[Federal Register: June 30, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 125)]
[Notices]
[Page 37841-37842]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr30jn05-89]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-7930-4]
Eleventh Meeting of the World Trade Center Expert Technical
Review Panel To Continue Evaluation on Issues Relating to Impacts of
the Collapse of the World Trade Center Towers
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of meeting.
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SUMMARY: The World Trade Center Expert Technical Review Panel (or WTC
Expert Panel) will hold its eleventh meeting intended to provide for
greater input on continuing efforts to monitor the situation for New
York residents and workers impacted by the collapse of the World Trade
Center (WTC). The panel members will help guide the EPA's use of the
available exposure and health surveillance databases and registries to
characterize any remaining exposures and risks, identify unmet public
health needs, and recommend any steps to further minimize the risks
associated with the aftermath of the WTC attacks. Panel meetings will
be open to the public, except where the public interest requires
otherwise. Information on the panel meeting agendas, documents (except
where the public interest requires otherwise), and public registration
to attend the meetings will be available from an Internet web site. EPA
has established an official public docket for this action under Docket
ID No. ORD-2004-0003.
DATES: The eleventh meeting of the WTC Expert Panel will be held on
Tuesday, July 12, 2005, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Eastern Daylight Savings
Time. On-site registration will begin at 8:30 a.m.
ADDRESSES: The WTC Expert Panel meeting will be held at St. John's
University, 101 Murray Street, New York, NY in Room 123. A government-
issued identification (e.g., driver's license) is required for entry.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For meeting information, registration
and logistics, please see the panel's Web site http://www.epa.gov/wtc/panel
or contact ERG at (781) 674-7374. The meeting agenda and
logistical information will be posted on the Web site and will also be
available in hard copy. For further information regarding the WTC
Expert Panel, contact Ms. Lisa Matthews, EPA Office of the Science
Advisor, telephone (202) 564-6669 or e-mail: matthews.lisa@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. WTC Expert Panel Meeting Information
Eastern Research Group, Inc., (ERG), an EPA contractor, will
coordinate the WTC Expert Panel meeting. To attend the panel meeting as
an observer, please register by visiting the Web site at: http://www.epa.gov/wtc/panel.
You may also register for the meeting by calling
ERG's conference registration line between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5:30
p.m. e.s.t. at (781) 674-7374 or toll free at 1-800-803-2833, or by
faxing a registration request to (781) 674-2906 (include full address
and contact information). Pre-registration is strongly recommended as
space is limited, and registrations are accepted on a first-come,
first-served basis. The deadline for pre-registration is July 7, 2005.
Registrations will continue to be accepted after this date, including
on-site registration, if space allows. There will be a limited time at
the meeting for oral comments from the public. Oral comments will be
limited to five (5) minutes each. If you wish to make a statement
during the observer comment period, please check the appropriate box
when you register at the Web site. Please bring a copy of your comments
to the meeting for the record or submit them electronically via e-mail
to meetings@erg.com, subject line: WTC.
II. Background Information
Immediately following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attack on
New York City's World Trade Center, many federal agencies, including
the EPA, were called upon to focus their technical and scientific
expertise on the national emergency. EPA, other federal agencies, New
York City and New York State public health and environmental
authorities focused on numerous cleanup, dust collection and ambient
air monitoring activities to ameliorate and better understand the human
health impacts of the disaster. Detailed information concerning the
environmental monitoring activities that were conducted as part of this
response is available at the EPA Response to 9-11 Web site at http://www.epa.gov/wtc/
.
In addition to environmental monitoring, EPA efforts also included
toxicity testing of the dust, as well as the development of a human
exposure and health risk assessment. This risk assessment document,
Exposure and Human Health Evaluation of Airborne Pollution from the
World Trade Center Disaster, is available on the Web at http://www.epa.gov/ncea/wtc.htm
). Numerous additional studies by other Federal
and State agencies, universities and other organizations have
documented impacts to both the outdoor and indoor environments and to
human health.
While these monitoring and assessment activities were ongoing and
the cleanup at Ground Zero itself was occurring, EPA began planning for
a program to clean and monitor residential apartments. From June until
December 2002, residents impacted by WTC dust and debris in an area of
about 1 mile by 1 mile south of Canal Street were eligible to request
either federally-funded cleaning and monitoring for airborne asbestos
or monitoring of their residences. The cleanup continued into the
summer of 2003 by which time the EPA had cleaned and monitored 3,400
apartments and monitored 800 apartments. Detailed information on this
portion of the EPA response is also available at http://www.epa.gov/wtc/
.
A critical component of understanding long-term human health
impacts is the establishment of health registries. The WTC Health
Registry is a comprehensive and confidential health survey of those
most directly exposed to the contamination resulting from the collapse
of the WTC towers. It is intended to give health professionals a better
picture of the health consequences of 9/11. It was established by the
Agency for Toxic Substances and
[[Page 37842]]
Disease Registry (ATSDR) and the New York City Department of Health and
Mental Hygiene (NYCDHMH) in cooperation with a number of academic
institutions, public agencies and community groups. Detailed
information about the registry can be obtained from the registry Web
site at: http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/wtc/index.html.
In order to obtain individual advice on the effectiveness of these
programs, unmet needs and data gaps, the EPA has convened a technical
panel of experts who have been involved with WTC assessment activities.
Mr. E. Timothy Oppelt, EPA Acting Assistant Administrator for Research
and Development, is serving as Interim Panel Chair. Dr. Paul Lioy,
Professor of Environmental and Community Medicine at the Environmental
and Occupational Health Sciences Institute of the Robert Wood Johnson
Medical School-UMDNJ and Rutgers University, serves as Vice Chair. A
full list of the panel members, a charge statement and operating
principles for the panel are available from the panel Web site listed
above. Panel meetings typically will be one- or two-day meetings, and
they will occur over the course of approximately a two-year period.
Panel members will provide individual advice on issues the panel
addresses. These meetings will occur in New York City and nearby
locations. All of the meetings will be announced on the Web site and by
a Federal Register Notice, and they will be open to the public for
attendance and brief oral comments.
The focus of the eleventh meeting of the WTC Expert Panel is to
discuss EPA's Final Draft Proposed Sampling Program to Determine Extent
of World Trade Center Impacts to the Indoor Environment, review results
from the WTC signature validation study, continue discussion of
remaining issues associated with the WTC Health Registry, and have
opportunity for public comment. The sampling plan and additional
information on meetings will be made available on the panel Web site
at: http://www.epa.gov/wtc/panel.
III. How To Get Information on E-DOCKET
EPA has established an official public docket for this action under
Docket ID No. ORD-2004-0003. The official public docket consists of the
documents specifically referenced in this action, any public comments
received, and other information related to this action. Although a part
of the official docket, the public docket does not include Confidential
Business Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is
restricted by statute. The official public docket is the collection of
materials that is available for public viewing at the Office of
Environmental Information (OEI) Docket in the Headquarters EPA Docket
Center, (EPA/DC) EPA West Building, Room B102, 1301 Constitution
Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460. 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, and the telephone number for the OEI Docket is
(202) 566-1752; facsimile: (202) 566-1753; or e-mail:
ORD.Docket@epa.gov.
An electronic version of the public docket is available through
EPA's electronic public docket and comment system, EPA Dockets. You may
use EPA Dockets at http://www.epa.gov/edocket/ to submit or view public
comments, access the index listing of the contents of the official
public docket, and to access those documents in the public docket that
are available electronically. Once in the system, select ``search,''
then key in the appropriate docket identification number.
Dated: June 23, 2005.
E. Timothy Oppelt,
Acting Assistant Administrator, Office of Research and Development.
[FR Doc. 05-12943 Filed 6-29-05; 8:45 am]
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