Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 234 / Tuesday, December 7, 2004 / Notices 70711

(29 U.S.C. 651 et seq.) authorizes 

information collection by employers as 

necessary or appropriate for 

enforcement of the Act or for developing 

information regarding the causes and 

prevention of occupational injuries, 

illnesses, and accidents (29 U.S.C. 657). 

Paragraphs (b) and (c) of § 1926.652 

(‘‘Requirements for Protective Systems’’; 

the ‘‘Standard’’) contain paperwork 

requirements that impose burden hours 

or costs on employers. These paragraphs 

require employers to use protective 

systems to prevent cave-ins during 

excavation work; these systems include 

sloping the side of the trench, benching 

the soil away from the excavation, or 

using a support system or shield (such 

as a trench box). The standard specifies 

allowable configuration and slopes for 

excavations, and provides appendices to 

assist employers in designing protective 

systems. However, paragraphs (b)(3) and 

(b)(4) of the Standard permit employers 

to design sloping or benching systems 

based on tabulated data (Option 1), or to 

use a design approved by a registered 

professional engineer (Option 2). 

Under Option 1, employers must 

provide the tabulated data in a written 

form that also identifies the registered 

professional engineer who approved the 

data and the parameters used to select 

the sloping or benching system drawn 

from the data, as well as the limitations 

of the data (including the magnitude 

and configuration of slopes determined 

to be safe); the document must also 

provide any explanatory information 

necessary to select the correct benching 

system based on the data. Option 2 

requires employers to develop a written 

design approved by a registered 

professional engineer. The design 

information must include the magnitude 

and configuration of the slopes 

determined to be safe, and the identity 

of the registered professional engineer 

who approved the design. 

Paragraphs (c)(2), (c)(3), and (c)(4) 

allow employers to design support 

systems, shield systems, and other 

protective systems based on tabulated 

data provided by a system manufacturer 

(Option 3) or obtained from other 

sources and approved by a registered 

professional engineer (Option 4); they 

can also use a design approved by a 

registered professional engineer (Option 

5). If they select Option 3, employers 

must complete a written form that 

provides the manufacturer’s 

specifications, recommendations, and 

limitations, as well as any deviations 

approved by the manufacturer. The 

paperwork requirements of Option 4 are 

the same as for Option 1. Option 5 

requires a written form that provides a 

plan indicating the sizes, types, and 

configurations of the materials used in 

the protective system and the identity of 

the registered professional engineer who 

approved the design. 

Each of these provisions requires 

employers to maintain a copy of the 

documents described in these options at 

the jobsite during construction. After 

construction is complete, employers 

may store the documents offsite 

provided they make them available to 

an OSHA compliance officer on request. 

These documents provide both the 

employer and the compliance officer 

with information needed to determine if 

the selection and design of a protective 

system are appropriate to the excavation 

work, thereby assuring employees of 

maximum protection against cave-ins.

III. Special Issues for Comment 

OSHA has a particular interest in 

comments on the following issues: 

• Whether the information-collection 

requirements are necessary for the 

proper performance of the Agency’s 

functions, including whether the 

information is useful; 

•The accuracy of the Agency’s 

estimate of the burden (time and costs) 

of the information-collection 

requirements, including the validity of 

the methodology and assumptions used; 

•The quality, utility, and clarity of the 

information collected; and 

• Ways to minimize the burden on 

employers who must comply; for 

example, by using automated or other 

technological information-collection 

and -transmission techniques. 

IV. Proposed Actions 

OSHA is proposing to extend the 

information-collection requirements 

contained in 29 CFR 1926, Subpart Q, 

Concrete and Masonry Construction. 

The Agency will summarize the 

comments submitted in response to this 

notice and will include this summary in 

the request to OMB to extend the 

approval of the information-collection 

requirements contained in the Standard. 

Type of Review: Extension of 

currently approved informationcollection requirements. 

Title: Design of Cave-in Protection 

System. 

OMB Number: 1218–0137. 

Affected Public: Business or other forprofit. 

Number of Respondents: 20,000. 

Frequency of Response: On occasion. 

Total Responses: 20,000. 

Average Time per Response: Two 

hours to obtain information on the 

design of cave-in protection systems. 

Estimated Total Burden Hours: 20,000 

hours. 

Estimated Cost (Operation and 

Maintenance): $721,100. 

V. Authority and Signature 

John L. Henshaw, Assistant Secretary 

of Labor for Occupational Safety and 

Health, directed the preparation of this 

notice. The authority for this notice is 

the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

(44 U.S.C. 3506), and Secretary of 

Labor’s Order No. 5–2002 (67 FR 

65008).

Signed at Washington, DC on November 

30, 2004. 

John L. Henshaw, 

Assistant Secretary of Labor.

[FR Doc. 04–26806 Filed 12–6–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4510–26–M

NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION

Notice of Permit Application Received 

Under the Antarctic Conservation Act 

of 1978

AGENCY: National Science Foundation.

ACTION: Notice of permit applications 

received under the Antarctic 

Conservation Act. 

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that 

the National Science Foundation (NSF) 

has received a waste management 

permit application for operation of 

remote field camps during a helicopter 

flight from Patriot Hills to South Pole 

and return. The application is submitted 

to NSF pursuant to regulations issued 

under the Antarctic Conservation Act of 

1978.

DATES: Interested parties are invited to 

submit written data, comments, or 

views with respect to this permit 

application by January 6, 2005. Permit 

applications may be inspected by 

interested parties at the Permit Office, 

address below.

ADDRESSES: Comments should be 

addressed to Permit Office, Room 755, 

Office of Polar Programs, National 

Science Foundation, 4201 Wilson 

Boulevard, Arlington, Virginia 22230.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Nadene Kennedy at the above address or 

(703) 292–8030.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NSF’s 

Antarctic Waste Regulation, 45 CFR Part 

671, requires all U.S. citizens and 

entities to obtain a permit for the use or 

release of a designated pollutant in 

Antarctica, and for the release of waste 

in Antarctica. NSF has received a permit 

application under this Regulation for 

the operation of an expedition to 

Antarctica. Pole-to-Pole plans for two 

pilots to fly a Robinson R44 Raven II 

Helicopter from Ushuaia, Argentina to 

the South Pole and return to Patriot 

Hills, where the helicopter will be 

70712 Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 234 / Tuesday, December 7, 2004 / Notices 

loaded onto an Illyushin IL–76 for the 

return flight to Punta Arenas, Chile. The 

Illyushin is operated by Antarctic 

Logistics and Expeditions (ALE). 

Refueling operations will take place at 

pre-existing fuel caches. 

Application for the permit is made by: 

Steve Brooks, Pole-To-Pole, 1202 Pierce 

100 Street, Clearwater, Florida, 96161. 

Location: Patriot Hills, and South 

Geographic Pole. 

Dates: January 1, 2005 to January 31, 

2005.

Nadene G. Kennedy, 

Permit Officer.

[FR Doc. 04–26826 Filed 12–6–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7555–01–M

NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION

Notice of Permits Issued Under the 

Antarctic Conservation Act of 1978

AGENCY: National Science Foundation.

ACTION: Notice of permits issued under 

the Antarctic Conservation of 1978, 

Public Law 95–541. 

SUMMARY: The National Science 

Foundation (NSF) is required to publish 

notice of permits issued under the 

Antarctic Conservation Act of 1978. 

This is required notice.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Nadene G. Kennedy, Permit Office, 

Office of Polar Programs, Rm. 755, 

National Science Foundation, 4201 

Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA 22230.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On 

September 20, 2004, the National 

Science Foundation published a notice 

in the Federal Register of a Waste 

Management permit application 

received. A Waste Management permit 

was issued on November 30, 2004 to the 

following applicant: Ralph Fedor, Peter 

1st Expedition, Permit No.: 2005 WM–

003.

Nadene G. Kennedy, 

Permit Officer.

[FR Doc. 04–26827 Filed 12–6–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7555–01–M

NUCLEAR REGULATORY 

COMMISSION 

Sunshine Act Meeting

Agency Holding the Meeting: Nuclear 

Regulatory Commission.

Date: Weeks of December 6, 13, 20, 27, 

January 3, 10, 2004.

Place: Commissioners’ Conference 

Room, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, 

Maryland.

Status: Public and Closed.

Matters To Be Considered: Week of 

December 6, 2004

Tuesday, December 7, 2004

9:30 a.m. Briefing on Equal 

Employment Opportunity (EEO) 

Program (Public Meeting) (Contact: 

Corenthis Kelley, (301) 415–7380). 

This meeting will be webcast live at 

the Web address—http://www.nrc.gov.

Wednesday, December 8, 2004

12:55 p.m. Affirmation Session 

(Public Meeting) (Tentative) 

a. Motion to Quash OI Subpoena 

(Tentative) 

b. Duke Energy Corp. (Catawba 

Nuclear Station, Units 1 and 2); 

Intervenor’s Motion for 

Reconsideration of CLI–04–29 

(Tentative) 

c. SECY–04–0180—Hydro Resources, 

Inc. (Rio Rancho, New Mexico) 

Review of LBP–04–3 (Financial 

Assurance) (Tentative) 

d. SECY–04–0190—Final Rule: 

Security Requirements for Portable 

Gauges Containing Byproduct 

Material (RIN 3150–AH06) 

(Tentative) 

e. SECY–04–0208—Louisiana Energy 

Services, L.P. (National Enrichment 

Facility) (Tentative) 

f. SECY–04–0212—Dominion Nuclear 

Connecticut, Inc., (Millstone 

Nuclear Power Station, Units 2 and 

3), Docket Nos. 50–336–LR & 50–

423–LR; LBP–04–15, 60 NRC 81, 

LBP–04–22 (Tentative) 

1 p.m. Briefing on Status of Davis 

Besse Lessons Learned Task Force 

Recommendations (Public Meeting) 

(Contact: John Jolicoeur, (301) 415–

1724) 

This meeting will be webcast live at 

the Web address—http://www.nrc.gov.

Thursday, December 9, 2004

2 p.m. Briefing on Reactor Safety and 

Licensing Activities (Public 

Meeting) (Contact: Steve Koenick, 

301–415–1239). 

This meeting will be webcast live at 

the Web address—http://www.nrc.gov.

Week of December 13, 2004—Tentative 

Tuesday, December 14, 2004

1 p.m. Briefing on Emergency 

Preparedness Program Initiatives 

(Public Meeting) (Contact: Nader 

Mamish, (301) 415–1086). 

This meeting will be webcast live at 

the Web address—http://www.nrc.gov.

Week of December 20, 2004—Tentative 

There are no meetings scheduled for 

the Week of December 20, 2004. 

Week of December 27, 2004—Tentative 

There are no meetings scheduled for 

the Week of December 27, 2004. 

Week of January 3, 2005—Tentative 

There are no meetings scheduled for 

the Week of January 3, 2005. 

Week of January 10, 2005—Tentative 

There are no meetings scheduled for 

the Week of January 10, 2005. 

*The schedule for Commission 

meetings is subject to change on short 

notice. To verify the status of meetings 

call (recording)—(301) 415–1292. 

Contact person for more information: 

Dave Gamberoni, (301) 415–1651.

* * * * *

The NRC Commission Meeting 

Schedule can be found on the Internet 

at: http://www.nrc.gov/what-we-do/

policy-making/schedule.html.

* * * * *

The NRC provides reasonable 

accommodation to individuals with 

disabilities where appropriate. If you 

need a reasonable accommodation to 

participate in these public meetings, or 

need this meeting notice or the 

transcript or other information from the 

public meetings in another format (e.g.,

braille, large print), please notify the 

NRC’s Disability Program Coordinator, 

August Spector, at (301) 415–7080, 

TDD: (301) 415–2100, or by e-mail at 

aks@nrc.gov. Determinations on 

requests for reasonable accommodation 

will be made on a case-by-case basis.

* * * * *

This notice is distributed by mail to 

several hundred subscribers; if you no 

longer wish to receive it, or would like 

to be added to the distribution, please 

contact the Office of the Secretary, 

Washington, DC 20555 (301–415–1969). 

In addition, distribution of this meeting 

notice over the Internet system is 

available. If you are interested in 

receiving this Commission meeting 

schedule electronically, please send an 

electronic message to dkw@nrc.gov.

Dave Gamberoni, 

Office of the Secretary.

[FR Doc. 04–26899 Filed 12–3–04; 9:27 am] 

BILLING CODE 7590–01–M

NUCLEAR REGULATORY 

COMMISSION 

Biweekly Notice; Applications and 

Amendments to Facility Operating 

Licenses Involving No Significant 

Hazards Considerations 

I. Background 

Pursuant to section 189a.(2) of the 

Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended 

(the Act), the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory 

Commission (the Commission or NRC 

staff) is publishing this regular biweekly