44944 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 146 / Friday, July 30, 2010 / Notices 

considered in the 2004 EIS. This NEPA 

review identified and analyzed 

environmental effects related to the 

Marketing Plan. This action falls within 

the Marketing Plan and, thus, is covered 

by the 2004 EIS. 

Dated: July 22, 2010. 

Timothy J. Meeks, 

Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 2010–18742 Filed 7–29–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6450–01–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

[EPA–HQ–OECA–2007–0468; ER–FRL– 

8991–9] 

Agency Information Collection 

Activities; Proposed Collection; 

Comment Request; Environmental 

Impact Assessment of 

Nongovernmental Activities in 

Antarctica; EPA ICR No. 1808.06, OMB 

Control No. 2020–0007 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: In compliance with the 

Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) (44 

U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this document 

announces that EPA is planning to 

submit a request to renew an existing 

approved Information Collection 

Request (ICR) to the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB). This 

ICR is scheduled to expire on January 

31, 2011. Before submitting the ICR to 

OMB for review and approval, EPA is 

soliciting comments on specific aspects 

of the proposed information collection 

as described below. 

DATES: Comments must be submitted on 

or before September 27, 2010. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by Docket ID No. EPA–HQ– 

OECA–2007–0468, by one of the 

following methods: 

• http://www.regulations.gov: Follow 

the on-line instructions for submitting 

comments. 

• E-mail: hessert.aimee@epa.gov. 

• Fax: 202–564–0072. 

• Mail: Enforcement and Compliance 

Docket, Environmental Protection 

Agency, Mailcode: 2822T, 1200 

Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, 

DC 20460. 

• Hand Delivery: EPA Headquarters 

West Building, Room 3334, located at 

1301 Constitution Ave., NW., 

Washington, DC 20460. Such deliveries 

are only accepted during the Docket’s 

normal hours of operation, and special 

arrangements should be made for 

deliveries of boxed information. 

Instructions: Direct your comments to 

Docket ID No. EPA–HQ–OECA–2007– 

0468. EPA’s policy is that all comments 

received will be included in the public 

docket without change and may be 

made available online at 

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 www.regulations.gov 

or e-mail. The 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 www.regulations.gov your email 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. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Aimee Hessert, Office of Federal 

Activities, Mail Code 2252A, 

Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 

Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, 

DC 20460; telephone number: 202–564– 

0993; fax number: 202–564–0072; e-mail 

address: hessert.aimee@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

How can I access the docket and/or 

submit comments? 

EPA has established a public docket 

for this ICR under Docket ID No. EPA– 

HQ–OECA–2007–0468, which is 

available for online viewing at 

www.regulations.gov, or in person 

viewing at the Enforcement and 

Compliance Docket in the EPA Docket 

Center (EPA/DC), EPA West, Room 

3334, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., 

Washington, DC. The EPA/DC 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 Reading Room is 202– 

566–1744, and the telephone number for 

the Enforcement and Compliance 

Docket is 202–566–1752. 

Use www.regulations.gov to obtain a 

copy of the draft collection of 

information, submit or view public 

comments, access the index listing of 

the contents of the docket, and to access 

those documents in the public docket 

that are available electronically. Once in 

the system, select ‘‘search,’’ then key in 

the docket ID number identified in this 

document. 

What information is EPA particularly 

interested in? 

Pursuant to section 3506(c)(2)(A) of 

the PRA, EPA specifically solicits 

comments and information to enable it 

to: 

(i) Evaluate whether the proposed 

collection of information is necessary 

for the proper performance of the 

functions of the Agency, including 

whether the information will have 

practical utility; 

(ii) Evaluate the accuracy of the 

Agency’s estimate of the burden of the 

proposed collection of information, 

including the validity of the 

methodology and assumptions used; 

(iii) Enhance the quality, utility, and 

clarity of the information to be 

collected; and 

(iv) minimize the burden of the 

collection of information on those who 

are to respond, including through the 

use of appropriate automated electronic, 

mechanical, or other technological 

collection techniques or other forms of 

information technology, e.g., permitting 

electronic submission of responses. In 

particular, EPA is requesting comments 

from very small businesses (those that 

employ less than 25) on examples of 

specific additional efforts that EPA 

could make to reduce the paperwork 

burden for very small businesses 

affected by this collection. 

What should I consider when I prepare 

my comments for EPA? 

You may find the following 

suggestions helpful for preparing your 

comments: 

1. Explain your views as clearly as 

possible and provide specific examples. 

2. Describe any assumptions that you 

used. 

3. Provide copies of any technical 

information and/or data you used that 

support your views. 

4. If you estimate potential burden or 

costs, explain how you arrived at the 

estimate that you provide. 

5. Offer alternative ways to improve 

the collection activity. 


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Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 146 / Friday, July 30, 2010 / Notices 44945 

6. Make sure to submit your 

comments by the deadline identified 

under DATES. 

7. To ensure proper receipt by EPA, 

be sure to identify the docket ID number 

assigned to this action in the subject 

line on the first page of your response. 

You may also provide the name, date, 

and Federal Register citation. 

What information collection activity or 

ICR does this apply to? 

Affected entities: Entities potentially 

affected by this action are all 

nongovernmental operators with 

activities in Antarctica, including tour 

operators, for which the United States is 

required to give advance notice under 

paragraph 5 of Article VII of the 

Antarctic Treaty of 1959; this includes 

all nongovernmental expeditions to and 

within Antarctica organized in or 

proceeding from the territory of the 

United States. 

Title: Agency Information Collection 

Activities; Proposed Collection; 

Comment Request; Environmental 

Impact Assessment of Nongovernmental 

Activities in Antarctica (Renewal) 

ICR numbers: EPA ICR No. 1808.06, 

OMB Control No. 2020–0007. 

ICR status: This ICR is currently 

scheduled to expire on January 31, 

2011. An Agency may not conduct or 

sponsor, and a person is not required to 

respond to, a collection of information, 

unless it displays a currently valid OMB 

control number. The OMB control 

numbers for EPA’s regulations in title 40 

of the CFR, after appearing in the 

Federal Register when approved, are 

listed in 40 CFR part 9, are displayed 

either by publication in the Federal 

Register or by other appropriate means, 

such as on the related collection 

instrument or form, if applicable. The 

display of OMB control numbers in 

certain EPA regulations is consolidated 

in 40 CFR part 9. 

Abstract: The Environmental 

Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) regulations 

at 40 CFR part 8, Environmental Impact 

Assessment of Nongovernmental 

Activities in Antarctica (Rule), were 

promulgated pursuant to the Antarctic 

Science, Tourism, and Conservation Act 

of 1996 (Act), 16 U.S.C. 2401 et seq., as 

amended, 16 U.S.C. 2403a, which 

implements the Protocol on 

Environmental Protection (Protocol) to 

the Antarctic Treaty of 1959 (Treaty). 

The Rule provides for assessment of the 

environmental impacts of 

nongovernmental activities in 

Antarctica, including tourism, for which 

the United States is required to give 

advance notice under Paragraph 5 of 

Article VII of the Treaty, and for 

coordination of the review of 

information regarding environmental 

impact assessments received from other 

Parties under the Protocol. The 

requirements of the Rule apply to 

operators of nongovernmental 

expeditions organized or proceeding 

from the territory of the United States to 

Antarctica and include commercial and 

non-commercial expeditions. 

Expeditions may include ship-based 

tours; yacht, skiing or mountaineering 

expeditions; privately funded research 

expeditions; and other nongovernmental 

activities. The Rule does not apply to 

individual U.S. citizens or groups of 

citizens planning travel to Antarctica on 

an expedition for which they are not 

acting as an operator. (Operators, for 

example, typically acquire use of vessels 

or aircraft, hire expedition staff, plan 

itineraries, and undertake other 

organizational responsibilities.) The rule 

provides nongovernmental operators 

with the specific requirements they 

need to meet in order to comply with 

the requirements of Article 8 and Annex 

I to the Protocol. The provisions of the 

Rule are intended to ensure that 

potential environmental effects of 

nongovernmental activities undertaken 

in Antarctica are appropriately 

identified and considered by the 

operator during the planning process 

and that to the extent practicable 

appropriate environmental safeguards 

which would mitigate or prevent 

adverse impacts on the Antarctic 

environment are identified by the 

operator. 

Environmental Documentation. 

Persons subject to the Rule must prepare 

environmental documentation to 

support the operator’s determination 

regarding the level of environmental 

impact of the proposed expedition. 

Environmental documentation includes 

a Preliminary Environmental Review 

Memorandum (PERM), an Initial 

Environmental Evaluation (IEE), or a 

Comprehensive Environmental 

Evaluation (CEE). The environmental 

document is submitted to the Office of 

Federal Activities (OFA). If the operator 

determines that an expedition may 

have: (1) Less than a minor or transitory 

impact, a PERM needs to be submitted 

no later than 180 days before the 

proposed departure to Antarctica; (2) no 

more than minor or transitory impacts, 

an IEE needs to be submitted no later 

than 90 days before the proposed 

departure; or (3) more than minor or 

transitory impacts, a CEE needs to be 

submitted. Operators who anticipate 

such activities are encouraged to consult 

with EPA as soon as possible regarding 

the date for submittal of the CEE. 

(Article 3(4), of Annex I of the Protocol 

requires that draft CEEs be distributed to 

all Parties and the Committee for 

Environmental Protection 120 days in 

advance of the next Antarctic Treaty 

Consultative Meeting (ATCM) at which 

the CEE may be addressed.) 

The Protocol and the Rule also require 

an operator to employ procedures to 

assess and provide a regular and 

verifiable record of the actual impacts of 

an activity which proceeds on the basis 

of an IEE or CEE. The record developed 

through these measures needs to be 

designed to: (a) Enable assessments to 

be made of the extent to which 

environmental impacts of 

nongovernmental expeditions are 

consistent with the Protocol; and (b) 

provide information useful for 

minimizing and mitigating those 

impacts and, where appropriate, on the 

need for suspension, cancellation, or 

modification of the activity. Moreover, 

an operator needs to monitor key 

environmental indicators for an activity 

proceeding on the basis of a CEE. An 

operator may also need to carry out 

monitoring in order to assess and verify 

the impact of an activity for which an 

IEE would be prepared. For activities 

that require an IEE, an operator should 

be able to use procedures currently 

being voluntarily utilized by operators 

to provide the required information. 

Should an activity require a CEE, the 

operator should consult with EPA to: (a) 

Identify the monitoring regime 

appropriate to that activity, and (b) 

determine whether and how the 

operator might utilize relevant 

monitoring data collected by the U.S. 

Antarctic Program. OFA would consult 

with the National Science Foundation 

and other interested Federal agencies 

regarding the monitoring regime. 

In cases of emergency related to the 

safety of human life or of ships, aircraft, 

equipment and facilities of high value, 

or the protection of the environment 

which would require an activity to be 

undertaken without completion of the 

documentation procedures set out in the 

Rule, the operator would need to notify 

the Department of State within 15 days 

of any activities which would have 

otherwise required preparation of a CEE, 

and provide a full explanation of the 

activities carried out within 45 days of 

those activities. (During the time the 

Interim Final and Final Rules have been 

in effect, there were no emergencies 

requiring notification by U.S. operators. 

An Interim Final Rule was in effect from 

April 30, 1997, until replaced on 

December 6, 2001, by the Final Rule.) 

Environmental documents (e.g., 

PERM, IEE, CEE) are submitted to OFA. 

Environmental documents are reviewed 

by OFA, in consultation with the 


srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with NOTICES
44946 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 146 / Friday, July 30, 2010 / Notices 

National Science Foundation and other 

interested Federal agencies, and also 

made available to other Parties and the 

public as required under the Protocol or 

otherwise requested. OFA notifies the 

public of document availability via the 

World Wide Web at: http:// 

www.epa.gov/compliance/international/ 

antarctica/index.html. The types of 

nongovernmental activities currently 

being carried out (e.g., ship-based tours, 

land-based tours, flights, and privately 

funded research expeditions) are 

typically unlikely to have impacts that 

are more than minor or transitory, thus 

an IEE is the typical level of 

environmental documentation 

submitted. For the 1997–1998 through 

2009–2010 austral summer seasons 

during the time the Rule has been in 

effect, all respondents submitted IEEs 

with the exception of one PERM. 

Paperwork reduction provisions in the 

Rule that are used by the operators 

include: (a) Incorporation of material in 

the environmental document by 

referring to it in the IEE, (b) inclusion 

of all proposed expeditions by one 

operator within one IEE; (c) use of one 

IEE to address expeditions being carried 

out by more than one operator; and (d) 

use of multi-year environmental 

documentation to address proposed 

expeditions for a period of up to five 

consecutive austral summer seasons. 

Coordination of Review of 

Information Received From Other 

Parties to the Treaty. The Rule also 

provides for the coordination of review 

of information received from other 

Parties and the public availability of 

that information including: (1) A 

description of national procedures for 

considering the environmental impacts 

of proposed activities; (2) an annual list 

of any IEEs and any decisions taken in 

consequence thereof; (3) significant 

information obtained and any action 

taken in consequence thereof with 

regard to monitoring from IEEs to CEEs; 

and (4) information in a final CEE. This 

provision fulfills the United States’ 

obligation to meet the requirements of 

Article 6 of Annex I to the Protocol. The 

Department of State is responsible for 

coordination of these reviews of drafts 

with interested Federal agencies, and for 

public availability of documents and 

information. This portion of the Rule 

does not impose paperwork 

requirements on any nongovernmental 

person subject to U.S. regulation. 

Burden Statement: The annual public 

reporting and recordkeeping burden for 

this collection of information is 

estimated to average 1,708 hours 

annually, or 78 hours per response. This 

hourly burden reflects annual 

submission of different levels of 

environmental documentation by an 

anticipated 22 respondents (e.g., U.S.- 

based nongovernmental operators). 

Burden means the total time, effort, or 

financial resources expended by persons 

to generate, maintain, retain, or disclose 

or provide information to or for a 

Federal agency. This includes the time 

needed to review instructions; develop, 

acquire, install, and utilize technology 

and systems for the purposes of 

collecting, validating, and verifying 

information, processing and 

maintaining information, and disclosing 

and providing information; adjust the 

existing ways to comply with any 

previously applicable instructions and 

requirements which have subsequently 

changed; train personnel to be able to 

respond to a collection of information; 

search data sources; complete and 

review the collection of information; 

and transmit or otherwise disclose the 

information. 

The ICR provides a detailed 

explanation of the Agency’s estimate, 

which is only briefly summarized here: 

Estimated total number of potential 

respondents: 22. 

Frequency of response: Annual. 

Estimated total average number of 

responses for each respondent: 1. 

Estimated total annual burden hours: 

1,708 hours. 

Estimated total annual costs: 

$136,675. This includes an estimated 

burden cost of $132,419 and an 

estimated cost of $4,256 for capital 

investment or maintenance and 

operational costs. 

Are there changes in the estimates from 

the last approval? 

There is an increase of 45 hours in the 

total estimated respondent burden 

compared with that identified in the ICR 

currently approved by OMB. This 

increase is a result of a change in the 

type of environmental documentation 

EPA anticipates the respondents will 

submit. 

What is the next step in the process for 

this ICR? 

EPA will consider the comments 

received and amend the ICR as 

appropriate. The final ICR package will 

then be submitted to OMB for review 

and approval pursuant to 5 CFR 

1320.12. At that time, EPA will issue 

another Federal Register notice 

pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.5(a)(1)(iv) to 

announce the submission of the ICR to 

OMB and the opportunity to submit 

additional comments to OMB. If you 

have any questions about this ICR or the 

approval process, please contact the 

technical person listed under FOR

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. 

Dated: July 27, 2010. 

Susan E. Bromn, 

Director, Office of Federal Activities. 

[FR Doc. 2010–18801 Filed 7–29–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

[EPA–HQ–OPP–2010–0178; FRL–8838–2] 

Spirotetramat; Receipt of Application 

for Emergency Exemption for Use on 

Dry Bulb Onions in Minnesota, 

Solicitation of Public Comment 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: EPA has received a specific 

exemption request from the Minnesota 

Department of Agriculture to use the 

pesticide spirotetramat (CAS No. 

203313–25–1) to treat up to 275 acres of 

dry bulb onions to control thrips. The 

applicant sought the use of a chemical 

whose registration was recently 

cancelled. 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before August 16, 2010. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by docket identification (ID) 

number EPA–HQ–OPP–2010–0178, 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 

docket ID number EPA–HQ–OPP–2010– 

0178. 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 


srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with NOTICES