

[Federal Register: January 22, 2007 (Volume 72, Number 13)]
[Notices]               
[Page 2684-2685]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr22ja07-63]                         

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-8271-5; Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-ORD-2006-0812]

 
Child-Specific Exposure Factors Handbook

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of Re-opening of Public Comment Period.

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SUMMARY: EPA is re-opening the public comment period for the draft 
document titled, ``Child-Specific Exposure Factors Handbook'' (EPA/600/
R-06/096A). The document was prepared by the National Center for 
Environmental Assessment within EPA's Office of Research and 
Development.
    On October 6, 2006, EPA published a Federal Register notice (71 FR 
59107) announcing a 60-day public comment period that ended December 5, 
2006. EPA is re-opening the public comment period for an additional 30 
days in response to requests to extend the comment period.

[[Page 2685]]

    The Child-Specific Exposure Factors Handbook provides a summary of 
statistical data on various exposure factors used in assessing 
children's exposures. This Handbook serves as a resource for exposure 
assessors for calculating children's exposures. These factors include: 
drinking water consumption, soil ingestion and mouthing behavior, 
inhalation rates, dermal factors including skin surface area and soil 
adherence factors, consumption of retail and home-grown foods, breast 
milk intake, and activity pattern data. An interim final version of 
this handbook was published in 2002. The updated version provides 
analysis of exposure factors data using the age groups for children as 
recommended in the EPA document entitled, ``Guidance on Selecting Age 
Groups for Monitoring and Assessing Childhood Exposures to 
Environmental Contaminants'' (EPA/630/P-03/003F) (Available on line at 
http://cfpub.epa.gov/ncea/cfm/recordisplay.cfm?deid=146583).

    As previously stated in 71 FR 59107, EPA is releasing the draft 
``Child-Specific Exposure Factors Handbook'' solely for the purpose of 
pre-dissemination peer review under applicable information quality 
guidelines. This document has not been formally disseminated by EPA. It 
does not represent and should not be construed to represent any Agency 
policy or determination. EPA will consider any public comments 
submitted in accordance with this notice when revising the document.

DATES: The 30-day public comment period begins January 22, 2007, and 
ends February 21, 2007. Technical comments should be in writing and 
must be received by EPA by February 21, 2007.

ADDRESSES: The draft, ``Child-Specific Exposure Factors Handbook,'' is 
available primarily via the Internet on the National Center for 
Environmental Assessment's home page under the Recent Additions and the 
Data and Publications menus at http://www.epa.gov/ncea. A limited 

number of paper copies are available from the Technical Information 
Staff, NCEA-W; telephone: 202-564-3261; facsimile: 202-565-0050. If you 
are requesting a paper copy, please provide your name, your mailing 
address, and the document title, ``Child-Specific Exposure Factors 
Handbook'' (EPA/600/R-06/096A).
    Comments may be submitted electronically via http://www.regulations.gov
, by mail, by facsimile, or by hand delivery/

courier. Please follow the detailed instructions provided in the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this notice.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information on the public comment 
period, contact the Office of Environmental Information Docket; 
telephone: 202-566-1752; facsimile: 202-566-1753; or e-mail: 
ORD.Docket@epa.gov.

    For technical information, contact Jacqueline Moya, NCEA; 
telephone: 202-564-3245; facsimile: 202-565-0079; or e-mail: 
moya.jacqueline@epa.gov.


SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

How To Submit Technical Comments to the Docket at http://www.regulations.gov


    Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-ORD-2006-
0812 by one of the following methods:
     http://www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line 

instructions for submitting comments.
     E-mail: ORD.Docket@epa.gov.
     Fax: 202-566-1753.
     Mail: Office of Environmental Information (OEI) Docket 
(Mail Code: 2822T), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 
Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460. The phone number is 202-
566-1752.
     Hand Delivery: The OEI Docket is located in the EPA 
Headquarters Docket Center, Room 3334, EPA West Building, 1301 
Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The EPA Docket Center Public 
Reading Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the Public 
Reading Room is 202-566-1744. Such deliveries are only accepted during 
the docket's normal hours of operation, and special arrangements should 
be made for deliveries of boxed information.
    If you provide comments by mail or hand delivery, please submit one 
unbound original with pages numbered consecutively, and three copies of 
the comments. For attachments, provide an index, number pages 
consecutively with the comments, and submit an unbound original and 
three copies.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-ORD-
2006-0812. Please ensure that your comments are submitted within the 
specified comment period. Comments received after the closing date will 
be marked ``late,'' and may only be considered if time permits. It is 
EPA's policy to include all comments it receives in the public docket 
without change and to make the comments available online at http://www.regulations.gov
, including any personal information provided, 

unless a 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 http://www.regulations.gov or e-mail. 

The http://www.regulations.gov Web site 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 http://www.regulations.gov, 

your e-mail address will be automatically captured and included as part 
of the comment that is placed in the public 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.
    For additional information about EPA's public docket visit the EPA 
Docket Center homepage at http://www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm.

    Docket: Documents in the docket are listed in the 
http://www.regulations.gov index. 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 materials, 
such as copyrighted material, are publicly available only in hard copy. 
Publicly available docket materials are available either electronically 
in http://www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the OEI Docket in the EPA 

Headquarters Docket Center.

    Dated: January 12, 2007.
George Alapas,
Acting Director, National Center for Environmental Assessment.
[FR Doc. E7-827 Filed 1-19-07; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
