[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 133 (Wednesday, July 13, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 41749-41750]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-14862]


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OFFICE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY POLICY


Request for Information; Identifying Critical Data Gaps and Needs 
To Inform Federal Strategic Plan for PFAS Research and Development

AGENCY: Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP).

ACTION: Notice of Request for Information (RFI).

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SUMMARY: The Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) requests 
input from all interested parties to identify data gaps in research and 
development regarding several aspects of per- and polyfluoroalkyl 
substances (PFAS). This information will be used to inform a strategic 
plan for Federal coordination of PFAS research and development and, in 
compliance with Section 332 of the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National 
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 (FY21 NDAA), the 
interagency strategy team on PFAS will also develop an implementation 
plan for Federal agencies.

DATES: Interested persons and organizations are invited to submit 
comments on or before 5:00 p.m. ET, August 29, 2022.

ADDRESSES: Interested individuals and organizations should submit 
comments electronically to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#d49e91918494bba7a0a4fab1bba4fab3bba2"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="e3a9a6a6b3a38c909793cd868c93cd848c95">[email protected]</span></a> and include ``RFI 
Response: PFAS Strategic Plan'' in the subject line of the email. Email 
submissions should be machine-readable [PDF, Word] and should not be 
copy-protected. Submissions received after the deadline may not be 
taken into consideration.
    Instructions: Response to this RFI is voluntary. Each individual or 
organization is requested to submit only one response. Commenters can 
respond to one or many questions. However, responses must not exceed a 
total of five (5) pages in 12 point or larger font, with a page number 
provided on each page. Submissions should clearly indicate which 
questions are being addressed. A bibliography does not count towards 
the page limit. Responses should include the name of the person(s) or 
organization(s) filing the response. Responses containing references, 
studies, research, and other empirical data that are not widely 
published should include copies of or electronic links to the 
referenced materials. Responses containing profanity, vulgarity, 
threats, or other inappropriate language or content will not be 
considered.
    Comments submitted in response to this notice are subject to the 
Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). No business proprietary information, 
copyrighted information, or personally identifiable information should 
be submitted in response to this RFI. Please be aware that comments 
submitted in response to this RFI, including the submitter's 
identification (as noted above), may be posted, without change, on 
OSTP's or another Federal website or otherwise released publicly.
    In accordance with FAR 15-202(3), responses to this notice are not 
offers and cannot be accepted by the U.S. Government to form a binding 
contract. Additionally, the U.S. Government will not pay for response 
preparation or for the use of any information contained in the 
response.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For additional information, please 
direct questions to Melanie Buser at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#38727d7d6878574b4c48165d5748165f574e"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="561c13130616392522267833392678313920">[email protected]</span></a> or 202-456-4444.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Background: The Biden-Harris Administration 
is committed to combatting PFAS pollution and to ensuring access to 
clean drinking water for all Americans.\1\ \2\ OSTP has been tasked 
under Section 332 of the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense 
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 (FY21 NDAA) (Pub. L. 116-283) 
with developing a strategic plan for PFAS research and development. 
This strategic plan should identify ``scientific and technological 
challenges that must be addressed to understand and to significantly 
reduce the environmental and human health impacts of PFAS and to 
identify cost-effective--
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    \1\ FACT SHEET: Biden-Harris Administration Launches Plan to 
Combat PFAS Pollution [bond] The White House.
    \2\ FACT SHEET: Biden-Harris Administration Combatting PFAS 
Pollution to Safeguard Clean Drinking Water for All Americans [bond] 
The White House.
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    (i) alternatives to PFAS that are designed to be safer and more 
environmentally friendly;
    (ii) methods for removal of PFAS from the environment; and
    (iii) methods to safely destroy or degrade PFAS;'' and subsequently 
to establish ``goals, priorities, and metrics for federally funded PFAS 
research and development that takes into account the current state of 
research and development.''
    This strategic plan will be the precursor to an R&D implementation 
plan for Federal agencies. Two agencies currently have existing agency 
plans that speak to PFAS R&D: the USGS Strategic Science Vision \3\ and 
the EPA PFAS Strategic Roadmap.\4\ Other Federal agencies may develop 
their own PFAS R&D plans and may use answers from this RFI to inform 
future directions.
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    \3\ https://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/cir1490.
    \4\ https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2021-10/pfas-roadmap_final-508.pdf.
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    For purposes of this RFI, the term per- and polyfluoroalkyl 
substances or PFAS has the definition provided in Section 332(g)(1) of 
the FY21 NDAA: ``(A) man-made chemicals of which all of the carbon 
atoms are fully fluorinated carbon atoms; and (B) man-made chemicals 
containing a mix of fully fluorinated carbon atoms, partially 
fluorinated carbon atoms, and nonfluorinated carbon atoms''. PFAS have 
been widely used in industry and consumer products since the 1940s 
because of their useful properties. Examples of products that use PFAS 
include food contact materials (e.g., packaging, cookware), stain and 
water-repellant fabrics and carpets, and firefighting foams. PFAS may 
be present in water, soil, air, food, and other materials. Research has 
shown that PFAS are highly stable chemicals that accumulate in people, 
animals, and the environment over time, and in several cases, have been 
shown to cause adverse health effects.
    Scope: OSTP invites input from States; Tribes; territories; 
individuals, including those belonging to groups that have been 
historically underserved, marginalized, or subject to discrimination or 
systemic disadvantage; local governments; appropriate industries; 
academic institutions; nongovernmental organizations; and international 
organizations with expertise in PFAS research and development, 
treatment, management, and alternative development.
    Information Requested: Respondents may provide information for one 
or as many topics below as they choose. Submissions should clearly 
indicate which questions are being addressed. For the purpose of this 
RFI, ``PFAS research and development'' includes any research or project 
meeting one or more of the following goals:
    (A) The removal of PFAS from the environment, in part or in total;

[[Page 41750]]

    (B) The safe destruction or degradation of PFAS;
    (C) The development and deployment of safer and more 
environmentally-friendly alternative substances that are functionally 
similar to those made with PFAS;
    (D) The understanding of sources of environmental PFAS 
contamination and pathways to exposure for the public; and/or,
    (E) The understanding of the toxicity of PFAS to humans and 
animals.\5\
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    \5\ https://www.congress.gov/116/plaws/publ283/PLAW-116publ283.pdf.
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    Given PFAS are a large, diverse class of substances, making it 
difficult to comprehensively evaluate the environmental and human 
impacts, OSTP is interested in responses to the following questions:
    1. Should the USG consider identifying priority PFAS when 
developing a strategic plan for PFAS research and development? If so, 
what criteria should be used to identify priority PFAS for research and 
development (e.g., tonnage used per year; releases to the environment 
per year; toxicology or other human or environmental health concerns; 
national security or critical infrastructure uses)?
    2. Are there criteria which could be applied across the five 
research goals identified above, or should specific criteria be 
developed for each individual research goal?
    3. Based on the definition of PFAS in this RFI, what are the 
scientific, technological, and human challenges that must be addressed 
to understand and to significantly reduce the environmental and human 
impacts of PFAS and to identify cost-effective:
    a. Alternatives to PFAS that are designed to be safer and more 
environmentally friendly;
    b. Methods for removal of PFAS from the environment; and
    c. Methods to safely destroy or degrade PFAS?
    4. Are there specific chemistries and/or intended uses that PFAS 
provide for which there are no known alternatives at this time?
    5. What are alternatives to the definition of PFAS provided in this 
RFI? What are the implications of these alternative definitions on 
possible remediation strategies?
    6. What should be the research and development priorities for 
accelerating progress, improving efficiency, and reducing the cost of: 
analytical methods, detection limits, non-targeted detection?
    7. What studies would yield the most useful information and address 
the current gaps in understanding PFAS health effects in humans (e.g., 
in vitro, animal toxicological, and epidemiological studies)? Which 
health effects should be prioritized? What additional impacts beyond 
health should be prioritized? Social scientific approaches are welcome 
in addressing this question and any others, as appropriate.
    8. One challenge across all research goals is PFAS mixtures and 
formulations. Currently, more information is needed to understand the 
identity, composition, occurrence, source, or effects on human health 
and the environment for mixtures of PFAS found in environmental media. 
Additionally, more information is needed to understand the best way to 
remediate or destroy media contaminated with multiple PFAS. What should 
be the research and development priorities for accelerating progress in 
these areas?
    9. What goals, priorities, and performance metrics would be 
valuable in measuring the success of National, federally funded PFAS 
research and development initiatives relating to:
    a. The removal of PFAS from the environment;
    b. Safely destroying or degrading PFAS; and
    c. Developing safer and more environmentally-friendly alternatives 
to PFAS?
    d. Mitigating negative human effects of PFAS, whether related to 
health or additional domains?

    Dated: July 7, 2022.
Stacy Murphy,
Operations Manager.
[FR Doc. 2022-14862 Filed 7-12-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3270-F2-P


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