[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 53 (Friday, March 18, 2016)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 14813-14817]
[FR Doc No: 2016-06221]

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 300

[EPA-HQ-SFUND-1983-0002; FRL-9943-94-Region 7]

National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan;
National Priorities List: Partial Deletion of the Ellisville Superfund
Site

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rule; notice of intent.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 7 is issuing
a Notice of Intent to Delete the Callahan property, Operable Unit 3
(OU3) (Parcel ID 22U220242) of the Ellisville Superfund Site (Site)
located at 210 Strecker Road in Wildwood, Missouri (E\1/2\, NW\1/4\,
SE\1/4\, S31, T45N, R04E), from the National Priorities List (NPL) and
requests public comments on this proposed action. The NPL, promulgated
pursuant to section 105 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response,
Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) of 1980, as amended, is an
appendix of the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution
Contingency Plan (NCP). The EPA and the State of Missouri, through the
Missouri Department of Natural Resources (MDNR), have determined that
all appropriate response actions at the Callahan property, OU3, under
CERCLA, have been completed. However, this deletion does not preclude
future actions under Superfund.
    This partial deletion pertains to all media (soil and groundwater)
of the Callahan property, OU3 of the Ellisville Superfund site. The
Ellisville Superfund Bliss property, Operable Unit 2, and the Rosalie
property, Operable Unit 1, will remain on the NPL and are not being
considered for deletion as part of this action.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before April 18, 2016.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID no. EPA-HQ-
SFUND-1983-0002, to the Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the on-line instructions for submitting
comments. Once submitted, comments cannot be

edited or removed from Regulations.gov. The EPA may publish any comment
received to its public docket. Do not submit electronically any
information you consider to be Confidential Business Information (CBI)
or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute.
Multimedia submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be accompanied by a
written comment. The written comment is considered the official comment
and should include discussion of all points you wish to make. The EPA
will generally not consider comments or comment contents located
outside of the primary submission (i.e. on the web, cloud, or other
file sharing system). For additional submission methods, the full EPA
public comment policy, information about CBI or multimedia submissions,
and general guidance on making effective comments, please visit http://www2.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets.
    Publicly available docket materials are available either
electronically in http://www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the
site information repositories. The locations and viewing hours of the
site information repositories are:
    The EPA Region 7, 11201 Renner Boulevard, Lenexa, KS open from 8
a.m. to 4 p.m. and the Daniel Boone Branch Library, 300 Clarkson Road,
Ellisville, MO open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 9
a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Laura Price, Remedial Project Manager,
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 7, 11201 Renner Boulevard,
Lenexa, Kansas 66219, email<EMAIL_ADDRESS>and phone number: 913-
551-7130.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document ``we,'' ``us,'' or
``our'' refer to EPA. This section provides additional information by
addressing the following:

I. Introduction
II. NPL Deletion Criteria
III. Deletion Procedures
IV. Basis for Intended Partial Site Deletion

I. Introduction

    EPA Region 7 announces its intent to delete the Callahan property,
OU3 of the Ellisville Superfund Site, from the National Priorities List
(NPL) and requests public comment on this proposed action. The NPL
constitutes appendix B of 40 CFR 300, which is the National Oil and
Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP), which EPA
promulgated pursuant to section 105 of the Comprehensive Environmental
Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) of 1980, as amended.
EPA maintains the NPL as those sites that appear to present a
significant risk to public health, welfare, or the environment. Sites
on the NPL may be the subject of remedial actions financed by the
Hazardous Substance Superfund (Fund). This partial deletion of the
Callahan property, OU3, is proposed in accordance with 40 CFR
300.425(e) and is consistent with the Notice of Policy Change: Partial
Deletion of Sites Listed on the National Priorities List. 60 FR 55466
(November 1, 1995). As described in 300.425(e)(3) of the NCP, a portion
of a site deleted from the NPL remains eligible for Fund-financed
remedial action if future conditions warrant such actions.
    EPA will accept comments on the proposal to partially delete this
site for thirty (30) days after publication of this document in the
Federal Register.
    Section II of this document explains the criteria for deleting
sites from the NPL. Section III discusses procedures that EPA is using
for this action. Section IV discusses the Callahan property, OU3 of the
Ellisville Superfund Site and demonstrates how it meets the deletion
criteria.

II. NPL Deletion Criteria

    The NCP establishes the criteria that EPA uses to delete sites from
the NPL. In accordance with 40 CFR 300.425(e), sites may be deleted
from the NPL where no further response is appropriate. In making such a
determination pursuant to 40 CFR 300.425(e), EPA will consider, in
consultation with the State, whether any of the following criteria have
been met:
    i. Responsible parties or other persons have implemented all
appropriate response actions required;
    ii. all appropriate Fund-financed response under CERCLA has been
implemented, and no further response action by responsible parties is
appropriate; or
    iii. the remedial investigation has shown that the release poses no
significant threat to public health or the environment and, therefore,
the taking of remedial measures is not appropriate.

III. Deletion Procedures

    The following procedures apply to deletion of Callahan property,
OU3 of the Ellisville Site:
    (1) EPA consulted with the State before developing this Notice of
Intent for Partial Deletion.
    (2) EPA has provided the state 30 working days for review of this
notice prior to publication of it today.
    (3) In accordance with the criteria discussed above, EPA in
consultation with the state, has determined that no further response is
appropriate.
    (4) The State of Missouri, through the Missouri Department of
Natural Resources, has concurred with the deletion of the Callahan
Subsite property, OU3 of the Ellisville Superfund Site, from the NPL.
    (5) Concurrently, with the publication of this Notice of Intent for
Partial Deletion in the Federal Register, a notice is being published
in a major local newspaper, Eureka-Wildwood Patch. The newspaper
announces the 30-day public comment period concerning the Notice of
Intent for Partial Deletion of the Site from the NPL.
    (6) The EPA placed copies of documents supporting the proposed
partial deletion in the deletion docket and made these items available
for public inspection and copying at the Site information repositories
identified above.
    If comments are received within the 30-day comment period on this
document, EPA will evaluate and respond accordingly to the comments
before making a final decision to delete the Callahan property, OU3. If
necessary, EPA will prepare a Responsiveness Summary to address any
significant public comments received. After the public comment period,
if EPA determines, in consultation with the State, it is still
appropriate to delete the Callahan property, OU3 of the Ellisville
Superfund Site, the Regional Administrator will publish a final Notice
of Partial Deletion in the Federal Register. Public notices, public
submissions and copies of the Responsiveness Summary, if prepared, will
be made available to interested parties and included in the site
information repositories listed above.
    Deletion of a portion of a site from the NPL does not itself
create, alter, or revoke any individual's rights or obligations.
Deletion of a portion of a site from the NPL does not in any way alter
EPA's right to take enforcement actions, as appropriate. The NPL is
designed primarily for informational purposes and to assist EPA
management. Section 300.425(e)(3) of the NCP states that the deletion
of a site from the NPL does not preclude eligibility for future
response actions, should future conditions warrant such actions.

IV. Basis for Partial Site Deletion

    The following information provides EPA's rationale for deleting the
Callahan

property, OU3 of the Ellisville Superfund Site from the NPL:

Site Background and History

Site Location
    The Ellisville Superfund Site (Site) (EPA ID MOD980633010) is
located in St. Louis County, approximately 20 miles from downtown St.
Louis, Missouri. The Site is comprised of three non-contiguous operable
units the Bliss property, OU2 (11.6 acres), the Callahan property, OU3
(8 acres), and the Rosalie property, OU1 (85 acres). The population of
St. Louis County is 998,954 people, according to the 2010 census. The
counties that surround St. Louis County are Saint Charles, Franklin,
and Jefferson Counties. The area immediately around the Site is
comprised of single-family detached residential dwellings. The Site is
located in the watershed of Caulks Creek, a tributary of Bonhomme Creek
that enters the Missouri river. The geology of the Site is underlain by
unconsolidated deposits that rest on the Mississippian-aged Osagean
Series limestone bedrock with solution-enlarged joints. Below the
Mississippian-aged Osagean Series limestone lies the Maquoketa
Formation that provides a relatively impermeable shale aquitard.
National Priorities List Designation
    The Site was proposed for inclusion on the NPL on December 30, 1982
(47 FR 58476). It was listed for final inclusion on the NPL September
8, 1983 (48 FR 40658-40673).
Operable Units (OUs) Descriptions Not Proposed for Deletion
    The Rosalie property, OU1 is an 85-acre tract of land in which four
acres were contaminated. The Rosalie property, OU1 was discovered in
1980 when a sewer worker encountered buried drums during an excavation.
Drummed liquid and solid wastes were disposed of in and near Caulks
Creeks. The Rosalie property OU1 cleanup remedy included the excavation
of drums from four locations and the removal of contaminated soil from
two of these locations. The drums and contaminated soils were disposed
of at an EPA approved hazardous waste facility. Over 200 drums
including one and five gallon buckets of chemical wastes were removed
from the property. Of the 200 drums, only 45 contained suspected
hazardous waste materials. Confirmation soil samples were collected to
verify the effectiveness of the cleanup and the excavated areas were
backfilled with clean soil and reseeded.
    The Bliss property, OU2 is located at 149 Strecker Road in the city
of Wildwood, Missouri. Features on the Bliss property include a
residential house, one mobile home, an enclosed horse arena with
associated buildings and stables. The MDNR began investigating the site
in 1980, when an informant reported illegal dumping of hazardous waste
at the property. Russell Bliss owned and operated the Bliss Waste Oil
Company during the 1960s and 1970s at the site. The business engaged in
the transportation and disposal of waste oil products, industrial
wastes, and chemical wastes. These wastes were disposed of in pits,
buried in drums, and liquid wastes were dumped on the surface of the
ground. Cleanup activities began February 6, 1996, and the permit for
the incinerator at Times Beach was issued March 15, 1996, for the
treatment of dioxin contaminated waste. Dioxin contaminated soil was
removed according to the approved health-based action levels of 1 ppb
at the surface and 10 ppb at a depth of 12 inches, except fill areas
where the action level was 1 ppb at all depths. In the creek, the
dioxin action levels were 1 ppb to 2 feet, depths greater than 2 feet
were cleaned up to 10 ppb. Air monitoring and temporary containment
structures were erected to ensure and prevent airborne contaminants
from migrating off-site. At the end of the cleanup on the Bliss
property OU2, 480 drums were removed and 252 soil confirmation samples
were collected. A total of 24,478 tons of dioxin contaminated soil were
excavated, removed, and incinerated at the Times Beach incinerator.
Another 581 tons of non-dioxin contaminated soil were also excavated
and removed to either LWD, Inc. landfill or Rollins Environmental
Services landfill both Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
permitted landfills. Groundwater investigations at the Bliss property,
OU2 are ongoing.
Operational Unit Description Proposed for Deletion and Historic
Activities
    The Callahan property, OU3, is located at 210 Strecker Road in the
city of Wildwood, Missouri. Features on the Callahan property include a
small pond and barn. The small pond receives drainage from the northern
portion of the parcel and is located above the former drum burial area
(fill area). The terrain at the Callahan property slopes downward to
the south from Strecker Road forming two drainage ways (below the fill
area) that intersect at an intermittent Caulks Creek tributary near the
southernmost property boundary.
    In August 1980, the MDNR received an eyewitness report that drums
were being buried near a barn on the Callahan property. A follow up
investigation revealed a disposal area of approximately 150 feet x 150
feet. During additional investigations, several drums were unearthed
and sampled. Sample results determined that the drums contained paint-
related wastes and solvents. The MDNR subsequently requested assistance
from the EPA to address the buried drums, and a removal action (RA) was
immediately initiated. Under section 104 of CERCLA, the RA took place
during December 1981 to February 1982, when 1,205 drums were removed
from the disposal area. Of these 1,205 drums, 613 contained hazardous
waste, which were over packed and staged in two areas on the site for
off-site disposal. Approximately 500 cubic yards of excavated soil was
returned to the excavated drum burial area as backfill (Tetra Tech EM
Inc. 2005).

Remedial Investigation and Feasibility Study (RI/FS)

    The Remedial Investigation field activities on the Callahan
property, OU3 occurred in 1983 in which seven soil samples (ELL-21--
ELL-25, ELL-31, ELL-32) and two surface water samples (ELL-26 and ELL-
27) were collected. Soil results exceed the EPAs current residential
RSLs at ELL-31 and ELL-32 for methylene chloride and oxirane. Surface
water results were non-detect for contaminants of concern.
    The Feasibility Study identified remedial action objectives that
were to control the erosion and stabilize the fill area where drums had
been excavated. In addition, the plastic cover, blocks, barbed-wire
fence, the drum storage areas, and gravel from the previous response
action were also to be removed and properly disposed.

Selected Remedy

    On July 10, 1985, the Record of Decision for the Ellisville site
was signed. The remedy selected for the Callahan property, OU3 was to
control erosion and slippage of the fill area, remove the plastic
cover, blocks, barbed-wire fence, drum storage areas, and gravel and
properly dispose of them. The shallow groundwater beneath the Callahan
property is a non-potable water bearing zone due to insufficient yield.
There is no reasonably anticipated use of site groundwater and no
available groundwater exposure route for receptors. The ROD did thus
not require any groundwater response.

    In December 1999, James Properties hired Brucker Engineering to
conduct a Phase II Environmental Assessment on the Callahan property.
During that investigation, five composite samples were collected and
analyzed for dioxin, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), pesticides, and
metals (arsenic, barium, cadmium, chromium, lead, mercury, selenium,
and silver). All sample results were non-detect for contaminants of
concern. A magnetic survey was also conducted during the investigation
that showed no evidence of buried metal drums. A Site Removal
Evaluation was conducted by the MDNR on January 31, 2005, to determine
if any residual soil contamination remained at the Callahan property at
concentrations that would warrant further response. A total of 29 soil
and five sediment samples were collected during January 31, 2005
through February 2, 2005. All samples were analyzed for base neutral/
acid extractables, pesticides/herbicides, PCBs, metals (arsenic,
barium, cadmium, chromium, lead, mercury, selenium, and silver), and
dioxin. Results exceeded the EPA's current residential Regional
Screening Levels (RSL's) for soil at monitoring location EU-6 for
ethylbenzene, tetrachloroethene, and 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene.
    The EPA conducted an expanded site review in September 2011 on the
Callahan property. A total of 34 soil samples were collected. Dioxin,
metals (arsenic, barium, cadmium, chromium, lead, mercury, selenium,
and silver), PCBs, SVOCs, and VOCs were analyzed on one or more
samples. Results exceeded the EPA's current Residential RSL's for soil
at soil borings SB-25 (lead), SB-26 (bis-(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate), SB-
27 (lead), SB-44 (benzo(a)anthracene, benzo(b)fluoranthene,
ethylbenzene), and ditch grab #1 (arochlor 1248). Shallow groundwater
was also investigated with no detections of contaminants of concern
being identified.

Time Critical Removal Action (RA)

    Based on the 2011 expanded site review, on September 13, 2012, the
EPA issued an Action Memorandum authorizing funding for a Time Critical
Removal Action at the Callahan property, OU3. Specific actions were
undertaken at the site to eliminate the threats to human health and the
environment from contamination found remaining in place. These actions
included the excavation, transportation, and disposal of VOCs,
polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and lead-contaminated waste/soils
from the Site to a permitted disposal facility and restoration of the
Site. The factors from the NCP that justified a removal action at the
Site detailed in the Action memorandum are outlined below.
    1. 300.415(b)(2)(i)--Actual or potential exposure to nearby human
populations, animals or the food chain from hazardous substances, or
pollutants, or contaminants.
     The Site is located within 50 feet of a residential home
that is located in a residential neighborhood. If the soils were to be
brought to the surface, perhaps during a future housing development,
the chances of this waste being spread across an area could expose
current and future residents to these contaminants.
    2. 300.415(b)(2)(ii)--Actual or potential contamination of drinking
water supplies or sensitive ecosystems;
     The EPA placed a monitoring well in the area where the
buried waste was located. Groundwater results from the monitoring well
were non-detect for contaminants of concern. However, due to the karst
topography, at the site, one monitoring well would not be sufficient to
identify if contamination had or had not migrated to the groundwater.
If the contamination had not migrated to the groundwater, given time,
contaminants could have leached and migrated to groundwater. Given that
the bedrock is karst, it was in the EPA's best interest to prevent
contamination from entering the groundwater system.
    3. 300.415(b)(2)(v)--Weather conditions that may cause hazardous
substances or pollutants or contaminants to migrate or be released;
     Contaminated soils at the Callahan property had the
potential to erode/leach from its current buried location. The
contaminated soil was buried between a pond and the top of a drainage
way that emptied into Caulks Creek. Caulks Creek is a major creek that
runs through multiple sub-divisions in the area. It was foreseeable,
since the waste was buried at shallow depths, that heavy rains could
cause the hillside to become unstable releasing the buried waste into
the drainage way.
    4. 300.415(b)(2)(vii)--The lack of other appropriate Federal or
state response mechanisms to respond to the release.
     No other Federal or state authorities existed that would
be able to provide response actions at the Site.
    The RA was conducted during November 27, 2012, through December 6,
2012. Contaminated soil was removed by an excavator and then placed
directly into dump trucks for disposal at the Milam Landfill in East
St. Louis, Illinois. During the removal action, a PID photoionization
detector (PID) was used for real-time air monitoring to ensure that
VOCs generated during the excavation activities were below acceptable
criteria levels within the immediate area surrounding the excavation
pit, as well as along the site perimeter adjacent to residential
properties bordering the site. A personal air sampler was also used to
measure lead concentrations in the breathing zone of workers during
excavation activities. Elevated levels of lead in the breathing zone
were not observed during the removal action.
    Excavation activities proceeded first by visual observation, once
visual indicators were no longer observed, the soil was then screened
using a PID for VOCs and an x-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrometer for
metals (lead in particular). At the completion of the excavation, seven
confirmation soil samples and one stockpile confirmation sample (CA-SW-
01, CA-EW-01, CA-EW-02, CA-WW-01, CA-WW-02, CA-NW-01, CA-NW-02, and CA-
OVRSTK-01) were collected for laboratory analysis. All confirmation
samples were analyzed for VOCs, SVOCs, metals (arsenic, barium,
cadmium, chromium, lead, mercury, selenium, and silver), and PCBs.
Analytical results for all confirmation samples were compared to the
current EPA RSLs. All results were below RSLs except those for arsenic.
However, arsenic results were below the average background
concentration of 10.561 ppm for St. Louis County soils (USGS 2012), and
no additional cleanup was required.
    The excavation of contaminated soil on the Callahan property, OU3
was completed on December 6, 2012. A total of 2,056 tons of
contaminated soil and debris, including drum fragments and metal
pieces, were excavated and transported to the Milam Landfill for proper
disposal as non-hazardous ``special waste.'' The landfill accepted the
waste based on disposal characterization sampling results (from
November 2012), which had indicated that contaminated soil at the site
did not contain hazardous constituents above acceptable levels or leach
constituents above corresponding regulatory toxicity characteristic
leaching procedure limits. The final excavated area was approximately
21 feet long on the south wall, 75 feet on the east wall, 70 feet on
the north wall, and 82 feet on the west wall. The depth of the
excavated area ranged from 5 to 15 feet.
    Following completion of the soil excavation, the excavation was
backfilled and the site restored. One grab sample of off-site backfill
material

(CAL-BF-1) and one grab sample of off-site topsoil (CA-TPSL-01) were
collected to confirm that the backfill material and topsoil did not
contain contaminants above levels of concern. The samples were analyzed
for VOCs, SVOCs, and metals (arsenic, barium, cadmium, chromium, lead,
mercury, selenium, and silver). Laboratory results demonstrated that
the backfill and topsoil samples did not contain any contaminants above
current EPA RSLs.
    Following completion of backfilling, the site was restored in
accordance with verbal agreements between the EPA and the property
owner. The excavated area was completed with a swale that included rip-
rap to serve as a drainage route, while the remaining portion of the
site property was restored by hydro-seeding. The swale was
approximately 8 feet wide by 150 feet long, and the rock used for rip-
rap was 6 to 8 inch Gabien stone. Following completion of site
restoration activities, the removal action was considered complete.

Cleanup Levels

    The cleanup levels for the Callahan RA were the current EPAs RSLs.
The process used during the RA was to excavate all visibly stained and/
or odorous soils then field screen the excavation walls using an XRF
and a PID. Once completed, confirmation soil samples were collected and
submitted for analysis to ensure that all contaminants above RSLs had
been excavated and removed from the site. Once the confirmation
analytical results confirmed that levels were below RSLs, the excavated
area was backfilled with clean material.

Community Involvement

    The EPA has worked extensively with the Wildwood community through
a variety of communication vehicles including but not limited to local
speaking engagements, city council meetings, conducting public
meetings, coverage on radio, television, and in local and national
newspapers. The EPA also prepared letters and fact sheets that were
distributed to mailing list recipients as well as hand-distributed to
residences including information on the EPA Web site.
    The EPA has been performing outreach to Wildwood citizens, elected
officials, the media, and others since becoming involved in the project
in 1980 in an effort to convey information about the hazards and
activities of the Site. The EPA has participated in numerous formal and
informal meetings to explain the EPA's role and commitment in Wildwood
to convey information about the Superfund process and to provide
general information about the site and its contamination.

Determination That the Criteria for Deletion Have Been Met

    In accordance with 40 CFR 300.425(e), Region 7 of the EPA finds
that the Callahan property, OU3 of the Ellisville Superfund site (the
subject of this deletion) meets the substantive criteria for partial
NPL deletions. Activities at the Callahan property were completed
consistent with the Action Memo and the Statement of Work, and the EPA
policies and procedures. The EPA analytical methods were used for all
investigations, including confirmation sampling and various levels of
data validation as appropriate. The QA/QC program was rigorous and in
conformance with the EPA standards. The EPA has determined that all
analytical results were accurate to the degree necessary to assure
satisfactory execution of the investigation and removal activities. All
confirmation analytical results for soil samples were compared to the
current EPA RSLs. All results were below the EPA RSLs except those for
arsenic; however, all arsenic results were below the average
concentration of 10.561 ppm for St. Louis County soils (USGS 2012).

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 300

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Chemicals,
Hazardous waste, Hazardous substances, Intergovernmental relations,
Penalties, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Superfund, Water
pollution control, Water supply.

    Authority: 33 U.S.C. 1321(c)(2); 42 U.S.C. 9601-9657; E.O.
12777, 56 FR 54757, 3 CFR, 1991 Comp., p.351; E.O. 12580, 52 FR
2923, 3 CFR, 1987 Comp., p.193.

    Dated: February 26, 2016.
Mark Hague,
Regional Administrator, Region 7.
[FR Doc. 2016-06221 Filed 3-17-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P


UDSA OPMP Meeting Notes: Hymexazol
Meeting Attendees: Julius Fajardo, USDA OPMP; Elizabeth Hill, USDA OPMP; Tom Schwartz, Senior Vice President of the Beet Sugar Development Foundation; Barry Jacobsen, Montana State University.  June 20, 2016.
Seed:  Tiny seed, treated with many AIs (2-3 fungicides, thiram, neonics, metalaxyl) prior to receiving a protective film coating to reduce dust off.  Seeds are also a fluorescent color to deter birds from eating it.  The seed is grown in Oregon and Washington and then sent to companies to be treated, film coated, and packaged.  Seed treaters wear PPE and thus no route for human exposure during seed treatment.
Seed Cost:  ~$200/A for seed, although incorporates other chemicals.  All seed is Round-up Ready so there is a tech fee.  High cost drives growers to be very careful with seed.
Seeding rate:  Growers aim for a uniform stand with small beets, as they have a higher sugar content and lower impurities.   There variations in seed rates depending on row width, which widely varies (mostly regionally).  For example, in Nebraska they do 36 inch rows at 40k seeds, in Montana it's typically 22-24 inch rows at 60k seeds an acre, and 24 inch rows are 50k seeds per acre.  Overall out of the 1.2 million sugar beets grown, about 70% use 24 inch rows.
Application Rate:  Varies regionally 20g/A in West, MN areas does 40 g/A.
Targeted Diseases: Aphanomyces root rot and Pythium root rot (seedling or damping-off phase of the disease).  Aphanomyces root rot favored by wet, warm conditions while Pythium root rot is common in wet, cool temperatures.  Fusarium wilt is another targeted disease to control but drench application is not practical.
Planting:  Use precision agriculture, pelleted seed drops in furrow, press wheel comes behind.
Protection:  4-6 weeks of seedling protection against Aphanomyces
Yield Losses:  20-30% from Aphanomyces, 100% if very susceptible stock.  Breeders try to do screening to avoid susceptible stock but inheritance is very complex for sugar beets.  Growers in Montana and Wyoming have seen yield losses from Aphanomyces drop to nearly zero when using hymexazol, although some losses still seen in ND and MN.  So far, only partial resistance of cultivars has been observed on Aphanomyces.
Alternatives:  None are available that offer efficacy.  Biocontrol agents are not effective and field performace is marginal.  Syngenta has a new product but it is not available yet (Orondis or oxathiapiprolin), and it could be years before it is available as a seed treatment.
Losses Post Harvest:  Beets are stored in big piles for processing.  Whole fields can be rejected if Aphanomyces is present in any of the beets as it can cause rot (root rot phase of disease).  To prevent this, marginal fields with the disease can be harvested earlier but this reduces yields (easily 1,200 to 1,500 (lb? bu?) loss per acre).  Contact Larry Campbell if you'd like to learn more about storage effects of Aphanomyces.
Literature:  Sugarbeet Research and Education Board located at www.sbreb.org/ and the Beet Sugar Development Foundation and the American Society of Sugar Beet Technologists at www.bsdf-assbt.org
Resistance:  No reports of any hymexazol resistance concerns in the sugarbeet niche market.  Current registrant is Mitsui and Sankyo originally submitted hymexazol as a reduced risk pesticide product.


[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 74 (Tuesday, April 17, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Page 16847]
[FR Doc No: 2018-07998]

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

Combined Notice of Filings

    Take notice that the Commission has received the following Natural
Gas Pipeline Rate and Refund Report filings:

Filings Instituting Proceedings

    Docket Numbers: RP18-228-001.
    Applicants: Rockies Express Pipeline LLC
    Description: Compliance filing Compliance to RP18-228 Monthly FL&U
Postings to be effective 4/19/2018.
    Filed Date: 4/10/18.
    Accession Number: 20180410-5148.
    Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 4/16/18.

    Docket Numbers: RP18-694-000.
    Applicants: Rockies Express Pipeline LLC..
    Description: Sec.  4(d) Rate Filing: Errata to RP18-228, Seneca
Lateral to be effective 4/19/2018.
    Filed Date: 4/10/18.
    Accession Number: 20180410-5151.
    Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 4/16/18.

    Docket Numbers: RP18-695-000.
    Applicants: Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Company.
    Description: Sec.  4(d) Rate Filing: Non-Conforming--Dalton
(Cartersville, GA) to be effective 6/1/2018.
    Filed Date: 4/10/18.
    Accession Number: 20180410-5199.
    Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 4/23/18.

    Docket Numbers: RP18-696-000.
    Applicants: El Paso Natural Gas Company, L.L.C.
    Description: Sec.  4(d) Rate Filing: Negotiated Rate Update Filing
(TGS Apr 18) to be effective 4/11/2018.
    Filed Date: 4/10/18.
    Accession Number: 20180410-5221.
    Comments Due: 5 p.m. ET 4/23/18.

    The filings are accessible in the Commission's eLibrary system by
clicking on the links or querying the docket number.
    Any person desiring to intervene or protest in any of the above
proceedings must file in accordance with Rules 211 and 214 of the
Commission's Regulations (18 CFR 385.211 and 385.214) on or before 5:00
p.m. Eastern time on the specified comment date. Protests may be
considered, but intervention is necessary to become a party to the
proceeding.
    eFiling is encouraged. More detailed information relating to filing
requirements, interventions, protests, service, and qualifying
facilities filings can be found at: http://www.ferc.gov/docs-filing/efiling/filing-req.pdf. For other information, call<PHONE_NUMBER>
(toll free). For TTY, call<PHONE_NUMBER>.

    Dated: April 11, 2018.
Nathaniel J. Davis, Sr.,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2018-07998 Filed 4-16-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6717-01-P