E6-4564. Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission for OMB Review and Approval; Comment Request; NESHAP for Asbestos (Renewal); OMB Number 2060-0101; EPA ICR Number 0111.11

AGENCY:

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this document announces that an Information Request (ICR) has been forwarded to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. This is a request to renew an existing approved collection. The ICR, which is abstracted below, describes the nature of the information collection and its estimated burden and costs.

DATES:

Additional comments may be submitted on or before April 28, 2006.

ADDRESSES:

Submit your comments, referencing docket ID number EPA-HQ-OECA-2005-0019, to (1) EPA online using www.regulations.gov (our preferred method), by e-mail to [e-mail], or by mail to: EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), Environmental Protection Agency, Enforcement and Compliance Docket and Information Center, mail code 2201T, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460, and (2) OMB by mail 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:

María Malavé, Compliance Assessment and Media Programs Division (Mail Code 2223A), Office of Compliance, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: [phone]; fax number: [phone]; e-mail address: [e-mail].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

EPA has submitted the following ICR to OMB for review and approval according to the procedures prescribed in 5 CFR 1320.12. On May 6, 2005 (70 FR 24020), EPA sought comments on this ICR pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.8(d). EPA received no comments. Any additional comments on this ICR should be submitted to EPA and OMB within 30 days of this notice.

EPA has established a public docket for this ICR under docket ID number EPA-HQ-OECA-2005-0019, which is available for online viewing at http://www.regulations.gov,, or in person viewing at the Enforcement and Compliance Docket and Information Center in the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), EPA West, Room B102, 1301 Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC. The EPA/DC Public Reading Room is open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the Reading Room is [phone], and the telephone number for the Enforcement and Compliance Docket and Information Center Docket is [phone]. Use EPA's electronic docket and comment system at www.regulations.gov,, to submit or view public comments, access the index listing of the contents of the docket, and to access those documents in the docket that are available electronically. Once in the system, select “docket search,” then key in the docket ID number identified above. Please note that EPA's policy is that public comments, whether submitted electronically or in paper, will be made available for public viewing at http://www.regulations.gov,, as EPA receives them and without change, unless the comment contains copyrighted material, Confidential Business Information, or other information whose public disclosure is restricted by statute. For further information about the electronic docket, go to http://www.regulations.gov.

Title: NESHAP for Asbestos (Renewal).

ICR Numbers: EPA ICR Number 0111.11; OMB Control Number 2060-0101.

ICR Status: This ICR is scheduled to expire on March 31, 2006. Under OMB regulations, the Agency may continue to conduct or sponsor the collection of information while this submission is pending at OMB. 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 in title 40 of the CFR, after appearing in the Federal Register when approved, are listed in 40 CFR part 9, are displayed either by publication in the Federal Register or by other appropriate means, such as on the related collection instrument or form, if applicable. The display of OMB control numbers in certain EPA regulations is consolidated in 40 CFR part 9.

Abstract: The National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) for Asbestos standards were proposed on January 10, 1989, and promulgated on November 20, 1990. The standards apply to the following affected facilities: demolition and renovation of facilities; the disposal of asbestos waste; asbestos milling, manufacturing and fabricating; the use of asbestos on roadways; asbestos waste conversion facilities; and the use of asbestos insulation and sprayed-on materials. This information is being collected to assure compliance with 40 CFR part 61, subpart M.

The monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements outlined in these rules are similar to those required for other NESHAP regulations. Consistent with the NESHAP General Provisions (40 CFR part 63, subpart A), respondents are required to submit initial notifications, conduct performance tests, and submit semiannual reports. They are also required to maintain records of applicability determinations; performance test results; exceedances; periods of startup, shutdown, or malfunction; monitoring records; and all other information needed to determine compliance with the applicable standard, such as records of visible emissions monitoring at potential sources of asbestos and of inspection records of air cleaning devices to ensure proper operation.

An owner or operator subject to the provisions of this part shall maintain a file of these measurements, and retain the file for at least five years following the date of such measurements, maintenance reports, and records. Records and reports must be retained for a total of two years. The files may be maintained on microfilm, on a computer or floppy disks, on magnetic tape disks, or on microfiche. All reports are sent to the delegated state or local authority. In the event that there is no such delegated authority, the reports are sent directly to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regional office.

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, and are identified on the form and/or instrument, if applicable.

Burden Statement: The annual public reporting and recordkeeping burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 2 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 which have subsequently changed; 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: Owners or operators of asbestos milling, manufacturing, fabricating, waste disposal, and waste conversion facilities.

Estimated Number of Respondents: 9,432.

Frequency of Response: Initially, on occasion, and semiannually.

Estimated Total Annual Hour Burden: 229,381 hours.

Estimated Total Annual Cost: $18,514,228, which includes $0 annualized capital/startup costs, $0 annual O&M costs, and $18,514,228 annual labor costs.

Changes in the Estimates: There is a decrease of 112,868 hours in the total estimated burden currently identified in the OMB Inventory of Approved ICR Burdens. The decrease in burden from the most recently approved ICR is due to a reduction in the total number of respondents subject to this ICR from 9,848 to 9,394.

Dated: March 21, 2006.

Oscar Morales,

Director, Collection Strategies Division.