Guidelines Establishing Test Procedures for the Analysis of Pollutants Under the Clean Water Act; Analysis and Sampling Procedures; Notice

Document Headings Document headings vary by document type but may contain the following: the agency or agencies that issued and signed a document the number of the CFR title and the number of each part the document amends, proposes to amend, or is directly related to the agency docket number / agency internal file number the RIN which identifies each regulatory action listed in the Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions See the Document Drafting Handbook for more details. Environmental Protection Agency 40 CFR Part 136 [EPA-HQ-OW-2010-0192; FRL-9787-7] AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). ACTION: Notice of final decision. SUMMARY: EPA discussed, but did not propose, a new method, ASTM D7575, for oil and grease in the 2010 proposed Methods Update Rule (MUR). Oil and grease is a method-defined parameter. That is, the nature and amount of material determined by the method is defined in terms of the method. EPA subsequently published a Notice of Data Availability (NODA) on this method that provided new data and requested comment on whether and how EPA should approve the method in Part 136 as an alternative oil and grease method. This document provides EPA's final decision on its reconsideration of this method. DATES: March 6, 2013. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jan Matuszko, Office of Science and Technology, Office of Water (4303-T), Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW.; Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: 202-566-1035; fax number: 202-566-1053; email address: matuszko.jan@epa.gov . SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: I. Background A. CWA Analytical Methods and Limited Use Alternate Test Procedures (ATP) Program EPA establishes test procedures (also referred to as analytical methods) codified in 40 CFR Part 136 under its authority in section 304(h) of the CWA to promulgate guidelines establishing test procedures for the analysis of pollutants. EPA's regulations provide that, when EPA has promulgated a test procedur…