Document ID: EPA-HQ-RCRA-2005-0017-0131
Agency: epa
Document Type: Supporting & Related Material
Title: 
Posted Date: 2007-11-14T05:00Z

August 9, 2007

By Fascimile and Email

FOIA Officer

FOIA and Privacy Branch

Office of Environmental Information

United States Environmental Protection Agency

1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. (2822T)

Washington, D.C. 20460

FAX (202) 566-2147

Hq.foia@epa.gov

Re:  	Freedom of Information Act Request For Documents Pertaining to the
Conflict of Interest Questionnaires Submitted by Peer Reviewers, Ronald
Bastion, Donald Corwin and David Wilson

Dear FOIA Officer:

	Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. §552, I
hereby request the following records relating to the report entitled
“Rationale for Exclusion of Emission-Comparable Fuel, Peer Review
Report of Ronald Bastion, Donald Corwin and David Wilson,” dated April
2007 (EPA-HQ-RCRA-2005-0017-0028).

	Specifically, I request the following documents:

The completed “Conflict of Interest and Bias Questionnaires”
completed by Ronald Bastion Donald Corwin and David Wilson concerning
their participation in the “Comparable Emissions Peer Review” as
described in the “Rationale for Exclusion of Emission-Comparable Fuel,
Peer Review Report of Ronald Bastion, Donald Corwin and David Wilson.”

Any documents submitted to Ronald Bastion, Donald Corwin and David
Wilson by US EPA or Syracuse Research Corporation containing any follow
up questions regarding their completed Conflict of Interest and Bias
Questionnaires pertaining to the above-referenced report.

Any documents submitted by Ronald Bastion, Donald Corwin and David
Wilson to US EPA or SRC containing any responses to follow up questions
concerning their Conflict of Interest and Bias Questionnaires pertaining
to the above-referenced report. 

	I respectfully request that you waive all fees in connection with this
request as provided by 5 U.S.C. §552(a)(4)(A)(iii) and 5 C.F.R.
§1303.70.  Earthjustice is a national, nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization
with no commercial interest in obtaining the requested information. 
Instead we intend to use the requested information to better understand
the activities of the U.S. EPA with respect to the proposed rule,
Expansion of RCRA Comparable Fuel Exclusion, 72 Fed. Reg. 33284 et seq. 

	Disclosure of the information requested in this Freedom of Information
Request is in the public interest and thus eligible for a fee waiver
pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552(e)(4)(A)(ii)(1994 Supp. IV 1998).   Disclosure
of the requested information is likely to contribute significantly to
public understanding of the operations or activities of the government
and is not in the commercial interest of the requester.   We have
received fee waivers under FOIA from EPA and other federal agencies in
the past.  This is because Earthjutice has, since 1971, promoted the
public interest through the enforcement of federal environmental laws
and the advancement of policies that provide enhanced environmental
protection.

In the event that your Office denies a fee waiver, please send a written
explanation for the denial but continue to produce documents until the
fee reaches $150. 

Please produce the requested records on a rolling basis, as the
materials are located.  Records pertaining to the first request of this
letter can likely be identified immediately, and we therefore request
that these questionnaires be produced as soon as possible.  At no time
should the Office’s search for, or deliberations concerning, any
records requested herein delay the production of other records that the
Office has already elected to produce.   

If you regard any of the requested records to be exempt from required
disclosure under FOIA, we request that you disclose them nevertheless;
as such disclosure would serve the public interest of educating
citizens.  See 10 C.F.R. §1004.1 (authorizing disclosure of documents
exempt from FOIA disclosure where such disclosure is in the public
interest).  

In addition, should you invoke a FOIA exemption regarding any of the
requested records, we request that you release any segregable portions
of such records that are left after the exempted material has been
redacted from the records we are seeking.

I appreciate your help in obtaining the requested information. As
provided in FOIA, we expect a reply within twenty working days.  5
U.S.C. §552(a)(6)(A)(iii); 5 C.F.R. §1303.10(c). 

Please send the requested records by regular mail to Lisa Evans,
Earthjustice, 21 Ocean Avenue, Marblehead, MA 01945 or transmit the
documents electronically to levans@earthjustice.org.   If you find that
this request is unclear in any way, please do not hesitate to contact me
by phone at (781) 631-4119.

Thank you for your time and effort.  I look forward to your prompt
reply.

Sincerely,

/s/ Lisa Evans

								Lisa Evans

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