[Federal Register: December 18, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 242)]
[Notices]
[Page 67209-67211]
[DOCID:fr18de09-64]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OPP-2009-0815; FRL-8802-3]

Receipt of Petition Requesting EPA to Classify all Rodenticide
Products Containing Strychnine as Restricted Use Pesticides; Opening of
Comment Period

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: EPA is publishing for public comment a July 9, 2009 petition
from the State FIFRA Issues Research and Evaluation Group (SFIREG),
available in docket number EPA-HQ-OPP-2009-0815, requesting that the
Agency classify all rodenticide products containing strychnine as
Restricted Use Pesticides.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before March 18, 2010.

ADDRESSES:  Submit your comments, identified by docket identification
(ID) number EPA-HQ-OPP-2009-0815, 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
Bldg.), 2777 S. Crystal Dr., Arlington, VA. Deliveries are only
accepted during the Docket Facility'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 Facility telephone number is<PHONE_NUMBER>.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to docket ID number EPA-HQ-OPP-
2009-0815. 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 regulations.gov or e-
mail. The 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 e-
mail comment directly to EPA without going through 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
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
available at http://www.regulations.gov. Although listed in the index,
some information is not publicly available, e.g., CBI or other
information of which 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 Bldg.), 2777 S. Crystal Dr., 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 Facility telephone
number is<PHONE_NUMBER>.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: William W. Jacobs, Registration
Division, Office of Pesticide Programs, Environmental Protection
Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001;
telephone number:<PHONE_NUMBER>; fax number:<PHONE_NUMBER>; e-mail
address<EMAIL_ADDRESS>
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: Various
environmental groups, farmers, ranchers, foresters, State regulatory
agencies, other interested Federal agencies, members of the public
interested in the sale, distribution, or use of pesticides, registrants
of strychnine alkaloid pesticide products, and other pesticide
registrants and pesticide users.
    This listing is not intended to be exhaustive, but rather provides
a guide for readers regarding entities likely to be affected by this
action. Other types of entities not listed in this unit could also be
affected. 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
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

What Action is the Agency Taking?

    EPA is providing an opportunity for public comment on a petition
received from the State FIFRA Issues Research and Evaluation Group that
asks the Agency ``to classify all strychnine-containing rodenticides as
Restricted Use Pesticides (RUPs).''
    EPA regulates pesticides under the authority of the Federal
Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). Under FIFRA, EPA
registers a pesticide after determining that the use of the pesticide
will not cause ``unreasonable adverse effects'' to human health or the
environment. This standard is a risk-benefit standard that takes into
account social, economic, and environmental costs and benefits. Section
3(d)(1)(C) of FIFRA authorizes EPA to classify a product as a
restricted use pesticide if the Agency finds that only through such
classification could its use be permitted without unreasonable adverse
effects on the environment.
    Restricted use pesticides may only be sold to and applied by
certified applicators or persons acting under the direct supervision of
certified applicators. End-use pesticide products that are not
classified as restricted use pesticides are considered to be
unclassified. Products registered and labeled only for use in the
manufacture of other pesticide products are not subject to requirements
pertaining to classification.

    Through a Federal regulation promulgated in 1978, (43 FR 5782-5791,
February 9, 1978) ``dry baits, pellets and powder formulations''
containing strychnine compounds are classified as restricted use
pesticides if:
    1. The concentration of active ingredient claimed on the label
exceeds 0.5%
    2. The label permits applications that are not ``subsoil,'' and/or
    3. The label includes ``uses calling for burrow builders.'' The
same rule allows strychnine end-use ``dry baits, pellets and powder
formulations'' limited to ``subsoil uses'' not involving burrow-builder
applications to remain unclassified. Such products may be purchased and
used by persons who are neither certified applicators nor supervised by
certified applicators.
    In 1983, EPA completed a Special Review of above-ground uses of
strychnine alkaloid and strychnine sulfate products. In 1988, a U.S.
District Court in Minnesota issued an injunction prohibiting the
registration of above-ground uses of strychnine products. In 1989, the
1988 decision was reversed in part on appeal but was upheld on matters
related to the Endangered Species Act. The injunction against above-
ground uses of pesticides containing strychnine compounds was sustained
and remains in effect. Also in 1989, EPA and various concerned parties
reached a settlement agreement pursuant to the Special Review for
strychnine products.
    By the early 1990's, the registrations of many strychnine alkaloid
products and all strychnine sulfate products had been canceled. The
strychnine alkaloid products that remained registered at that time
primarily included:
    1. Restricted use products labeled for below-ground applications to
control pocket gophers, including applications using burrow builders;
    2. Unclassified end-use products labeled for manual below-ground
applications to control pocket gophers; and
    3. Manufacturing-use products.
    In 1996, EPA issued a Reregistration Eligibility Decision (RED)
document pertaining to strychnine. Labels for all currently registered
strychnine products bear risk mitigation text developed through the
reregistration process. All but one of the remaining strychnine
products subject to the RED have been reregistered. All nine of the
remaining unclassified strychnine end-use products have been
reregistered.
    Through a petition, SFIREG seeks to have all strychnine products
classified as restricted use pesticides. Due to the regulatory
exemption afforded to manufacturing use products, the SFIREG petition
would directly affect only the currently unclassified products which
are labeled for manual, below-ground applications to control various
types of pocket gophers.
    The petitioner reports that member States have noted incidents of
misuse of strychnine products, including use to control ``black-tailed
prairie dogs and other pests not found on the product labeling.''
Petitioner states that uses against prairie dogs typically consist of
``broadcast applications of bait products on the soil surface'' and
thereby increase the likelihood of primary and secondary exposures to
non-target species. Petitioner expresses concern that sales of
unclassified strychnine products, including ``many products sold in
small packages,'' make it difficult for State regulatory agencies to
investigate misuse cases involving strychnine due to the lack of
recordkeeping requirements for transactions involving unclassified
products. Petitioner contends that classifying all strychnine products
as restricted use pesticides would:
    1. Provide tighter controls over the distribution, sale, and use of
these products
    2. Improve documentation of sales, facilitate investigations of
misuse cases; and
    3. Better mitigate risk to the environment.
    For this Notice, EPA has posted petitioner's request in the public
docket accompanying this topic at EPA-HQ-OPP-2009-0815. EPA is
providing an opportunity for public comment and submission of
additional information pertinent to this petition that commenters would
like the Agency to consider as it develops a response to the petition.
The Agency would find particularly useful information relating to
misuse of strychnine products, including misuse by non-certified
applicators and by, or under the direct supervision of, certified
applicators. Commenters are asked to provide available information
regarding the products involved, the incidence of misuse, and the
environmental impacts that have or could reasonably have resulted from
misuse.

List of Subjects

    Environmental protection, pesticides, restricted use, rodenticides,
strychnine.

    Dated: December 10, 2009.
G. Jeffrey Herndon,
Acting Director, Registration Division, Office of Pesticide Programs.

[FR Doc. E9-30155 Filed 12-17-09; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560-50-S