6524 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 29 / Wednesday, February 12, 1997 / Notices

Based on the current toxicological

data requirements, the database relative

to pre-and post-natal effects for children

is complete, valid and reliable.

Collective results from the 2-generation

and teratology studies show no

increased sensitivity to developing

offspring. Thus, no increased sensitivity

of infants and children to dithianon

residues is anticipated. Therefore,

American Cyanamid concludes that an

additional safety (uncertainty) factor is

not warranted and the RfD of 0.01 mg/

kg b.w./day, which utilizes a 100-fold

safety factor, is appropriate to ensure a

reasonable certainty of no harm to

infants and children.

F. International Tolerances

A Maximum Residue Limit (MRL) for

dithianon at the level of 5 mg/kg was

established for pome fruits by the 1992

WHO/FAO Joint Meeting on Pesticide

Residues (JMPR). The MRL for pome

fruits was raised to step 8 at the Codex

Committee on Pesticide Residues

(CCPR) meeting in 1996 and will be

approved by the Codex Alimentarius

Commission in 1997 for Codex

Maximum Residue Limit (CXL) (final).

The 1992 JMPR established an MRL for

dithianon in dried hops of 100 mg/kg.

This MRL for dried hops is a CXL

(final).

II. Public Record

EPA invites interested persons to

submit comments on this notice of

filing. Comments must bear a notation

indicating the docket number [PF-707].

A record has been established for this

notice of filing under docket number

[PF-707] including comments and data

submitted electronically as described

below. A public version of this record,

including printed, paper versions of

electronic comments, which does not

include any information claimed as CBI,

is available for inspection from 8:30

a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday,

excluding legal holidays. The public

record is located in Room 1132 of the

Public Response and Program Resources

Branch, Field Operations Division

(7506C), Office of Pesticide Programs,

Environmental Protection Agency,

Crystal Mall #2, 1921 Jefferson Davis

Highway, Arlington, VA.

Electronic comments can be sent

directly to EPA at:

opp-docket@epamail.epa.gov

Electronic comments must be

submitted as ASCII file avoiding the use

of special characters and any form of

encryption.

The official record for this notice of

filing, as well as the public version, as

described above will be kept in paper

form. Accordingly, EPA will transfer all

comments received electronically into

printed paper form as they are received

and will place the paper copies in the

official record which will also include

all comments submitted directly in

writing. The official record is the paper

record maintained at the address in

‘‘ADDRESSES’’ at the beginning of this

document.

List of Subjects

Environmental protection,

Administrative practice and procedure,

Agricultural commodities, Pesticides

and pests, Reporting and recordkeeping

requirements.

Dated: February 3, 1997.

Stephen L. Johnson,

Director, Registration Division, Office of

Pesticide Programs.

[FR Doc. 97-3226 Filed 2–11–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560–50–F

[PF–698; FRL–5585–4]

Englehard Corporation; Pesticide

Tolerance Petition Filing

AGENCY: Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of filing.

SUMMARY: This notice announces the

initial filing of a pesticide petition

proposing a temporary exemption from

the requirement of a tolerance for

residues of kaolin in or on apples,

apricots, bananas, beans, cane berries,

citrus fruits, corn, cotton, cucurbits,

grapes, nuts, ornamentals, peaches,

peanuts, pears, peppers, potatoes, seed

crops, soybean, small grains,

strawberries, sugar beets, and tomatoes.

The summary was prepared by the

petitioner, Engelhard Corporation.

DATES: Comments, identified by the

docket control number [PF-698], must

be received on or before March 14, 1997.

ADDRESSES: By mail, submit written

comments to: Public Response and

Program Resources Branch, Field

Operations Division (7506C), Office of

Pesticide Programs, Environmental

Protection Agency, 401 M St., SW.,

Washington, DC 20460. In person, bring

comments to: Crystal Mall #2, Room

1132, 1921 Jefferson Davis Highway,

Arlington, VA.

Comments and data may also be

submitted electronically by sending

electronic mail (e-mail) to: oppdocket@epamail.epa.gov. Electronic

comments must be submitted as an

ASCII file avoiding the use of special

characters and any form of encryption.

Comments and data will also be

accepted on disks in WordPerfect in 5.1

file format or ASCII file format. All

comments and data in electronic form

must be identified by the docket control

number [PF-698]. Electronic comments

on this notice may be filed online at

many Federal Depository Libraries.

Additional information on electronic

submissions can be found in Unit II. of

this document.

Information submitted as comments

concerning this notice may be claimed

confidential by marking any part or all

of that information as ‘‘Confidential

Business Information’’ (CBI). CBI should

not be submitted through e-mail.

Information marked as CBI will not be

disclosed except in accordance with

procedures set forth in 40 CFR part 2.

A copy of the comment that does not

contain CBI must be submitted for

inclusion in the public record.

Information not marked confidential

may be disclosed publicly by EPA

without prior notice. All written

comments will be available for public

inspection in Room 1132 at the address

given above, from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.,

Monday through Friday, excluding legal

holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: By

mail, Sheryl Reilly, Regulatory Action

Leader, (PM 90), Biopesticides and

Pollution Prevention Division (7501W),

Office of Pesticide Programs,

Environmental Protection Agency, 401

M St., SW., Washington, DC 20460.

Office location, telephone number, and

e-mail address: Crystal Station #1, 5th

Floor, 2800 Crystal Drive, Arlington,

VA, 703-308-8265, e-mail:

reilly.sheryl@epamail.epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: EPA has

received a pesticide petition [PP–

7G4793] from Engelhard Corporation,

101 Wood Ave., Iselin, NJ 08830. The

petition proposes, pursuant to section

408 of the Federal Food, Drug and

Cosmetic Act (FFDCA), 21 U.S.C. 346a,

to amend 40 CFR part 180 to establish

a temporary exemption from the

requirement of a tolerance for residues

of the biochemical pesticide kaolin in or

on the raw agricultural commodities

apples, apricots, bananas, beans, cane

berries, citrus fruits, corn, cotton,

cucurbits, grapes, nuts, ornamentals,

peaches, peanuts, pears, peppers,

potatoes, seed crops, soybean, small

grains, strawberries, sugar beets, and

tomatoes. EPA has determined that the

petition contains data or information

regarding the elements set forth in

section 408(d)(2) of the FFDCA;

however, EPA has not fully evaluated

the sufficiency of the submitted data at

this time or whether the data supports
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 29 / Wednesday, February 12, 1997 / Notices 6525

granting of the petition. Additional data

may be needed before EPA rules on the

petition. As required by section 408(d)

of the FFDCA, as recently amended by

the Food Quality Protection Act (FQPA)

Pub. L. 104-170, Engelhard Corporation

included in the petition a summary of

the petition and authorization for the

summary to be published in the Federal

Register in a notice of receipt of the

petition. The summary represents the

views of Engelhard Corporation; EPA, as

mentioned above, is in the process of

evaluating the petition. As required by

section 408(d)(3) of the FFDCA, EPA is

including the summary as a part of this

notice of filing. EPA may have made

minor edits to the summary for the

purpose of clarity.

I. Petition Summary

A. Proposed Use Practices

The proposed experimental program

will be conducted in the states of

Alabama, Arizona, California, Florida,

Georgia, Idaho, Maryland,

Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota,

Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Ohio,

Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South

Carolina, Texas, Virgin Islands, Virginia,

Washington, and West Virginia. Crops

to be treated are apples, apricots,

bananas, beans, cane berries, citrus

fruits, corn, cotton, cucurbits, grapes,

nuts, ornamentals, peaches, peanuts,

pears, peppers, potatoes, seed crops,

soybean, small grains, strawberries,

sugar beets, and tomatoes. Treatment is

made shortly after leaf or plant

emergence and applied to crops at 7 to

10-day intervals. Treatment will not be

applied within 10 days of harvest.

Dosage rates are 10 to 100 lbs of the

formulated kaolin per acre and are

applied with standard commercial spray

equipment. The first year target pests

are aphids, apple scab, codling moth,

fireblight, leaf hoppers, and pear psylla.

The second year target pests are aphid

complex, apple scab, armyworm,

bacteria spot, bollworms, citrus canker,

citrus rust, codling moth, Colorado

potato beetle, cotton flea hopper,

European and spotted red mite, fabrea

leaf spot, early and late blight, fireblight,

flyspeck, Japanese beetle, leaf hopper

complex, leaf rollers, mealybug,

mildews, phylloxera, pear psylla, pear

rust mites, Pierce’s Disease, rots, scales,

tarnish plant bug, thrips, wheat stemsaw fly, and whitefly.

B. Product Identity/Chemistry

1. Kaolin is a white, nonporous,

nonswelling, natural aluminosilicate

mineral with the chemical formula of

Al4Si4O10(OH)8. Kaolin is one of the

most highly divided and highly refined

naturally occurring minerals. Median

particle size of commercial products

vary between 0.1–10 microns. Kaolin is

chemically inert. Its hydrophilic surface

allows kaolin to be easily dispersed in

water at neutral pH values of 6–8.

Common physical properties of kaolin

are: platy shape, high brightness (80–

95), specific gravity 2.58–2.63, refractive

index 1.56–1.62, and Mohs hardness 2–

3.

2. A temporary exemption from the

requirement of a tolerance is requested

for kaolin.

3. An analytical method for detecting

and measuring the levels of kaolin

residue are not needed because kaolin

has GRAS (Generally Recognized as

Safe) status under 21 CFR 186.1256 and

is generally recognized as safe ‘‘as an

indirect human food ingredient with no

limitation other than current good

manufacturing practice.’’

C. Mammalian Toxicological Profile

Waivers are requested for acute

toxicity, genotoxicity, reproductive and

developmental toxicity, subchronic

toxicity, and chronic toxicity. Kaolin is

used as an indirect food additive for

paper/paper board in wet and fatty food

contact, paper/paper board dry food

contact, adhesives, polymeric coatings,

rubber articles, and cellophane. Kaolin

is used in pharmaceuticals, tablet

diluents, poultices, and surgical dusting

powders. Kaolin is used as a cosmetic

in face powders, face masks, and face

packs. Kaolin is used in health products

and toiletries, toothpaste, and

antiperspirants. Kaolin can be used

directly in foods as an anti-caking agent

(up to 2.5%).

D. Aggregate Exposure

1. Dietary exposure of kaolin via food

or water is difficult to estimate due to

the use of kaolin in thousands of

products. Kaolin is an inert mineral and

has no known toxicological effects.

2. Increased non-dietary exposure of

kaolin via lawn care, topical insect

repellents, etc. will be minimal. Kaolin

is already used in the products listed in

Unit I.C. of this document. The amount

of kaolin currently used in the U.S.

pesticide industry as an inert is between

2 million lbs. and 10 million lbs. per

year.

E. Cumulative Exposure

Kaolin has no mode of toxicity and

therefore cumulative exposure is not

applicable. Kaolin is used in thousands

of products as well as being a naturally

occurring part of the earth. Cumulative

exposure is not possible to calculate nor

is it necessary due to the non-toxic

nature of kaolin.

F. Safety Determination

1. For the U.S. population kaolin has

no known adverse effects.

2. For infants and children kaolin has

no known adverse effects.

G. Existing Tolerances

1. Kaolin is listed as exempt from the

requirement of a tolerance ‘‘when used

in accordance with good agricultural

practice as an inert (or occasionally

active) ingredient in pesticide

formulations applied to growing crops

or to raw agricultural commodities after

harvest.’’(40 CFR 180.1001)

2. The registrant does not know if

international tolerance exemptions

exist; however, since kaolin is

commonly used as an inert in chemical

pesticide formulations, it is assumed

that such exemptions from the

requirement of a tolerance exist.

II. Public Record

EPA invites interested persons to

submit comments on this notice of

filing. Comments must bear a

notification indicating the docket

control number [PF-698]. All written

comments filed in response to this

petition will be available, in the Public

Response and Program Resources

Branch, at the address given below from

8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through

Friday, except legal holidays. A record

has been established for this notice

under docket control number [PF-698]

(including comments and data

submitted electronically as described

below). A public version of this record,

including printed, paper versions of

electronic comments, which does not

include any information claimed as CBI,

is available for inspection from 8:30

a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday,

excluding legal holidays. The public

record is located in Room 1132 of the

Public Response and Program Resources

Branch, Field Operations Division

(7506C), Office of Pesticide Programs,

Environmental Protection Agency,

Crystal Mall #2, 1921 Jefferson Davis

Highway, Arlington, VA.

Electronic comments can be sent

directly to EPA at:

opp-docket@epamail.epa.gov

Electronic comments must be

submitted as an ASCII file avoiding the

use of special characters and any form

of encryption. The official record for

this notice, as well as the public

version, as described above will be kept

in paper form. Accordingly, EPA will

transfer all comments received

electronically into printed, paper form

as they are received and will place the

paper copies in the official record which
6526 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 29 / Wednesday, February 12, 1997 / Notices

will also include all comments

submitted directly in writing.

The official record is the paper record

maintained at the address in

‘‘ADDRESSES’’ at the beginning of this

notice.

List of Subjects

Environmental protection,

Agricultural commodities, Pesticides

and pests, Reporting and recordkeeping

requirements.

Dated: January 30, 1997.

Janet L. Andersen,

Director, Biopesticides and Pollution

Prevention Division, Office of Pesticide

Programs.

[FR Doc. 97–3224 Filed 2–11–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560–50–F

[PF–704; FRL–5586–5]

Entek; Pesticide Tolerance Petition

Filing

AGENCY: Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of filing.

SUMMARY: This notice announces the

initial filing of a pesticide petition

proposing the establishment of

tolerances for residues of carbon

disulfide in or on almond nutmeats,

almond hulls, peaches and plums (fresh

prunes). This notice includes a

summary of the petition that was

prepared by the petitioner, Entek

Corporation.

DATES: Comments, identified by the

docket number [PF-704], must be

received on or before, March 14, 1997.

ADDRESSES: By mail, submit written

comments to: Public Response and

Program Resources Branch, Field

Operations Division (7506C), Office of

Pesticide Programs, Environmental

Protection Agency, 401 M St., SW.,

Washington, DC 20460. In person, bring

comments to Rm. 1132, CM #2, 1921

Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, VA.

Comments and data may also be

submitted electronically be sending

electronic mail (e-mail) to: oppdocket@epamail.epa.gov. Electronic

comments must be submitted as an

ASCII file avoiding the use of special

characters and any form of encryption.

Comments and data will also be

accepted on disks in WordPerfect in 5.1

file format or ASCII file format. All

comments and data in electronic form

must be identified by docket number

[PF-704]. Electronic comments on this

notice may be filed online at many

Federal Depository Libraries. Additional

information on electronic submissions

can be found in Unit II. of this

document.

Information submitted as a comment

concerning this document may be

claimed confidential by marking any

part or all of that information as

‘‘Confidential Business Information’’

(CBI). CBI should not be submitted

through e-mail. Information marked as

CBI will not be disclosed except in

accordance with procedures set forth in

40 CFR part 2. A copy of the comment

that does not contain CBI must be

submitted for inclusion in the public

record. Information not marked

confidential may be disclosed publicly

by EPA without prior notice. All written

comments will be available for public

inspection in Rm. 1132 at the address

given above, from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.,

Monday through Friday, excluding legal

holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Cynthia Giles-Parker, Product Manager

(22), Registration Division (7505C),

Office of Pesticide Programs,

Environmental Protection Agency, 401

M St., SW., Washington, DC 20460.

Office location, telephone number, and

e-mail address: Rm. 229, CM #2, 1921

Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, VA,

703–305–5540, e-mail: gilesparker.cynthia@epamail.epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: EPA has

received a pesticide petition (PP

5F4482) from Entek Corporation, P.O.

Box 458, Brea, CA 92822, proposing

pursuant to section 408(d) of the Federal

Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA),

21 U.S.C. 346a(d), to amend 40 CFR

180.467 by establishing a tolerance, at

0.1 part per million (ppm), for residues

of the fumigant carbon disulfide

resulting from the soil application of

sodium tetrathiocarbonate in or on the

raw agricultural commodities almond

nutmeats, almond hulls, peaches and

plumes (fresh prunes). The proposed

analytical method is gas

chromatography using a sulfur specific

detector. EPA has determined that the

petition contains data or information

regarding the elements set forth in

section 408(d)(2); however, EPA has not

fully evaluated the sufficiency of the

submitted data at this time or whether

the data supports granting of the

petition. Additional data may be needed

before EPA rules on the petition.

As required by section 408(d) of the

FFDCA, as recently amended by the

Food Quality Protection Act (Pub. L.

104-170), Entek Corporation included in

the petition a summary of the petition

and authorization for the summary to be

published in the Federal Register in a

notice of receipt of the petition. The

summary represents the views of Entek

Corporation. EPA is in the process of

evaluating the petition. As required by

section 408(d)(3) EPA is including the

summary as a part of this notice of

filing. EPA has made minor edits to the

summary for the purpose of clarity.

I. Entek’s Petition Summary

A. Residue Chemistry

1. Plant metabolism. Radiolabel

metabolism studies, using 14C labeled

sodium tetrathiocarbonate, were

conducted with potatoes and tomatoes.

The studies established that sodium

tetrathiocarbonate rapidly degrades in

soil and plants and the resulting

residues are carbon disulfide (CS2), free

and bound. No other residues of

concern were identified in the

radiolabel or other residue chemistry

studies submitted by the petitioner.

2. Analytical method. An adequate

analytical method for detecting free and

bound CS2 residues in plants is

available. The method has been

validated by EPA. In brief, plant

material is blended with water in a

sealed container. Aliquots of the gas and

liquid phases are removed and the free

CS2 content is determined by purge-andtrap gas chromatography using a sulfurspecific detector. A sample of the liquid

phase, purged for free CS2, is subjected

to hot acid hydrolysis followed by

purge-and-trap gas chromatography in

order to measure the bound CS2 content.

In general, the limit of detection for the

analytical method is 0.5 ppb and the

limit of quantitation is 1.7 parts per

billion (ppb).

3. Magnitude of residues. Two field

trials were conducted for each crop

(peaches, plums and almonds). Trials

were all conducted in California since it

is the predominant growing area for

each of the requested raw agricultural

commodities (RACs) and the petitioner

has proposed to limit use of Enzone

(the product containing sodium

tetrathiocarbonate) to Arizona,

California, Oregon, and Washington. In

each trial, sodium tetrathiocarbonate

was applied in amounts equal to or

greater than the maximum label rate and

pretreatment, control and treatment

samples were analyzed for free and

bound CS2.

In the plum and peach trials, very low

levels (<20 ppb) of free and bound CS2

were observed in pretreated, control and

treatment samples. In both almond

trials, very low levels of free or bound

CS2 (< 10 ppb) were observed in almond

nutmeats. In one of the almond trials,

unusually high levels of bound CS2

(from 567–6,761 ppb) were observed in

control and treated almond hull