### 72856 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 235 / Thursday, December 6, 2012 / Notices

provisions are within the scope of its previous authorizations.

My decision will affect not only persons in California, but also entities outside the State who must comply with California’s requirements. For this reason, I determine and find that this is a final action of national applicability for purposes of section 307(b)(1) of the Act. Pursuant to section 307(b)(1) of the Act, judicial review of this final action may be sought only in the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Petitions for review must be filed by February 4, 2013. Judicial review of this final action may not be obtained in subsequent enforcement proceedings, pursuant to section 307(b)(2) of the Act. IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

As with past authorization and waiver decisions, this action is not a rule as defined by Executive Order 12866. Therefore, it is exempt from review by the Office of Management and Budget as required for rules and regulations by Executive Order 12866.

In addition, this action is not a rule as defined in the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601(2). Therefore, EPA has not prepared a supporting regulatory flexibility analysis addressing the impact of this action on small business entities.

Further, the Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 801, et seq., as added by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, does not apply because this action is not a rule for purposes of 5 U.S.C. 804(3).

Dated: November 29, 2012. Gina McCarthy, Assistant Administrator, Office of Air and Radiation.

[FR Doc. 2012–29513 Filed 12–5–12; 8:45 am]

**BILLING CODE 6560–50–P**

**ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY** 

**[FRL–9758–3]**

**New York State Prohibition of Discharges of Vessel Sewage; Receipt**  **of Petition and Tentative Affirmative Determination** 

**AGENCY :**  Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

**ACTION :**  Notice—receipt of petition and tentative affirmative determination.

**SUMMARY :**  Notice is given that, pursuant to Clean Water Act Section 312(f)(3), the State of New York has determined that the protection and enhancement of the quality of the New York State (NYS or the State) portion of Lake Erie requires greater environmental protection, and has petitioned the United States Environmental Protection Agency, Region 2, for a determination that adequate facilities for the safe and sanitary removal and treatment of sewage from all vessels are reasonably available for those waters, so that the State may completely prohibit the discharge from all vessels of any sewage, whether treated or not, into such waters.

New York State has proposed to establish a ‘‘Vessel Waste No Discharge Zone’’ for the State’s portion of LakeErie stretching from the PennsylvaniaNew York State boundary to include the upper Niagara River to Niagara Falls. The proposed No Discharge Zone encompasses approximately 593 square miles and 84 linear shoreline miles, including the navigable portions of the Upper Niagara River and numerous other tributaries and harbors, and embayments of the Lake, including Barcelona Harbor, Dunkirk Harbor and Buffalo Outer Harbor, and other formally designated habitats and waterways of local, state, and national significance.

**DATES :**  Comments regarding this tentative determination are due by January 7, 2013.

Petition: You may view Lake Erie No Discharge Zone Petition by clicking the link below: http://www.epa.gov/ region02/water/permits.html.

**ADDRESSES :**  You may submit comments by any of the following methods:

• Email: chang.moses@epa.gov

. Include ‘‘Comments on Tentative Affirmative Decision for NYS Lake Erie NDZ’’ in the subject line of the message.

• Fax: 212–637–3891.

• Mail and Hand Delivery/Courier: Moses Chang, U.S. EPA Region 2, 290 Broadway, 24th Floor, New York, NY 10007–1866. Deliveries are only accepted during the Regional Office’s normal hours of operation (8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding federal holidays), and special arrangements should be made for deliveries of boxed information.

**FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT :**  Moses Chang, (212) 637–3867, email address: chang.moses@epa.gov

. **SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION :**  Notice is given that the State of New York has petitioned the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Region 2, pursuant to section 312(f)(3) of Public Law 92–500 as amended by Public Law 95–217 and Public Law 100–4, that adequate facilities for the safe and sanitary removal and treatment of sewage from all vessels are reasonably available for the NYS portion of Lake Erie. Adequate pumpout facilities are defined as one pumpout station for every 300–600 boats under the Clean Vessel Act: Pumpout Station and Dump Station Technical Guidelines ( Federal Register

, Vol. 59, No. 47, March 10, 1994).

The Great Lakes are the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth, containing 95% of the fresh surface water in the United States and serving as the largest single reservoir on Earth. The glacial history and the influence of the Lakes themselves create unique conditions that support a wealth of biological diversity, including over 200 globally rare plants and animals and more than 40 species that are found nowhere else in the world.

Lake Erie is the smallest of the Great Lakes. It is also the shallowest, with depths that range from an approximate average of 24 feet in the western basin, to 82 feet in the deeper eastern basin. As the shallowest of the Great Lakes, it warms quickly in the spring and summer, and cools quickly in the fall. This shallowness and the warmer temperatures result in making Lake Erie the most biologically productive of the Great Lakes.

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) developed the New York State petition in collaboration with New York State Department of State (DOS) and the New York State Environmental Facilities Corporation (EFC) to establish a vessel waste No Discharge Zone (NDZ) on the open waters, tributaries, harbors and embayments of New York State’s portion of Lake Erie.

A Clean Water Act Section 312(f)(4)(B) NDZ designation for drinking water intake zones might be appropriate for the vast majority of the Lake Erie waters included in this petition. However, to address the few areas that are not Class A (including Barcelona Harbor, Dunkirk Harbor and the Black Rock Canal), the State is seeking a determination by EPA, under Section 312(f)(3), that adequate facilities exist for the safe and sanitary removal and treatment of sewage from all vessels using this area of the Lake, and has provided information on Lake resources, vessel traffic, and vessel pumpout facilities in support of such a determination. In support of its petition, the state also submitted a Certification of the Need for Greater Protection and Enhancement of Lake Erie waters.

The Lake Erie watershed is home to approximately one-third of the total human population of the Great Lakes basin: 11.6 million people (10 million


### 72857 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 235 / Thursday, December 6, 2012 / Notices

U.S. and 1.6 million Canadian), including 17 metropolitan areas, each with more than 50,000 residents. The majority, 11 million people, receive their drinking water from the Lake. Of all the Great Lakes, Lake Erie is exposed to the greatest stress from urbanization, industrialization and agriculture. Because the Lake Erie basin supports such a large human population, it surpasses all the other Great Lakes in the amount of effluent received from sewage treatment plants.

There are 18 designated Significant Coastal Fish and Wildlife Habitats in the two counties that comprise New York’s Lake Erie shoreline, including Cataraugus Creek, Dunkirk Harbor, Buckhorn Island Wetlands and Grand Island Tributaries. These habitats are essential to the survival of a large portion of lake fish and wildlife populations, and they support populations of species of special concern as well as those having significant commercial, recreational, and educational values.

The New York State shoreline and waters of Lake Erie also host a variety of swimming, boating and other recreational activities. These recreational activities are a source of revenue to the regional economy, bringing people to the shoreline, where they patronize local businesses.

Virtually all of Lake Erie is classified by New York State as Class A waters. This classification means that the best uses of these waters are for drinking, culinary or food processing purposes, recreation and fishing. Class A waters shall be suitable for fish, shellfish, and wildlife propagation and survival, and, when subject to accepted treatment for drinking water supplies, must comply with New York State Department of Health (DOH) drinking water safety standards. Currently, six New York municipal and community water supplies, including Buffalo and Erie County, draw water from Lake Erie, and serve approximately 275,000 people.

In summary, as one of the nation’s premier waterbodies, Lake Erie supports several important uses, including drinking water supplies, valuable habitats, commercial and recreational boating and other recreational activities. The Lake serves as an economic engine for the region, heavily used and enjoyed by the citizens of the many lakeshore communities and throughout the watershed. The protection and enhancement of the open waters, tributaries, harbors and embayments of the New York State portion of Lake Erie require greater protection than is afforded by the current federal vessel sewage discharge standards. And, an NDZ designation covering the waters of the Lake represents one component of a comprehensive approach to water quality management. This wider effort includes initiatives to control point and non-point source pollution, including pollution associated with municipal discharges, Combined Sewer Overflows, and storm water runoff.

For EPA to determine that adequate facilities for the safe and sanitary removal and treatment of sewage from all vessels are reasonably available for the New York State portion of Lake Erie, the State must demonstrate that the pumpout-to-vessel ratio does not exceed 1:600. In its petition, the State described the recreational and commercial vessels that use Lake Erie and the pumpout facilities that are available for their use.

To develop a reasonable estimate of recreational vessel use of the NYS portion of Lake Erie, the State utilized two major sources of information. The first was DOS’s Clean Vessel Act Plan (Statewide Plan), released in1996. Using data from the Statewide Plan, the estimated number of recreational vessels in each of the New York State counties bordering Lake Erie is 2,029. The second information source for recreational boater usage was boater registrations, obtained through the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation’s 2010 Boating Report (OPRHP Report) for the counties of Erie and Chautauqua (the two New York State counties on Lake Erie). The data in the OPRHP Report yields an estimate of 2,204 vessels with MSDs in the respective counties, which are assumed to operate in Lake Erie.

The State provided sufficient information about 15 pumpout facilities that are publicly available for use by recreational and small commercial vessels on the New York State shore of Lake Erie. These facilities either discharge to a holding tank, to a municipal wastewater treatment plant, or to an on-site septic system. All fifteen (15) were created through funding provided by the Clean Vessel Assistance Program (CVAP), and are thus required to be open to the public. Nine additional marinas are located along Lake Erie in New York State. Four of these do not receive CVAP funding, so specific information is not available. The other five marinas represent locations where CVAP funding could support future pumpout facilities. However, for purposes of this adequacy determination, EPA only considered the 15 CVAP funded facilities. Therefore, the most conservative estimate of the ratio of pumpout facilities to recreational vessels is 15:2,204 or 1:147. Because this exceeds the minimum ratio of 1:600, EPA proposes to determine that adequate pumpout facilities for the safe and sanitary removal and treatment of sewage for recreational vessels are reasonably available for the New York State portion of Lake Erie shoreline.

Lake Erie is also used by large commercial vessels. The commercial vessel population was estimated using data from the National Ballast Information Clearinghouse (NBIC), which records ballast water discharge reports for arriving ships at the two main commercial ports on Lake Erie: Buffalo and Lackawanna. In 2010, ballast manifests showed that 62 vessels arrived in Buffalo, and one arrived in Lackawanna. The majority (58) of these vessels were bulk ships, with two passenger ships and one more listed as ‘‘other.’’ The single arrival in Lackawanna was also a bulk ship. Based on these sources, New York State conservatively estimates that the commercial boat traffic docking in the New York State portion of Lake Erie is approximately one vessel per week. Although there are no fixed commercial vessel pumpout facilities at the Ports of Buffalo or Lackawanna, information gathered from the petition indicated that mobile pumpout services are available for hire, including septic waste haulers or pumpout trucks, which can service the vessels while they are docked in either port.

To supplement the State’s submissions regarding commercial vessel traffic in the NYS section of Lake Erie, DEC published a data call on its Web site seeking any additional relevant information, and also sent an informal request for information to commercial boating organizations that had commented on previous New York State NDZ petitions. Through that data call or request for information exercise DEC did not obtain any additional information. Therefore, based on the low level of commercial vessel traffic at Lake Erie ports in New York, and the availability of septic hauler pumpout trucks, EPA proposes to determine that adequate pumpout facilities for the safe and sanitary removal and treatment of sewage for commercial vessels are reasonably available for the New York State portion of Lake Erie shoreline.

A list of pumpout facilities, phone numbers, locations, hours of operation, water depth and fees is provided below:


### 72858 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 235 / Thursday, December 6, 2012 / Notices

L IST OF 

### P UMPOUTS IN THE 

### LAKE 

### E RIE 

### NDZ P ROPOSED 

### A REA

No. Name Location Contact information Days and hours of operation Water depth (feet) Fee

1 .......... City of Dunkirk—Municipal Dock. Dunkirk Harbor .................... 716–366–9882 April 1–November 15, 6 a.m.–6 p.m. 6 ′–7′ $5.00

2 .......... Niagara Frontier Trans. Authority. Buffalo Harbor and Buffalo River. 716–855–7230 May 5–October 15, 7:00 a.m.–10:30 p.m. 6 ′–8 ′ 5.00

3 .......... RCR Yachts Skyway Marina Buffalo Harbor and Buffalo River. 716–856–6314 April 1–November 30, 8:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m. 12 ′ 5.00

4 .......... City of Buffalo—Erie Basin Marina. Buffalo Harbor and Buffalo River. 716–851–5389 May 1–October 15, 7:00 a.m.–7:00 p.m. 10′ 6.50

5 .......... Rich Marine Sales, Inc ........ Buffalo Harbor and Buffalo River. 716–873–4060 May 1–November 1, 9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. 6 ′ 5.00

6 .......... Harbour Place Marine Sales, Inc. Buffalo Harbor and Buffalo River. 716–876–5944 April 15–October 31, 24 Hours. 12 ′ 5.00

7 .......... NYSOPRHP—Beaver Island State Park Transient M. Grand Island ........................ 716–278–1775 May 15–October 15, 24 Hours. 10′ 5.00

8 .......... Blue Water Marine ............... Grand Island ........................ 716–773–7884 May 1–November 1, 9:00 a.m.–7:00 p.m. 5 ′ 0.00

9 .......... Mid River Marina Inc ........... Tonawanda Creek ............... 716–875–7447 April 1–September 30, 9:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m. 5 ′ 5.00

10 ........ Collins Marine Inc ................ Tonawanda Creek ............... 716–875–6000 April 1–November 1, 24 Hours. 6 ′ 5.00

11 ........ The Shores/Placid HarborMarine—Tonawanda Marine Develop Corp. Tonawanda Creek ............... 716–625–8235 April 15–October 15, 9:00 a.m.–9:00 p.m. 12 ′ 5.00

12 ........ Niagara River Yacht Club .... Tonawanda Creek ............... 716–693–2882 May 1–November 1, Dusk– Dawn. NA 3.00

13 ........ Smith Boys of North Tonawanda—Upgrade. Tonawanda Creek ............... 716–693–3472 April 1–November, 24 Hours 8 ′ 0.00

14 ........ East Pier Marine, Inc ........... Tonawanda Creek ............... 716–693–6604 May 1–November 15, 9:00 a.m.–8:00 p.m. 5 ′ 5.00

15 ........ NYSOPRHP—Big Six Mile Creek State Marina. Grand Island ........................ 315–483–9111 May 1–November 1, 24 Hours. 10′ 5.00

Based on the above, EPA proposes to make an affirmative determination that adequate facilities for the safe and sanitary removal and treatment of sewage from all vessels are available for the waters of the New York State portion of Lake Erie. A 30-day period for public comment has been opened on this matter, and EPA invites any comments relevant to its proposed determination. If, after the public comment period ends, EPA makes a final affirmative determination that adequate facilities for the safe and sanitary removal and treatment of sewage from all vessels are reasonably available for the New York State areas of Lake Erie, the State may completely prohibit the discharge from all vessels of any sewage, whether treated or not, into those waters.

Dated: November 16, 2012. Judith A. Enck, Regional Administrator, Region 2.

[FR Doc. 2012–29509 Filed 12–5–12; 8:45 am]

**BILLING CODE 6560–50–P ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION**  **AGENCY**

**[FRL–9758–4; Docket ID No. EPA–HQ–ORD– 2012–0830]** 

**Toxicological Review of Inorganic Arsenic (Cancer and Noncancer**  **Effects): In Support of Summary Information on the Integrated Risk**  **Information System (IRIS)**

**AGENCY :**  Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

**ACTION :**  Notice of a public stakeholder workshop to inform the development of a state of the science toxicological review of inorganic arsenic (cancer and noncancer effects) in support of the IRIS

program.

**SUMMARY :**  The inorganic arsenic (iAs) public stakeholder workshop is designed to inform the planning for EPA’s toxicological review of chronic exposure to iAs (cancer and noncancer effects), which EPA intends to post in the IRIS database. Workshop participants will be asked to highlight significant new and emerging research, discuss methods for evaluating literature, identify critical research issues (including mode of action) that may impact the toxicological review, and discuss approaches for doseresponse. The ultimate goals of the workshop are to ensure that while developing the toxicological review, EPA provides public stakeholders an opportunity to inform the toxicological review and transparently communicates how EPA will produce a toxicological review that meets the needs of Agency stakeholders and partners.

**DATES :**  The public stakeholder workshop will begin at 8:00 a.m. on January 8, 2013, and end at 5:00 p.m. on January 9, 2013.

**ADDRESSES :**  The iAs public stakeholder workshop will be held at the U.S. EPA, 109 T.W. Alexander Drive, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina 27711. To attend the workshop in person, register no later than 12:00 p.m. on January 2, 2013, by contacting Susan Blaine via email: EPA

_ Arsenic@icfi.com or by telephone: 703–225–2471 (reference the iAs Public Stakeholder Workshop and include your name, title, affiliation, full address, and contact information). You can also register via the Internet at http://tinyurl.com/EPA-Arsenic-2013. Space is limited, and reservations will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis.