuts, almonds, and
pistachios is prohibited effective October 30, 2009. All AZM products
currently held by registrants are cancelled effective September 30,
2012 (ending use on apples/crabapples, blueberries, cherries, pears,
and parsley). In addition to the aforementioned use deletions and
product cancellations, the use of AZM was increasingly limited during
the phase out period through application rate reductions and other
label restrictions, including buffer zones around water bodies and
occupied structures. The application rate reductions required in the
AZM Final Decision document are located in Table 1.
Table 1.--Rate Reductions Required in the AZM Final Decision Document,
dated November 16, 2006.
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Crop Year Rate
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Apples, Crabapples 2007 4.0 lbs ai/A per
year
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2008, 2009 3.0 lbs ai/A per
year
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2010 2.0 lbs ai/A per
year
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2011, 2012 1.5 lbs ai/A per
year
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Pears 2007, 2008 3.0 lbs ai/A per
year
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2009, 2010 2.0 lbs ai/A per
year
---------------------------------------
2011, 2012 1.5 lbs ai/A per
year
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Cherries 2007, 2008, 2009 1.5 lbs ai/A per
year
---------------------------------------
2010, 2011, 2012 0.75 lbs ai/A per
year
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Blueberries 2007 1.5 lbs ai/A per
year
---------------------------------------
2008, 2009 1.25 lbs ai/A per
year
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2010, 2011, 2012 0.75 lbs ai/A per
year
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After September 30, 2009 aerial
application on blueberries is
prohibited.
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The additional label changes required are described in the document
``Final Decisions for the Remaining Uses of Azinphos-methyl, US EPA,
November 16, 2006,'' located in docket EPA-HQ-OPP-2005-0061.
[[Page 36204]]
III. What Action is the Agency Taking?
This notice announces receipt by EPA of a request from registrants
to amend registrations to alter the rate reductions outlined in the
November 16, 2006 Final Decision for the Remaining Uses of AZM, and to
extend the use of aerial application on blueberries in Michigan through
the end of the AZM phase out. The registrants have requested that for
apples/crabapples, blueberries, cherries, and pears that growers be
allowed to use higher applications rates than originally required in
the Final Decision document of November 16, 2006. Additionally,
registrants have requested that the aerial use of AZM on blueberries,
currently scheduled to be prohibited starting January 1, 2010, be
allowed through the end of the phaseout (September 30, 2012). The
request by the registrants would change some of the rate reductions and
certain application practices that have been required through the end
of the AZM phaseout; the registrants have not requested to extend use
of AZM beyond the September 30, 2012 cancellation date for the
remaining uses of AZM. The changes requested by the registrants are
listed in the Table 2.
Table 2.--Requested AZM Label Changes as Described in the June 18, 2009
Registrant Submission
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Crop Year Rate
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Apples, Crabapples 2010, 2011, 2012 2.0 lbs ai/A per
year
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Pears 2010, 2011, 2012 2.0 lbs ai/A per
year
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Cherries 2010, 2011, 2012 1.5 lbs ai/A per
year
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Blueberries 2010, 2011, 2012 1.0 lbs ai/A per
year
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Maintain aerial application on
blueberries through September 30,
2012.
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The Agency is requesting comment on the registrant submission to
amend registrations. The registrant request letter is in the docket for
comment, along with an EPA-produced document with considerations for
commenters on the registrant request. The Agency welcomes comments from
all stakeholders, as well as any new information on human health or
environmental risks not previously considered.
List of Subjects
Environmental protection, Pesticides and pests, Azinphos-methyl.
Dated: July 15, 2009.
Richard P. Keigwin, Jr.,
Director, Special Review and Reregistration Division, Office of
Pesticide Programs.
[FR Doc. E9-17398 Filed 7-21-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-S