97-8388. ISK Biosciences Corporation; Pesticide Tolerance Petition Filing  

  • [Federal Register Volume 62, Number 63 (Wednesday, April 2, 1997)]
    [Notices]
    [Pages 15700-15704]
    From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
    [FR Doc No: 97-8388]
    
    
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    ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
    [PF-726; FRL-5594-9]
    
    
    ISK Biosciences Corporation; Pesticide Tolerance Petition Filing
    
    AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
    
    ACTION: Notice of filing.
    
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    SUMMARY: This notice announces the initial filing of a pesticide 
    petition proposing the establishment of time-limited tolerances for 
    residues of the fungicide, chlorothalonil and its metabolite, 4-
    hydroxy-2,5,6-trichloroisophthalonitrile in or on non-bell peppers. 
    This notice includes a summary of the petition that was prepared by the 
    petitioner, ISK Biosciences Corporation.
    
    DATES: Comments, identified by the docket control number [PF-726], must 
    be received on or before, May 2, 1997.
    
    ADDRESSES: By mail, submit written comments to: Public Response and 
    Program Resources Branch, Field Operations Division (7506C), Office of 
    Pesticide Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, 401 M St., SW., 
    Washington, DC 20460. In person, bring comments to Rm. 1132, CM #2, 
    1921 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, VA.
        Comments and data may also be submitted electronically be sending 
    electronic mail (e-mail) to: opp-docket@epamail.epa.gov. Electronic 
    comments must be submitted as an ASCII file avoiding the use of special 
    characters and any form of encryption. Comments and data will also be 
    accepted on disks in WordPerfect 5.1 file format or ASCII file format. 
    All comments and data in electronic form must be identified by docket 
    control number [PF-726]. Electronic comments on this notice may be 
    filed online at many Federal Depository Libraries. Additional 
    information on electronic submissions can be found in Unit II. of this 
    document.
        Information submitted as a comment concerning this document may be 
    claimed confidential by marking any part or all of that information as 
    ``Confidential Business Information'' (CBI). CBI should not be 
    submitted through e-mail. Information marked as CBI will not be 
    disclosed except in accordance with procedures set forth in 40 CFR part 
    2. A copy of the comment
    
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    that does not contain CBI must be submitted for inclusion in the public 
    record. Information not marked confidential may be disclosed publicly 
    by EPA without prior notice. All written comments will be available for 
    public inspection in Rm. 1132 at the address given above, from 8:30 
    a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays.
    
    FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: By mail: Cynthia Giles-Parker, Product 
    Manager (PM) 22, Registration Division (7505W), Office of Pesticide 
    Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, 401 M St., SW., Washington, 
    DC 20460. Office location, telephone number, and e-mail address: Rm. 
    229, CM #2, 1921 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, VA, (703) 305-
    6226; e-mail: gilesparker.cynthia@epamail.epa.gov.
    SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: EPA has received a pesticide petition (PP 
    6F4676) from ISK Biosciences Corporation, 5966 Heisley Road, P.O. Box 
    8000, Mentor, Ohio 44061-8000 proposing pursuant to section 408(d) of 
    the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, 21 U.S.C. section 346a(d), to 
    amend 40 CFR 180.275 by establishing a time-limited tolerance for a 
    period of 2 years for residues of the fungicide chlorothalonil and its 
    metabolite, 4-hydroxy-2,5,6-trichloroisophthalonitrile in or on the raw 
    agricultural commodity non-bell peppers at 5.0 parts per million (ppm). 
    ISK Biosciences Corporation has committed to providing additional 
    residue data during this 2-year period from trials conducted in Mexico 
    in support of a permanent tolerance. The proposed analytical method is 
    by electron capture gas chromatography.
        EPA has determined that the petition contains data or information 
    regarding the elements set forth in section 408(d)(2); however, EPA has 
    not fully evaluated the sufficiency of the submitted data at this time 
    or whether the data supports granting of the petition. Additional data 
    may be needed before EPA rules on the petition.
        As required by section 408(d) of the FFDCA, as recently amended by 
    the Food Quality Protection Act, ISK Biosciences Corporation included 
    in the petition a summary of the petition and authorization for the 
    summary to be published in the Federal Register in a notice of receipt 
    of the petition. The summary represents the views of ISK Biosciences 
    Corporation. EPA is in the process of evaluating the petition. As 
    required by section 408(d)(3), EPA is including the summary as a part 
    of this notice of filing. EPA has made minor edits to the summary for 
    the purpose of clarity.
    
    I. ISK Biosciences' Petition Summary
    
    A. Residue Chemistry Data
    
        1. Plant/animal metabolism. The nature of the residue of 
    chlorothalonil in plants and animals, including ruminants, is well 
    understood. Chlorothalonil is not systemic in plants. Any 
    chlorothalonil residue found on non-bell peppers occurs as a surface 
    residue. Chlorothalonil is rapidly metabolized in the ruminant and is 
    not transferred to meat and milk from the dietary consumption by 
    animals. Furthermore, chlorothalonil is not stable in meat or milk.
        2. Analytical method. An adequate analytical method (gas 
    chromatography) is available for enforcement purposes. The method is 
    listed in the Pesticide Analytical Manual, Vol. II (PAM II).
        3. Magnitude of the residues. Residue data from studies conducted 
    with non-bell peppers support a tolerance of 5.0 ppm for combined 
    residues of chlorothalonil and its metabolite, 4-hydroxy-2,5,6-
    trichloroisophthalonitrile in or on the raw agricultural commodity.
    
    B. Toxicological Profile
    
        The following studies on file with the Agency support this 
    petition:
        1. Acute toxicity. Acute toxicity studies include an acute oral rat 
    study on technical chlorothalonil with an LD50 >10,000 milligrams/
    kilograms (mg/kg), an acute dermal toxicity study in the rabbit with an 
    LD50 >20,000 mg/kg, a 4-hour inhalation study with finely ground 
    technical chlorothalonil resulting in a LC50 of 0.092 mg/L (actual 
    airborne concentration), a primary eye irritation study with 
    irreversible eye effects in the rabbit at 21 days, a primary dermal 
    irritation study showing technical chlorothalonil is not a dermal 
    irritant, and a dermal sensitization study showing technical 
    chlorothalonil is not a skin sensitizer.
        2. Genotoxicity. The mutagenic potential of chlorothalonil has been 
    evaluated in a large number of studies covering a variety of endpoints. 
    The overall conclusion is that chlorothalonil is not mutagenic.
        Mutagenicity studies with chlorothalonil include gene mutation 
    assays in bacterial and mammalian cells; in vitro and in vivo 
    chromosomal aberration assays; DNA repair assays in bacterial systems; 
    and cell transformation assays. All were negative with the following 
    two exceptions:
        Chlorothalonil was positive in an in vitro chromosomal aberration 
    assay in CHO cells without metabolic activation but was negative with 
    metabolic activation.
        In vivo chromosomal aberration studies in rats and mice were 
    negative and one study in the Chinese hamster was equivocal. The 
    results of this study could not be confirmed in a subsequent study at 
    higher doses. The conclusion was that chlorothalonil does not cause 
    chromosome aberrations in bone marrow cells of the Chinese hamster. It 
    can be concluded that chlorothalonil does not have clastogenic 
    potential in intact mammalian systems.
        In bacterial DNA repair tests, chlorothalonil was negative in 
    Bacillus subtilis, but was positive in Salmonella typhimurium. In an in 
    vivo DNA binding study in rats with 14C-chlorothalonil, there was 
    no covalent binding of the radiolabel to the DNA of the kidney, the 
    target organ for chlorothalonil toxicity in rodents.
        3. Developmental and reproductive toxicity. A developmental 
    toxicity study with rats given gavage doses of 0, 25, 100, and 400 mg/
    kg body weight/day from days 6 through 15 of gestation resulted in a no 
    observed effect level (NOEL) for maternal toxicity of 100 mg/kg/day 
    based on increased mortality, reduced body weight, and a slight 
    increase in early resorptions at the highest dose. There were no 
    developmental effects observed at any dose in this study.
        A developmental toxicity study in rabbits given gavage doses of 0, 
    5, 10, or 20 mg/kg/day on days 7 through 19 of gestation resulted in a 
    maternal NOEL of 10 mg/kg/day. Effects observed in the dams in the 
    high-dose group were decreased body weight gain and reduced food 
    consumption. There were no developmental effects observed in this 
    study.
        A two-generation reproduction study in rats fed diets containing 0, 
    500, 1,500 and 3,000 ppm resulted in a reproductive NOEL of 1,500 ppm 
    (equivalent to 115 mg/kg/day) based on lower neonatal body weights by 
    day 21. There were no effects seen on any other reproductive parameter 
    at any dose level in this study.
        4. Subchronic toxicity. i. A subchronic toxicity study (90 days) 
    was conducted in rats at doses of 0, 1.5, 3.0, 10, and 40 mg/kg bwt. 
    Treatment related hyperplasia and hyperkeratosis of the forestomach was 
    observed at the two highest dose levels. Although the initial 
    histopathological evaluation did not demonstrate any nephrotoxicity, a 
    subsequent evaluation observed a treatment-related increase in 
    hyperplasia of the proximal tubule epithelium at 40 mg/kg bwt in the 
    male rats but not in the females. The no effect level for renal 
    histopathology was 10
    
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    mg/kg bwt in males and 40 mg/kg bwt in females.
        ii. A 90-day oral toxicity study was conducted in dogs with dose 
    levels of technical chlorothalonil of 15, 150, and 750, mg/kg bwt/day. 
    The two highest dosages resulted in lower body weight gain in male 
    dogs. The no observed adverse effect level (NOAEL) was 15 mg/kg/day. 
    There were no macroscopic or microscopic tissue alterations related to 
    chlorothalonil and there were no signs of renal toxicity.
        iii. Two 21-day dermal toxicity studies have been conducted with 
    technical chlorothalonil. In the initial study doses of 50, 2.5, and 
    0.1 mg/kg bwt/day were administered to rabbits. The NOEL for systemic 
    effects was greater than 50 mg/kg bwt/day and the NOEL for dermal 
    irritation was 0.1 mg/kg bwt/day.
        A subsequent 21-day dermal study was conducted in male rats, to 
    specifically evaluate the potential for nephrotoxicity in this 
    laboratory species following dermal dosing. In this study the doses 
    were 60, 100, 250, and 600 mg/kg bwt/day. The NOEL for nephrotoxicity 
    was greater than 600 mg/kg bwt/day.
        5. Estrogenic effects. Based upon all of the chronic toxicity, 
    teratogenicity, mutagenicity, and reproductive studies conducted with 
    chlorothalonil and its metabolites, there were no results which 
    indicate any potential to cause estrogenic effects or endocrine 
    disruption. These effects would have manifested themselves in these 
    studies as reproductive or teratogenic effects, or by producing 
    histopathological changes in estrogen sensitive tissues such as the 
    uterus, mammary glands, or the testes. Thus, it can be concluded based 
    upon the in-vivo studies, that chlorothalonil does not cause estrogenic 
    effects.
        6. Chronic toxicity.--i. A 12-month chronic oral toxicity study in 
    Beagle dogs was conducted with technical chlorothalonil at dose levels 
    of 15, 150, and 500 mg/kg/day. The NOAEL was 150 mg/kg/day based on 
    lower blood albumin levels at the highest dose. There was no 
    nephrotoxicity observed at any dose in this study. This study replaced 
    an old outdated study that was not conducted under current guidelines 
    and did not use the current technical material.
        ii. A chronic feeding/carcinogenicity study with Fischer 344 rats 
    fed diets containing 0, 800, 1,600 or 3,500 ppm (equivalent to 0, 40, 
    80, or 175 mg/kg bwt/day) for 116 weeks in males or 129 weeks in 
    females, resulted in a statistically higher incidence of combined renal 
    adenomas and carcinomas. At the high dose, which was above the MTD, 
    there was also a statistically significant higher incidence of tumors 
    of the forestomach in female rats.
        iii. In a second chronic feeding/carcinogenicity study with Fischer 
    344 rats, designed to define the NOEL for tumors and the preneoplastic 
    hyperplasia, animals were fed diets containing 0, 2, 4, 15, or 175 mg/
    kg/day. The NOEL in this study, based on renal tubular hyperplasia, was 
    a nominal dose of 2 mg/kg bwt/day. Because of the potential for 
    chlorothalonil to bind to diet, the 2 mg/kg bwt/day dose, expressed as 
    unbound chlorothalonil is 1.8 mg/kg bwt/day. The NOEL for hyperplasia 
    and hyperkeratosis of the forestomach was 4 mg/kg bwt/day or a dose of 
    3.8 mg/kg bwt/day based on unbound chlorothalonil.
        iv. A 2-year carcinogenicity study, conducted in CD-1 mice at 
    dietary levels of 0, 750, and 1,500 or 3,000 ppm (equivalent to 0, 107, 
    214, or 428 mg/kg/day), resulted in a statistically higher incidence of 
    squamous cell carcinomas of the forestomach in both sexes, and a 
    statistically higher incidence of combined renal adenomas/carcinomas in 
    only the male mice receiving the low dose. There were no renal tumors 
    in any female mouse in this study.
        v. A 2-year carcinogenicity study in male CD-1 mice for the purpose 
    of establishing the no effect level for renal and forestomach effects, 
    was conducted at dietary levels of 0, 10/15, 40, 175, or 750 ppm 
    (equivalent to 0, 1.4/2.1, 5.7, 25, or 107 mg/kg/day). The NOEL level 
    for renal effects was 40 ppm and the NOEL for forestomach effects was 
    15 ppm. This study did not duplicate the results from the previous 
    study where a statistically higher incidence of renal tumors, when 
    compared to controls, was observed at 750 ppm.
        In 1987, EPA's Office of Pesticide Programs' Toxicology Branch Peer 
    Review Committee classified chlorothalonil as a B2 (probable human 
    carcinogen), based on evidence of carcinogenicity in the forestomach 
    and kidneys of rats and mice. The Agency currently regulates 
    chlorothalonil as a B2 carcinogen although ISK Biosciences Corporation 
    has provided a significant amount of mechanistic data indicating that 
    the tumors result from a threshold mechanism. A potency factor, Q1*, of 
    0.00766 (mg/kg/day)-1 has been used by the Agency when conducting 
    mathematical modeling to estimate carcinogenic risk to man. ISK 
    Biosciences Corporation believes that because the nephrotoxicity seen 
    in the rat is due to a threshold mechanism, any risk associated with 
    chlorothalonil can be managed using the margin of safety (exposure) 
    approach.
        Numerous metabolism and toxicology studies indicate that 
    chlorothalonil is non-genotoxic and produces a species-specific renal 
    toxicity in the rat that eventually may lead to tumor formation through 
    an epigenetic mechanism.1 Studies comparing metabolism and 
    toxicological effects in dogs with those in rats demonstrate that the 
    renal effects observed in the rat are due to the exposure of the kidney 
    of the rat to significant levels of nephrotoxic thiol metabolites of 
    chlorothalonil. In the dog, no thiol metabolites are found and there 
    are no toxic effects seen in kidneys of dogs dosed with high levels of 
    chlorothalonil.
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        1``Mechanistic Interpretation of the Oncogenicity of 
    Chlorothalonil in Rodents and an Assessment of Human Relevance,'' by 
    Drs. C. F. Wilkinson and J. C. Killeen, Regulatory Toxicology and 
    Pharmacology 24: 69-84 (1996), Article No. 006.
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        7. Reference Dose (RfD). The no effect level for chlorothalonil in 
    the rat is 1.8 mg/kg bwt based on the nephrotoxicity observed in the 
    chronic rat study. The no effect level in the dog was 15 mg/kg bwt in 
    the 90-day study and 150 mg/kg bwt based on the one-year study. No 
    effect levels for maternal toxicity from developmental studies are 10 
    mg/kg bwt in rabbits and 100 mg/kg bwt in the rat. The no effect level 
    for pup growth in the reproduction study was 1,500 mg/kg bwt which 
    would be most conservatively estimated as equating to approximately 75 
    mg/kg bwt. Data indicate that the nephrotoxicity in the rat is produced 
    through a mechanism for which there is a clear threshold. In a study 
    which measured cell turnover in the rat kidney with bromodeoxyuridine 
    (BRDU) immunohistochemical staining, a NOEL was established at 1.5 mg/
    kg bwt. Other chronic studies have established the NOEL for hyperplasia 
    in the kidney to be 1.8 mg/kg bwt. If all the available toxicity data 
    in laboratory animals is considered without regards to its 
    applicability to humans, the lowest NOEL for any adverse effect would 
    be 1.5 mg/kg bwt/day. Because the mechanism of toxicity which is 
    related to the tumor formation in the kidney has been shown to have a 
    threshold, the use of the normal 100 fold safety factor in conjunction 
    with the 1.5 mg/kg no effect level would produce a RfD which would 
    provide more than adequate safety for all of the possible effects seen 
    in any laboratory animal.
        In two recent reviews of chlorothalonil by the Joint Meeting of 
    Pesticide Residue Experts (1990 and 1992), and the review by the World 
    Heath Organization's International Program for Chemical Safety, these
    
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    esteemed groups concluded that the rat was not the appropriate species 
    to use in consideration of the risk assessment for man. They concluded 
    that the dog was the more appropriate species for determination of 
    subchronic and chronic effects. If the toxicological data for the dog 
    were used, the NOEL would be at least 15 mg/kg bwt, based on the most 
    recent 90-day study in the dog.
        Therefore, under the most conservative scenario (using the 
    toxicological data in the rat), the RfD would be 1.8 mg/kg bwt/day 
    divided by a 100 fold safety factor or 0.018 mg/kg bwt/day with a 
    threshold model being used for carcinogenic risk assessment. In the 
    scenario that uses the toxicological data in the dog, the reference 
    dose would be 15 mg/kg bwt/day, divided by a safety factor of 100 or 
    0.15 mg/kg bwt/day.
    
    C. Aggregate Exposure
    
        The following is a description of the likelihood of exposure to 
    chlorothalonil from various routes.
        1. Dietary exposure--i. food. ISK Biosciences Corporation has 
    conducted a dietary exposure analysis for chlorothalonil and its 
    metabolite, 4-hydroxy-2,5,6-trichloroisophthalonitrile (SDS-3701) in or 
    on non-bell peppers utilizing EPA's Dietary Risk Evaluation System 
    (DRES) based on the 1977-78 Food Consumption Survey. The results 
    demonstrate that the dietary exposure from anticipated residues of 0.5 
    ppm contributed from non-bell peppers is 0.00000218 mg/kg bwt/day for 
    the U.S. population or 0.0121% of the RfD.
        The Agency had calculated that the exposure of the general 
    population from existing published tolerances for chlorothalonil is 
    0.000134 mg/kg bwt/day or 0.744 percent of the RfD.
        ii. Drinking water. Chlorothalonil was included for monitoring in 
    the National Survey of Pesticides in Drinking Water Wells conducted by 
    EPA. No chlorothalonil residues were detected in any of the 1,300 
    community water systems and domestic wells (using methodology for 
    chlorothalonil having a limit of detection [LOD] of 0.06 mg/l and limit 
    of quantitation of 0.12 mg/l). The absence of chlorothalonil detections 
    in the National Survey provides adequate information to conclude that 
    chlorothalonil is not a contaminant in drinking water wells and that 
    the population is not exposed to chlorothalonil in these water sources. 
    These findings are consistent with the known physical/chemical 
    properties of chlorothalonil including low water solubility (0.9 ppm) 
    and high affinity for organic matter including soil. It has also been 
    demonstrated that chlorothalonil does not leach into groundwater from 
    applications made to growing crops.
        Aerobic aquatic metabolism studies with chlorothalonil establish a 
    half-life in natural aquatic habitats of less than 10 hours, depending 
    on environmental conditions. Considering the short half-life of 
    chlorothalonil in natural water/sediment systems and that surface water 
    is filtered and treated prior to consumption, chlorothalonil is not 
    likely to be present in drinking water obtained from natural surface 
    water systems.
        An exposure estimate, based on surface water concentration recently 
    cited by EPA, would conclude that the average concentration in surface 
    water would be less than 0.002 ppb. Assuming that everyone in the U.S. 
    consumed untreated surface water, the exposure to chlorothalonil of the 
    general population would be less than 5.8 x 10-7 mg/kg bwt/day. 
    This would be a worst case scenario, which would greatly overestimate 
    exposure.
        2. Non-dietary exposure. Potential non-dietary exposures to 
    chlorothalonil may result from the following uses of chlorothalonil. In 
    each case, the exposure would be from the dermal route and only for an 
    intermittent duration. The two 21-day dermal studies that have been 
    conducted in the rabbit and rat indicate that there is no 
    nephrotoxicity associated with the dermal exposure to chlorothalonil at 
    dose levels up to 600 mg/kg/day. Therefore, the exposures from the uses 
    of chlorothalonil listed below, would not be expected to add to the 
    carcinogenic risk associated with chlorothalonil.
        i. Golf course uses. Chlorothalonil products are commonly applied 
    to golf course tees and greens to control a broad complex of turf 
    diseases. Application to golf course fairways is much less common.
        Golf is not a game played by infants or small children, therefore 
    no exposure to infants and children would be anticipated.
        ii. Residential owner uses. Applications of chlorothalonil products 
    to home lawns are rare. Thus, there is very little exposure to 
    chlorothalonil related to use on residential turf. Applications to 
    roses and other ornamentals in home gardens is also a minor use of 
    chlorothalonil.
        iii. Paint. Chlorothalonil is used in paints and stains for control 
    of mildew and molds on exterior surfaces of buildings. Chlorothalonil 
    is also occasionally used for interior paints, but this use represents 
    only a small proportion of the chlorothalonil used in paints. About 2% 
    of the chlorothalonil used in paint is used in interior paint; however, 
    only 0.2% or less of interior paints in the United States contain 
    chlorothalonil. In paints chlorothalonil is tightly bound within the 
    paint matrices; thus, effective control of mildew may last for several 
    years and the potential for exposure is very limited.
        iv. Grouts. Chlorothalonil is used in cement tile grouts, also for 
    control of mildew and molds. Chlorothalonil is bound within the grout 
    matrices and very little is available for exposure. This is a minor use 
    of chlorothalonil and non-occupational dermal exposure of humans to 
    chlorothalonil from this source is extremely low.
        v. Wood treatment. Chlorothalonil is not currently used for 
    pressure-treating wood. It is used for control of sapstain as a surface 
    treatment on rough-cut, newly-sawn lumber to protect it from molds and 
    mildews while drying. Being a surface residue, it is removed during the 
    finishing operations prior to sale of the wood. Chlorothalonil does not 
    occur in structural wood used for residential or occupational 
    scenarios.
    
    D. Cumulative Effects
    
        ISK Biosciences has considered the potential for cumulative effects 
    of chlorothalonil and other substances that have a common mechanism of 
    toxicity. Chlorothalonil is a halogenated benzonitrile which readily 
    undergoes displacement of the 2, 4, and 6 chlorines by glutathione and 
    other thiol containing amino acids and proteins. In the rat, the thiol 
    metabolites are sufficiently absorbed to produce a nephrotoxic effect. 
    In dogs where this absorption does not occur, nephrotoxicity does not 
    occur. ISK Biosciences does not have any information to indicate that 
    toxic effects observed in rats occur through a mechanism which is 
    common to any other agricultural chemical. Thus, consideration of 
    common mechanisms of toxicity is not appropriate at this time.
        Chlorothalonil should not be confused with chlorinated hydrocarbon 
    pesticides which have significantly different chemical and biological 
    properties.
    
    E. Safety Determination
    
        1. U.S. population. ISK Biosciences Corporation has conducted a 
    risk assessment for chlorothalonil in or on non-bell peppers using the 
    1977-78 Food Consumption Survey and a potency factor, Q1*, of 0.00766 
    (mg/kg/day)-1 and has determined that oncogenic dietary risks 
    associated with
    
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    potential exposure using an anticipated residue of 0.5 ppm, would 1.7 x 
    10-8.
        The Agency has used a linearized model to estimate the carcinogenic 
    risk associated with chlorothalonil, whereas ISK Biosciences believes 
    that a threshold based model is appropriate. Using the overestimated 
    exposure estimates of EPA, with a threshold based model and using the 
    conservative RfD of 0.018 mg/kg bwt/day, the margin of safety for the 
    general population would exceed 10,000 and the margin of safety for 
    infants and children would exceed 7,000. Using corrected exposure 
    estimates would obviously yield larger margins of exposure. Using a 
    conservative RfD of 0.018 mg/kg/day, as the Agency has done in recent 
    DRES analyses, and incorporating corrections needed in exposure values 
    for mushrooms and several other lesser corrections, ISK Biosciences 
    Corporation calculated the overall dietary exposure to ``anticipated 
    residues'' of chlorothalonil from all registered uses and pending uses 
    of chlorothalonil to be 0.36% of the RfD for the general U.S. 
    population.
        Because the worst case assumption for human exposure from drinking 
    water indicate that exposure would be only 1% of the dietary exposure, 
    the risk assessment is not significantly altered by considering the 
    exposure from drinking water.
        2. Infants and children. There is a complete data base for 
    chlorothalonil which includes pre- and post-natal developmental 
    toxicity data as well as mechanistic data related to the rodent 
    specific nephrotoxicity observed in subchronic and chronic studies. The 
    toxicological effects of chlorothalonil in rodents are well understood. 
    Chlorothalonil has a low level of toxicity in dogs.
        In a two-generation reproduction study in rats, all reproductive 
    parameters investigated showed no treatment-related effects except pup 
    weight gain. Specifically, the weights of pups exposed to 
    chlorothalonil were comparable to controls at parturition through day 4 
    of lactation. It was only after day 4 of lactation, when the pups begin 
    to consume the test diet, that body weight gain lags behind controls. 
    This only occurred at the highest dose tested; 3,000 ppm. The dose of 
    chlorothalonil the pups would receive would be far in excess of the 
    estimated adult dose of 150 mg/kg bwt/day (3,000 ppm divided by 20). 
    The doses for the pups could have easily exceeded 500 mg/kg bwt/day. 
    Dose levels of 375 mg/kg bwt and above have been shown to significantly 
    affect body weight in the rat. Therefore, the reduction of body weight 
    gain observed in the reproduction study is considered to be comparable 
    to the effects that have been observed in older rats. The NOEL for this 
    effect was 1,500 ppm.
        In developmental toxicity studies conducted in the rat and the 
    rabbit, chlorothalonil did not cause any developmental effects even at 
    dose levels that produced significant maternal toxicity. In the rabbit 
    a dose level of 20 mg/kg bwt caused maternal toxicity, but there were 
    no developmental effects and in the rat, a dose level of 400 mg/kg bwt 
    caused maternal toxicity without developmental toxicity.
        The extensive data base that is available for chlorothalonil is 
    devoid of any indication that chlorothalonil would represent any 
    unusual or disproportionate hazard to infants or children. Therefore, 
    there is no need to impose an additional 10x safety factor for infants 
    or children. The standard uncertainty factor of 100x should be used for 
    all segments of the human population when calculating risks associated 
    with chlorothalonil.
    
    F. International Tolerances
    
        There is currently no maximum residue level set for chlorothalonil 
    on non-bell peppers by the Codex Alimentarius Commission.
    
    II. Public Record
    
        A record has been established for this notice under docket control 
    number [PF-726] (including comments and data submitted electronically 
    as described below). A public version of the record, including printed, 
    paper versions of electronic comments, which does not include any 
    information claimed as CBI, is available for inspection from 8:30 a.m. 
    to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The public 
    record is located in Room 1132 of the Public Response and Resources 
    Branch, Field Operations Division (7506C), Office of Pesticide 
    Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, Crystal Mall #2, 1921 
    Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, VA.
        Electronic comments can be sent directly to EPA at:
        opp-docket@epamail.epa.gov
        Electronic comments must be submitted as an ASCII file avoiding the 
    use of special characters and any form of encryption.
        The official record for this rulemaking, as well as the public 
    version, as described above will be kept in paper form. Accordingly, 
    EPA will transfer all comments received electronically into printed, 
    paper form as they are received and will place the paper copies in the 
    official rulemaking record which will also include all comments 
    submitted directly in writing. The official rulemaking record is the 
    paper record maintained at the address in ADDRESSES at the beginning of 
    this document.
    
    List of Subjects
    
        Environmental protection, Administrative practice and procedure, 
    Agricultural commodities, Pesticides and pests, Reporting and 
    recordkeeping requirements.
    
        Dated: March 24, 1997.
    Stephen L. Johnson,
    Director, Registration Division, Office of Pesticide Programs.
    [FR Doc. 97-8388 Filed 4-1-97; 8:45 am]
    BILLING CODE 6560-50-F
    
    
    

Document Information

Published:
04/02/1997
Department:
Environmental Protection Agency
Entry Type:
Notice
Action:
Notice of filing.
Document Number:
97-8388
Dates:
Comments, identified by the docket control number [PF-726], must be received on or before, May 2, 1997.
Pages:
15700-15704 (5 pages)
Docket Numbers:
PF-726, FRL-5594-9
PDF File:
97-8388.pdf