13734 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 45 / Wednesday, March 7, 2001 / Notices

III. How and to Whom Do I Submit

Comments?

You may submit comments through

the mail, in person, or electronically. To

ensure proper receipt by EPA, it is

imperative that you identify docket

control number OPP–00439A in the

subject line on the first page of your

correspondence.

1. By mail. Submit your comments to:

Public Information and Records

Integrity Branch (PIRIB), Information

Resources and Services Division

(7502C), Office of Pesticide Programs

(OPP), Environmental Protection

Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.,

Washington, DC 20460.

2. In person or by courier. Deliver

your comments to: Public Information

and Records Integrity Branch (PIRIB),

Information Resources and Services

Division (7502C), Office of Pesticide

Programs (OPP), Environmental

Protection Agency, Rm. 119, Crystal

Mall #2, 1921 Jefferson Davis Hwy.,

Arlington, VA. The PIRIB is open from

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

Friday, excluding legal holidays. The

PIRIB telephone number is (703) 305–

5805.

3. Electronically. You may submit

your comments and/or data

electronically by e-mail to: ‘‘oppdocket@epa.gov,‘‘or you can submit a

computer disk as described in Units

III.A.1. and 2. Do not submit any

information electronically that you

consider to be CBI. Avoid the use of

special characters and any form of

encryption. Electronic submissions will

be accepted in WordPerfect 6.1/8.0 or

ASCII file format. All comments in

electronic form must be identified by

docket control number OPP–00439A.

Electronic comments may also be filed

online at many Federal Depository

Libraries.

List of Subjects

Environmental protection, Pesticides,

Inerts, PPDC.

Dated: February 15, 2001.

Joseph J. Merenda,

Acting Director, Office of Pesticide Programs.

[FR Doc. 01–5575 Filed 3–6–01 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560–50–S

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

AGENCY

[OPP–50871A; FRL–6765–1]

Amendment of an Experimental Use

Permit

AGENCY: Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: EPA has granted an

experimental use permit (EUP) to the

following pesticide applicant. An EUP

permits use of a pesticide for

experimental or research purposes only

in accordance with the limitations in

the permit.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: By

mail: Alan Reynolds, Biopesticides and

Pollution Prevention Division (7511C),

Office of Pesticide Programs,

Environmental Protection Agency, 1200

Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington,

DC 20460. Office location, telephone

number, and e-mail address: 1921

Jefferson Davis Hwy., Rm. 910W46,

Crystal Mall #2, Arlington, VA; (703)

605–0515; e-mail address:

reynolds.alan@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. General Information

A. Does this Action Apply to Me?

This action is directed to the public

in general. Although this action may be

of particular interest to those persons

who conduct or sponsor research on

pesticides, the Agency has not

attempted to describe all the specific

entities that may be affected by this

action. If you have any questions

regarding the information in this action,

consult the designated contact person

listed for the individual EUP.

B. How Can I Get Additional

Information, Including Copies of this

Document and Other Related

Documents?

1. Electronically. You may obtain

electronic copies of this document, and

certain other related documents that

might be available electronically, from

the EPA Internet Home Page at http://

www.epa.gov/. To access this

document, on the Home Page select

‘‘Laws and Regulations,’’ ‘‘Regulations

and Proposed Rules,’’ and then look up

the entry for this document under the

‘‘Federal Register—Environmental

Documents.’’ You can also go directly to

the Federal Register listings at http://

www.epa.gov/fedrgstr/.

2. In person. The Agency has

established an official record for this

action under docket control number

OPP–50871A. The official record

consists of the documents specifically

referenced in this action, and other

information related to this action,

including any information claimed as

Confidential Business Information (CBI).

This official record includes the

documents that are physically located in

the docket, as well as the documents

that are referenced in those documents.

The public version of the official record

does not include any information

claimed as CBI. The public version of

the official record, which includes

printed, paper versions of any electronic

comments submitted during an

applicable comment period is available

for inspection in the Public Information

and Records Integrity Branch (PIRIB),

Rm. 119, Crystal Mall #2, 1921 Jefferson

Davis Hwy., Arlington, VA, from 8:30

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

excluding legal holidays. The PIRIB

telephone number is (703) 305–5805.

II. EUP

EPA has issued the following EUP:

524–EUP–91. Amendment. Monsanto

Company, 700 Chesterfield Parkway

North, St. Louis, Mo. 63198. The

amendment to this EUP allows the use

of the plant-pesticide Bacillus

thuringiensis Cry1Ac protein and the

genetic material necessary for its

production (vectors PV-GMBT01 and

PV-GMBT02) in soybean . Notice of the

original issuance of the EUP was

published in the Federal Register on

June 22, 2000 (65 FR 38828) (FRL–

6592–5). On June 2, 2000, the EUP was

amended to modify the containment

provisions. Notice of receipt of an

amendment was published in the

Federal Register on August 30, 2000 (65

FR 52730) (FRL–6739–5). On January 5,

2001, the EUP was amended to allow

the planting of an additional 19 acres of

soybean to evaluate control of

velvetbean caterpillar, stem borer, and

soybean looper; to preform phenotypic

observations; maintain the lines through

seed production; and to preform efficacy

trials. Additional acreage under this

amendment to the program is

authorized only in the State of Puerto

Rico. This amendment is effective from

January 5, 2001 to May 31, 2001. This

amendment is issued with the limitation

that all treated crops will be genetically

contained and destroyed or used for

research purposes only. Twelve

comments were received in reply to the

Federal Register notice announcing

receipt of this application. The Federal

Register notice announcing receipt of

this application indicated that 22.0

acres would be tested in the States of

Hawaii and Puerto Rico. All comments

encouraged EPA not to approve the

amendment. One or more commentors

offered the following comments: 1)

Hawaii has a unique and isolated

environment that needs to be protected

from the introduction of foreign

organisms; 2) rare and endangered

species in Hawaii need to be protected,

including the Kamehameha butterfly; 3)

long-term effects on Hawaiian soils need

to be addressed including competition

Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 45 / Wednesday, March 7, 2001 / Notices 13735

with native bacteria and soil insects; 4)

any effects on non-target species

including pollinators and native insects

exposed to Bt crops need to be

addressed; 5) biotech crops have not

been adequately tested for food uses and

there is no evidence biotech food is safe;

6) effects of biotech crops on children

are unknown; 7) biotech products

should be labeled (at the supermarket);

8) organic farmers adversely affected by

biotech should be compensated; 9)

butterfly populations harmed by biotech

should be restored; 10) ecological

concerns including outcrossing and

genetic drift need to be addressed; 11)

adequate containment provisions are

needed for the program.

After the Federal Register notice

announcing this application was issued,

Monsanto revised the program to

eliminate the proposed acreage in

Hawaii. Therefore, all comments and

issues raised for the Hawaiian acreage

are no longer germane for this EUP.

Based on submitted information, no

significant or irreversible hazards to

endangered species or non-target

organisms in Puerto Rico are anticipated

for this limited acreage, contained, crop

destruct program.

Because the EUP has crop destruct

provisions and is for non-food use only,

no human dietary exposure is expected.

As such, food safety issues (including

food labeling, effects on children, and

allergenicity concerns) are not germane

for this EUP. There is no evidence that

organic growers have been adversely

affected by any EPA-registered Bt crop.

Outcrossing and genetic drift are

unlikely due to the genetic containment

provisions of the EUP, the lack of wild

soybean relatives in test areas, and the

low rate of soybean cross-pollination

(soybeans are self-pollinated). All

Cry1Ac soybeans grown under this EUP

are required to be isolated from nontransgenic soybeans (not part of the

program) by at least 6 meters. In

addition, the following containment

procedures are part of the experimental

program: 1) Seeds will be stored in

color-coded, marked bags in a secure

location; 2) leftover seed will be

destroyed or returned to Monsanto; 3)

seeds will be double packaged for

transport; 4) no plant material will be

removed from the experimental sites

without authorization; 5) field

equipment and machinery will be

throughly cleaned of any plant material

and leftover seeds on-site before leaving

the field; 6) soybeans are self-pollinating

and have low potential for outcrossing

(no special pollen-containment is

needed); 7) seeds may be harvested for

further research and harvesting

equipment will be thoroughly cleaned;

8) all remaining plant material after

harvest will be destroyed; 9) trial sites

will be planted with a different crop the

following year or left fallow; 10) trial

sites will be monitored for 1 year to

ensure no soybean regrowth or

volunteers (those found will be

eliminated).

Persons wishing to review this EUP

are referred to the designated contact

person. Inquiries concerning this permit

should be directed to the person cited

above. It is suggested that interested

persons call before visiting the EPA

office, so that the appropriate file may

be made available for inspection

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

through Friday, excluding legal

holidays.

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 136.

List of Subjects

Environmental protection,

Experimental use permits.

Dated: February 6, 2001.

Janet L.Andersen,

Director, Biopesticides and Pollution

Prevention Division, Office of Pesticide

Programs.

[FR Doc. 01–5574 Filed 3–6–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560–50–S

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

AGENCY

[OPP–50880; FRL–6770–4]

Experimental Use Permits; Receipt of

Applications Bt Corn

AGENCY: Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: This notice announces receipt

of applications 68467–EUP–G, 68467–

EUP–L, 29964–EUP–R, and 29964–

EUP–G from Mycogen Seeds c/o Dow

AgroSciences and Pioneer Hi-Bred

International requesting experimental

use permits (EUPs) for the plantpesticides Bacillus thuringiensis

PS149B1 protein and the genetic

material necessary for its production

(from the insert of plasmid PHP12560)

in corn and Bacillus thuringiensis

PS149B1 protein and the genetic

material necessary for its production

(from the insert of plasmid PHP14352)

in corn. The Agency has determined

that the application may be of regional

and national significance. Therefore, in

accordance with 40 CFR 172.11(a), the

Agency is soliciting comments on this

application.

DATES: Comments, identified by docket

control number OPP–50880, must be

received on or before April 23, 2001.

ADDRESSES: Comments and data may be

submitted by mail, electronically, or in

person. Please follow the detailed

instructions for each method as

provided in Unit I. of the

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION. To ensure

proper receipt by EPA, it is imperative

that you identify docket control number

OPP–50880 in the subject line on the

first page of your response.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: By

mail: Mike Mendelsohn, Biopesticides

and Pollution Prevention Division

(7511C), Office of Pesticide Programs,

Environmental Protection Agency, 1200

Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington,

DC 20460; telephone number: (703)

308–8715; e-mail address:

mendelsohn.mike@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. General Information

A. Does this Action Apply to Me?

This action is directed to the public

in general. This action may, however, be

of interest to those persons interested in

plant-pesticides or those persons who

are or may be required to conduct

testing of chemical substances under the

Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act

(FFDCA), or the Federal Insecticide,

Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act

(FIFRA). Since other entities may also

be interested, the Agency has not

attempted to describe all the specific

entities that may be affected by this

action. If you have any questions

regarding the applicability of this action

to a particular entity, consult the person

listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT.

B. How Can I Get Additional

Information, Including Copies of this

Document and Other Related

Documents?

1. Electronically. You may obtain

electronic copies of this document, and

certain other related documents that

might be available electronically, from

the EPA Internet Home Page at http://

www.epa.gov/. To access this

document, on the Home Page select

‘‘Laws and Regulations,’’ ‘‘Regulations

and Proposed Rules,’’ and then look up

the entry for this document under the

‘‘Federal Register—Environmental

Documents.’’ You can also go directly to

the Federal Register listings at http://

www.epa.gov/fedrgstr/.

2. In person. The Agency has

established an official record for this

action under docket control number

OPP–50880. The official record consists

of the documents specifically referenced