Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 43 / Wednesday, March 5, 1997 / Notices 10055

[OPP–181033; FRL 5591–1]

Chlorfenapyr; Receipt of Application

for Emergency Exemption, Solicitation

of Public Comment

AGENCY: Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: EPA has received a specific

exemption request from the Texas

Department of Agriculture (hereafter

referred to as the ‘‘Applicant’’) to use

the pesticide chlorfenapyr (CAS

122453–73–0), formulated as Pirate 3SC,

to treat up to 1.8 million acres of cotton

to control the beet armyworm

(BAW).The Applicant proposes the use

of a new (unregistered) chemical.

Therefore, in accordance with 40 CFR

166.24, EPA is soliciting public

comment before making the decision

whether or not to grant the exemption.

DATES: Comments must be received on

or before March 20, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Three copies of written

comments, bearing the identification

notation ‘‘OPP–181033,’’ should be

submitted by mail to: Public Response

and Program Resource Branch, Field

Operations Division (7506C), Office of

Pesticide Programs, Environmental

Protection Agency, 401 M St., SW.,

Washington, DC 20460. In person, bring

comments to: Rm. 1132, Crystal Mall #2,

1921 Jefferson Davis Highway,

Arlington, VA.

Comments and data may also be

submitted electronically by sending

electronic mail (e-mail) to: oppdocket@epamail.epa.gov. Electronic

comments must be submitted as an

ASCII file avoiding the use of special

characters and any form of encryption.

Comments and data will also be

accepted on disks in WordPerfect in 5.1

file format or ASCII file format. All

comments and data in electronic form

must be identified by the docket number

[OPP–181033]. No Confidential

Business Information (CBI) should be

submitted through e-mail. Electronic

comments on this notice may be filed

online at many Federal Depository

Libraries. Additional information on

electronic submissions can be found

below in this document.

Information submitted in any

comment concerning this notice may be

claimed confidential by marking any

part or all of that information as CBI.

Information so marked will not be

disclosed except in accordance with

procedures set forth in 40 CFR part 2.

A copy of the comment that does not

contain CBI must be provided by the

submitter for inclusion in the public

record. Information not marked

confidential may be disclosed publicly

by EPA without prior notice. All written

comments filed pursuant to this notice

will be available for public inspection in

Rm. 1132, Crystal Mall No. 2, 1921

Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, VA,

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

through Friday, except legal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: By

mail: Andrea Beard, Registration

Division (7505W), Office of Pesticide

Programs, Environmental Protection

Agency, 401 M St., SW., Washington,

DC 20460. Office location, telephone

number and e-mail: Floor 6, Crystal

Station #1, 2800 Jefferson Davis

Highway, Arlington, VA, (703) 308–

8791; e-mail:

beard.andrea@epamail.epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant

to section 18 of the Federal Insecticide,

Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA)

(7 U.S.C. 136p), the Administrator may,

at her discretion, exempt a state agency

from any registration provision of

FIFRA if she determines that emergency

conditions exist which require such

exemption. The Applicant has requested

the Administrator to issue a specific

exemption for the use of chlorfenapyr

on cotton to control beet armyworm.

Information in accordance with 40 CFR

part 166 was submitted as part of this

request.

According to the Applicant, three

primary factors have brought about this

situation. These are: (1) the resistance to

registered alternative pesticides causing

control failures when these products are

applied on cotton to control BAW; (2)

the weather conditions consisting of

mild winters and unusually dry hot

weather were conducive to a BAW

outbreak, and (3) BAW infesting cotton

in unusually large numbers. Yield losses

due to infestations of beet armyworms

in cotton have ranged from 0 percent

with light populations to 100 percent,

due to the crop being completely

devoured or the grower abandoning the

field. Combining estimates from the

Texas Agricultural Extension

Entomologists from the various areas of

infestation, at least 40 percent yield

losses may occur on approximately 35

percent of the cotton acreage in the

requested sites. These yield losses will

result in significant economic losses for

the cotton producers.

Under the proposed exemption,

chlorfenapyr may be applied at a rate of

0.2 lb. a.i. per acre, with no more than

2 applications during the growing

season, not to exceed the rate of 0.4 lb.

a.i. per acre using ground or aerial

equipment. If all 1.8 million acres are

treated at this maximum rate, this could

potentially result in a total use of

720,000 lb. a.i., or 239,907 gal. of

product.

This notice does not constitute a

decision by EPA on the application

itself. The regulations governing section

18 require publication of a notice of

receipt of an application for a specific

exemption proposing use of a new

chemical (i.e., an active ingredient not

contained in any currently registered

pesticide), [40 CFR 166.24 (a)(1)]. Such

notice provides for opportunity for

public comment on the application.

A record has been established for this

notice under docket number [OPP–

181033] (including comments and data

submitted electronically as described

below). A public version of this record,

including printed, paper versions of

electronic comments, which does not

include any information claimed as CBI

is available for inspection from 8:30

a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday,

excluding legal holidays. The public

record is located in Room 1132 of the

Public Response and Program Resource

Branch, Field Operations Division

(7506C), Office of Pesticide Programs,

Environmental Protection Agency,

Crystal Mall #2, 1921 Jefferson Davis

Highway, Arlington, VA.

Electronic comments can be sent

directly to EPA at:

opp-docket@epamail.epa.gov

Electronic comments must be

submitted as an ASCII file avoiding the

use of special characters and any form

of encryption.

The official record for this notice, as

well as the public version, as described

above will be kept in paper form.

Accordingly, EPA will transfer all

comments received electronically into

printed, paper form as they are received

and will place the paper copies in the

official record which will also include

all comments submitted directly in

writing. The official record is the paper

record maintained at the address in

‘‘ADDRESSES’’ at the beginning of this

document. Accordingly, interested

persons may submit written views on

this subject to the Field Operations

Division at the address above.

The Agency, accordingly, will review

and consider all comments received

during the comment period in

determining whether to issue the

emergency exemption requested by the

Texas Department of Agriculture.

List of Subjects

Environmental protection, Pesticides

and pests, Emergency exemptions.
10056 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 43 / Wednesday, March 5, 1997 / Notices

Dated: February 25, 1997.

Peter Caulkins,

Acting Director, Registration Division, Office

of Pesticide Programs.

[FR Doc. 97–5306 Filed 3–4–97 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560–50–F

[OPP–181032; FRL 5588–6]

Pyriproxyfen and Buprofezin; Receipt

of Application for Emergency

Exemptions, Solicitation of Public

Comment

AGENCY: Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: EPA has received specific

exemption requests from the California

Environmental Protection Agency,

Department of Pesticide Regulation

(hereafter referred to as the

‘‘Applicant’’) to use the insect growth

regulators pyriproxyfen (CAS 95737–

68–1) and buprofezin (CAS 69327–76–0)

to treat up to 100,000 acres of cotton to

control the sweet potato, or silverleaf

whitefly Bemesia species. In the case of

pyriproxyfen, the Applicant proposes

the first food use of an active ingredient.

Buprofezin is an unregistered material,

and its proposed use is thus use of a

‘‘new’’ chemical. Therefore, in

accordance with 40 CFR 166.24, EPA is

soliciting public comment before

making the decision whether or not to

grant the exemptions.

DATES: Comments must be received on

or before March 20, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Three copies of written

comments, bearing the identification

notation ‘‘OPP–181032,’’ should be

submitted by mail to: Public Response

and Program Resource Branch, Field

Operations Division (7506C), Office of

Pesticide Programs, Environmental

Protection Agency, 401 M St., SW.,

Washington, DC 20460. In person, bring

comments to: Rm. 1132, Crystal Mall #2,

1921 Jefferson Davis Highway,

Arlington, VA.

Comments and data may also be

submitted electronically by sending

electronic mail (e-mail) to: oppdocket@epamail.epa.gov. Electronic

comments must be submitted as an

ASCII file avoiding the use of special

characters and any form of encryption.

Comments and data will also be

accepted on disks in WordPerfect in 5.1

file format or ASCII file format. All

comments and data in electronic form

must be identified by the docket number

[OPP–181032]. No Confidential

Business Information (CBI) should be

submitted through e-mail. Electronic

comments on this notice may be filed

online at many Federal Depository

Libraries. Additional information on

electronic submissions can be found

below in this document.

Information submitted in any

comment concerning this notice may be

claimed confidential by marking any

part or all of that information as CBI.

Information so marked will not be

disclosed except in accordance with

procedures set forth in 40 CFR part 2.

A copy of the comment that does not

contain CBI must be provided by the

submitter for inclusion in the public

record. Information not marked

confidential may be disclosed publicly

by EPA without prior notice. All written

comments filed pursuant to this notice

will be available for public inspection in

Rm. 1132, Crystal Mall No. 2, 1921

Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, VA,

from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through

Friday, except legal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: By

mail: Andrea Beard, Registration

Division (7505W), Office of Pesticide

Programs, Environmental Protection

Agency, 401 M St., SW., Washington,

D.C. 20460. Office location, telephone

number and e-mail: Floor 6, Crystal

Station #1, 2800 Jefferson Davis

Highway, Arlington, VA, (703) 308–

8791; e-mail:

beard.andrea@epamail.epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant

to section 18 of the Federal Insecticide,

Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA)

(7 U.S.C. 136p), the Administrator may,

at her discretion, exempt a state agency

from any registration provision of

FIFRA if she determines that emergency

conditions exist which require such

exemption. The Applicant has requested

the Administrator to issue specific

exemptions for the use of pyriproxyfen

and buprofezin on cotton to control the

sweet potato, or silverleaf whitefly

(SLW). Information in accordance with

40 CFR part 166 was submitted as part

of this request.

The Applicant states that a new strain

or possibly a new species, of whitefly,

often referred to as the strain B of sweet

potato whitefly, or silverleaf whitefly

(SLW), has been a major pest of cotton

in California since 1991. Since that

time, it has steadily spread to new host

plants and grown in population size

each summer and fall. The SLW causes

damage by feeding, and also through the

production of honeydew, which

encourages growth of sooty mold and

other fungi, and leads to sticky cotton.

When SLWs become numerous, their

direct feeding lowers the yield. The

SLW has also been implicated as a

vector of virus. The Applicant claims

that adequate control of the SLW is not

being achieved with currently registered

products and alternative cultural

practices.

The Applicant points out that the

ability to adequately control this pest is

further complicated because of the close

proximity of these California cottongrowing areas to that of Arizona where

large populations of whitefly have

demonstrated resistance to available

insecticidal control. It has also been

demonstrated that there are whitefly

populations in California with

resistance problems to those being

experienced in Arizona. The Applicant

indicates that one application of either

one or the other of the requested

chemicals would not provide adequate

control throughout the season, and since

application of either would be limited to

one, is requesting the use of both

materials. The Applicant indicates that

without adequate control of the SLW in

cotton, significant economic losses will

be suffered.

The Applicant proposes to apply

pyriproxyfen at a rate of 0.054 lb. active

ingredient (a.i.) per acre with a

maximum of one application per crop

season on up to 100,000 acres of cotton.

The Applicant proposes to apply

buprofezin at a rate of 0.35 lb., a.i. per

acre with a maximum of one application

per crop season on up to 100,000 acres

of cotton. Therefore, use under these

exemptions could potentially amount to

a maximum total of 5,400 lbs. of

pyriproxyfen and 35,000 lbs. of

buprofezin.

This notice does not constitute a

decision by EPA on the application

itself. The regulations governing section

18 require publication of a notice of

receipt in the Federal Register for an

application for a specific exemption

proposing the first food use of an active

ingredient, or for use of a new

(unregistered) chemical. Such notice

provides for opportunity for public

comment on the application.

A record has been established for this

notice under docket number [OPP–

181032] (including comments and data

submitted electronically as described

below). A public version of this record,

including printed, paper versions of

electronic comments, which does not

include any information claimed as CBI

is available for inspection from 8:30

a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday,

excluding legal holidays. The public

record is located in Room 1132 of the

Public Response and Program Resource

Branch, Field Operations Division

(7506C), Office of Pesticide Programs,

Environmental Protection Agency,

Crystal Mall #2, 1921 Jefferson Davis

Highway, Arlington, VA.