Wednesday
May 29, 1996
Part IV



Environmental

Protection Agency

Paper Products Recovered Materials
Advisory Notice

-------

-------
 26986
Federal  Register / Vol. 61, No. 104 / Wednesday, May 29, 1996 / Notices
 ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
 AGENCY

 [SWH-FRL-5510-4-/EPA530-Z-36-005]

 Paper Products Recovered Materials
 Advisory Notice

 AGENCY: U.S. Environmental Protection
 Agency.
 ACTION: Notice of availability of Final
 document.

 SUMMARY: EPA is providing notice of the
 availability of the final Paper Products
 Recovered Materials Advisory Notice
 (RMAN) and supporting materials.
 Under Section 6002 of the Resource
 Conservation and Recovery Act, which
 establishes a buy-recycled program for
 federal agencies, EPA designates items
 that are or can be made with recovered
 materials and provides
 recommendations for government
 procurement of these items. The Agency
 is revising the 1988 recommendations to
 government procuring agencies for
 purchasing paper and paper products
 containing recovered materials. The
 final Paper Products RMAN addresses
 issues raised by paper manufacturers,
 merchants, and purchasers as they
 implemented the 1988
 recommendations, and incorporates
 minimum content standards for
 uncoated printing and writing papers
 established by Executive Order. This
 action will promote paper recycling by
 using government purchasing to expand
 and maintain markets for recovered
 paper.
 ADDRESSES: Supporting materials are
 available for viewing in the RCRA
 Information Center (RIC), located in
 Crystal Gateway I, 1235 Jefferson Davis
 Highway, First Floor, Arlington,
Virginia. The Docket Identification
 Number is F-96-PPRF-FFFFF. The RIC
 is open from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm,
 Monday through Friday, excluding
federal holidays. To review docket
 materials, it is recommended that the
public make an appointment by calling
 703 603-9230. The public may copy a
maximum of 100 pages from any
regulatory docket at no charge.
Additional copies cost $0.15 per page.
The index of and some supporting
materials are also available
electronically. See Section IV of the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section for
information on accessing the materials
electronically.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For
general information, please contact the
RCRA Hotline at 800 424-9346, TDD
 800 553-7672 (hearing impaired), or 703
 412-9810 (Washington, DC
 metropolitan area).
                      For more detailed information
                    regarding the recommendations in
                    today's notice, contact Dana Arnold of
                    the Office of Solid Waste at 703 308-
                    7279 or at U.S. Environmental
                    Protection Agency (5306W), 401 M
                    Street, S.W., Washington, DC 24060, or
                    at e-mail: arnold.dana@epamail.epa.gov.

                    SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

                    Preamble Outline
                    I. Authority
                    IT. Agency's Response to Public Comments
                      A. Definition of "Postconsumer Fiber"
                      B. Definitions of "Recovered Fiber" and
                        "Mill Broke"
                      C. Inclusion of Recommendations for
                        Consumer (At-home) Tissue Products
                      D. Recommendations for Newsprint,
                        Corrugated Containers, Carrierboard, and
                        Commercial/Industrial Tissue Products
                      1. Newsprint
                      2. Corrugated Containers
                      3. Carrierboard
                      4. Commercial/Industrial Tissue Products
                    m. Revision to Executive Order 12873
                    IV. Supporting Materials and Accessing
                        Internet
                    V. Use of EPA's Recommendations
                    Final Paper Products Recovered Materials
                        Advisory Notice

                    I. Authority

                      The final Paper Products Recovered
                    Materials Advisory Notice (Paper
                    RMAN) is published under authority of
                    sections 2002 (a) and 6002 of the Solid
                    Waste Disposal Act, as amended by the
                    Resource Conservation and Recovery
                    Act of 1976, as amended, 42 U.S.C.
                    6912 (a) and 6962, and Executive Order
                    12873, "Federal Acquisition, Recycling,
                    and Waste Prevention" (58 FR 54911,
                    October 22, 1993).

                    II. Agency's Response to Public
                    Comments

                      Today,  the U.S. Environmental
                    Protection Agency (EPA or the Agency)
                    is publishing a final Paper RMAN,
                    which contains recommendations for
                    procuring agencies to use when
                    purchasing paper and paper products in
                    accordance with section 6002 of the
                    Resource  Conservation and Recovery-
                    Act of 1976 (RCRA).
                      EPA received over 50 comments on
                    the draft Paper RMAN, which was
                    published in the Federal Register on
                    March 15, 1995 (see 50 FR 14181-
                    14191). In addition to responding to
                    EPA's requests in the draft Paper RMAN
                    for comment on certain issues, the
                    commenters also raised the following
                    issues:
                      (1) Definition of "postconsumer
                    fiber,"
                      (2) Definitions of "recovered fiber"
                    and "mill broke,"
   (3) Inclusion of recommendations for
 consumer (at-home) tissue products,
 and
   (4) Recommendations for newsprint,
 corrugated containers, carrierboard, and
 commercial/industrial tissue products.
   A summary of all comments received
 and the Agency's response to these
 comments are provided in "F_inal
 Summary of Comments on the Proposed
 Paper Products Recovered Materials
 Advisory Notice" and "Final Paper
 Products Recovered Materials Advisory-
 Notice—Response to Comments,"
 respectively. The response to comments
 document also provides discussions of
 changes EPA made to the March 1995
 draft recommendations, other than those
 discussed in this notice. See also "Draft
 Paper Products RMAN—Supporting
 Analyses," February 1995, for
 additional discussions of the
 recommendations in the Paper RMAN.
 Section IV of this preamble provides
 information on viewing and obtaining
 copies of these documents.

 A. Definition of "Postconsumer Fiber"
   In the  draft Paper RMAN, EPA
 defined "postconsumer fiber" based on
 RCRA section 6002(h)(l)'s definition of
 "postconsumer recovered materials."
 This is the same definition EPA used in
 the 1988 paper procurement guideline.
 In the draft Paper RMAN, however, EPA
 further stated that the definition of
 "postconsumer fiber" excludes "fiber
 derived from printers' over-runs,
 converters' scrap, and over-issue
 publications." EPA has consistently
 taken the position since 1988 that
 postconsumer fiber does not include
 these recovered papers.
   Several commenters argued that  EPA
 should adopt a broader postconsumer
 definition for its recommendations.
 Most of these commenters believe that
 over-issue publications, such as
 newspapers and magazines, are
 postconsumer materials. Some of the
 commenters also stated that printers'
 over-runs should be included in the
postconsumer definition. The
 commenters stated that the source of
recovered paper is irrelevant to the pulp
and papermaking processes because
printed materials must be handled  and
pulped in the same way, regardless of
source. The commenters also stated that
it is not always possible to determine
the origin of a bale or truckload of
recovered paper and that there is no
scientific means of testing paper to
determine whether or not it is from a
postconsumer source. They further
claimed that the use of the narrower
definition adds to the costs of
manufacturing recycled paper because it

-------
                  Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 104 / Wednesday, May 29, 1996 / Notices
                                                                   26987
Is more costly to track postconsumer
materials.
  EPA previously discussed these
arguments in the preamble to the draft
Paper RMAN (60 FR14185, March 15,
1995) and in "Draft Paper Products
RMAN—Supporting Analyses".
Commenters simply repeated past
arguments without providing new
information to justify expanding the
postconsumer definition. As explained
in the following discussion, EPA
continues to believe that its
interpretation of RCRA section 6002 is
reasonable.
  RCRA section 6002(c) requires each
procuring agency that purchases an
EPA-designated item to procure such
item containing the highest levels of
recovered material practicable. In the
case of paper, a procuring agency must
procure a designated paper item
composed of the "highest percentage of
postconsumer recovered materials."
RCRA section 6002(h) defines
"recovered materials" in the case of
paper products. Paper recovered
materials include two subsets:
postconsumer materials, defined in
(h)(l), and manufacturing and other
recovered materials, defined in (h) (2).
  Of the three types of material in
question  (converting scrap, printers'
over-runs, and over-issue publications),
one—converting scrap—clearly is not a
postconsumer material. RCRA section
60020)) specifically lists it with
manufacturing and other recovered
materials in subset (h)(2).
  With respect to the other two types of
material, over-issue publications and
printers'  over-runs, RCRA section
6002(h) (1) suggests two clear
benchmarks for determining whether
these are postconsumer materials. First,
postconsumer paper includes paper that
has passed through its end-usage as a
consumer item. This includes
conventional discarded paper (e.g., old
newspapers and magazines) from retail
stores, homes, and office buildings.
Second, postconsumer paper also
includes paper recovered from
municipal solid waste. Thus, the statute
would seem to limit postconsumer
recovered newspapers and magazines to
those publications collected from the
consumer before they enter the
municipal solid waste stream as well as
that recovered from the municipal solid
\vastestreamaftercollection. Over-issue
publications and printers' over-runs
which never reach a consumer do not
meet either of these criteria.
  The examples in the RCRA section
G002(h) definition appear to make a
distinction between recovered materials
and postconsumer recovered materials
based on whether the paper is received
by an ultimate consumer. Thus, for
example, paper, paperboard and fibrous
materials may be postconsumer paper
after passing through their intended end
uses as a consumer item. If, however,
that same paper, paperboard or fibrous
material never reaches a consumer, it
remains a preconsumer recovered
material.
  In addition, a reading of the types of
materials listed in section 6002 (h) (1)
suggests that over-issue publications
and over-runs are not postconsumer
materials. Among the examples of
postconsumer paper given in the statute
are "old newspapers." Because
publishers' over-runs and over-issue
publications are clearly not "old"
newspapers or "old" magazines, they
are not a postconsumer material.
Moreover, while section 6002(h) does
not specifically list printers' over-runs
and over-issue publications as either
"postconsumer materials" or other
recovered materials, it does provide that
"finished paper and paperboard from
obsolete inventories of paper and
paperboard manufacturers, merchants,
wholesalers, dealers, printers,
converters, or others [emphasis added]"
are not postconsumer materials. Thus,
EPA believes that over-issue
publications and printers' over-runs are
specifically listed in RCRA section 6002
as preconsumer recovered materials.
  Finally, one commenter stated that
the postconsumer definition used in the
draft Paper RMAN is contrary to the
"recovered materials" definition in
RCRA. The Agency disagrees with this
comment. Congress defined
"postconsumer recovered materials" in
RCRA section 6002(h)(l). The
postconsumer definition is the first
subset of the "recovered materials"
definition that Congress directs agencies
to use when purchasing paper and
paper products. Thus, EPA's use of the
postconsumer definition is consistent
with the RCRA definition.

B. Definitions of "Recovered Fiber" and
"Mill Broke"
  In the draft Paper  RMAN, EPA
provided revised definitions of
"recovered fiber" and "mill broke."
"Recovered fiber" identifies materials
that can be counted  toward the total
recycled content of paper or paperboard.
"Mill broke" identifies materials
generated at a paper mill that would not
be counted either as total recycled
content or as postconsumer content
under EPA's recommended content
levels.
  The definitions in the draft Paper
RMAN were based on EPA's 1988
definitions of "waste paper" and "mill
broke." (In the 1988 paper procurement
guideline, EPA had established a "waste
paper" category to promote the use of
postconsumer and other recovered
paper in the manufacture of printing
and writing papers.) EPA made three
changes to these 1988 definitions in
developing the Paper RMAN
definitions. First, the following mill-
generated materials were moved from
"waste paper" to "mill broke": offgrade
or off-specification rolls, converting
scrap, culls, stub rolls, side rolls, end
rolls, and obsolete inventories. In other
words, these materials could no longer
be counted toward the total recovered
fiber content levels recommended in the
Paper RMAN. EPA stated that these
materials are commonly re-pulped, sold
to others for pulping, or otherwise used
in or converted to paper products.
Allowing these materials to count
toward recovered fiber content does not
provide an incentive for mills to use
materials recovered from solid waste
and, therefore, does not meet the RCRA
objective of increasing markets for
postconsumer materials.
  Second, EPA specified that materials
must be re-pulped. As a result, a person
cannot purchase an off-specification or
obsolete roll, convert it into cut sheets
or note pads, and sell it as paper
containing "recovered materials" or
paper "meeting EPA's guidelines."
  Third, EPA corrected an error in the
1988 definition of "waste paper" by
deleting the words "forest residues"
from the phrase introducing the non-
postconsumer materials that count as
"recovered fiber." EPA had erroneously
included the words "forest residues" in
the introductory phrase in the  1988
definition of "waste paper," although
the Agency had intended to exclude
these materials from the definition.
  While some commenters agreed with
the "recovered fiber" and "mill broke"
definitions, most commenters opposed
the narrowing of the "recovered fiber"
definition and the related expansion of
the "mill broke" definition.
Commenters pointed out that some of
the materials that EPA included in the
"mill broke" definition are specifically
listed in the RCRA section 6002 (h)
definition of "recovered materials."
Therefore, the commenters stated, it is
contrary to RCRA to include these
materials in the definition of "mill
broke." Commenters also stated that all
of the industry data previously provided
to EPA were based on the 1988
definitions and, therefore, would be
incorrect. Further, commenters stated
that the excluded materials generally are
easier to use because they are
homogenous, clean, and without
printing, whereas postconsumer
materials are heterogenous, sometimes

-------
 26988
Federal  Register  / Vol. 61,  No. 104  / Wednesday, May  29,  1996 / Notices
 contaminated with food residue and
 other contaminants, and contain
 printing. For this reason, mills would
 not substitute postconsumer materials
 for the excluded materials, but would
 instead seek out other preconsumer
 materials. Finally, commenters stated
 that the paper industry has based its
 investments and strategies for
 manufacturing recycled paper on the
 1988 definitions and has invested
 billions of dollars in recycling, so there
 is no reason to change course now when
 the definitions have been working to
 increase domestic recycling capacity.
   In light of the comments, EPA has
 reconsidered the definitions used in the
 draft Paper RMAN and has concluded
 that they are inconsistent with RCRA
 section 6002 (h). EPA also has concluded
 that industry commenters are correct
 that retaining the definitions would
 require the Agency to conduct new
 research into the recovered fiber content
 of products. Further, EPA believes that,
 because the materials in question
 represent a small percentage of all
 materials recovered and used, the
 definitions "would not make a significant
 contribution to expanding the use of
 postconsumer materials. For these
 reasons, EPA will retain the 1988
 definition of "mill broke" in the final
 Paper RMAN. EPA also is retaining the
 1988 definition of "waste paper" as the
 basis of the definition of "recovered
 fiber." However, the Agency has
 modified the "recovered fiber"
 definition by adding that the material
 must be re-pulped and by excluding the
 words "forest residues."

 C. Inclusion of Recommendations for
 Consumer (At-home) Tissue Products

  In the draft Paper RMAN, EPA
 recommended content levels for
 consumer (at-home) bathroom tissue
 and paper towels (see Table A-3 in 60
 FR 14190, March 15, 1995). Based on
 the data it had gathered on tissue
 products, EPA concluded that the paper
 industry produced two distinct product
 lines: consumer (at-home) tissue
 products and commercial/industrial
 (away-from-home) products. While
 procuring agencies generally would not
 purchase consumer tissue products and,
 consequently, would not be subject to
 the purchasing requirements under
 RCRA section 6002 with respect to these
 products, EPA determined that the
 Paper RMAN was a useful vehicle for
 disseminating information on another
 market for materials recovered from the
solid waste stream. RCRA section
 8003(e) specifically directs EPA to
provide information on resource
recovery.
                      Commenters opposed the inclusion of
                    recommendations for consumer
                    bathroom tissue and paper towels. They
                    stated that the use of postconsumer and
                    recovered fiber in consumer tissue
                    products is driven by customer demand
                    and mill economics and does not need
                    additional stimulus from EPA
                    recommendations. Several of the
                    commenters stated that customer
                    surveys and product shelf tests
                    indicated that consumers resist recycled
                    content consumer tissue products. They
                    also noted that government agencies do
                    not purchase consumer tissue products
                    and that, therefore, EPA had exceeded
                    its authority by recommending content
                    levels for these products.
                      EPA believes that it did not exceed its
                    authority under RCRA by
                    recommending content levels for
                    consumer tissue products. RCRA section
                    6002 directs EPA to provide guidance
                    regarding the use of postconsumer
                    materials in paper products. Moreover,
                    as noted above, EPA has general
                    authority under RCRA section 8003 to
                    provide information about the use of
                    recovered materials in products.
                      EPA's intent in recommending
                    content levels for consumer tissue
                    products •was to encourage
                    manufacturers producing these items
                    with postconsumer and other recovered
                    fiber. EPA policy has been to
                    recommend content levels for paper
                    products not purchased by government
                    agencies if those recommendations
                    would advance recycling and were
                    supported by the product
                    manufacturers. However, given the
                    absence of any RCRA section 6002
                    obligations with respect to consumer
                    tissue products and concern that EPA's
                    action would, in fact, adversely affect
                    the market for such products, EPA is not
                    including recommendations for
                    consumer tissue products in the final
                    Paper RMAN.

                    D. Recommendations for Newsprint,
                    Corrugated Containers, Carrierboard,
                    and Commercial/Industrial Tissue
                    Products
                      In the March 15,1995 Federal
                    Register, EPA described its
                    methodology for establishing the ranges
                    of recovered and postconsumer fiber
                    recommended in the draft Paper RMAN
                    (60 FR 14186). EPA stated that the high
                    end of each range will be set at the
                    maximum content currently used in
                    paper and paper products that are
                    available in sufficient quantities, and
                    with adequate competition, to meet
                    procuring agency needs. The low end of
                    each range will be set at levels that can
                    be met by the simple majority of mills
                    currently producing paper and paper
 products containing postconsumer and
 recovered fiber. Comments indicated
 that the low end of the recommended
 ranges for newsprint, corrugated
 containers, carrierboard, and
 commercial/industrial tissue products
 did not reflect the fiber levels being
 used by a simple majority of mills at
 that time.

 1. Newsprint
   In the draft Paper RMAN, EPA
 recommended that newsprint contain
 40-100% recovered fiber, including 40-
 85% postconsumer fiber (see Table
 A-2 in 60 FR 14189, March 15,1995).
 Commenters stated that the low end of
 EPA's recommended ranges, 40%, is too
 high and does not reflect the content
 currently used by a simple majority of
 North American newsprint mills.  In
 evaluating these comments, EPA
 researched the current postconsumer
 content of newsprint manufactured by
 34 U.S. and Canadian mills and found
 that the majority of mills use about 20%
 postconsumer fiber.
  Based on this additional information,
 and consistent with the methodology
 described in the draft Paper RMAN,
 EPA is revising the recommended
 ranges for newsprint in the final RMAN
 to 20-100% recovered fiber and 20-
 85% postconsumer fiber. EPA believes
 that government procuring agencies will
 continue to be able to purchase
 newsprint containing higher levels of
 both postconsumer and other recovered
 fiber. EPA believes that some private
 sector purchasers also will be able to
 purchase newsprint containing high
 levels of both postconsumer and other
 recovered fiber, but others will not.
 These other purchasers should seek
 newsprint containing lower levels of
 both postconsumer and other recovered
 fiber, consistent with EPA's
 recommended ranges, rather than
 simply purchasing newsprint containing
 no recovered fiber.
 2. Corrugated Containers
  In the draft Paper RMAN, EPA
 recommended that corrugated
 containers with a strength rating of less
 than 300 pounds per square inch (<300
 psi) contain 40-50% recovered fiber,
 including 40-50% postconsumer fiber.
 EPA also recommended that corrugated
 containers with a strength rating of 300
psi contain 30% recovered fiber, all of
which is postconsumer fiber (see Table
A-4 in 60 FR 14190, March 15,1995).
  Commenters questioned the low end
 of the ranges and indicated that EPA's
 data regarding the postconsumer
content of corrugating medium did not
reflect what the majority of mills
currently use. Commenters provided

-------
                 Federal Register / Vol. 61,  No. 104  / Wednesday. May 29, 1996 / Notices           26989
current information about the
percentages of postconsumer and
recovered fiber used in corrugated
containers. The data confirmed that at
least some mills could meet the ranges
recommended in the draft Paper RMAN.
Using new data submitted by
commenters about the current
postconsumer content of corrugating
medium, and consistent with the
methodology described in the draft
Paper RMAN, EPA re-calculated the
content of corrugated containers and
concluded that the low end of the
recommended ranges should be 25%.
Therefore, in Table A-4 of the final
Paper RMAN, EPA recommends that
corrugated containers (<300 psi) contain
25-50% recovered fiber, including 25-
50% postconsumer fiber and that
corrugated containers (300 psi) contain
25-30% recovered fiber, including 25-
30% postconsumer fiber.
3. Carrierboard
  In the draft Paper RMAN, EPA
recommended that carrierboard (which
is a type of paperboard used to package
multi-packs of beverages containers)
contain 25-100% recovered fiber,
including 15% postconsumer fiber (see
Table A-4 in 60 FR 14190, March 15,
1995). The two manufacturers of
unbleached kraft carrierboard
commented that, due to shortages of old
corrugated containers (OCC), the
postconsumer fiber content of their
product currently was 10%. The
manufacturers previously had used 15%
postconsumer fiber but were
experiencing problems obtaining
adequate supplies of OCC. Based on this
information, and consistent with the
methodology for establishing the low
end of the ranges described in the draft
Paper RMAN, EPA is changing the
postconsumer fiber recommendation for
carrierboard in the final Paper RMAN to
a range of 10-15%. EPA is making a
corresponding revision to the recovered
fiber range, 10-100%. Purchasing
agencies should note that, when OCC
supplies are adequate, the
manufacturers should be able to provide
carrierboard containing 15%
postconsumer fiber.
4. Commercial/Industrial Tissue
Products
   In the draft Paper RMAN, EPA
recommended that commercial/
industrial sanitary tissue products
contain 100% recovered fiber, including
varying ranges of postconsumer fiber
 (see Table A-3 in 60 FR 14190, March
 15,1995). EPA recommended a 100%
recovered fiber level, rather than a
 range, because the Agency's data
 indicated that most manufacturers
produced tissue products containing
100% recovered fiber.
  Commenters stated that EPA's data on
commercial/industrial tissue products
were incorrect. The commenters stated
that many of the tissue manufacturers
produce one product line containing
100% recovered fiber, but this
represents only a small fraction of their
overall product lines. The commenters
also stated that there is not a sufficient
supply of tissue products containing
100% recovered fiber to ensure product
availability and competition or to
supply the broader, commercial  (non-
government) market. In addition, they
stated that, even if they wanted to re-
formulate their product lines to contain
100% recovered fiber, they would not
be able to do so, because they currently
are experiencing shortages and/or high
prices for the grades of recovered paper
used in tissue products. The
commenters submitted new data to
substantiate their comments.
  In the supporting analyses to the draft
Paper RMAN, EPA stated that there is
great variability in the postconsumer
and recovered fiber usage among tissue
producers. The commenters' data
confirm this variability. In fact,
commenters demonstrated that some
tissue mills have integrated pulp and
papermaking operations and use small
percentages of postconsumer and
recovered fiber combined with wood-
based pulp. Others rely entirely on
postconsumer and recovered fiber. EPA
believes that commenters demonstrated
that the Agency should recommend a
range for the recovered fiber content of
tissue products. Adding ranges will
provide flexibility to all tissue mills
when fiber supplies are tight and will
allow more mills to compete, thereby
encouraging greater usage of
postconsumer fiber.
   Commenters proposed that EPA retain
the 1988 postconsumer-only content
recommendations in the final Paper
RMAN, rather than two-part content
recommendations. The commenters
stated that there is an inadequate supply
of recovered paper for tissue mills to
meet the postconsumer fiber ranges
recommended in the draft Paper RMAN
and provided data to support their
comments.
   EPA continues to believe that the use
of two-part content levels will result in
 greater usage of postconsumer materials
by all tissue mills than will
 postconsumer-only levels because, as
stated in the March 15,1995 Federal
 Register notice (60 FR 14185), mills will
 use postconsumer fiber to meet both
 some of their total recovered fiber needs
 and their postconsumer fiber needs.
  Aggregate data provided by
commenters and EPA's conversations
with tissue manufacturers indicate that
the majority of mills can meet the 1988
recommended content levels for
bathroom tissue, paper towels, and
paper napkins.
  EPA's 1988 recommended content
level for facial tissue was 5%
postconsumer fiber. EPA requested
additional information from the
commenters regarding the postconsumer
fiber content of facial tissue. The
additional information is discussed in
"Final Paper Products RMAN—
Response to Comments." EPA believes
that the information supports a
postconsumer fiber range of 10-15% for
facial tissue.
  Based on the original comments and
the additional information about facial
tissue, EPA is recommending the
following levels for commercial/
industrial tissue products in the final
Paper RMAN:
  • Bathroom tissue: 20-100%
recovered fiber, including 20-60%
postconsumer fiber,
  • Paper towels: 40-100% recovered
fiber, including 40-60% postconsumer
fiber,
  • Paper napkins: 30-100% recovered
fiber, including 30-60% postconsumer
fiber, and
  • Facial tissue: 10-100% recovered
fiber, including 10-15% postconsumer
fiber.

III. Revision to  Executive Order 12873
  Section 504 of Executive Order 12873
 (58 FR 54916, October 22,1993)
established postconsumer content
standards for selected uncoated printing
and writing papers. The Executive
 Order specified a 20% postconsumer
content for high speed copier paper,
 offset paper, forms bond, computer
printout paper,  carbonless paper, file
folders, and white wove envelopes, and
 a standard of 50% recovered materials,
 including 20%  postconsumer materials,
 for writing and office paper, book paper,
 cotton fiber paper, and text and cover
 paper. EPA incorporated these content
 levels into its recommendations for
 printing and writing papers in the draft
 Paper RMAN. (As explained in "Draft
 Paper Products RMAN—Supporting
 Analyses," EPA used slightly different
 terminology in  the draft Paper RMAN
 than that used in the Executive Order to
 reflect the way in which terms are
 currently used  by paper mills, vendors,
 and procuring agencies.)
   On March  25,1996, President Clinton
 amended section 504 to delete the 50%
 recovered materials standard. (See
 Executive Order 12995, 61 FR 13645,
 March 28, 1996.) As a result, the

-------
 26990
Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 104  / Wednesday, May 29,  1996 / Notices
 Executive Order now establishes a 20%
 postconsumer content level for all of the
 named printing and writing papers. EPA
 has revised Table A-la in the final
 Paper RMAN accordingly.

 IV. Supporting Materials and Accessing
 Internet
   The index of supporting materials is
 available in the RCRA Information
 Center (RIC) and on the Internet. The
 address and telephone number of the
 RIC are provided in ADDRESSES above.
 The following supporting materials are
 available on the Internet:
   Final Summary of Comments on the
 Proposed Paper Products Recovered
 Materials Advisory Notice, prepared for U.S.
 EPA by Eastern Research Group, July 27,
 1995,64 pages.
   Draft Paper Products RMAN—Supporting
 Analyses, Office of Solid Waste, U.S. EPA,
 February 1995, 86 pages.
   Final Paper Products Recovered Materials
 Advisory Notice —Response to Public
 Comments,.Office of Solid Waste, U.S. EPA,
 April 1996, 64 pages.
   Copies of the following supporting
 materials are available for viewing at the
 RIC only:
   Memorandum, regarding the Status of Over-
 Issue Publications from Richard T. Witt,
 Attorney, Solid Waste and Emergency
 Response Division, Office of General
 Counsel, to Robert W. Dellinger, Associate
 Division Director, Municipal & Industrial
 Solid Waste Division, Office of Solid Waste,
 February 9, 1996, 4 pages.
   Minutes, ExParte Meeting Between EPA
 and The Tissue Producers Coalition, July 07,
 1995, 4 pages.
   Memorandum to the Record, Final Paper
 Products RMAN, re Market Share of
 Commercial/Industrial Tissue Market, March
 12, 1996, 2 pages.
   Minutes, ExParte Meeting Between EPA
 and Newsprint Manufacturers, February 13,
 1996, 3 pages.
   "Research on Use of Postconsumer
 Materials in Newsprint Manufacturing,"
 prepared for U.S. EPA by Eastern Research
 Group, October 25, 1995, 4 pages.
   "Meeting Average Recycled Content
 Newsprint Goals in the Newspaper
 Publishing Industry," Final Report, prepared
 for US. EPA by Eastern Research Group,
 December 18, 1995, 5 pages.
   "Use of Recovered Fiber in Selected
 Bristols," Final Report, prepared for U.S.
 EPA by Eastern Research Group, December
 18, 1995.
  Letter to Dana Arnold regarding machine
 finished uncoated groundwood paper,
 American Forest & Paper Association, Sara
 Freund, February 13, 1996, 1 page.
  Minutes, Ex Parte Meeting Between EPA
 and Representatives of Mead Corporation,
July 18, 1995, 2 pages.
   Follow these instructions to access
 the information electronically:
 Gopher: gopher.epa.gov
WWW: http://www.epa.gov
                     Dial-up: 919 558-0335
                       The materials can be accessed off the
                     main EPA Gopher menu, in the
                     directory EPA Offices and Regions/
                     Office of Solid Waste and Emergency
                     Response (OSWER)/Office of Solid
                     Waste (RCRA)/[Non-Hazardous Waste—
                     RCRA Subtitle D/Procurement/Paper].
                     FTP: ftp.epa.gov
                     Login: anonymous
                     Password: your Internet address
                     Files are located in /pub/gopher/
                         OSWRCRA.

                     V. Use of EPA's Recommendations
                       EPA encourages state and local
                     agencies to use the recommendations in
                     today's final Paper RMAN when
                     purchasing paper and paper products.
                     EPA also encourages private sector
                     purchasers to use the information
                     provided by EPA when purchasing
                     paper and paper products. EPA
                     recommends that purchasers establish
                     their minimum content standards at the
                     highest percentages available to them
                     that achieve their price and performance
                     objectives, even if these standards
                     exceed EPA's recommended ranges. If a
                     product is not available at a competitive
                     price and at a content level at the high
                     end of EPA's recommended ranges,
                     purchasers should set their standards at
                     the highest levels available to them that
                     meet their price and performance
                     objectives, using the recommended
                     ranges as a guide. In this way, EPA's
                     recommended ranges will encourage
                     both public and private sector
                     purchasers to purchase paper products
                     containing the highest levels of
                     postconsumer and recovered fiber
                     practicable.
                      EPA has found that some state
                     agencies have been using the Agency's
                     1988 content recommendations as a
                    starting point in establishing product
                    labeling requirements. While EPA's
                    recommendations were not intended for
                    use as labeling standards, they can be
                    used as an information source for
                    agencies establishing recycled product
                    labeling programs.
                      EPA cautions persons using EPA's
                    recommendations, whether to establish
                    purchasing specifications or labeling
                    standards, to use them only for  the
                    specific items for which they were
                    intended. It is not appropriate to
                    analogize from one item in a paper
                    grade (e.g., printing and writing paper,
                    tissue products, paperboard) to  another
                    item that could also fall within  that
                    grade, without first researching the use
                    of postconsumer and recovered fiber in
                    the other item. The two items could
                    have different performance
                    requirements necessitating different
 levels of postconsumer or recovered
 fiber. In addition, one item could be
 made primarily by mills that use high
 percentages of postconsumer or
 recovered fiber, while the other item
 could be made primarily by mills that
 use low or no percentages of this fiber.
   Dated: May 15, 1996.

 Elliott P. Laws,
 Assistant Administrator,
 Office of Solid Waste and Emergency
 Response.

 Final Paper Products Recovered
 Materials Advisory Notice
   This Paper Products Recovered
 Materials Advisory Notice (Paper
 RMAN)  contains EPA's
 recommendations to procuring agencies
 for purchasing paper and paper
 products in compliance with section
 6002 of the Resource Conservation and
 Recovery Act of 1976 (RCRA). These
 recommendations replace the
 recommendations found in EPA's 1988
 paper procurement guideline,  40  CFR
 Part 250 (53 FR 23545, June 22, 1988).
 These recommendations also replace the
 recommendations found in Part A of
 EPA's 1995 RMAN (60 FR 21388-21389,
 May 1,1995). The contents of this Paper
 RMAN consist of the Part A, Paper and
 Paper Products, sections listed below.

 Contents

 Part A—Paper and Paper Products
 Section A-l—Printing and Writing
    Papers
 Section A-2—Newsprint
 Section A-3—Commercial/Industrial
    Sanitary Tissue Products
 Section A-4—Paperboard and
    Packaging Products
 Section A-5—Miscellaneous Paper
    Products
 Section A-6—Other Recommendations
    for Paper and Paper Products
 Section A-7—Definitions
 Appendix A-l.—Example Calculation
    of Postconsumer Fiber Content of a
    Corrugated Container

 Part A—Paper and Paper Products

 Section A-l—Printing and Writing
 Papers
  Preference Program: EPA recommends
 that procuring agencies establish
 minimum content standards expressed
 as a percentage of recovered fiber,
 including a percentage of postconsumer
 fiber. EPA recommends that procuring
 agencies  base their minimum content
standards for printing and writing
papers on the content levels shown in
Tables A-la, A-lb, and A-lc.
Percentages are based on the fiber
weight of the product. The content

-------
                 Federal Register / Vol.  61, No. 104 / Wednesday, May 29,  1996 / Notices
                                                                                                     26991
levels in the tables should be read as
X% recovered fiber, including Y%
postconsumer fiber and not as X%
recovered fiber plus Y% postconsumer
                                    fiber. Where the content level is the      recommending that agencies establish
                                    same in both columns (e.g., 20% in both  identical content levels for both
                                    the recovered fiber and postconsumer     postconsumer and recovered fiber.
                                    fiber columns), this means that EPA is
  TABLE A-1A.— RECOMMENDED RECOVERED FIBER CONTENT LEVELS FOR UNCOATED PRINTING AND WRITING PAPERS
Item

Reprographic Paper (e.g., mimeo ana duplicator paper, nign-speea oupiei pa^ci, emu uuuu ya^,/ 	
Onset Paper (e.g., onset pruning paper,1 BOOK paper , ounu papci / 	 ;•."••"• 	 • 	

Forms Bond (e.g., fomis, computer printout paper, ledger) 	
Envelope Paper:
\AkUA 	
Kraft

Cotton Fiber Paper (e.g., cotton 'fiber papers, iedger,1 stationery 1 and matching envelopes, and other writing < pa-
Toxt & Cover Paper (e.g., cover stock, 'book paper1, stationery1 and matching envelopes, and other writing 1
paper) 	 	
Supercalendered 	
Papetertes 	
Check Safety Paper 	 	
Recovered
fiber
(%)
20
20
20
20
20
10-20
10
20
20
10
10
20
10

Postconsumer
fiber
_ (%)
20
20
20
20
20
10-20
10
20
20
10
10
20
10

the
        Hems can be made from a variety of printing and writing papers, 1*.=,,=,•«••.» »	- ,--..	T—•—•—-•—•-— i" "*_--^,u-,r-,^
            a commodihr-type and some are specialty papers. EPA recommends that procunng agencies determine the performance charac-
rereucs .«».dd oTSrpapefpriorto establishing minimum Went standards. For example, bond, ledger, or statonery made from cotton fiber
paperor a text & cover paper have different characteristics than similar items made from commodity papers.

   TABLE A-1B.—RECOMMENDED RECOVERED FIBER CONTENT LEVELS FOR COATED PRINTING AND WRITING PAPERS
Item

Carbonless 	
Recovered
fiber
10
20
Postconsumer
fiber
10
20
                 TABLE A-1C.—RECOMMENDED RECOVERED FIBER CONTENT LEVELS FOR BRISTOLS
Item




Tags and Tickets 	
Recovered
fiber
(%)
20
20-50
50
50
20-50
Postconsumer
fiber
(%)
20
20
20
20
20
                                            Section A-2—Newsprint
    Preference Program: EPA recommends that procuring agencies establish minimum content standards expressed as
 a percentage of recovered fiber, including a percentage of postconsumer fiber. EPA recommends that procuring agencies
 base their minimum content standards for newsprint on  the content levels shown in Table A-2. Percentages  are based
 on the fiber weight of the product. The content levels in the table should be read as X%  recovered fiber,  including
 Y% postconsumer fiber and not as X% recovered fiber plus Y% postconsumer fiber.

                 TABLE A-2.—RECOMMENDED RECOVERED FIBER CONTENT LEVELS FOR NEWSPRINT
Item
Newsprint 	
Recovered
fiber
(%)
20-100
Postconsumer
fiber
(%)
20-85
                            Section A-3—Commercial/Industrial Sanitary Tissue Products
    Preference Program: EPA recommends that procuring agencies establish minimum content standards  expressed as
 a percentage of recovered fiber, including a percentage of postconsumer fiber. EPA recommends that procuring agencies

-------
 26992
Federal  Register  / Vol. 61, No.  104 / Wednesday, May 29. 1996 / Notices
 base their minimum content standards for commercial/industrial tissue products on the content levels shown in Table
 A-3. Percentages  are based on the fiber weight of the product.  The content levels  in  the  table should  be  read as
 X% recovered fiber, including Y% postconsumer fiber and not as  X% recovered fiber plus Y%  postconsumer fiber.

   TABLE A-3.—RECOMMENDED RECOVERED FIBER CONTENT LEVELS FOR COMMERCIAL/INDUSTRIAL SANITARY TISSUE
                                                   PRODUCTS
Item
Bathroom tissue 	 .. 	
Paper towels 	
Paper napkins 	
Facial tissue 	
General purpose industrial wipers 	
Recovered
fiber
(%)
20—100
40-100
•5n_inn
10—100
40-100
Postconsumer
fiber
- (%)
on fin
Art fin
•an—fin
10—1^
40
                                  Section A-4—Paperboard and Packaging Products
    Preference Program: EPA recommends that procuring agencies establish minimum content standards expressed as
a percentage of recovered fiber, including a percentage of postconsumer fiber. EPA recommends that procuring agencies
base their minimum content standards for  paperboard and packaging  products on the content levels  shown in Table
A-4.  Percentages are based on the fiber weight of the product. The content levels in the table should be read as
X% recovered fiber,  including Y% postconsumer fiber and not as X%  recovered fiber  plus Y% postconsumer  fiber.
Where the content level is the same in both columns  (e.g.,  40%  in both the recovered fiber and postconsumer fiber
columns), this means that EPA is recommending that agencies establish  identical  content levels for postconsumer and
recovered-fiber.

    TABLE A-4.—RECOMMENDED RECOVERED FIBER CONTENT LEVELS FOR PAPERBOARD AND PACKAGING PRODUCTS
Item
Corrugated containers: 1
(OOOpsi) 	
(300 psi) 	 j 	
Solid Fiber Boxes 	
Folding cartons2 	
Industrial paperboard (e.g., tubes, cores, drums, and cans) 	 	 	
Miscellaneous (e.g., pad backs, covered binders, book covers, mailing tubes, protective packaging)
Padded mailers 	
Carrierboard3 	
Brown papers (e.g., wrapping paper and bags) 	
Recovered
fiber
(%)
25—50
25—30
40
100
100
90-100
5—15
in_inn
5-40
Postconsumer
fiber
(%)
OE_ Crt
9C_/an
4O
40—80
45—100
75-100
*v_1^
m_- 1^
5-20
  1 The recovered fiber and postconsumer fiber content is calculated from the content of each component relative to the weight each contributes
to the total weight of the box. See Appendix I for an example.
  2The recommended content ranges are not applicable to all types of paperboard used in folding cartons. Cartons made from solid bleached
sulfate or solid unbleached sulfate contain no or small percentages of postconsumer fiber, depending on the paperboard source
  3 Carrierboard made from unbleached kraft contains up to 25% recovered fiber, while carrier-board made from recycled paperboard contains UD
to 100% recovered fiber.                                                                                           K

                                    Section A-5—Miscellaneous Paper Products
    Preference Program: EPA recommends that procuring agencies establish minimum content  standards expressed as
a percentage of recovered fiber, including a percentage of postconsumer fiber. EPA recommends  that procuring agencies
base their minimum content standards for the listed paper products on the content levels shown in Table A-5. Percentages
are based on  the  fiber weight of the product.  The content levels in the  table should be  read as 100% recovered
fiber, including X% postconsumer fiber and not as 100% recovered fiber plus Y% postconsumer fiber.

      TABLE A-5.—RECOMMENDED RECOVERED  FIBER CONTENT LEVELS FOR MISCELLANEOUS PAPER PRODUCTS
Item
Tray liners 	

Recovered
fiber
100

Postconsumer
fiber
50-75

Section A-6—Other Recommendations
for Paper and Paper Products
  Measurement: EPA recommends that
procuring agencies express their
minimum content standards as a
                   percentage of the fiber weight of the
                   paper or paper product EPA further
                   recommends that procuring agencies
                   specify that mill broke cannot be
                   counted toward postconsumer or
recovered fiber content, except that
procuring agencies should permit mills
to count mill broke generated in a
papermaking process using
postconsumer and/or recovered fiber as

-------
                  Federal Register / Vol. 61, No.  104 / Wednesday,  May 29, 1996  / Notices
                                                                   26993
feedstock toward "postconsumer fiber"
or "recovered fiber" content, to the
extent that the feedstock contained
these materials. In other words, if a mill
uses less than 100% postconsumer or
recovered fiber, only a proportional
amount of broke can be counted towards
postconsumer or recovered fiber
content
  Specifications: EPA recommends that
procuring agencies review specifications
provisions pertaining to performance
and aesthetics and revise provisions that
can impede use of postconsumer and
recovered fiber, unless such provisions
are related to reasonable performance
standards. Agencies should determine
whether performance provisions are
unnecessarily stringent for a particular
end use. Agencies also should revise
aesthetics provisions—such as
brightness, dirt count, or shade
matching—if appropriate, consistent
with the agencies" performance
requirements, in order to allow for a
higher use of postconsumer  and
recovered fiber.
  EPA recommends that procuring
agencies document determinations that
paper products containing
postconsumer and recovered fiber will
not meet the agencies' reasonable
performance standards. Any
determination should be based on
technical performance information
related to a specific item, not a grade of
paper or type of product.
  EPA recommends that procuring
agencies watch for changes in the use of
postconsumer and recovered fiber in
paper and paper products. When a
paper or a paper product containing
postconsumer and recovered fiber is
produced in types and grades not
previously available, at a competitive
price, procuring agencies should either
revise specifications to allow the use of
such type or grade, or develop new
specifications for such type  or grade,
consistent with the agencies'
performance requirements.
  Recyclability. EPA recommends that
procuring agencies consider the effect of
a procurement of a paper product
containing recovered and postconsumer
fiber on their paper collection programs
by assessing the impact of their decision
on their overall contribution to the solid
waste stream.

Section A-7—Definitions
  For purposes of the recommendations
contained in this Part, terms shall have
the following meanings:
  "Postconsumer fiber" means:
  (1) Paper, paperboard, and fibrous
wastes from retail stores, office
buildings, homes, and so forth, after
they have passed through their end-
usage as a consumer item, including:
used corrugated boxes; old newspapers;
old magazines; mixed waste paper;
tabulating cards; and used cordage; and
  (2) All paper, paperboard, and fibrous
wastes that enter and are collected from
municipal solid waste.
  Postconsumer fiber does not include
fiber derived from printers' over-runs,
converters' scrap, and over-issue
publications.
  "Recovered fiber" means the
following materials:
  (1) Postconsumer fiber such as:
  (A) Paper, paperboard, and fibrous
materials from retail stores, office
buildings, homes, and so forth, after
they have passed through their end-
usage as a consumer item, including:
used corrugated boxes; old newspapers;
old magazines; mixed waste paper;
tabulating cards; and used cordage; and
  (B) All paper, paperboard, and fibrous
materials that enter and are collected
from municipal solid waste, and
  (2) Manufacturing wastes such as	
  (A) Dry paper and paperboard waste
generated after completion of the
papermaking process (that is,  those
manufacturing operations up to  and
including the cutting and trimming of
the paper machine reel into smaller rolls
or rough sheets) including: envelope
cuttings, bindery trimmings, and other
paper and paperboard waste resulting
from printing, cutting, forming,  and
other converting operations; bag, box,
and carton manufacturing wastes; and
butt rolls, mill wrappers, and rejected
unused stock; and
  (B) Repulped finished paper and
paperboard from obsolete inventories of
paper and paperboard manufacturers,
merchants, wholesalers, dealers,
printers, converters, or others.
  "Mill broke" means any paper waste
generated in a paper mill prior to
completion of the papermaking process.
It is usually returned directly to the
pulping process. Mill broke is excluded
from the definition of "recovered fiber."

Appendix A-l.—Example Calculation
of Postconsumer Fiber Content of a
Corrugated Container
  C-flute has a take-up factor of
approximately 1.44, which means that
for each one foot of combined
corrugated board there is 1.44 feet of
fluted medium. This factor is used to
calculate the weight of paperboard in a
given area of combined corrugated
board, from which the basis weight of
the board is derived. Each linerboard
contributes 35% of the basis weight (42/
121.4). The medium contributes 30% of
the total basis weight (37.4/121.4).

        BOARD BASIS  WEIGHT

Linerboard #1 : 42 x 1 .00 = 	
Medium' 26 x 1 44 = 	
Linerboard #2: 42 x 1 .00 = 	
Combined Board Weight 	

Ibs/MSF
42.0
37.4
42.0
121.4

  If the linerboard used has 20%
postconsumer fiber and the medium has
80% postconsumer fiber, the resulting
total postconsumer fiber content of the
containerboard is as follows:
Linerboard: .35 x .20 = .07 x 2 = .14 (or
    14%)
Medium: .30 x .80 = .24 (or 24%)
Total postconsumer fiber: .14 + .24 = .38
    (or 38%)
[FR Doc. 96-13432 Filed. 5-28-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P

-------

-------

-------