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[Federal Register: April 20, 2010 (Volume 75, Number 75)]
[Notices]               
[Page 20595-20596]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr20ap10-56]                         

[[Page 20595]]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OAR-2007-1145; FRL-9139-6]

 
Review of the Secondary National Ambient Air Quality Standards 
for Oxides of Nitrogen and Oxides of Sulfur

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of extension of comment period.

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SUMMARY: The EPA is announcing an extension of the public comment 
period for a draft assessment document titled, Policy Assessment for 
the Review of the Secondary National Ambient Air Quality Standards for 
Oxides of Nitrogen and Oxides of Sulfur: First External Review Draft 
(75 FR 11877; March 12, 2010). The comment period was originally 
scheduled to end on April 29, 2010. The extended comment period will 
close on May 13, 2010. The Agency is extending the comment period by 
two weeks to provide the public with adequate time to conduct 
appropriate analysis and prepare meaningful comments.
    Although EPA is extending the comment period for the first draft 
policy assessment by two weeks, EPA is committed to issuing a proposal 
addressing the nitrogen oxides (NOX) and sulfur oxides 
(SOX) secondary National Ambient Air Quality Standards 
(NAAQS) by July 12, 2011. The extension also will not alter EPA's 
internal schedule for providing a second draft policy assessment for 
review by the Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC) by the 
end of July 2010.
    The public is encouraged to submit comments by the end of the 
original comment period to ensure that EPA has adequate time to 
evaluate and respond to those comments. However, all comments received 
by May 13, 2010, will be considered in developing the second draft 
policy assessment.

DATES: Comments should be submitted on or before May 13, 2010.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-
OAR-2007-1145, by one of the following methods:
    http://www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line 
instructions for submitting comments.
     E-mail: Comments may be sent by electronic mail (e-mail) 
to a-and-r-docket@epa.gov, Attention Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2007-
1145.
     Fax: Fax your comments to 202-566-9744, Attention Docket 
ID. No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2007-1145.
     Mail: Send your comments to: Air and Radiation Docket and 
Information Center, Environmental Protection Agency, Mailcode: 2822T, 
1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460, Attention Docket ID 
No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2007-1145.
     Hand Delivery or Courier: Deliver your comments to: EPA 
Docket Center, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Room 3334, Washington, DC. 
Such deliveries are only accepted during the Docket's normal hours of 
operation, and special arrangements should be made for deliveries of 
boxed information.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-
2007-1145. The EPA's policy is that all comments received will be 
included in the public docket without change and may be made available 
online at http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal 
information provided, unless the comment includes information claimed 
to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information 
whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit information 
that you consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through http://www.regulations.gov or e-mail. The http://www.regulations.gov Web site 
is an ``anonymous access'' system, which means EPA will not know your 
identity or contact information unless you provide it in the body of 
your comment. If you send an e-mail comment directly to EPA without 
going through http://www.regulations.gov, your e-mail address will be 
automatically captured and included as part of the comment that is 
placed in the public docket and made available on the Internet. If you 
submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you include your name 
and other contact information in the body of your comment and with any 
disk or CD-ROM you submit. If EPA cannot read your comment due to 
technical difficulties and cannot contact you for clarification, EPA 
may not be able to consider your comment. Electronic files should avoid 
the use of special characters, any form of encryption, and be free of 
any defects or viruses.
    Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the http://www.regulations.gov index. Although listed in the index, some 
information is not publicly available, e.g., CBI or other information 
whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such 
as copyrighted material, will be publicly available only in hard copy. 
Publicly available docket materials are available either electronically 
in http://www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the Air Docket in the 
EPA Docket Center, EPA West, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., 
Washington, DC. This Docket Facility is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 
p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The Docket 
telephone number is 202-566-1742; fax 202-566-9744.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Bryan Hubbell, Office of Air 
Quality Planning and Standards (Mail code C504-02), U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC 27711; e-mail: 
hubbell.bryan@epa.gov; telephone: 919-541-0621; fax: 919-541-0804.

General Information

A. What Should I Consider as I Prepare My Comments for EPA?

    1. Submitting CBI. Do not submit this information to EPA through 
http://www.regulations.gov or e-mail. Clearly mark the part or all of 
the information that you claim to be CBI. For CBI information in a disk 
or CD-ROM that you mail to EPA, mark the outside of the disk or CD-ROM 
as CBI and then identify electronically within the disk or CD-ROM the 
specific information that is claimed as CBI. In addition to one 
complete version of the comment that includes information claimed as 
CBI, a copy of the comment that does not contain the information 
claimed as CBI must be submitted for inclusion in the public docket. 
Information so marked will not be disclosed except in accordance with 
procedures set forth in 40 CFR part 2.
    2. Tips for Preparing Your Comments. When submitting comments, 
remember to:
     Identify the rulemaking by docket number and other 
identifying information (subject heading, Federal Register date and 
page number).
     Follow directions--The Agency may ask you to respond to 
specific questions or organize comments by referencing a Code of 
Federal Regulations (CFR) part or section number.
     Explain why you agree or disagree; suggest alternatives 
and substitute language for your requested changes.
     Describe any assumptions and provide any technical 
information and/or data that you used.
     If you estimate potential costs or burdens, explain how 
you arrived at your estimate in sufficient detail to allow for it to be 
reproduced.
     Provide specific examples to illustrate your concerns, and 
suggest alternatives.

[[Page 20596]]

     Make sure to submit your comments by the comment period 
deadline identified.
    Under section 108(a) of the Clean Air Act (CAA), the Administrator 
identifies and lists certain pollutants which ``cause or contribute to 
air pollution which may reasonably be anticipated to endanger public 
health or welfare.'' The EPA then issues air quality criteria for these 
listed pollutants, which are commonly referred to as ``criteria 
pollutants.'' The air quality criteria are to ``accurately reflect the 
latest scientific knowledge useful in indicating the kind and extent of 
all identifiable effects on public health or welfare which may be 
expected from the presence of [a] pollutant in the ambient air, in 
varying quantities.'' Under section 109 of the CAA, EPA establishes 
NAAQS for each listed pollutant, based on the air quality criteria. 
Section 109(d) of the CAA requires periodic review and, if appropriate, 
revision of existing air quality criteria. The revised air quality 
criteria reflect advances in scientific knowledge on the effects of the 
pollutant on public health or welfare. Section 109 (d) also requires 
EPA to periodically review and revise the NAAQS, if appropriate, based 
on the revised criteria.
    The EPA is currently conducting a joint review of the existing 
secondary (welfare-based) NAAQS for NOX and SOX. 
Because NOX, SOX, and their associated 
transformation products are linked from an atmospheric chemistry 
perspective as well as from an environmental effects perspective, and 
because of the National Research Council's 2004 recommendations to 
consider multiple pollutants in forming the scientific basis for the 
NAAQS, EPA has decided to jointly assess the science, risks, and 
policies relevant to protecting the public welfare associated with 
NOX and SOX. This is the first time since NAAQS 
were established in 1971 that a joint review of these two pollutants 
has been conducted.
    As part of this review of the current secondary (welfare-based) 
NAAQS for NOX and SOX, EPA's Office of Air 
Quality Planning and Standards staff have prepared a first draft Policy 
Assessment. The objective of this assessment is to evaluate the policy 
implications of the key scientific information contained in the 
document Integrated Science Assessment for Oxides of Nitrogen and 
Sulfur-Ecological Criteria (http://cfpub.epa.gov/ncea/cfm/recordisplay.cfm?deid=201485), prepared by EPA's National Center for 
Environmental Assessment (NCEA) and the results from the analyses 
contained in the Risk and Exposure Assessment for Review of the 
Secondary National Ambient Air Quality Standards for Oxides of Nitrogen 
and Oxides of Sulfur (http://www.epa.gov/ttn/naaqs/standards/no2so2sec/cr_rea.html). The first draft Policy Assessment is available online 
at: http://www.epa.gov/ttn/naaqs/standards/no2so2sec/index.html. The 
first draft Policy Assessment was reviewed by the CASAC during a public 
meeting held on April 1 and 2, 2010. Information about this public 
meeting is available at http://yosemite.epa.gov/sab/sabpeople.nsf/WebCommittees/CASAC.
    At the April 1 and 2, 2010, CASAC meeting, the Committee reviewed 
the first draft Policy Assessment, heard public comments, and prepared 
a draft letter to the Agency with their advice regarding the first 
draft Policy Assessment.
    The original comment period for the first draft Policy Assessment 
was 60 days, from March 1, 2010, through April 29, 2010. In a letter 
dated April 8, 2010, the Utility Air Regulatory Group requested an 
extension of the comment period through May 13, 2010. As of April 12, 
2010, EPA has received comments from one public commenter presented at 
the CASAC meeting on April 1, 2010. Based on our consideration of the 
request from the Utility Air Regulatory Group, EPA is granting the 
extension of the public comment period through May 13, 2010.

    Dated: April 13, 2010.
Jennifer Noonan Edmonds,
Acting Director, Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards.
[FR Doc. 2010-9069 Filed 4-19-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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