Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 45 / Thursday, March 8, 2007 / Notices 10529 

Dated: February 23, 2007. 

Cynthia C. Dougherty, 

Director, Office of Ground Water and Drinking 

Water. 

[FR Doc. E7–4174 Filed 3–7–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

[FRL–8284–3] 

Notice of Availability of the Framework 

for Metals Risk Assessment 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Notice of document availability. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Environmental 

Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing 

the availability of the final ‘‘Framework 

for Metals Risk Assessment’’ (EPA 120/ 

R–07/001, March 2007). The purpose of 

the Framework is to present key guiding 

principles based on the unique 

attributes of metals (as differentiated 

from organic and organometallic 

compounds) and to describe how these 

metals-specific attributes and principles 

may then be applied in the context of 

existing EPA risk assessment guidance 

and practices. This Framework 

document is not a prescriptive guide on 

how any particular type of assessment 

should be conducted within an EPA 

program or regional office. Rather, it 

outlines key metal principles and 

describes how they should be 

considered in conducting human health 

and ecological risk assessments to 

advance our understanding of metals 

impact and foster consistency across 

EPA programs and regions. As a result 

the Framework is a science-based 

document that describes basic 

principles that address the special 

attributes and behaviors of metals and 

metal compounds to be considered 

when assessing their human health and 

ecological risks. EPA’s Risk Assessment 

Forum oversaw the development of this 

document, which included input from 

stakeholders and experts throughout the 

Agency, obtained through several expert 

workshops, followed by peer review by 

the EPA Science Advisory Board. 

The Framework sets out a variety of 

principles that are general, fundamental 

properties of metals, which should be 

addressed and incorporated into all 

inorganic metals risk assessments. The 

five overarching principles are 

summarized as follows: (1) Metals are 

naturally occurring constituents in the 

environment and vary in concentrations 

across geographic regions; (2) All 

environmental media have naturally 

occurring mixtures of metals, and 

metals are often introduced into the 

environment as mixtures; (3) Some 

metals are essential for maintaining 

proper health of humans, animals, 

plants and microorganisms; (4) Metals, 

as chemical elements, and unlike 

organic chemicals, are neither created 

nor destroyed by biological or chemical 

processes, although, these processes can 

transform metals from one species to 

another (valence states) and can convert 

them between inorganic and organic 

forms; and (5) The absorption, 

distribution, transformation and 

excretion of a metal within an organism 

depends on the metal, the form of the 

metal or metal compound, and the 

organism’s ability to regulate and/or 

store the metal. 

ADDRESSES: The final document is 

available electronically through the EPA 

Office of the Science Advisor’s Web site 

at: http://www.epa.gov/osa/ 

metalsframework. A limited number of 

paper copies will be available from 

EPA’s National Service Center for 

Environmental Publications (NSCEP), 

P.O. Box 42419, Cincinnati, OH 45242; 

telephone 1–800–490–9198 or 513–489–

8190; facsimile 301–604–3408; e-mail 

NSCEP@bps-lmit.com. Please provide 

your name and mailing addresses and 

the title and EPA number (as given 

above) of the requested publication. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. 

Randall S. Wentsel, Risk Assessment 

Forum Technical Writing Panel Cochair, Mail Code 8101–R, 

Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 

Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., 

Washington, DC 20460; telephone 

number: (202) 564–3214; fax number: 

(202) 564–2070, E-mail: 

wentsel.randy@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In 

December 2002 EPA’s Science Policy 

Council tasked an Agency workgroup, 

under the oversight of the Risk 

Assessment Forum, with developing a 

plan for ensuring the consistent 

application of scientific principles to 

metals risk assessment. A step-wise plan 

was developed beginning with the 

Metals Action Plan (MAP), which 

included brief descriptions of the 

Agency’s current activities on metals, 

identified critical scientific issues, and 

recommended the scope of the metals 

framework. The MAP was reviewed by 

EPA’s Science Advisory Board. Then, 

EPA commissioned individual scientists 

to develop issue papers on important 

topics in metals risk assessment, 

including environmental chemistry, 

exposure, human health effects, 

ecological effects, and bioavailability 

and bioaccumulation. The Framework 

was developed based, in part, on these 

issues papers and reviewed by the 

Agency-wide workgroup. Additional 

workshops and peer review activities 

were conducted at multiple intervals 

during the development of the 

Framework, and the Agency consulted 

with other federal agencies at key points 

during its development. Finally, the 

Framework underwent external peer 

review by EPA’s Science Advisory 

Board. 

Dated: March 1, 2007. 

George M. Gray, 

EPA Science Advisor. 

[FR Doc. E7–4035 Filed 3–7–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

[Docket# EPA–RO4–SFUND–2007–0169; 

FRL–8285–2] 

Jernigan Trucking Dump Site, Seffner, 

Hillsborough County, FL; Notice of 

Settlement 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Notice of settlement. 

SUMMARY: Under section 122(h)(1) of the 

Comprehensive Environmental 

Response, Compensation and Liability 

Act (CERCLA), the United States 

Environmental Protection Agency has 

entered into a settlement for 

reimbursement of past response costs 

concerning the Jernigan Trucking Dump 

Site located in Seffner, Hillsborough 

County, Florida. 

DATES: The Agency will consider public 

comments on the settlement until April 

9, 2007. The Agency will consider all 

comments received and may modify or 

withdraw its consent to the settlement 

if comments received disclose facts or 

considerations which indicate that the 

settlement is inappropriate, improper, 

or inadequate. 

ADDRESSES: Copies of the settlement are 

available from Ms. Paula V. Batchelor. 

Submit your comments, identified by 

Docket ID No. EPA–RO4–SFUND–2007–

0169 or Site name Jernigan Trucking 

Dump Superfund Site by one of the 

following methods: 

• www.regulations.gov: Follow the 

on-line instructions for submitting 

comments. 

• E-mail: Batchelor.Paula@gov. 

• Fax: 404/562–8842/Attn: Paula V. 

Batchelor 

• Mail: Ms. Paula V. Batchelor, U.S. 

EPA Region 4, WMD–SEIMB, 61 Forsyth 

Street, SW., Atlanta, Georgia 30303. ‘‘In 

addition, please mail a copy of your 

comments on the information collection 


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