2017-12839. Amendment to Standards and Practices for All Appropriate Inquiries Under CERCLA

AGENCY:

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION:

Proposed rule.

SUMMARY:

EPA is proposing to amend the Standards and Practices for All Appropriate Inquiries to update an existing reference to a standard practice recently made available by ASTM International, a widely recognized standards development organization. Specifically, EPA is proposing to amend the All Appropriate Inquiries Rule to reference ASTM International's E2247-16 “Standard Practice for Environmental Site Assessments: Phase I Environmental Site Assessment Process for Forestland or Rural Property” and allow for its use to satisfy the statutory requirements for conducting all appropriate inquiries under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA). In the “Rules and Regulations” section of this Federal Register, EPA is amending the All Appropriate Inquiries Rule to reference the ASTM E2247-16 Standard as a direct final rule without a prior proposed rule. If we receive no adverse comment, we will not take further action on this proposed rule.

DATES:

Written comments must be received by July 20, 2017.

ADDRESSES:

Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OLEM-2016-0786 at http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online 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 https://www.epa.gov/​dockets/​commenting-epa-dockets.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

For general information, contact the CERCLA Call Center at 800-424-9346 or TDD 800-553-7672 (hearing impaired). In the Washington, DC metropolitan area, call 703-412-9810 or TDD 703-412-3323. For more detailed information on specific aspects of this rule, contact Patricia Overmeyer, Office of Brownfields and Land Revitalization (5105T), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20460-0002, 202-566-2774, or [e-mail].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Why is EPA using this proposed rule?

This document proposes an amendment to 40 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) part 312. In the “Rules and Regulations” section of this Federal Register, EPA is making these changes as a direct final rule without a prior proposed rule because we view this as a noncontroversial action and anticipate no adverse comment. We have explained our reasons for this action, including our reasons for the specific amendment, in the preamble to the direct final rule. Additionally, the amendment to the regulatory text for this proposed rule can also be found in the direct final rule. If we receive no adverse comment on any of the changes we are promulgating today, we will not take further action on this proposed rule. If, however, we receive such comment, we will publish a timely withdrawal in the Federal Register informing the public that this amendment will not take effect, and the reason for such withdrawal. We do not intend to institute a second comment period on this action. Any parties interested in commenting must do so at this time. EPA will address public comments in any subsequent final rule. For further information, please see the information provided in the ADDRESSES section of this document.

II. Does this action apply to me?

The discussion of the potentially affected entities by this proposed rule can be found in the preamble to the direct final rule.

III. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

For a complete discussion of all the administrative requirements applicable to this action, see the direct final rule in the “Rules and Regulations” section of this Federal Register.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 312

• Environmental Protection
• Administrative practice and procedure
• Hazardous substances
• Intergovernmental relations
• Reporting and recordkeeping requirements
• Superfund

Dated: June 12, 2017.

Barry N. Breen,

Acting Assistant Administrator, Office of Land and Emergency Management.