[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 236 (Friday, December 9, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 75625-75627]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-26786]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[ORD-2022-0831; FRL-10465-01-ORD]
Call for Information on the Integrated Science Assessment for
Oxides of Nitrogen--Health Criteria
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice; call for information.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is preparing an
Integrated Science Assessment (ISA) as part of the review of the
primary (health-based) National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS)
for oxides of nitrogen. For gaseous oxides of nitrogen (i.e., oxidized
nitrogen compounds), which also include nitric oxide (NO) and gases
produced from reactions involving NO and NO2, the primary
NAAQS are specified in terms of nitrogen dioxide (NO2). The
ISA will be developed by EPA's Center for Public Health and
Environmental Assessment (CPHEA) within the Office of Research and
Development. When final, this ISA is intended to update the previous
Integrated Science Assessment for Oxides of Nitrogen--Health Criteria
(EPA/600/R-15/068, 2016), published on January 28, 2016 (2016 ISA).
Interested parties are invited to assist EPA in developing and refining
the scientific information base for the review of the primary
NO2 NAAQS by submitting research studies and data that have
been published in the peer-reviewed scientific literature, accepted for
publication, or presented at a public scientific meeting since May 15,
2015.
DATES: All communications and information should be received by EPA
February 7, 2023.
ADDRESSES: Information may be submitted electronically, by mail, by
facsimile, or by hand delivery/courier. Please follow the detailed
instructions as provided in the section of this notice entitled
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information on the period of
submission, contact the Office of Research and Development (ORD)
Docket; telephone: 202-566-1752; facsimile: 202-566-1753; or email
[email protected]. For technical information, contact Christine
Alvarez; phone: 919-541-3881; fax: 919-541-5078 or email:
[email protected], or Stephanie DeFlorio-Barker; phone 919-541-
4621; fax: 919-541-5078 or email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Information About the Document
Section 108(a) of the Clean Air Act directs the Administrator to
identify certain air pollutants which, among other things, ``cause or
contribute to air pollution which may reasonably be anticipated to
endanger public health or
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welfare''; \1\ and to issue air quality criteria for them. These air
quality criteria are to ``accurately reflect the latest scientific
knowledge useful in indicating the kind and extent of all identifiable
effects on public health or welfare which may be expected from the
presence of [a] pollutant in the ambient air. . . .''. Under section
109 of the Act, EPA is then to establish NAAQS for each pollutant for
which EPA has issued criteria. Section 109(d)(1) of the Act
subsequently requires periodic review and, if appropriate, revision of
existing air quality criteria to reflect advances in scientific
knowledge on the effects of the pollutant on public health or welfare.
EPA is also required to review and, if appropriate, revise the NAAQS,
based on the revised air quality criteria (for more information on the
NAAQS review process, see https://www.epa.gov/naaqs).
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\1\ Under Clean Air Act section 302(h), welfare effects include,
but are not limited to, ``effects on soils, water, crops,
vegetation, manmade materials, animals, wildlife, weather,
visibility, and climate, damage to and deterioration of property,
and hazards to transportation, as well as effects on economic values
and on personal comfort and well-being.''
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EPA has established NAAQS for six criteria pollutants including
oxides of nitrogen. Periodically, EPA reviews the scientific basis for
these standards by preparing an ISA. In conjunction with additional
technical and policy assessments conducted by EPA's Office of Air
Quality Planning and Standards (OAQPS), the ISA provides the scientific
and technical basis for EPA decisions on the adequacy of the current
NAAQS and the appropriateness of possible alternative standards.
Early steps in this process include announcing the beginning of
this periodic NAAQS review and the development of the ISA, and EPA
requesting that the public submit scientific literature that they want
to bring to the attention of the Agency for consideration as it begins
this review process. The Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee
(CASAC), whose review and advisory functions are mandated by section
109(d)(2) of the Clean Air Act, is charged (among other things) with
independent scientific review of the Agency's air quality criteria. In
conjunction with the CASAC review, the public will have an opportunity
to review and comment on the draft ISA. These opportunities will be
announced in the Federal Register.
The next ISA for Oxides of Nitrogen--Health Criteria will build on
the 2016 ISA used in the previous review,\2\ focusing on assessing
newly available information. The public is encouraged to assist in
identifying relevant scientific information for the review by
submitting research studies that were not part of the prior review and
have been published or accepted for publication in a peer-reviewed
journal May 15, 2015. The Agency is interested in obtaining information
from new and emerging toxicological studies examining the effects of
controlled exposures to oxides of nitrogen in laboratory animals,
humans and in-vitro systems, as well as epidemiologic (observational)
studies examining associations between health effects and exposures to
ambient oxides of nitrogen in human populations. In addition to studies
that provide information on health outcomes, EPA also seeks recent
information in other areas of research relevant to oxides of nitrogen
such as sources and emissions, analytical methods, transport and
transformation in the environment, and ambient concentrations. This and
other literature relevant to a review of the primary (health-based)
NO2 NAAQS will be considered for inclusion in the assessment
in the forthcoming ISA.
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\2\ The scientific assessment for the last review is documented
in the Integrated Science Assessment for Oxides of Nitrogen--Health
Criteria (Final Report EPA/600/R-15/068, 81 FR 4910, January 28,
2016).
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The Agency seeks information regarding the design and scope of the
review of the air quality criteria to ensure that the ISA addresses key
policy-relevant issues and considers the new science that is relevant
to informing our understanding of these issues. The Agency also seeks
new scientific information that may address key uncertainties
identified in the last review of the primary NO2 NAAQS,
which are provided in the Policy Assessment (EPA-452/R-17-003, April
2017).\3\ Additional opportunities for submission of new peer-reviewed,
published (or in-press) papers will be possible as part of public
comment on the draft ISA that will be reviewed by the CASAC.
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\3\ The 2014 Policy Assessment is available at: https://www3.epa.gov/ttn/naaqs/standards/NO2/data/140501_pa_NO2_fin.pdf.
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II. How To Submit Technical Comments to the Docket at
www.regulations.gov
We encourage the public to submit comments to Docket ID No. ORD-
2022-0831 by one of the following methods:
The web at https://www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line
instructions for submitting comments.
Email: [email protected].
Fax: 202-566-9744.
Mail: EPA Docket Center, ORD Docket (Mail Code: 28221T),
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW,
Washington, DC 20460. The phone number is 202-566-1752. Due to COVID-
19, there may be a delay in processing comments submitted by mail.
Hand Delivery or Courier (by scheduled appointment only):
EPA Docket Center, WJC West Building, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution
Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20004. The Docket Center's hours of
operations are 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m., Monday-Friday (except Federal
holidays).
Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. ORD-2022-0831.
Please ensure that your comments are submitted within the specified
comment period, so that EPA has adequate time to consider them.
Comments received after the closing date will be marked ``late,'' and
may not be considered if time does not permit. It is EPA's policy to
include all materials it receives in the public docket without change
and to make the materials available online at www.regulations.gov,
including any personal information provided, unless materials include
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 www.regulations.gov or email. The www.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 email directly to EPA without going
through www.regulations.gov, your email address will be automatically
captured and included as part of the materials that are placed in the
public docket and made available on the internet. If you submit
electronic materials, EPA recommends that you include your name and
other contact information in the body of your materials and with any
disk or CD-ROM you submit. CD-ROM and disks can only be accepted via
UPS/FedEx/hand delivery and not through regular mail. If EPA cannot
read your materials due to technical difficulties and cannot contact
you for clarification, EPA may not be able to consider the materials
you submit. 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
EPA's Docket Center homepage at www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm.
Docket: Documents in the docket are listed in the
www.regulations.gov index. Although listed in the index, some
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information is not publicly available, e.g., CBI or other information
whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other materials,
such as copyrighted material, are publicly available only in hard copy.
Publicly available docket materials are available either electronically
in www.regulations.gov or at EPA's Docket Center.
Wayne Cascio,
Director, Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment, Office
of Research and Development.
[FR Doc. 2022-26786 Filed 12-8-22; 8:45 am]
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