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Methyl Bromide Tolerance Reassessment and Risk Management Decision (TRED) for Methyl Bromide, and Reregistration Eligibility Decision (RED) for Methyl Bromide's Commodity Uses; Notice of Availability
Note: EPA no longer updates this information, but it may be useful as a reference or resource.
[Federal Register: August 9, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 153)]
[Notices]
[Page 45546-45548]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr09au06-77]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[EPA-HQ-OPP-2005-0123; FRL-8083-1]
Methyl Bromide Tolerance Reassessment and Risk Management Decision (TRED)
for Methyl Bromide, and Reregistration Eligibility Decision (RED) for
Methyl Bromide's Commodity Uses; Notice of Availability
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: This notice announces the availability of EPA's Tolerance
Reassessment and Risk Management Decision (TRED) for Methyl Bromide,
and Reregistration Eligibility Decision (RED) for Methyl Bromide's
Commodity Uses, and opens a public comment period on this document. The
Agency's risk assessments and other related documents also are
available in the methyl bromide docket. Methyl bromide is a broad-
spectrum fumigant chemical that can be used as an acaricide,
antimicrobial, fungicide, herbicide, insecticide, nematicide, and
vertebrate control agent. This reregistration decision document covers
the methyl bromide uses that have accompanying food residue tolerances
such as post-harvest fumigation of food commodities in chambers at
ports or specialized structural fumigations at food processing
facilities, as well as some uses without tolerances that are performed
in similar facilities. EPA has reviewed the methyl bromide commodity
uses through the public participation process that the Agency uses to
involve the public in developing pesticide reregistration and tolerance
reassessment decisions. Through these programs, EPA is ensuring that
all pesticides meet current health and safety standards. EPA is
currently assessing risks and will develop risk management decisions
for five soil fumigant pesticides: Chloropicrin, dazomet, metam sodium,
methyl bromide, and a new active ingredient, iodomethane. Risks of a
sixth soil fumigant, 1, 3-D (Telone), will be discussed for comparative
purposes because the risk management decision was completed in 1998. A
decision on the reregistration of methyl bromide's non-commodity uses
that do not have food tolerances (e.g., pre-plant soil, greenhouse,
residential) is scheduled to be completed in 2007 with the other soil
fumigants.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before October 10, 2006.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by docket identification
(ID) number EPA-HQ-OPP-2005-0123, by one of the following methods:
? Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the on-line instructions for submitting comments.
? Mail: Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) Regulatory Public
Docket (7502P), Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania
Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001.
? Delivery: OPP Regulatory Public Docket (7502P),
Environmental Protection Agency, Rm. S-4400, One Potomac Yard (South
Building), 2777 S. Crystal Drive, Arlington, VA. Deliveries are only
accepted during the Docket's normal hours of operation (8:30 a.m. to 4
p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays). Special
arrangements should be made for deliveries of boxed information. The
Docket telephone number is (703) 305-5805.
Instructions: Direct your comments to docket ID number EPA-HQ-OPP-
2005-0123. 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 http://www.regulations.gov
or E-mail. The Federal http://www.regulations.gov
Web site 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 http://www.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
[[Page 45547]]
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.
Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the docket index.
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, is not placed on the Internet and will be publicly available
only in hard copy form. Publicly available docket materials are available
either in the electronic docket at http://www.regulations.gov,
or, if only available in hard copy, at the OPP
Regulatory Public Docket in Rm. S-4400, One Potomac Yard (South
Building), 2777 S. Crystal Drive, Arlington, VA. The hours of operation
of this Docket Facility are from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through
Friday, excluding legal holidays. The Docket telephone number is (703)
305-5805.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Steven Weiss, Special Review and
Reregistration Division (7508P), Office of Pesticide Programs,
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.,
Washington, DC 20460-0001; telephone number: (703) 308-8293; fax
number: (703) 308-8005; E-mail address: weiss.steven@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, and agricultural advocates; the chemical industry; pesticide
users; and members of the public interested in the sale, distribution,
or use of pesticides. 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
http://www.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
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 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
A. What Action is the Agency Taking?
Under section 4 of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and
Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), EPA is reevaluating existing pesticides to
ensure that they meet current scientific and regulatory standards. EPA
has completed a Tolerance Reassessment and Risk Management Decision
(TRED) for Methyl Bromide, and Reregistration Eligibility Decision
(RED) for Methyl Bromide's Commodity Uses under section 4(g)(2)(A) of
FIFRA. Methyl bromide is a broad-spectrum fumigant chemical that can be
used as an acaricide, antimicrobial, fungicide, herbicide, insecticide,
nematicide, and vertebrate control agent. The most prevalent use
pattern is as a soil fumigant; however, it is also used as a structural
fumigant and for post-harvest treatment of commodities, which are the
uses considered in these decisions. EPA has determined that the data
base to support reregistration is substantially complete and that
products containing methyl bromide are eligible for reregistration
depending on their specific uses, provided the risks are mitigated in
the manner described in the RED. Upon submission of any required
product specific data under section 4(g)(2)(B) and any necessary
changes to the registration and labeling (either to address concerns
identified in the RED or as a result of product-specific data), EPA
will make a final reregistration decision under section 4(g)(2)(C) for
products containing methyl bromide.
EPA must review tolerances and tolerance exemptions that were in
effect when the Food Quality Protection Act (FQPA) was enacted in
August 1996, to ensure that these existing pesticide residue limits for
food and feed commodities meet the safety standard established by the
new law. Tolerances are considered reassessed once the safety finding
has been made or a revocation occurs. EPA has reviewed and made the
requisite safety finding for the methyl bromide tolerances.
EPA is applying the principles of public participation to all
pesticides undergoing reregistration and tolerance reassessment. The
Agency's Pesticide Tolerance Reassessment and Reregistration; Public
Participation Process, published in the Federal Register on May 14,
2004 (69 FR 26819) (FRL-7357-9), explains that in conducting these
programs, EPA is tailoring its public participation process to be
commensurate with the level of risk, extent of use, complexity of
issues, and degree of public concern associated with each pesticide.
Due to its uses, risks, and other factors, methyl bromide was reviewed
through the full 6-Phase process. Through this process, EPA worked
extensively with stakeholders and the public to reach the regulatory
decisions for methyl bromide commodity uses.
The reregistration program is being conducted under Congressionally
mandated time frames, and EPA recognizes the need both to make timely
decisions and to involve the public. The Agency is issuing the methyl
bromide commodity use RED for public comment. This comment period is
intended to provide an additional opportunity for public input and a
mechanism for initiating any necessary amendments to the RED. All
comments should be submitted using the methods in ADDRESSES, and must
be received by EPA on or before the closing date. These comments will
become part of the
[[Page 45548]]
Agency Docket for methyl bromide. Comments received after the close of
the comment period will be marked ``late.'' EPA is not required to
consider these late comments.
The Agency will carefully consider all comments received by the
closing date and will provide a Response to Comments Memorandum in the
Docket and http://www.regulations.gov. If any comment significantly
affects the document, EPA also will publish an amendment to the RED in
the Federal Register. In the absence of substantive comments requiring
changes, the methyl bromide RED will be implemented as it is now presented.
B. What is the Agency's Authority for Taking this Action?
Section 4(g)(2) of FIFRA as amended directs that, after submission
of all data concerning a pesticide active ingredient, the Administrator
shall determine whether pesticides containing such active ingredient
are eligible for reregistration, before calling in product-specific
data on individual end-use products and either reregistering products
or taking other ``appropriate regulatory action.''
Section 408(q) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA),
21 U.S.C. 346a(q), requires EPA to review tolerances and exemptions for
pesticide residues in effect as of August 2, 1996, to determine whether
the tolerance or exemption meets the requirements of section 408(b)(2)
or (c)(2) of FFDCA. This review is to be completed by August 3, 2006.
List of Subjects
Environmental protection, Pesticides and pests.
Dated: August 2, 2006.
Debra Edwards,
Director, Special Review and Reregistration Division, Office of
Pesticide Programs.
[FR Doc. E6-12898 Filed 8-8-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-S