Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 69 / Monday, April 12, 2010 / Notices 18499 

Dated: April 6, 2010. 

John Moses, 

Director, Collection Strategies Division. 

[FR Doc. 2010–8290 Filed 4–9–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

[FRL–9136–3; Docket ID No. EPA–HQ–ORD– 

2009–0934] 

The Effects of Mountaintop Mines and 

Valley Fills on Aquatic Ecosystems of 

the Central Appalachian Coalfields and 

a Field-Based Aquatic Life Benchmark 

for Conductivity in Central 

Appalachian Streams 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Notice of public comment 

period. 

SUMMARY: EPA is announcing a 60-day 

public comment period for two related 

draft documents: (1) ‘‘The Effects of 

Mountaintop Mines and Valley Fills on 

Aquatic Ecosystems of the Central 

Appalachian Coalfields’’ (EPA/600/R– 

09/138A) and (2) ‘‘A Field-based 

Aquatic Life Benchmark for 

Conductivity in Central Appalachian 

Streams’’ (EPA/600/R–10/023A). These 

reports were developed by the National 

Center for Environmental Assessment 

(NCEA) within EPA’s Office of Research 

and Development as part of a set of 

actions taken by EPA to further clarify 

and strengthen environmental 

permitting requirements for 

Appalachian mountaintop removal and 

other surface coal mining projects, in 

coordination with Federal and State 

regulatory agencies (http:// 

www.epa.gov/owow/wetlands/guidance/ 

mining.html). 

Both documents will be reviewed by 

an independent review panel convened 

by EPA’s Science Advisory Board 

(SAB). The SAB’s peer review meeting, 

which the public will be able to attend 

as observers, will be scheduled at a later 

date, and announced in the Federal 

Register. The public comment period 

and the SAB meeting are separate 

processes that provide opportunities for 

all interested parties to comment on the 

document. EPA intends to forward the 

public comments that are submitted, in 

accordance with this notice, to the SAB 

review panel prior to the meeting for 

their consideration. When finalizing the 

draft documents, EPA intends to 

consider any significant public 

comments that it receives in accordance 

with this notice. 

EPA is releasing these draft 

documents for the purpose of predissemination peer review under 

applicable information quality 

guidelines. The documents have not 

been formally disseminated by EPA. 

They do not represent and should not be 

construed to represent a final Agency 

policy or determination; however, the 

documents reflect EPA’s best 

interpretation of the available science. 

The draft documents are available via 

the Internet on NCEA’s home page 

under the Recent Additions and 

Publications menus at http:// 

www.epa.gov/ncea. 

DATES: The 60-day public comment 

period begins April 12, 2010, and ends 

June 11, 2010. Technical comments 

should be in writing and must be 

received by EPA by June 11, 2010. 

ADDRESSES: The draft reports, ‘‘The 

Effects of Mountaintop Mines and 

Valley Fills on Aquatic Ecosystems of 

the Central Appalachian Coalfields’’ and 

‘‘A Field-based Aquatic Life Benchmark 

for Conductivity in Central Appalachian 

Streams’’ are available primarily via the 

Internet on the National Center for 

Environmental Assessment’s home page 

under the Recent Additions and 

Publications menus at http:// 

www.epa.gov/ncea. A limited number of 

paper copies are available, contact the 

EPA; telephone: 703–347–8629; 

facsimile: 703–347–8691. If you are 

requesting a paper copy, please provide 

your name, your mailing address, and 

the document titles (1) ‘‘The Effects of 

Mountaintop Mines and Valley Fills on 

Aquatic Ecosystems of the Central 

Appalachian Coalfields’’ and (2) ‘‘A 

Field-based Aquatic Life Benchmark for 

Conductivity in Central Appalachian 

Streams.’’ 

Comments may be submitted 

electronically via http:// 

www.regulations.gov, by mail, by 

facsimile, or by hand delivery/courier. 

Please follow the detailed instructions 

provided in the SUPPLEMENTARY

INFORMATION section of this notice. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

information on submitting comments to 

the docket, please contact the Office of 

Environmental Information Docket; 

telephone: 202–566–1752; facsimile: 

202–566–1753; or e-mail: 

ORD.Docket@epa.gov. For technical 

information, please leave a message at 

703–347–8629 or send e-mail to MTMCond@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

The purpose of the first draft report 

entitled ‘‘The Effects of Mountaintop 

Mines and Valley Fills on Aquatic 

Ecosystems of the Central Appalachian 

Coalfields,’’ is to assess the state of the 

science on the ecological impacts of 

Mountaintop Mining and Valley Fill 

(MTM–VF) operations on streams in the 

Central Appalachian Coal Basin. This 

basin covers about 12 million acres in 

West Virginia, Kentucky, Virginia, and 

Tennessee. The draft report reviews 

literature relevant to evaluating five 

potential consequences of MTM–VF 

operations: (1) Impacts on headwater 

streams; (2) impacts on downstream 

water quality; (3) impacts on stream 

ecosystems; (4) the cumulative impacts 

of multiple mining operations; and (5) 

effectiveness of mining reclamation and 

mitigation. The impacts of MTM–VF 

operations on cultural and aesthetic 

resources are not included in the 

review. EPA used two primary sources 

of information for the evaluation: (1) 

The peer reviewed, published literature 

and (2) the Programmatic 

Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) 

on Mountaintop Mining/Valley Fills in 

Appalachia and its associated 

appendices prepared in draft in 2003 

and finalized in 2005. 

The second draft report entitled, ‘‘A 

Field-based Aquatic Life Benchmark for 

Conductivity in Central Appalachian 

Streams,’’ uses field data to derive an 

aquatic life benchmark for conductivity. 

Conductivity is a measurement of the 

salt content of water. The saltier the 

water, the more it will conduct 

electricity. This benchmark value may 

be applied to waters in the Appalachian 

Region that are near neutral or mildly 

alkaline in their pH and are influenced 

by salts of sulfate and bicarbonate. This 

benchmark is intended to protect the 

biological integrity of waters in the 

region. It is derived by a method 

modeled on the U.S. EPA’s standard 

methodology for deriving water quality 

criteria. In particular, the methodology 

was adapted for use of field data. Field 

data were used because sufficient and 

appropriate laboratory data were not 

available and because high quality field 

data were available to relate 

conductivity to effects on biotic 

communities. This draft report provides 

scientific evidence for a conductivity 

benchmark in a specific region rather 

than for the entire United States. 

II. How To Submit Technical Comments 

to the Docket at http:// 

www.regulations.gov 

Submit your comments, identified by 

Docket ID No. EPA–HQ–ORD 2009– 

0934, by one of the following methods: 

• http://www.regulations.gov: Follow 

the on-line instructions for submitting 

comments. 

• E-mail: ORD.Docket@epa.gov. 

• Fax: 202–566–1753 


sroberts on DSKD5P82C1PROD with NOTICES
18500 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 69 / Monday, April 12, 2010 / Notices 

• Mail: Office of Environmental 

Information (OEI) Docket (Mail Code: 

2822T), U.S. Environmental Protection 

Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., 

Washington, DC 20460. The phone 

number is 202–566–1752. 

• Hand Delivery: The OEI Docket is 

located in the EPA Headquarters Docket 

Center, Room 3334 EPA West Building, 

1301 Constitution Ave., NW., 

Washington, DC. The EPA Docket 

Center’s Public Reading Room is open 

from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday 

through Friday, excluding legal 

holidays. The telephone number for the 

Public Reading Room is 202–566–1744. 

Such deliveries are only accepted 

during the docket’s normal hours of 

operation, and special arrangements 

should be made for deliveries of boxed 

information. 

If you provide comments by mail or 

hand delivery, please submit three 

copies of the comments. For 

attachments, provide an index, number 

pages consecutively with the comments, 

and submit an unbound original and 

three copies. 

Instructions: Direct your comments to 

Docket ID No. EPA–HQ–ORD–2009– 

0934. Please ensure that your comments 

are submitted within the specified 

comment period. Comments received 

after the closing date will be marked 

‘‘late,’’ and may only be considered if 

time permits. It is EPA’s policy to 

include all comments it receives in the 

public docket without change and to 

make the comments available online at 

http://www.regulations.gov, including 

any personal information provided, 

unless a 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 http:// 

www.regulations.gov or e-mail. The 

http://www.regulations.gov Web site 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 http:// 

www.regulations.gov, your e-mail 

address will be automatically captured 

and included as part of the comment 

that is placed in the public 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: Documents in the docket are 

listed in the http://www.regulations.gov 

index. 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 materials, such as 

copyrighted material, are publicly 

available only in hard copy. Publicly 

available docket materials are available 

either electronically in http:// 

www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at 

the OEI Docket in the EPA Headquarters 

Docket Center. 

Dated: April 2, 2010. 

Peter W. Preuss, 

Director, National Center for Environmental 

Assessment. 

[FR Doc. 2010–8302 Filed 4–9–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

[EPA–HQ–OW–2010–0315; FRL–9136–4] 

Guidance on Improving EPA Review of 

Appalachian Surface Coal Mining 

Operations under the Clean Water Act, 

National Environmental Policy Act, and 

the Environmental Justice Executive 

Order 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) is soliciting public 

comment on the issues addressed in two 

EPA guidance memoranda released on 

April 1, 2010, titled Improving EPA 

Review of Appalachian Surface Coal 

Mining Operations under the Clean 

Water Act, National Environmental 

Policy Act, and the Environmental 

Justice Executive Order. Effective 

immediately, these memoranda—one 

labeled ‘‘Summary Guidance’’ and one 

labeled ‘‘Detailed Guidance’’—seek to 

clarify EPA’s roles and expectations, in 

coordinating with its Federal and state 

partners, with regard to environmental 

review of Appalachian surface coal 

mining operations under the Clean 

Water Act, National Environmental 

Policy Act, and the Environmental 

Justice Executive Order (E.O. 12898). 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before December 1, 2010. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by Docket ID No. EPA–HQ– 

OW–2010–0315, by one of the following 

methods: 

• http://www.regulations.gov: Follow 

the on-line instructions for reviewing 

comments. 

• E-mail: OW–Docket@epa.gov. 

• Mail: U.S. Environmental 

Protection Agency; EPA Docket Center 

(EPA/DC) Water Docket, MC 2822T; 

1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., 

Washington, DC 20460. 

• On Site: EPA Docket Center, 1301 

Constitution Ave., NW., EPA West, 

Room 3334, Washington, DC 20460. 

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 www.regulations.gov 

index. 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 

either electronically in http:// 

www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at 

the Office of Water Docket/EPA/DC, 

1301 Constitution Ave., NW., EPA West, 

Room 3334, Washington, DC 20460. 

This Docket Facility is open from 8:30 

a.m. until 4:30 p.m., EST, Monday 

through Friday, excluding legal 

holidays. The telephone number for the 

Public Reading Room is (202) 566–1744, 

and the telephone number for the Office 

of Water is (202) 566–2426. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Timothy Landers, U.S. EPA, 1200 

Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, 

DC 20460; (202) 566–2231; 

landers.timothy@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: EPA’s 

draft guidance on Improving EPA 

Review of Appalachian Surface Coal 

Mining Operations under the Clean 

Water Act, National Environmental 

Policy Act, and the Environmental 

Justice Executive Order clarifies how 

EPA is applying its existing legal 

authorities in its review of Appalachian 

surface coal mining operations. The 

guidance memoranda are available at 

http://www.epa.gov/owow/wetlands/ 

guidance/mining.html. As such, these 

memoranda do not represent a 

regulation, and are not subject to the 

formal provisions of the Administrative 

Procedure Act. However, EPA 

recognizes the importance of this 

guidance to its Federal and state 

partners, to the regulated community, 

and to the public, and therefore seeks 


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