35200 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 111 / Thursday, June 9, 2022 / Notices 

1H.R. 3684—Infrastructure Investment and Jobs 

Act. Section 70402. Consumer Recycling Education 

and Outreach Grant Program. www.congress.gov/ 

bill/117th-congress/house-bill/3684/text. 

overburdened and underserved 

communities? What additional actions 

or investment have overburdened and 

underserved communities expressed a 

need for? 

• Current Stakeholder Education and 

Outreach Programs: Does your 

community currently have an outreach 

and education program to support and 

encourage recycling? If so, what are the 

elements of the program and how is it 

funded? If you have a program, how do 

you continue to engage the community 

beyond when the program has been 

implemented? 

• Other Feedback: What suggestions 

should EPA consider while developing 

the Recycling Education and Outreach 

grant program and Model Recycling 

Program Toolkit? Based on the 

legislative language,1 are there projects 

that you believe would be eligible in the 

Education and Outreach grant program, 

but have not been mentioned? 

V. Disclaimer and Important Note 

This RFI is issued solely for 

information, research and planning 

purposes and does not constitute a 

Request for Proposals (RFP) or a Request 

for Applications (RFA). Any 

information obtained as a result of this 

RFI is intended to be used by EPA on 

a non-attribution basis to support EPA’s 

efforts to develop the Recycling 

Education and Outreach—Grant 

Program and Model Recycling Program 

Toolkit. This RFI does not constitute a 

formal solicitation for proposals or 

abstracts. Your response to this notice 

will be treated as information only. EPA 

will review and consider all responses 

in its development of the grant program 

and toolkit that are the subject of this 

request. This RFI does not represent any 

award commitment on the part of EPA, 

nor does it obligate EPA to pay for costs 

incurred in the preparation and 

submission of any responses. 

Dated: June 3, 2022. 

Carolyn Hoskinson, 

Director, Office of Resource Conservation and 

Recovery. 

[FR Doc. 2022–12458 Filed 6–8–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

[EPA–HQ–OLEM–2022–0342, FRL–9840–01– 

OLEM] 

Solid Waste Infrastructure for 

Recycling Program; Request for 

Information 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Request for Information (RFI). 

SUMMARY: EPA’s Office of Land and 

Emergency Management (OLEM) is 

developing and implementing several 

new programs as directed by the 2021 

Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act 

(IIJA), also referred to as the Bipartisan 

Infrastructure Law. This action provides 

the public with the opportunity to share 

information to inform the development 

of the Solid Waste Infrastructure for 

Recycling (SWIFR) grant program, 

which will fund improvements to local 

post-consumer materials management 

including municipal recycling programs 

and assist local waste management 

authorities in making improvements to 

local waste management systems. OLEM 

is seeking information from a broad 

array of stakeholders about needed 

improvements to solid waste 

management systems (e.g., waste 

reduction, collection, sorting, 

processing, and end-markets for reuse 

and recycling), including but not 

limited to industry, researchers, 

academia, state, tribal, and local 

governments including U.S. territories 

and the District of Columbia, other 

federal agencies, community groups, 

non-governmental organizations, the 

public, and international organizations. 

DATES: Comments and information must 

be received on or before July 25, 2022. 

ADDRESSES: Responses to this Request 

for Information (RFI) may be submitted 

by a single individual or by a group. 

Comments submitted in response to this 

notice may be submitted through one of 

the following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

online instructions for submitting 

comments. 

• Hand Delivery or Courier: 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). 

Once submitted, comments cannot be 

edited or removed from Regulations.gov. 

EPA may publish any comment received 

to its public docket. Do not submit 

electronically any information you 

consider to be Confidential Business 

Information (CBI) or other information 

whose disclosure is restricted by statute. 

Multimedia submissions (audio, video, 

etc.) must be accompanied by a written 

comment. For additional submission 

methods, the full EPA public comment 

policy, information about CBI or 

multimedia submissions, and general 

guidance on making effective 

comments, please visit https://

www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epadockets. 

Instructions: All submissions received 

must include the Docket ID No. OLEM– 

2022–0340 for this RFI. Comments 

received may be posted without change 

to https://www.regulations.gov/, 

including any personal information 

provided. For detailed instructions on 

sending comments and additional 

information on the Request for 

Information process, see the ‘‘Public 

Participation’’ heading of the 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of 

this document. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

questions concerning this document, 

contact Dan Halpert, Resource 

Conservation and Sustainability 

Division, Office of Resource 

Conservation and Recovery, Office of 

Land and Emergency Management, Mail 

Code 5306T, Environmental Protection 

Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue 

NW, Washington, DC 20004; Telephone: 

(202) 566–0816; Email: SWIFR@epa.gov. 

For more information on this action 

please visit https://www.epa.gov/rcra/ 

infrastructure. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Public Participation 

Response to this RFI is voluntary. 

Responses to this RFI may be submitted 

by a single party or by a team. 

Respondents should respond to this RFI 

in a Microsoft Word (.docx) file or 

Adobe PDF (.pdf) file. This document 

should contain the following: 

• Two clearly delineated sections: (1) 

Cover page with company name and 

contact information; and (2) responses 

should indicate which topic and 

specific questions are being addressed. 

• 1-inch margins (top, bottom, and 

sides). 

• Times New Roman and 12-point 

font. 

Comments containing references, 

studies, research, and other empirical 

data that are not widely published 

should include copies or electronic 

links of the referenced materials. No 

confidential and/or business proprietary 

information, copyrighted information, 

or personally identifiable information 

should be submitted in response to this 


lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1
Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 111 / Thursday, June 9, 2022 / Notices 35201 

1 International Resource Panel (2019). Global 

Resources Outlook 2019: Natural Resources for the 

Future We Want. Report of the International 

Resource Panel. United Nations Environment 

Programme. Nairobi, Kenya. 

RFI. Privacy Note: All comments 

received from members of the public 

will be available for public viewing on 

Regulations.gov. In accordance with 

FAR 15.202(3), responses to this notice 

are not offers and cannot be accepted by 

the Federal Government to form a 

binding contract. Additionally, those 

submitting responses are solely 

responsible for all expenses associated 

with response preparation. 

II. General Information 

A. What is the purpose of this RFI? 

Under the Infrastructure Investment 

and Jobs Act (IIJA; Pub. L. 117–58), also 

known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure 

Law, EPA is directed to develop several 

new solid waste recycling programs. 

This RFI covers the following activities 

established by the BIL: 

• Support the implementation of a 

strategy to improve post-consumer 

materials management and 

infrastructure; 

• Support improvements to local 

post-consumer materials management, 

including recycling programs; and 

• Assist local waste management 

authorities in making improvements to 

local solid waste management systems. 

The term post-consumer materials 

management refers to the systems, 

operation, supervision and long-term 

management of processes and 

equipment used for post-use material 

(including packaging, goods, products, 

and other materials), including 

collection; transport; and systems and 

processes related to post-use materials 

that can be recovered, reused, recycled, 

repaired, or refurbished. 

This RFI seeks information from a 

broad array of stakeholders such as 

industry, researchers, academia, state, 

territories, local and tribal governments, 

other federal agencies, community 

groups, non-governmental 

organizations, international 

organizations, the public, and all other 

stakeholders involved in the recycling 

system from the collection and sorting 

to the reuse and recycling. OLEM is 

seeking information about needed 

improvements to post-consumer 

materials management (e.g., waste 

reduction, collection, sorting, 

processing, and end-markets for reuse 

and recycling). This stakeholder input 

will inform the Agency’s efforts to 

develop effective grant programs that 

improve recycling infrastructure across 

the nation. 

This RFI is part of a series of RFIs 

EPA will be issuing to inform the 

development of new programs under the 

Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Other 

RFIs that are related include those on 

the Recycling Education and 

Outreach—Grant Program and Model 

Recycling Program Toolkit and the 

Development of Best Practices for 

Collection of Batteries to be Recycled 

and Voluntary Battery Labeling 

Guidelines. 

III. Background 

Approximately half of global 

greenhouse gas emissions are the result 

of natural resource extraction and 

processing.1 Increasing recycling 

reduces climate, environmental, and 

social impacts of materials use, and 

keeps valuable resources in use instead 

of in landfills. Some communities that 

lack waste management infrastructure 

do not have curbside waste collection 

services, recycling, or composting 

programs, which increases the burden 

on our landfills, decreases their 

capacity, and increases greenhouse gas 

emissions. Mismanaged waste also can 

compound social and economic 

conditions in historically underserved 

and overburdened communities. 

Resources and commodities disposed of 

in landfills amount to a financial loss 

for recycling businesses and industries 

nationwide. 

Section 302(a) of the Save Our Seas 

2.0 Act (Pub. L. 116–224) authorized 

EPA to create a grant program to support 

post-consumer materials management 

and recycling efforts, now known as the 

SWIFR program. The IIJA was the first 

legislation to fund EPA’s SWIFR 

program providing EPA with 

$275,000,000 to award grants, in 

increments of $55 million per year from 

fiscal years 2022–2026, to remain 

available until expended. Grants issued 

under SWIFR will support 

implementation of a strategy to improve 

post-consumer materials management 

and infrastructure; improvements to 

local post-consumer materials 

management and recycling programs; 

and assist local waste management 

authorities in making improvements to 

local solid waste management systems. 

EPA seeks input through this RFI to 

guide the program design to ensure that 

the SWIFR program meets the actual 

needs for improving materials 

management. Materials within the scope 

of this request include commonly 

recycled and reused materials, such as 

aluminum, glass, paper and plastics, as 

well as food, organics (yard waste, tree 

trimmings, wood, etc.), textiles, 

electronics and construction and 

demolition materials. Biosolids, 

hazardous waste and industrial wastes 

such as coal combustion residuals or 

slag are not within the scope of this 

request. Landfilling, incineration/ 

combustion, and energy recovery 

technologies are not within the scope of 

this request. 

EPA will not consider responses to 

this RFI to be proposals for financial 

assistance projects or unsolicited 

requests for financial assistance. Do not 

include confidential business 

information (CBI) or other privileged 

material in responses. Additionally, 

those submitting responses are solely 

responsible for all expenses associated 

with response preparation. Information 

gathered through this RFI may be used 

to inform potential strategies for 

supporting and improving state, 

territorial, tribal, and local recycling 

operations. ORCR welcomes comments 

from all stakeholders. 

IV. Request for Information 

Over the course of Spring 2022, ORCR 

will be hosting virtual meetings across 

the country with interested stakeholders 

to inform the development of the new 

programs established by the IIJA. This 

RFI and future RFIs aim to supplement 

those planned consultations and 

provide all interested individuals and 

organizations with the opportunity to 

share their perspectives on barriers and 

opportunities related to solid waste 

management infrastructure. SWIFR 

provides EPA with authority to award 

grants to states, the District of Columbia, 

territories (the Commonwealth of Puerto 

Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, 

American Samoa, and the 

Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 

Islands), tribes and intertribal consortia, 

certain former reservations in 

Oklahoma, and Alaskan Native Villages 

and political subdivisions (e.g., local 

governments) for improvements to local 

post-consumer materials management 

including municipal recycling programs 

and to assist local waste management 

authorities in making improvements to 

local waste management systems. 

Specifically, when responding to the 

questions below about solid waste or 

post-consumer materials management, 

consider in your response the recovery, 

reuse, recycle, repair, and/or 

refurbishment of municipal solid waste, 

as well as construction and demolition 

materials. This includes source 

reduction and reuse, sending materials 

to material recovery facilities, 

composting, industrial uses (e.g., 

rendering and anaerobic digestion), and 

feeding animals. OLEM is interested in 

perspectives on the following topics: 

• What are the barriers and 

challenges facing states, territories, 


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35202 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 111 / Thursday, June 9, 2022 / Notices 

tribes, local governments and 

communities with regard to postconsumer materials management and 

how can SWIFR grants assist in 

overcoming those barriers? 

• EPA is considering a wide range of 

eligible uses for SWIFR funds including 

planning, facility-specific feasibility 

studies, infrastructure improvements 

such as equipment upgrades, and new 

construction. Are there other activities 

that EPA should consider for funding 

eligibility when completing the design 

of the SWIFR grant program? For other 

activity recommendations, please 

provide associated estimated costs. 

• What are some examples of postconsumer materials management 

projects, studies or initiatives, and 

associated estimated costs, that would 

support disadvantaged communities, 

rural communities, communities with 

environmental justice concerns, and 

tribes and territories? 

• Are there negative impacts from 

post-consumer materials management 

facilities on communities? How could 

grant funds be used to eliminate or 

minimize those negative impacts? For 

any projects, studies, or initiatives 

referenced in response to this RFI, 

please also provide associated estimated 

costs. 

• Are there specific recommendations 

that EPA should be considering to 

improve post-consumer materials 

management, such as: 

Æ Investments needed for state, 

territorial, tribal, and local waste 

management programs; 

Æ Examples of equipment and 

tangible infrastructure, technology, or 

other improvements needed to increase 

access and/or increase recovery of 

materials; 

Æ Recommendations on how to create 

greater system wide consistency on 

managing post-consumer materials; 

Æ Examples of projects, studies, or 

initiatives, and associated estimated 

costs, to increase access for 

communities without robust postconsumer materials management 

programs; 

Æ Examples of projects, studies, or 

initiatives, and associated estimated 

costs, to implement innovative 

approaches to improve post-consumer 

materials management; 

Æ Programs or projects that will 

support local, state or regional markets 

for material; and 

Æ State and local data needs to 

improve measurement of materials and 

how they are managed. 

• Should EPA consider a phased 

approach to grant distribution to allow 

multi-year financing options? If so, 

please provide detailed 

recommendations on the phases EPA 

should consider. 

• Should EPA consider allocating the 

funds to allow for a greater number of 

smaller grants to assist with discreet 

projects and planning, or a smaller 

number of larger grants to support a 

more complex investment? 

• Do you have any additional 

information that might be considered by 

EPA in developing future programs to 

improve post-consumer materials 

management programs infrastructure? 

V. Disclaimer and Important Note 

This request for information is issued 

solely for information, research and 

planning purposes and does not 

constitute a Request for Proposals (RFP) 

or a Request for Applications (RFA). 

Responding to this RFI will not give any 

advantage to or preclude any 

organization or individual in any 

subsequently issued solicitation, RFP, or 

RFA. Any future development activities 

related to this activity will be 

announced separately on https://

www.sam.gov and/or https://

www.grants.gov. This RFI does not 

represent any award commitment on the 

part of the U.S. Government, nor does 

it obligate the Government to pay for 

costs incurred in the preparation and 

submission of any responses. 

Dated: June 3, 2022. 

Carolyn Hoskinson, 

Director, Office of Resource Conservation and 

Recovery. 

[FR Doc. 2022–12457 Filed 6–8–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

[EPA–HQ–OLEM–2022–0340, FRL–9842–01– 

OLEM] 

Development of Best Practices for 

Collection of Batteries To Be Recycled 

and Voluntary Battery Labeling 

Guidelines; Request for Information 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Request for Information (RFI). 

SUMMARY: EPA is developing best 

practices with respect to the collection 

of batteries to be recycled, as well as 

establishing a program to promote 

battery recycling through the 

development of voluntary labeling 

guidelines for batteries and 

communication materials for battery 

producers and consumers as directed by 

the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs 

Act of 2021. To aid in the 

implementation of these directives, the 

Office of Resource Conservation and 

Recovery (ORCR) within the 

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 

requests information on the end-of-life 

management of batteries, including 

information on their generation, 

collection, recycling, reuse, as well as 

the current labeling standards/ 

requirements for batteries regarding 

their end-of-life. EPA is interested in 

both single-use batteries, also known as 

primary batteries, and rechargeable 

batteries, also known as secondary 

batteries. This includes lithium based, 

nickel-metal hydride, and other battery 

chemistries, as well as all battery types, 

such as small consumer batteries, large 

format batteries (including electric 

vehicles and grid energy storage), and 

industrial batteries used in 

manufacturing, commercial businesses, 

and healthcare operations. ORCR is also 

seeking information about how 

consumers, businesses, entities in the 

vehicle management chain (dealerships, 

repair shops, auction houses, 

dismantlers, entities that repurpose 

electric vehicle batteries, refurbishers, 

and scrap yards), and others are 

educated on how to manage batteries at 

the end-of-life. Information from a wide 

range of stakeholders involved in the 

battery lifecycle from its manufacture to 

its end-of-life management, including 

but not limited to industry stakeholders, 

researchers, academia, state, tribal, and 

local governments including U.S. 

territories and the District of Columbia, 

other federal agencies, community 

groups, non-governmental 

organizations, the public, and 

international organizations. 

DATES: Written comments and 

information must be received on or 

before July 11, 2022. EPA will also hold 

feedback sessions with an opportunity 

to provide live, verbal feedback. The 

dates and times for those feedback 

sessions will be posted on: https://

www.epa.gov/rcra/feedback-sessionsbipartisan-infrastructure-law-solidwaste-and-recycling-programs. To stay 

connected about these feedback sessions 

subscribe to: https://www.epa.gov/ 

recyclingstrategy/forms/stay-connected. 

ADDRESSES: EPA invites submission of 

the requested information through one 

of the following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

online instructions for submitting your 

comments, identified by Docket ID No. 

EPA–HQ–OLEM–2022–0340. 

• Hand Delivery or Courier: 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 


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