{"abstract":"Today's final regulation amends the ``Guidelines Establishing Test Procedures for the Analysis of Pollutants'' under section 304(h) of the Clean Water Act to approve EPA Method 1613 for determination of tetra-through octa-chlorinated, 2,3,7,8-substituted, dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (CDDs/CDFs) by high resolution gas chromatography (HRGC) coupled with high resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS). This regulation makes available at 40 CFR part 136 an additional, more sensitive test procedure for CDDs/CDFs. Method 1613 is the most sensitive analytical test procedure approved under the Clean Water Act for the analysis of CDDs/CDFs because it measures into the low part- per-quadrillion (ppq) range. Use of approved test procedures is required whenever the discharge constituent specified is required to be measured for: a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit application; discharge monitoring reports; state certification; and other requests from the permitting authority for quantitative or qualitative effluent data. Use of approved test procedures also is required for the expression of pollutant amounts, characteristics, or properties in effluent limitations guidelines and standards of performance and pretreatment standards, unless otherwise specifically noted or defined.","action":"Final rule.","agencies":[{"raw_name":"ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY","name":"Environmental Protection Agency","id":145,"url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/agencies/environmental-protection-agency","json_url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/api/v1/agencies/145","parent_id":null,"slug":"environmental-protection-agency"}],"body_html_url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/full_text/html/1997/09/15/97-23841.html","cfr_references":[{"chapter":null,"citation_url":null,"part":"136","title":40}],"citation":"62 FR 48394","comment_url":null,"comments_close_on":null,"correction_of":null,"corrections":[],"dates":"This regulation is effective October 15, 1997. In accordance with 40 CFR 23.2, this rule shall be considered issued for the purposes of judicial review September 29, 1997, at 1 p.m. eastern daylight time. Under section 509(b)(1) of the Clean Water Act, judicial review of these amendments can be obtained only by filing a petition for review in the United States Court of Appeals within 120 days after they are considered issued for the purposes of judicial review. Under section 509(b)(2) of the Clean Water Act, the requirements of these amendments may not be challenged later in civil or criminal proceedings to enforce these requirements.","disposition_notes":null,"docket_ids":["FRL-5889-3"],"dockets":[{"supporting_documents":[{"title":"Legacy Index for Docket W-98-15 (Sections I - IV) and W-01-05 (Sections V - VI)","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028-0029"},{"title":"Comment Response Document for Revisions to EPA Method 1631 (Revision E)","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028-0025"},{"title":"Guidance on the Documentation and Evaluation of Trace Metals Data Collected for Clean Water Act Compliance Monitoring [W-01-05-VI-B-12]","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028-0024"},{"title":"Guidance on Establishing Trace Metal Clean Rooms in Existing Facilities [W-01-05-VI-B-11]","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028-0023"},{"title":"Method 1669:  Sampling Ambient Water for Trace Metals at EPA Water Quality Criteria Levels [W-01-05-VI-B-10]","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028-0022"},{"title":"Method 1631, Revision B:  Mercury in Water by Oxidation, Purge and Trap, and Cold Vapor Atomic Fluorescence Spectrometry [W-01-05-VI-B-9]","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028-0021"},{"title":"Memorandum from Khouane Ditthavong, U.S. EPA, to Maria Gomez-Taylor, U.S. EPA. Regarding Proposed Settlement Agreement Provisions in Appendix C - Revisions in EPA Method 1631E for the Determination of Mercury [W-01-05-VI-B-2]","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028-0019"},{"title":"Form for Compliance with E.O. 12866 Docket Requirements [W-01-05-C-1]","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028-0018"},{"title":"Settlement Agreement between the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, Inc., the Chemical Manufacturers Assn., and the Utility Water Act Group (the \"Petitioners\"), the American Forest & Paper Assn. (\"Intervenor\") and the U.S. EPA [W-01-05-B-9 and W-98-15-B-1]","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028-0017"},{"title":"Container Study: Teflon versus Glass for THg by Method 1631 Revision B [W-01-05-B-8]","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028-0016"}],"agency_name":"EPA","documents":[{"comment_count":0,"comment_start_date":"2025-06-12","updated_at":"2025-06-12T13:56:14.404-04:00","comment_url":"https://www.regulations.gov/commenton/EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028-0028","allow_late_comments":false,"id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028-0028","comment_end_date":null,"regulations_dot_gov_open_for_comment":false}],"supporting_documents_count":20,"id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028","title":"Guidelines Establishing Test Procedures for the Analysis of Pollutants; Measurement of Mercury in Water; Revisions to EPA Method 1631"}],"document_number":"97-23841","effective_on":"1997-10-15","end_page":48442,"executive_order_notes":null,"executive_order_number":null,"full_text_xml_url":null,"html_url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/1997/09/15/97-23841/guidelines-establishing-test-procedures-for-the-analysis-of-pollutants-epa-method-1613","images":{},"images_metadata":{},"json_url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/api/v1/documents/97-23841?publication_date=1997-09-15","mods_url":"https://www.govinfo.gov/metadata/granule/FR-1997-09-15/97-23841/mods.xml","not_received_for_publication":null,"page_length":49,"page_views":{"count":538,"last_updated":"2026-07-28 06:15:03 -0400"},"pdf_url":"https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-1997-09-15/pdf/97-23841.pdf","presidential_document_number":null,"proclamation_number":null,"public_inspection_pdf_url":null,"publication_date":"1997-09-15","raw_text_url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/full_text/text/1997/09/15/97-23841.txt","regulation_id_number_info":{"2040-AC64":{"issue":"199704","html_url":"https://www.federalregister.gov/regulations/2040-AC64/guidelines-establishing-test-procedures-for-the-analysis-of-2-3-7-8-substituted-dibenzo-p-dioxins-an","title":"Guidelines Establishing Test Procedures for the Analysis of 2,3,7,8-Substituted Dibenzo-P-Dioxins and Dibenzo Furans Under the Clean Water Act","xml_url":"http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/eAgendaViewRule?pubId=199704&RIN=2040-AC64&operation=OPERATION_EXPORT_XML","priority_category":"Substantive, Nonsignificant"}},"regulation_id_numbers":["2040-AC64"],"regulations_dot_gov_info":{"supporting_documents":[{"title":"Legacy Index for Docket W-98-15 (Sections I - IV) and W-01-05 (Sections V - VI)","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028-0029"},{"title":"Comment Response Document for Revisions to EPA Method 1631 (Revision E)","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028-0025"},{"title":"Guidance on the Documentation and Evaluation of Trace Metals Data Collected for Clean Water Act Compliance Monitoring [W-01-05-VI-B-12]","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028-0024"},{"title":"Guidance on Establishing Trace Metal Clean Rooms in Existing Facilities [W-01-05-VI-B-11]","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028-0023"},{"title":"Method 1669:  Sampling Ambient Water for Trace Metals at EPA Water Quality Criteria Levels [W-01-05-VI-B-10]","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028-0022"},{"title":"Method 1631, Revision B:  Mercury in Water by Oxidation, Purge and Trap, and Cold Vapor Atomic Fluorescence Spectrometry [W-01-05-VI-B-9]","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028-0021"},{"title":"Memorandum from Khouane Ditthavong, U.S. EPA, to Maria Gomez-Taylor, U.S. EPA. 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(\"Intervenor\") and the U.S. EPA [W-01-05-B-9 and W-98-15-B-1]","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028-0017"},{"title":"Container Study: Teflon versus Glass for THg by Method 1631 Revision B [W-01-05-B-8]","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028-0016"}],"comments_count":0,"agency_id":"EPA","comments_url":"https://www.regulations.gov/docketBrowser?rpp=50&so=DESC&sb=postedDate&po=0&dct=PS&D=EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028","supporting_documents_count":20,"docket_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028","document_id":"EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0028-0028","regulation_id_number":null,"title":"Guidelines Establishing Test Procedures for the Analysis of Pollutants; Measurement of Mercury in Water; Revisions to EPA Method 1631","checked_regulationsdotgov_at":"2025-06-13T20:55:04Z"},"regulations_dot_gov_url":null,"significant":false,"signing_date":null,"start_page":48394,"subtype":null,"title":"Guidelines Establishing Test Procedures for the Analysis of Pollutants; EPA Method 1613","toc_doc":null,"toc_subject":null,"topics":[],"type":"Rule","volume":62}