02-6998. Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request; Requirements for Generators, Transporters, and Hazardous Waste Management Facilities Under the RCRA Hazardous Waste Manifest System

AGENCY:

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this document announces that the following Information Collection Request (ICR) has been forwarded to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval: Requirements for Generators, Transporters, and Hazardous Waste Management Facilities Under the RCRA Hazardous Waste Manifest System, EPA ICR No. 0801.14, OMB Control Number 2050-0039, expiration date March 31, 2002. The ICR describes the nature of the information collection and its expected burden and cost; where appropriate, it includes the actual data collection instrument.

DATES:

Comments must be submitted on or before April 22, 2002.

ADDRESSES:

Send comments, referencing EPA ICR No. 0801.14 and OMB Control No. 2050-0039, to the following addresses: Susan Auby, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Collection Strategies Division (Mail Code 2822), 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001; and to Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Attention: Desk Officer for EPA, 725 17th Street, NW., Washington, DC 20503.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

For a copy of the ICR contact Susuan Auby at EPA by phone at [phone], by E-mail at [e-mail], or download off the Internet at http://www.epa.gov/​icr and refer to EPA ICR No. 0801.14. For technical questions about the ICR contact Bryan Groce at 703-308-8750, [e-mail].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Title: Requirements for Generators, Transporters, and Hazardous Waste Management Facilities Under the RCRA Hazardous Waste Manifest System, OMB Control No. 2050-0039, EPA ICR No. 0801.14, expiring March 31, 2002. This is a request for an extension of a currently approved collection.

Abstract: The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), as amended, establishes a national program to assure that hazardous waste management practices are conducted in a manner that is protective of human health and the environment. EPA's authority to require compliance with the manifest system stems primarily from RCRA section 3002(a)(5). This section mandates a hazardous waste manifest “system” to assure that all hazardous waste generated is designated for and arrives at the appropriate treatment, storage, and disposal facility. An essential part of this manifest system is the Uniform Hazardous Waste Manifest (Form 8700-22A). The manifest is a tracking document that accompanies the waste from its generation site to its final disposition. The manifest lists the wastes that are being shipped and the final destination of the waste. The manifest system is a self-enforcing mechanism that requires generators, transporters, and owner/operators of treatment, storage, and disposal facilities to participate in hazardous waste tracking. In addition the manifest provides information to transporters and waste management facility workers on the hazardous nature of the waste, identifies wastes so that they can be managed appropriately in the event of an accident, spill, or leak, and ensures that shipments of hazardous waste are managed properly and delivered to their designated facilities.

This system does not ordinarily involve intervention on the part of EPA unless hazardous wastes do not reach their point of disposition within a specified time frame. In most cases, RCRA-authorized States operate the manifest system, and requirements may vary among authorized States.

EPA believes manifest requirements and the resulting information collection mitigate potential hazards to human health and the environment by ensuring that hazardous waste is sent to and received by appropriate treatment, storage, and disposal facilities, by initiating appropriate response actions if a shipment does not reach its intended destination, and by providing necessary emergency response information in the event of an accident, spill, or leak during transportation.

An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. The OMB control numbers for EPA's regulations are listed in 40 CFR part 9 and 48 CFR Chapter 15. The Federal Register document required under 5 CFR 1320.8(d), soliciting comments on this collection of information was published on November 27, 2001 (66 FR 59248); no comments were received.

Burden Statement: The annual public reporting and recordkeeping burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 1.52 hours per response. Burden means the total time, effort, or financial resources expended by persons to generate, maintain, retain, or disclose or provide information to or for a Federal agency. This includes the time needed to review instructions; develop, acquire, install, and utilize technology and systems for the purposes of collecting, validating, and verifying information, processing and maintaining information, and disclosing and providing information; adjust the existing ways to comply with any previously applicable instructions and requirements; train personnel to be able to respond to a collection of information; search data sources; complete and review the collection of information; and transmit or otherwise disclose the information.

Respondents/Affected Entities: Hazardous Waste Generators, Transporters, and Treatment, Storage, and Disposal Facilities (TSDFs).

Estimated Number of Respondents: 145,974.

Frequency of Response: Per shipment of hazardous waste.

Estimated Total Annual Hour Burden: 3,612,539 hours.

Estimated Total Annualized Capital, O&M Cost Burden: $ 2,416.

Send comments on the Agency's need for this information, the accuracy of the provided burden estimates, and any suggested methods for minimizing respondent burden, including through the use of automated collection techniques to the addresses listed above. Please refer to EPA ICR No. 0801.14 and OMB Control No. 2050-0039 in any correspondence.

Dated: March 15, 2002.

Oscar Morales,

Director, Collection Strategies Division.