[Federal Register: March 31, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 60)]
[Notices]
[Page 14553-14555]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr31mr09-61]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-8787-7]
Science Advisory Board Staff Office; Request for Nominations of
Scientists and Engineers To Augment the Environmental Engineering
Committee (EEC)
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The EPA Science Advisory Board (SAB) Staff Office is
requesting nominations for scientists and engineers with expertise and
direct experience in water infrastructure assessment, rehabilitation,
and renewal to augment expertise on the SAB Environmental Engineering
Committee (EEC).
DATES: Nominations should be submitted by April 21, 2009 per
instructions below.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION: Any member of the public wishing further
information regarding this Notice and Request for Nominations may
contact Mr. Edward Hanlon, Designated Federal Officer (DFO), SAB Staff
Office, by telephone/voice mail at (202) 343-9946; by fax at (202) 233-
0643 or via e-mail at hanlon.edward@epa.gov. General information
concerning the EPA Science Advisory Board can be found at the EPA SAB
Web site at http://www.epa.gov/sab. Any inquiry regarding EPA's Aging
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Drinking Water and Wastewater Infrastructure Research Initiative should
be directed to Mr. Thomas Speth of EPA's Office of Research and
Development (ORD), at speth.thomas@epa.gov or (513) 569-7208.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The SAB was established by 42 U.S.C. 4365 to
provide independent scientific and technical advice to the EPA
Administrator on the technical basis for Agency positions and
regulations. The SAB is a Federal Advisory Committee chartered under
the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), as amended, 5 U.S.C., App.
The SAB will comply with the provisions of FACA and all appropriate SAB
Staff Office procedural policies. The SAB EEC provides scientific and
technical advice to the EPA Administrator through the chartered SAB on
risk management technologies to control and prevent pollution.
In support of EPA's Sustainable Water Infrastructure Initiative,
EPA's ORD initiated a research program in 2007 to improve and evaluate
innovative technologies and techniques for reducing the cost and
improving the effectiveness of operations, maintenance, and replacement
of aging and failing systems for drinking water and wastewater
treatment and conveyance. The outputs from this research program are
intended to assist EPA's program and regional offices to implement
Clean Water Act and Safe Drinking Water Act requirements; to help
states and tribes meet their programmatic requirements; and to assist
utilities to more effectively implement comprehensive management of
drinking water and wastewater treatment and conveyance systems, provide
reliable service to their customers, and meet their statutory
requirements. ORD's 2007 Sustainable Water Infrastructure Initiative
research plan proposes work relating to infrastructure condition
assessment, system rehabilitation, infusion of advanced design and
management concepts, and evaluation of innovative treatment
technologies. ORD requested that the SAB review and provide advice on
the suitability and appropriateness of completed, existing and upcoming
projects; the appropriateness of the funding vehicles; whether
additional projects are needed; and the overall scope and funding of
the initiative. The SAB EEC, augmented with additional experts, will
conduct the consultation.
Request for Nominations
There is a need to supplement EEC expertise with scientists and
engineers having experience and expertise with water infrastructure
assessment, rehabilitation, and renewal. Accordingly, the SAB Staff
Office is seeking nominations of nationally and internationally
recognized scientists and engineers in multidisciplinary fields such as
microbiology, environmental science, and chemistry; and civil,
environmental, chemical, and mechanical engineering. We particularly
seek scientists and engineers with specialized expertise in condition
assessment, system rehabilitation, and in reducing the cost and
improving the effectiveness of operations, maintenance, and replacement
of aging and failing drinking water, stormwater, and wastewater
treatment and conveyance systems. Also, the SAB Staff Office seeks
nominations of individuals with experience in applying this expertise
towards municipal infrastructure systems. Qualified nominees will be
considered for serving on the EEC augmented with additional expertise
to provide advice on EPA's Aging Drinking Water and Wastewater
Infrastructure Research Initiative.
Process and Deadline for Submitting Nominations: Any interested
person or organization may nominate individuals qualified in the area
of science and engineering as described above to be considered for
appointment on this SAB Committee. Candidates may also nominate
themselves. Nominations should be submitted in electronic format (which
is preferred over hard copy) following the instructions for
``Nominating Experts to Advisory Panels and Ad Hoc Committees Being
Formed'' provided on the SAB Web site. The form can be accessed through
the ``Nomination of Experts'' link on the blue navigational bar on the
SAB Web site at http://www.epa.gov/sab. To receive full consideration,
nominations should include all of the information requested, and should
be submitted in time to arrive no later than April 21, 2009.
EPA's SAB Staff Office requests contact information about: The
person making the nomination; contact information about the nominee;
the disciplinary and specific areas of expertise of the nominee; the
nominee's curriculum vitae; sources of recent grant and/or contract
support; and a biographical sketch of the nominee indicating current
position, educational background, research activities, and recent
service on other national advisory committees or national professional
organizations.
Persons having questions about the nomination procedures, or who
are unable to submit nominations through the SAB Web site, should
contact Mr. Edward Hanlon, DFO, at the contact information provided
above in this notice. Non-electronic submissions must follow the same
format and contain the same information as the electronic.
The SAB Staff Office will acknowledge receipt of the nomination and
inform nominees of the Committee for which they have been nominated.
From the nominees identified by respondents to this Federal Register
notice (termed the ``Widecast'') and other sources, the SAB Staff
Office will develop a smaller subset (known as the ``Short List'') for
more detailed consideration. The Short List will be posted on the SAB
Web site at http://www.epa.gov/sab and will include, for each
candidate, the nominee's name and biosketch. Public comments on the
Short List will be accepted for 21 calendar days. During this comment
period, the public will be requested to provide information, analysis,
or other documentation on nominees that the SAB Staff Office should
consider in evaluating candidates for the Committee.
For the SAB, a balanced Committee is characterized by inclusion of
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. Public responses to the
Short List candidates will be considered in the selection of the
Committee, along with information provided by candidates and
information gathered by SAB Staff independently concerning the
background of each candidate (e.g., financial disclosure information
and computer searches to evaluate a nominee's prior involvement with
the topic under review). Specific criteria to be used in evaluation of
an individual Committee member include: (a) Scientific and/or technical
expertise, knowledge, and experience (primary factors); (b) absence of
financial conflicts of interest; (c) scientific credibility and
impartiality; (d) availability and willingness to serve; and (e)
ability to work constructively and effectively in committees.
Prospective candidates will be required to fill-out the
``Confidential Financial Disclosure Form for Special Government
Employees Serving on Federal Advisory Committees at the
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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. Ethics
information, including EPA Form 3110-48, is available on the SAB Web
site at http://yosemite.epa.gov/sab/sabproduct.nsf/Web/
ethics?OpenDocument.
Dated: March 24, 2009.
Anthony F. Maciorowski,
Deputy Director, EPA Science Advisory Board Staff Office.
[FR Doc. E9-7185 Filed 3-30-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P