----- Forwarded by Richard Keigwin/DC/USEPA/US on 06/03/2010 03:17 PM
-----

From:	"Roy Olson" <rolson@drexchem.com>

To:	Richard Keigwin/DC/USEPA/US@EPA

Cc:	"Bob Shockey" <rdshockey@drexchem.com>, "Leigh Shockey"
<lshockey@drexchem.com>,

 "Stanley Bernard" <sbernard@drexchem.com>, "Steve Kay"
<Steve@PyxisRC.com>

Date:	06/03/2010 03:07 PM

Subject:	Endangered Species Data for Maleic Hydrazide



June 3, 2010

 

Mr. Richard P. Keigwin, Jr.

Director, Pesticide Re-evaluation Division

 

Ref:  Endangered Species Data for Maleic Hydrazide

 

Dear Mr. Keigwin:

 

According to the Maleic Hydrazide Final Work Plan Registration Review
January 2010 Case 0381, there was only one public comment submitted and
that by the Federal Endangered Species Task Force (FESTF) requesting
that any technical registrant for maleic hydrazide who is not a member
of the FESTF (or a company having met its data compensation obligations)
be asked to provide a formal offer-to-pay to the FESTF for reliance on
their data.

 

This comment raises significant concerns for us.  Since no DCI has been
issued for endangered species data for maleic hydrazide, no requirement
exists for making offers-to-pay to the FESTF at this time and when that
DCI does finally issue, there are procedures under FIFRA for responding
that do not include having to make such offers.  We deem it wholly
inappropriate for the FESTF to lobby the Agency to make a proforma
decision as to what endangered species data it will accept for maleic
hydrazide.  It is rather unseemly for a task force consisting of
reputable companies in the pesticide industry to make a formal comment,
such as the one above, to a public docket.

 

Drexel intends to fulfill endangered species data requirements for
maleic hydrazide by citing new data, not by relying on the FESTF data
and we do not feel obligated to rely on  FESTF data just because they
request the Agency to tell us to.  We are a founding member of the
Generic Endangered Species Task Force (GESTF), a consortium consisting
of eleven registrants, which is generating its own endangered species
data set.  Over the last several years, the GESTF has been engaged in
technical discussions with EPA regarding its ongoing data development
activities and has been encouraged by EPA's responses to our efforts and
progress thus far.

 

The purpose of this letter is to inform EPA that Drexel Chemical
Company, as a member in good standing of the GESTF, will rely on data
submitted by that task force to satisfy the endangered species data
requirements for our technical maleic hydrazide registrations.  Our
response to the maleic hydrazide DCI, when issued, will note that we are
part of an agreement to share in the cost to develop endangered species
data and based on the GESTF progress to-date, should be able to cite
that data well within the time frame called for under the DCI.

 

Thank you for your attention to this matter.

 

Sincerely,

 

Roy W. Olson

Business Development Manager

Drexel Chemical Company

 

 

