[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 87 (Friday, May 4, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 26549-26550]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-10805]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-9668-5]


Workshop on Using Mode of Action To Support the Development of a 
Multipollutant Science Assessment

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of Workshop.

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SUMMARY: EPA is announcing a workshop, organized by EPA's National 
Center for Environmental Assessment (NCEA) within the Office of 
Research and Development, to explore the possible ways by which mode-
of-action and toxicity pathways approaches may contribute to 
interpretation of cumulative human health risks of the criteria air 
pollutants. The workshop will be held on May 31, 2012, in Research 
Triangle Park, North Carolina and will be open to attendance by 
interested public observers on a first-come, first-served basis up to 
the limits of available space.

DATES: The workshop will be held on May 31, 2012, beginning at 8:00 
a.m. and ending at 5:00 p.m.

ADDRESSES: The workshop will be held in the auditorium of EPA's main 
campus, 109 T.W. Alexander Drive, Research Triangle Park, North 
Carolina. An EPA contractor, ICF International, is providing logistical 
support for the workshop.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions regarding information, 
registration, and logistics for the workshop should be directed to 
Whitney Kihlstrom, ICF International, Conference Coordinator, 2222 East 
NC-54, Suite 480, Durham, North Carolina 27713; telephone: 919-293-
1646; facsimile: 919-293-1645; email: EPA_Multipollutant@icfi.com.

[[Page 26550]]

Questions regarding the scientific and technical aspects of the 
workshop should be directed to Dr. Beth Owens, telephone: 919-541-0600; 
facsimile: 919-541-2895; email: owens.beth@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Summary of Information About the Workshop

    Sections 108 and 109 of the Clean Air Act require periodic review 
and, if appropriate, revisions of the National Ambient Air Quality 
Standards (NAAQS) and the air quality criteria on which they are based. 
As a part of this process, NCEA reviews and integrates scientific 
information from across scientific disciplines in drawing conclusions 
related to exposure and health impacts of each of the criteria air 
pollutants in the Integrated Science Assessment (ISA). EPA is planning 
the development of a companion assessment to the ISAs, the 
Multipollutant Science Assessment, whereby the health effects of 
exposure to a mixture of pollutants, principally the criteria air 
pollutants, may be systematically evaluated. To this end, EPA conducted 
a workshop in February 2011, entitled Multipollutant Science and Risk 
Analysis: Addressing Multiple Pollutants in the NAAQS Review Process. 
One of the sessions focused on using mode-of-action and toxicity 
pathways approaches to interpret health evidence from toxicological and 
controlled human exposure studies of criteria air pollutants. NCEA is 
planning to further discuss issues related to the interpretation and 
organization of evidence used to characterize health effects resulting 
from exposure to real-world mixtures of air pollutants at the one-day 
workshop on May 31, 2012. The goal of the workshop is to explore the 
possible ways by which mode-of-action and toxicity pathways approaches 
may contribute to interpretation of cumulative human health risks of 
the criteria air pollutants. Discussion points will include current EPA 
plans related to an approach in which experimental health results are 
organized around key events or biological pathways that are linked to 
endpoints and outcomes of interest. In addition, discussion will focus 
on the means by which information from epidemiologic panel studies can 
be integrated into this framework, as well as how mixtures have been 
evaluated in other media and by other groups.

II. Workshop Information

    Members of the public may attend the workshop as observers. Space 
is limited, and reservations will be accepted on a first-come, first-
served basis.

    Dated: April 20, 2012.
Darrell A. Winner,
Acting Director, National Center for Environmental Assessment.
[FR Doc. 2012-10805 Filed 5-3-12; 8:45 am]
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