2010-15209. 2-(Hydroxymethyl)-2-nitro-1,3-propanediol (Tris Nitro); Notice of Receipt of Request to Voluntarily Amend Registrations to Terminate Certain Uses

AGENCY:

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

In accordance with section 6(f)(1) of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), as amended, EPA is issuing a notice of receipt of a request by the registrant to voluntarily amend its 2(hydroxymethyl)-2-nitro-1,3-propanediol (tris nitro) product registrations to terminate or delete one or more uses. The request would delete 2(hydroxymethyl)-2-nitro-1,3-propanediol (tris nitro) use in or on metalworking fluids; latex paints; resin/latex/polymer emulsions; specialty industrial products; livestock and poultry premises; paints, emulsions and thickener solutions; use as a preservative for packaged emulsions, solutions, or suspensions such as detergents and polishes containing water; use in pulp and paper-mill process water systems. The request would not terminate the last 2(hydroxymethyl)-2-nitro-1,3-propanediol (tris nitro) products registered for use in the United States. EPA intends to grant this request at the close of the comment period for this announcement unless the Agency receives substantive comments within the comment period that would merit its further review of the request, or unless the registrant withdraws its request. If this request is granted, any sale, distribution, or use of products listed in this notice will be permitted after the uses are deleted only if such sale, distribution, or use is consistent with the terms as described in the final order.

DATES:

Comments must be received on or before July 23, 2010.

ADDRESSES:

Submit your comments, identified by docket identification (ID) number EPA-HQ-OPP-2009-0639, by one of the following methods:

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the on-line instructions for submitting comments.
• Mail: Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) Regulatory Public Docket (7502P), Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001.
• Delivery: OPP Regulatory Public Docket (7502P), Environmental Protection Agency, Rm. S-4400, One Potomac Yard (South Bldg.), 2777 S. Crystal Dr., Arlington, VA. Deliveries are only accepted during the Docket Facility's normal hours of operation (8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays). Special arrangements should be made for deliveries of boxed information. The Docket Facility telephone number is [phone].

Instructions: Direct your comments to docket ID number EPA-HQ-OPP-2009-0639. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included in the docket without change and may be made available on-line at http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information provided, unless the comment includes information claimed to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit information that you consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through regulations.gov or e-mail. The regulations.gov website is an “anonymous access” system, which means EPA will not know your identity or contact information unless you provide it in the body of your comment. If you send an e-mail comment directly to EPA without going through regulations.gov, your e-mail address will be automatically captured and included as part of the comment that is placed in the docket and made available on the Internet. If you submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you include your name and other contact information in the body of your comment and with any disk or CD-ROM you submit. If EPA cannot read your comment due to technical difficulties and cannot contact you for clarification, EPA may not be able to consider your comment. Electronic files should avoid the use of special characters, any form of encryption, and be free of any defects or viruses.

Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the docket index available at http://www.regulations.gov. Although listed in the index, some information is not publicly available, e.g., CBI or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such as copyrighted material, is not placed on the Internet and will be publicly available only in hard copy form. Publicly available docket materials are available either in the electronic docket at http://www.regulations.gov, or, if only available in hard copy, at the OPP Regulatory Public Docket in Rm. S-4400, One Potomac Yard (South Bldg.), 2777 S. Crystal Dr., Arlington, VA. The hours of operation of this Docket Facility are from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The Docket Facility telephone number is [phone].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Rebecca Von-Dem Hagen, Antimicrobials Division (7501P), Office of Pesticide Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001; telephone number: [phone]; fax number: [phone]; e-mail address: [e-mail].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. General Information

A. Does this Action Apply to Me?

This action is directed to the public in general, and may be of interest to a wide range of stakeholders including environmental, human health, and agricultural advocates; the chemical industry; pesticide users; and members of the public interested in the sale, distribution, or use of pesticides. Since others also may be interested, the Agency has not attempted to describe all the specific entities that may be affected by this action. If you have any questions regarding the applicability of this action to a particular entity, consult the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

B. What Should I Consider as I Prepare My Comments for EPA?

1. Submitting CBI. Do not submit this information to EPA through regulations.gov or e-mail. Clearly mark the part or all of the information that you claim to be CBI. For CBI information in a disk or CD-ROM that you mail to EPA, mark the outside of the disk or CD-ROM as CBI and then identify electronically within the disk or CD-ROM the specific information that is claimed as CBI. In addition to one complete version of the comment that includes information claimed as CBI, a copy of the comment that does not contain the information claimed as CBI must be submitted for inclusion in the public docket. Information so marked will not be disclosed except in accordance with procedures set forth in 40 CFR part 2.

2. Tips for preparing your comments. When submitting comments, remember to:

i. Identify the document by docket ID number and other identifying information (subject heading, Federal Register date and page number).

ii. Follow directions. The Agency may ask you to respond to specific questions or organize comments by referencing a Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) part or section number.

iii. Explain why you agree or disagree; suggest alternatives and substitute language for your requested changes.

iv. Describe any assumptions and provide any technical information and/or data that you used.

v. If you estimate potential costs or burdens, explain how you arrived at your estimate in sufficient detail to allow for it to be reproduced.

vi. Provide specific examples to illustrate your concerns and suggest alternatives.

vii. Explain your views as clearly as possible, avoiding the use of profanity or personal threats.

viii. Make sure to submit your comments by the comment period deadline identified.

II. Background on the Receipt of Requests to Cancel and/or Amend Registrations to Delete Uses

This notice announces receipt by EPA of a request from registrant The Dow Chemical Company to delete certain uses of 2(hydroxymethyl)-2-nitro-1,3-propanediol (tris nitro) product registrations. In letters dated November 19, 2009, The Dow Chemical Company requested EPA to amend to delete certain uses of pesticide product registrations identified in Table 1 of Unit III. Specifically, in response to the 2-(hydroxymethyl)-2-nitro-1,3-propanediol (tris nitro) (Case 3149) Preliminary Work Plan, dated September 16, 2009, the registrant submitted amendments requesting the deletion of the following the 2-(hydroxymethyl)-2-nitro-1,3-propanediol (tris nitro) end-uses from their product labels: use in metalworking fluids; latex paints; resin/latex/polymer emulsions; specialty industrial products; livestock and poultry premises; paints, emulsions and thickener solutions; as a preservative for packaged emulsions, solutions or suspensions, such as detergents and polishes containing water; and in pulp and paper-mill process water systems. Action on the registrants request to delete these uses will terminate the last 2-(hydroxymethyl)-2-nitro-1,3-propanediol (tris nitro) pesticide products registered in the United States for use in metalworking fluids; latex paints; resin/latex/polymer emulsions; specialty industrial products; paints, emulsions and thickener solutions; materials preservative for packaged emulsions, solutions or suspensions, such as detergents and polishes containing water; and in pulp and paper-mill process water systems. Action on the registrant request will not terminate the last 2-(hydroxymethyl)-2-nitro-1,3-propanediol (tris nitro) pesticide product registered in the United States for livestock and poultry premises.

III. What Action is the Agency Taking?

This notice announces receipt by EPA of a request from a registrant to delete certain uses of 2-(hydroxymethyl)-2-nitro-1,3-propanediol (tris nitro) product registrations. The affected products and the registrants making the requests are identified in Tables 1 and 2 of this unit.

Unless a request is withdrawn by the registrant or if the Agency determines that there are substantive comments that warrant further review of this request, EPA intends to issue an order amending the affected registrations.

Table 1. — 2-(hydroxymethyl)-2-nitro-1,3-propanediol (tris nitro) Product Registrations with Pending Requests for Amendment

Registration Number	Product Name	Company	Uses to be Deleted
464-657	Tris NitroTM Solid Industrial Bacteriostat	The Dow Chemical Company	Use in metalworking fluids; Latex paints; Resin/latex/polymer emulsions; Specialty industrial products; Livestock and Poultry Premises.
464-658	Tris NitroTM Brand of 50% (Aqueous) For Formulating Use	The Dow Chemical Company	Use in metalworking fluids; Latex paints; Resin/latex/polymer emulsions; Specialty industrial products; Livestock and poultry premises.
464-663	Tris NitroTM Brand of 50% Aqueous Tris (hydroxymethyl) nitromethane	The Dow Chemical Company	Use in paints, emulsions and thickener solutions; Use in metalworking fluids; Use as a preservative for packaged emulsions, solutions, or suspensions, such as detergents and polishes containing water.
464-668	Tris NitroTM Brand of 25% Aqueous Tris (hydroxymethyl) nitromethane	The Dow Chemical Company	Use in metalworking fluids; Use as a preservative for packaged emulsions, solutions, or suspensions, such as detergents and polishes containing water.
464-679	Tris NitroTM Brand	The Dow Chemical Company	Use in paints, emulsions, and thickener solutions; Use in metalworking fluids; Use as a preservative for packaged emulsions, solutions, or suspensions, such as detergents and polishes containing water; Use in pulp and papermill process water systems.

Table 2 of this unit includes the name and address of record for the registrant of the products listed in Table 1 of this unit, in sequence by EPA company number. This number corresponds to the first part of the EPA registration numbers of the products listed in Table 1 of this unit.

Table 2.—Registrants Requesting Voluntary Cancellation and/or Amendments

EPA Company Number	Company Name and Address
464	The Dow Chemical Company 1803 Building Midland, MI 48674

IV. What is the Agency's Authority for Taking this Action?

Section 6(f)(1) of FIFRA provides that a registrant of a pesticide product may at any time request that any of its pesticide registrations be canceled or amended to terminate one or more uses. FIFRA further provides that, before acting on the request, EPA must publish a notice of receipt of any such request in the Federal Register.

Section 6(f)(1)(B) of FIFRA requires that before acting on a request for voluntary cancellation, EPA must provide a 30-day public comment period on the request for voluntary cancellation or use termination. In addition, FIFRA section 6(f)(1)(C) requires that EPA provide a 180-day comment period on a request for voluntary cancellation or termination of any minor agricultural use before granting the request, unless:

1. The registrants request a waiver of the comment period, or

2. The EPA Administrator determines that continued use of the pesticide would pose an unreasonable adverse effect on the environment.

The 2-(hydroxymethyl)-2-nitro-1,3-propanediol (tris nitro) registrant has requested that EPA waive the 180-day comment period. Accordingly, EPA will provide a 30-day comment period on the proposed requests.

V. Procedures for Withdrawal of Request

Registrants who choose to withdraw a request for product cancellation or use deletion should submit the withdrawal in writing to the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. If the products(s) have been subject to a previous cancellation action, the effective date of cancellation and all other provisions of any earlier cancellation action are controlling.

VI. Provisions for Disposition of Existing Stocks

Existing stocks are those stocks of registered pesticide products that are currently in the United States and that were packaged, labeled, and released for shipment prior to the effective date of the action. If the request for amendments to delete use is granted, the Agency intends to publish the cancellation order in the Federal Register.

In any order issued in response to this request for an amendment to delete uses, EPA proposes to include the following provisions for the treatment of any existing stocks of the products listed in Table 1 of Unit III.

For voluntary product cancellations, registrants will be permitted to sell and distribute existing stocks of voluntarily canceled products for 1 year after the effective date of the cancellation, which will be the date of publication of the cancellation order in the Federal Register. Thereafter, registrants will be prohibited from selling or distributing the products identified in Table 1 of Unit III., except for export consistent with FIFRA section 17 or for proper disposal.

Once EPA has approved product labels reflecting the requested amendments to delete uses, registrants will be permitted to sell or distribute products under the previously approved labeling for a period of 18 months after the date of Federal Register publication of the cancellation order, unless other restrictions have been imposed. Thereafter, registrants will be prohibited from selling or distributing the products whose labels include the deleted uses identified in Table 1 of Unit III., except for export consistent with FIFRA section 17 or for proper disposal.

Persons other than the registrant may sell, distribute, or use existing stocks of products whose labels include the deleted uses until supplies are exhausted, provided that such sale, distribution, or use is consistent with the terms of the previously approved labeling on, or that accompanied, the deleted uses.

List of Subjects

• Environmental protection
• Pesticides and pests
• Antimicrobials

Dated: June 7, 2010.

Joan Harrigan-Farrelly,

Director, Antimicrobials Division, Office of Pesticide Programs.