Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 229 / Friday, November 28, 1997 / Notices 63333

below. Both meetings are open to the

public. Seating at both meetings will be

on a first-come basis and limited time

will be provided for public comment.

For further information concerning

specific meetings, please contact the

individuals listed with the

announcements below.

(1) Metal Finishing Sector

Subcommittee Meeting—December 16–

17, 1997

The Metal Finishing Sector

Subcommittee will hold an open

meeting on Tuesday, December 16, 1997

and on Wednesday, December 17, 1997.

The Subcommittee will meet both days

from approximately 9:00 a.m. EDT to

approximately 4:00 p.m. EDT. The

meeting will be held at the Radisson

Barcelo Hotel, 2121 P Street NW.,

Washington, DC. The hotel telephone

number is 202–293–3100.

The Subcommittee will focus on

implementation plans and issues

associated with the Goals Program. We

also anticipate having workgroup

breakout sessions to discuss research

and technology projects, risk assessment

and characterization issues, the RCRA

Bench marking Project, and training

courses associated with the Metal

Finishing Guidance Manual. An agenda

will be available in early December.

For further information concerning

meeting times and the agenda of this

Metal Finishing Sector Subcommittee,

please contact Bob Benson, Designated

Federal Officer (DFO), at EPA by

telephone on (202) 260–8668 in

Washington, DC, by fax on (202) 260–

8662, or by e-mail at

benson.robert@epamail.epa.gov.

(2) Computers and Electronics Sector

Subcommittee—January 14–15, 1998

Notice is hereby given that the

Environmental Protection Agency will

hold an open meeting of the Computers

and Electronics Sector Subcommittee on

Wednesday, January 14, 1998, from 8:30

a.m. PST until 5:00 p.m. PST and on

Thursday, January 15, 1998 from 8:30

a.m. PST to 3:00 p.m. PST, at the Sir

Francis Drake Hotel, 450 Powell Street,

San Francisco, CA 94102. The telephone

number is 415–392–7755 or 800–227–

5480.

Both days, January 14 and 15, will be

devoted partly to breakout sessions for

the three subcommittee workgroups

(Reporting and Information Access;

Overcoming Barriers to Pollution

Prevention, Product Stewardship, and

Recycling’’; and Integrated and

Sustainable Alternative Strategies for

Electronics) and partly to plenary

sessions. The Subcommittee will

discuss progress on projects including:

BOLDER (Basic On-Line Disaster and

Emergency Response); Beta-BOLDER, a

project to test the BOLDER system

transferability; Better BOLDER, a project

to make the BOLDER facility emergency

response plan information accessible to

the public; CURE (Consolidated

Uniform Report for the Environment), a

project to submit environmental

information on a single form; E-Works

(Electronic Workers Health Project);

Voluntary Program for Life Cycle

Management of Electronic Products/

State Multi-Stakeholder Dialogue;

SPECIE (Superior Performance for the

Environment through Community

Involvement and Engagement), a project

to develop a printed resource guide to

strengthen community collaboration;

Evaluation of Models and Development

of Best Practices for Electronic

Equipment Recovery/San Francisco

Recycling; Green Track, a project to

offer regulatory flexibility or other

incentives to encourage facilities to

improve environmental performance

beyond current regulatory requirements;

Definition of ‘‘Legitimate Recycling’’; a

project to seek consensus-based

decisions on the recycling of computer

parts, and define electronics-related

activities the sector would recommend

EPA exempt from existing solid waste

regulations. Opportunity for public

comment on major issues under

discussion will be provided at intervals

throughout the meeting.

For further information concerning

this meeting of the Common Sense

Initiative’s Computers and Electronics

Sector Subcommittee, please contact

John J. Bowser, Acting DFO, U.S. EPA

on (202) 260–1771, by fax on (202) 260–

1096, by e-mail at

bowser.john@epamail.epa.gov., or by

mail at U.S. EPA (MC 7405), 401 M

Street SW., Washington, DC 20460;

Mark Mahoney, U.S. EPA Region 1 on

(617) 565–1155; or David Jones, U.S.

EPA Region 9 on (415) 744–2266.

Inspection of Subcommittee

Documents: Documents relating to the

above Sector Subcommittee

announcements, will be publicly

available at the meeting. Thereafter,

these documents, together with the

official minutes for the meetings, will be

available for public inspection in room

2821M of EPA Headquarters, Common

Sense Initiative Staff, 401 M Street SW.,

Washington, DC 20460, telephone

number 202–260–7417. Common Sense

Initiative information can be accessed

electronically on our web site at http./

/www.epa.gov/commonsense.

Dated: November 21, 1997.

Gregory Ondich,

Acting Designated Federal Officer.

[FR Doc. 97–31275 Filed 11–26–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

AGENCY

[FRL–5929–4]

National Advisory Council for

Environmental Policy and

Technology—Total Maximum Daily

Load Committee; Public Meeting

AGENCY: Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of public meeting.

SUMMARY: Under the Federal Advisory

Committee Act, PL 92463, EPA gives

notice of a three day meeting of the

National Advisory Council for

Environmental Policy and Technology’s

(NACEPT) Total Maximum Daily Load

(TMDL) Committee. NACEPT provides

advice and recommendations to the

Administrator of EPA on a broad range

of environmental policy issues. The

TMDL Committee has been charged to

provide recommendations for actions

which will lead to a substantially more

effective TMDL program. This meeting

is being held to enable the Committee

and EPA to hear the views and obtain

the advice of a widely diverse group of

stakeholders in the national Water

Program.

In conjunction with the three day

meeting, the FACA Committee members

and the EPA will host two meetings

designed to afford the general public

greater opportunity to express its views

on TMDLs and water related issues.

DATES: The three day public meeting

will be held on January 21–23, 1998, in

Salt Lake City, Utah. The full Committee

meeting is scheduled to begin

Wednesday, January 21, 1998, at 8:30

a.m and conclude at 5:30 p.m., and will

be held at the Jewish Community

Center, #2 Medical Drive, Salt Lake City,

Utah. The meeting will reconvene at

8:30 a.m. on Thursday, January 22,

1998, at the Jewish Community Center

and is scheduled to adjourn at 3:00 p.m.

On Friday, January 23, 1998, the

Committee will meet at the University

Park Hotel and Suites, 480 Wakara Way,

Salt Lake City, Utah, beginning at 8:30

a.m. and is scheduled to conclude at

4:00 p.m.

The two public input sessions are

scheduled in conjunction with the full

Committee meeting and will both be

held at the Jewish Community Center.

The first will occur on Wednesday,
63334 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 229 / Friday, November 28, 1997 / Notices

January 21, 1998, from 7:30 p.m. until

9 p.m. The second will occur on

Thursday, January 22, 1998, from 3:30

p.m. until 5:00 p.m.

FUTURE MEETING DATES: The Committee

has one remaining meeting scheduled

on May 4–6, 1998, in Atlanta, Georgia.

ADDRESSES: Materials or written

comments may be transmitted to the

Committee through Hazel Groman,

Designated Federal Officer, NACEPT/

TMDL, U.S. EPA, Office of Water, Office

of Wetlands, Oceans, and Watersheds,

Assessment and Watershed Protection

Division (4503F), 401 M Street, SW,

Washington, DC 20460.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Hazel Groman, Designated Federal

Officer for the Total Maximum Daily

Load Committee, at 202–260–8798.

Dated: November 20, 1997.

Hazel Groman,

Designated Federal Officer.

[FR Doc. 97–31279 Filed 11–26–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

AGENCY

[ER–FRL–5486–6]

Notice of Proposed Changes to

Voluntary Environmental Impact

Statement Policy

AGENCY: Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of changes to existing

policy and opportunity for public

comment.

SUMMARY: EPA is proposing changes in

its Statement of Policy for Voluntary

Environmental Impact Statements (EIS),

which it adopted and published in the

Federal Register (Vol. 39, No. 89/

Tuesday, May 7, 1974/Notices/16186–

16187). The proposed changes would

update the EPA policy to reflect how

Congress and the Courts have defined

EPA’s National Environmental Policy

Act (NEPA) obligations and to ensure

that EPA’s voluntary practices regarding

NEPA compliance are consistent with

practices provided in the NEPA

regulations issued by the Council on

Environmental Quality (CEQ). The

proposed changes will also encourage

expansion of the increased discretionary

use of voluntary EISs in circumstances

where they can be particularly helpful

for decision-making involving other

federal agencies, cross-media issues, or

other concerns such as environmental

justice. The proposed changes will

affect certain EPA standard-setting and

cancellation procedures. EPA is

soliciting comments on these proposed

changes.

DATES: Submit written comments on or

before January 27, 1998. After

addressing any comments received, EPA

will issue a final policy in the Federal

Register.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION AND TO SUBMIT

WRITTEN COMMENTS CONTACT: Marguerite

Duffy at (202) 564–7148; E-mail:

duffy.marguerite@epamail.epa.gov; or

Joseph Montgomery at (202) 564–7157;

E-mail:

montgomery.joseph@epamail.epa.gov;

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,

Office of Federal Activities (2252–A),

401 M Street, SW, Washington, D.C.

20460.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

Unless otherwise exempted, Section

102(2)(C) of the National Environmental

Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et

seq.) (hereafter ‘‘NEPA’’), implemented

by Executive Orders 11514 and 11991

and the Council on Environmental

Quality (CEQ) Regulations at 40 CFR

parts 1500–1508, requires that Federal

agencies prepare detailed environmental

statements on proposals for legislation

and other major Federal actions

significantly affecting the quality of the

human environment. The objective of

NEPA is to build into the Federal

agency decision-making process an

appropriate and careful consideration of

all environmental impacts of proposed

actions. Accordingly, under CEQ

regulations, where major Federal actions

will have a significant effect on the

quality of the human environment, a

detailed environmental impact

statement (EIS) is required; where it is

believed that an action will have no

significant impact, or where the level of

impact is uncertain, agencies can

prepare less detailed environmental

assessments (EAs) to determine the level

of impact and/or document a finding of

no significant impact.

EPA is legally required to comply

with the procedural requirements of

NEPA for its research and development

activities, facilities construction,

wastewater treatment construction

grants under Title II of the Clean Water

Act, and EPA-issued National Pollutant

Discharge Elimination System (NPDES)

permits for new sources. The Agency is

exempted by statute for actions taken

under the Clean Air Act and for most

Clean Water Act programs. EPA is also

exempted from the procedural

requirements of environmental laws,

including NEPA, for Comprehensive

Environmental Response,

Compensation, and Liability Act

response actions. For other programs,

courts have consistently recognized that

EPA procedures or environmental

reviews under enabling legislation are

functionally equivalent to the NEPA

process and thus exempt from the

procedural requirements in NEPA.

However, as discussed below, it has

been long-standing Agency policy to

prepare EISs voluntarily for some

actions.

EPA has long recognized the value of

sound environmental analysis, the

importance of public participation, and

the desirability of integration of other

environmental requirements across the

range of its activities. EPA issued a

‘‘Statement of Policy’’ (Policy) in the

Federal Register (Vol. 39, No. 89/

Tuesday, May 7, 1974/Notices/16186–

16187) expressing the belief that

preparation of environmental impact

statements would have beneficial effects

for certain of its regulatory actions. EPA

decided that, while it was not legally

bound to do so by Section 102(2)(C) of

NEPA, it would voluntarily prepare

environmental impact statements for

specific regulatory actions relating to

the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 1857 et

seq.); Noise Control Act (42 U.S.C. 4901

et seq.); Atomic Energy Act (42 U.S.C.

2011 et seq.); the Marine Protection,

Research, and Sanctuaries Act (33

U.S.C. 1401 et seq.); and, Federal

Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide

Act (FIFRA) (7 U.S.C. 135 et seq., as

amended by 7 U.S.C. 136 et seq.).

EPA believes that several aspects of

the 1974 Voluntary EIS Policy have

become outdated since its publication.

EPA issued this Policy four years prior

to CEQ promulgation of regulations

implementing NEPA. CEQ’s regulations

state that while an EIS is required to

document significant impacts, an EA

will be adequate documentation to

determine if an action will have no

significant impact. EPA has gained

extensive experience concerning what

types of analysis will be useful to

enhance environmental decisionmaking under particular circumstances.

In addition, Congress, through statutory

exemptions from NEPA requirements,

and the Courts, through finding that

EPA statutes provide an analysis

functionally equivalent to what would

be done under NEPA, have explicitly

defined the legal role of NEPA analysis

in EPA decision-making.

In October 1993, an EPA Workgroup

on NEPA issued a report entitled ‘‘The

National Environmental Policy Act and

Environmental Protection Agency

Programs.’’ This Report recommended

that EPA revise its ‘‘voluntary EIS’’

Policy to: (1) Make it a ‘‘voluntary

NEPA’’ policy under which EPA would