Document ID: EPA-HQ-OPP-2020-0514-0001
Agency: epa
Document Type: Notice
Title: Draft Endangered Species Act Biological Evaluations: Atrazine, Simazine, and Propazine Registration Review
Posted Date: 2020-11-06T05:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 216 (Friday, November 6, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 71071-71072]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-24680]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OPP-2020-0514; FRL-10015-77]

Atrazine, Simazine, and Propazine Registration Review; Draft 
Endangered Species Act Biological Evaluations; Notice of Availability

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces the availability of the Environmental 
Protection Agency's (EPA or the Agency) draft biological evaluations 
(BEs) for the registration review of the pesticides atrazine, simazine, 
and propazine, and opens a public comment period on these documents.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before January 5, 2021.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by docket identification 
(ID) number EPA-HQ-OPP-2020-0514, through the Federal eRulemaking 
Portal at http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions 
for submitting comments. Do not submit electronically any information 
you consider to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other 
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute.
    Please note that due to the public health concerns related to 
COVID-19, the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC) and Reading Room is closed to 
visitors with limited exceptions. The staff continues to provide remote 
customer service via email, phone, and webform. For the latest status 
information on EPA/DC services and docket access, visit https://www.epa.gov/dockets.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tracy Perry, Pesticide Re-Evaluation 
Division (7508P), Office of Pesticide Programs, Environmental 
Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20460-
0001; telephone number: (703) 308-0128; email address: 
perry.tracy@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. General Information

A. Does this action apply to me?

    This action is directed to the public in general, and may be of 
interest to a wide range of stakeholders including environmental, human 
health, farm worker, and agricultural advocates; the chemical industry; 
pesticide users; and members of the public interested in the sale, 
distribution, or use of pesticides and/or the potential impacts of 
pesticide use on threatened or endangered (listed) species and 
designated critical habitat. Since others also may 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. 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 email. 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 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 preparing and submitting 
your comments, see the commenting tips at http://www.epa.gov/dockets/comments.html.
    3. Environmental justice. EPA seeks to achieve environmental 
justice, the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of any group, 
including minority and/or low-income populations, in the development, 
implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and 
policies. To help address potential environmental justice issues, the 
Agency seeks information on any groups or segments of the population 
who, as a result of their location, cultural practices, or other 
factors, may have atypical or disproportionately high and adverse human 
health impacts or environmental effects from exposure to the pesticides 
discussed in this document, compared to the general population.

II. What action is the agency taking?

A. Authority

    The Endangered Species Act (ESA) requires federal agencies, such as 
EPA, to ensure that their actions are not likely to jeopardize the 
continued existence of species listed as threatened or endangered under 
the ESA or destroy or adversely modify the designated critical habitat 
of such species. The final registration review determination of 
reevaluating a pesticide under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and 
Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) constitutes an EPA ``action'' under the ESA. If 
EPA determines a pesticide may affect a listed species or its 
designated critical habitat, EPA must initiate informal or formal 
consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and/or the 
National Marine Fisheries Service (collectively referred to as the 
Services), as appropriate. EPA initiates formal consultation with the 
Services through the conduct and transmittal of a biological 
evaluations (BE) with its findings.

B. Background

    The Agency has completed comprehensive, nationwide draft BEs for 
atrazine, simazine, and propazine uses relative to the potential 
effects on listed species and their designated critical habitats. The 
schedule for conducting the atrazine and simazine BEs was negotiated as 
part of a partial settlement agreement pursuant to a joint stipulation 
filed on October 18, 2019 and entered by the court on October 22,

[[Page 71072]]

2019, in Center for Biological Diversity et al. v. EPA et al. (N.D. Ca) 
(3:11-cv-00293).
    The atrazine, simazine and propazine BEs follow the Revised Method 
for National Level Listed Species Biological Evaluations of 
Conventional Pesticides (see docket ID number EPA-HQ-OPP-2019-0185-0084 
at www.regulations.gov). EPA utilized the Revised Method for the first 
time when conducting the methomyl and carbaryl draft BEs, for which the 
Agency solicited public comment for a total of 120 days. EPA is 
currently evaluating public comments received and will take them into 
consideration for the final BEs for these pesticides. Comments received 
on carbaryl and methomyl that are applicable to the broader BE 
methodology will also be incorporated into the final BEs for atrazine, 
simazine, and propazine.
    After reviewing comments received during the public comment period 
on the atrazine, simazine, and propazine draft BEs, EPA will issue 
final BEs and a response to public comments document. If EPA determines 
that these pesticides may affect listed species and/or their designated 
critical habitats, EPA will initiate consultation with the Services. 
Based on the BEs, the Services will then develop Biological Opinions 
for atrazine, simazine, and propazine.

C. Public Comments Sought

    Pursuant to 40 CFR 155.53(c) and consistent with the enhanced 
stakeholder engagement practices (see docket ID number EPA-HQ-OPP-2012-
0442), EPA is providing an opportunity, through this notice of 
availability, for interested parties to provide comments and input 
concerning the Agency's draft BEs for atrazine, simazine, and 
propazine. Such comments could address, among other things, the 
application of the Agency's revised risk assessment methodologies to 
and assumptions for these draft BEs.
    The file sizes of the draft BEs for atrazine, simazine, and 
propazine exceed the docket system's file size limitation, therefore 
these documents are not posted to this BE docket. Instead, the BEs are 
posted on EPA's endangered species web page (see web links provided in 
the Table below). Commenters are instructed to post comments on the BEs 
to this BE docket (EPA-HQ-OPP-2020-0514) in www.regulations.gov, as 
indicated in the Table below.

 Table--Pesticide Docket ID Numbers for Posting Comments on the Atrazine, Simazine, and Propazine Draft BEs and
                                             Links to the Draft BEs
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                                       Pesticide docket ID No.
               Document                  for public comments                 Links to the draft BEs
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Atrazine BE..........................  EPA-HQ-OPP-2020-0514...  https://www.epa.gov/endangered-species/draft-national-level-listed-species-biological-evaluation-atrazine.
Simazine BE..........................  EPA-HQ-OPP-2020-0514...  https://www.epa.gov/endangered-species/draft-national-level-listed-species-biological-evaluation-simazine.
Propazine BE.........................  EPA-HQ-OPP-2020-0514...  https://www.epa.gov/endangered-species/draft-national-level-listed-species-biological-evaluation-propazine.
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    1. Other related information. Additional information on endangered 
species risk assessment and the NAS report recommendations are 
available at https://www.epa.gov/endangered-species/implementing-nas-report-recommendations-ecological-risk-assessment-endangered-and. 
Information on the Agency's registration review program and its 
implementing regulation is available at https://www.epa.gov/pesticide-reevaluation.
    2. Information submission requirements. Anyone may submit data or 
information in response to this document. To be considered during a 
pesticide's registration review, the submitted data or information must 
meet the following requirements:
     To ensure that EPA will consider data or information 
submitted, interested persons must submit the data or information 
during the comment period. The Agency may, at its discretion, consider 
data or information submitted at a later date.
     The data or information submitted must be presented in a 
legible and useable form. For example, an English translation must 
accompany any material that is not in English and a written transcript 
must accompany any information submitted as an audio-graphic or video-
graphic record. Written material may be submitted in paper or 
electronic form.
     Submitters must clearly identify the source of any 
submitted data or information.
     Submitters may request the Agency to reconsider data or 
information that the Agency rejected in a previous review. However, 
submitters must explain why they believe the Agency should reconsider 
the data or information in the pesticide's registration review.
    As provided in 40 CFR 155.58, the registration review docket for 
each pesticide case will remain publicly accessible through the 
duration of the registration review process; that is, until all actions 
required in the final decision on the registration review case have 
been completed.

    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 136 et seq.

    Dated: November 2, 2020.
Alexandra Dapolito Dunn,
Assistant Administrator, Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution 
Prevention.
[FR Doc. 2020-24680 Filed 11-5-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P