Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 201 / Tuesday, October 17, 2000 / Notices 61325

Practice and Procedure (18 CFR 385.211

and 385.214). All such motions or

protests should be filed on or before the

comment date. Protests will be

considered by the Commission in

determining the appropriate action to be

taken, but will not serve to make

protestants parties to the proceeding.

Any person wishing to become a party

must file a motion to intervene. Copies

of these filings are on file with the

Commission and are available for public

inspection. This filing may also be

viewed on the Internet at http://

www.ferc.fed.us/online/rims.htm (call

202–208–2222 for assistance).

David P. Boergers,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 00–26550 Filed 10–16–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6717–01–P

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

AGENCY

[FRL–6887–1]

Notice of Availability of Guidance for

Controlling Nonpoint Source Pollution

From Agriculture and Request for

Comments

AGENCY: Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: EPA has developed and is

requesting comments on draft technical

guidance for managing agricultural

sources of nonpoint pollution. This

guidance is intended to provide

technical assistance to State program

managers and others on the best

available, economically achievable

means of reducing nonpoint source

pollution of surface and ground water

from agriculture. The guidance provides

background information about

agricultural nonpoint source pollution,

where it comes from and how it enters

the Nation’s waters, discusses the broad

concepts of assessing and addressing

water quality problems on a watershed

level, and presents up-to-date technical

information about how to reduce

agricultural nonpoint source pollution.

Reviewers should note that the draft

technical guidance is entirely consistent

with the Guidance Specifying

Management Measures for Sources of

Nonpoint Pollution in Coastal Waters,

which EPA published in January 1993

under section 6217(g) of the Coastal

Zone Act Reauthorization Amendments

of 1990 (CZARA). The draft document

does not supplant or replace the

requirements of the 1993 document. It

enhances the technical information

contained in the 1993 coastal guidance

to include inland as well as coastal

context and to provide updated

technical information based on current

understanding and implementation of

best management practices. It does not

set new or additional standards for

either CZARA section 6217 or Clean

Water Act section 319 programs.

DATES: Written comments must be

postmarked no later than January 16,

2001.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be

addressed to Sharon Buck, Assessment

and Watershed Protection Division

(4503–F), U.S. Environmental Protection

Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue,

NW., Washington, DC 20460; or

electronically mailed to

buck.sharon@epa.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Persons requesting additional

information or a complete draft of the

document should contact Sharon Buck

at (202) 260–0306;

buck.sharon@epa.gov; or U.S.

Environmental Protection Agency

(4503–F), 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue,

NW., Washington, DC 20460. The

complete text of the draft guidance is

also available on EPA’s Internet site on

the Nonpoint Source Control Branch

homepage <http://www.epa.gov/owow/

nps/new.html>.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

In recent years, State, territory, and

tribal water quality assessments have

identified nonpoint source (NPS)

pollution as the most significant cause

of degradation in surveyed waters

nationwide. In 1987, Congress enacted

section 319 of the Clean Water Act to

establish a national program to control

nonpoint sources of water pollution.

Under Section 319, States, territories,

and tribes address NPS pollution by

assessing the NPS pollution problems

within the state, territory, or tribal

lands, identifying the sources of

pollution, and implementing

management programs to control the

NPS pollution. Section 319 also

authorizes EPA to award grants to States

and tribes to assist them in

implementing management programs

which have been approved by EPA.

Program implementation includes nonregulatory and regulatory programs,

technical assistance, financial

assistance, education, training,

technology transfer, and demonstration

projects. In fiscal year 2000, Congress

appropriated and EPA awarded $200

million dollars for nonpoint source

management program grants. EPA has

awarded a total of $1 billion under

Section 319 to States, Territories, and

Indian tribes since 1990.

In 1993, under the authority of section

6217(g) of the Coastal Zone Act

Reauthorization Amendments, EPA

issued Guidance Specifying

Management Measures for Sources of

Nonpoint Pollution in Coastal Waters

(EPA840-B–92–002). That guidance

document details management measures

appropriate for the control of five

sources of nonpoint pollution in the

coastal zone: agriculture, forestry, urban

areas, marinas and recreational boating,

and hydromodification. The document

also includes management measures for

wetlands, riparian areas, and vegetated

treatment systems as they are important

to the abatement of nonpoint source

pollution in coastal waters. State and

Territory Coastal Nonpoint Pollution

Control Programs were required to

adopt measures ‘‘in conformity’’ with

the coastal management measures

guidance.

The 1993 management measures

guidance focused on conditions and

examples of management measure

implementation from the coastal zone.

To date, technical guidance on the best

available, economically achievable

measures for controlling nonpoint

sources with a national scope has not

been released. The draft national

management measures guidance is

intended to address this gap. While the

practices detailed in the 1993 guidance

generally apply to inland areas, EPA has

recognized the utility of developing and

publishing a technical guidance

document that explicitly addresses

nonpoint source pollution on a

nationwide basis. Moreover, additional

data and examples from inland regions

are available to enrich the national

guidance. In addition, significant

changes have occurred in sectors of the

agriculture industry since 1993. These

changes have helped to prompt the

revision and expansion of the

agriculture chapter of the 1993

guidance.

II. Scope of the Draft Guidance—

Sources of Agricultural Nonpoint

Pollution Addressed

The draft technical guidance

continues to focus on the major sources

of agricultural pollution identified in

the 1993 coastal guidance by EPA in

consultation with a number of other

federal agencies and other leading

national experts, including several

experts from State land grant

universities. Specifically, the guidance

identifies management measures for the

following:

1. Nutrients;

2. Pesticides;

61326 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 201 / Tuesday, October 17, 2000 / Notices

3. Erosion and sediment;

4. Animal feeding operations;

5. Grazing; and

6. Irrigation water.

III. Approach Used To Develop

Guidance

The draft national management

measures guidance is based in large part

on the 1993 coastal guidance. The 1993

coastal guidance was developed using a

workgroup approach to draw upon

technical expertise within other Federal

agencies as well as State water quality

and coastal zone management agencies.

The 1993 text has been expanded to

include more background information

on standard agricultural practices (e.g.,

why farmers irrigate, history of

pesticides) and to address emerging

issues in agriculture (e.g., precision

farming). The draft guidance also

incorporates examples and data from

the inland regions of the United States

(e.g., grazing in Colorado) in addition to

improving the coverage of unique

coastal environments (e.g., Hawaii). The

document also updates information on

technologies and the costs of

management measures where new data

has become available since the

publication of the coastal guidance.

Only one of the management

measures from the 1993 document has

been altered in substance: the

management measure for animal feeding

operations. The coastal guidance

contained a management measure

whose implementation involved storing

facility wastewater and runoff from

confined animal facilities for all storms

up to and including a 25-year, 24-hour

storm and the management of stored

runoff and accumulated solids through

an appropriate waste utilization system

for operations of more than 300 animal

units. The management measure in the

1993 coastal guidance does not involve

the implementation of manure storage

structures or areas, only the control of

runoff from such areas. The draft

guidance recommends implementation

of adequate manure storage in addition

to the management of runoff, diversion

of clean water, application of manure in

accordance with a nutrient management

plan, and protection of land receiving

wastes through the use of other

management measures (i.e., grazing,

irrigation water, erosion control), as

appropriate. Recent concern over the

management of wastes from animal

feeding operations, changes in standard

practice within the livestock industry,

the enactment and promulgation of

many new State laws and regulations

throughout the country, and the recent

publication of the joint U.S. Department

of Agriculture/U.S. Environmental

Protection Agency Unified National

Strategy for Animal Feeding Operations

(March 1999) prompted the alterations

to the management measure for animal

feeding operations described above.

IV. Request for Comments

EPA is soliciting comments on the

draft guidance on management

measures to control agricultural sources

of nonpoint pollution. The Agency is

soliciting additional information and

supporting data on the measures

specified in this guidance and on

additional measures that may be as

effective or more effective in controlling

nonpoint source pollution from

agriculture.

Dated: October 5, 2000.

J. Charles Fox,

Assistant Administrator, Office of Water.

[FR Doc. 00–26637 Filed 10–16–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

AGENCY

[OPPTS–51953; FRL–6749–3]

Certain New Chemicals; Receipt and

Status Information

AGENCY: Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: Section 5 of the Toxic

Substances Control Act (TSCA) requires

any person who intends to manufacture

(defined by statute to include import) a

new chemical (i.e., a chemical not on

the TSCA Inventory) to notify EPA and

comply with the statutory provisions

pertaining to the manufacture of new

chemicals. Under sections 5(d)(2) and

5(d)(3) of TSCA, EPA is required to

publish a notice of receipt of a

premanufacture notice (PMN) or an

application for a test marketing

exemption (TME), and to publish

periodic status reports on the chemicals

under review and the receipt of notices

of commencement to manufacture those

chemicals. This status report, which

covers the period from August 28, 2000

to September 8, 2000, consists of the

PMNs and TMEs, both pending or

expired, and the notices of

commencement to manufacture a new

chemical that the Agency has received

under TSCA section 5 during this time

period.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be

submitted by mail, electronically, or in

person. Please follow the detailed

instructions for each method as

provided in Unit I. of the

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION. To ensure

proper receipt by EPA, it is imperative

that you identify docket control number

OPPTS–51953 and the specific PMN

number in the subject line on the first

page of your response.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Barbara Cunningham, Director, Office of

Program Management and Evaluation,

Office of Pollution Prevention and

Toxics (7401), Environmental Protection

Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.,

Washington, DC 20460; telephone

number: (202) 554–1404; e-mail address:

TSCA-Hotline@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. General Information

A. Does this Action Apply to Me?

This action is directed to the public

in general. As such, the Agency has not

attempted to describe the specific

entities that this action may apply to.

Although others may be affected, this

action applies directly to the submitter

of the premanufacture notices addressed

in the action. If you have any questions

regarding the applicability of this action

to a particular entity, consult the person

listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT.

B. How Can I Get Additional

Information, Including copies of this

Document and Other Related

Documents?

1. Electronically. You may obtain

copies of this document and certain

other available documents from the EPA

Internet Home Page at http://

www.epa.gov/. On the Home Page select

‘‘Laws and Regulations,’’ ‘‘Regulations

and Proposed Rules,’’ and then look up

the entry for this document under the

‘‘Federal Register—Environmental

Documents.’’ You can also go directly to

the Federal Register listings at http://

www.epa.gov/fedrgstr/.

2. In person. The Agency has

established an official record for this

action under docket control number

OPPTS–51953. The official record

consists of the documents specifically

referenced in this action, any public

comments received during an applicable

comment period, and other information

related to this action, including any

information claimed as confidential

business information (CBI). This official

record includes the documents that are

physically located in the docket, as well

as the documents that are referenced in

those documents. The public version of

the official record does not include any

information claimed as CBI. The public

version of the official record, which

includes printed, paper versions of any

electronic comments submitted during

an applicable comment period, is