Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 164 / Friday, August 23, 2013 / Notices 52525 

Dated: August 20, 2013. 

Cliff Rader, 

Director, NEPA Compliance Division, Office 

of Federal Activities. 

[FR Doc. 2013–20647 Filed 8–22–13; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

[EPA–HQ–OPPT–2012–0725; FRL–9397–4] 

Dichloromethane and NMethylpyrrolidone TSCA Chemical 

Risk Assessment; Notice of Public 

Meetings and Opportunity to Comment 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: EPA’s contractor, The 

Scientific Consulting Group (SCG), Inc., 

has identified a panel of scientific 

experts to conduct a peer review of 

EPA’s draft Toxic Substances Control 

Act (TSCA) chemical risk assessment, 

‘‘TSCA Workplan Chemical Risk 

Assessment for Dichloromethane and NMethylpyrrolidone.’’ EPA will hold 

three peer review meetings by web 

connect and teleconference. EPA invites 

the public to register to attend the 

meetings as observers and/or speakers 

providing oral comments during any or 

all of the peer review meetings as 

discussed in this notice. The public may 

also provide comment on whether they 

believe the appearance of conflict of 

interest exists for any proposed peer 

review panel expert. 

DATES: Meetings. The peer review 

meetings will be held on Thursday, 

September 26, 2013, from 1 p.m. to 4 

p.m. e.d.t.; Tuesday, October 15, 2013, 

from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., e.d.t.; and 

Tuesday, November 12, 2013, from 1 

p.m. to 4 p.m., e.d.t. 

Conflict of interest comments. 

Comments on the appearance of a 

conflict of interest for any proposed 

peer review panel expert must be 

submitted on or before September 13, 

2013. 

Comments. Written comments on the 

assessment must be submitted on or 

before October 22, 2013, to be sure they 

are contained in the peer review record 

and are available to the peer reviewers. 

Registration for meetings: To 

participate in any of the public peer 

review meetings, you must register no 

later than 11:59 p.m., EDT, on 

September 23, 2013. 

ADDRESSES: Meetings. Meetings will be 

held via web connect and 

teleconferencing. See Unit III.C. in 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION. 

Registration. See Unit III. in 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION. 

Comments. Submit your comments, 

identified by docket identification (ID) 

number EPA–HQ–OPPT–2012–0725, by 

one of the following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the online 

instructions for submitting comments. 

• Mail: Document Control Office 

(7407M), Office of Pollution Prevention 

and Toxics (OPPT), Environmental 

Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania 

Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460– 

0001. 

• Hand Delivery: OPPT Document 

Control Office (DCO), EPA William 

Jefferson Clinton Complex East, Rm. 

6428, 1201 Constitution Ave., NW., 

Washington, DC. ATTN: Docket ID 

Number EPA–HQ–OPPT–2012–0725. 

The DCO is open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., 

Monday through Friday, excluding legal 

holidays. The telephone number for the 

DCO is (202) 564–8930. Such deliveries 

are only accepted during the DCO’s 

normal hours of operation, and special 

arrangements should be made for 

deliveries of boxed information. 

Instructions: Direct your comments to 

docket ID number EPA–HQ–OPPT– 

2012–0725. EPA’s policy is that all 

comments received will be included in 

the 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 regulations.gov or 

email. The 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 email comment directly 

to EPA without going through 

regulations.gov, your email address will 

be automatically captured and included 

as part of the comment that is placed in 

the 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 docket index available 

at http://www.regulations.gov. 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, 

is not placed on the Internet and will be 

publicly available only in hard copy 

form. Publicly available docket 

materials are available either in the 

electronic docket at http://

www.regulations.gov, or, if only 

available in hard copy, at the OPPT 

Docket. The OPPT Docket is located in 

the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC) at Rm. 

3334, EPA William Jefferson Clinton 

Complex West, 1301 Constitution Ave. 

NW., Washington, DC. The EPA/DC 

Public Reading Room hours of operation 

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

through Friday, excluding legal 

holidays. The telephone number of the 

EPA/DC Public Reading Room is (202) 

566–1744, and the telephone number for 

the OPPT Docket is (202) 566–0280. 

Docket visitors are required to show 

photographic identification, pass 

through a metal detector, and sign the 

EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are 

processed through an X-ray machine 

and subject to search. Visitors will be 

provided an EPA/DC badge that must be 

visible at all times in the building and 

returned upon departure. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

technical information contact: Stan 

Barone, Jr., Risk Assessment Division 

(7403M), Office of Pollution Prevention 

and Toxics, Environmental Protection 

Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW., 

Washington, DC 20460–0001; telephone 

number (202) 564–1169; email address: 

barone.stan@epa.gov. 

For peer review meeting logistics or 

registration contact: Susie Warner, 

Scientific Consulting Group (SCG), Inc., 

656 Quince Orchard Rd., Suite 210, 

Gaithersburg, MD 20878–1409; 

telephone number: (301) 670–4990, ext. 

227; fax number: (301) 670–3815; email 

address: SWARNER@scgcorp.com. 

For general information contact: The 

TSCA-Hotline, ABVI-Goodwill, 422 

South Clinton Ave., Rochester, NY 

14620; telephone number: (202) 554– 

1404; email 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, and may be of interest to a 

wide range of stakeholders including 

those interested in environmental and 

human health assessment, the chemical 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
52526 Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 164 / Friday, August 23, 2013 / Notices 

industry, chemical users, consumer 

product companies, and members of the 

public interested in the assessment of 

chemical risks. Since others also may be 

interested, the Agency has not 

attempted to describe all the specific 

entities that may be affected by this 

action. 

B. What should I consider as I prepare 

my comments for EPA? 

1. Submitting CBI. Do not submit this 

information to EPA through 

regulations.gov or email. 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: 

i. Identify the document by docket ID 

number and other identifying 

information (subject heading, Federal 

Register date and page number). 

ii. 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. 

iii. Explain why you agree or disagree; 

suggest alternatives and substitute 

language for your requested changes. 

iv. Describe any assumptions and 

provide any technical information and/ 

or data that you used. 

v. If you estimate potential costs or 

burdens, explain how you arrived at 

your estimate in sufficient detail to 

allow for it to be reproduced. 

vi. Provide specific examples to 

illustrate your concerns and suggest 

alternatives. 

vii. Explain your views as clearly as 

possible, avoiding the use of profanity 

or personal threats. 

viii. Make sure to submit your 

comments by the comment period 

deadline identified. 

II. Background 

On January 9, 2013, EPA published a 

notice in the Federal Register (78 FR 

1856) (FRL–9375–1) on the availability 

of five draft TSCA chemical risk 

assessments for public comment. The 

Agency also asked for nominations for 

external experts to conduct peer reviews 

of the draft TSCA risk assessments, 

including two entitled, ‘‘TSCA 

Workplan Chemical Risk Assessment for 

Dichloromethane and NMethylpyrrolidone.’’ Dichloromethane 

and N-Methylpyrrolidone (DCM and 

NMP) (CASRN 75–09–2 and 872–50–4) 

are two of 83 chemicals identified for 

review and assessment in EPA’s TSCA 

Work Plan, which were released on 

March 1, 2012, at http://www.epa.gov/

oppt/existingchemicals/pubs/

workplans.html. 

This information is distributed solely 

for the purpose of pre-dissemination 

peer review under applicable 

information quality guidelines. It has 

not been formally disseminated by EPA. 

It does not represent and should not be 

construed to represent any Agency 

determination or policy. 

The draft DCM and NMP TSCA risk 

assessment is being peer reviewed 

consistent with guidelines for the peer 

review of influential scientific 

information and highly influential 

scientific assessments. EPA asked a 

contractor, SCG, to assemble a panel of 

experts to evaluate the draft DCM and 

NMP TSCA risk assessment report for 

specific uses of DCM and NMP. SCG 

evaluated 38 candidates that were 

nominated as peer reviewers by the 

February 8, 2013 deadline established in 

the January 9, 2013 Federal Register 

notice and evaluated over 100 

additional experts before submitting the 

proposed peer review panel members. 

The proposed peer review panel was 

vetted by the contractor for conflict of 

interest and the appearance of bias 

according to Agency peer review 

guidance as detailed in the contract. 

This proposed peer review panel 

includes: Gary Ginsberg (chair), Tom 

Armstrong, Frank Barile, James 

Bruckner, Anneclaire J. De Roos, 

Annette Guiseppi-Elie, Ronald Hood, 

John Kissel, Phillip Lupo, Ernest 

McConnell, Stephen Pruett, and Pamela 

Williams. 

The biographies are available in the 

docket (docket ID number EPA–HQ– 

OPPT–2012–0725). The public may 

provide comments to the same docket 

for the draft DCM and NMP TSCA risk 

assessment on the appearance of a 

conflict of interest for any proposed 

peer review panel member. This 

comment period on the peer review 

panel membership closes on September 

13, 2013. The final list of peer review 

panel members will be available on the 

SCG’s Web site at http://

www.scgcorp.com. 

The peer review panel is responsible 

for the review of the scientific and 

technical merit of the draft DCM and 

NMP TSCA risk assessment, which is 

available through http://

www.regulations.gov and at http://

www.epa.gov/oppt/existingchemicals/

pubs/workplans.html. The peer review 

panel will not address potential policy 

implications or risk management 

options that may result from the draft 

DCM and NMP TSCA risk assessment. 

Members of the public may register to 

attend any or all three meetings as 

observers and may also register to offer 

oral comments on each day of the 

meetings. A registered speaker is 

encouraged to focus on issues directly 

relevant to science-based aspects of the 

draft DCM and NMP TSCA risk 

assessment. 

The first peer review meeting on 

September 26, 2013, will be dedicated 

to hearing registered speakers’ oral 

comments on the draft DCM and NMP 

TSCA risk assessment and reviewing the 

charge to the peer reviewers. Each 

speaker is allowed between 3–5 

minutes, depending on the number of 

registered speakers. Given time 

constraints, a maximum of 30 speakers 

will be allowed to offer comments. If 

more than 30 speakers register to 

provide oral comments, speakers will be 

selected by SCG in a manner designed 

to optimize representation from all 

organizations, affiliations, and present a 

balance of science issues relevant to the 

Agency’s TSCA risk assessment. Peer 

review panel members will have access 

to written comments and materials and 

electronic materials submitted to the 

docket by October 22, 2013. Registered 

observers and speakers will not be 

allowed to distribute any written 

comments or materials or electronic 

materials directly to the peer review 

panel members. To submit written 

comments, please follow one of the 

methods outlined in ADDRESSES. The 

public comment period closes on 

October 22, 2013. 

The second peer review panel 

meeting on October 15, 2013, will be 

devoted to deliberations of the draft 

DCM and NMP TSCA risk assessment 

by the peer review panel, guided by the 

charge questions to the peer review 

panel. 

The third and final peer review panel 

meeting on November 12, 2013, will 

focus on the peer review panel’s 

discussion of its draft DCM and NMP 

TSCA risk assessment recommendations 

to EPA, which will be posted on the 

contractor Web site prior the final peer 

review meeting. The final peer review 

panel report will be prepared by SCG 

and made available to the public 

according to the Agency peer review 

guidance at http://www.epa.gov/


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 164 / Friday, August 23, 2013 / Notices 52527 

peerreview. EPA will consider SCG’s 

peer review panel report of the 

comments and recommendations from 

the three peer review meetings, as well 

as written comments and materials and 

electronic materials in the docket at 

http://www.regulations.gov, as it 

proceeds to finalize the DCM and NMP 

TSCA risk assessment. 

If potential risks are indicated in the 

revised risk assessment following peer 

review and public comment, the Agency 

will take the necessary risk reduction 

efforts as warranted. If no risks are 

identified in the revised risk assessment 

following revision in response to peer 

review, then the Agency may conclude 

its work on the chemical being assessed. 

III. How can I request to participate in 

these meetings? 

A. Registration 

To attend the peer review meetings, 

you must register for the meeting no 

later than 11:59 p.m., EDT, on 

September 23, 2013. To register for the 

meeting, go to http://www.scgcorp.com/ 

dcm-nmp2013/, complete the online 

registration form, and submit the 

required information. You may also 

register through the U.S. Postal Service 

or by overnight/priority mail by sending 

the necessary registration information 

(see Unit III.B.) to the SCG Meeting 

Coordinator, Ms. Susie Warner. The 

U.S. Postal Service or overnight/priority 

mail address is: The Scientific 

Consulting Group, Inc., 656 Quince 

Orchard Rd., Suite 210, Gaithersburg, 

MD 20878–1409. For questions or 

additional information, contact Ms. 

Warner by: Telephone: (301) 670–4990, 

ext. 227; fax: (301) 670–3815; or email: 

SWARNER@scgcorp.com. Registrations 

sent via U.S. Postal Service or 

overnight/priority mail must be received 

no later than 11:59 p.m., e.d.t., on 

September 23, 2013. There will be no 

on-site registration, so members of the 

public who do not register by 11:59 

p.m., e.d.t., on September 23, 2013, 

using one of the methods described in 

this unit, may not receive web access 

information in time to attend the first 

peer review meeting. 

B. Required Registration Information 

Members of the public may register to 

attend any or all three meetings as 

observers, or register to speak if 

planning to offer oral comments during 

the scheduled public comment session 

of a meeting. To register for the 

meetings online or by mail, you must 

provide your full name, organization or 

affiliation, and contact information. You 

must also indicate which meetings you 

plan to attend and if you would like to 

speak during the scheduled public 

comment session of a meeting. If you 

register to speak, you must also indicate 

if you have any special requirements 

related to your oral comments (e.g., 

translation). 

If you indicate that you wish to speak, 

you will be asked to select one category 

most closely reflecting the content of 

your oral comments. These comment 

categories related to the charge 

questions are: 

1. General comments on the risk 

assessment document; 

2. Comments on the exposure assessment; 

3. Comments on the hazard assessment; 

4. Comments on the risk characterization; 

or 

5. Other issues. 

Should more than 30 speakers register 

for a single meeting, these categories 

will be used to ensure that a balance of 

substantive science issues relevant to 

the assessment is heard. Additional 

information on the selection of speakers 

and speaking times will be sent out by 

SCG 3 days prior to each peer review 

meeting to all individuals registered to 

speak. 

To accommodate as many registered 

speakers as possible, registered speakers 

may present oral comments only, 

without visual aids or written material. 

Peer review panel members will have 

access to any written comments and 

materials and electronic materials 

previously submitted to the docket. 

Registered observers and speakers will 

not be allowed to distribute any written 

comments and materials or electronic 

materials directly to the peer review 

panel members. 

C. Web Meeting Access 

Each peer review meeting will be held 

via web connect and teleconferencing. 

SCG will provide all registered 

participants with information on how to 

participate in advance of the first peer 

review meeting. 

List of Subjects 

Environmental protection, Chemicals, 

Peer review, Risk assessments, 

Dichloromethane and NMethylpyrrolidone. 

Dated: August 16, 2013. 

Barbara A. Cunningham, 

Acting Director, Office of Pollution Prevention 

and Toxics. 

[FR Doc. 2013–20748 Filed 8–22–13; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS 

COMMISSION 

Information Collection(s) Being 

Reviewed by the Federal 

Communications Commission, 

Comments Requested 

AGENCY: Federal Communications 

Commission. 

ACTION: Notice; request for comments. 

SUMMARY: As part of its continuing effort 

to reduce paperwork burden and as 

required by the Paperwork Reduction 

Act (PRA) of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501– 

3520), the Federal Communications 

Commission invites the general public 

and other Federal agencies to take this 

opportunity to comment on the 

following information collection(s). 

Comments are requested concerning: 

whether the proposed collection of 

information is necessary for the proper 

performance of the functions of the 

Commission, including whether the 

information shall have practical utility; 

the accuracy of the Commission’s 

burden estimate; ways to enhance the 

quality, utility, and clarity of the 

information collected; ways to minimize 

the burden of the collection of 

information on the respondents, 

including the use of automated 

collection techniques or other forms of 

information technology; and ways to 

further reduce the information burden 

for small business concerns with fewer 

than 25 employees. 

The FCC may not conduct or sponsor 

a collection of information unless it 

displays a currently valid OMB control 

number. No person shall be subject to 

any penalty for failing to comply with 

a collection of information subject to the 

Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) that 

does not display a valid OMB control 

number. 

DATES: Written Paperwork Reduction 

Act (PRA) comments should be 

submitted on or before October 22, 

2013. If you anticipate that you will be 

submitting PRA comments, but find it 

difficult to do so within the period of 

time allowed by this notice, you should 

advise the FCC contact listed below as 

soon as possible. 

ADDRESSES: Direct all PRA comments to 

Nicholas A. Fraser, Office of 

Management and Budget, via fax at 202– 

395–5167 or via the Internet at 

Nicholas_A._Fraser@omb.eop.gov and 

to the Federal Communications 

Commission via email to PRA@fcc.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Judith B. Herman, Office of Managing 

Director, (202) 418–0214 or email 

judith-b.herman@fcc.gov. 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES