Approval and Promulgation of State Implementation Plans: Alaska; Fairbanks Carbon Monoxide Limited Maintenance Plan and State Implementation Plan Revision, 48611-48615 [2013-19203]
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Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 154 / Friday, August 9, 2013 / Rules and Regulations
14. Environment
We have analyzed this rule under
Department of Homeland Security
Management Directive 023–01 and
Commandant Instruction M16475.lD,
which guide the Coast Guard in
complying with the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969
(NEPA)(42 U.S.C. 4321–4370f), and
have determined this action is one of a
category of actions which do not
individually or cumulatively have a
significant effect on the human
environment. This rule involves
establishing a safety zone for a live fire
and explosives training exercise and is
expected to have no impact on the water
or environment. This zone is designed
to protect mariners from the hazards
associated with live fire and explosive
exercises. This rule is categorically from
further review under paragraph (34)(g)
of Figure 2–1 of the Commandant
Instruction. An environmental analysis
checklist supporting this determination
and a Categorical Exclusion
Determination are available in the
docket where indicated under
ADDRESSES. We seek any comments or
information that may lead to the
discovery of a significant environmental
impact from this rule.
List of Subjects in 33 CFR Part 165
Harbors, Marine safety, Navigation
(water), Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements, Security measures,
Waterways.
For the reasons discussed in the
preamble, the Coast Guard amends 33
CFR part 165 as follows:
PART 165—REGULATED NAVIGATION
AREAS AND LIMITED ACCESS AREAS
1. The authority citation for part 165
continues to read as follows:
■
2. Add § 165.T05–0670 to read as
follows:
■
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(a) Definitions. For the purposes of
this section, Captain of the Port means
the Commander, Sector Hampton Roads.
Representative means any Coast Guard
commissioned, warrant or petty officer
who has been authorized to act on the
behalf of the Captain of the Port.
(b) Location. The following area is a
safety zone: specified waters of the
Captain of the Port Sector Hampton
Roads zone, as defined in 33 CFR 3.25–
10, all waters of the James River within
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[FR Doc. 2013–19362 Filed 8–8–13; 8:45 am]
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA–R10–OAR–2013–0420; FRL–9844–8]
§ 165.T05–0670 Safety Zone, James River,
Newport News, VA.
14:49 Aug 08, 2013
Dated: July 26, 2013.
John K. Little,
Captain, U.S. Coast Guard, Captain of the
Port Hampton Roads.
BILLING CODE 9110–04–P
Authority: 33 U.S.C. 1231; 46 U.S.C.
Chapter 701, 3306, 3703; 50 U.S.C. 191, 195;
33 CFR 1.05–1, 6.04–1, 6.04–6 and 160.5;
Pub. L. 107–295, 116 Stat. 2064; Department
of Homeland Security Delegation No. 0170.1.
VerDate Mar<15>2010
a 1500 foot radius of the USNS Del
Monte in approximate position latitude
37°06′11″ N longitude 076°38′40″ W,
located near Fort Eustis in Newport
News, VA.
(c) Regulations. (1) In accordance with
the general regulations in § 165.23 of
this part, entry into this zone is
prohibited unless authorized by the
Captain of the Port, Hampton Roads or
his designated representatives.
(2) The operator of any vessel in the
immediate vicinity of this safety zone
shall:
(i) Stop the vessel immediately upon
being directed to do so by any
commissioned, warrant or petty officer
on shore or on board a vessel that is
displaying a U.S. Coast Guard Ensign.
(ii) Proceed as directed by any
commissioned, warrant or petty officer
on shore or on board a vessel that is
displaying a U.S. Coast Guard Ensign.
(3) The Captain of the Port, Hampton
Roads can be reached through the Sector
Duty Officer at Sector Hampton Roads
in Portsmouth, Virginia at telephone
Number (757) 668–5555.
(4) The Navy Representatives
enforcing the safety zone can be
contacted on VHF–FM marine band
radio channel 13 (165.65Mhz) and
channel 16 (156.8 Mhz).
(d) Enforcement Period. This section
will be enforced from Monday August
19, 2013, at 8 a.m. until Thursday
August 22, 2013, at 4 p.m. unless
cancelled earlier by the Captain of the
Port.
Approval and Promulgation of State
Implementation Plans: Alaska;
Fairbanks Carbon Monoxide Limited
Maintenance Plan and State
Implementation Plan Revision
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Direct final rule.
AGENCY:
The EPA is taking direct final
action to approve a carbon monoxide
(CO) Limited Maintenance Plan (LMP)
for the Fairbanks Area, and associated
revisions to sections of the Fairbanks
SUMMARY:
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48611
Transportation Control Program,
submitted by the State of Alaska (the
State) as a revision to its State
Implementation Plan (SIP) dated April
22, 2013. In accordance with the
requirements of the Federal Clean Air
Act (the Act), the EPA is approving this
SIP revision because it demonstrates
that the Fairbanks Area will maintain
the CO National Ambient Air Quality
Standards (NAAQS) through the second
10-year maintenance period.
DATES: This rule is effective on October
8, 2013, without further notice, unless
the EPA receives adverse comment by
September 9, 2013. If the EPA receives
adverse comment, we will publish a
timely withdrawal in the Federal
Register informing the public that the
rule will not take effect.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments,
identified by Docket ID No. EPA–R10–
OAR–2013–0420, by any of the
following methods:
• www.regulations.gov: Follow the
on-line instructions for submitting
comments.
• Email: R10Public_Comments@epa.gov.
• Mail: Keith Rose, U.S. EPA Region
10, Office of Air, Waste and Toxics
(AWT–107), 1200 Sixth Avenue, Suite
900, Seattle, WA 98101.
• Hand Delivery/Courier: U.S. EPA
Region 10, 1200 Sixth Avenue, Suite
900, Seattle, WA 98101. Attention:
Keith Rose, Office of Air, Waste and
Toxics, AWT–107. Such deliveries are
only accepted during normal hours of
operation, and special arrangements
should be made for deliveries of boxed
information.
Instructions: Direct your comments to
Docket ID No. EPA–R10–OAR–2013–
0420. The EPA’s policy is that all
comments received will be included in
the public docket without change and
may be made available online at
www.regulations.gov, including any
personal information provided, unless
the comment includes information
claimed to be Confidential Business
Information (CBI) or other information
whose disclosure is restricted by statute.
Do not submit information that you
consider to be CBI or otherwise
protected through www.regulations.gov
or email. The www.regulations.gov Web
site is an ‘‘anonymous access’’ system,
which means the EPA will not know
your identity or contact information
unless you provide it in the body of
your comment. If you send an email
comment directly to the EPA without
going through www.regulations.gov your
email address will be automatically
captured and included as part of the
comment that is placed in the public
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docket and made available on the
Internet. If you submit an electronic
comment, the EPA recommends that
you include your name and other
contact information in the body of your
comment and with any disk or CD–ROM
you submit. If the EPA cannot read your
comment due to technical difficulties
and cannot contact you for clarification,
the EPA may not be able to consider
your comment. Electronic files should
avoid the use of special characters, any
form of encryption, and be free of any
defects or viruses.
Docket: All documents in the docket
are listed in the www.regulations.gov
index. Although listed in the index,
some information is not publicly
available, e.g., CBI or other information
whose disclosure is restricted by statute.
Certain other material, such as
copyrighted material, is not placed on
the Internet and will be publicly
available only in hard copy. Publicly
available docket materials are available
either electronically in
www.regulations.gov or in hard copy
during normal business hours at the
Office of Air, Waste and Toxics, U.S.
EPA Region 10, 1200 Sixth Avenue,
Seattle, WA 98101.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Keith Rose at telephone number: (206)
553–1949, email address:
rose.keith@epa.gov, fax number: (206)
553–0110, or the above EPA, Region 10
address.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Throughout this document wherever
‘‘we’’, ‘‘us’’ or ‘‘our’’ are used, we mean
the EPA. Information is organized as
follows:
Table of Contents
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I. What is the purpose of this action?
II. What is the background for this action?
III. Evaluation of Alaska’s Submittal
IV. Transportation and General Conformity
V. Final Action
VI. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
I. What is the purpose of this action?
The EPA is taking direct final action
to approve the CO LMP for the
Fairbanks Area, and associated revisions
to sections of the Fairbanks
Transportation Control Program,
submitted by Alaska as a SIP revision
dated April 22, 2013. The CO LMP
submitted by the State of Alaska is
designed to keep the Fairbanks Area in
attainment with the CO standard for a
second 10-year period beyond
redesignation.
The EPA is taking no action on 18
AAC 50.030, State Air Quality Control
Plan, which adopts by reference
Volumes II and III of the State Air
Quality Control Plan and other
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documents (as a matter of state law),
whether or not they have yet been
submitted to or approved by the EPA.
II. What is the background for this
action?
Under Section 107(d)(1)(c) of the
CAA, each CO area designated
nonattainment prior to enactment of the
1990 Amendments, such as the
Fairbanks Area, was designated
nonattainment by operation of law upon
enactment of the 1990 Amendments.
Under section 186(a) of the Act, each
CO area designated nonattainment
under section 107(d) was also classified
by operation of law as either
‘‘moderate’’ or ‘‘serious’’ depending on
the severity of the area’s air quality
problem. CO areas with design values
between 9.1 and 16.4 parts per million
(ppm), such as the Fairbanks Area, were
classified as moderate. These
nonattainment designations and
classifications were codified in 40 CFR
part 81. See 56 FR 56712 (November 6,
1991).
On February 27, 1998, the EPA made
a final finding that the Fairbanks CO
nonattainment area did not attain the
CO NAAQS under the CAA mandated
attainment date of December 31, 1995
for moderate nonattainment areas. As a
result of that finding, which went into
effect on March 30, 1998, the Fairbanks
CO nonattainment area was reclassified
as serious (63 FR 9945). Alaska had 18
months or until October 1, 1999, to
submit a new SIP demonstrating
attainment of the CO NAAQS as
expeditiously as practicable, but no later
than December 31, 2000, the CAA
attainment date for serious areas.
Notwithstanding significant efforts by
Alaska to complete the CO SIP for the
Fairbanks Area, the State failed to meet
the October 1, 1999 deadline for the
required SIP submission. On April 3,
2000, the EPA published a notice in the
Federal Register stating that initial,
mandatory sanctions would be triggered
if a new attainment plan was not
submitted by October 2, 2001 (65 FR
17444). In March 2001, Alaska
submitted a request to the EPA for an
extension of the attainment date to
December 31, 2001, and the EPA
approved this request on May 25, 2001
(66 FR 28836). Alaska submitted an
attainment plan on August 30, 2001 and
the EPA approved the plan on February
4, 2002 (67 FR 5064). On July 5, 2002,
the EPA determined that the Fairbanks
Area attained the CO NAAQS by the
December 31, 2001 attainment date (67
FR 44769).
The State of Alaska submitted a 10year maintenance plan and
redesignation request for the Fairbanks
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Area on June 21, 2004. The EPA
approved this maintenance plan and
redesignated the Fairbanks Area to
attainment on July 27, 2004 (69 FR
44601). The State subsequently
submitted three revisions to the Alaska
SIP relating to the motor vehicle
inspection and maintenance (I/M)
program in Fairbanks: a March 29, 2002
submittal containing minor revisions to
the statewide I/M program; a December
11, 2006 submittal containing more
substantial revisions to the statewide I/
M program; and a June 5, 2008 submittal
containing major revisions to the
statewide I/M program discontinuing
the I/M program in Fairbanks as an
active control measure in the SIP and
shifting it to a contingency measure.
The EPA approved these revisions on
March 22, 2010 (75 FR 13436).
Per CAA section 175A(b), Alaska’s
current SIP submittal provides a second
10-year CO maintenance plan for the
Fairbanks Area. In addition, the plan is
consistent with the elements of a LMP
as outlined in an EPA October 6, 1995
memorandum from Joseph Paisie, the
Group Leader of the Integrated Policy
and Strategies Group, titled, ‘‘Limited
Maintenance Plan Option for
Nonclassifiable CO Nonattainment
Areas’’. To qualify for the LMP Option,
the CO design value for an area, based
on the eight consecutive quarters (2
years of data) used to demonstrate
attainment, must be at or below 7.65
ppm (85 percent of the 8-hour CO
NAAQS). The EPA has determined that
the LMP Option for CO is also available
to all states as part of the CAA 175A(b)
update to the maintenance plans,
regardless of the original nonattainment
classification, or lack thereof. Thus, the
EPA observes that although the
Fairbanks Area was designated as a
serious nonattainment area for the CO
NAAQS, redesignation to attainment
status in conjunction with meeting all
requirements of the October 6, 1995,
memorandum, allows the State to be
eligible to submit a LMP as the update
to its original maintenance plan per
section 175A(b) of the CAA.
III. Evaluation of Alaska’s Submittal
The EPA has reviewed Alaska’s SIP
submittal for the Fairbanks Area. The
following is a summary of the
requirements for a LMP and the EPA’s
evaluation of how each requirement has
been met by the SIP submittal.
A. Base Year Emissions Inventory
The maintenance plan must contain
an attainment year emission inventory
to identify a level of CO emissions in
the area that is sufficient to attain the
CO NAAQS. The April 22, 2013 SIP
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submittal contains a summary of the CO
emissions inventory for the Fairbanks
Area for the base year 2005. This
summary is based on the Fairbanks
emission inventory adopted by the State
on April 4, 2008 (Volume III, Appendix
IIIC.3) and includes updates made in
2012.1 The emission inventory includes
an on-road vehicle emission inventory
based on the EPA’s MOVES 2010b 2
vehicle emissions model, a more
accurate estimate of residential wood
burning emissions in the Fairbanks area,
and an estimate of non-road emissions
based on the most recent information on
snowmobile use in the Fairbanks Area.
The methods used to determine the
Fairbanks CO emission inventory are
consistent with the EPA’s most recent
guidance on developing emission
inventories. Because violations of the
CO NAAQS are most likely to occur on
winter weekdays, the inventory
prepared is for a ‘‘typical winter day’’.
The table below shows the estimated
tons of CO emitted per winter day by
source category for the 2005 base year.
concentration is at or below 7.65 ppm
(85 percent of the CO NAAQS) for 8
consecutive quarters. The second
highest 8-hour CO concentration for the
Fairbanks Area for the most recent 8
quarters (2011–2012) was 3.6 ppm,
which is significantly below the LMP
Option requirement of 7.65 ppm.
Therefore, the State has demonstrated
that the Fairbanks Area qualifies for the
LMP Option.
With the LMP Option, there is no
requirement to project emissions of air
quality over the upcoming maintenance
period. The EPA believes that if the area
begins the maintenance period at, or
below, 85 percent of the level of the CO
8-hour NAAQS, the applicability of
prevention of significant deterioration
requirements, the control measures
already in the SIP, and Federal control
measures already in place should
provide adequate assurance of
maintenance over the 10-year
maintenance period.
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C. Monitoring Network and Verification
of Continued Attainment
To comply with national ambient air
2005 EMISSION INVENTORY, MAIN
monitoring requirements, and to better
SOURCE CATEGORY SUBTOTALS
understand Fairbanks’ air quality
CO emissions problems, the State of Alaska has
Main source category
tons per winter operated a CO monitoring network in
day
the Fairbanks Area since the 1970s. In
1985, the Fairbanks monitoring network
Point Sources .......................
3.09
consisted of three sites, including a
Onroad Mobile Sources ........
45.48
Non-road Mobile Sources .....
14.80 downtown site called the Old Post
Area Sources ........................
19.69 Office site, which recorded the highest
concentrations of CO of all three
Total ..................................
83.06 monitors since 2004. In recognition of
declining CO concentrations in the
B. Demonstration of Maintenance
Fairbanks Area, Alaska reduced the
Fairbanks CO monitoring network to
The 8-hour CO NAAQS is attained
just the Old Post Office site in 2009 with
when the annual second highest 8-hour
approval from the EPA.
average CO concentration for an area
To verify the attainment status of the
does not exceed a concentration of 9.0
ppm. The last monitored violation of the area over the maintenance period, the
LMP must contain provisions for
CO NAAQS in Fairbanks occurred in
continued operation of an appropriate,
1999, and monitored CO levels have
EPA-approved monitoring network in
been steadily in decline ever since. The
accordance with 40 CFR part 58. The
2012 second highest 8-hour CO
State of Alaska has an approved
concentration for the Fairbanks Area is
monitoring network that includes CO
3.6 ppm, which is in attainment with
monitoring in the Fairbanks Area that
the CO NAAQS.
was most recently approved by the EPA
For areas using the CO LMP Option,
on October 25, 2012. In the Fairbanks
the maintenance plan demonstration
requirement is considered to be satisfied CO LMP, the State commits to
maintaining a CO monitoring network to
when the second highest 8-hour CO
verify continued attainment of the
1 The memo dated November 20, 2012, to Cindy
NAAQS.
Heil of the State of Alaska from Sierra Research
titled ‘‘Summary of Inventory Revisions to the 2008
Fairbanks CO Maintenance Plan’’, describing the
emissions inventory update is included in the
docket.
2 MOVES is the EPA’s state-of-the-art tool for
estimating emissions from on-road mobile sources.
MOVES 2012b is the latest version of MOVES and
was released in April 2012. Details on MOVES can
be found at https://www.epa.gov/otaq/models/
moves.
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D. Contingency Plan
Section 175A(d) of the CAA requires
that a maintenance plan include
contingency provisions. In its April 22,
2013 submittal, the State of Alaska
continued with the contingency plan
that is currently in place. The
contingency plan includes six possible
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48613
contingency measures that could be
implemented if the Fairbanks Area fails
to attain the CO NAAQS. These
measures are:
1. Increased public awareness;
2. Enhanced public transit;
3. Expansion of the supply of plugins;
4. Altered signal timing;
5. Roadway improvements; and
6. Reintroduction of the Inspection
and Maintenance program.
In the event that monitoring data
indicate that a violation of the CO
NAAQS has occurred, the Fairbanks
North Star Borough (FNSB) would
examine the data to assess the spatial
extent and severity of the episode, as
well as trends over time. Based on this
assessment, the FNSB in consultation
with the Alaska Department of
Environmental Conservation (ADEC)
would determine which of the above
measures to implement.
IV. Transportation and General
Conformity
Transportation conformity is required
by section 176(c) of the CAA. The EPA’s
conformity rule requires that
transportation plans, programs, and
projects that are funded under 23 U.S.C.
or the Federal Transit Act conform to
SIPs. Conformity to a SIP means that
transportation activities will not
produce new air quality violations,
worsen existing violations, or delay
timely attainment of the NAAQS.
The transportation conformity rule
(40 CFR parts 51 and 93) and the general
conformity rule (40 CFR parts 51 and
93) apply to nonattainment areas and
maintenance areas covered by an
approved maintenance plan. Under
either conformity rule, an acceptable
method of demonstrating that a Federal
action conforms to the applicable SIP is
to demonstrate that expected emissions
from the planned action are consistent
with the emissions budget for the area.
While the EPA’s LMP Option does not
exempt an area from the need to affirm
conformity, it explains that the area may
demonstrate conformity without
submitting an emissions budget. Under
the LMP Option, emissions budgets are
treated as essentially not constraining
for the length of the maintenance period
because it is unreasonable to expect that
the qualifying areas would experience
so much growth in that period that a
violation of the CO NAAQS would
result. Similarly, Federal actions subject
to the general conformity rule could be
considered to satisfy the ‘‘budget test’’
specified in section 93.158(a)(5)(i)(A) for
the same reasons that the budgets are
essentially considered to be unlimited.
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While areas with maintenance plans
approved under the LMP Option are not
subject to the budget test, the areas
remain subject to other transportation
conformity requirements of 40 CFR part
93, subpart A. Thus, the metropolitan
planning organization (MPO) in the area
or the State must document and ensure
that:
a. Transportation plans and projects
provide for timely implementation of
SIP transportation control measures in
accordance with 40 CFR 93.113;
b. Transportation plans and projects
comply with the fiscal constraint
element per 40 CFR 93.108;
c. The MPO’s interagency
consultation procedures meet applicable
requirements of 40 CFR 93.105;
d. Conformity of transportation plans
is determined no less frequently than
every four years, and conformity of plan
amendments and transportation projects
is demonstrated in accordance with the
timing requirements specified in 40 CFR
93.104;
e. The latest planning assumptions
and emissions model are used as set
forth in 40 CFR 93.110 and 40 CFR
93.111;
f. Projects do not cause or contribute
to any new localized carbon monoxide
or particulate matter violations, in
accordance with procedures specified in
40 CFR 93.123; and
g. Project sponsors and/or operators
provide written commitments as
specified in 40 CFR 93.125.
The EPA confers regularly with the
Fairbanks Metropolitan Area
Transportation System technical and
policy committees, ADEC, the Alaska
Department of Transportation & Public
Facilities, the Federal Highway
Administration, and the Federal Transit
Administration to review the
Transportation Improvement Plan for
the Fairbanks Area to determine if the
area is meeting the transportation
conformity requirements under 40 CFR
part 93, subpart A. The Fairbanks Area
is currently meeting the requirements of
40 CFR part 93, subpart A.
V. Final Action
In accordance with the requirements
of the Federal CAA, the EPA is
approving the CO LMP for the Fairbanks
Area (Volume II, Section III.C.12 of the
State Air Quality Control Plan, adopted
February 22, 2013) submitted by Alaska
on April 22, 2013 as a revision to the
Alaska SIP because the State adequately
demonstrates that the Fairbanks Area
will maintain the CO NAAQS and meet
all the requirements of a LMP through
the second 10-year maintenance period.
In this action, the EPA is also approving
the following revised sections of the
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Fairbanks Transportation Control
Program (Volume II, Section III.C): Air
Quality Emissions Data (Section III.C.3),
Carbon Monoxide Network Monitoring
Program (Section III.C.4), Modeling and
Projections (Section III.C.6), and Air
Quality Conformity Procedures (Section
III.C.10); and the following revised
sections of the Appendices to Volume II
of the Fairbanks Transportation Control
Program (Volume III): Section III.C.1
and Section III.C.10, all of which were
included in the April 22, 2013 SIP
submittal.
The EPA is taking no action on any
section related to 18 AAC 50.030, State
Air Quality Control Plan, because the
EPA takes action directly, as
appropriate, on the specific provisions
in the State Air Quality Control Plan
that have been submitted by the State,
so it is unnecessary for the EPA to
approve 18 AAC 50.030. The federallyapproved SIP consists only of
regulations and other requirements that
have been submitted by the State and
approved by the EPA.
The EPA is publishing this action
without prior proposal because the
Agency views this as a noncontroversial
amendment and anticipates no adverse
comments. However, in the proposed
rules section of this Federal Register
publication, the EPA is publishing a
separate document that will serve as the
proposal to approve the SIP revision
should adverse comments be filed. This
rule will be effective October 8, 2013
without further notice unless the
Agency receives adverse comments by
September 9, 2013. If the EPA receives
such comments, then the EPA will
publish a timely withdrawal of the
direct final rule informing the public
that the rule will not take effect. All
public comments received will then be
addressed in a subsequent final rule
based on the proposed rule. The EPA
will not institute a second comment
period on this rule. Any parties
interested in commenting on this rule
should do so at this time. If no such
comments are received, the public is
advised that this rule will be effective
on October 8, 2013 and no further action
will be taken on the proposed rule.
VI. Statutory and Executive Order
Reviews
Under the CAA, the Administrator is
required to approve a SIP submission
that complies with the provisions of the
CAA and applicable Federal regulations.
42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a).
Thus, in reviewing SIP submissions, the
EPA’s role is to approve state choices,
provided that they meet the criteria of
the CAA. Accordingly, this action
merely approves state law as meeting
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Federal requirements and does not
impose additional requirements beyond
those imposed by state law. For that
reason, this action:
• Is not a ‘‘significant regulatory
action’’ subject to review by the Office
of Management and Budget under
Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 51735,
October 4, 1993);
• Does not impose an information
collection burden under the provisions
of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44
U.S.C. 3501 et seq.);
• Is certified as not having a
significant economic impact on a
substantial number of small entities
under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5
U.S.C. 601 et seq.);
• Does not contain any unfunded
mandate or significantly or uniquely
affect small governments, as described
in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act
of 1995 (Pub. L. 104–4);
• Does not have Federalism
implications as specified in Executive
Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10,
1999);
• Is not an economically significant
regulatory action based on health or
safety risks subject to Executive Order
13045 (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997);
• Is not a significant regulatory action
subject to Executive Order 13211 (66 FR
28355, May 22, 2001);
• Is not subject to requirements of
Section 12(d) of the National
Technology Transfer and Advancement
Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272 note) because
application of those requirements would
be inconsistent with the CAA; and
• Does not provide the EPA with the
discretionary authority to address, as
appropriate, disproportionate human
health or environmental effects, using
practicable and legally permissible
methods, under Executive Order 12898
(59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994).
In addition, this rule does not have
tribal implications as specified by
Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249,
November 9, 2000), because the SIP is
not approved to apply in Indian country
located in the state, and the EPA notes
that it will not impose substantial direct
costs on tribal governments or preempt
tribal law.
The Congressional Review Act, 5
U.S.C. 801 et seq., as added by the Small
Business Regulatory Enforcement
Fairness Act of 1996, generally provides
that before a rule may take effect, the
agency promulgating the rule must
submit a rule report, which includes a
copy of the rule, to each House of the
Congress and to the Comptroller General
of the United States. The EPA will
submit a report containing this action
and other required information to the
U.S. Senate, the U.S. House of
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Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 154 / Friday, August 9, 2013 / Rules and Regulations
Representatives, and the Comptroller
General of the United States prior to
publication of the rule in the Federal
Register. A major rule cannot take effect
until 60 days after it is published in the
Federal Register. This action is not a
‘‘major rule’’ as defined by 5 U.S.C.
804(2).
Under section 307(b)(1) of the CAA,
petitions for judicial review of this
action must be filed in the United States
Court of Appeals for the appropriate
circuit by October 8, 2013. Filing a
petition for reconsideration by the
Administrator of this final rule does not
affect the finality of this action for the
purposes of judicial review nor does it
extend the time within which a petition
for judicial review may be filed, and
shall not postpone the effectiveness of
such rule or action. Parties with
objections to this direct final rule are
encouraged to file a comment in
response to the parallel notice of
proposed rulemaking for this action
published in the proposed rules section
of today’s Federal Register, rather than
file an immediate petition for judicial
review of this direct final rule, so that
the EPA can withdraw this direct final
rule and address the comment in the
proposed rulemaking. This action may
not be challenged later in proceedings to
enforce its requirements. (See section
307(b)(2)).
List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52
Environmental protection, Air
pollution control, Carbon monoxide,
Incorporation by reference,
Intergovernmental relations, Reporting
and recordkeeping requirements.
Dated: July 23, 2013.
Michelle L. Pirzadeh,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 10.
For the reasons set out in the
preamble, title 40, chapter I of the Code
of Federal Regulations is amended as
follows:
PART 52—APPROVAL AND
PROMULGATION OF
IMPLEMENTATION PLANS
1. The authority citation for part 52
continues to read as follows:
■
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Subpart C—Alaska
2. Section 52.73 is amended by adding
paragraph (a)(2)(ii) to read as follows:
pmangrum on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with RULES
■
§ 52.73
Approval of plans.
(a) * * *
(2) * * *
(ii) The EPA approves as a revision to
the Alaska State Implementation Plan,
the Fairbanks Carbon Monoxide Limited
VerDate Mar<15>2010
14:49 Aug 08, 2013
Jkt 229001
Maintenance Plan (Volume II, Section
III.C.12 of the State Air Quality Control
Plan, adopted February 22, 2013)
submitted by the Alaska Department of
Environmental Conservation on April
22, 2013. In this action, the EPA is also
approving the following revised sections
of the Fairbanks Transportation Control
Program (Volume II, Section III.C): Air
Quality Emissions Data (Section III.C.3),
Carbon Monoxide Network Monitoring
Program (Section III.C.4), Modeling and
Projections (Section III.C.6), and Air
Quality Conformity Procedures (Section
III.C.10); and the following revised
sections of the Appendices to Volume II
of the Fairbanks Transportation Control
Program (Volume III): Section III.C.1
and Section III.C.10, all of which were
included in the April 22, 2013 SIP
submittal.
*
*
*
*
*
[FR Doc. 2013–19203 Filed 8–8–13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA–R08–OAR–2012–0350; FRL–9844–9]
Disapproval of State Implementation
Plans; State of Utah; Interstate
Transport of Pollution for the 2006
PM2.5 NAAQS
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Final rule.
AGENCY:
EPA is taking final action to
disapprove a portion of a State
Implementation Plan (SIP) submission
from the State of Utah that is intended
to demonstrate that its SIP meets certain
interstate transport requirements of the
Clean Air Act (‘‘Act’’ or ‘‘CAA’’) for the
2006 fine particulate matter (‘‘PM2.5’’)
National Ambient Air Quality Standards
(NAAQS). Specifically, EPA is
disapproving the portion of the Utah SIP
submission that addresses the CAA
requirement prohibiting emissions from
Utah sources from significantly
contributing to nonattainment of the
2006 PM2.5 NAAQS in any other state or
interfering with maintenance of the
2006 PM2.5 NAAQS by any other state.
Under a recent court decision, this
disapproval does not trigger an
obligation for EPA to promulgate a
Federal Implementation Plan (FIP) to
address these interstate transport
requirements.
DATES: Effective Date: This final rule is
effective September 9, 2013.
ADDRESSES: EPA has established a
docket for this action under Docket ID
SUMMARY:
PO 00000
Frm 00017
Fmt 4700
Sfmt 4700
48615
No. EPA–R08–OAR–2012–0350. All
documents in the docket are listed on
the www.regulations.gov Web site.
Although listed in the index, some
information is not publicly available,
e.g., Confidential Business Information
(CBI) or other information whose
disclosure is restricted by statute.
Certain other material, such as
copyrighted material, is not placed on
the Internet and will be publicly
available only in hard copy form.
Publicly available docket materials are
available either electronically through
www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at
the Air Program, Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA), Region 8,
1595 Wynkoop Street, Denver, Colorado
80202–1129. EPA requests that if at all
possible, you contact the individual
listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT section to view the hard copy
of the docket. You may view the hard
copy of the docket Monday through
Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., excluding
Federal holidays.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Adam Clark, Air Program, U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency,
Region 8, Mailcode 8P–AR, 1595
Wynkoop, Denver, Colorado 80202–
1129, (303) 312–7104, clark.adam@epa.
gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Definitions
For the purpose of this document, we
are giving meaning to certain words or
initials as follows:
(i) The words or initials Act or CAA
mean or refer to the Clean Air Act,
unless the context indicates otherwise.
(ii) The words EPA, we, us or our
mean or refer to the United States
Environmental Protection Agency.
(iii) The initials NAAQS mean or refer
to National Ambient Air Quality
Standards.
(iv) The initials SIP mean or refer to
State Implementation Plan.
(v) The initials UDEQ mean or refer to
the Utah Department of Environmental
Quality.
(vi) The words Utah and State mean
the State of Utah.
Table of Contents
I. Background
II. Response to Comments
III. Final Action
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
I. Background
On October 17, 2006 EPA
promulgated a new NAAQS for PM2.5,
revising the level of the 24-hour PM2.5
standard to 35 mg/m3 and retaining the
level of the annual PM2.5 standard at 15
mg/m3. (71 FR 61144). By statute, SIPs
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Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 154 (Friday, August 9, 2013)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 48611-48615]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-19203]
=======================================================================
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA-R10-OAR-2013-0420; FRL-9844-8]
Approval and Promulgation of State Implementation Plans: Alaska;
Fairbanks Carbon Monoxide Limited Maintenance Plan and State
Implementation Plan Revision
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Direct final rule.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The EPA is taking direct final action to approve a carbon
monoxide (CO) Limited Maintenance Plan (LMP) for the Fairbanks Area,
and associated revisions to sections of the Fairbanks Transportation
Control Program, submitted by the State of Alaska (the State) as a
revision to its State Implementation Plan (SIP) dated April 22, 2013.
In accordance with the requirements of the Federal Clean Air Act (the
Act), the EPA is approving this SIP revision because it demonstrates
that the Fairbanks Area will maintain the CO National Ambient Air
Quality Standards (NAAQS) through the second 10-year maintenance
period.
DATES: This rule is effective on October 8, 2013, without further
notice, unless the EPA receives adverse comment by September 9, 2013.
If the EPA receives adverse comment, we will publish a timely
withdrawal in the Federal Register informing the public that the rule
will not take effect.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R10-
OAR-2013-0420, by any of the following methods:
www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line instructions for
submitting comments.
Email: R10-Public_Comments@epa.gov.
Mail: Keith Rose, U.S. EPA Region 10, Office of Air, Waste
and Toxics (AWT-107), 1200 Sixth Avenue, Suite 900, Seattle, WA 98101.
Hand Delivery/Courier: U.S. EPA Region 10, 1200 Sixth
Avenue, Suite 900, Seattle, WA 98101. Attention: Keith Rose, Office of
Air, Waste and Toxics, AWT-107. Such deliveries are only accepted
during normal hours of operation, and special arrangements should be
made for deliveries of boxed information.
Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-R10-OAR-
2013-0420. The EPA's policy is that all comments received will be
included in the public docket without change and may be made available
online at www.regulations.gov, including any personal information
provided, unless the comment includes information claimed to be
Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose
disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit information that you
consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through www.regulations.gov
or email. The www.regulations.gov Web site is an ``anonymous access''
system, which means the EPA will not know your identity or contact
information unless you provide it in the body of your comment. If you
send an email comment directly to the EPA without going through
www.regulations.gov your email address will be automatically captured
and included as part of the comment that is placed in the public
[[Page 48612]]
docket and made available on the Internet. If you submit an electronic
comment, the EPA recommends that you include your name and other
contact information in the body of your comment and with any disk or
CD-ROM you submit. If the EPA cannot read your comment due to technical
difficulties and cannot contact you for clarification, the EPA may not
be able to consider your comment. Electronic files should avoid the use
of special characters, any form of encryption, and be free of any
defects or viruses.
Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the
www.regulations.gov index. Although listed in the index, some
information is not publicly available, e.g., CBI or other information
whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such
as copyrighted material, is not placed on the Internet and will be
publicly available only in hard copy. Publicly available docket
materials are available either electronically in www.regulations.gov or
in hard copy during normal business hours at the Office of Air, Waste
and Toxics, U.S. EPA Region 10, 1200 Sixth Avenue, Seattle, WA 98101.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Keith Rose at telephone number: (206)
553-1949, email address: rose.keith@epa.gov, fax number: (206) 553-
0110, or the above EPA, Region 10 address.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document wherever ``we'',
``us'' or ``our'' are used, we mean the EPA. Information is organized
as follows:
Table of Contents
I. What is the purpose of this action?
II. What is the background for this action?
III. Evaluation of Alaska's Submittal
IV. Transportation and General Conformity
V. Final Action
VI. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
I. What is the purpose of this action?
The EPA is taking direct final action to approve the CO LMP for the
Fairbanks Area, and associated revisions to sections of the Fairbanks
Transportation Control Program, submitted by Alaska as a SIP revision
dated April 22, 2013. The CO LMP submitted by the State of Alaska is
designed to keep the Fairbanks Area in attainment with the CO standard
for a second 10-year period beyond redesignation.
The EPA is taking no action on 18 AAC 50.030, State Air Quality
Control Plan, which adopts by reference Volumes II and III of the State
Air Quality Control Plan and other documents (as a matter of state
law), whether or not they have yet been submitted to or approved by the
EPA.
II. What is the background for this action?
Under Section 107(d)(1)(c) of the CAA, each CO area designated
nonattainment prior to enactment of the 1990 Amendments, such as the
Fairbanks Area, was designated nonattainment by operation of law upon
enactment of the 1990 Amendments. Under section 186(a) of the Act, each
CO area designated nonattainment under section 107(d) was also
classified by operation of law as either ``moderate'' or ``serious''
depending on the severity of the area's air quality problem. CO areas
with design values between 9.1 and 16.4 parts per million (ppm), such
as the Fairbanks Area, were classified as moderate. These nonattainment
designations and classifications were codified in 40 CFR part 81. See
56 FR 56712 (November 6, 1991).
On February 27, 1998, the EPA made a final finding that the
Fairbanks CO nonattainment area did not attain the CO NAAQS under the
CAA mandated attainment date of December 31, 1995 for moderate
nonattainment areas. As a result of that finding, which went into
effect on March 30, 1998, the Fairbanks CO nonattainment area was
reclassified as serious (63 FR 9945). Alaska had 18 months or until
October 1, 1999, to submit a new SIP demonstrating attainment of the CO
NAAQS as expeditiously as practicable, but no later than December 31,
2000, the CAA attainment date for serious areas.
Notwithstanding significant efforts by Alaska to complete the CO
SIP for the Fairbanks Area, the State failed to meet the October 1,
1999 deadline for the required SIP submission. On April 3, 2000, the
EPA published a notice in the Federal Register stating that initial,
mandatory sanctions would be triggered if a new attainment plan was not
submitted by October 2, 2001 (65 FR 17444). In March 2001, Alaska
submitted a request to the EPA for an extension of the attainment date
to December 31, 2001, and the EPA approved this request on May 25, 2001
(66 FR 28836). Alaska submitted an attainment plan on August 30, 2001
and the EPA approved the plan on February 4, 2002 (67 FR 5064). On July
5, 2002, the EPA determined that the Fairbanks Area attained the CO
NAAQS by the December 31, 2001 attainment date (67 FR 44769).
The State of Alaska submitted a 10-year maintenance plan and
redesignation request for the Fairbanks Area on June 21, 2004. The EPA
approved this maintenance plan and redesignated the Fairbanks Area to
attainment on July 27, 2004 (69 FR 44601). The State subsequently
submitted three revisions to the Alaska SIP relating to the motor
vehicle inspection and maintenance (I/M) program in Fairbanks: a March
29, 2002 submittal containing minor revisions to the statewide I/M
program; a December 11, 2006 submittal containing more substantial
revisions to the statewide I/M program; and a June 5, 2008 submittal
containing major revisions to the statewide I/M program discontinuing
the I/M program in Fairbanks as an active control measure in the SIP
and shifting it to a contingency measure. The EPA approved these
revisions on March 22, 2010 (75 FR 13436).
Per CAA section 175A(b), Alaska's current SIP submittal provides a
second 10-year CO maintenance plan for the Fairbanks Area. In addition,
the plan is consistent with the elements of a LMP as outlined in an EPA
October 6, 1995 memorandum from Joseph Paisie, the Group Leader of the
Integrated Policy and Strategies Group, titled, ``Limited Maintenance
Plan Option for Nonclassifiable CO Nonattainment Areas''. To qualify
for the LMP Option, the CO design value for an area, based on the eight
consecutive quarters (2 years of data) used to demonstrate attainment,
must be at or below 7.65 ppm (85 percent of the 8-hour CO NAAQS). The
EPA has determined that the LMP Option for CO is also available to all
states as part of the CAA 175A(b) update to the maintenance plans,
regardless of the original nonattainment classification, or lack
thereof. Thus, the EPA observes that although the Fairbanks Area was
designated as a serious nonattainment area for the CO NAAQS,
redesignation to attainment status in conjunction with meeting all
requirements of the October 6, 1995, memorandum, allows the State to be
eligible to submit a LMP as the update to its original maintenance plan
per section 175A(b) of the CAA.
III. Evaluation of Alaska's Submittal
The EPA has reviewed Alaska's SIP submittal for the Fairbanks Area.
The following is a summary of the requirements for a LMP and the EPA's
evaluation of how each requirement has been met by the SIP submittal.
A. Base Year Emissions Inventory
The maintenance plan must contain an attainment year emission
inventory to identify a level of CO emissions in the area that is
sufficient to attain the CO NAAQS. The April 22, 2013 SIP
[[Page 48613]]
submittal contains a summary of the CO emissions inventory for the
Fairbanks Area for the base year 2005. This summary is based on the
Fairbanks emission inventory adopted by the State on April 4, 2008
(Volume III, Appendix IIIC.3) and includes updates made in 2012.\1\ The
emission inventory includes an on-road vehicle emission inventory based
on the EPA's MOVES 2010b \2\ vehicle emissions model, a more accurate
estimate of residential wood burning emissions in the Fairbanks area,
and an estimate of non-road emissions based on the most recent
information on snowmobile use in the Fairbanks Area. The methods used
to determine the Fairbanks CO emission inventory are consistent with
the EPA's most recent guidance on developing emission inventories.
Because violations of the CO NAAQS are most likely to occur on winter
weekdays, the inventory prepared is for a ``typical winter day''. The
table below shows the estimated tons of CO emitted per winter day by
source category for the 2005 base year.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The memo dated November 20, 2012, to Cindy Heil of the State
of Alaska from Sierra Research titled ``Summary of Inventory
Revisions to the 2008 Fairbanks CO Maintenance Plan'', describing
the emissions inventory update is included in the docket.
\2\ MOVES is the EPA's state-of-the-art tool for estimating
emissions from on-road mobile sources. MOVES 2012b is the latest
version of MOVES and was released in April 2012. Details on MOVES
can be found at https://www.epa.gov/otaq/models/moves.
2005 Emission Inventory, Main Source Category Subtotals
------------------------------------------------------------------------
CO emissions
Main source category tons per
winter day
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Point Sources........................................... 3.09
Onroad Mobile Sources................................... 45.48
Non-road Mobile Sources................................. 14.80
Area Sources............................................ 19.69
---------------
Total................................................. 83.06
------------------------------------------------------------------------
B. Demonstration of Maintenance
The 8-hour CO NAAQS is attained when the annual second highest 8-
hour average CO concentration for an area does not exceed a
concentration of 9.0 ppm. The last monitored violation of the CO NAAQS
in Fairbanks occurred in 1999, and monitored CO levels have been
steadily in decline ever since. The 2012 second highest 8-hour CO
concentration for the Fairbanks Area is 3.6 ppm, which is in attainment
with the CO NAAQS.
For areas using the CO LMP Option, the maintenance plan
demonstration requirement is considered to be satisfied when the second
highest 8-hour CO concentration is at or below 7.65 ppm (85 percent of
the CO NAAQS) for 8 consecutive quarters. The second highest 8-hour CO
concentration for the Fairbanks Area for the most recent 8 quarters
(2011-2012) was 3.6 ppm, which is significantly below the LMP Option
requirement of 7.65 ppm. Therefore, the State has demonstrated that the
Fairbanks Area qualifies for the LMP Option.
With the LMP Option, there is no requirement to project emissions
of air quality over the upcoming maintenance period. The EPA believes
that if the area begins the maintenance period at, or below, 85 percent
of the level of the CO 8-hour NAAQS, the applicability of prevention of
significant deterioration requirements, the control measures already in
the SIP, and Federal control measures already in place should provide
adequate assurance of maintenance over the 10-year maintenance period.
C. Monitoring Network and Verification of Continued Attainment
To comply with national ambient air monitoring requirements, and to
better understand Fairbanks' air quality problems, the State of Alaska
has operated a CO monitoring network in the Fairbanks Area since the
1970s. In 1985, the Fairbanks monitoring network consisted of three
sites, including a downtown site called the Old Post Office site, which
recorded the highest concentrations of CO of all three monitors since
2004. In recognition of declining CO concentrations in the Fairbanks
Area, Alaska reduced the Fairbanks CO monitoring network to just the
Old Post Office site in 2009 with approval from the EPA.
To verify the attainment status of the area over the maintenance
period, the LMP must contain provisions for continued operation of an
appropriate, EPA-approved monitoring network in accordance with 40 CFR
part 58. The State of Alaska has an approved monitoring network that
includes CO monitoring in the Fairbanks Area that was most recently
approved by the EPA on October 25, 2012. In the Fairbanks CO LMP, the
State commits to maintaining a CO monitoring network to verify
continued attainment of the NAAQS.
D. Contingency Plan
Section 175A(d) of the CAA requires that a maintenance plan include
contingency provisions. In its April 22, 2013 submittal, the State of
Alaska continued with the contingency plan that is currently in place.
The contingency plan includes six possible contingency measures that
could be implemented if the Fairbanks Area fails to attain the CO
NAAQS. These measures are:
1. Increased public awareness;
2. Enhanced public transit;
3. Expansion of the supply of plug-ins;
4. Altered signal timing;
5. Roadway improvements; and
6. Reintroduction of the Inspection and Maintenance program.
In the event that monitoring data indicate that a violation of the
CO NAAQS has occurred, the Fairbanks North Star Borough (FNSB) would
examine the data to assess the spatial extent and severity of the
episode, as well as trends over time. Based on this assessment, the
FNSB in consultation with the Alaska Department of Environmental
Conservation (ADEC) would determine which of the above measures to
implement.
IV. Transportation and General Conformity
Transportation conformity is required by section 176(c) of the CAA.
The EPA's conformity rule requires that transportation plans, programs,
and projects that are funded under 23 U.S.C. or the Federal Transit Act
conform to SIPs. Conformity to a SIP means that transportation
activities will not produce new air quality violations, worsen existing
violations, or delay timely attainment of the NAAQS.
The transportation conformity rule (40 CFR parts 51 and 93) and the
general conformity rule (40 CFR parts 51 and 93) apply to nonattainment
areas and maintenance areas covered by an approved maintenance plan.
Under either conformity rule, an acceptable method of demonstrating
that a Federal action conforms to the applicable SIP is to demonstrate
that expected emissions from the planned action are consistent with the
emissions budget for the area.
While the EPA's LMP Option does not exempt an area from the need to
affirm conformity, it explains that the area may demonstrate conformity
without submitting an emissions budget. Under the LMP Option, emissions
budgets are treated as essentially not constraining for the length of
the maintenance period because it is unreasonable to expect that the
qualifying areas would experience so much growth in that period that a
violation of the CO NAAQS would result. Similarly, Federal actions
subject to the general conformity rule could be considered to satisfy
the ``budget test'' specified in section 93.158(a)(5)(i)(A) for the
same reasons that the budgets are essentially considered to be
unlimited.
[[Page 48614]]
While areas with maintenance plans approved under the LMP Option
are not subject to the budget test, the areas remain subject to other
transportation conformity requirements of 40 CFR part 93, subpart A.
Thus, the metropolitan planning organization (MPO) in the area or the
State must document and ensure that:
a. Transportation plans and projects provide for timely
implementation of SIP transportation control measures in accordance
with 40 CFR 93.113;
b. Transportation plans and projects comply with the fiscal
constraint element per 40 CFR 93.108;
c. The MPO's interagency consultation procedures meet applicable
requirements of 40 CFR 93.105;
d. Conformity of transportation plans is determined no less
frequently than every four years, and conformity of plan amendments and
transportation projects is demonstrated in accordance with the timing
requirements specified in 40 CFR 93.104;
e. The latest planning assumptions and emissions model are used as
set forth in 40 CFR 93.110 and 40 CFR 93.111;
f. Projects do not cause or contribute to any new localized carbon
monoxide or particulate matter violations, in accordance with
procedures specified in 40 CFR 93.123; and
g. Project sponsors and/or operators provide written commitments as
specified in 40 CFR 93.125.
The EPA confers regularly with the Fairbanks Metropolitan Area
Transportation System technical and policy committees, ADEC, the Alaska
Department of Transportation & Public Facilities, the Federal Highway
Administration, and the Federal Transit Administration to review the
Transportation Improvement Plan for the Fairbanks Area to determine if
the area is meeting the transportation conformity requirements under 40
CFR part 93, subpart A. The Fairbanks Area is currently meeting the
requirements of 40 CFR part 93, subpart A.
V. Final Action
In accordance with the requirements of the Federal CAA, the EPA is
approving the CO LMP for the Fairbanks Area (Volume II, Section
III.C.12 of the State Air Quality Control Plan, adopted February 22,
2013) submitted by Alaska on April 22, 2013 as a revision to the Alaska
SIP because the State adequately demonstrates that the Fairbanks Area
will maintain the CO NAAQS and meet all the requirements of a LMP
through the second 10-year maintenance period. In this action, the EPA
is also approving the following revised sections of the Fairbanks
Transportation Control Program (Volume II, Section III.C): Air Quality
Emissions Data (Section III.C.3), Carbon Monoxide Network Monitoring
Program (Section III.C.4), Modeling and Projections (Section III.C.6),
and Air Quality Conformity Procedures (Section III.C.10); and the
following revised sections of the Appendices to Volume II of the
Fairbanks Transportation Control Program (Volume III): Section III.C.1
and Section III.C.10, all of which were included in the April 22, 2013
SIP submittal.
The EPA is taking no action on any section related to 18 AAC
50.030, State Air Quality Control Plan, because the EPA takes action
directly, as appropriate, on the specific provisions in the State Air
Quality Control Plan that have been submitted by the State, so it is
unnecessary for the EPA to approve 18 AAC 50.030. The federally-
approved SIP consists only of regulations and other requirements that
have been submitted by the State and approved by the EPA.
The EPA is publishing this action without prior proposal because
the Agency views this as a noncontroversial amendment and anticipates
no adverse comments. However, in the proposed rules section of this
Federal Register publication, the EPA is publishing a separate document
that will serve as the proposal to approve the SIP revision should
adverse comments be filed. This rule will be effective October 8, 2013
without further notice unless the Agency receives adverse comments by
September 9, 2013. If the EPA receives such comments, then the EPA will
publish a timely withdrawal of the direct final rule informing the
public that the rule will not take effect. All public comments received
will then be addressed in a subsequent final rule based on the proposed
rule. The EPA will not institute a second comment period on this rule.
Any parties interested in commenting on this rule should do so at this
time. If no such comments are received, the public is advised that this
rule will be effective on October 8, 2013 and no further action will be
taken on the proposed rule.
VI. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
Under the CAA, the Administrator is required to approve a SIP
submission that complies with the provisions of the CAA and applicable
Federal regulations. 42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a). Thus, in
reviewing SIP submissions, the EPA's role is to approve state choices,
provided that they meet the criteria of the CAA. Accordingly, this
action merely approves state law as meeting Federal requirements and
does not impose additional requirements beyond those imposed by state
law. For that reason, this action:
Is not a ``significant regulatory action'' subject to
review by the Office of Management and Budget under Executive Order
12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993);
Does not impose an information collection burden under the
provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.);
Is certified as not having a significant economic impact
on a substantial number of small entities under the Regulatory
Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.);
Does not contain any unfunded mandate or significantly or
uniquely affect small governments, as described in the Unfunded
Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-4);
Does not have Federalism implications as specified in
Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999);
Is not an economically significant regulatory action based
on health or safety risks subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR
19885, April 23, 1997);
Is not a significant regulatory action subject to
Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001);
Is not subject to requirements of Section 12(d) of the
National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272
note) because application of those requirements would be inconsistent
with the CAA; and
Does not provide the EPA with the discretionary authority
to address, as appropriate, disproportionate human health or
environmental effects, using practicable and legally permissible
methods, under Executive Order 12898 (59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994).
In addition, this rule does not have tribal implications as
specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000),
because the SIP is not approved to apply in Indian country located in
the state, and the EPA notes that it will not impose substantial direct
costs on tribal governments or preempt tribal law.
The Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 801 et seq., as added by the
Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, generally
provides that before a rule may take effect, the agency promulgating
the rule must submit a rule report, which includes a copy of the rule,
to each House of the Congress and to the Comptroller General of the
United States. The EPA will submit a report containing this action and
other required information to the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House of
[[Page 48615]]
Representatives, and the Comptroller General of the United States prior
to publication of the rule in the Federal Register. A major rule cannot
take effect until 60 days after it is published in the Federal
Register. This action is not a ``major rule'' as defined by 5 U.S.C.
804(2).
Under section 307(b)(1) of the CAA, petitions for judicial review
of this action must be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for
the appropriate circuit by October 8, 2013. Filing a petition for
reconsideration by the Administrator of this final rule does not affect
the finality of this action for the purposes of judicial review nor
does it extend the time within which a petition for judicial review may
be filed, and shall not postpone the effectiveness of such rule or
action. Parties with objections to this direct final rule are
encouraged to file a comment in response to the parallel notice of
proposed rulemaking for this action published in the proposed rules
section of today's Federal Register, rather than file an immediate
petition for judicial review of this direct final rule, so that the EPA
can withdraw this direct final rule and address the comment in the
proposed rulemaking. This action may not be challenged later in
proceedings to enforce its requirements. (See section 307(b)(2)).
List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52
Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Carbon monoxide,
Incorporation by reference, Intergovernmental relations, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements.
Dated: July 23, 2013.
Michelle L. Pirzadeh,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 10.
For the reasons set out in the preamble, title 40, chapter I of the
Code of Federal Regulations is amended as follows:
PART 52--APPROVAL AND PROMULGATION OF IMPLEMENTATION PLANS
0
1. The authority citation for part 52 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Subpart C--Alaska
0
2. Section 52.73 is amended by adding paragraph (a)(2)(ii) to read as
follows:
Sec. 52.73 Approval of plans.
(a) * * *
(2) * * *
(ii) The EPA approves as a revision to the Alaska State
Implementation Plan, the Fairbanks Carbon Monoxide Limited Maintenance
Plan (Volume II, Section III.C.12 of the State Air Quality Control
Plan, adopted February 22, 2013) submitted by the Alaska Department of
Environmental Conservation on April 22, 2013. In this action, the EPA
is also approving the following revised sections of the Fairbanks
Transportation Control Program (Volume II, Section III.C): Air Quality
Emissions Data (Section III.C.3), Carbon Monoxide Network Monitoring
Program (Section III.C.4), Modeling and Projections (Section III.C.6),
and Air Quality Conformity Procedures (Section III.C.10); and the
following revised sections of the Appendices to Volume II of the
Fairbanks Transportation Control Program (Volume III): Section III.C.1
and Section III.C.10, all of which were included in the April 22, 2013
SIP submittal.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2013-19203 Filed 8-8-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P