[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 126 (Friday, June 28, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33734-33735]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-16584]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-5521-1 OMB No. 2070-0081; EPA ICR No. 1289.04]


Agency Information Collection Activities Under OMB Review; Wood 
Preservatives--Submission of Information Regarding Arsenic Exposure 
Levels in Wood Treatment Plants

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 
3507(a)(1)(D)), this notice announces that the Information Collection 
Request (ICR) for Wood Preservative--Submission of Information 
Regarding Arsenic Exposure Levels in Wood Treatment Plants described 
below has been forwarded to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
for review and comment. The ICR describes the nature of the information 
collection and its expected burden and cost; where appropriate, it 
includes the actual data collection instrument.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before July 29, 1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION OR A COPY CALL: Sandy Farmer at EPA, (202) 260-
2740, and refer to EPA ICR No. 1289.04.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

    Title: Wood Preservatives--Submission of Information Regarding 
Arsenic Exposure Levels in Wood Treatment Plants (OMB Control Number 
2070-0081; EPA ICR No. 1289.04). This is a request for an extension of 
a currently approved collection.
    Abstract: This information collection provides wood treaters that 
use arsenic formulations a way of exempting themselves from the FIFRA 
pesticide label requirements, which dictate that all applicators of the 
registered pesticide product wear NIOSH approved respirators. The 
program that provides this opportunity for facilities to exempt 
themselves from the respirator requirements is called the Permissible 
Exposure Limit Monitoring Program (PEL) and it is incorporated into the 
``Notice of Intent to Cancel Registrations of Pesticide Product 
Containing Creosote, Pentachlorophenol (Including Its Salts) and 
Inorganic Arsenic.'' It was published in the July 1984 Federal 
Register, vol. 49, No. 136, p. 28674. Facilities that choose to 
participate in the voluntary PEL can do the following to exempt 
themselves from the respirator requirements. First, the facility 
operator needs to conduct monitoring for air-borne arsenic. Operators 
with facilities that have air-borne arsenic levels that are higher than 
the permissible exposure limit would have to continue to require plant 
personnel to wear respirators. If a facility's air-borne arsenic levels 
are below the permissible exposure limit, plant personnel would no 
longer be required to wear respirators. Depending on how close the 
levels are to the permissible exposure limit, the facility would be 
required to retest periodically or fill out a checklist, which 
indicates if arsenic exposure levels are likely to increase due to 
changes in the facility's industrial process.
    Participating facilities must submit the air monitoring test 
results to EPA or, if arsenic levels are low and testing is not 
required, then they can simply fill out the checklist and submit it to 
EPA. All submissions must certify that the information provided is 
accurate.
    EPA uses the certification and air monitoring data to determine if 
the wood preserving facility is complying with the air-borne arsenic 
levels set by the cancellation order, which was set to ensure that 
plant personnel are not exposed to levels of arsenic that pose an

[[Page 33735]]

unacceptably high health risk. This data will also be used to monitor 
which wood treatment facilities are participating in the PEL and thus 
could be exempt from the pesticide label requirement to wear a 
respirator. Because the information that would be submitted to EPA is 
not confidential business information it will not be handled as such.
    An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required 
to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a 
currently valid OMB control number. The OMB control numbers for EPA's 
regulations are listed in 40 CFR part 9 and 48 CFR chapter 15. The 
Federal Register Notice required under 5 CFR 1320.8(d), soliciting 
comments on this collection of information was published on 03/26/96 
(61 FR 13190).
    Burden Statement: The annual public reporting and record keeping 
burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 3 
hours and 30 minutes per response. Burden means the total time, effort, 
or financial resources expended by persons to generate, maintain, 
retain, or disclose or provide information to or for a Federal agency. 
This includes the time needed to review instructions; develop, acquire, 
install, and utilize technology and systems for the purposes of 
collecting, validating, and verifying information, processing and 
maintaining information, and disclosing and providing information; 
adjust the existing ways to comply with any previously applicable 
instructions and requirements; train personnel to be able to respond to 
a collection of information; search data sources; complete and review 
the collection of information; and transmit or otherwise disclose the 
information.
    Respondents/Affected Entitles: 300.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 250.
    Estimated Number of Responses: 250.
    Frequency of Response: once per year.
    Estimated Total Annual Hour Burden: 888 hours.
    Estimated Total Annualized Cost Burden: $0
    Send comments on the Agency's need for this information, the 
accuracy of the provided burden estimates, and any suggested methods 
for minimizing respondent burden, including through the use of 
automated collection techniques to the following addresses. Please 
refer to EPA ICR No. 1289.04 and OMB Control No. 2070-0081 in any 
correspondence.

Ms. Sandy Farmer, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, OPPE Regulatory 
Information Division (2137), 401 M Street, SW., Washington, DC 20460.

and

Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and 
Budget, Attention: Desk Officer for EPA, 725 17th Street, NW., 
Washington, DC 20503.

    Dated: June 20, 1996.
Richard Westlund,
Acting Director, Regulatory Information Division.
[FR Doc. 96-16584 Filed 6-27-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-M