32948 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 110 / Monday, June 9, 2014 / Notices 

If you are interested in information 

that is not included in these tables, you 

may contact EPA as described in Unit 

III. to access additional non-CBI 

information that may be available. 

List of Subjects 

Environmental protection, Chemicals, 

Hazardous substances, Imports, Notice 

of commencement, Premanufacturer, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements, Test marketing 

exemptions. 

Dated: June 2, 2014. 

Chandler Sirmons, 

Acting Director, Information Management 

Division, Office of Pollution Prevention and 

Toxics. 

[FR Doc. 2014–13382 Filed 6–6–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

[EPA–HQ–OAR–2014–0410; FRL–9911–98– 

OAR] 

Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program: 

Publication of Aggregated Greenhouse 

Gas Data 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) intends to publish 

aggregated versions of certain data 

collected under the Greenhouse Gas 

Reporting Program, including totals, 

averages, and other aggregated versions 

of data submitted by individual 

reporters. The data that we intend to 

aggregate were determined in previous 

rulemakings to be confidential business 

information in their original, nonaggregated form. This notice describes 

the criteria we plan to use to determine 

whether confidential data are 

sufficiently aggregated such that 

publishing them would provide useful 

information while protecting the data 

that are entitled to confidentiality. In a 

memorandum to the docket for this 

notice, we also provide a list of data 

elements that we have identified for 

possible future publication in 

aggregated form if they meet the final 

version of these criteria. 

DATES: Comments. Comments must be 

received on or before July 9, 2014. 

Public Hearing. The EPA does not 

plan to conduct a public hearing unless 

requested. To request a hearing, please 

contact the person listed in the 

following FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT section by June 16, 2014. If 

requested, the hearing will be 

conducted on June 24, 2014 in the 

Washington, DC area. The EPA will 

provide further information about the 

hearing on the Greenhouse Gas 

Reporting Rule Web site, http://

www.epa.gov/ghgreporting/index.html if 

a hearing is requested. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit your 

comments, identified by docket ID No. 

EPA–HQ–OAR–2014–0410, by any of 

the following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the online 

instructions for submitting comments. 

• Email: A-and-R-Docket@epa.gov. 

Include docket ID No. EPA–HQ–OAR– 

2014–0410 [and/or RIN number] in the 

subject line of the message. 

• Fax: (202) 566–9744. 

• Mail: Environmental Protection 

Agency, EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), 

Mailcode 28221T, Attention Docket ID 

No. OAR–2014–0410, 1200 

Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Washington, 

DC 20460. 

• Hand/Courier Delivery: EPA Docket 

Center, Room 3334, EPA WJC West 

Building, 1301 Constitution Avenue 

NW., Washington, DC 20004. Such 

deliveries are accepted only 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–OAR–2014– 

0410. The EPA’s policy is that all 

comments received will be included in 

the public docket without change and 

may be made available online 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 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 email. The 

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

an ‘‘anonymous access’’ system, which 

means the EPA will not know your 

identity or contact information unless 

you provide it in the body of your 

comment. If you send an email 

comment directly to the EPA without 

going through http://

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, the 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 the EPA 

cannot read your comment due to 

technical difficulties and cannot contact 

you for clarification, the 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. 

Docket: All 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 

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 Air Docket, EPA/DC, Room 3334, 

EPA WJC West Building, 1301 

Constitution Ave. NW., Washington, 

DC. 

This Docket Facility 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, and 

the telephone number for the Air Docket 

is (202) 566–1742. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Carole Cook, Climate Change Division, 

Office of Atmospheric Programs (MC– 

6207J), Environmental Protection 

Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW., 

Washington, DC 20460; telephone 

number: (202) 343–9263; fax number: 

(202) 343–2342; email address: 

GHGReporting@epa.gov. For technical 

information, please go to the 

Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule Program 

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

climatechange/emissions/

ghgrulemaking.html. To submit a 

question, select Rule Help Center, 

followed by ‘‘Contact Us.’’ 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Worldwide Web (WWW). In addition to 

being available in the docket, an 

electronic copy of today’s notice will 

also be available through the WWW. 

Following the Director’s signature, a 

copy of this action will be posted on 

EPA’s greenhouse gas reporting rule 

Web site at http://www.epa.gov/

climatechange/emissions/

ghgrulemaking.html. 

Organization of This Document. The 

following outline is provided to aid in 

locating information in this preamble. 

I. General Information 

A. Does this notice apply to me? 

B. How can I get copies of this document 

and other related information? 

C. What should I consider as I prepare my 

comments to the EPA? 

II. Background and Purpose of Notice 

III. Description of Rationale and Criteria for 


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Data Aggregation 

A. Rationale for CBI Data Aggregation 

B. Criteria for Data Aggregation and 

Publication 

C. Data Elements Proposed for Aggregation 

and Publication 

D. Data Publication Process and 

Availability 

E. Request for Comments 

I. General Information 

A. Does this notice apply to me? 

This notice is directed to the general 

public. However, this action may be of 

particular interest to parties subject to 

the requirements of 40 CFR part 98. If 

you have further questions regarding the 

applicability of this action to a 

particular party, please contact the 

person listed in the FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT section. 

B. How can I get copies of this document 

and other related information? 

1. Electronically 

The EPA has included a public docket 

for this Federal Register notice under 

Docket EPA–HQ–OAR–2014–0410. All 

documents in the docket are identified 

in the docket index available at http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Although listed in 

the index, some information is not 

publicly available, such as CBI or other 

information for which disclosure is 

restricted by statute. Certain materials, 

such as copyrighted material, will be 

available only in hard copy at the EPA 

Docket Center. 

2. EPA Docket Center 

Materials listed under Docket EPA– 

HQ–OAR–2014–0410 will be available 

for public viewing at http://

www.regulations.gov and at the EPA 

Docket Center (EPA/DC), Room 3334, 

EPA WJC West Building, 1301 

Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, 

DC 20004. The EPA Docket Center 

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 Air Docket is (202) 566– 

1742. 

C. What should I consider as I prepare 

my comments to the EPA? 

1. Submitting CBI in Response to This 

Notice 

Clearly mark the part or all of the 

comments that you claim to be CBI 

submitted in response to this notice. For 

CBI information in a disk or CD ROM 

that you mail to the EPA, mark the 

outside of the disk or CD ROM as CBI 

and then identify electronically within 

the disk or CD ROM the specific 

information that is claimed as CBI. In 

addition to one complete version of the 

comment that includes information 

claimed as CBI, submit a copy of the 

comment that does not contain the 

information claimed as CBI for 

inclusion in the public docket. 

Information marked as CBI will not be 

disclosed except in accordance with 

procedures set forth in 40 CFR part 2. 

Do not submit information that you 

consider to be CBI or otherwise 

protected through http://

www.regulations.gov or email. Send or 

deliver information identified as CBI to 

only the mail or hand/courier delivery 

address listed above, attention: Docket 

ID No. EPA–HQ–OAR–2014–0410. 

If you have any questions about CBI 

or the procedures for claiming CBI, 

please consult the person identified in 

the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT

section. 

2. Tips for Preparing Your Comments 

Follow directions. The EPA may ask 

you to respond to specific questions or 

organize comments by referencing a 

CFR part or section number. Explain 

why you agree or disagree and suggest 

alternatives for your requested changes. 

Describe any assumptions and provide 

any technical information and or data 

that you used. Provide specific 

examples to illustrate your concerns and 

suggest alternatives. Explain your views 

as clearly as possible, avoiding the use 

of profanity or personal threats. 

Make sure to submit your information 

and comments by the comment period 

deadline identified in the preceding 

section titled DATES. To ensure proper 

receipt by the EPA, be sure to identify 

this notice by 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. 

II. Background and Purpose of Notice 

Background. The EPA’s Office of 

Atmospheric Programs (OAP) has 

responsibility for protecting public 

health and the environment by 

addressing climate change, protecting 

the ozone layer, and improving regional 

air quality. In response to the FY2008 

Consolidated Appropriations Act (H.R. 

2764; Pub. L. 110–161), the EPA created 

the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program 

(GHGRP), 40 CFR part 98 (Part 98), 

which requires reporting of greenhouse 

gas (GHG) data and other relevant 

information from large sources and 

suppliers in the United States. The 

purpose of Part 98 is to collect accurate 

and timely GHG data to inform future 

policy decisions. 

Through a series of rulemaking 

actions, the EPA determined which 

categories of data elements meet the 

statutory and regulatory criteria for 

protection as CBI. For information on 

the history of confidentiality 

determinations for Part 98 data 

elements, see the following notices: 

• 75 FR 39094, July 7, 2010. 

Described the EPA’s intent to make 

categorical CBI determinations for Part 

98 data and proposed data categories for 

the Part 98 data elements. 

• 76 FR 30782, May 26, 2011. 

Assigned data elements to data 

categories and published the final CBI 

determinations for the data elements to 

be reported under 34 Part 98 subparts, 

except for those data elements that were 

assigned to the ‘‘Inputs to Emission 

Equations’’ data category. Finalized 

amendments to 40 CFR part 2 governing 

CBI obtained under Part 98 that allow 

the EPA to release or withhold data 

elements according to final categorical 

confidentiality determinations. 

• 77 FR 48072, August 13, 2012. 

Finalized confidentiality determinations 

for data elements to be reported under 

nine subparts, except for those data 

elements that were assigned to the 

‘‘Inputs to Emission Equations’’ data 

category, and finalized confidentiality 

determinations for new data elements 

recently added to two subparts. 

• 77 FR 51477, August 24, 2012. 

Finalized confidentiality determinations 

for new data elements added to subpart 

L. 

• 78 FR 68162, November 13, 2013. 

Finalized confidentiality determinations 

for new or substantially revised data 

elements in this rule for subpart I. 

• 78 FR 71904, November 29, 2013. 

Finalized confidentiality determinations 

for new or substantially revised data 

elements in this rule for 15 subparts. 

Data elements determined to be CBI 

are handled in accordance with the 

EPA’s regulations in 40 CFR part 2, 

subpart B, and with EPA procedures 

that are consistent with those 

regulations. 

Purpose. The EPA seeks to publish 

aggregated versions of data that were 

previously determined by regulation to 

be CBI when reported by individual 

facilities and suppliers, as described in 

the Background section above. The EPA 

plans to use the aggregated data in 

developing the Inventory of U.S. 

Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks 

(Inventory) that the EPA compiles 

annually as well as for other purposes. 

The purpose of this notice is twofold: 1) 

to describe and seek comment on the 

overarching criteria that EPA plans to 

use to evaluate whether data that have 

been determined to be CBI when 


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1See: United Nations Framework Convention on 

Climate Change, 1992. Available at: http://

unfccc.int/resource/docs/convkp/conveng.pdf. For 

more information about the UNFCCC, please refer 

to: http://www.unfccc.int. 

2See: Articles 4 and 12 of the Convention on 

Climate Change. Parties to the Convention, by 

ratifying, ‘‘shall develop, periodically update, 

publish and make available . . . national 

inventories of anthropogenic emissions by sources 

and removals by sinks of all greenhouse gases not 

controlled by the Montreal Protocol, using 

comparable methodologies . . ..’’ 

3 ‘‘In taking actions under this subpart, EPA 

offices should consider whether it is possible to 

obtain the affected business’s consent to disclosure 

of useful portions of records while protecting the 

information which is or may be entitled to 

confidentiality (e.g., by withholding such portions 

of a record as would identify a business, or by 

disclosing data in the form of industry-wide 

aggregates, multi-year averages or totals, or some 

similar form).’’ 40 CFR 2.202(f). Available at: http:// 

www.epa.gov/epafoia1/2202.htm. 

4See: U.S. Energy Information Administration. 

‘‘Monthly Natural Gas Gross Production Report.’’ 

(Mar. 31, 2014). Available at: http://www.eia.gov/

oil_gas/natural_gas/data_publications/eia914/

eia914.html. 

5See: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor 

Statistics. ‘‘Quarterly Census of Employment and 

Wages.’’ (Mar. 20, 2014) Available at: http://

www.bls.gov/cew/. 

6See: U.S. Census Bureau. ‘‘American 

Community Survey: Data Suppression.’’ (Nov. 15, 

2013). Available at: http://www.census.gov/acs/

www/Downloads/data_documentation/data_

suppression/ACSO_Data_Suppression.pdf. 

7See: U.S. Geological Survey. ‘‘Proprietary Data: 

How They Are Protected at the U.S. Geological 

Survey.’’ 

reported by individual facilities and 

suppliers are sufficiently aggregated so 

as not to disclose any underlying 

confidential data; and 2) to identify (in 

a memorandum in the docket for this 

notice) and seek comment on a specific 

list of data elements that EPA is 

presently considering for publication in 

aggregated form. (A memorandum titled 

‘‘Publication of Certain Aggregated 

Greenhouse Gas Data,’’ associated with 

this Federal Register notice and placed 

in the docket for this notice, contains 

this list of data elements.) Although the 

EPA’s CBI regulations do not require us 

to publish a Federal Register notice or 

take public comment in advance of 

publishing aggregated data, we are 

publishing this notice and requesting 

comment because we anticipate a high 

level of stakeholder interest. Section 

III.A of this notice describes the 

rationale for publishing these data 

elements in aggregated form, and 

Section III.B of this notice describes the 

criteria we plan to apply to each 

aggregated value to determine whether 

it can be published without disclosing 

any underlying confidential facilitylevel or supplier-level data. Section III.C 

describes the data elements that the EPA 

presently seeks to aggregate. Section 

III.D describes the process that the EPA 

will follow for publication of aggregated 

values, and Section III.E describes the 

aspects of this notice for which we are 

seeking comment. 

III. Description of Rationale and 

Criteria for Data Aggregation 

A. Rationale for CBI Data Aggregation 

The EPA’s primary purpose in 

aggregating GHGRP data is for use in the 

Inventory. As a party to the United 

Nations Framework Convention on 

Climate Change (UNFCCC), the United 

States participates in ongoing 

negotiations with the international 

community to promote global 

cooperation on climate change. The 

UNFCCC treaty, ratified by the United 

States in 1992, sets an overall 

framework for intergovernmental efforts 

to address the challenges posed by 

climate change.1 As part of its 

commitment to the UNFCCC, the United 

States submits the Inventory to the 

Secretariat of the UNFCCC as an annual 

reporting requirement.2 The Inventory is 

a comprehensive assessment of U.S. 

GHG emissions based on national-level 

data; it is prepared by the EPA’s Office 

of Air and Radiation in coordination 

with other federal agencies and with 

consideration of public input. 

As described in the preamble of the 

proposed GHG Reporting Rule (74 FR 

16448, April 10, 2009), the GHGRP is 

intended to supplement and 

complement existing U.S. government 

programs related to climate policy and 

research, including the Inventory. The 

GHGRP provides data to develop and 

inform inventories and other U.S. 

climate programs by advancing the 

understanding of emission processes 

from individual facilities and suppliers 

above certain thresholds. Collected 

facility-, unit-, and process-level GHG 

data from the GHGRP provide or help 

improve the national statistics and 

emission estimates presented in the 

Inventory. Aggregation of the GHGRP 

data described in this notice will 

support the development and quality 

assurance/quality control of the 

Inventory. 

As also noted in the preamble of the 

proposed GHG Reporting Rule (74 FR 

16448), the GHGRP was developed, in 

large part, to collect comprehensive and 

accurate data to inform future climate 

policy development and support a range 

of possible policies and regulations. The 

EPA described the importance of 

transparency in informing the public, 

building public confidence in the data, 

and ensuring data quality, which 

support the development of potential 

future climate policies or programs. The 

EPA believes that publication of 

aggregated GHGRP data helps to 

accomplish all of these goals. 

Accordingly, the EPA plans to publish 

certain data, which previously were 

determined to be CBI in the nonaggregated form in which they are 

initially reported, in an aggregated 

format that we believe no longer 

qualifies as CBI. As we have noted in 

other rulemakings (e.g., 75 FR 39094, 77 

FR 51477), it is possible to aggregate 

facility- or supplier-level data in ways 

that do not disclose any of the 

underlying CBI data. For example, 

national production totals can often 

provide useful and important 

information to the public without the 

risk of revealing confidential data about 

a specific facility or supplier. 

The EPA is guided in this process by 

EPA regulations, federal policies, and 

executive orders. The EPA’s regulations 

concerning protection of CBI suggest 

that aggregating this information can 

shield the underlying confidential 

information and may be sufficient to 

protect the reporters of that information 

from suffering substantial competitive 

harm.3

Government agencies and industry 

organizations routinely publish data in 

an aggregated format as a means of 

providing important information to the 

public while maintaining the 

confidentiality of individual companies. 

For example, the U.S. Energy 

Information Administration (EIA) 

publishes natural gas liquid production 

data by region or Petroleum 

Administration for Defense District 

(PADD) to mask data reported by 

individual companies.4 The Department 

of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics 

aggregates employment and wage data 

by county and industry in the Quarterly 

Census of Employment and Wages,5

while suppressing data that would 

reveal information about individual 

companies. The Census Bureau requests 

data from individual respondents in the 

American Community Survey, which is 

aggregated to limit the disclosure of 

information about individual 

respondents.6 The U.S. Geological 

Survey (USGS) collects minerals data 

from thousands of mineral industry 

companies; USGS is required by law to 

protect proprietary information from 

unauthorized disclosure but publishes 

aggregated versions of many of these 

data sets.7

Many industry organizations use this 

approach as well. For example, the 

American Petroleum Institute, in 

coordination with several other industry 

organizations, collects natural gas liquid 

production and sales data from its 

members and publishes the data 


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8See: American Petroleum Institute. ‘‘2012 Sales 

of Natural Gas Liquids and Liquid Refinery Gases.’’ 

(Dec. 2013). 

9See: Air-Conditioning, Heating & Refrigeration 

Institute. ‘‘Monthly Shipments.’’ (2013). Available 

at: http://www.ahrinet.org/

monthly+shipments.aspx. 

aggregated to the state and PADD 

levels.8 Additionally, the AirConditioning, Heating and Refrigeration 

Institute, a trade association of 

equipment, chemical, and component 

manufacturers, publishes monthly and 

annual reports of U.S. manufactured 

shipments of central air conditioning 

and air-source heat pump systems, 

among other types of products, 

aggregated across all of its members.9

Consistent with this approach, the 

EPA plans to publish select aggregated 

Part 98 data at levels that ensure 

confidentiality of underlying facility- or 

supplier-level CBI data. To guide us in 

making these determinations, we have 

developed the criteria outlined in 

Section III.B of this preamble for 

reviewing aggregated values prior to 

publication. 

B. Criteria for Data Aggregation and 

Publication 

The EPA recognizes that careful 

consideration and review of aggregated 

values are necessary to ensure that 

underlying CBI is sufficiently masked. 

This requires ensuring that the 

aggregated data do not disclose 

underlying CBI data or allow the CBI to 

be computed, back-calculated, or 

otherwise discerned using other Part 98 

data or additional data. To assist with 

this analysis, the GHGRP has developed 

a set of criteria to evaluate whether a 

given aggregation sufficiently masks 

underlying CBI. 

In developing these criteria, the 

GHGRP reviewed existing, effective 

criteria, methods, and principles used 

by other EPA offices and federal 

agencies that publish aggregated 

versions of individual companies’ 

confidential or proprietary data, 

including the USGS’s National Minerals 

Information Center, the Energy 

Information Administration, and the 

EPA’s Office of Chemical Safety and 

Pollution Prevention. The criteria that 

the EPA has developed for publishing 

aggregated GHGRP data are comparable 

in their rigor to the criteria or principles 

used by these programs. 

Consistent with these goals, we have 

considered methods for the EPA to 

publish aggregated versions of GHGRP 

data elements that are not likely to 

cause substantial competitive harm and 

that do not disclose the underlying 

facility- or supplier-level CBI. 

1. Criteria for Aggregating Data at the 

National or Regional Level 

The GHGRP has established 

overarching criteria that we plan to use 

to determine under what circumstances 

it is appropriate to publish aggregated 

data. The EPA plans to apply these 

criteria to the specific list of data 

elements included in the memorandum 

titled ‘‘Publication of Certain 

Aggregated Greenhouse Gas Data’’ 

associated with this Federal Register 

notice and to future data aggregation 

efforts. Over time, the EPA may identify 

additional data that would be useful to 

publish, and plans to use these criteria 

as a basis for this aggregation. 

To determine whether a particular 

data element aggregated at the national 

or regional level may be published 

without risk of disclosing any facilityor supplier-level CBI, the EPA intends 

to assess the data aggregation according 

to the following criteria. In line with the 

other programs and offices described 

above, the EPA has determined that if 

the data element aggregated at the 

national or regional level meets all four 

criteria, then the data may be published 

without disclosing underlying CBI. 

1a. The data used to calculate the 

aggregated value must be reported by at 

least three separate facilities or 

suppliers that have no common 

ownership or operator. 

2a. No single owner or operator can 

contribute more than x percent to a 

particular aggregated value. (The EPA 

will not disclose the value of x.) 

3a. No two owners or operators can 

contribute more than y percent of a 

particular aggregated value. (The EPA 

will not disclose the value of y.) 

4a. No underlying facility- or 

supplier-level CBI can be backcalculated or otherwise determined 

using the aggregated value in 

combination with other publicly 

available data, including any facility-, 

supplier-, regional-, or national-level 

data published by the GHGRP or any 

other data likely to be available to 

owners or operators. 

The EPA will publish only aggregated 

values that meet all four criteria. 

Combined, the criteria ensure that 

publishing aggregated values that meet 

the criteria would not inadvertently 

disclose facility- or supplier-level CBI. 

For example, if five facilities reported a 

particular data element and one 

company has part or total ownership of 

four of the five facilities, criterion 1a 

would not be met and the EPA would 

not release the aggregated value. 

Similarly, if the data reported by one or 

two companies comprise the vast 

majority (greater than the value of x or 

y described above, respectively) of the 

aggregated value reported, then criteria 

2a and 3a would not be met and the 

EPA would not release the aggregated 

data. Finally, if other public data could 

be used in combination with the 

aggregated value to calculate or 

otherwise estimate CBI reported by a 

facility or supplier, criterion 4a would 

not be met. For example, if a data 

element is aggregated by region and all 

but one regional aggregation meet the 

criteria, publishing the values from all 

of the other regions would allow the 

data for the final region to be backcalculated if the national total is also 

published. In this case, the EPA would 

withhold data from at least one other 

region. 

The values selected for x and y in 

criteria 2a and 3a above will be 

sufficient to ensure protection for the 

CBI reported by individual facilities and 

suppliers. As stated in the above 

criteria, we do not plan to make public 

the values of x and y. The EPA has 

determined that releasing these values 

could in certain circumstances provide 

a reporting company with insight into 

the CBI reported by competitors. For 

example, the data reported by one 

company that is dominant in its market 

may be slightly above the percentage 

threshold for criterion 2a (the x value) 

in a certain reporting year but below the 

threshold in a subsequent reporting 

year. In such situations, the EPA would 

not publish the aggregated value for the 

first reporting year, but may choose to 

publish the aggregated value in 

subsequent reporting years (provided all 

other criteria are met). If the EPA 

disclosed the value of x, competitors 

would know that the dominant 

company’s share of that data element 

decreased and the dominant company’s 

approximate portion of the aggregated 

total. 

2. Criteria for Aggregating Supplier Data 

at the Corporate Level in Subparts OO, 

PP, and QQ 

Some individual suppliers that report 

data under Part 98 subparts OO 

(Suppliers of Industrial Greenhouse 

Gases), PP (Suppliers of Carbon 

Dioxide), and QQ (Importers and 

Exporters of Fluorinated Greenhouse 

Gases Contained in Pre-Charged 

Equipment or Closed-Cell Foams) report 

data about multiple industrial gases. 

The EPA intends to aggregate these data, 

in units of carbon dioxide equivalent, 

across products or product types at the 

corporate level to increase transparency 

by providing the general public with the 

total potential GHG emissions 

associated with industrial gases 

supplied into the economy by each 


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reporting corporation and to provide the 

ability to track how this quantity 

changes over time. 

The memorandum titled ‘‘Publication 

of Certain Aggregated Greenhouse Gas 

Data’’ lists certain subpart OO, PP, and 

QQ data elements that the EPA may 

aggregate and publish across multiple 

products or product types from a single 

company. As above, the EPA will only 

aggregate and publish this CBI if the 

following criteria are met. 

1b. The aggregated value includes 

information from two or more products 

supplied by the reporter. 

2b. No single product can contribute 

more than z percent of the corporatelevel total to a particular aggregated 

value. (The EPA will not disclose the 

value of z.) 

3b. Publication of the data does not 

allow for values (from another owner) 

that do not themselves meet criteria 1b 

and 2b to be back-calculated from 

national- or regional-level data 

aggregations. 

4b. If a company reports data on only 

a single product type (e.g., under 

subpart QQ), the products within that 

product type contain different GHGs, 

different amounts of that GHG per 

product, or both. 

As above, the value selected for z in 

criterion 2b above will be sufficient to 

ensure protection for the CBI reported 

by individual suppliers, and the EPA 

does not intend to make that value 

public. For supplier data aggregated at 

the corporate level, if the data element 

includes information from only one 

product supplied by the reporter, then 

criterion 1b would not be met and the 

value would not be published. 

Similarly, if one product supplied 

comprises more than z percent of the 

corporate-level total of the aggregated 

value, then criterion 2b would not be 

met and the EPA would not publish the 

aggregated value. If publishing 

corporate-level data from Owners A and 

B would allow for the back-calculation 

of data from Owner C, which would 

otherwise have been protected because 

it did not meet criteria 1b and 2b, then 

criterion 3b would not be met and the 

EPA would not publish the aggregated 

value from Owners A and/or B. 

C. Data Elements Proposed for 

Aggregation and Publication 

The EPA reviewed the Part 98 data 

categorized as CBI and has identified a 

selection of data elements that, in 

aggregated form, would be used to 

improve or check the Inventory or 

otherwise inform policy-makers and the 

public. To determine whether these data 

aggregations could be published without 

disclosing the underlying facility- or 

supplier-level CBI, we will apply the 

final version of the criteria described 

above to each aggregated value. The 

memorandum titled ‘‘Publication of 

Certain Aggregated Greenhouse Gas 

Data’’ associated with this Federal 

Register notice contains a list of data 

elements that the EPA is presently 

considering for aggregation if they meet 

the final criteria for publication that the 

EPA adopts after considering comment 

on this notice. The aggregated values 

would likely be published on an annual 

basis, as long as they continue to meet 

the final criteria. Additional information 

regarding the publication of data in 

future years is provided in Section III.D 

of this notice. 

D. Data Publication Process and 

Availability 

The EPA will publish only aggregated 

versions of data that were previously 

determined to be CBI in non-aggregated 

form in accordance with the EPA’s CBI 

regulations at 40 CFR part 2, subpart B. 

With regard to the overarching criteria 

described in this notice, the EPA will 

consider comments received and 

anticipates publishing the final 

aggregation criteria. With regard to the 

specific list of data elements listed in 

the memorandum titled ‘‘Publication of 

Certain Aggregated Greenhouse Gas 

Data,’’ the EPA will consider comments 

on this notice and evaluate the possible 

aggregations against the final criteria to 

determine which of the data elements 

may be published in aggregated form. 

The EPA will then individually notify 

each affected reporter (in writing and in 

a manner providing confirmation of 

receipt, as specified under the EPA’s 

CBI regulations at 40 CFR 2.204(e)(1)) 

about which of that reporter’s data 

elements the EPA intends to aggregate 

and the intended level of aggregation. 

The EPA will then give the reporter at 

least 10 days to file for judicial review, 

as required under 40 CFR 2.205(f)(2), 

before we publicly release any 

aggregated values. 

The data elements listed in the 

memorandum titled ‘‘Publication of 

Certain Aggregated Greenhouse Gas 

Data’’ are the data elements that the EPA 

is presently considering publishing in 

aggregated form, provided they meet the 

final aggregation criteria that the EPA 

adopts. For aggregated values to be 

published in any future year, the final 

criteria must be met for the relevant data 

element(s) for that particular year. In the 

future, we may find that publication of 

additional aggregated values would be 

useful to Inventory compilation, policymakers, or the public. In that case, we 

would evaluate the aggregations to 

determine whether they meet the 

relevant final criteria, individually 

notify each affected reporter and wait at 

least 10 days before releasing the 

aggregated values, as described above. 

We would not necessarily publish 

additional Federal Register notices 

concerning publication of additional 

aggregated values. 

The EPA plans to make the aggregated 

Part 98 data available in various formats 

and sources as appropriate to the data 

element, including the Inventory, the 

EPA’s Facility Level Information on 

GreenHouse gases Tool (FLIGHT), the 

EPA’s Envirofacts Web site, and EPA 

downloadable data files available on the 

EPA Web site. The published data will 

not include non-aggregated facility or 

supplier data that have been categorized 

as CBI or aggregated values that would 

reveal underlying facility- or supplierlevel CBI. 

E. Request for Comments 

We are soliciting comment on the 

rationale and criteria we plan to use to 

determine which data elements can be 

aggregated and published without 

disclosing underlying facility- or 

supplier-level CBI. If you believe that 

one or more of the criteria are either too 

stringent or not stringent enough, 

provide a detailed explanation of (1) 

why you believe this to be true and (2) 

what changes to the proposed criteria 

should be made or what alternative 

criteria should be adopted. Providing 

specific scenarios to illustrate either the 

effectiveness or ineffectiveness of the 

criteria would be particularly useful. We 

are soliciting comments on appropriate 

values for x, y, and z in criteria 2a, 3a 

and 2b (including whether these values 

must be consistent across subparts) and 

on our intent not to make those values 

publicly available. 

We are also soliciting comments on 

whether aggregation and publication of 

the specific data elements identified in 

the memorandum titled ‘‘Publication of 

Certain Aggregated Greenhouse Gas 

Data’’ would disclose underlying CBI or 

otherwise would likely result in 

substantial competitive harm to a 

particular company. Please identify the 

specific data element and level of 

aggregation and explain how the public 

release of that particular value would or 

would not be likely to result in 

disclosure of underlying facility- or 

supplier-level CBI or otherwise cause 

substantial competitive harm. If you 

believe that the publication of any of the 

aggregated data identified in the 

memorandum associated with this 

Federal Register notice would be likely 

to disclose CBI or otherwise cause 

substantial competitive harm, explain 

the mechanism by which this would 


ehiers on DSK2VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 110 / Monday, June 9, 2014 / Notices 32953 

occur. If your concern is that the release 

of aggregated value for a particular data 

element would allow competitors to 

derive the value for an individual 

facility or supplier, specifically describe 

the pathway by which this could occur. 

Describe any unique process or aspect of 

a facility or supplier that would be 

revealed if the aggregated value for a 

specific data element were made 

publicly available. 

If the aggregated value would disclose 

underlying CBI only when used in 

combination with other publicly 

available data, then identify the 

information you believe could be 

revealed, describe how it would be 

calculated or otherwise discerned, 

explain why you consider the 

information to be sensitive, describe the 

competitive harm that its disclosure 

would be likely to cause, and identify 

the source of the other data. If the data 

are physically published, such as in a 

book, industry trade publication, or 

federal agency publication, provide the 

title, volume number (if applicable), 

author(s), publisher, publication date, 

frequency of publication, and 

International Standard Book Number 

(ISBN), or other identifier. For data 

published on a Web site, provide the 

address of the Web site and the date you 

last visited the Web site and identify the 

Web site publisher and content author. 

We are also interested in comments 

identifying any publicly available 

sources of information containing the 

specific data aggregation in question. 

Discuss how these aggregated values 

may be different from or similar to data 

that are already publicly available. In 

your comments, please identify the 

manner and location in which the 

aggregated value for each specific data 

element you identify is available, 

including a citation. If the data are 

physically published, such as in a book, 

industry trade publication, or federal 

agency publication, provide the title, 

volume number (if applicable), 

author(s), publisher, publication date, 

frequency of publication, and ISBN, or 

other identifier. For data published on 

a Web site, provide the address of the 

Web site and the date you last visited 

the Web site and identify the Web site 

publisher and content author. 

Avoid conclusory and 

unsubstantiated statements or general 

assertions regarding potential harm. 

Please be as specific as possible in your 

comments and include all information 

necessary for the EPA to evaluate your 

comments. 

Parties who wish further information 

about this Federal Register notice or 

about OAP’s aggregation of information 

designated or claimed as CBI may 

contact the person listed in the FOR

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section. 

Dated: June 2, 2014. 

Paul Gunning, 

Acting Director, Office of Atmospheric 

Programs. 

[FR Doc. 2014–13425 Filed 6–6–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

[FRL 9911–94–OA] 

Notification of a Public Teleconference 

of the Great Lakes Advisory Board 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) announces a 

teleconference of the Great Lakes 

Advisory Board (Board). The purpose of 

this meeting is to discuss the Great 

Lakes Restoration Initiative covering 

(GLRI) FY15–19 and other relevant 

matters. 

DATES: The teleconference will be held 

Wednesday, June 25, 2014 from 9:00 to 

11:00 a.m. Central Time, 10:00 a.m. to 

12:00 p.m. Eastern Time. An 

opportunity will be provided to the 

public to comment. 

ADDRESSES: The public teleconference 

will be held by teleconference only. The 

teleconference number is: (877) 744– 

6030; Participant code: 54163307. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Any 

member of the public wishing further 

information regarding this meeting may 

contact Rita Cestaric, Designated 

Federal Officer (DFO), by telephone at 

312–886–6815 or email at 

Cestaric.Rita@epa.gov. General 

information on the GLRI and the Board 

can be found at http://www.glri.us. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background: The Board is a federal 

advisory committee chartered under the 

Federal Advisory Committee Act 

(FACA), Public Law 92–463. EPA 

established the Board in 2013 to provide 

independent advice to the EPA 

Administrator in her capacity as Chair 

of the federal Great Lakes Interagency 

Task Force (IATF). The Board conducts 

business in accordance with FACA and 

related regulations. 

The Board consists of 18 members 

appointed by EPA’s Administrator in 

her capacity as IATF Chair. Members 

serve as representatives of state, local 

and tribal government, environmental 

groups, agriculture, business, 

transportation, foundations, educational 

institutions, and as technical experts. 

The Board held teleconferences and 

meetings in 2013 to develop 

recommendations for the FY 2015–2019 

GLRI Action Plan. In December 2013, 

the Board issued its Advisory Report. 

See http://greatlakesrestoration.us/

advisory/index.html for other 

information. 

Availability of Meeting Materials: The 

agenda and other materials in support of 

the teleconference will be available on 

the GLRI Web site at http://www.glri.us 

in advance of the teleconference. 

Procedures for Providing Public Input: 

Federal advisory committees provide 

independent advice to federal agencies. 

Members of the public can submit 

relevant comments for consideration by 

the Board. Input from the public to the 

Board will have the most impact if it 

provides specific information for the 

Board to consider. Members of the 

public wishing to provide comments 

should contact the DFO directly. 

Oral Statements: In general, 

individuals or groups requesting oral 

presentation at this public meeting will 

be limited to three minutes per speaker, 

subject to the number of people wanting 

to comment. Interested parties should 

contact the DFO in writing (preferably 

via email) at the contact information 

noted above by June 24, 2014 to be 

placed on the list of public speakers for 

the meeting. 

Written Statements: Written 

statements must be received by June 24, 

2014 so that the information may be 

made available to the Board for 

consideration. Written statements 

should be supplied to the DFO in the 

following formats: One hard copy with 

original signature and one electronic 

copy via email. Commenters are 

requested to provide two versions of 

each document submitted: One each 

with and without signatures because 

only documents without signatures may 

be published on the GLRI Web page. 

Accessibility: For information on 

access or services for individuals with 

disabilities, please contact the DFO at 

the phone number or email address 

noted above, preferably at least 10 days 

prior to the meeting, to give EPA as 

much time as possible to process your 

request. 

Dated: May 29, 2014. 

Cameron Davis, 

Senior Advisor to the Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 2014–13419 Filed 6–6–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 


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