Federal Register/ Vol. 63, No.  109/Monday, June  8,  1998/Notices
                                                                     31217
 [FR Doe! 98-15175 Filed 6-5-98; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-U
 ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
 AGENCY

 [SWH-FRL-6108-7]

 Recovered Materials Advisory Notice I
 Update

 AGENCY: Environmental Protection
 Agency.
 ACTION: Notice of availability of
 document.

 SUMMARY: The U.S. Environmental
 Protection Agency (EPA) today is
 providing notice of the issuance of an
 update to its May 1,1995 Recovered
 Materials Advisory Notice I (RMAN I).
 The update to RMAN I (RMAN I
 Update) provides guidance to procuring
 agencies for purchasing certain items
 containing recovered materials. Under
 section 6002 of the Resource
 Conservation and Recovery Act of 197,6,
 EPA designates items that are or can be
 made with recovered materials and
 provides recommendations for the
 procurement of these items. In  1989,
 EPA designated building insulation
 products and in 1995, EPA designated
 polyester carpet for use in low- and
 medium-wear applications. EPA's
 recommendations for purchasing these
 items were published in the 1995
 RMAN I, Today's RMAN I Update
 contains a new reference to GSA's
 carpet schedule and a recommendation
 for the recovered materials content level
 for plastic batt building insulation.
 EPA's  1995 recommendations for
 purchasing other types of building
 insulation remain unchanged.
 FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For
 general information contact the RCRA
 Hotline at (800) 424-9346 or TDD (800)
 553-7672 (hearing  impaired). In the
 Washington, DC metropolitan area, call
 (703) 412-9810 or TDD (703) 412-3323.
 For technical information on individual
 item recommendations, contact Terry
 Grist at (703) 308-7257.
 SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

 I. Authority
  The Recovered Materials Advisory
 Notice I Update (RMAN I Update) is
 issued under the authority of sections
 2002(a) and 6002 of the Solid Waste
 Disposal Act, as amended by the
 Resource Conservation and Recovery'
Act of 1976 (RCRA), as amended; 42
U.S.C. 6912(a) and 2962; and section
502 of Executive Order 12873 (58 FR
54911, October 20,  1993).
 II. Background
   Section 6002 of RCRA establishes a
 Federal buy-recycled program. RCRA
 section 6002(e) requires EPA to (1)
 .designate items that are or can be made
 with recovered materials and (2) prepare
 guidelines to assist procuring agencies
 in complying with affirmative
 procurement requirements set forth in
 paragraphs (c), (d), and (i) of section
 6002. Once EPA has designated items,
 section 6002 requires'that any procuring
 agency using appropriated Federal
 funds to procure those items must
 purchase them composed of the highest
 percentage of recovered materials
 practicable. For the purposes of RCRA
 section 6002, procuring agencies
 include the following: (1) any Federal"  •
 agency; (2) any State or local agencies
 using appropriated Federal funds for a
 procurement, or (3) any contractors with
 these agencies  (with respect to work
 performed under the contract). The
 requirements of RCRA section 6002
 apply to such procuring agencies only
 when procuring designated items where
 the price of the item exceeds $ 10,000 or
 the quantity of the item purchased in
 the previous year exceeded $10,000.
   Executive Order 12873 (the Executive
 Order) (58 FR 54911, October 22, 1993)
 directs EPA to designate items in a
 Comprehensive Procurement Guideline
 (CPG) and publish guidance  that
 contains EPA's recommended recovered"
• content levels for the designated items
 in the RMANs.  The Executive Order
 further directs EPA to update the CPG
 annually and the RMANs periodically to
 reflect changes in market conditions.
 EPA codifies the CPG designations in
 the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR),
 but, because the recommendations are
 guidance, the RMANs are not codified
 in the CFR, This process enables EPA to
 revise its recommendations in response
 to changes in a product's availability or
 recovered materials content so as to
 provide timely assistance to procuring
 agencies in fulfilling their
responsibilities under section 6002.
   EPA fssued CPG I on May 1. 1995 (60
FR 21370) designating 19 new items,  -
including polyester carpet, and
published RMAN I for the designated
items on the same day (60 FR 21386).
These notices also consolidated the
guidelines previously issued for, five
items designated between 1983 and
 1989, including building insulation
products. At the time the 1995 RMAN
I was published, the U.S. General
Services Administration (GSA) offered
polyester carpet containing recovered
materials through the New Item      . '
Introductory Schedule (NIIS). RMAN I
referenced that schedule. Since theji,
 GSA has added polyester carpet
 containing recovered materials to its
 carpet schedule, and this item is no
 longer available through the NIIS.
 Accordingly, today's RMAN I Update
 references the current GSA carpet
 schedule.
   Additionally, the RMAN I Update
 contains an addition to the 1995
 recommendations for building ,
 insulation products—recovered
 materials content levels for plastic non-
 woven batt building insulation. EPA ,
 recently learned that this type of
 insulation is now available containing
 recovered materials. EPA's 1995
 recommendations for other types of
 building insulation products remain
 unchanged.  ?

 HI. Accessing Internet
   EPA's Comprehensive Procurement
 Guidelines and eco-purchasing web
 pages contain fact sheets about each
 product category in which EPA has
 designated recycled content products,
 lists of manufacturers and vendors of
 these products, copies of the
 Comprehensive Procurement Guidelines
 and related RMANs,  and  technical
 background documents.
   Follow these instructions to access
 the information electronically:
 WWW: http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/
   non-hw/procure.htm.
 FTP: ftp.epa.gov
 Login: anonymous
 Password: your Internet address
 Files are located in /pub/epaoswer.

 IV. Use of EPA's Recommendations
   EPA encourages state and local
 agencies to use the recommendations in
 today's RMAN I Update when
 purchasing plastic batt building
 insulation or polyester carpet containing
 recovered materials. EPA also
 encourages private sector purchasers to
 use the information provided by EPA
 when purchasing these items. 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 are
 higher or lower than EPA's
 recommendations.  If a product is not
 available at a competitive price
 containing the recommended recovered
 material content levels, purchasers
 should set their standards at the highest
 levels available to diem that meet their
 price and performance objectives. In
this way, EPA's recommendations will
encourage both public and private
sector purchasers to purchase the
designated items containing the highest
levels of recovered material practicable.

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*Hi|l|*j.j.2.f8                Federal Register/Vol. 63.  No.  109/Monday, June 8,  1998/Notices

11 mm"'	
    EPA cautions persons using EPA's
  recommendations to use them only for
	thfrjSpecJflc Items for which they were
  intended, It is not appropriate to
  analogize from one type of insulation or
  carpet to another without first
	researching the~use	oTrecb vered	
  	lals'ii) the other items. The two
       could	have	different performa nee
      refnents	necessitating different
  levels of recovered materials.
         Dated; June 1,1998.
      iillJIm^thy Fields. Jr.,
      'Acting Assistant Administrator, Office of
       Solid Waste and Emergency Response.
       Recovered Materials Advisory Notice I
       Update
         Following are updates to EPA's
       recommendgllons	to,' procuring agencies
       for purchasing polyester carpet and
       building insulation products containing
   recovered materials, in compliance with
   section 6002 of the Resource
   Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).
   These recommendations are intended to
   be used in conjunction with RMAN I (60
   FR21386, May 1. 1995). The remainder
   of the RMAN I recommendations for
   these items remains unchanged. Refer to
   RMAN I or the Code of Federal
   Regulations at 40 CFR part 247 for
   definitions, general recommendations
   for affirmative procurement programs,
   and additional recommendations for
   purchasing these items containing
   recovered materials.
   Part C.—Construction Products
   (Revised)

   Section C-l. Building Insulation
   (Revised)
    Note: EPA recommended purchasing
  practices, including recovered materials
                                                                                        content levels, for thermal building
                                                                                        insulation products in RMAN I: EPA is
                                                                                        revising those recommendations by adding a
                                                                                        recovered materials content level for plastic
                                                                                        batt building insulation. Procuring agencies
                                                                                        should substitute the revised Table C-l
                                                                                        shown below for the recommendations found
                                                                                        in section C-l of the 1995 RMAN I. EPA's
                                                                                        revised recommendations are indicated in
                                                                                        Bold type.

                                                                                         Preference Program: EPA recommends
                                                                                        that, based on the recovered materials
                                                                                        content levels shown in Table C-l
                                                                                        (Revised), procuring agencies establish
                                                                                       minimum content standards for use in
                                                                                       purchasing building insulation
                                                                                       products.
            TABLE	O-1.	fl^^.^—R^oMM^pED	RECOVERED MATERIALS CONTENT LEVELS FOR BUILDING INSULATION
    i i	,	,	i	'	'	Insulation	material	
      Cellulose k»sf-fill and spray-on .................................................
      Fiberglass  ........ [[[
      PflMflPJKxwne board ............................................ .".'""".".' ........
      Ppfpc, rjgldfoam ............ . [[[
      Pwitlc, non-woven batt [[[
      Plastic foam-Jq-place, pdyisocyanurate/polyurethane .................
llllllll  I Pltslte rigid foam, polyisocyanurate/polyurethane .......................
      Pfastfc fpjirrj,  glass  liber  reinforced  polyisocyanurale/poly-
      Rock wool
                                                                               Recovered material
                                                            Postconsumer paper 	,
                                                            Glass cullet	
                                                            Postconsumer paper 	
                                                            Recovered materials	'.	
                                                            Recovered and/or postconsumer plastics .
                                                            Recovered materials	
                                                            Recovered materials	
                                                            Recovered materials	
                                                            Slag .
                                                                                                             Total recov-
                                                                                                             ered mate-
                                                                                                              rials (%)
                                                                                                                     75
                                                                                                                  20-25
                                                                                                                     23
                                                                                                                    100
                                                                                                                      5
                                                                                                                      9
                                                                                                                      6
                                                                                                                          75
           ;; The recommended recovered
      mitwrliils content levels are based on the
	^velght (not volume) of materjalsln the	'	
      Insulating core only.
•IIIIIIIIIIIIIII IIIIIIIIIIIIIII IIIIIIIIII IIIII llllllllH^   	
	Section  C-4,	Carper,
                                              FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS
                                              COMMISSION
                 t 1£ willV*
                 iiiiiiH    	liiiiiiiin^^^^   	iiiiiiiiii m iii'iiiiiiii'iiii iiiiiHii1! [DA 98—1052]
• lllllil
                            . purchasing
      practices. Including specifications, for
      polyester carpet in RMAN I. EPA is revising
      theseracommendationstoadd	a refgrence to	
      the (Seoerii Services Administration's carpet
      schedule and the current contract for
      polyester carpet containing recovered
             ,,	All of EPAjsodjej- purchasing
111 IIIII
                                              Pleading for Further Modification of
                                              Two Average Schedules Formula
                                              Proposed by NECA

                                              AGENCY: Federal Communications
                                              Commission.
                                              ACTION: Notice.

                                              SUMMARY: This Public Notice invites
                                              interested parties to comment on the
                                                                Carrier Association's
    1	1£P
     GSA'S ct
                         i: EPA recommends
           _ jjeral procuring agencies use
          s contract GS-27F-5Q69-Cunder
    • uujjcjdule 72, part I. section A, when
     purchasing polyester carpet containing
     recovered materials.
     fFR Doc. 98-15176 Filed 6T5-98; 8:45 am]
     BK.UNO CODE S56O-60-U
III	
      Ill
               III  III Illllllllill
                                 III
 (NECA) proposed further modifications
 of Common Line and Universal Service
 Fund Average Schedules.
 DATES: Comments are to be filed on or
 before June 10, 1998.
 ADDRESSES: Federal Cpmmunications
 Commission. 1919 M Street, NW,
 Washington, DC 20054.
 FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
 George Williams, Accounting
Safeguards Division, Common Carrier
Bureau, (202) 418-0867.
                                                                                SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
                                                                                Accounting Safeguards Division of the
                                                                                Federal Communications Commission
                                                                                will be considering this action.
                                                                                Interested parties may file comments on
                                                                                the petition on or before June 10, 1998,
                                                                                with the Secretary, Federal
                                                                                Communications Commission,  1919 M
                                                                                Street, NW, Room 222. Washington, DC
                                                                                20554. Comments should reference
                                                                                AAD 98-20. An original and nine (9)
                                                                                copies of each pleading should be sent
                                                                                to the Secretary, Federal
                                                                                Communications Commission,  1919 M
                                                                                Street, NW, Room 222, Washington, DC
                                                                                20554. A copy of the pleading should
                                                                                also be sent to George Williams,
                                                                                Reporting Management and Analysis
                                                                                Branch, Accounting Safeguard Division,
                                                                                Common Carrier Bureau, and to the
                                                                                Commission's contractor for public
                                                                                service record duplication: International
                                                                                Transcription Service (ITS),  1231 20th
                                                                                Street, NW, Washington. DC 20036.
                                                                                Copies of the petition may be obtained
                                                                                from the Accounting Safeguards
                                                                                Division's public reference room. Room

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