Document ID: EPA-HQ-RCRA-2010-0832-0002
Agency: epa
Document Type: Notice
Title: Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals: WasteWise Program
Posted Date: 2011-06-23T04:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 121 (Thursday, June 23, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36916-36917]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-15760]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-RCRA-2010-0832, FRL-9323-6]

Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to OMB for 
Review and Approval; Comment Request; EPA's WasteWise Program (Renewal)

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) (44 
U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this document announces that an Information 
Collection Request (ICR) has been forwarded to the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. This is a request to renew an 
existing approved collection. The ICR, which is abstracted below, 
describes the nature of the information collection and its estimated 
burden and cost.

DATES: Additional comments may be submitted on or before July 25, 2011.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, referencing Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-RCRA-
2010-0832, to (1) EPA, either online using http://www.regulations.gov 
(our preferred method), or by email to rcra-docket@epa.gov, or by mail 
to: EPA Docket Center, Environmental Protection Agency, Mail Code 
28221T, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460; and (2) 
OMB, by mail to: Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office 
of Management and Budget (OMB), Attention: Desk Officer for EPA, 725 
17th Street, NW., Washington, DC 20503.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Marian Robinson, Office of Resource & 
Conservation Recovery, 5306P, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 
Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: 703-
308-8666; fax number: 703-308-8686; email address: 
robinson.marian@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: EPA has submitted the following ICR to OMB 
for review and approval according to the procedures prescribed in 5 CFR 
1320.12. On February 23, 2011 (76 FR 10022), EPA sought comments on 
this ICR pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.8(d). EPA received no comments. Any 
additional comments on this ICR should be submitted to EPA and OMB 
within 30 days of this notice.
    EPA has established a public docket for this ICR under Docket ID No 
EPA-HQ-RCRA-2010-0832, which is available for online viewing at http://www.regulations.gov, or in person viewing at the Resource Conservation 
and Recovery Act (RCRA) Docket in the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), EPA 
West, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The EPA/
DC Public Reading Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday 
through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the 
Reading Room is (202) 566-1744, and the telephone number for the RCRA 
Docket is (202) 566-0270.
    Use EPA's electronic docket and comment system at 
www.regulations.gov, to submit or view public comments, access the 
index listing of the contents of the docket, and to access those 
documents in the docket that are available electronically. Once in the 
system, select ``docket search,'' then key in the docket ID number 
identified above. Please note that EPA's policy is that public 
comments, whether submitted electronically or in paper, will be made 
available for public viewing at http://www.regulations.gov as EPA 
receives them and without change, unless the comment contains 
copyrighted material, confidential business information (CBI), or other 
information whose public disclosure is restricted by statute. For 
further information about the electronic docket, go to http://www.regulations.gov.
    Title: EPA's WasteWise Program (Renewal).
    ICR Numbers: EPA ICR No. 1698.09, OMB Control No. 2050-0139.
    ICR Status: This ICR is scheduled to expire on June 30, 2011. Under 
OMB regulations, the Agency may continue to conduct or sponsor the 
collection of information while this submission is pending at OMB. 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 
in title 40 of the CFR, after appearing in the Federal Register when 
approved, are listed in 40 CFR part 9, are displayed either by 
publication in the Federal Register or by other appropriate means, such 
as on the related collection instrument or form, if applicable. The 
display of OMB control numbers in certain EPA regulations is 
consolidated in 40 CFR part 9.
    Abstract: EPA's voluntary WasteWise program encourages businesses 
and other organizations to reduce solid waste through waste prevention, 
recycling, and the purchase or manufacture of recycled-content 
products. WasteWise participants include partners who commit to 
implementing waste reduction activities tailored to their specific 
needs, and endorsers who promote WasteWise and recruit organizations to 
join the program.
    WasteWise requires partners to register for membership in the 
program. Previously, WasteWise used paper forms that we estimate took 
40 hours for partners and 10 hours for endorsers to complete. In 2009, 
WasteWise implemented a web-based data management and reporting system 
for the collection and reporting of data. Under the new web-based 
system, partners and endorsers enter their data on-line.
    The Partner Registration Form identifies an organization and its 
facilities registering to participate in WasteWise, and requires the 
signature of a senior official that can commit the organization to the 
program. (This form is completed on-line and is submitted 
electronically.) Within two months of registering, each partner is 
required to submit baseline data on existing waste reduction programs 
to EPA via an

[[Page 36917]]

Annual Assessment Form. (This is an on-line form that is completed and 
submitted electronically.) Partners are also encouraged to set waste 
reduction goals for the upcoming year. On an annual basis, partners are 
required to report, via the Annual Assessment Form, on the 
accomplishments of their waste prevention and recycling activities. 
Partners report the amount of waste prevented and recycled, amount of 
recycled-content materials purchased, and (where appropriate) the 
amount of recovered materials used in the manufacture of new products. 
They also provide WasteWise with information on total waste prevention 
revenue, total recycling revenue, total avoided purchasing costs due to 
waste prevention, and total avoided disposal costs due to recycling and 
waste prevention. Additionally, they are encouraged to submit new waste 
reduction goals.
    Endorsers, which are typically trade associations or state/local 
governments, submit an Endorser Registration Form upon registering for 
the program. (This is an on-line form that is completed and is 
submitted electronically.) The Endorser Registration Form identifies 
the organization, the principal contact, and the activities to which 
the Endorser commits. EPA plans to expand the information requested of 
Endorsers by requiring them to submit a summary of their endorser 
activities annually. All registration and reporting information will be 
submitted electronically using the existing on-line, web-based data 
management and reporting system.
    EPA's WasteWise program uses the submitted information to (1) 
Identify and recognize outstanding waste reduction achievements by 
individual organizations, (2) compile results that indicate overall 
accomplishments of WasteWise members, (3) identify cost-effective waste 
reduction strategies to share with other organizations, (4) identify 
topics on which to develop technical assistance materials and other 
information, and (5) further encourage the growth of industry-specific 
sustainable practices.
    Burden Statement: The respondent burden for this collection is 
estimated to average 1 hour per response for the Partner Registration 
Form, 34.5 hours per response for the Partner Annual Assessment Form, 3 
hours per response for the Endorser Registration Form, and 5 hours per 
response for the Endorser Annual Assessment Form. This results in an 
estimated annual partner respondent burden of 51 hours for new 
partners, 48 hours for established partners, 7 hours for new endorsers, 
and 3 hours for established endorsers.
    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 
which have subsequently changed; 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 Entities: Businesses, not-for-profit 
institutions, and State, Local, or Tribal governments.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 1,222.
    Frequency of Response: On occasion.
    Estimated Total Annual Hour Burden: 25,844.
    Estimated Total Annual Cost: $2,138,570, includes $2,138,570 
annualized labor costs and $0 annualized capital or O&M costs.
    Changes in the Estimates: There is a decrease of 44,506 hours in 
the total estimated burden currently identified in the OMB Inventory of 
Approved ICR Burdens. This decrease is due to an update in the number 
of partners to reflect who are the active partners, as well as an 
online reporting system that has greatly reduced burden for respondents 
and the agency.

    Dated: June 16, 2011.
John Moses,
Director, Collection Strategies Division.
[FR Doc. 2011-15760 Filed 6-22-11; 8:45 am]
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