[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 217 (Friday, November 8, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 88764-88765]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-26125]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OAR-2020-0312; FRL-7887-05-OAR]


Release of Planning Update in the Review of the Lead National 
Ambient Air Quality Standards

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: On or about November 8, 2024, the Environmental Protection 
Agency (EPA) is making available to the public an update on two aspects 
of the approach for the quantitative human exposure and health risk 
analyses, Update on Two Aspects of the Analytical Approach (Update). 
This Update provides additional detail regarding aspects of the 
analysis plans described in Volume 3 of the Integrated Review Plan for 
the Lead National Ambient Air Quality Standards (IRP). The national 
ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) for lead (Pb) are set to protect 
the public health and the public welfare from Pb in ambient air. Volume 
3 of the IRP is the planning document for quantitative analyses to be 
considered in the policy assessment (PA), including human exposure and 
health risk analyses.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before December 9, 2024.

ADDRESSES: You may send comments on this document, identified by Docket 
ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2020-0312, by any of the following methods:
    <bullet> Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov/ 
(our preferred method). Follow the online instructions for submitting 
comments.
    <bullet> Mail: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA Docket 
Center, Office of Air and Radiation Docket, Mail Code 28221T, 1200 
Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20460.
    <bullet> Hand Delivery or Courier (by scheduled appointment only): 
EPA Docket Center, WJC West Building, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution 
Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20004. The Docket Center's hours of 
operations are 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m., Monday-Friday (except Federal 
Holidays).
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the Docket ID 
No. for this notice. Comments received may be posted without change to 
https://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information 
provided. For detailed instructions on sending comments, see the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document. The document 
described here will be available on the EPA's website at https://www.epa.gov/naaqs/lead-pb-air-quality-standards. The document will be 
accessible under ``Planning Documents'' for the current review.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Deirdre L. Murphy, Office of Air 
Quality Planning and Standards, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 
Mail Code: C504-06, 109 T.W. Alexander Drive, P.O. Box 12055, Research 
Triangle Park, NC 27711; telephone number: 919-541-0729; or email: 
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#204d55525048590e44454952445245604550410e474f56"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="dfb2aaadafb7a6f1bbbab6adbbadba9fbaafbef1b8b0a9">[email protected]</span></a>.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. General Information

Written Comments

    Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2020-
0312, at https://www.regulations.gov (our preferred method), or the 
other methods identified in the ADDRESSES section. Once submitted, 
comments cannot be edited or removed from the docket. The EPA may 
publish any comment received to its public docket. Do not submit to 
EPA's docket at https://www.regulations.gov any

[[Page 88765]]

information you consider to be Confidential Business Information (CBI), 
Proprietary Business Information (PBI), or other information whose 
disclosure is restricted by statute. Multimedia submissions (audio, 
video, etc.) must be accompanied by a written comment. The written 
comment is considered the official comment and should include 
discussion of all points you wish to make. The EPA will generally not 
consider comments or comment contents located outside of the primary 
submission (i.e., on the web, cloud, or other file sharing system). 
Please visit https://www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets for 
additional submission methods; the full EPA public comment policy; 
information about CBI, PBI, or multimedia submissions; and general 
guidance on making effective comments.

II. Information About the Documents

    Two sections of the Clean Air Act (CAA or the Act) govern the 
establishment and revision of the NAAQS. Section 108 directs the 
Administrator to identify and list certain air pollutants and then 
issue ``air quality criteria'' for those 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 
such pollutant in the ambient air . . .'' (CAA section 108(a)(2)). 
Under section 109 of the Act, the EPA is then to establish primary 
(health-based) and secondary (welfare-based) NAAQS for each pollutant 
for which the EPA has issued air quality criteria. Section 109(d)(1) of 
the Act requires periodic review and, if appropriate, revision of 
existing air quality criteria. Revised air quality criteria are to 
reflect advances in scientific knowledge on the effects of the 
pollutant on public health and welfare. Under the same provision, the 
EPA is also to periodically review and, if appropriate, revise the 
NAAQS, based on the revised air quality criteria.
    The Act additionally requires appointment of an independent 
scientific review committee that is to periodically review the existing 
air quality criteria and NAAQS and to recommend any new standards and 
revisions of existing criteria and standards as may be appropriate (CAA 
section 109(d)(2)(A)-(B)). Since the early 1980s, the requirement for 
an independent scientific review committee has been fulfilled by the 
Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC).
    Presently the EPA is reviewing the air quality criteria and NAAQS 
for Pb.\1\ The document announced in this notice has been developed as 
a follow-up to Volume 3 of the IRP. Like the IRP, this Update has been 
prepared by the EPA's Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards, 
within the Office of Air and Radiation. This document will be available 
on the EPA's website at https://www.epa.gov/naaqs/lead-pb-air-quality-standards, accessible under ``Planning Documents'' for the current Pb 
NAAQS review.
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    \1\ The EPA's call for information for this review was issued on 
July 7, 2020 (85 FR 40641) and the Integrated Science Assessment for 
Lead was released on January 31, 2024 (89 FR 8425, February 7, 
2024).
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    The IRP for the current review of the lead NAAQS is comprised of 
three volumes. Volume 3 is the planning document for quantitative 
analyses to be considered in the policy assessment (PA), including 
exposure and risk analyses. Volume 3 was the subject of a consultation 
with the CASAC Lead Panel on June 14, 2023, and is available on the 
EPA's website.\2\ The Update provides additional updated detail on two 
aspects of the approach planned for quantitative human exposure and 
health risk analyses being performed in this NAAQS review. Comments on 
the Update should be submitted to the docket, as described above, by 
December 9, 2024. A separate Federal Register notice provided details 
about the CASAC Lead Panel consultation meeting and the process for 
participation in the consultation meeting on this document (89 FR 
86801, October 31, 2024). The EPA will consider the consultation 
comments from the CASAC Lead Panel and public comments on this Update 
in its preparation of quantitative exposure and risk analyses for the 
PA. This document does not represent and should not be construed to 
represent any final EPA policy, viewpoint, or determination.
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    \2\ Volume 3 of the IRP is already available on the EPA website, 
along volumes 1 and 2. Volume 1 of the IRP provides background or 
contextual and historical material for this NAAQS review. All three 
volumes are available at https://www.epa.gov/naaqs/lead-pb-air-quality-standards, accessible under ``Planning Documents'' for the 
current review.

Erika N. Sasser,
Director, Health and Environmental Impacts Division.
[FR Doc. 2024-26125 Filed 11-7-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P


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