[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 216 (Thursday, November 9, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Page 52044]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-24427]



[[Page 52044]]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-9969-84-OW]


Clean Water Act; Contractor Access to Confidential Business 
Information

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of intended transfer of Confidential Business 
Information to contractor and its subcontractors.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) intends to transfer 
confidential business information (CBI) collected from numerous 
industries under a newly awarded contract to Eastern Research Group 
(ERG) and its subcontractors. Transfer of this information is necessary 
for ERG to assist the Office of Water in the preparation of effluent 
guidelines and standards and with its effluent guidelines planning and 
review activities. Much of the information being transferred was or 
will be collected under the authority of section 308 of the Clean Water 
Act (CWA). Interested persons may submit comments on this intended 
transfer of information to the address noted below.

DATES: Comments on the transfer of data are due November 14, 2017.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be sent to M. Ahmar Siddiqui, Document Control 
Officer, Engineering and Analysis Division (4303T), U.S. EPA, 1200 
Pennsylvania Ave. NW., Washington, DC 20460.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  M. Ahmar Siddiqui, Document Control 
Officer, at (202) 566-1044, or via email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: EPA has transferred CBI to various 
contractors and subcontractors over the history of the effluent 
guidelines program under 40 CFR 2.302(h). EPA determined that this 
transfer was necessary to enable the contractors and subcontractors to 
perform their work in supporting EPA in planning, developing, and 
reviewing effluent guidelines and standards for certain industries.
    Today, pursuant to 40 CFR 2.302(h)(2), EPA is giving notice that it 
has entered into a new contract with ERG, contract number EP-C-17-041, 
located in Chantilly, Virginia. The purpose of this contract is to 
secure technical and engineering analysis support for EPA in its 
development, review, implementation, and defense of water-related 
initiatives for a variety of industries. To obtain assistance in 
responding to this contract, ERG has entered into contracts with the 
following subcontractors and consultant: PG Environmental, LLC (located 
in Chantilly, Virginia and Golden, Colorado), Great Lakes Environmental 
Center (located in Traverse City, Michigan and Columbus, Ohio), 
LimnoTech (located in Ann Arbor, Michigan), Mabbett & Associates, Inc. 
(located in Bedford, Massachusetts), RESPEC Consulting and Services 
(located in Mountain View, California), The Water Planet Company 
(located in New London, Connecticut), and Jack Martin (located in 
Georgetown, Delaware).
    All EPA contractor, subcontractor, and consultant personnel are 
bound by the requirements and sanctions contained in their contracts 
with EPA and in EPA's confidentiality regulations found at 40 CFR part 
2, subpart B. ERG will adhere to an EPA-approved security plan which 
describes procedures to protect CBI. ERG will apply the procedures in 
this plan to CBI previously gathered by EPA and to CBI that may be 
gathered in the future. The security plan specifies that contractor 
personnel are required to sign non-disclosure agreements and are 
briefed on appropriate security procedures before they are permitted 
access to CBI. No person is automatically granted access to CBI: A need 
to know must exist.
    The information that will be transferred to ERG consists of 
information previously collected by EPA to support the development and 
review of effluent limitations guidelines and standards under the CWA 
and that EPA had transferred to ERG under a previous contract with 
them. In particular, information, including CBI, collected for the 
planning, development, and review of effluent limitations guidelines 
and standards for the following industries may be transferred to ERG 
under the new contract: Airport deicing; aquaculture; centralized waste 
treatment; coal bed methane; concentrated animal feeding operations; 
coal mining; construction and development; drinking water treatment; 
industrial container and drum cleaning; industrial laundries; 
industrial waste combustors; iron and steel manufacturing; landfills; 
meat and poultry products; metal finishing; metal products and 
machinery; nonferrous metals manufacturing; oil and gas extraction 
(including coalbed methane); ore mining and dressing; organic 
chemicals, plastics, and synthetic fibers; pesticide chemicals; 
petroleum refining; pharmaceutical manufacturing; pulp, paper, and 
paperboard manufacturing; shale gas extraction; steam electric power 
generation; textile mills; timber products processing; tobacco; 
transportation equipment cleaning; and other industrial categories that 
EPA has reviewed as part of its CWA required annual review activities.
    EPA also intends to transfer to ERG all information listed in this 
notice, of the type described above (including CBI) that may be 
collected in the future under the authority of section 308 of the CWA 
or voluntarily submitted (e.g., in comments in response to a Federal 
Register notice), as is necessary to enable ERG to carry out the work 
required by its contract to support EPA's effluent guidelines planning 
and review process and the development of effluent limitations 
guidelines and standards.

    Dated: November 3, 2017.
Deborah G. Nagle,
Acting Director, Office of Science and Technology, Office of Water.
[FR Doc. 2017-24427 Filed 11-8-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P


