[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 178 (Wednesday, September 15, 2004)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Page 55547]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-20795]
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Proposed Rules
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains notices to the public of
the proposed issuance of rules and regulations. The purpose of these
notices is to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in
the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules.
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Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 178 / Wednesday, September 15, 2004 /
Proposed Rules
[[Page 55547]]
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 136
[FRL-7813-5 ]
Potential Stakeholder Process for Detection and Quantitation
Procedures
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of proposed rule.
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SUMMARY: This document announces EPA's intent to explore the
feasibility and design of a process through which stakeholders could
provide their ideas and recommendations on procedures for the
development of detection and quantitation limits and uses of these
limits in Clean Water Act (CWA) programs.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Marion Kelly: Engineering and Analysis
Division (4303T); Office of Science and Technology; Office of Water;
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; Ariel Rios Building; 1200
Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20460, or call (202) 566-1045
or E-mail at [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: EPA approves analytical methods (i.e., test
procedures) used for monitoring and reporting chemical pollutants under
the CWA. EPA's analytical methods specify detection limits to determine
if a pollutant is present. Quantitation limits describe the
concentration of a pollutant that can be measured with a known level of
confidence. These values are often used as reporting and compliance
limits by the States, Tribes and EPA Regions that administer and
enforce permit limits on direct discharges into water. These values are
also often used by States and localities in administering and enforcing
pretreatment programs for indirect discharges.
EPA published two documents in the Federal Register on this topic
on March 12, 2003, for public comment. One document announced the
availability of EPA's assessment of detection and quantitation
procedures that are applied to analytical methods used under the CWA
(68 FR 11791). The second document proposed revisions to the detection
and quantitation definitions and procedures specified at 40 CFR part
136 (68 FR 11770). The proposed regulatory revisions were based largely
on the results of the assessment and on comments from users of the
method detection limit procedure. Further analysis of some of the
public comments, prompted EPA to explore the feasibility and design of
a stakeholder process to obtain additional stakeholder input on
procedures for the development of detection and quantitation limits and
uses of these limits in CWA programs.
The Agency is beginning the process to engage a neutral third party
to conduct a situation assessment to determine whether a stakeholder
process should go forward and, if so, how that process should be
designed. During a situation assessment, the neutral third party talks
with affected stakeholders about their ideas for the design of multi-
party discussions on the policy and technical issues. As a result of
these discussions, EPA expects the neutral third party to make
recommendations about the feasibility and design of a stakeholder
process, including format, schedule, and topics for discussion. If the
neutral third party recommends that a stakeholder process is feasible,
EPA will, as soon as possible, implement a process during which
stakeholders could provide their ideas and recommendations on
procedures for the development of detection and quantitation limits and
uses of these limits in CWA programs. We estimate that the neutral
third party's recommendations will probably be available in November
2004.
EPA plans to post the final situation assessment report on the EPA
Web site at http://www.epa.gov/waterscience/methods/det/index.html
Dated: September 9, 2004.
Benjamin H. Grumbles,
Acting Assistant Administrator for Water.
[FR Doc. 04-20795 Filed 9-14-04; 8:45 am]
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