Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program: Publication of Aggregated Greenhouse Gas Data, 32948-32953 [2014-13425]

Agencies

• ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 110 (Monday, June 9, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32948-32953]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-13425]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OAR-2014-0410; FRL-9911-98-OAR]


Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program: Publication of Aggregated 
Greenhouse Gas Data

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) intends to publish 
aggregated versions of certain data collected under the Greenhouse Gas 
Reporting Program, including totals, averages, and other aggregated 
versions of data submitted by individual reporters. The data that we 
intend to aggregate were determined in previous rulemakings to be 
confidential business information in their original, non-aggregated 
form. This notice describes the criteria we plan to use to determine 
whether confidential data are sufficiently aggregated such that 
publishing them would provide useful information while protecting the 
data that are entitled to confidentiality. In a memorandum to the 
docket for this notice, we also provide a list of data elements that we 
have identified for possible future publication in aggregated form if 
they meet the final version of these criteria.

DATES: Comments. Comments must be received on or before July 9, 2014.
    Public Hearing. The EPA does not plan to conduct a public hearing 
unless requested. To request a hearing, please contact the person 
listed in the following FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section by June 
16, 2014. If requested, the hearing will be conducted on June 24, 2014 
in the Washington, DC area. The EPA will provide further information 
about the hearing on the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule Web site, https://www.epa.gov/ghgreporting/ if a hearing is requested.

ADDRESSES: You may submit your comments, identified by docket ID No. 
EPA-HQ-OAR-2014-0410, by any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.
     Email: A-and-R-Docket@epa.gov. Include docket ID No. EPA-
HQ-OAR-2014-0410 [and/or RIN number] in the subject line of the 
message.
     Fax: (202) 566-9744.
     Mail: Environmental Protection Agency, EPA Docket Center 
(EPA/DC), Mailcode 28221T, Attention Docket ID No. OAR-2014-0410, 1200 
Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20460.
     Hand/Courier Delivery: EPA Docket Center, Room 3334, EPA 
WJC West Building, 1301 Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20004. 
Such deliveries are accepted only during the Docket's normal hours of 
operation, and special arrangements should be made for deliveries of 
boxed information.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-
2014-0410. 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 https://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 https://www.regulations.gov or email. The https://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 https://www.regulations.gov, your email address 
will be automatically captured and included as part of the comment that 
is placed in the public 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 https://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, will be publicly available only in hard 
copy. Publicly available docket materials are available either 
electronically in https://www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the Air 
Docket, EPA/DC, Room 3334, EPA WJC West Building, 1301 Constitution 
Ave. NW., Washington, DC.
    This Docket Facility is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday 
through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the 
Public Reading Room is (202) 566-1744, and the telephone number for the 
Air Docket is (202) 566-1742.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Carole Cook, Climate Change Division, 
Office of Atmospheric Programs (MC-6207J), Environmental Protection 
Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone 
number: (202) 343-9263; fax number: (202) 343-2342; email address: 
GHGReporting@epa.gov. For technical information, please go to the 
Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule Program Web site https://www.epa.gov/climatechange/emissions/ghgrulemaking.html. To submit a question, 
select Rule Help Center, followed by ``Contact Us.''

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Worldwide Web (WWW). In addition to being 
available in the docket, an electronic copy of today's notice will also 
be available through the WWW. Following the Director's signature, a 
copy of this action will be posted on EPA's greenhouse gas reporting 
rule Web site at https://www.epa.gov/climatechange/emissions/ghgrulemaking.html.
    Organization of This Document. The following outline is provided to 
aid in locating information in this preamble.

I. General Information
    A. Does this notice apply to me?
    B. How can I get copies of this document and other related 
information?
    C. What should I consider as I prepare my comments to the EPA?
II. Background and Purpose of Notice
III. Description of Rationale and Criteria for

[[Page 32949]]

Data Aggregation
    A. Rationale for CBI Data Aggregation
    B. Criteria for Data Aggregation and Publication
    C. Data Elements Proposed for Aggregation and Publication
    D. Data Publication Process and Availability
    E. Request for Comments

I. General Information

A. Does this notice apply to me?

    This notice is directed to the general public. However, this action 
may be of particular interest to parties subject to the requirements of 
40 CFR part 98. If you have further questions regarding the 
applicability of this action to a particular party, please contact the 
person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section.

B. How can I get copies of this document and other related information?

1. Electronically
    The EPA has included a public docket for this Federal Register 
notice under Docket EPA-HQ-OAR-2014-0410. All documents in the docket 
are identified in the docket index available at https://www.regulations.gov. Although listed in the index, some information is 
not publicly available, such as CBI or other information for which 
disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain materials, such as 
copyrighted material, will be available only in hard copy at the EPA 
Docket Center.
2. EPA Docket Center
    Materials listed under Docket EPA-HQ-OAR-2014-0410 will be 
available for public viewing at https://www.regulations.gov and at the 
EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), Room 3334, EPA WJC West Building, 1301 
Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20004. The EPA Docket Center 
Public Reading Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the Reading 
Room is (202) 566-1744, and the telephone number for the Air Docket is 
(202) 566-1742.

C. What should I consider as I prepare my comments to the EPA?

1. Submitting CBI in Response to This Notice
    Clearly mark the part or all of the comments that you claim to be 
CBI submitted in response to this notice. For CBI information in a disk 
or CD ROM that you mail to the EPA, mark the outside of the disk or CD 
ROM as CBI and then identify electronically within the disk or CD ROM 
the specific information that is claimed as CBI. In addition to one 
complete version of the comment that includes information claimed as 
CBI, submit a copy of the comment that does not contain the information 
claimed as CBI for inclusion in the public docket. Information marked 
as CBI will not be disclosed except in accordance with procedures set 
forth in 40 CFR part 2.
    Do not submit information that you consider to be CBI or otherwise 
protected through https://www.regulations.gov or email. Send or deliver 
information identified as CBI to only the mail or hand/courier delivery 
address listed above, attention: Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2014-0410.
    If you have any questions about CBI or the procedures for claiming 
CBI, please consult the person identified in the FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT section.
2. Tips for Preparing Your Comments
    Follow directions. The EPA may ask you to respond to specific 
questions or organize comments by referencing a CFR part or section 
number. Explain why you agree or disagree and suggest alternatives for 
your requested changes. Describe any assumptions and provide any 
technical information and or data that you used. Provide specific 
examples to illustrate your concerns and suggest alternatives. Explain 
your views as clearly as possible, avoiding the use of profanity or 
personal threats.
    Make sure to submit your information and comments by the comment 
period deadline identified in the preceding section titled DATES. To 
ensure proper receipt by the EPA, be sure to identify this notice by 
the docket ID number assigned to this action in the subject line on the 
first page of your response. You may also provide the name, date, and 
Federal Register citation.

II. Background and Purpose of Notice

    Background. The EPA's Office of Atmospheric Programs (OAP) has 
responsibility for protecting public health and the environment by 
addressing climate change, protecting the ozone layer, and improving 
regional air quality. In response to the FY2008 Consolidated 
Appropriations Act (H.R. 2764; Pub. L. 110-161), the EPA created the 
Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP), 40 CFR part 98 (Part 98), 
which requires reporting of greenhouse gas (GHG) data and other 
relevant information from large sources and suppliers in the United 
States. The purpose of Part 98 is to collect accurate and timely GHG 
data to inform future policy decisions.
    Through a series of rulemaking actions, the EPA determined which 
categories of data elements meet the statutory and regulatory criteria 
for protection as CBI. For information on the history of 
confidentiality determinations for Part 98 data elements, see the 
following notices:
     75 FR 39094, July 7, 2010. Described the EPA's intent to 
make categorical CBI determinations for Part 98 data and proposed data 
categories for the Part 98 data elements.
     76 FR 30782, May 26, 2011. Assigned data elements to data 
categories and published the final CBI determinations for the data 
elements to be reported under 34 Part 98 subparts, except for those 
data elements that were assigned to the ``Inputs to Emission 
Equations'' data category. Finalized amendments to 40 CFR part 2 
governing CBI obtained under Part 98 that allow the EPA to release or 
withhold data elements according to final categorical confidentiality 
determinations.
     77 FR 48072, August 13, 2012. Finalized confidentiality 
determinations for data elements to be reported under nine subparts, 
except for those data elements that were assigned to the ``Inputs to 
Emission Equations'' data category, and finalized confidentiality 
determinations for new data elements recently added to two subparts.
     77 FR 51477, August 24, 2012. Finalized confidentiality 
determinations for new data elements added to subpart L.
     78 FR 68162, November 13, 2013. Finalized confidentiality 
determinations for new or substantially revised data elements in this 
rule for subpart I.
     78 FR 71904, November 29, 2013. Finalized confidentiality 
determinations for new or substantially revised data elements in this 
rule for 15 subparts.
    Data elements determined to be CBI are handled in accordance with 
the EPA's regulations in 40 CFR part 2, subpart B, and with EPA 
procedures that are consistent with those regulations.
    Purpose. The EPA seeks to publish aggregated versions of data that 
were previously determined by regulation to be CBI when reported by 
individual facilities and suppliers, as described in the Background 
section above. The EPA plans to use the aggregated data in developing 
the Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks (Inventory) 
that the EPA compiles annually as well as for other purposes. The 
purpose of this notice is twofold: 1) to describe and seek comment on 
the overarching criteria that EPA plans to use to evaluate whether data 
that have been determined to be CBI when

[[Page 32950]]

reported by individual facilities and suppliers are sufficiently 
aggregated so as not to disclose any underlying confidential data; and 
2) to identify (in a memorandum in the docket for this notice) and seek 
comment on a specific list of data elements that EPA is presently 
considering for publication in aggregated form. (A memorandum titled 
``Publication of Certain Aggregated Greenhouse Gas Data,'' associated 
with this Federal Register notice and placed in the docket for this 
notice, contains this list of data elements.) Although the EPA's CBI 
regulations do not require us to publish a Federal Register notice or 
take public comment in advance of publishing aggregated data, we are 
publishing this notice and requesting comment because we anticipate a 
high level of stakeholder interest. Section III.A of this notice 
describes the rationale for publishing these data elements in 
aggregated form, and Section III.B of this notice describes the 
criteria we plan to apply to each aggregated value to determine whether 
it can be published without disclosing any underlying confidential 
facility-level or supplier-level data. Section III.C describes the data 
elements that the EPA presently seeks to aggregate. Section III.D 
describes the process that the EPA will follow for publication of 
aggregated values, and Section III.E describes the aspects of this 
notice for which we are seeking comment.

III. Description of Rationale and Criteria for Data Aggregation

A. Rationale for CBI Data Aggregation

    The EPA's primary purpose in aggregating GHGRP data is for use in 
the Inventory. As a party to the United Nations Framework Convention on 
Climate Change (UNFCCC), the United States participates in ongoing 
negotiations with the international community to promote global 
cooperation on climate change. The UNFCCC treaty, ratified by the 
United States in 1992, sets an overall framework for intergovernmental 
efforts to address the challenges posed by climate change.\1\ As part 
of its commitment to the UNFCCC, the United States submits the 
Inventory to the Secretariat of the UNFCCC as an annual reporting 
requirement.\2\ The Inventory is a comprehensive assessment of U.S. GHG 
emissions based on national-level data; it is prepared by the EPA's 
Office of Air and Radiation in coordination with other federal agencies 
and with consideration of public input.
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    \1\ See: United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, 
1992. Available at: https://unfccc.int/resource/docs/convkp/conveng.pdf. For more information about the UNFCCC, please refer to: 
https://www.unfccc.int.
    \2\ See: Articles 4 and 12 of the Convention on Climate Change. 
Parties to the Convention, by ratifying, ``shall develop, 
periodically update, publish and make available . . . national 
inventories of anthropogenic emissions by sources and removals by 
sinks of all greenhouse gases not controlled by the Montreal 
Protocol, using comparable methodologies . . ..''
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    As described in the preamble of the proposed GHG Reporting Rule (74 
FR 16448, April 10, 2009), the GHGRP is intended to supplement and 
complement existing U.S. government programs related to climate policy 
and research, including the Inventory. The GHGRP provides data to 
develop and inform inventories and other U.S. climate programs by 
advancing the understanding of emission processes from individual 
facilities and suppliers above certain thresholds. Collected facility-, 
unit-, and process-level GHG data from the GHGRP provide or help 
improve the national statistics and emission estimates presented in the 
Inventory. Aggregation of the GHGRP data described in this notice will 
support the development and quality assurance/quality control of the 
Inventory.
    As also noted in the preamble of the proposed GHG Reporting Rule 
(74 FR 16448), the GHGRP was developed, in large part, to collect 
comprehensive and accurate data to inform future climate policy 
development and support a range of possible policies and regulations. 
The EPA described the importance of transparency in informing the 
public, building public confidence in the data, and ensuring data 
quality, which support the development of potential future climate 
policies or programs. The EPA believes that publication of aggregated 
GHGRP data helps to accomplish all of these goals.
    Accordingly, the EPA plans to publish certain data, which 
previously were determined to be CBI in the non-aggregated form in 
which they are initially reported, in an aggregated format that we 
believe no longer qualifies as CBI. As we have noted in other 
rulemakings (e.g., 75 FR 39094, 77 FR 51477), it is possible to 
aggregate facility- or supplier-level data in ways that do not disclose 
any of the underlying CBI data. For example, national production totals 
can often provide useful and important information to the public 
without the risk of revealing confidential data about a specific 
facility or supplier.
    The EPA is guided in this process by EPA regulations, federal 
policies, and executive orders. The EPA's regulations concerning 
protection of CBI suggest that aggregating this information can shield 
the underlying confidential information and may be sufficient to 
protect the reporters of that information from suffering substantial 
competitive harm.\3\
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    \3\ ``In taking actions under this subpart, EPA offices should 
consider whether it is possible to obtain the affected business's 
consent to disclosure of useful portions of records while protecting 
the information which is or may be entitled to confidentiality 
(e.g., by withholding such portions of a record as would identify a 
business, or by disclosing data in the form of industry-wide 
aggregates, multi-year averages or totals, or some similar form).'' 
40 CFR 2.202(f). Available at: https://www.epa.gov/epafoia1/2202.htm.
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    Government agencies and industry organizations routinely publish 
data in an aggregated format as a means of providing important 
information to the public while maintaining the confidentiality of 
individual companies. For example, the U.S. Energy Information 
Administration (EIA) publishes natural gas liquid production data by 
region or Petroleum Administration for Defense District (PADD) to mask 
data reported by individual companies.\4\ The Department of Labor's 
Bureau of Labor Statistics aggregates employment and wage data by 
county and industry in the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages,\5\ 
while suppressing data that would reveal information about individual 
companies. The Census Bureau requests data from individual respondents 
in the American Community Survey, which is aggregated to limit the 
disclosure of information about individual respondents.\6\ The U.S. 
Geological Survey (USGS) collects minerals data from thousands of 
mineral industry companies; USGS is required by law to protect 
proprietary information from unauthorized disclosure but publishes 
aggregated versions of many of these data sets.\7\
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    \4\ See: U.S. Energy Information Administration. ``Monthly 
Natural Gas Gross Production Report.'' (Mar. 31, 2014). Available 
at: https://www.eia.gov/oil_gas/natural_gas/data_publications/eia914/eia914.html.
    \5\ See: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. 
``Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages.'' (Mar. 20, 2014) 
Available at: https://www.bls.gov/cew/.
    \6\ See: U.S. Census Bureau. ``American Community Survey: Data 
Suppression.'' (Nov. 15, 2013). Available at: https://www.census.gov/acs/www/Downloads/data_documentation/data_suppression/ACSO_Data_Suppression.pdf.
    \7\ See: U.S. Geological Survey. ``Proprietary Data: How They 
Are Protected at the U.S. Geological Survey.''
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    Many industry organizations use this approach as well. For example, 
the American Petroleum Institute, in coordination with several other 
industry organizations, collects natural gas liquid production and 
sales data from its members and publishes the data

[[Page 32951]]

aggregated to the state and PADD levels.\8\ Additionally, the Air-
Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute, a trade association 
of equipment, chemical, and component manufacturers, publishes monthly 
and annual reports of U.S. manufactured shipments of central air 
conditioning and air-source heat pump systems, among other types of 
products, aggregated across all of its members.\9\
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    \8\ See: American Petroleum Institute. ``2012 Sales of Natural 
Gas Liquids and Liquid Refinery Gases.'' (Dec. 2013).
    \9\ See: Air-Conditioning, Heating & Refrigeration Institute. 
``Monthly Shipments.'' (2013). Available at: https://www.ahrinet.org/monthly+shipments.aspx.
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    Consistent with this approach, the EPA plans to publish select 
aggregated Part 98 data at levels that ensure confidentiality of 
underlying facility- or supplier-level CBI data. To guide us in making 
these determinations, we have developed the criteria outlined in 
Section III.B of this preamble for reviewing aggregated values prior to 
publication.

B. Criteria for Data Aggregation and Publication

    The EPA recognizes that careful consideration and review of 
aggregated values are necessary to ensure that underlying CBI is 
sufficiently masked. This requires ensuring that the aggregated data do 
not disclose underlying CBI data or allow the CBI to be computed, back-
calculated, or otherwise discerned using other Part 98 data or 
additional data. To assist with this analysis, the GHGRP has developed 
a set of criteria to evaluate whether a given aggregation sufficiently 
masks underlying CBI.
    In developing these criteria, the GHGRP reviewed existing, 
effective criteria, methods, and principles used by other EPA offices 
and federal agencies that publish aggregated versions of individual 
companies' confidential or proprietary data, including the USGS's 
National Minerals Information Center, the Energy Information 
Administration, and the EPA's Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution 
Prevention. The criteria that the EPA has developed for publishing 
aggregated GHGRP data are comparable in their rigor to the criteria or 
principles used by these programs.
    Consistent with these goals, we have considered methods for the EPA 
to publish aggregated versions of GHGRP data elements that are not 
likely to cause substantial competitive harm and that do not disclose 
the underlying facility- or supplier-level CBI.
1. Criteria for Aggregating Data at the National or Regional Level
    The GHGRP has established overarching criteria that we plan to use 
to determine under what circumstances it is appropriate to publish 
aggregated data. The EPA plans to apply these criteria to the specific 
list of data elements included in the memorandum titled ``Publication 
of Certain Aggregated Greenhouse Gas Data'' associated with this 
Federal Register notice and to future data aggregation efforts. Over 
time, the EPA may identify additional data that would be useful to 
publish, and plans to use these criteria as a basis for this 
aggregation.
    To determine whether a particular data element aggregated at the 
national or regional level may be published without risk of disclosing 
any facility- or supplier-level CBI, the EPA intends to assess the data 
aggregation according to the following criteria. In line with the other 
programs and offices described above, the EPA has determined that if 
the data element aggregated at the national or regional level meets all 
four criteria, then the data may be published without disclosing 
underlying CBI.
    1a. The data used to calculate the aggregated value must be 
reported by at least three separate facilities or suppliers that have 
no common ownership or operator.
    2a. No single owner or operator can contribute more than x percent 
to a particular aggregated value. (The EPA will not disclose the value 
of x.)
    3a. No two owners or operators can contribute more than y percent 
of a particular aggregated value. (The EPA will not disclose the value 
of y.)
    4a. No underlying facility- or supplier-level CBI can be back-
calculated or otherwise determined using the aggregated value in 
combination with other publicly available data, including any facility-
, supplier-, regional-, or national-level data published by the GHGRP 
or any other data likely to be available to owners or operators.
    The EPA will publish only aggregated values that meet all four 
criteria. Combined, the criteria ensure that publishing aggregated 
values that meet the criteria would not inadvertently disclose 
facility- or supplier-level CBI. For example, if five facilities 
reported a particular data element and one company has part or total 
ownership of four of the five facilities, criterion 1a would not be met 
and the EPA would not release the aggregated value. Similarly, if the 
data reported by one or two companies comprise the vast majority 
(greater than the value of x or y described above, respectively) of the 
aggregated value reported, then criteria 2a and 3a would not be met and 
the EPA would not release the aggregated data. Finally, if other public 
data could be used in combination with the aggregated value to 
calculate or otherwise estimate CBI reported by a facility or supplier, 
criterion 4a would not be met. For example, if a data element is 
aggregated by region and all but one regional aggregation meet the 
criteria, publishing the values from all of the other regions would 
allow the data for the final region to be back-calculated if the 
national total is also published. In this case, the EPA would withhold 
data from at least one other region.
    The values selected for x and y in criteria 2a and 3a above will be 
sufficient to ensure protection for the CBI reported by individual 
facilities and suppliers. As stated in the above criteria, we do not 
plan to make public the values of x and y. The EPA has determined that 
releasing these values could in certain circumstances provide a 
reporting company with insight into the CBI reported by competitors. 
For example, the data reported by one company that is dominant in its 
market may be slightly above the percentage threshold for criterion 2a 
(the x value) in a certain reporting year but below the threshold in a 
subsequent reporting year. In such situations, the EPA would not 
publish the aggregated value for the first reporting year, but may 
choose to publish the aggregated value in subsequent reporting years 
(provided all other criteria are met). If the EPA disclosed the value 
of x, competitors would know that the dominant company's share of that 
data element decreased and the dominant company's approximate portion 
of the aggregated total.
2. Criteria for Aggregating Supplier Data at the Corporate Level in 
Subparts OO, PP, and QQ
    Some individual suppliers that report data under Part 98 subparts 
OO (Suppliers of Industrial Greenhouse Gases), PP (Suppliers of Carbon 
Dioxide), and QQ (Importers and Exporters of Fluorinated Greenhouse 
Gases Contained in Pre-Charged Equipment or Closed-Cell Foams) report 
data about multiple industrial gases. The EPA intends to aggregate 
these data, in units of carbon dioxide equivalent, across products or 
product types at the corporate level to increase transparency by 
providing the general public with the total potential GHG emissions 
associated with industrial gases supplied into the economy by each

[[Page 32952]]

reporting corporation and to provide the ability to track how this 
quantity changes over time.
    The memorandum titled ``Publication of Certain Aggregated 
Greenhouse Gas Data'' lists certain subpart OO, PP, and QQ data 
elements that the EPA may aggregate and publish across multiple 
products or product types from a single company. As above, the EPA will 
only aggregate and publish this CBI if the following criteria are met.
    1b. The aggregated value includes information from two or more 
products supplied by the reporter.
    2b. No single product can contribute more than z percent of the 
corporate-level total to a particular aggregated value. (The EPA will 
not disclose the value of z.)
    3b. Publication of the data does not allow for values (from another 
owner) that do not themselves meet criteria 1b and 2b to be back-
calculated from national- or regional-level data aggregations.
    4b. If a company reports data on only a single product type (e.g., 
under subpart QQ), the products within that product type contain 
different GHGs, different amounts of that GHG per product, or both.
    As above, the value selected for z in criterion 2b above will be 
sufficient to ensure protection for the CBI reported by individual 
suppliers, and the EPA does not intend to make that value public. For 
supplier data aggregated at the corporate level, if the data element 
includes information from only one product supplied by the reporter, 
then criterion 1b would not be met and the value would not be 
published. Similarly, if one product supplied comprises more than z 
percent of the corporate-level total of the aggregated value, then 
criterion 2b would not be met and the EPA would not publish the 
aggregated value. If publishing corporate-level data from Owners A and 
B would allow for the back-calculation of data from Owner C, which 
would otherwise have been protected because it did not meet criteria 1b 
and 2b, then criterion 3b would not be met and the EPA would not 
publish the aggregated value from Owners A and/or B.

C. Data Elements Proposed for Aggregation and Publication

    The EPA reviewed the Part 98 data categorized as CBI and has 
identified a selection of data elements that, in aggregated form, would 
be used to improve or check the Inventory or otherwise inform policy-
makers and the public. To determine whether these data aggregations 
could be published without disclosing the underlying facility- or 
supplier-level CBI, we will apply the final version of the criteria 
described above to each aggregated value. The memorandum titled 
``Publication of Certain Aggregated Greenhouse Gas Data'' associated 
with this Federal Register notice contains a list of data elements that 
the EPA is presently considering for aggregation if they meet the final 
criteria for publication that the EPA adopts after considering comment 
on this notice. The aggregated values would likely be published on an 
annual basis, as long as they continue to meet the final criteria. 
Additional information regarding the publication of data in future 
years is provided in Section III.D of this notice.

D. Data Publication Process and Availability

    The EPA will publish only aggregated versions of data that were 
previously determined to be CBI in non-aggregated form in accordance 
with the EPA's CBI regulations at 40 CFR part 2, subpart B. With regard 
to the overarching criteria described in this notice, the EPA will 
consider comments received and anticipates publishing the final 
aggregation criteria. With regard to the specific list of data elements 
listed in the memorandum titled ``Publication of Certain Aggregated 
Greenhouse Gas Data,'' the EPA will consider comments on this notice 
and evaluate the possible aggregations against the final criteria to 
determine which of the data elements may be published in aggregated 
form. The EPA will then individually notify each affected reporter (in 
writing and in a manner providing confirmation of receipt, as specified 
under the EPA's CBI regulations at 40 CFR 2.204(e)(1)) about which of 
that reporter's data elements the EPA intends to aggregate and the 
intended level of aggregation. The EPA will then give the reporter at 
least 10 days to file for judicial review, as required under 40 CFR 
2.205(f)(2), before we publicly release any aggregated values.
    The data elements listed in the memorandum titled ``Publication of 
Certain Aggregated Greenhouse Gas Data'' are the data elements that the 
EPA is presently considering publishing in aggregated form, provided 
they meet the final aggregation criteria that the EPA adopts. For 
aggregated values to be published in any future year, the final 
criteria must be met for the relevant data element(s) for that 
particular year. In the future, we may find that publication of 
additional aggregated values would be useful to Inventory compilation, 
policy-makers, or the public. In that case, we would evaluate the 
aggregations to determine whether they meet the relevant final 
criteria, individually notify each affected reporter and wait at least 
10 days before releasing the aggregated values, as described above. We 
would not necessarily publish additional Federal Register notices 
concerning publication of additional aggregated values.
    The EPA plans to make the aggregated Part 98 data available in 
various formats and sources as appropriate to the data element, 
including the Inventory, the EPA's Facility Level Information on 
GreenHouse gases Tool (FLIGHT), the EPA's Envirofacts Web site, and EPA 
downloadable data files available on the EPA Web site. The published 
data will not include non-aggregated facility or supplier data that 
have been categorized as CBI or aggregated values that would reveal 
underlying facility- or supplier-level CBI.

E. Request for Comments

    We are soliciting comment on the rationale and criteria we plan to 
use to determine which data elements can be aggregated and published 
without disclosing underlying facility- or supplier-level CBI. If you 
believe that one or more of the criteria are either too stringent or 
not stringent enough, provide a detailed explanation of (1) why you 
believe this to be true and (2) what changes to the proposed criteria 
should be made or what alternative criteria should be adopted. 
Providing specific scenarios to illustrate either the effectiveness or 
ineffectiveness of the criteria would be particularly useful. We are 
soliciting comments on appropriate values for x, y, and z in criteria 
2a, 3a and 2b (including whether these values must be consistent across 
subparts) and on our intent not to make those values publicly 
available.
    We are also soliciting comments on whether aggregation and 
publication of the specific data elements identified in the memorandum 
titled ``Publication of Certain Aggregated Greenhouse Gas Data'' would 
disclose underlying CBI or otherwise would likely result in substantial 
competitive harm to a particular company. Please identify the specific 
data element and level of aggregation and explain how the public 
release of that particular value would or would not be likely to result 
in disclosure of underlying facility- or supplier-level CBI or 
otherwise cause substantial competitive harm. If you believe that the 
publication of any of the aggregated data identified in the memorandum 
associated with this Federal Register notice would be likely to 
disclose CBI or otherwise cause substantial competitive harm, explain 
the mechanism by which this would

[[Page 32953]]

occur. If your concern is that the release of aggregated value for a 
particular data element would allow competitors to derive the value for 
an individual facility or supplier, specifically describe the pathway 
by which this could occur. Describe any unique process or aspect of a 
facility or supplier that would be revealed if the aggregated value for 
a specific data element were made publicly available.
    If the aggregated value would disclose underlying CBI only when 
used in combination with other publicly available data, then identify 
the information you believe could be revealed, describe how it would be 
calculated or otherwise discerned, explain why you consider the 
information to be sensitive, describe the competitive harm that its 
disclosure would be likely to cause, and identify the source of the 
other data. If the data are physically published, such as in a book, 
industry trade publication, or federal agency publication, provide the 
title, volume number (if applicable), author(s), publisher, publication 
date, frequency of publication, and International Standard Book Number 
(ISBN), or other identifier. For data published on a Web site, provide 
the address of the Web site and the date you last visited the Web site 
and identify the Web site publisher and content author.
    We are also interested in comments identifying any publicly 
available sources of information containing the specific data 
aggregation in question. Discuss how these aggregated values may be 
different from or similar to data that are already publicly available. 
In your comments, please identify the manner and location in which the 
aggregated value for each specific data element you identify is 
available, including a citation. If the data are physically published, 
such as in a book, industry trade publication, or federal agency 
publication, provide the title, volume number (if applicable), 
author(s), publisher, publication date, frequency of publication, and 
ISBN, or other identifier. For data published on a Web site, provide 
the address of the Web site and the date you last visited the Web site 
and identify the Web site publisher and content author.
    Avoid conclusory and unsubstantiated statements or general 
assertions regarding potential harm. Please be as specific as possible 
in your comments and include all information necessary for the EPA to 
evaluate your comments.
    Parties who wish further information about this Federal Register 
notice or about OAP's aggregation of information designated or claimed 
as CBI may contact the person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT section.

    Dated: June 2, 2014.
Paul Gunning,
Acting Director, Office of Atmospheric Programs.
[FR Doc. 2014-13425 Filed 6-6-14; 8:45 am]
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