Notice2022-01387
Request for Nominations of Experts for the Review of Technical Support Document for the Social Cost of Greenhouse Gases
Primary source
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Published
January 25, 2022
Issuing agencies
Environmental Protection Agency
Abstract
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) National Center for Environmental Economics (NCEE), on behalf of the co-chairs of the Interagency Working Group on the Social Cost of Greenhouse Gases (IWG), including the Chair of the Council of Economic Advisors (CEA), the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), requests public nominations of scientific experts for the upcoming peer review of "Technical Support Document: Social Cost of Greenhouse Gas Estimates." This document will undergo independent external scientific peer review managed by a contractor to EPA. Interested stakeholders will be provided 21 days to submit nominations for expert reviewers for consideration by the EPA contractor.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 87 Issue 16 (Tuesday, January 25, 2022)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 16 (Tuesday, January 25, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3801-3803]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2022-01387]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-9479-01-OA]
Request for Nominations of Experts for the Review of Technical
Support Document for the Social Cost of Greenhouse Gases
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice; request for nominations.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) National Center for
Environmental Economics (NCEE), on behalf of the co-chairs of the
Interagency Working Group on the Social Cost of Greenhouse Gases (IWG),
including the Chair of the Council of Economic Advisors (CEA), the
Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and the Director
of the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), requests public
nominations of scientific experts for the upcoming peer review of
``Technical Support Document: Social Cost of Greenhouse Gas
Estimates.'' This document will undergo independent external scientific
peer review managed by a contractor to EPA. Interested stakeholders
will be provided 21 days to submit nominations for expert reviewers for
consideration by the EPA contractor.
DATES: The 21-day public comment period to provide nominations begins
January 25, 2022 and ends February 15, 2022. Comments must be received
on or before February 15, 2022.
ADDRESSES: Submit your nominations by emailing them to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#80d3c3adc7c8c7c0e5f0e1aee7eff6"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="1340503e545b54537663723d747c65">[email protected]</span></a>
(subject line: SC-GHG Peer Review Nomination) no later than February
15, 2022. To receive full consideration, nominations should include all
of the information requested below. Please be advised that public
comments are subject to release under the Freedom of Information Act,
including communications on these nominations.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
For general information, please contact: Nathalie Simon, NCEE;
email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#780b111517165616190c101914111d381d0819561f170e"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="1f6c7672707131717e6b777e73767a5f7a6f7e31787069">[email protected]</span></a>.
Questions about the peer review, including the nomination process,
can be directed to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#683b2b452f202f280d1809460f071e"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="3261711f757a75725742531c555d44">[email protected]</span></a> (subject line: SC-GHG Peer Review
Question) until a contractor is selected or by phone: (202)566-2347.
Once selected,
[[Page 3802]]
contractor information will be made available at <a href="https://www.epa.gov/environmental-economics/scghg-tsd-peer-review">https://www.epa.gov/environmental-economics/scghg-tsd-peer-review</a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
A robust and scientifically founded assessment of the positive and
negative impacts that an action can be expected to have on society
provides important insights in the policy-making process. Estimates of
the social cost of carbon (SC-CO<INF>2</INF>), social cost of methane
(SC-CH<INF>4</INF>), and social cost of nitrous oxide (SC-
N<INF>2</INF>O), collectively called the Social Cost of Greenhouse
Gases (SC-GHG), are used to estimate the value to society of marginal
reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, or conversely, the social costs
of increasing such emissions, in the policymaking process. Federal
agencies began regularly incorporating SC-CO<INF>2</INF> estimates in
benefit-cost analyses conducted under Executive Order (E.O.) 12866 in
2008, following a court ruling in which an agency was ordered to
consider the value of reducing carbon dioxide emissions in a rulemaking
process. In 2009, an original interagency working group (IWG) was
established to ensure that agencies had access to the best available
science and to promote consistency in the estimated values. The IWG
published SC-CO<INF>2</INF> estimates in 2010. These estimates were
updated in 2013. In August 2016, the IWG published a technical support
document (TSD) providing SC-CH<INF>4</INF> and SC-N<INF>2</INF>O
estimates using methodologies that are consistent with the methodology
underlying the SC-CO<INF>2</INF> estimates.
On February 26, 2021, under Executive Order (E.O.) 13990, a re-
constituted IWG issued an updated TSD that recommended interim
estimates of the SC-CO<INF>2</INF>, SC-CH<INF>4</INF>, and SC-
N<INF>2</INF>O while a more comprehensive updated set of SC-GHG
estimates were developed. The interim SC-GHG estimates are reported in
2020 dollars, but otherwise use identical methods and inputs to those
presented in the 2016 version of the TSD and its Addendum, including
the same three peer-reviewed integrated assessment models. On May 7,
2021, OMB, on behalf of the co-chairs of the IWG, published a notice
requesting public comment on the interim TSD as well as on how best to
incorporate the latest peer-reviewed science and economics literature
in developing an updated set of SC-GHG estimates.
A TSD with updated SC-GHG estimates is being developed and will be
released for public comment and will undergo peer review. The
forthcoming TSD will present a comprehensive update of the SC-GHG
estimates taking into consideration the recommendations of the National
Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (as reported in
Valuing Climate Damages: Updating Estimation of the Social Cost of
Carbon Dioxide (2017)), other pertinent scientific literature, and the
public comments received on the February 2021 interim TSD.
EPA is releasing this announcement to notify the public of upcoming
peer review activities related to the forthcoming TSD containing
updated SC-GHG estimates. This TSD will undergo independent, external
scientific peer review managed by a contractor to EPA. EPA will provide
the selected contractor with all reviewer nominations received in
response to this notice. The contractor will both screen the nominees
submitted as a result of this notice to ensure they have the types of
disciplinary expertise listed in the notice and use traditional
techniques (e.g., a literature search) to identify additional qualified
candidates in the disciplines described below. The contractor will
formulate a pool of at least (15) candidate external reviewers to
provide independent external reviews of the TSD. The contractor will
request comment on the pool of candidate external reviewers (i.e., List
of Candidates) in a future public posting (as described below). After
consideration of public comments on the List of Candidates, the
contractor will select from this pool the final multi-disciplinary
panel of five (5) to seven (7) peer reviewers in a manner consistent
with EPA's Peer Review Handbook 4th Edition, 2015 (EPA/100/B-15/001).
EPA will provide updates on the status of the peer review via the SC-
GHG TSD peer review website (<a href="https://www.epa.gov/environmental-economics/scghg-tsd-peer-review">https://www.epa.gov/environmental-economics/scghg-tsd-peer-review</a>). EPA encourages all interested
stakeholders to register for receipt of future announcements by
emailing <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#cd9e8ee08a858a8da8bdace3aaa2bb"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="782b3b553f303f381d0819561f170e">[email protected]</span></a> (subject line: SC-GHG Peer Review Future
Announcements). Until a contractor selection is made, specific
questions or comments on the peer review process should also be
directed to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#d08393fd97989790b5a0b1feb7bfa6"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="93c0d0bed4dbd4d3f6e3f2bdf4fce5">[email protected]</span></a> (subject line: SC-GHG Peer Review Question).
II. Information About This Peer Review
EPA is seeking nominations of nationally and internationally
recognized experts with demonstrated expertise and research on in one
or more of the following areas:
<bullet> Environmental economics with a focus on modeling the
impacts of climate change, uncertainty, and/or discounting,
<bullet> climate science, with a focus on the estimation of future
climatic variables resulting from different emission scenarios, and on
the calculation of impacts resulting from elevated greenhouse gas
concentrations,
<bullet> integrated assessment modeling, and
<bullet> benefit-cost analysis.
A balanced review panel includes candidates who possess the
necessary domains of knowledge, the relevant scientific perspectives
(which, among other factors, can be influenced by work history and
affiliation), and the collective breadth of experience to adequately
provide rigorous scientific peer review. In forming the list of
candidate external reviewers (i.e., the List of Candidates), the
contractor will consider the nominations submitted in response to this
notice and use traditional techniques (e.g., a literature search) to
identify additional qualified candidates in the disciplines listed
above. Public comments on the List of Candidates will be solicited in a
future announcement. The contractor will rely on public comments
received on the List of Candidates, the information provided by the
candidates themselves, and background information. Selection criteria
to be used for panel membership include: (a) Scientific and/or
technical expertise, knowledge, and experience (primary factors); (b)
availability and willingness to serve; (c) absence of any potential
organizational or personal conflicts of interest; and (d) skills
working in committees, subcommittees and advisory panels.
Process and Deadline for Submitting Nominations: Any interested
person or organization may nominate qualified individuals in the areas
of expertise described above. Self-nominations are permitted. Submit
your nominations by email to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#2e7d6d036966696e4b5e4f00494158"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="4c1f0f610b040b0c293c2d622b233a">[email protected]</span></a> (subject line: SC-GHG Peer
Review Nomination). To receive full consideration, nominations should
include all of the requested information: Contact information about the
person making the nomination; contact information about the nominee;
the nominee's disciplinary and specific areas of expertise; the
nominee's resume or curriculum vitae; sources of recent grant and/or
contract support; and a biographical sketch of the nominee indicating
current position, educational background, research activities, and
recent service on other national advisory committees or national
professional organizations. Persons having questions about the
nomination procedures should contact <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#693a2a442e212e290c1908470e061f"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="6b3828462c232c2b0e1b0a450c041d">[email protected]</span></a> (subject line: SC-
GHG Peer
[[Page 3803]]
Review Question), as noted above. EPA will acknowledge receipt of
nominations and will refer all nominations to the contractor for
evaluation. The names and biosketches of qualified nominees identified
by respondents to this Federal Register notice, along with additional
experts identified by the contractor, will be posted on the SC-GHG TSD
peer review website and will be available for public comment. The
process for public comment on the pool of nominees, as well as the date
and location of public meetings related to this peer review, will be
announced on the SC-GHG TSD peer review website, and through the SC-GHG
TSD peer review contact list.
Dated: January 19, 2022.
Albert McGartland,
Director, National Center for Environmental Economics.
[FR Doc. 2022-01387 Filed 1-24-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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