[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 170 (Thursday, September 1, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54462-54463]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-22430]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-9458-6]
Notification of a Public Teleconference; Clean Air Scientific
Advisory Committee; Air Monitoring and Methods Subcommittee
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or Agency) Science
Advisory Board (SAB) Staff Office announces a public teleconference of
the Air Monitoring and Methods Subcommittee (AMMS) of the Clean Air
Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC) to provide advice on EPA's draft
Near-Road NO2 Monitoring Technical Assistance Document.
DATES: A public teleconference call will be held on Thursday, September
29, 2011 from 11:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (Eastern Time).
ADDRESSES: The public teleconference will be conducted by telephone
only.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Any member of the public wishing
further information regarding this Notice and public teleconference may
contact Mr. Edward Hanlon, Designated Federal Officer (DFO), SAB Staff
Office, by telephone/voice mail at (202) 564-2134; by fax at (202) 565-
2098 or via e-mail at [email protected]. General information
concerning the EPA CASAC can be found at the EPA CASAC Web site at
http://www.epa.gov/casac. Any inquiry regarding EPA's draft Near-Road
NO2 Monitoring Technical Assistance Document should be
directed to Mr. Nealson Watkins, EPA Office of Air Quality Planning and
Standards (OAQPS) at [email protected] or 919-541-5522.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background: The CASAC was established pursuant to the under the
Clean Air Act (CAA) Amendments of 1977, codified at 42 U.S.C.
7409D(d)(2), to provide advice, information, and recommendations to the
Administrator on the scientific and technical aspects of issues related
to the criteria for air quality standards, research related to air
quality, sources of air pollution, and the strategies to attain and
maintain air quality standards and to prevent significant deterioration
of air quality. The CASAC is a Federal Advisory Committee chartered
under the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), 5 U.S.C., App. 2.
Pursuant to FACA and EPA policy, notice is hereby given that the AMMS
will hold a public teleconference call to provide advice through the
chartered CASAC on EPA's draft Near-Road NO2 Monitoring
Technical Assistance Document.
In February 2010, EPA promulgated new minimum monitoring
requirements for the nitrogen dioxide (NO2) monitoring
network in support of a newly revised National Ambient Air Quality
Standard (NAAQS) for 1-hour NO2 (75 FR 6474). In the new
monitoring requirements, state and local air monitoring agencies are
required to install near-road NO2 monitoring stations at
locations where peak hourly NO2 concentrations are expected
to occur within the near-road environment in larger urban areas. State
and local air agencies are required to consider traffic volumes, fleet
mix, roadway design, traffic congestion patterns, local terrain or
topography, meteorology, population exposure and other factors in
determining where a required near-road NO2 monitor should be
placed. In August 2010, EPA's Office of Air and Radiation (OAR)
requested that CASAC review the initial phase of EPA's Near Road
project, and CASAC issued a final report to the EPA Administrator in
November 2010 entitled ``Review of the `Near-road Guidance Document--
Outline' and `Near-road Monitoring Pilot Study Objectives and
Approach'.'' OAR considered those recommendations from CASAC and has
developed a draft technical document entitled ``Near-Road
NO2 Monitoring Technical Assistance Document--DRAFT August
11, 2011'' to provide state and local air monitoring agencies with
recommendations and ideas on how to successfully implement near-road
NO2 monitors required by the 2010 revisions to the
NO2 minimum monitoring requirements. Since the establishment
of near-road NO2 monitoring stations will create an
infrastructure that will likely be capable of housing multi-pollutant
ambient air monitoring equipment, OAR's draft Technical Assistance
Document also discusses other pollutants of interest that exist in the
near-road environment, including definitions, basis of interest, and
measurement methods. OAR requested CASAC advice on how to improve the
near-road NO2 Monitoring draft Technical Assistance
Document.
Availability of Meeting Materials: The agenda and materials in
support of these teleconference calls will be placed on the EPA CASAC
Web site at http://www.epa.gov/casac in advance of the teleconference
call.
Procedures for Providing Public Input: Public comment for
consideration by EPA's Federal advisory committees and panels has a
different purpose from public comment provided to EPA program offices.
Therefore, the process for submitting comments to a Federal advisory
committee is different from the process used to submit comments to an
EPA program office.
Federal advisory committees and panels, including scientific
advisory committees, provide independent advice to EPA. Members of the
public can submit comments for a Federal advisory committee to consider
as it develops advice for EPA. Input from the public to the CASAC will
have the most impact if it provides specific scientific or technical
information or analysis for CASAC to consider or if it relates to the
clarity or accuracy of the technical information. Members of the public
wishing to provide comment on the Subcommittee membership and/or this
advisory activity should contact the Designated Federal Officer for the
relevant advisory committee directly.
Oral Statements: In general, individuals or groups requesting an
oral presentation at this public teleconference will be limited to
three minutes per speaker. Interested parties should contact Mr. Edward
Hanlon, DFO, in writing (preferably via e-mail), at the contact
information noted above, by September 22, 2011 to be placed on the list
of public speakers for the teleconference.
Written Statements: Written statements should be received in the
SAB Staff Office by September 22, 2011 so that the information may be
made available to the Panel for their consideration. Written statements
should be supplied to the DFO in electronic format via e-mail
(acceptable file formats: Adobe Acrobat PDF, WordPerfect, MS Word, MS
PowerPoint, or Rich Text files in IBM-PC/Windows
[[Page 54463]]
98/2000/XP format). It is the SAB Staff Office general policy to post
written comments on the Web page for the advisory meeting or
teleconference. Submitters are requested to provide an unsigned version
of each document because the SAB Staff Office does not publish
documents with signatures on its Web sites. Members of the public
should be aware that their personal contact information, if included in
any written comments, may be posted to the CASAC Web site. Copyrighted
material will not be posted without explicit permission of the
copyright holder.
Accessibility: For information on access or services for
individuals with disabilities, please contact Mr. Edward Hanlon at the
phone number or e-mail address noted above, preferably at least ten
days prior to the meeting, to give EPA as much time as possible to
process your request.
Dated: August 24, 2011.
Vanessa T. Vu,
Director, EPA Science Advisory Board Staff Office.
[FR Doc. 2011-22430 Filed 8-31-11; 8:45 am]
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