[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 143 (Friday, July 24, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44887-44888]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-16047]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[EPA-HQ-ORD-2020-0183; FRL-10012-20-ORD]
Availability of the IRIS Assessment Plan for Oral Exposure to
Vanadium and Compounds
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of public comment period.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing a 30-
day public comment period associated with release of the IRIS
Assessment Plan for Oral Exposure to Vanadium and Compounds. This
document communicates information on the scoping needs identified by
EPA program and regional offices and the IRIS Program's initial problem
formulation activities. Specifically, the assessment plan outlines the
objectives for the IRIS assessment and the type of evidence considered
most pertinent to address the scoping needs. EPA is releasing this IRIS
Assessment Plan for a 30-day public comment period in advance of a
public science webinar planned for August 19, 2020. The Agency
encourages the public to comment on all aspects of the assessment plan,
including key science issues and identification of any new or missing
studies.
DATES: The 30-day public comment period begins July 24, 2020 and ends
August 24, 2020. Comments must be received on or before August 24,
2020.
ADDRESSES: The IRIS Assessment Plan for Oral Exposure to Vanadium and
Compounds will be available via the internet on the IRIS website at
https://www.epa.gov/iris/iris-recent-additions and in the public docket
at http://www.regulations.gov, Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-ORD-2020-0182.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information on the public comment
period, contact the ORD Docket at the EPA Headquarters Docket Center;
telephone: 202-566-1752; facsimile: 202-566-9744; or
email:Docket_ORD@epa.gov.
For technical information on the IRIS Assessment Plan for Oral
Exposure to Vanadium and Compounds, contact Dr. James Avery, CPHEA;
telephone: 202-564-1494; or email: avery.james@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Information About IRIS Assessment Plans
EPA's IRIS Program is a human health assessment program that
evaluates quantitative and qualitative information on the health
effects that may result from exposure to chemicals found in the
environment. Through the IRIS Program, EPA provides high quality
science-based human health assessments to support the Agency's
regulatory activities and decisions to protect public health. As part
of scoping and initial problem formulation activities prior to the
development of an assessment, the IRIS Program carries out a broad,
preliminary literature survey to assist in identifying health effects
that have been studied in relation to the chemical or substance of
interest, as well as science issues that may need to be considered when
evaluating toxicity. This information, in conjunction with scoping
needs identified by EPA
[[Page 44888]]
program and regional offices, is used to inform the development of an
IRIS Assessment Plan (IAP).
The IAP communicates the plan for developing each individual
chemical assessment to the public and includes summary information on
the IRIS Program's scoping and initial problem formulation activities,
objectives and specific aims for the assessment, and a PECO
(Populations, Exposures, Comparators, and Outcomes) for the systematic
review. The PECO provides the framework for developing detailed
literature search strategies and inclusion/exclusion criteria,
particularly with respect to evidence stream (e.g., human, animal,
mechanistic), exposure measures, and outcome measures. The IAP serves
to inform the subsequent development of chemical-specific systematic
review protocols, which will be made available for public review.
II. Public Webinar Information
To allow for public input, EPA is convening a public webinar to
discuss the IRIS Assessment Plan for Oral Exposure to Vanadium and
Compounds on August 19, 2020. Specific teleconference and webinar
information regarding this public meeting will be provided through the
IRIS website (https://www.epa.gov/iris) and via EPA's IRIS listserv. To
register for the IRIS listserv, visit the IRIS website (https://www.epa.gov/iris) or visit https://www.epa.gov/iris/forms/staying-connected-integrated-risk-information-system#connect.
III. How to Submit Technical Comments to the Docket at https://www.regulations.gov
Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-ORD-2020-
0183 for IRIS Assessment Plan for Oral Exposure to Vanadium and
Compounds, by one of the following methods:
www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line instructions for
submitting comments.
Email: Docket_ORD@epa.gov.
Fax: 202-566-9744. Due to COVID-19, there may be a delay
in processing comments submitted by fax.
Mail: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA Docket
Center (ORD Docket), Mail Code: 28221T, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue 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.
Note: The EPA Docket Center and Reading Room is currently closed to
public visitors to reduce the risk of transmitting COVID-19. Docket
Center staff will continue to provide remote customer service via
email, phone, and webform. The public can submit comments via
www.Regulations.gov or email. No hand deliveries are currently being
accepted.
Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-ORD-
2020-0183. Please ensure that your comments are submitted within the
specified comment period. Comments received after the closing date will
be marked ``late,'' and may only be considered if time permits. It is
EPA's policy to include all comments it receives in the public docket
without change and to make the comments available online at
www.regulations.gov, including any personal information provided,
unless a comment includes information claimed to be Confidential
Business Information (CBI) or other information for which disclosure is
restricted by statute. Do not submit information through
www.regulations.gov or email that you consider to be CBI or otherwise
protected. 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 comment directly to EPA without going through
www.regulations.gov, your email address will be automatically captured
and included as part of the comment that is placed in the public 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 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. For additional information about EPA's public docket visit the
EPA 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
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 in hard copy at the ORD Docket in the EPA
Headquarters Docket Center.
Wayne E. Cascio,
Director, Center for Public Health & Environmental Assessment.
[FR Doc. 2020-16047 Filed 7-23-20; 8:45 am]
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