Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 113 / Tuesday, June 12, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 27291 

CFR 165.1315 will be activated and thus 

subject to enforcement at least 1 hour 

before and 1 hour after the duration of 

the event each day as listed in the 

following Table: 

TABLE—DATES AND DURATIONS IN 2018 FOR EVENTS LISTED IN 33 CFR 165.1315 AND THE LOCATION OF THESE

EVENTS WITHIN THE SECTOR COLUMBIA RIVER CAPTAIN OF THE PORT ZONE

Event name 

(typically) Event location Date and duration of event Latitude Longitude 

Gardiner 4th of July ................................... Gardiner, OR .... July 4, 2018, 9:15 p.m. to 10:15 p.m ......... 43°43′55′′ N 124°06′48′′ W 

Ilwaco July 4th Committee Fireworks/Independence Day at the Port.Ilwaco, WA ....... July 7, 2018, 10 p.m. to 10:30 p.m ............ 46°18′17′′ N 124°02′00′′ W 

All coordinates are listed in reference 

Datum NAD 1983. These safety zones 

cover waters within a 450-yard radius of 

the barge or other launch site with a 

‘‘FIREWORKS—DANGER—STAY 

AWAY’’ sign at the locations indicated 

by latitude and longitude coordinates 

listed in the table above. 

In addition to this notice of 

enforcement in the Federal Register, the 

Coast Guard plans to provide 

notification of these enforcement 

periods via the Local Notice to 

Mariners. 

Dated: June 6, 2018. 

D.F. Berliner, 

Captain, U.S. Coast Guard, Acting Captain 

of the Port, Sector Columbia River. 

[FR Doc. 2018–12623 Filed 6–11–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 9110–04–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 372 

[EPA–HQ–TRI–2016–0222; FRL–9979–16] 

RIN 2070–AK15 

Addition of Nonylphenol Ethoxylates 

Category; Community Right-to-Know 

Toxic Chemical Release Reporting 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: EPA is adding a nonylphenol 

ethoxylates (NPEs) category to the list of 

toxic chemicals subject to reporting 

under section 313 of the Emergency 

Planning and Community Right-toKnow Act (EPCRA) and section 6607 of 

the Pollution Prevention Act (PPA). EPA 

is adding this chemical category to the 

EPCRA section 313 list because EPA has 

determined that NPEs meet the EPCRA 

section 313(d)(2)(C) toxicity criteria. 

Specifically, EPA has determined that 

short-chain NPEs are highly toxic to 

aquatic organisms and longer chain 

NPEs, while not as toxic as short-chain 

NPEs, can break down in the 

environment to short-chain NPEs and 

nonylphenol, both of which are highly 

toxic to aquatic organisms. 

DATES: 

Effective date: This final rule is 

effective November 30, 2018. 

Applicability date: This final rule will 

apply for the reporting year beginning 

January 1, 2019 (reports due July 1, 

2020). 

ADDRESSES: EPA has established a 

docket for this action under Docket ID 

No. EPA–HQ–TRI–2016–0222. All 

documents in the docket are listed on 

http://www.regulations.gov. Although 

listed in the index, some information is 

not publicly available, e.g., Confidential 

Business Information or other 

information whose disclosure is 

restricted by statute. Certain other 

material, such as copyrighted material, 

is not placed on the internet and will be 

publicly available only in hard copy 

form. Publicly available docket 

materials are available electronically 

through http://www.regulations.gov. 

Additional instructions on visiting the 

docket, along with more information 

about dockets generally, is available at 

http://www.epa.gov/dockets/ 

commenting-epa-dockets. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

For technical information contact: 

Daniel R. Bushman, Toxics Release 

Inventory Program Division (7410M), 

Office of Pollution Prevention and 

Toxics, Environmental Protection 

Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, 

Washington, DC 20460–0001; telephone 

number: (202) 566–0743; email: 

bushman.daniel@epa.gov. 

For general information contact: The 

Emergency Planning and Community 

Right-to- Know Hotline; telephone 

numbers: toll free at (800) 424–9346 

(select menu option 3) or (703) 348– 

5070 in the Washington, DC Area and 

International; or go to https://

www.epa.gov/home/epa-hotlines. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. General Information 

A. Does this action apply to me? 

You may be potentially affected by 

this action if you manufacture, process, 

or otherwise use NPEs. The following 

list of North American Industrial 

Classification System (NAICS) codes is 

not intended to be exhaustive, but rather 

provides a guide to help readers 

determine whether this document 

applies to them. Potentially affected 

entities may include: 

• Facilities included in the following 

NAICS manufacturing codes 

(corresponding to Standard Industrial 

Classification (SIC) codes 20 through 

39): 311*, 312*, 313*, 314*, 315*, 316, 

321, 322, 323*, 324, 325*, 326*, 327, 

331, 332, 333, 334*, 335*, 336, 337*, 

339*, 111998*, 211130*, 212324*, 

212325*, 212393*, 212399*, 488390*, 

511110, 511120, 511130, 511140*, 

511191, 511199, 512230*, 512250*, 

519130*, 541713*, 541715* or 811490*. 

*Exceptions and/or limitations exist for 

these NAICS codes. 

• Facilities included in the following 

NAICS codes (corresponding to SIC 

codes other than SIC codes 20 through 

39): 212111, 212112, 212113 

(corresponds to SIC code 12, Coal 

Mining (except 1241)); or 212221, 

212222, 212230, 212299 (corresponds to 

SIC code 10, Metal Mining (except 1011, 

1081, and 1094)); or 221111, 221112, 

221113, 221118, 221121, 221122, 

221330 (limited to facilities that 

combust coal and/or oil for the purpose 

of generating power for distribution in 

commerce) (corresponds to SIC codes 

4911, 4931, and 4939, Electric Utilities); 

or 424690, 425110, 425120 (limited to 

facilities previously classified in SIC 

code 5169, Chemicals and Allied 

Products, Not Elsewhere Classified); or 

424710 (corresponds to SIC code 5171, 

Petroleum Bulk Terminals and Plants); 

or 562112 (limited to facilities primarily 

engaged in solvent recovery services on 

a contract or fee basis (previously 

classified under SIC code 7389, 

Business Services, NEC)); or 562211, 

562212, 562213, 562219, 562920 


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(limited to facilities regulated under the 

Resource Conservation and Recovery 

Act, subtitle C, 42 U.S.C. 6921 et seq.) 

(corresponds to SIC code 4953, Refuse 

Systems). 

• Federal facilities. 

To determine whether your facility 

would be affected by this action, you 

should carefully examine the 

applicability criteria in part 372, subpart 

B of Title 40 of the Code of Federal 

Regulations. If you have questions 

regarding the applicability of this action 

to a particular entity, consult the person 

listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT. 

B. What action is the Agency taking? 

EPA is adding a NPEs category to the 

list of toxic chemicals subject to 

reporting under EPCRA section 313 and 

PPA section 6607. EPA is adding this 

chemical category to the EPCRA section 

313 list because EPA believes NPEs 

meet the EPCRA section 313(d)(2)(C) 

toxicity criteria. 

C. What is the Agency’s authority for 

taking this action? 

This action is issued under EPCRA 

sections 313(d) and 328, 42 U.S.C. 

11023 et seq., and PPA section 6607, 42 

U.S.C. 13106. EPCRA is also referred to 

as Title III of the Superfund 

Amendments and Reauthorization Act 

of 1986. 

Section 313 of EPCRA, 42 U.S.C. 

11023, requires certain facilities that 

manufacture, process, or otherwise use 

listed toxic chemicals in amounts above 

reporting threshold levels to report their 

environmental releases and other waste 

management quantities of such 

chemicals annually. These facilities 

must also report pollution prevention 

and recycling data for such chemicals, 

pursuant to section 6607 of the PPA, 42 

U.S.C. 13106. Congress established an 

initial list of toxic chemicals that was 

comprised of 308 individually listed 

chemicals and 20 chemical categories. 

EPCRA section 313(d) authorizes EPA 

to add or delete chemicals from the list 

and sets criteria for these actions. 

EPCRA section 313(d)(2) states that EPA 

may add a chemical to the list if any of 

the listing criteria in EPCRA section 

313(d)(2) are met. Therefore, to add a 

chemical, EPA must demonstrate that at 

least one criterion is met, but need not 

determine whether any other criterion is 

met. Conversely, to remove a chemical 

from the list, EPCRA section 313(d)(3) 

dictates that EPA must demonstrate that 

none of the criteria in ECPRA section 

313(d)(2) are met. The listing criteria in 

EPCRA section 313(d)(2)(A)–(C) are as 

follows: 

• The chemical is known to cause or 

can reasonably be anticipated to cause 

significant adverse acute human health 

effects at concentration levels that are 

reasonably likely to exist beyond facility 

site boundaries as a result of 

continuous, or frequently recurring, 

releases. 

• The chemical is known to cause or 

can reasonably be anticipated to cause 

in humans: Cancer or teratogenic effects, 

or serious or irreversible reproductive 

dysfunctions, neurological disorders, 

heritable genetic mutations, or other 

chronic health effects. 

• The chemical is known to cause or 

can be reasonably anticipated to cause, 

because of its toxicity, its toxicity and 

persistence in the environment, or its 

toxicity and tendency to bioaccumulate 

in the environment, a significant 

adverse effect on the environment of 

sufficient seriousness, in the judgment 

of the Administrator, to warrant 

reporting under this section. 

EPA often refers to the EPCRA section 

313(d)(2)(A) criterion as the ‘‘acute 

human health effects criterion;’’ the 

EPCRA section 313(d)(2)(B) criterion as 

the ‘‘chronic human health effects 

criterion;’’ and the EPCRA section 

313(d)(2)(C) criterion as the 

‘‘environmental effects criterion.’’ 

EPA published in the Federal 

Register of November 30, 1994 (59 FR 

61432) (FRL–4922–2), a statement 

clarifying its interpretation of the 

EPCRA section 313(d)(2) and (d)(3) 

criteria for modifying the EPCRA 

section 313 list of toxic chemicals. 

II. Summary of Proposed Rule 

A. What chemical category did EPA 

propose to add to the EPCRA section 

313 list of toxic chemicals? 

As discussed in the proposed rule of 

November 16, 2016 (81 FR 80624) (FRL– 

9951–01), EPA proposed to add a NPEs 

category to the EPCRA section 313 list 

of toxic chemicals. NPEs are nonionic 

surfactants containing a branched ninecarbon alkyl chain bound to phenol and 

a chain of repeating ethoxylate units 

(C9H19C6H4(OCH2CH2)nOH). The 

number of repeating ethoxylate units (n) 

can range from 1 to 100. NPEs were 

proposed to be listed as a category that 

would include the thirteen NPEs that 

currently appear on the Toxic 

Substances Control Act inventory 

(https://www.epa.gov/tsca-inventory). 

The NPEs category would be defined as 

Nonylphenol Ethoxylates and would 

only include those chemicals covered 

by the following Chemical Abstracts 

Service Registry Numbers (CASRNs): 

D 7311–27–5; Ethanol, 2-[2-[2-[2- (4- 

nonylphenoxy) ethoxy] 

ethoxy]ethoxy]- 

D 9016–45–9; Poly(oxy-1,2-ethanediyl), 

a-(nonylphenyl)-w-hydroxyD 20427–84–3; Ethanol, 2-[2-(4- 

nonylphenoxy)ethoxy]- 

D 26027–38–3; Poly(oxy-1,2- 

ethanediyl), a-(4-nonylphenyl)-whydroxyD 26571–11–9; 3,6,9,12,15,18,21,24- 

Octaoxahexacosan-1-ol, 26- 

(nonylphenoxy)- 

D 27176–93–8; Ethanol, 2-[2- 

(nonylphenoxy)ethoxy]- 

D 27177–05–5; 3,6,9,12,15,18,21- 

Heptaoxatricosan-1-ol, 23- 

(nonylphenoxy)- 

D 27177–08–8; 3,6,9,12,15,18,21,24,27- 

Nonaoxanonacosan-1-ol, 29- 

(nonylphenoxy)- 

D 27986–36–3; Ethanol, 2- 

(nonylphenoxy)- 

D 37205–87–1; Poly(oxy-1,2- 

ethanediyl), a-(isononylphenyl)-whydroxyD 51938–25–1; Poly(oxy-1,2- 

ethanediyl), a-(2-nonylphenyl)-whydroxyD 68412–54–4; Poly(oxy-1,2- 

ethanediyl), a-(nonylphenyl)-whydroxy-, branched 

D 127087–87–0; Poly(oxy-1,2- 

ethanediyl), a-(4-nonylphenyl)-whydroxy-, branched 

B. What was EPA’s rationale for 

proposing to list the NPEs category? 

As discussed in the proposed rule of 

November 16, 2016 (81 FR 80624) (FRL– 

9951–01), EPA proposed to add shortchain NPEs to the EPCRA section 313 

toxic chemical list because they are 

highly toxic to aquatic organisms with 

toxicity values well below 1 mg/L. 

Therefore, EPA believed that the 

evidence was sufficient for listing shortchain NPEs on the EPCRA section 313 

toxic chemical list pursuant to EPCRA 

section 313(d)(2)(C) based on the 

available ecological toxicity data. Longchain NPEs, while not as toxic as shortchain NPEs, are known to become more 

toxic as they degrade in the 

environment to produce products that 

include highly toxic short-chain NPEs 

and nonylphenol. Nonylphenol is even 

more toxic to aquatic organisms than 

short-chain NPEs and was added to the 

EPCRA section 313 toxic chemical list 

based on its toxicity to aquatic 

organisms of September 30, 2014 (79 FR 

58686) (FRL–9915–59–OEI). As longchain NPEs are a source of degradation 

products that are highly toxic to aquatic 

organisms, EPA believed that the 

evidence was also sufficient for listing 

long-chain NPEs on the EPCRA section 

313 toxic chemical list pursuant to 


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EPCRA section 313(d)(2)(C) based on 

the available ecological toxicity and 

environmental fate data. 

EPA stated that it did not believe that 

it was appropriate to consider exposure 

for chemicals that are highly toxic based 

on a hazard assessment when 

determining if a chemical can be added 

for environmental effects pursuant to 

EPCRA section 313(d)(2)(C) (see 59 FR 

61440–61442). Therefore, in accordance 

with EPA’s standard policy on the use 

of exposure assessments (see November 

30, 1994 (59 FR 61432) (FRL–4922–2)), 

EPA stated that it did not believe that 

an exposure assessment was necessary 

or appropriate for determining whether 

NPEs meet the criteria of EPCRA section 

313(d)(2)(C). 

III. What comments did EPA receive on 

the proposed rule? 

EPA received six comments on the 

proposed rule to add a NPEs category to 

the EPCRA section 313 list of toxic 

chemicals, three were anonymously 

submitted (References (Refs.) 1, 2, and 

3). The comments received that were 

not anonymously submitted are from 

the following groups, the Alkylphenols 

& Ethoxylates Research Council 

(APERC) (Ref. 4), American Coatings 

Association (ACA) (Ref. 5), and 

Women’s Voices for the Earth (Ref. 6). 

Two of the anonymous commenters 

supported the listing as did the 

Women’s Voices for the Earth. One 

anonymous commenter only asked 

whether there were any exemptions or 

exceptions to the rule given its 

particular low-level use of NPEs (Ref. 2). 

ACA’s comment requested that EPA 

delay the effective date of the final rule. 

The only extensive comments received 

were submitted by APERC, which 

opposes the listing based on their 

technical and legal interpretations. 

Summaries of the most significant 

comments and EPA’s response are 

discussed here. The complete set of 

comments and EPA’s detailed responses 

can be found in the response to 

comments document in the docket for 

this rulemaking (Ref. 7). 

APERC stated that long-chain NPEs 

are not ‘‘highly toxic’’ to the aquatic 

environment, which EPA defined in the 

proposed rule and its supporting 

documents as ecotoxicity values below 

aquatic concentrations of 1 mg/L. 

As EPA has previously stated, when 

considering toxicity alone under EPCRA 

313(d)(2)(C), EPA typically limits it’s 

consideration of highly toxic to those 

chemicals that cause acute aquatic 

toxicity at about 1 mg/L or less and 

chronic aquatic toxicity at 0.1 mg/L or 

less (76 FR 64022, October 17, 2011). 

The purpose of these values is not to 

determine which chemicals are toxic 

but rather to determine if exposure 

should be part of EPA’s listing decision 

per its established exposure policy (59 

FR 61432, November 30, 1994). 

However, these are not absolute values 

and they do not preclude consideration 

of other factors such as the 

environmental fate of the chemical. 

While not as toxic to aquatic organisms 

as nonylphenol and short-chain NPEs, 

as noted by the commenter, long-chain 

NPEs are still toxic to aquatic 

organisms. As EPA cited in the 

proposed rule, the longer-chain NPEs 

are toxic to aquatic organisms (Refs. 8 

and 9). For an ethoxylate chain length 

of 5 reported toxicity values include a 

LC50 (i.e., the concentration that is lethal 

to 50% of test organisms) of 3.6 

milligrams per liter (mg/L) for Japanese 

killifish (Oryzias latipes) and LC50s of 

2.4–2.8 mg/L for bluegill sunfish 

(Lepomis macrochirus). For chain 

lengths of 9, toxicity ranged from a LC50

of 1.2 mg/L for Mysidopsis bahia to an 

EC50 (i.e., the concentration that is 

effective in producing a sublethal 

response in 50% of test organisms) of 

500 mg/L for green algae. Chain lengths 

of 50 were less toxic, for example an 

EC50 of >4,000 mg/L for emergence in 

mosquito larvae (Culex pipiens) was 

reported. Analysis of data from Hall 

(Table 2, Ref. 8) demonstrates a 

significant positive log-linear 

relationship between nonylphenol 

ethoxylate chain length (1.5 to 50) and 

acute 48-hour toxicity (LC50 values for 3 

to 8-day old mysid shrimp (M. bahia)). 

Shrimp LC50’s ranged from 0.11 mg/L 

for an ethoxylate chain length of 1.5 to 

greater than 4,110 mg/L for a chain 

length of 50. In general, the data 

indicate that toxicity of NPEs decreases 

as ethoxylate chain length increases, 

and vice versa. Because longer chain 

NPEs break down to shorter chain NPEs 

in the environment, they become more 

toxic. As noted in EPA’s exposure 

policy, for chemicals that are low to 

moderately ecotoxic, EPA may consider 

exposure factors such as environmental 

fate (59 FR 61432, November 30, 1994). 

EPA’s assessment of long-chain NPEs is 

that, depending on chain length, they 

are low to moderately toxic to aquatic 

organisms but that their environmental 

fate results in the formation of highly 

toxic nonylphenol and short-chain 

NPEs. 

It is well documented that long-chain 

NPEs can readily degrade to 

nonylphenol and short-chain NPEs and 

thus are a primary source of these 

chemicals found in the environment 

(Ref. 10). As noted in the proposed rule: 

Nonylphenol ethoxylate biodegradation 

products include shorter chain NPEs and 

ethoxycarboxylates. (Refs. 9, 10, and 20). 

Nonylphenol ethoxycarboxylates are NPEs 

that terminate with a carboxylate group 

(-CO2H) rather than an alcohol group 

(-OH). Although not commonly observed 

under aerobic conditions, nonylphenol is a 

major metabolite of NPEs under anaerobic 

conditions (Refs. 9, 10, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 

and 27) (81 FR 80626, November 16, 2016). 

Releases of long-chain NPEs, therefore, 

are essentially releases of both 

nonylphenol and short-chain NPEs 

which are highly toxic to aquatic 

organisms. To ignore the available data 

on the environmental fate of NPEs 

would underestimate the potential 

impact long-chain NPEs can have on 

aquatic organisms. 

APERC stated that listing the longchain NPEs on the basis that they are a 

source of degradation products that are 

highly toxic to aquatic organisms is not 

consistent with the statutory language in 

EPCRA section 313(d)(2)(C). APERC 

stated that the language in EPCRA 

section 313(d)(2)(C) is clear in stating 

that only the hazard of the chemical to 

be listed is to be considered. APERC 

notes that the statutory language 

specifies that significant adverse effects 

to the environment should be based on 

a compound’s toxicity, or its toxicity 

and persistence or its toxicity and 

bioaccumulation. APERC stated that the 

statutory language does not portend that 

listing of a chemical should be based on 

its degradation pathways or the toxicity 

of its degradation products. APERC also 

stated that where degradation 

intermediates themselves represent the 

hazard of interest that hazard is 

contingent on the conditions of disposal 

and treatment and ultimately the 

occurrence of those degradants in 

emissions and the receiving 

environment. They stated that disposal 

of long-chain NPEs in one treatment 

scenario may generate degradation 

products of concern whereas disposal in 

another treatment scenario may not 

generate any degradants of concern. 

APERC noted that reporting is already 

required for nonylphenol, which is the 

degradant of highest concern. 

As noted in the previous comment 

response, long-chain NPEs are toxic to 

aquatic organisms and become more 

toxic as they degrade. In the 1994 

chemical expansion final rule EPA 

made the following statements regarding 

degradation products: 

The EPCRA section 313(d)(2) listing 

criteria each state that EPA may list a 

chemical that it determines ‘‘causes or may 

reasonably be anticipated to cause’’ the 

relevant adverse human health or 

environmental effects. EPA believes that this 

language allows EPA to consider the effects 


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27294 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 113 / Tuesday, June 12, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 

caused by the degradation products of a 

listed chemical. Where it may reasonably be 

anticipated, based on available data, that the 

listed chemical would readily degrade into 

another chemical that would cause the 

adverse effect, EPA is acting reasonably and 

within its grant of authority in listing the 

precursor to the toxic degradation product 

(59 FR 61432, November 30, 1994). 

EPA believes that the ‘‘toxicity’’ of a 

chemical includes the toxicity of 

degradation products that are produced 

as a result of the chemical’s release to 

the environment. These degradation 

products are a direct result of the 

chemical properties of the parent 

compound that determine its 

environmental fate, and as such should 

be considered part of the chemical’s 

toxicity. As EPA has previously noted: 

Therefore, to meet its obligation under 

section 313(d)(2)(C), in cases where a 

chemical is low or moderately ecotoxic, EPA 

may look at certain exposure factors 

(including pollution controls, the volume 

and pattern of production, use, and release, 

environmental fate, as well as other chemical 

specific factors, and the use of estimated 

releases and modeling techniques) to 

determine if listing is reasonable, i.e., could 

the chemical ever be present at high enough 

concentrations to cause a significant adverse 

effect upon the environment to warrant 

listing under section 313(d)(2)(C) [emphasis 

added] (59 FR 61432, November 30, 1994). 

While the distribution and type of 

degradation products can vary based on 

disposal and environmental conditions, 

the environmental data clearly show 

that there are numerous disposal and 

environmental conditions that result in 

the degradation of NPEs to short-chain 

NPEs and nonylphenol (Ref. 4). 

Therefore, EPA has concluded that the 

long-chain NPEs to be listed, like the 

short-chain NPEs in the category, can 

reasonably be anticipated to cause a 

significant adverse effect on the 

environment of sufficient seriousness to 

warrant reporting. 

APERC’s statement that TRI reporting 

is already required for nonylphenol, 

which is the degradant of highest 

concern, is irrelevant to the issue of 

listing NPEs. The reports of releases of 

nonylphenol do not provide any 

information related to the presence of 

nonylphenol in the environment that 

results from the release and degradation 

of NPEs. Nonylphenol was not listed 

because it is a degradation product of 

NPEs, it is also used in the chemical 

industry, including as the starting 

material for the production of NPEs. 

Since nonylphenol is used in the 

chemical industry there is the potential 

for releases to the environment. With 

regard to listing chemicals that are 

degradation products, EPA has stated: 

If the degradation product meets the 

toxicity criteria of EPCRA section 313, the 

precursor chemical may be considered for 

listing on EPCRA section 313. The 

degradation product would not be considered 

for listing on EPCRA section 313 because a 

facility subject to EPCRA section 313 is only 

required to file a TRI report for a chemical 

that it manufactures, processes, or otherwise 

uses, within the facility boundaries (59 FR 

1788, January 12, 1994). 

If nonylphenol were present in the 

environment only as a degradation 

product of releases of NPEs, EPA would 

not have added it to the EPCRA section 

313 toxic chemical list since no reports 

would have been filed. 

ACA requested that EPA adopt a 

January 1, 2020 effective date for the 

addition of a NPEs category. ACA stated 

that their members require sufficient 

lead time to ensure that all facilities are 

able to comply with changes in 

regulations. ACA stated that even 

though some of their industry members 

are already subject to reporting, a 

significant amount of other industry 

members would now fall under the 

scope of the proposed rule and have to 

comply. ACA claimed that the January 

1, 2018 compliance date would not give 

their members adequate time to account 

for and report NPEs under the 

regulations. ACA also stated that several 

of their industry members are planning 

on reformulating their products to lower 

or eliminate the use of designated NPEs 

altogether, rather than become subject to 

the new reporting requirements. ACA 

stated that those facilities intend to 

phase out the use of NPEs and replace 

them with safer alternative chemicals, 

or lower their usage below the reporting 

threshold. ACA noted that regardless of 

the reasoning, reformulation takes a 

substantial amount of time and 

increases cost for companies. ACA 

claims that therefore, their industry 

members need an extended effective 

date of January 1, 2020 to reformulate 

their products. 

EPCRA 313(d)(4) provides the timing 

for the effective date for a change to the 

EPCRA section 313 list of toxic 

chemicals: 

(4) Effective Date.—Any revision made on 

or after January 1 and before December 1 of 

any calendar year shall take effect beginning 

with the next calendar year. Any revision 

made on or after December 1 of any calendar 

year and before January 1 of the next 

calendar year shall take effect beginning with 

the calendar year following such next 

calendar year. 

If a rule is finalized by November 30 of 

a calendar year, then its effective date is 

January 1 of the following year. 

However, reports for that year are not 

due to EPA until July 1 of the following 

year, which would be at least 19 months 

from the date the final rule was 

published. Nineteen months should be 

more than enough time for facilities to 

make reasonable estimates of releases 

and waste management quantities for 

chemicals that they manufacture, 

process or otherwise use. The 

commenter did not provide any 

information on how many facilities 

would be new reporters under EPCRA 

section 313, however, EPA’s economic 

analysis estimated that only 8 facilities 

would be new reporters so most 

facilities would be familiar with the 

reporting requirements (Ref. 11). Even 

when EPA added nearly 300 chemicals 

to the EPCRA section 313 chemical list, 

the effective date was not extended 

(note the final rule was published in 

November 1994 with the first reports 

due July 1, 1996). The final rule for the 

addition of NPEs is being published 

before November 30 of 2018, which 

makes the effective date for reporting 

purposes January 1, 2019, with the first 

reports due July 1, 2020. This should be 

more than enough time for facilities to 

prepare for reporting. 

Further, reports from facilities that 

choose to reformulate products to lower 

or eliminate the use of NPEs would 

provide useful information to data 

users, including industry stakeholders. 

A key component of EPCRA section 313 

reporting includes information on 

source reduction activities that reduce 

the amount of any hazardous substance, 

pollutant, or contaminant entering any 

waste stream or otherwise released into 

the environment (including fugitive 

emissions) prior to recycling, energy 

recovery, treatment, or disposal. Data 

that demonstrates or fails to 

demonstrate anticipated downward 

trends alongside information on 

activities conducted to phase out the 

use of NPEs is information of high 

utility and can help spur other facilities 

to reduce their use of NPEs. 

IV. Summary of Final Rule 

EPA is finalizing the addition of a 

NPEs category to the EPCRA section 313 

list of toxic chemicals. EPA has 

determined that NPEs meet the listing 

criteria under EPCRA section 

313(d)(2)(C). The NPEs category will be 

defined as: Nonylphenol Ethoxylates 

(This category includes only those 

chemicals covered by the CAS numbers 

listed here): 

D 7311–27–5; Ethanol, 2-[2-[2-[2-(4- 

nonylphenoxy)ethoxy]

ethoxy]ethoxy]- 

D 9016–45–9; Poly(oxy-1,2-ethanediyl), 

a-(nonylphenyl)-w-hydroxyD 20427–84–3; Ethanol, 2-[2-(4- 

nonylphenoxy)ethoxy]- 


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D 26027–38–3; Poly(oxy-1,2- 

ethanediyl), a-(4-nonylphenyl)-whydroxyD 26571–11–9; 3,6,9,12,15,18,21,24- 

Octaoxahexacosan-1-ol, 26- 

(nonylphenoxy)- 

D 27176–93–8; Ethanol, 2-[2- 

(nonylphenoxy)ethoxy]- 

D 27177–05–5; 3,6,9,12,15,18,21- 

Heptaoxatricosan-1-ol, 23- 

(nonylphenoxy)- 

D 27177–08–8; 3,6,9,12,15,18,21,24,27- 

Nonaoxanonacosan-1-ol, 29- 

(nonylphenoxy)- 

D 27986–36–3; Ethanol, 2- 

(nonylphenoxy)- 

D 37205–87–1; Poly(oxy-1,2- 

ethanediyl), a-(isononylphenyl)-whydroxyD 51938–25–1; Poly(oxy-1,2- 

ethanediyl), a-(2-nonylphenyl)-whydroxyD 68412–54–4; Poly(oxy-1,2- 

ethanediyl), a-(nonylphenyl)-whydroxy-, branched 

D 127087–87–0; Poly(oxy-1,2- 

ethanediyl), a-(4-nonylphenyl)-whydroxy-, branched 

V. References 

The following is a listing of the 

documents that are specifically 

referenced in this document. The docket 

includes these documents and other 

information considered by EPA, 

including documents that are referenced 

within the documents that are included 

in the docket, even if the referenced 

document is not itself physically located 

in the docket. For assistance in locating 

these other documents, please consult 

the person listed under FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT. 

1. Anonymous public comment. November 

16, 2016. EPA–HQ–TRI–2016–0222– 

0139. 

2. Anonymous public comment. November 

17, 2016. EPA–HQ–TRI–2016–0222– 

0140. 

3. Anonymous public comment. December 6, 

2016. EPA–HQ–TRI–2016–0222–0143. 

4. Comments submitted by Alkylphenols and 

Ethoxylates Research Council (APERC). 

January 17, 2017. EPA–HQ–TRI–2016– 

0222–0144. 

5. Comments submitted by Raleigh Davis, 

Assistant Director, Environmental Health 

and Safety and Rhett Cash, Counsel, 

Government Affairs, American Coatings 

Association (ACA). January 13, 2017. 

EPA–HQ–TRI–2016–0222–0142. 

6. Comments submitted by Alexandra 

Scranton, Director, Science and 

Research, Women’s Voices for the Earth. 

November 28, 2016. EPA–HQ–TRI– 

2016–0222–0141. 

7. USEPA, OPPT. Response to Comments 

Received on the November 16, 2016 

Proposed Rule (81 FR 80624): Addition 

of Nonylphenol Ethoxylates Category; 

Community Right-to-Know Toxic 

Chemical Release Reporting. U.S. 

Environmental Protection Agency, Office 

of Pollution Prevention and Toxics. May 

31, 2018. 

8. Hall, W.S., M.B. Patoczka, R.J. Mirenda, 

B.A. Porter, and E. Miller. 1989. Acute 

toxicity of industrial surfactants to 

Mysidopsis bahia. Arch. Environ. 

Contam. Toxicol. 18: 765–772. 44. 

9. Servos, M.R. 1999. Review of the aquatic 

toxicity, estrogenic responses and 

bioaccumulation of alkylphenols and 

alkylphenol polyethoxylates. Water 

Qual. Res. J. Canada 34: 123–177. 

10. USEPA, 2016. Chemistry and 

Environmental Fate of Nonylphenol 

Ethoxylates (NPEs). May 10, 2016. 

11. USEPA, OPPT. Economic Analysis of the 

Final Rule to Add Nonylphenol 

Ethoxylates to the EPCRA Section 313 

List of Toxic Chemicals. March 21, 2017. 

VI. What are the statutory and 

Executive Order reviews associated 

with this action? 

Additional information about these 

statutes and Executive Orders can be 

found at http://www2.epa.gov/lawsregulations/laws-and-executive-orders. 

A. Executive Order 12866: Regulatory 

Planning and Review and Executive 

Order 13563: Improving Regulation and 

Regulatory Review 

This action is not a significant 

regulatory action and was therefore not 

submitted to the Office of Management 

and Budget (OMB) for review under 

Executive Orders 12866 (58 FR 51735, 

October 4, 1993) and 13563 (76 FR 3821, 

January 21, 2011). 

B. Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) 

This action does not contain any new 

information collection requirements that 

require additional approval by OMB 

under the PRA, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq. 

OMB has previously approved the 

information collection activities 

contained in the existing regulations 

and has assigned OMB control numbers 

2025–0009 and 2050–0078. Currently, 

the facilities subject to the reporting 

requirements under EPCRA section 313 

and PPA section 6607 may use either 

EPA Toxic Chemicals Release Inventory 

Form R (EPA Form 1B9350–1), or EPA 

Toxic Chemicals Release Inventory 

Form A (EPA Form 1B9350–2). The 

Form R must be completed if a facility 

manufactures, processes, or otherwise 

uses any listed chemical above 

threshold quantities and meets certain 

other criteria. For the Form A, EPA 

established an alternative threshold for 

facilities with low annual reportable 

amounts of a listed toxic chemical. A 

facility that meets the appropriate 

reporting thresholds, but estimates that 

the total annual reportable amount of 

the chemical does not exceed 500 

pounds per year, can take advantage of 

an alternative manufacture, process, or 

otherwise use threshold of 1 million 

pounds per year of the chemical, 

provided that certain conditions are 

met, and submit the Form A instead of 

the Form R. In addition, respondents 

may designate the specific chemical 

identity of a substance as a trade secret 

pursuant to EPCRA section 322, 42 

U.S.C. 11042, 40 CFR part 350. 

OMB has approved the reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements related to 

Forms A and R, supplier notification, 

and petitions under OMB Control 

number 2025–0009 (EPA Information 

Collection Request (ICR) No. 1363) and 

those related to trade secret designations 

under OMB Control 2050–0078 (EPA 

ICR No. 1428). As provided in 5 CFR 

1320.5(b) and 1320.6(a), an Agency may 

not conduct or sponsor, and a person is 

not required to respond to, a collection 

of information unless it displays a 

currently valid OMB control number. 

The OMB control numbers relevant to 

EPA’s regulations are listed in 40 CFR 

part 9 or 48 CFR chapter 15, and 

displayed on the information collection 

instruments (e.g., forms, instructions). 

C. Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) 

I certify that this action will not have 

a significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities 

under the RFA, 5 U.S.C. 601 et seq. The 

small entities subject to the 

requirements of this action are small 

manufacturing facilities. The Agency 

has determined that of the 178 entities 

estimated to be impacted by this action, 

161 are small businesses; no small 

governments or small organizations are 

expected to be affected by this action. 

All 161 small businesses affected by this 

action are estimated to incur annualized 

cost impacts of less than 1%. Thus, this 

action is not expected to have a 

significant adverse economic impact on 

a substantial number of small entities. A 

more detailed analysis of the impacts on 

small entities is located in EPA’s 

economic analysis (Ref. 11). 

D. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 

(UMRA) 

This action does not contain an 

unfunded mandate of $100 million or 

more as described in UMRA, 2 U.S.C. 

1531–1538, and does not significantly or 

uniquely affect small governments. This 

action is not subject to the requirements 

of UMRA because it contains no 

regulatory requirements that might 

significantly or uniquely affect small 

governments. EPA did not identify any 

small governments that would be 

impacted by this action. EPA’s 

economic analysis indicates that the 


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27296 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 113 / Tuesday, June 12, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 

total cost of this action is estimated to 

be $619,627 in the first year of reporting 

(Ref. 11). 

E. Executive Order 13132: Federalism 

This action does not have federalism 

implications as specified in Executive 

Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 

1999). It will not have substantial direct 

effects on the States, on the relationship 

between the national government and 

the States, or on the distribution of 

power and responsibilities among the 

various levels of government. 

F. Executive Order 13175: Consultation 

and Coordination With Indian Tribal 

Governments 

This action does not have tribal 

implications as specified in Executive 

Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 

2000). This action relates to toxic 

chemical reporting under EPCRA 

section 313, which primarily affects 

private sector facilities. Thus, Executive 

Order 13175 does not apply to this 

action. 

G. Executive Order 13045: Protection of 

Children From Environmental Health 

Risks and Safety Risks 

EPA interprets Executive Order 13045 

(62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997) as 

applying only to those regulatory 

actions that concern environmental 

health or safety risks that EPA has 

reason to believe may 

disproportionately affect children, per 

the definition of ‘‘covered regulatory 

action’’ in section 2–202 of the 

Executive Order. This action is not 

subject to Executive Order 13045 

because it does not concern an 

environmental health risk or safety risk. 

H. Executive Order 13211: Actions 

Concerning Regulations That 

Significantly Affect Energy Supply, 

Distribution, or Use 

This action is not subject to Executive 

Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 

2001), because it is not a significant 

regulatory action under Executive Order 

12866. 

I. National Technology Transfer and 

Advancement Act (NTTAA) 

This rulemaking does not involve 

technical standards and is therefore not 

subject to considerations under section 

12(d) of NTTAA, 15 U.S.C. 272 note. 

J. Executive Order 12898: Federal 

Actions To Address Environmental 

Justice in Minority Populations and 

Low-Income Populations 

The EPA believes that this action is 

not subject to Executive Order 12898 (59 

FR 7629, February 16, 1994) because it 

does not establish an environmental 

health or safety standard. This 

regulatory action adds an additional 

chemical category to the EPCRA section 

313 reporting requirements; it does not 

have any impact on human health or the 

environment. This action does not 

address any human health or 

environmental risks and does not affect 

the level of protection provided to 

human health or the environment. This 

action adds an additional chemical 

category to the EPCRA section 313 

reporting requirements which provides 

information that government agencies 

and others can use to identify potential 

problems, set priorities, and help inform 

activities. 

K. Congressional Review Act (CRA) 

This action is subject to the CRA, and 

the EPA will submit a rule report to 

each House of the Congress and to the 

Comptroller General of the United 

States. This action is not a ‘‘major rule’’ 

as defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2). 

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 372 

Environmental protection, 

Community right-to-know, Reporting 

and recordkeeping requirements, and 

Toxic chemicals. 

Dated: June 6, 1018. 

Charlotte Bertrand, 

Acting Principal Deputy Assistant 

Administrator, Office of Chemical Safety and 

Pollution Prevention. 

Therefore, 40 CFR chapter I is 

amended as follows: 

PART 372—[AMENDED] 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 372 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 42 U.S.C. 11023 and 11048. 

■ 2. In § 372.65, add alphabetically an 

entry for ‘‘Nonylphenol Ethoxylates 

(This category includes only those 

chemicals covered by the CAS numbers 

listed here)’’ to the table in paragraph (c) 

to read as follows: 

§ 372.65 Chemicals and chemical 

categories to which this part applies. 

* * * * * 

(c) * * * 

Category name Effective date 

*******

Nonylphenol Ethoxylates (This category includes only those chemicals covered by the CAS numbers listed here) .................. 1/1/19 

7311–27–5 Ethanol, 2-[2-[2-[2-(4-nonylphenoxy)ethoxy]ethoxy]ethoxy]- 

9016–45–9 Poly(oxy-1,2-ethanediyl), a-(nonylphenyl)-w-hydroxy20427–84–3 Ethanol, 2-[2-(4-nonylphenoxy)ethoxy]- 

26027–38–3 Poly(oxy-1,2-ethanediyl), a-(4-nonylphenyl)-w-hydroxy26571–11–9 3,6,9,12,15,18,21,24-Octaoxahexacosan-1-ol, 26- (nonylphenoxy)- 

27176–93–8 Ethanol, 2-[2-(nonylphenoxy)ethoxy]- 

27177–05–5 3,6,9,12,15,18,21-Heptaoxatricosan-1-ol, 23-(nonylphenoxy)- 

27177–08–8 3,6,9,12,15,18,21,24,27-Nonaoxanonacosan-1-ol, 29-(nonylphenoxy)- 

27986–36–3 Ethanol, 2-(nonylphenoxy)- 

37205–87–1 Poly(oxy-1,2-ethanediyl), a-(isononylphenyl)-w-hydroxy51938–25–1 Poly(oxy-1,2-ethanediyl), a (2-nonylphenyl)-w-hydroxy68412–54–4 Poly(oxy-1,2-ethanediyl), a-(nonylphenyl)-w-hydroxy-, branched 

127087–87–0 Poly(oxy-1,2-ethanediyl), a-(4-nonylphenyl)-w-hydroxy-, branched 

*******

[FR Doc. 2018–12628 Filed 6–11–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 


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