Notice2022-22458
Notice of Data Availability Relevant to Management of Regulated Substances Under the American Innovation and Manufacturing Act of 2020
Primary source
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Published
October 17, 2022
Issuing agencies
Environmental Protection Agency
Abstract
This Notice of Data Availability (NODA) is to alert stakeholders of information from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regarding the United States' hydrofluorocarbon reclamation market and to solicit stakeholder input. The Agency is making available a draft report, Analysis of the U.S. Hydrofluorocarbon Reclamation Market: Stakeholders, Drivers, and Practices, which analyzes the United States' hydrofluorocarbon reclamation market and describes the reclamation process, factors affecting costs of reclamation, incentives, and barriers to refrigerant reclamation. The Agency is providing this information in preparation for an upcoming regulatory action which EPA intends to propose under subsection (h) of the American Innovation and Manufacturing Act of 2020. The notice identifies possible data gaps and requests comment on areas where additional information could improve the Agency's information on the United States hydrofluorocarbon reclamation market and practices. The Agency is also providing notice of a stakeholder meeting to enable stakeholders to provide input as the Agency prepares to engage in rulemaking.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 87 Issue 199 (Monday, October 17, 2022)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 199 (Monday, October 17, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 62843-62845]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2022-22458]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[EPA-HQ-OAR-2022-0606; FRL-10105-03-OAR]
Notice of Data Availability Relevant to Management of Regulated
Substances Under the American Innovation and Manufacturing Act of 2020
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of data availability.
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SUMMARY: This Notice of Data Availability (NODA) is to alert
stakeholders of information from the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) regarding the United States' hydrofluorocarbon reclamation
market and to solicit stakeholder input. The Agency is making available
a draft report, Analysis of the U.S. Hydrofluorocarbon Reclamation
Market: Stakeholders, Drivers, and Practices, which analyzes the United
States' hydrofluorocarbon reclamation market and describes the
reclamation process, factors affecting costs of reclamation,
incentives, and barriers to refrigerant reclamation. The Agency is
providing this information in preparation for an upcoming regulatory
action which EPA intends to propose under subsection (h) of the
American Innovation and Manufacturing Act of 2020. The notice
identifies possible data gaps and requests comment on areas where
additional information could improve the Agency's information on the
United States hydrofluorocarbon reclamation market and practices. The
Agency is also providing notice of a stakeholder meeting to enable
stakeholders to provide input as the Agency prepares to engage in
rulemaking.
DATES: To ensure that comments can be accounted for in an upcoming
proposed rule that EPA is considering, please submit comments to the
Agency by November 7, 2022.
ADDRESSES: You may send comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-
OAR-2022-0606, by any of the following methods:
<bullet> Federal eRulemaking Portal: <a href="https://www.regulations.gov/">https://www.regulations.gov/</a>
(our preferred method). Follow the online instructions for submitting
comments.
<bullet> Mail: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA Docket
Center, Air and Radiation Docket, Mail Code 28221T, 1200 Pennsylvania
Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20460.
<bullet> Hand Delivery or Courier (by scheduled appointment only):
EPA Docket Center, WJC West Building, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution
Avenue
[[Page 62844]]
NW, Washington, DC 20004. The Docket Center's hours of operations are
8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m., Monday-Friday (except Federal Holidays).
Instructions: All submissions received must include the Docket ID
No. for this rulemaking. Comments received may be posted without change
to <a href="https://www.regulations.gov/">https://www.regulations.gov/</a>, including any personal information
provided. For detailed instructions on sending comments and additional
information on the rulemaking process, see the ``Public Participation''
heading of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Annie Kee, U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, Stratospheric Protection Division, telephone number:
202-564-2056; or email address: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#f8939d9dd6999696919db89d8899d69f978e"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="6d060808430c030304082d081d0c430a021b">[email protected]</span></a>. You may also visit
EPA's website at <a href="https://www.epa.gov/climate-hfcs-reduction">https://www.epa.gov/climate-hfcs-reduction</a> for further
information.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Public Participation
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is interested in
receiving comments on the draft report developed in support of this
notice of data availability (NODA) to inform the Agency's regulatory
process for an upcoming proposed rule that EPA is considering. Submit
your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2022-0606, at
<a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> (our preferred method), or the other
methods identified in the ADDRESSES section. You may find the following
suggestions helpful for preparing your comments: Explain your views as
clearly as possible; describe any assumptions that you used; provide
any technical information or data you used that support your views;
provide specific examples to illustrate your concerns; offer
alternatives; and make sure to submit your comments by the comment
period deadline identified. Please provide any published studies or raw
data supporting your position. Confidential Business Information (CBI)
should not be submitted through <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a>. Please work with
the person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section if
submitting a comment containing CBI.
II. Background
The Agency is providing information in preparation for an upcoming
regulatory action under the American Innovation and Manufacturing Act
of 2020 (AIM Act or Act), codified at 42 U.S.C. 7675. Among other
provisions, subsection (h) of the Act authorizes EPA to establish
certain requirements for management of certain hydrofluorocarbons
(HFCs) and their substitutes. Specifically, subsection (h)(1) of the
Act directs the Agency to establish regulations to control, where
appropriate, practices, processes, or activities regarding the
servicing, repair, disposal, or installation of equipment, for purposes
of maximizing the reclamation and minimizing the release of certain
HFCs from equipment and ensuring the safety of technicians and
consumers. Subsection (h) also provides that ``[i]n carrying out this
section, the Administrator shall consider the use of authority
available to the Administrator under this section to increase
opportunities for the reclaiming of regulated substances used as
refrigerants'' (subsection (h)(2)(A)) and authorizes EPA in
promulgating regulations carrying out subsection (h) of the AIM Act to
``coordinate those regulations with any other [EPA] regulations''
involving ``the same or a similar practice, process, or activity
regarding the servicing, repair, disposal, or installation of
equipment,'' or reclaiming (subsection (h)(3)). Such regulations could
potentially include the refrigerant management program established
under title VI of the Clean Air Act.
EPA is seeking comment on the accuracy of the data and analyses
presented in the draft report in the docket to this notice regarding
the United States' hydrofluorocarbon refrigerant reclamation market and
welcomes input on those data and potential data gaps. Readers should
note that EPA will only consider comments about the draft report
provided in the docket, and the Agency is not soliciting comments on
any other topic through this notice. EPA plans to undergo a future
notice and comment rulemaking process, which will be a separate action,
that will outline the Agency's approach to the management of HFCs and
their substitutes under the AIM Act. EPA will solicit public feedback
on these issues through that separate notice and comment process, and
therefore is not accepting public comment on these matters through this
notice. Public comments that pertain to issues beyond the scope of this
notice will not be considered as the Agency updates the draft report.
To the extent such comments are relevant to the previously referenced
future and separate rulemaking, those comments should be resubmitted
through that future rulemaking process in order to ensure that they are
duly considered by the Agency in that process. Use of AIM Act
terminology in this notice is for communication purposes only and
should not be viewed as indications of how EPA will define these terms
in any future rulemaking action. EPA intends to provide more
information on the status of rulemakings and stakeholder interaction,
including opportunities for submitting public comment, on the Agency's
website: <a href="https://www.epa.gov/climate-hfcs-reduction">https://www.epa.gov/climate-hfcs-reduction</a>. EPA will hold a
virtual stakeholder meeting for input on the draft report and an
upcoming regulatory action which EPA intends to propose under
subsection (h) of the American Innovation and Manufacturing Act of
2020. Information concerning this meeting will be available on the
Agency's website: <a href="https://www.epa.gov/climate-hfcs-reduction">https://www.epa.gov/climate-hfcs-reduction</a>.
III. What information is available?
This notice provides for public review and comment on the draft
report, Analysis of the U.S. Hydrofluorocarbon Reclamation Market:
Stakeholders, Drivers, and Practices, that is available in the docket.
The draft report describes EPA's current understanding of the U.S. HFC
refrigerant reclamation market and provides information on the
reclamation process, factors affecting costs of reclamation,
incentives, and barriers to reclamation. EPA requests comment on the
information and analysis in the draft report, and information on
potential data gaps.
The report provides background information on the reclamation
industry in support of an upcoming proposed rule that EPA is
considering under subsection (h) of the AIM Act to establish
regulations to control, where appropriate, practices, processes, or
activities regarding the servicing, repair, disposal, or installation
of equipment, for purposes of maximizing the reclamation and minimizing
the release of certain HFCs from equipment and ensuring the safety of
technicians and consumers. The draft report provides information on the
following:
<bullet> Background information on the refrigerant reclamation of HFCs,
federal and state statutory and regulatory provisions
<bullet> Subsectors and applications using refrigerants
<bullet> Historical reclamation market in the U.S., the reclamation
process, factors affecting costs of reclamation, and incentives for
refrigerant reclamation
<bullet> Safety of technicians and consumers
<bullet> Barriers and key challenges to refrigerant reclamation.
[[Page 62845]]
IV. What is EPA taking comment on and what supporting documentation do
I need to include in my comments?
EPA is accepting comments on possible data gaps and areas where
additional information could improve the Agency's information outlined
in this notice and contained in the draft report, Analysis of the U.S.
Hydrofluorocarbon Reclamation Market: Stakeholders, Drivers, and
Practices. Specifically, EPA requests comment on topics contained in
the draft report, including but not limited to:
<bullet> Current reclamation process, practices, and technologies
<bullet> Supply chain of reclaimed refrigerants (e.g., recovery,
collection, stockpiling, destruction)
<bullet> Costs of reclamation (e.g., price of refrigerants, transport,
storage, operating costs of reclamation systems)
<bullet> Incentives for reclamation
<bullet> Safety of technicians and consumers (e.g., outreach, best
practices)
<bullet> Barriers and challenges to reclamation (e.g., contamination
and accommodation of blends and cylinders with mixed refrigerants,
market demand).
EPA is also interested in responses to any of the following
questions related to this draft report, including but not limited to:
<bullet> Current recovery and reclamation practices, technologies,
and trends:
[cir] What are some major changes and/or trends in reclamation
technology and equipment over the past 25 years?
[cir] What are the current trends for the price of refrigerants and
how can this affect reclamation and recovery?
[cir] How do reclaimers address waste oils, impurities, etc.?
[cir] What type of equipment do reclaimers use (e.g., off-the-shelf
reclamation equipment, modified off-the-shelf reclamation equipment,
custom-built equipment)?
[cir] What are the current practices for refrigerant recovery at
equipment end-of-life?
<bullet> Supply chain:
[cir] What are the primary sources of recovered refrigerant
(technicians, distributors, wholesalers, etc.)? Stationary vs. motor
vehicle air conditioning systems?
[cir] Are Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) purchasing
reclaimed HFCs for initial equipment charge?
[cir] Besides refrigeration and air conditioning (e.g., fire
suppression), are there other sectors where reclaimed or reprocessed
HFCs are being used?
<bullet> Barriers and challenges to recovery and reclamation:
[cir] What are major barriers to increasing the amount of
refrigerant recovered and reclaimed? For example, increasing the amount
of reclaimed material re-entering the market or the increased use of
reclaimed material in other sectors (i.e., beyond refrigeration and air
conditioning)?
[cir] What are the losses of refrigerant during recovery and/or the
reclamation process (e.g., chronic leaking) and what steps can be taken
to minimize the losses (e.g., best practices, technologies)?
[cir] How are multi-component refrigerant blends handled during
recovery and/or the reclamation process?
EPA requests that commenters provide corrected information or
suggested language on the draft report, along with the rationale as to
why the existing text was incorrect or incomplete. In addition, please
provide any published studies or raw data supporting your comments.
Cynthia A. Newberg,
Director, Stratospheric Protection Division.
[FR Doc. 2022-22458 Filed 10-14-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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