Document ID: EPA-HQ-OPPT-2008-0703-0001
Agency: epa
Document Type: Notice
Title: Sixty-Third Report of the TSCA Interagency Testing Committee to the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency; Receipt of Report and Request for Comments
Posted Date: 2008-11-03T05:00Z

[Federal Register: November 3, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 213)]
[Notices]               
[Page 65485-65488]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr03no08-120]                         

[[Page 65485]]

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Part III

Environmental Protection Agency

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Sixty-Third Report of the TSCA Interagency Testing Committee to the 
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency; Receipt of Report 
and Request for Comments; Notice

[[Page 65486]]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OPPT-2008-0703; FRL-8387-6]

 
Sixty-Third Report of the TSCA Interagency Testing Committee to 
the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency; Receipt of 
Report and Request for Comments

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Interagency Testing 
Committee (ITC) transmitted its 63\rd\ Report to the Administrator of 
the EPA on October 7, 2008. In the 63\rd\ ITC report, which is included 
with this notice, the ITC is revising the TSCA section 4(e) Priority 
Testing List by removing 1 tungsten compound and 1 High Production 
Volume (HPV) Challenge Program orphan chemical.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before December 3, 2008.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by docket identification 
(ID) number EPA-HQ-OPPT-2008-0703, by one of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the on-line instructions for submitting comments.
     Mail: Document Control Office (7407M), Office of Pollution 
Prevention and Toxics (OPPT), Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 
Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001.
     Hand Delivery: OPPT Document Control Office (DCO), EPA 
East Bldg., Rm. 6428, 1201 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. 
Attention: Docket ID Number EPA-HQ-OPPT-2008-0703. The DCO is open from 
8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The 
telephone number for the DCO is (202) 564-8930. Such deliveries are 
only accepted during the DCO's normal hours of operation, and special 
arrangements should be made for deliveries of boxed information.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to docket ID number EPA-HQ-OPPT-
2008-0703. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included 
in the docket without change and may be made available on-line at 
http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information 
provided, unless the comment includes information claimed to be 
Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose 
disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit information that you 
consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through regulations.gov or e-
mail. The regulations.gov website is an ``anonymous access'' system, 
which means EPA will not know your identity or contact information 
unless you provide it in the body of your comment. If you send an e-
mail comment directly to EPA without going through regulations.gov, 
your e-mail address will be automatically captured and included as part 
of the comment that is placed in the docket and made available on the 
Internet. If you submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you 
include your name and other contact information in the body of your 
comment and with any disk or CD-ROM you submit. If EPA cannot read your 
comment due to technical difficulties and cannot contact you for 
clarification, EPA may not be able to consider your comment. Electronic 
files should avoid the use of special characters, any form of 
encryption, and be free of any defects or viruses. For additional 
information about EPA's public docket, visit the EPA Docket Center 
homepage at http://www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm.
    Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the docket index 
available at http://www.regulations.gov. Although listed in the index, 
some information is not publicly available, e.g., CBI or other 
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other 
material, such as copyrighted material, will be publicly available only 
in hard copy. Publicly available docket materials are available 
electronically at http://www.regulations.gov, or, if only available in 
hard copy, at the OPPT Docket. The OPPT Docket is located in the EPA 
Docket Center (EPA/DC) at Rm. 3334, EPA West Bldg., 1301 Constitution 
Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The EPA/DC Public Reading Room hours of 
operation are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding 
Federal holidays. The telephone number of the EPA/DC Public Reading 
Room is (202) 566-1744, and the telephone number for the OPPT Docket is 
(202) 566-0280. Docket visitors are required to show photographic 
identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor 
log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and 
subject to search. Visitors will be provided an EPA/DC badge that must 
be visible at all times in the building and returned upon departure.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Colby Lintner, Regulatory Coordinator, 
Environmental Assistance Division (7408M), Office of Pollution 
Prevention and Toxics, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 
Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001; telephone number: 
(202) 554-1404; e-mail address: TSCA-Hotline@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. General Information

A. Does this Action Apply to Me?

    This notice is directed to the public in general. It may, however, 
be of particular interest to you if you manufacture (defined by statute 
to include import) and/or process TSCA-covered chemicals and you may be 
identified by the North American Industrial Classification System 
(NAICS) codes 325 and 32411. Because this notice is directed to the 
general public and other entities may also be interested, the Agency 
has not attempted to describe all the specific entities that may be 
interested in 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. What Should I Consider as I Prepare My Comments for EPA?

    1. Submitting CBI. Do not submit this information to EPA through 
regulations.gov or e-mail. Clearly mark the part or all of the 
information that you claim to be CBI. For CBI information in a disk or 
CD-ROM that you mail to EPA, mark the outside of the disk or CD-ROM 
that you mail to EPA, mark the outside of the disk or CD-DOM as CBI and 
then identify electronically within the disk or CD-ROM the specific 
information that is claimed as CBI. In addition to one complete version 
of the comment that includes information claimed as CBI, a copy of the 
comment that does not contain the information claimed as CBI must be 
submitted for inclusion in the public docket. Information so marked 
will not be disclosed except in accordance with procedures set forth in 
40 CFR part 2.
    2. Tips for preparing your comments. When submitting comments, 
remember to:
    i. Identify the document by docket ID number and other identifying 
information (subject heading, Federal Register date and page number).
    ii. Follow directions. The Agency may ask you to respond to 
specific questions or organize comments by referencing a Code of 
Federal Regulations (CFR) part or section number.
    iii. Explain why you agree or disagree; suggest alternatives and 
substitute language for your requested changes.
    iv. Describe any assumptions and provide any technical information 
and/or data that you used.
    v. If you estimate potential costs or burdens, explain how you 
arrived at

[[Page 65487]]

your estimate in sufficient detail to allow for it to be reproduced.
    vi. Provide specific examples to illustrate your concerns and 
suggest alternatives.
    vii. Explain your views as clearly as possible, avoiding the use of 
profanity or personal threats.
    viii. Make sure to submit your comments by the comment period 
deadline identified.

II. Background

    The Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) (15 U.S.C. 260l et seq.) 
authorizes the Administrator of the EPA to promulgate regulations under 
TSCA section 4(a) requiring testing of chemicals and chemical groups in 
order to develop data relevant to determining the risks that such 
chemicals and chemical groups may present to health or the environment. 
Section 4(e) of TSCA established the ITC to recommend chemicals and 
chemical groups to the Administrator of EPA for priority testing 
consideration. Section 4(e) of TSCA directs the ITC to revise the TSCA 
section 4(e) Priority Testing List at least every 6 months.
    You may access additional information about the ITC at http://
www.epa.gov/opptintr/itc.

A. The 63\rd\ ITC Report

    The ITC is revising the TSCA section 4(e) Priority Testing List by 
removing 1 tungsten compound and 1 HPV Challenge Program orphan 
chemical.

B. Status of the Priority Testing List

    The Priority Testing List includes 2 alkylphenols, 12 lead 
compounds, 16 chemicals with insufficient dermal absorption rate data, 
and 207 HPV Challenge Program orphan chemicals.

List of Subjects

    Environmental protection, Chemicals, Hazardous substances.

    Dated: October 28, 2008.
Charles M. Auer,
Director, Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics.

Sixty-Third Report of the TSCA Interagency Testing Committee to the 
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency

Table of Contents

Summary

I. Background
II. TSCA Section 8 Reporting
A. TSCA Section 8 Reporting Rules
B. ITC's Use of TSCA Section 8 and Other Information
III. ITC's Activities During this Reporting Period (June to October 
2008)
IV. Revisions to the TSCA Section 4(e) Priority Testing List: 
Chemicals Removed From the Priority Testing List
A. Tungsten Compounds
B. HPV Challenge Program Orphan Chemicals
V. References
VI. The TSCA Interagency Testing Committee

Summary

    The ITC is revising the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) 
section 4(e) Priority Testing List by removing 1 tungsten compound 
and 1 High Production Volume (HPV) Challenge Program orphan 
chemical.
    The TSCA section 4(e) Priority Testing List is Table 1 of this 
unit.

                         Table 1--TSCA Section 4(e) Priority Testing List (October 2008)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
              ITC Report                         Date             Chemical Name/Group             Action
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
31                                     January 1993             2 Chemicals with         Designated
                                                                 insufficient dermal
                                                                 absorption rate data
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
32                                     May 1993                 10 Chemicals with        Designated
                                                                 insufficient dermal
                                                                 absorption rate data
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35                                     November 1994            4 Chemicals with         Designated
                                                                 insufficient dermal
                                                                 absorption rate data
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37                                     November 1995            Branched 4-nonylphenol   Recommended
                                                                 (mixed isomers)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
41                                     November 1997            Phenol, 4-(1,1,3,3-      Recommended
                                                                 tetramethylbutyl)-
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55                                     December 2004            203 HPV Challenge        Recommended
                                                                 Program orphan
                                                                 chemicals
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56                                     August 2005              4 HPV Challenge Program  Recommended
                                                                 orphan chemicals
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
60                                     May 2007                 12 Lead and lead         Recommended
                                                                 compounds
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I. Background

    The ITC was established by section 4(e) of TSCA ``to make 
recommendations to the Administrator respecting the chemical 
substances and mixtures to which the Administrator should give 
priority consideration for the promulgation of rules for testing 
under section 4(a).... At least every six months ..., the Committee 
shall make such revisions to the Priority Testing List as it 
determines to be necessary and transmit them to the Administrator 
together with the Committee's reasons for the revisions'' (Public 
Law 94-469, 90 Stat. 2003 et seq., 15 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.). ITC 
reports are available from the ITC's website (http://www.epa.gov/
opptintr/itc) within a few days of submission to the EPA 
Administrator and from the EPA's website (http://www.epa.gov/
fedrgstr) after publication in the Federal Register. The ITC 
produces its revisions to the Priority Testing List with 
administrative and technical support from the ITC staff, ITC 
members, and their U.S. Government organizations, and contract 
support provided by EPA. ITC members and staff are listed at the end 
of this report.

II. TSCA Section 8 Reporting

A. TSCA Section 8 Reporting Rules

    Following receipt of the ITC's report (and the revised Priority 
Testing List) by the EPA Administrator, EPA's Office of Pollution 
Prevention and Toxics (OPPT) may add the chemicals from the revised 
Priority Testing List to the TSCA section 8(a) Preliminary 
Assessment Information Reporting (PAIR) or TSCA section 8(d) Health 
and Safety Data Reporting (HaSDR) rules. The PAIR rule requires 
manufacturers (including importers) of chemicals added to the 
Priority Testing List to submit to EPA certain production and 
exposure information (http://www.epa.gov/oppt/chemtest/pubs/
pairform.pdf). As provided for in the PAIR rule, whenever EPA 
announces the receipt of an ITC report, EPA amends, unless otherwise 
instructed by the ITC, the PAIR rule by adding the recommended (or 
designated) chemicals that have been added to the Priority Testing 
List by the ITC.

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    The HaSDR rule requires certain past, current, and proposed 
manufacturers, importers, and (if specified by EPA) processors of 
listed chemicals to submit to EPA copies and lists of unpublished 
health and safety studies on the listed chemicals that they 
manufacture, import, or (if specified by EPA) process. As provided 
for in the HaSDR rule, whenever EPA announces the receipt of an ITC 
report, EPA amends, unless otherwise instructed by the ITC, the 
HaSDR rule by adding the recommended (or designated) chemicals that 
have been added to the Priority Testing List by the ITC.

B. ITC's Use of TSCA Section 8 and Other Information

    The ITC's use of TSCA section 8 and other information is 
described in the 52\nd\ ITC Report (http://www.epa.gov/opptintr/
itc).

III. ITC's Activities During this Reporting Period (June to October 
2008)

    During this reporting period, the ITC discussed tungsten 
compounds and HPV Challenge Program orphan chemicals.

IV. Revisions to the TSCA Section 4(e) Priority Testing List: Chemicals 
Removed From the Priority Testing List

A. Tungsten Compounds

    Of the 22 tungsten compounds added to the Priority Testing List 
in the 53\rd\ ITC Report (Ref. 1) and the 56\th\ ITC Report (Ref. 
2), 12 were removed in the 58\th\ ITC Report (Ref. 3), 5 were 
removed in the 59\th\ ITC Report (Ref. 4), and 4 were removed in the 
62\nd\ ITC Report (Ref. 5). At this time the ITC is removing 
tungstate (WO4\2\-), disodium, dihydrate, (T-
4)-, a.k.a. disodium tungstate (Na2WO4) 
dihydrate (CAS No. 10213-10-2) from the Priority Testing List 
because of the voluntary information provided by the International 
Tungsten Industry Association and their cooperation in a National 
Toxicology Program/National Institute for Occupational Safety and 
Health research program to address exposure and toxicity data needs.

B. HPV Challenge Program Orphan Chemicals

    270 HPV Challenge Program orphan chemicals were added to the 
Priority Testing List in the 55\th\ ITC Report (Ref. 6) and 5 were 
added to the Priority Testing List in the 56\th\ ITC Report (Ref. 
2).
    30 HPV Challenge Program orphan chemicals were removed from the 
Priority Testing List in the 56\th\ ITC Report (Ref. 2). The HPV 
Challenge Program orphan chemicals that were removed in the 56\th\ 
ITC Report included ethanol, 2-methoxy- (CAS No. 109-86-4) and 
tetradecane (CAS No. 629-59-4) that were on the Priority Testing 
List when the 55\th\ ITC Report was sent to the EPA Administrator on 
December 8, 2004, but removed from Priority Testing List before the 
55\th\ ITC Report was published in the Federal Register because 
sponsorship of these 2 substances was transferred to the 
International Council of Chemical Associations HPV Initiative. The 
HPV Challenge Program orphan chemicals that were removed in the 
56\th\ ITC Report also included 11 chemicals that were sponsored 
before the 55\th\ ITC Report was sent to the EPA Administrator on 
December 8, 2004 (see Table 6 in the 56\th\ ITC Report) and 17 
chemicals that no longer meet the HPV criterion (see Table 7 in the 
56\th\ ITC Report).
    8 HPV Challenge Program orphan chemicals were removed from the 
Priority Testing List in the 58\th\ ITC Report (Ref. 3) (see Table 2 
in the 58\th\ ITC Report). These 8 chemicals included 4 that were on 
the Priority Testing List when the 55\th\ ITC Report was sent to the 
EPA Administrator on December 8, 2004, but removed from Priority 
Testing List before the 55\th\ ITC Report was published in the 
Federal Register. These 4 chemicals were retained on the December 8, 
2004 Priority Testing List because sponsorship commitments were 
received by EPA after December 8, 2004. These 4 chemicals are 
phosphoric acid, tris(2-ethylhexyl) ester (CAS No. 78-42-2); 
phosphoric acid, 2-ethylhexyl ester (CAS No. 12645-31-7); 1-
propanamine, 3-(tridecyloxy)-, branched (CAS No. 68511-40-0); and 
hydrocarbons, C8-11 (CAS No. 68553-14-0).
    35 HPV Challenge Program orphan chemicals were removed from the 
Priority Testing List in the 61\st\ ITC Report (Ref. 7) (see Table 4 
in the 61\st\ ITC Report). These 35 chemicals included 1,3-
propanediol, 2-amino-2-(hydroxymethyl)- (CAS No. 77-86-1) that was 
added to the Priority Testing List in the 56\th\ ITC Report (Ref. 
2).
    In this 63\rd\ ITC Report, disulfides, C5-
12-alkyl (CAS No. 68513-62-2) are being removed from the 
Priority Testing List because they no longer meet the HPV criterion. 
Disulfides, C5-12-alkyl were added to the 
Priority Testing List in the 55\th\ ITC Report (Ref. 6).

V. References

    1. ITC. Fifty-Third Report of the ITC. Federal Register (69 FR 
2468, January 15, 2004) (FRL-7335-2). Available online at: http://
www.epa.gov/fedrgstr.
    2. ITC. Fifty-Sixth Report of the ITC. Federal Register (70 FR 
61520, October 24, 2005) (FRL-7739-9). Available online at: http://
www.epa.gov/fedrgstr.
    3. ITC. Fifty-Eighth Report of the ITC. Federal Register (71 FR 
39188, July 11, 2006) (FRL-8073-7). Available online at: http://
www.epa.gov/fedrgstr.
    4. ITC. Fifty-Ninth Report of the ITC. Federal Register (72 FR 
2756, January 22, 2007) (FRL-8110-2). Available online at: http://
www.epa.gov/fedrgstr.
    5. ITC. Sixty-Second Report of the ITC. Federal Register (73 FR 
27450, May 12, 2008) (FRL-8363-2). Available online at: http://
www.epa.gov/fedrgstr.
    6. ITC. Fifty-Fifth Report of the ITC. Federal Register (70 FR 
7364, February 11, 2005) (FRL-7692-1). Available online at: http://
www.epa.gov/fedrgstr.
    7. ITC. Sixty-First Report of the ITC. Federal Register (73 FR 
5080, January 28, 2008) (FRL-8347-1). Available online at: http://
www.epa.gov/fedrgstr.

VI. The TSCA Interagency Testing Committee

    Statutory Organizations and Their Representatives

     Council on Environmental Quality
     Vacant

     Department of Commerce

     National Institute of Standards and Technology
     Dianne Poster, Member, Chair

     National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration
     Tony Pait, Member, Vice-Chair

     Environmental Protection Agency
     John Schaeffer, Member
     Gerry Brown, Alternate

     National Cancer Institute
     Vacant

     National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
     Scott Masten, Alternate

     National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
     Dennis W. Lynch, Member
     Mark Toraason, Alternate

     National Science Foundation
     Margaret Cavanaugh, Alternate

     Occupational Safety and Health Administration
     Thomas Nerad, Member
     Maureen Ruskin, Alternate

    Liaison Organizations and Their Representatives
     Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
     Daphne Moffett, Member
     Glenn D. Todd, Alternate

     Consumer Product Safety Commission
     Jacqueline Ferrante, Member

     Department of Agriculture
     Clifford P. Rice, Member
     Laura L. McConnell, Alternate

     Department of Defense
     Laurie Roszell, Member

     Department of the Interior
     Barnett A. Rattner, Member

     Food and Drug Administration
     Kirk Arvidson, Member
     Ronald F. Chanderbhan, Alternate

     Technical Support Contractor
     Syracuse Research Corporation

     ITC Staff
     John D. Walker, Director
     Carol Savage, Administrative Assistant

TSCA Interagency Testing Committee (7401M), Office of Pollution 
Prevention and Toxics, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 
Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001; e-mail address: 
savage.carol@epa.gov; url: http://www.epa.gov/opptintr/itc.
[FR Doc. E8-26148 Filed 10-31-08; 8:45 am]

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