Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans; New Mexico; Regional Haze and Interstate Transport Affecting Visibility State Implementation Plan Revisions, 60985-60993 [2014-23904]
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Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 196 / Thursday, October 9, 2014 / Rules and Regulations
Available Retrofit requirements in CAA
section 169(b)(2)(A) and the Visibility
Impairment requirements in CAA
section 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(II). This action
will not modify this relationship. Thus,
Executive Order 13132 does not apply
to this action.
F. Executive Order 13175—Consultation
and Coordination With Indian Tribal
Governments
This FIP withdrawal action does not
have tribal implications, as specified in
Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249,
November 9, 2000). In this action, EPA
is not addressing any Tribal
Implementation Plans. This action is
limited to the withdrawal of the New
Mexico RH and IT FIP for PNM’s San
Juan Generating Station. Thus,
Executive Order 13175 does not apply
to this action. Consistent with EPA
policy, EPA offered consultation to
tribes regarding this rulemaking action.
G. Executive Order 13045—Protection of
Children From Environmental Health
Risks and Safety Risks
EPA interprets Executive Order 13045
(62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997) as
applying only to those regulatory
actions that concern health or safety
risks, such that the analysis required
under section 5–501 of the executive
order has the potential to influence the
regulation. This action is not subject to
EO 13045 because EPA in withdrawing
the New Mexico RH and IT FIP for
PNM’s San Juan Generating Station, as
authorized by the CAA, EPA considers
visibility and not health or safety risks.
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H. Executive Order 13211—Actions
Concerning Regulations That
Significantly Affect Energy Supply,
Distribution, or Use
This FIP withdrawal action is not
subject to Executive Order 13211 (66 FR
28355, May 22, 2001) because it is
exempt from review under Executive
Order 12866.
I. National Technology Transfer and
Advancement Act
Section 12(d) of the National
Technology Transfer and Advancement
Act of 1995 (NTTAA), Public Law 104—
113, 12(d) (15 U.S.C. 272 note) directs
EPA to use voluntary consensus
standards in its regulatory activities
unless to do so would be inconsistent
with applicable law or otherwise
impractical. Voluntary consensus
standards are technical standards (e.g.,
materials specifications, test methods,
sampling procedures, and business
practices) that are developed or adopted
by voluntary consensus standards
bodies. NTTAA directs EPA to provide
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Congress, through OMB, explanations
when the Agency decides not to use
available and applicable voluntary
consensus standards. This FIP
withdrawal action for PNM’s San Juan
Generating Station does not involve
technical standards. Therefore, EPA did
not consider the use of any voluntary
consensus standards.
J. Executive Order 12898—Federal
Actions To Address Environmental
Justice in Minority Populations and
Low-Income Populations
This final rule does not provide 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).
K. Congressional Review Act
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. EPA will submit a
report containing this action and other
required information to the U.S. Senate,
the U.S. House of 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).
L. Petitions for Judicial Review
Under section 307(b)(1) of the Clean
Air Act, petitions for judicial review of
this action must be filed in the United
States Court of Appeals for the
appropriate circuit by December 8,
2014. 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. 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, Incorporation by
reference, Intergovernmental relations,
Nitrogen dioxide, Particulate matter,
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60985
Regional haze, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements, Sulfur
dioxide, and Visibility.
Dated: September 26, 2014.
Gina McCarthy,
Administrator.
For the reasons stated 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.
§ 52.1628
[Removed and Reserved]
2. Section 52.1628 is removed and
reserved.
■
[FR Doc. 2014–23905 Filed 10–8–14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA–R06–OAR–2014–0214; FRL–9917–63–
Region 6]
Approval and Promulgation of
Implementation Plans; New Mexico;
Regional Haze and Interstate Transport
Affecting Visibility State
Implementation Plan Revisions
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Final rule.
AGENCY:
The Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) is taking final action
under the Clean Air Act (CAA) to
approve a revision to the New Mexico
Regional Haze State Implementation
Plan (SIP) that addresses the Best
Available Retrofit Technology (BART)
requirement for oxides of nitrogen
(NOX) for the Public Service Company
of New Mexico (PNM) San Juan
Generating Station (SJGS) in San Juan
County, New Mexico. EPA is also taking
final action under the CAA to approve
a revision to the New Mexico Visibility
Transport SIP that addresses the CAA
requirement that emissions from sources
in New Mexico do not interfere with
programs in other states to protect
visibility. The SIP meets this
requirement through emission
limitations for NOX and sulfur dioxide
(SO2) at SJGS.
DATES: This final rule will be effective
November 10, 2014.
SUMMARY:
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EPA has established a
docket for this action under Docket ID
No. EPA–R06–OAR–2014–0214. 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., Confidential Business Information
or other information the disclosure of
which 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 Planning Section (6PD–L),
Environmental Protection Agency, 1445
Ross Avenue, Suite 700, Dallas, Texas
75202–2733. The file will be made
available by appointment for public
inspection in the Region 6 FOIA Review
Room between the hours of 8:30 a.m.
and 4:30 p.m. weekdays except for legal
holidays. Contact the person listed in
the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
paragraph below or Mr. Bill Deese at
214–665–7253 to make an appointment.
If possible, please make the
appointment at least two working days
in advance of your visit. A 15 cent per
page fee will be charged for making
photocopies of documents. On the day
of the visit, please check in at the EPA
Region 6 reception area on the seventh
floor at 1445 Ross Avenue, Suite 700,
Dallas, Texas 75202–2733.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr.
Michael Feldman (214) 665–9793, email
feldman.michael@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Throughout this document whenever
‘‘we,’’ ‘‘us,’’ or ‘‘our’’ is used, we mean
EPA.
ADDRESSES:
Table of Contents
I. What is the background for this action?
II. What final action is EPA taking?
III. Response to Comments
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
I. What is the background for this
action?
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The background for today’s final rule
is discussed in detail in our May 12,
2014 document, in which we proposed
to approve New Mexico’s SIP revisions.
See 79 FR 26909. The comment period
on the proposed action was open for 30
days, and several comments were
received.
II. What final action is EPA taking?
We are approving New Mexico’s
regional haze SIP revisions submitted
on October 7, 2013 and November 5,
2013 (‘‘2013 RH SIP revision’’), that
build on a SIP revision submitted on
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July 5, 2011 (‘‘2011 RH SIP revision’’).1
The 2013 RH SIP revision contains a
new NOX BART determination for the
SJGS (referred to as the ‘‘State
Alternative’’). The State Alternative
consists of a previously uncontemplated control scenario involving
unit shutdowns at the SJGS. With this
approval, the State Alternative
supersedes the State’s previous NOX
BART determination that was included
in the 2011 RH SIP revision. The State
Alternative reflects the terms of the
tentative agreement signed between the
PNM, the New Mexico Environment
Department (NMED), and EPA to
address the regional haze requirements
applicable to the SJGS. This agreement
is included as Exhibit 5 of the 2013 RH
SIP revision.2 The 2013 RH SIP revision
also includes a preconstruction permit
submitted on November 5, 2013,3 that
sets a NOX emission limit based upon
the State Alternative, compliance
schedules, a compliance deadline for
the shutdown of two units, and
monitoring and testing requirements.
More specifically, the 2013 RH SIP
revision requires the following:
• Fifteen (15) months after EPA’s
final approval of the 2013 RH SIP
revision, but no earlier than January 31,
2016, PNM will complete installation of
SNCR technology on SJGS Units 1 and
4 and meet an emission limit of 0.23 lb/
MMBtu on a rolling 30-day average
basis; 4
• PNM will retire SJGS Units 2 and 3
by December 31, 2017; and
• PNM will commence a program of
testing and evaluation, after the
installation of the SNCRs, to determine
if additional NOX emission reductions
can be achieved. The Testing Program,
consisting of SNCR performance testing,
fuel performance testing, and long-term
performance evaluation, must be
1 We are acting on everything not yet acted upon
in the 2011 RH SIP revision that pertains to the
2013 NOX BART determination. The 2013 RH SIP
revision explains that the revised, more recent NOX
BART determination would ‘‘supersede’’ the 2011
NOX BART determination if EPA approves it.
Certain NMED documents from the 2011 RH SIP
revision are relevant to the state’s 2013 conclusions
regarding NOX BART, but other information that
relates solely to the 2011 NOX BART determination
is now moot with EPA’s finalized approval of the
superseding BART determination.
2 Term Sheet Between the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, Public Service Company of New
Mexico and the State of New Mexico (‘‘Term
Sheet’’), February 15, 2013.
3 NSR Technical Permit Revision, NSR Permit No.
0063–M6R3, November 1, 2013.
4 The permit conditions at A112C specify the
averaging time and calculation methodology for the
enforceable emission limit for NOX on Units 1 and
4 of 0.23 lb/MMBtu on a boiler-operating-day basis,
averaged across the two units.
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completed no later than January 31,
2017.5
In addition to approving New
Mexico’s revised enforceable NOX
BART determination for SJGS, we are
also approving New Mexico’s 2011
Visibility Transport SIP revision, as
revised in 2013, because it demonstrates
that emissions from all sources in New
Mexico are sufficiently controlled to
eliminate interference with the visibility
programs of other states. We are also
approving as part of New Mexico’s SIP
the operative sections of the 2013
permit for SJGS on the basis that the
SO2 and NOX emission limits for the
SJGS will sufficiently prevent emissions
from sources in New Mexico from
interfering with the visibility programs
of other states.
New Mexico has incorporated
emission limits and requirements for
unit shutdowns into the 2013
preconstruction permit that was
submitted as part of the SIP revisions.
Specifically, as a source-specific
requirement of the New Mexico SIP for
regional haze and visibility transport,
section A112C of the 2013 SJGS permit
provides a more stringent SO2 emission
limit (i.e., than previously permitted or
SIP-required) as part of the State
Alternative and a NOX emission limit
reflecting the State Alternative. The
permit contains three independent
scenarios under section A112: A, B, and
C. Consistent with the terms of the
permit, our final approval puts Scenario
C into effect, while the other two
scenarios are now moot.
We have determined that the 2013 RH
SIP revision and corresponding
visibility transport SIP revisions are
approvable because the revisions were
adopted and submitted in accordance
with the CAA and EPA’s regulations
regarding the regional haze program and
meet the CAA provisions concerning
non-interference with programs to
protect visibility in other states. We are
taking this final action today under
section 110 and part C of the CAA.
Consistent with the discussion provided
in our proposal, the 2011 RH SIP
provision for NOX BART is fully
superseded and/or moot with today’s
approval and does not constitute a SIP
submittal pending EPA review and
action.
In addition, as our May 12, 2014
proposal explained, the approval of the
SIP submittals enables EPA to withdraw
or rescind the Federal Implementation
Plan (FIP) that was earlier promulgated
5 A delay may be allowed under special
circumstances that would limit the number of
evaluation days during both summer and winter
months, as discussed in the paragraph 1(d)(iv) of
the Term Sheet.
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to address the same requirements. See
79 FR 26909. Accordingly, as a result of
today’s approval action, we are also
taking action to withdraw the regional
haze FIP for New Mexico at 40 CFR
52.1628. The action to withdraw the FIP
is in a separate action contained in
today’s Federal Register. Upon the
effective date of the Federal Register
documents, the requirements in the
approved SIP apply and the FIP
requirements for the SJGS are
withdrawn.
III. Response to Comments
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We received several comments on our
proposed approval of the 2013 RH SIP
revision that were submitted by PNM,
NMED, the Navajo Nation, the National
Park Service, Tucson Electric Power
Company, Utah Associated Municipal
Power Systems, a consortium of
environmental organizations,6 Santa Fe
Monthly Meeting Peace and Social
Concerns Committee, and Earth Justice.
Copies of the comments are available in
the docket for this rulemaking.
Summaries of the issues raised in the
comment letters, and our responses,
follow:
Comment: A commenter, identified as
a part owner of SJGS Unit 4, requested
a 12-month extension of the SIP’s
compliance period for meeting the new
NOX limits. The commenter referred to
the EPA proposal, ‘‘Carbon Pollution
Emission Guidelines for Existing
Stationary Sources: Electric Utility
Generating Units,’’ subsequently
published at 79 FR 34829 (June 18,
2014), and asserted that an extension
would allow for adequate consideration
of the impacts of the proposal relative
to the investment considerations of
installing SNCRs at the SJGS. The
commenter stated that ownership of
SJGS presently includes utilities from
five Western states, and the interstate
nature of ownership and emissions
complicates a coordinated compliance
planning process. Another commenter,
identified as a part owner of SJGS Units
1 and 2, supported the costs, anticipated
haze reduction, and other
environmental benefits associated with
the 2013 RH SIP revision, but similarly
6 Western Resource Advocates, New Energy
Economy, WildEarth Guardians, Conservation
Voters of New Mexico, Physicians for Social
Responsibility (NM), Environment New Mexico/
Environment New Mexico Research and Policy
Center, New Mexico Independent Power Producers
Climate Change Leadership Institute, Santa Fe
Innovation Park, The Global Warming Express,
Chainbreaker Collective, Center for Civic Policy,
Citizens’ Climate Lobby, and 350.org. These
stakeholders also submitted a letter that has been
added to the docket as a late comment; it raises no
issues not already addressed by our response to
comments.
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requested that EPA amend its approval
and provide additional time for
installation of SNCR on the basis that
more time is needed to study the
proposed standards for reducing carbon
pollution at existing EGUs.
Response: EPA believes that CAA
section 111(d) efforts and actions will
tend to contribute to overall air quality
improvements and thus should be
complementary to criteria pollutant and
regional haze SIP efforts but do not
provide a basis for delaying
implementation of these efforts. See 79
FR at 34931. The 111(d) proposal
specifically mentions the next 10-year
SIP revision for regional haze that is due
by July 2018 and covers the time period
through 2028, explaining that the
timeframes proposed for submittal of
the CAA section 111(d) state plans will
allow considerable time for
coordination by states in the
development of their respective plans.
The proposal does not suggest that
further delays are warranted for
implementing the regional haze
requirements that were first due in
December 2007. Indeed, states and
affected sources will be able to take into
account requirements of programs such
as Regional Haze in considering the
development of state plans under
section 111(d).
More importantly here, EPA cannot
alter an otherwise approvable SIP
revision to extend a compliance date.
The 2013 RH SIP revision submitted by
New Mexico provides the compliance
date. Moreover, the compliance dates
that New Mexico set are as ‘‘expeditious
as practicable,’’ as required by the CAA.
See CAA section 169A(b)(2)(A), (g)(2).
Because the compliance dates meet
CAA requirements, EPA cannot
establish different compliance dates
when taking action on the SIP revision.
See CAA section 110(k)(3), (l).
Comment: A commenter stated that
unit retirements and NOX controls at
SJGS would reduce regional haze and
provide other significant environmental,
economic, and health benefits, and
states that ‘‘these additional benefits
must be recognized.’’ The commenter
requested, however, that EPA’s approval
contain a statement reflecting EPA’s
willingness to consider eliminating the
NOX emission control requirements on
Units 1 and 4 if, by December 31, 2016,
there is a commitment to permanently
retire Unit 1 and/or 4 within a
reasonably short time-frame. PNM
responded to this request in its own
comment (although it mistakenly cited
the date of December 31, 2015 when
paraphrasing the comment). PNM’s
comment stated that EPA should reject
the request for an EPA statement
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60987
regarding the retirement of additional
capacity because the Agency lacks any
analysis or basis upon which to evaluate
the efficacy or legality of the request.
Response: We decline to endorse a
proposal not before us, as suggested by
the commenter. Because the 2013 RH
SIP revision meets CAA requirements,
we are required to approve it. See CAA
section 110(k)(3),(l).
Comment: PNM submitted a comment
supporting the proposed rule, agreeing
that the 2013 RH SIP revision is
reasonable, even when EPA’s estimated
SCR costs are used. PNM asserted,
however, that its own estimated SCR
capital costs were confirmed by detailed
bids from engineering, procurement,
and construction contractors, and that
none of the bids were in the range of
EPA’s estimated SCR costs. PNM
believed that these bids should satisfy
any requirement for enhanced
documentation to support higher SCR
costs, but acknowledged that their cost
estimates provide different treatment to
items such as sorbent injection,
apportionment of balanced draft costs,
and fees and contingencies.
Response: We appreciate PMN’s
comment supporting approval. As
identified by the comment, EPA’s cost
analysis for SCR was based on a
different design (e.g., no costs for
sorbent injection) than the design PNM
used when soliciting bids from vendors.
PNM’s bids were not submitted with the
comment and, based on the available
documentation, we remain unable to
conclude that certain line items in
PNM’s SCR cost estimates are well
supported. While the BART Guidelines
explain that data from vendor bids may
be used in developing equipment cost
estimates, this does not mean that
bottom-line figures can serve as a
substitute for a full cost analysis or that
all costs included therein would be
appropriate for making an assessment of
cost-effectiveness. The expectation
remains that the cost analysis maintain
and improve consistency through
adherence to the OAQPS Control Cost
Manual, where possible. Moreover, the
BART Guidelines state that
documentation is expected, and indeed
especially important, where a state
believes that costs will be unreasonable
even though other recent retrofits have
cost-effectiveness values that are within
what has been considered a reasonable
range. As we established in our FIP,
recent SCR retrofits at coal-fired power
plants have been found to be costeffective, and this cost effectiveness is
generally validated by large emission
reductions even when there are large
capital costs.
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Comment: NMED provided comments
in support of approval and stated that
they generally concur with our
description and evaluation of the State
Alternative for NOX BART.
Response: We appreciate this
comment.
Comment: NMED commented that
states cannot be required to take a unitspecific (or unit-by-unit) approach to
assessing the BART factors. In American
Corn Growers v. EPA, 291 F.3d 1, 8 (D.C.
Cir. 2002), a reviewing court held that
it was invalid to consider visibility
impacts on a multiple-source basis
while employing a source-specific
approach to the other four BART factors.
The commenter stated that requiring
states to assess visibility on a facilitywide basis while considering the other
factors on a unit-by-unit basis would be
similarly unsupported by the statute
and would impermissibly constrain
state authority.
Response: We disagree with this
comment. In American Corn Growers,
the D.C. Circuit held that EPA could not
adopt a ‘‘group-BART approach’’ to the
visibility factor because it could force
states to require BART controls at some
sources without any empirical evidence
of a particular source’s contribution to
visibility impairment in a Class I area.
As a result, the Regional Haze Rule and
BART Guidelines require states to
analyze the five statutory factors for
each BART-eligible source without
reference to the benefits that BART will
achieve at other sources. Beyond this,
however, the court did not opine on
how the BART factors should be
analyzed or weighed by states, let alone
proscribe a unit-specific or prescribe a
facility-wide approach to BART.
As we recently explained in our
action on the Wyoming regional haze
SIP, see 79 FR 5031 (Jan. 30, 2014), the
BART Guidelines prescribe that states
‘‘must conduct a visibility improvement
determination for the source(s) as part of
the BART determination,’’ 7 and we
interpret this language as requiring
states to consider the visibility
improvement from BART applied to the
BART-eligible source as a whole. We do
not believe that either the CAA or the
BART Guidelines mandate either a unitspecific or a facility-wide approach to
analyzing or weighing the remaining
BART factors. In most circumstances,
however, we believe that states should
use a unit-specific approach to assessing
the technical feasibility and costs of
controls options, as well as the existing
controls and remaining useful life of
BART-eligible units. This approach is
clearly contemplated by the BART
7 40
CFR part 51, app. Y, section IV.D.5.
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Guidelines and has been used for
decades in other CAA contexts, such as
the evaluation of Best Available Control
Technology (BACT) for new and
modified major stationary sources.8 A
unit-specific approach to these factors is
appropriate because the age, type, size,
location, and emission characteristics of
the various emission units at a source
can differ greatly, and many control
options by design apply to a single unit.
However, in unique circumstances, such
as in situations where a control strategy
can be implemented facility-wide or
where the benefits of unit shutdowns
must be taken into account, then we
believe that the CAA and BART
Guidelines provide states with the
flexibility to analyze and weigh the
BART factors for the source as a whole,
rather than for its constituent emission
units.
Comment: NMED responded to a
statement in the proposal that expressed
some concern with the appropriateness
of including SO2 reductions from units
1 and 4 in one of the NOX BART control
options analyzed, rather than as part of
the facility’s baseline emissions, by
explaining that the SO2 limit of 0.10 lbs/
MMBtu is required by the 2013 RH SIP
revision alone and would not be
required if the FIP continues to remain
in force.
Response: While the inclusion of the
SO2 reductions in the SIP helps to
further demonstrate non-interference
with the visibility protection programs
of other states, in keeping with the
visibility transport requirements of CAA
section 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I), and helps in
showing the overall visibility benefits of
the 2013 RH SIP revision, we had noted
that those reductions do not specifically
lend support to a visibility improvement
determination for NOX BART through
the application of NOX controls.
However, no commenters took issue
with the inclusion of SO2 reductions in
the studied scenarios or insisted that
refinements were necessary on this
point, and it remains our view that the
inclusion of the reductions did not
meaningfully impact the evaluation of
visibility benefits due to NOX
reductions at the facility.
Comment: The Navajo Nation
submitted a comment supporting the
proposal as the best scenario for meeting
BART, endorsing it for having
reasonable costs of compliance and a
realistic timeframe. The comment also
stated that the 2013 RH SIP revision
addressed concerns regarding potential
job losses faced by Navajo work forces
8 See New Source Review Workshop Manual (Oct.
1990), available at https://www.epa.gov/ttn/nsr/gen/
wkshpman.pdf.
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at the SJGS and San Juan mine more
effectively than EPA’s FIP.
Response: We appreciate this
comment supporting approval.
Comment: One commenter stated that
the 2013 RH SIP revision appears to be
an alternative consistent with the intent
of 40 CFR 51.308(e)(2) and therefore
needs to demonstrate greater reasonable
progress than EPA’s BART
determination. The fact that the 2013
RH SIP revision does not demonstrate
greater reasonable progress than EPA’s
BART determination gave the
commenter concern because the
commenter considered it a departure
from rules and guidance. The
commenter also asserted that previous
EPA decisions have required a source to
demonstrate its proposed alternative is
better than EPA’s BART determination,
citing actions for Idaho and the Four
Corners Power Plant.9
Response: We disagree that the 2013
RH SIP revision appears to be a BART
alternative under section 51.308(e)(2).
New Mexico explicitly stated that it was
not evaluating a BART alternative when
responding to comments during the
state process and again when submitting
comments to support our proposed
approval. Therefore, New Mexico was
not required to make a demonstration of
greater reasonable progress. Instead,
New Mexico evaluated a new, sourcespecific BART determination under
section 51.308(e)(1). To fully account for
the source owner’s proposed unit
shutdowns, New Mexico chose to weigh
the BART factors in light of source-wide
considerations. As explained in our
proposal and elsewhere in our
responses to comments, we believe that
this approach is permissible under the
CAA and the BART Guidelines. The
prior EPA actions cited by the
commenter are not relevant to our
action on New Mexico’s NOX BART
determination for SJGS. While both the
Four Corners and Idaho actions
contained BART alternatives that
demonstrated greater reasonable
progress, we are not evaluating a BART
alternative here. Moreover, while the
Idaho action also involved two new
BART determinations that happened to
be more stringent than the state’s
original BART determinations, neither
the CAA nor our regulations require a
new BART determination to be more
stringent in every instance in order to
supersede a prior BART determination.
Comment: One commenter argued
that the CAA requires that any
9 The comment provided a citation to 79 FR
23273 (April 28, 2014) relating to the Tasco facility
in Idaho, and one to ‘‘78 FR 24112,’’ which we
interpret as having intended to refer to 78 FR 60700
(October 2, 2013) (bearing ‘‘FR Doc. 2013–24112’’).
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alternative regional haze strategy must
outperform the visibility gains of the
existing strategy or, in other words, be
‘‘better than BART,’’ and the 2013 RH
SIP revision fails to accomplish this.
Citing to CAA section 7410(a) and (l),
the commenter argued that the
characterization of the 2013 RH SIP
revision as including a new BART
determination is plainly unlawful
because the State has not undertaken
the BART analysis required by the CAA
and BART Guidelines, and EPA did not
provide any explanation for why the SIP
revision is approvable when the FIP had
a more stringent BART determination.
Response: As explained above, the
2013 RH SIP revision was not submitted
to meet section 51.308(e)(2)
requirements, so it is not required to be
better than BART. As we stated in the
proposal, the 2013 RH SIP revision
contains a new, source-specific BART
analysis that is based on different
underlying facts than those that were
present when we evaluated our FIP.
Thus, the commenter’s assertion that the
state failed to undertake a BART
analysis is clearly incorrect. Finally,
contrary to the commenter’s assertion,
CAA section 110(l) does not prohibit a
state from submitting a SIP that is less
stringent than a FIP. Our proposal
provided an analysis conducted under
section 110(l), which showed that the
2013 RH SIP revision would not
interfere with the attainment or
maintenance of any NAAQS or any
other CAA requirement. See 79 FR at
26920. Because New Mexico complied
with the CAA’s visibility protection
provisions, the Regional Haze Rule, and
the BART Guidelines, and made a
reasonable control determination based
on the weighing of the five factors, EPA
is required to approve the 2013 RH SIP
revision.
Comment: One commenter stated that
the 2013 RH SIP revision does not
comply with the mandatory unitspecific analytical approach required by
the CAA. The commenter argued that
the BART Guidelines require BART to
be determined on a unit-specific basis
because a BART emission limit must be
established for each affected emission
unit. The commenter also pointed out
that the BART Guidelines provide an
example of a unit-specific approach
where they state that ‘‘control options
must be analyzed for Units B through H
as well as Unit A.’’ Consequently, the
commenter concluded that New Mexico
and EPA are required to follow the unitspecific approach.
Response: We disagree with this
comment. The portion of the BART
Guidelines cited by the commenter
explains how all BART units at the
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subject to BART source must be
included in the BART analysis. The
2013 SIP revision implements BART at
each BART-subject unit by requiring
either shutdowns or controls. Also,
while the BART Guidelines clearly
contemplate that states will analyze
technical feasibility and costeffectiveness on a unit-specific basis,
they do not explicitly require such an
approach, nor do they provide guidance
for situations in which a source
proposes unit shutdowns as an
emission-reduction strategy. Moreover,
contrary to the commenter’s assertion,
the CAA does not mandate any specific
analytical approach. Consequently, in
situations where a state is
contemplating a novel control scenario
not contemplated by the BART
Guidelines, such as one that involves
unit shutdowns, we believe that states
have the flexibility to tailor their BART
analyses by evaluating and weighing the
BART factors on a facility-wide (i.e.,
‘‘source’’) basis rather than on a unitspecific basis in order to account for the
emission reductions and benefits that
would directly result from the
shutdowns. Moreover, while BART
emission limits are also typically
established for each unit that comprises
the BART-eligible source, as New
Mexico chose to do here, nothing in the
CAA or BART Guidelines prevents a
state from setting an emission limit that
averages emissions across multiple
units, so long as that limit is ‘‘based on
the degree of reduction achievable
through the best system of continuous
emission reduction for each pollutant.’’
See 40 CFR 51.301.
Comment: One commenter stated that
a facility-wide BART determination is
inconsistent with other EPA actions.
The commenter cited to EPA actions in
Indiana and Montana to support this
contention.10 The commenter also
pointed out that EPA used a unitspecific approach to analyzing the first
four factors when promulgating its FIP
for SJGS. The commenter called EPA’s
proposal an unexplained departure from
EPA’s past practice in implementing its
binding guidelines.
Response: We disagree with this
comment for the same reasons
explained above. EPA’s actions in
Indiana, Montana, and our FIP for SJGS
did not involve unit shutdowns and
therefore are not determinative of how
the BART statutory factors should be
10 Specifically, the commenter cited our Indiana
regional haze SIP action (77 FR 3975, 3982 (Jan. 26,
2012)) for its statement that a source needs to
‘‘implement BART at each BART-subject unit,’’ and
the Montana regional haze FIP (77 FR 57864, Sept.
18, 2012) for discussing statutory BART factors for
units at a BART source.
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60989
considered and weighed in this context.
Also, contrary to the commenter’s
assertion, we explained in our proposal
why New Mexico’s approach was
reasonable in light of the unique
circumstances presented and, on that
basis, cannot validly be seen as any
departure from past actions. As was
stated, the state’s approach reasonably
takes into account the visibility, energy,
and non-air quality environmental
benefits associated with unit
shutdowns. See 79 FR 26918.
Furthermore, the 2013 SIP revision
implements BART at each BART-subject
unit by requiring either shutdowns or
controls.
Comment: A commenter stated that
EPA’s proposal arbitrarily rejected SCR
in favor of less effective pollution
controls even though EPA found that an
emission limitation based on SCR was
BART in the FIP. The commenter
explained that SCR provides the best
visibility outcomes and is cost-effective.
Response: Under different factual
circumstances, we determined that SCR
for the four SJGS units had reasonable
average cost-effectiveness values and
would promote significant visibility
improvements, thereby supporting the
basis for the emission limits set forth in
the FIP. In the 2013 RH SIP revision,
New Mexico demonstrated that SNCR in
tandem with shutdowns has visibility
benefits on par with those anticipated
from the FIP at much lower overall
costs, while also reducing overall energy
and non-air quality environmental
impacts. Although we continue to
believe that SCR is a cost-effective
control and are not abandoning the legal
and technical basis for our FIP, we
believe that when cost, energy and nonair quality environmental impacts, and
anticipated visibility benefits are all
taken into consideration, New Mexico’s
determination that the State Alternative
is BART is reasonable. While SCR
remains cost-effective on a $/ton basis,
the incremental visibility benefit of the
four-SCR scenario of the FIP over the
State Alternative is small at most Class
I areas, and New Mexico reasonably
concluded that this small additional
visibility benefit, when considered with
the difference in the energy and non-air
quality environmental impacts, did not
justify the large increase in costs
associated with the installation of SCR
on all four units.
Comment: One commenter stated that
the visibility impacts of the State
Alternative are significantly worse than
the four-SCR scenario in the FIP. The
commenter explained that the difference
in visibility impacts between the two
scenarios will be 0.47 dv at Mesa Verde,
0.24 dv at Canyonlands, and 0.13 dv at
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Weminuche. The sum of these visibility
differences is 0.84 dv, which is above
the 0.5 dv threshold that is used to
determine ‘‘significance.’’ Also, the
State Alternative will result in five more
days with impacts over 1 dv at Mesa
Verde, three more days at Arches, and
two more days at both Canyonlands and
La Garita when compared to the fourSCR scenario in the FIP.
Response: As we stated in the
proposal when comparing the two
scenarios, while we have some concern
with the modeled visibility differences
between the two control scenarios for
Mesa Verde and Canyonlands, we find
that the State’s decision to select the
State Alternative was ultimately
reasonable, especially considering the
costs of compliance and the energy and
non-air quality environmental impacts
of the two scenarios. We noted that the
difference in visibility impacts between
the two scenarios are negligible at most
of the Class I areas examined. The
average difference at the 13 other Class
I areas (other than Mesa Verde,
Canyonlands, and Weminuche) is less
than 0.1 dv between the two control
scenarios. In considering the number of
days impacted, eleven Class I areas
show no difference in the number of
days with impacts over 1 dv. We also
note that the typical application of 0.5
dv as a contribution threshold comes in
the context of assessing impacts at a
single Class I area, not cumulative
impacts across multiple Class I areas.
Comment: One commenter stated that
the CAA requires EPA to either improve
the State Alternative or reject it
altogether.
Response: We disagree with this
comment. As we explained earlier, EPA
is required to approve any SIP revision
that meets CAA requirements. See CAA
section 110(k)(3), (l). EPA does not have
authority to improve a SIP revision that
is otherwise approvable, and the
commenter has provided no basis for
EPA to disapprove the 2013 RH SIP
revision.
Comment: One commenter stated that
EPA based its proposed approval on a
fundamentally flawed cost-benefit
analysis that artificially inflated the cost
and artificially reduced the benefits of
SCR. The commenter also thought that
New Mexico underestimated the costs of
SNCR. The commenter argued that EPA
had no rational basis for concluding that
cost refinements would not change the
result. The commenter cited to Center
for Biological Diversity v. National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration,
538 F.3d 1172, 1201–03 (9th Cir. 2008),
for the proposition that EPA must recalculate a cost value that would
significantly alter the analysis. With
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cost corrections, the commenter
believed that New Mexico’s capital cost
assumptions for SCR would be cut in
half, demonstrating that SCR remains
cost-effective at Units 1 and 4. The
commenter provided an attachment that
highlighted how New Mexico’s cost
range for SCR at SJGS was well above
the cost per kilowatt for SCR
demonstrated by other cost studies for
comparable retrofits.
Response: We maintain our view that
SCR has favorable and reasonable
average cost-effectiveness values at SJGS
under the technical record developed
for the FIP, and we agree with the
comment that New Mexico’s cost range
for SCR is still high compared to other
cost studies. Even so, as discussed in
response to comments from PNM
concerning cost, the state’s BART
selection in this case is reasonable. New
Mexico was advantaged with the full
technical record that we developed to
promulgate the FIP, and the state
declared that it would favor the 2013
RH SIP revision even if it were to adopt
and utilize the lower costs for SCR that
we had relied on in promulgating the
FIP. In addition, in our proposed action,
we recalculated the annual cost and
incremental cost-effectiveness of the
four-SCR option using the cost estimates
presented in the FIP. Thus, there is a
significant record basis for our finding
that lower SCR costs would not change
the result of our action.
As to the state’s alleged
underestimation of SNCR costs, the
comment does not provide any details
to enable us to provide a response. We
also considered the Ninth Circuit’s
decision in Center for Biological
Diversity v. National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration and do not see
how it has any bearing on the issue of
costs in this case. In that case, the Ninth
Circuit faulted NHTSA for its failure to
monetize the value of carbon emissions
in setting fuel economy standards. In
addition to the fact that the case did not
concern BART determinations, the
comment does not identify any
particular line item in the state’s
analysis of SCR costs that has not been
monetized.
Comment: One commenter stated that
our proposal failed to consider the
prospect of installing SCR on Units 1
and 4, while still shutting down Units
2 and 3. The commenter noted that such
a scenario would lead to even greater
visibility benefits. The commenter
provided modeled visibility results and
estimates of the level of emission
reductions that would result from this
scenario and concluded that the State
Alternative was inferior.
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Response: While we acknowledge that
a scenario at SJGS involving two
shutdowns and two SCRs would result
in superior visibility benefits than the
State Alternative or even the FIP, the
state did not present this scenario to us
in the 2013 RH SIP revision. As we
explained above, we are required to
evaluate the SIP revision that is before
us. Moreover, in situations that involve
the voluntary retirement of units, states
need the flexibility to analyze control
scenarios that have the support of the
source owner. There is no evidence in
the record indicating that PNM would
have volunteered to retire two of its
units if SCR were required on the
remaining units.
Comment: One commenter stated that
the NMED’s BART analysis contains a
flawed visibility analysis. The
commenter argued that NMED
arbitrarily ignored fourteen Class I areas
between 300 km and 440 km from SJGS
in its cumulative visibility analysis,
which was an arbitrary and unexplained
departure from EPA’s analytical
approach that was followed in analyzing
the Big Stone and Colstrip power plants.
The commenter concluded that the
failure to assess impacts at more distant
Class I areas masked the full visibility
benefit of SCR. Finally, the commenter
referred to comments submitted by the
National Park Service to New Mexico on
their proposed SIP revision, which
stated that the visibility modeling was
not done according to the BART
Guidelines.
Response: We disagree with this
comment. In regard to selecting a model
and developing a modeling protocol, the
BART Guidelines refer to our Guideline
on Air Quality Models 11 and the
Interagency Workgroup on Air Quality
Modeling (IWAQM) Phase 2 report.12
The IWAQM report reviewed modelperformance evaluations of CALPUFF as
a function of distance from the source
and recommended the use of CALPUFF
for transport distances of order 200 km
and less. The report also recommended
that the use of CALPUFF for
characterizing transport beyond 200 to
300 km should be done cautiously with
11 Appendix W to 40 CFR Part 51 ‘‘Guideline to
Air Quality Models’’ states: ‘‘It was concluded from
these case studies that the CALPUFF dispersion
model had performed in a reasonable manner, and
had no apparent bias toward over or under
prediction, so long as the transport distance was
limited to less than 300 km.’’
12 Environmental Protection Agency, 1998.
Interagency Workgroup on Air Quality Modeling
(IWAQM) Phase 2 Summary Report and
Recommendations for Modeling Long-Range
Transport Impacts. Publication No. EPA–454/R–98–
019. Office of Air Quality Planning & Standards,
Research Triangle Park, NC. (NTIS No. PB 99–
121089)
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an awareness of the likely problems
involved. Consistent with this
recommendation, we believe that it is
reasonable to use CALPUFF to evaluate
visibility impacts up to 300 km. While
we agree with the commenter that
emissions from SJGS may impact Class
I areas at distances greater than 300 km,
the IWAQM report cautions that
CALPUFF results are less reliable at
distances greater than 300 km.
Therefore, we do not think that it is
arbitrary to exclude more distant
receptors from a visibility analysis or to
base the visibility assessment for a
BART determination on visibility
impacts within 300 km from the source.
Contrary to the commenter’s
suggestion, this was the same approach
followed when modeling the visibility
benefits associated with various control
scenarios at the Colstrip power plant.
See 77 FR 57867–68. In regard to the Big
Stone power plant, South Dakota
performed modeling for Class I areas
beyond 300 km only because there were
no Class I areas within 300 km of the
source. As a result, South Dakota
worked with EPA to develop a special
modeling protocol that incorporated
CALPUFF’s puff-splitting option despite
the IWAQM report’s conceptual
concerns with that feature. Moreover,
South Dakota expressly acknowledged
that it was departing from EPA’s
guidance. Consequently, we believe that
Big Stone presented an exception to the
general rule that CALPUFF be applied
to assess visibility impacts only on
those Class I areas within 300 km of the
source. Finally, in regard to NPS’s
comments concerning the visibility
analysis during the state process, we
agree with the response provided at the
time by NMED 13 and note that NPS did
not raise these concerns again in their
comments on our proposed action.
Comment: A commenter stated that
the proposed 0.23 lb/MMBtu limit does
not apply to each unit due to a crossunit averaging provision, so the
emissions from a given unit could be
higher than 0.23 lb/MMbtu.
Response: In this case, it is
appropriate for the 2013 RH SIP revision
to allow SJGS to average emissions
across its BART-eligible emission units
within the fence line. The BART
Guidelines allow this approach when,
as here, the reductions would be equal
to those reductions that would be
obtained by simply controlling each of
the BART-eligible units that constitute
the BART source. Because SJGS is
required to demonstrate continuous
compliance over a reasonable averaging
13 Available
as NMED Ex. 14 of the 2013 RH SIP
revision.
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time, the reductions associated with the
assigned limit are assured. As part of its
five-factor analysis, New Mexico
evaluated the control effectiveness of
SNCR and determined that SNCR could
achieve an emission rate of 0.23 lb/
MMBtu on each unit based on tests and
an updated performance guarantee from
the vendor.14 Consistent with the BART
Guidelines, the permit conditions at
A112C specify the averaging time and
calculation methodology for the
enforceable emission limit, which must
be calculated on a 30-boiler-operatingday basis, averaged across the two units.
While we agree with the commenter that
emissions from either unit may exceed
0.23 lb/MMBtu on a given day, the
combined emissions from both units
cannot exceed 0.23 lb/MMBtu over the
course of the averaging period, so total
emission reductions will be equal to
those that would be obtained under two
separate limits.
Comment: One commenter alleged
that our proposal implied that PNM’s
decision to retire Units 2 and 3 was
solely taken for the purpose of meeting
BART. The commenter suggested that
EPA should explicitly state whether this
was the case for the record or discuss
whether independent reasons would
require or motivate the shutdown of the
units.
Response: We fail to see how this
comment is relevant to our evaluation of
the 2013 RH SIP revision. Nevertheless,
we note that, when developing the FIP,
we assumed that the remaining useful
life of all four units at SJGS exceeded 30
years, and the 2013 RH SIP revision
provides no information that would
change that assumption. Nor does the
SIP revision provide any information to
suggest that PNM had motivations other
than creating a more cost-effective
BART-compliance scenario when
volunteering to shut down Units 2
and 3.
Comment: A commenter stated that,
while our proposal implied that there
will be no capacity increase elsewhere
or at the SJGS to replace the lost
capacity from Units 2 and 3, the final
rule should make this explicit to
properly give weight to the benefits
from their retirement.
Response: We disagree with this
comment. As an initial matter, our
proposal did not imply that the
retirement of Units 2 and 3 could be
undertaken without the possible need to
address lost capacity. Most likely, the
lost capacity will be replaced through
some combination of conservation,
14 Public Service Company of New Mexico, San
Juan Generating Station, Revised SNCR Analysis,
February 11, 2011 (2011 NM RH SIP, NMED Ex. 7t).
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60991
efficiency, and new capacity. More
importantly, however, the CAA does not
require an analysis of the statutory
factors to include the consideration of
hypothetical emissions increases at
other facilities or even at the same
facility due to lost capacity. We also
note that any emissions units that might
be constructed at SJGS in the future
would likely be subject to both BACT
and any applicable new source
performance standards. Moreover, all
emission units would be subject to
analysis under the regional haze
requirements for reasonable progress in
future planning periods.
Comment: One commenter asserted
that our proposal failed to explain how
New Mexico could permissibly reach a
conclusion that directly opposes EPA’s
conclusion in the FIP. The commenter
stated that the voluntary retirement of
Units 2 and 3 did not change the fact
that SCR remains cost-effective at the
Units 1 and 4.
Response: We disagree that the 2013
RH SIP reached a conclusion that
directly opposes the conclusion we
made in promulgating the FIP. Under
different factual circumstances, we
determined that SCR for the four SJGS
units had reasonable average costeffectiveness values and would promote
significant visibility improvements,
thereby supporting the basis for the
emission limits set forth in the FIP. As
we stated in the proposal, the 2013 RH
SIP revision contains a new, sourcespecific BART analysis that is based on
different underlying facts than those
that were present when we evaluated
our FIP. We were not presented with the
retirement of Units 2 and 3 when we
promulgated the FIP. With this
information in hand, New Mexico
permissibly conducted a new BART
analysis using a facility-wide approach
that allowed the full range of visibility,
energy, and non-air quality
environmental benefits associated with
the shutdowns to be taken into account.
While the average cost-effectiveness of
SCR on Units 1 and 4 remains
reasonable, New Mexico demonstrated
that the incremental cost-effectiveness
of the four-SCR scenario in our FIP over
the State Alternative was high when
compared against the additional
visibility improvements from the
former, while also considering the
energy, and non-air quality
environmental benefits associated with
the State Alternative.
Comment: One commenter thought
that the timeline for the installation of
SNCR was too long because SNCR is a
simpler technology to install than SCR.
Response: We agree that SNCR is a
simpler technology to install than SCR
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and requires less time for installation.
New Mexico determined, and we agree,
that the compliance timeframe in the
2013 RH SIP revision is as expeditious
as practicable, as required under 40 CFR
51.308(e)(1)(iv).
Comment: One commenter thought
that the 0.05 lb/MMBtu rate used for the
study of SCR as a BART control option
was likely too high. The commenter
suggested that many units, such as those
in Dry Fork, WY and Morgantown, MD,
are routinely achieving emission rates in
the range of 0.02–0.04 lb/MMBtu.
Reducing the studied emission limit for
SCR to 0.04 lb/MMBtu would show the
option to be even more cost-effective.
Response: We disagree that lower
control rates needed to be evaluated for
SCR. We evaluated the monthly
emission data from these two facilities
for the past several years (available at
EPA’s Air Market Program data Web
site: www.epa.gov/ampd). All three
units have monthly emission rates that
sometimes exceed 0.04 lb/MMBtu.
Indeed, the Morgantown units have
months where the monthly emission
rate is 0.05 lb/MMBtu or higher. In
promulgating the FIP, we evaluated the
performance of both new and retrofit
SCRs and determined that 0.05 lb/
MMBtu on a 30-boiler-operating-day
average was the appropriate emission
limit for SCR at the SJGS units. See 76
FR 491 and 76 FR 52388. New Mexico
appropriately used this same rate in
their cost and visibility analyses for the
four-SCR scenario as part of its BART
evaluation.
IV. Statutory and Executive Order
Reviews
The Administrator is required to
approve a SIP submission that complies
with the provisions of the Clean Air Act
and applicable Federal regulations. 42
U.S.C. 7410(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a). Thus,
in reviewing SIP submissions, EPA’s
role is to approve state choices,
provided that they meet the criteria of
the Clean Air Act. 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
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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 Clean Air Act;
and
• does not provide 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, the SIP is not approved
to apply on any Indian reservation land
or in any other area where EPA or an
Indian tribe has demonstrated that a
tribe has jurisdiction. In those areas of
Indian country, the rule does not have
tribal implications as specified by
Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249,
November 9, 2000), nor will it impose
substantial direct costs on tribal
governments or preempt tribal law.
Consistent with EPA policy, EPA
offered consultation to tribes regarding
this rulemaking action.
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. EPA will submit a
report containing this action and other
required information to the U.S. Senate,
the U.S. House of 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).
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Under section 307(b)(1) of the Clean
Air Act, petitions for judicial review of
this action must be filed in the United
States Court of Appeals for the
appropriate circuit by December 8,
2014. Filing a petition for
reconsideration by the Administrator of
this final rule does not affect the finality
of this action for the purposed 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. 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, Incorporation by
reference, Intergovernmental relations,
Nitrogen dioxide, Particulate matter,
Regional haze, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements, Sulfur
dioxide, and Visibility.
Dated: September 26, 2014.
Samuel Coleman,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 6
Therefore, 40 CFR part 52 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.
2. In § 52.1620:
a. In paragraph (d), the table titled
‘‘EPA-Approved New Mexico SourceSpecific Requirements’’ is amended by
adding a first entry for ‘‘Units 1, 2, 3, &
4 of the San Juan Generating Station’’ to
the table.
■ b. In paragraph (e), the second table
entitled ‘‘EPA Approved Nonregulatory
Provisions and Quasi-Regulatory
Measures in the New Mexico SIP,’’ is
amended by revising the entry for
‘‘Regional Haze SIP under 40 CFR
51.309, Statewide (except Bernalillo
County)’’ and adding a new entry at the
end for ‘‘Revision to satisfy the
requirements of Clean Air Act
110(a)(2)(D)(i)(II) with respect to
visibility for the 8-hour Ozone and
PM2.5 NAAQS’’.
The additions and revisions read as
follows:
■
■
§ 52.1620.
*
Identification of plan.
*
*
(d) * * *
E:\FR\FM\09OCR1.SGM
09OCR1
*
*
60993
Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 196 / Thursday, October 9, 2014 / Rules and Regulations
EPA-APPROVED NEW MEXICO SOURCE-SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS
Name of source
Units 1, 2, 3, & 4 of the San
Juan Generating Station.
*
(e) * * *
*
*
*
State
approval/
effective date
Permit number
NSR Permit No. 0063–M6R3,
Section A112C.
11/1/2013
EPA Approval date
Explanation
10/9/14 [Insert FR citation] .......
Ch. 10 (BART) of SIP
under 40 CFR 51.309(g).
*
EPA APPROVED NONREGULATORY PROVISIONS AND QUASI-REGULATORY MEASURES IN THE NEW MEXICO SIP
Name of SIP provision
Applicable geographic or
nonattainment area
*
*
Regional Haze SIP under 40 CFR
51.309.
*
*
Statewide (except Bernalillo County).
*
*
Revision to satisfy the requirements
of Clean Air Act 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(II)
with respect to visibility for the 8hour Ozone and PM2.5 NAAQS.
*
*
Statewide (except Bernalillo County).
§ 52.1629
[Removed and Reserved]
[FR Doc. 2014–23904 Filed 10–8–14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
40 CFR Part 60
[EPA–R08–OAR–2014–0272; FRL–9917–49–
Region 9]
Automatic Delegation of Authority to
the States of Colorado, Montana, North
Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, and
Wyoming To Implement and Enforce
New Source Performance Standards
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Direct final rule.
AGENCY:
This action informs the public
that on February 27, 2014, the EPA
authorized automatic delegation to
implement and enforce Clean Air Act
(CAA) New Source Performance
Standards (NSPS) to the states of
Colorado, Montana, North Dakota,
South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming
(hereafter Region 8 states). Also in this
action, EPA is taking direct final action
to delete the delegation status table of
NSPS for Region 8 states in the Code of
Federal Regulations (CFR) and replace it
with a Web page address reflecting
current delegation status of Region 8
states.
tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with RULES
VerDate Sep<11>2014
16:15 Oct 08, 2014
Jkt 235001
6/24/2011,
10/7/2013,
11/1/2013
10/7/2013,
11/1/2013
EPA approval date
PO 00000
Frm 00043
Fmt 4700
Sfmt 4700
Explanation
*
*
11/27/2012, 77 FR 70693, 10/9/14
[Insert FR citation].
*
*
*
10/9/14 [Insert FR citation].
*
This rule is effective on
December 8, 2014 without further
notice, unless EPA receives adverse
comment by November 10, 2014. If
adverse comment is received, EPA will
publish a timely withdrawal of the
direct final rule in the Federal Register
informing the public that the rule will
not take effect.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments,
identified by Docket ID No. EPA–R08–
OAR–2014–0272, by one of the
following methods:
• https://www.regulations.gov. Follow
the on-line instructions for submitting
comments.
• Email: fulton.abby@epa.gov.
• Fax: (303) 312–6064 (please alert
the individual listed in the FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT if you are faxing
comments).
• Mail: Director, Air Program,
Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA), Region 8, Mailcode 8P–AR, 1595
Wynkoop Street, Denver, Colorado
80202–1129.
• Hand Delivery: Director, Air
Program, Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA), Region 8, Mailcode 8P–
AR, 1595 Wynkoop Street, Denver,
Colorado 80202–1129. Such deliveries
are only accepted Monday through
Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., excluding
Federal holidays. Special arrangements
should be made for deliveries of boxed
information.
Instructions: Direct your comments to
Docket EPA–R08–OAR–2014–0272.
EPA’s policy is that all comments
received will be included in the public
docket without change and may be
DATES:
3. Section 52.1629 is removed and
reserved.
■
SUMMARY:
State
submittal/
effective date
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 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 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, 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 EPA
cannot read your comment due to
technical difficulties and cannot contact
you for clarification, 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. For additional instructions on
submitting comments, go to Section I.
General Information of the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of
this document.
E:\FR\FM\09OCR1.SGM
09OCR1
Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 196 (Thursday, October 9, 2014)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 60985-60993]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-23904]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA-R06-OAR-2014-0214; FRL-9917-63-Region 6]
Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans; New Mexico;
Regional Haze and Interstate Transport Affecting Visibility State
Implementation Plan Revisions
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Final rule.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking final
action under the Clean Air Act (CAA) to approve a revision to the New
Mexico Regional Haze State Implementation Plan (SIP) that addresses the
Best Available Retrofit Technology (BART) requirement for oxides of
nitrogen (NOX) for the Public Service Company of New Mexico
(PNM) San Juan Generating Station (SJGS) in San Juan County, New
Mexico. EPA is also taking final action under the CAA to approve a
revision to the New Mexico Visibility Transport SIP that addresses the
CAA requirement that emissions from sources in New Mexico do not
interfere with programs in other states to protect visibility. The SIP
meets this requirement through emission limitations for NOX
and sulfur dioxide (SO2) at SJGS.
DATES: This final rule will be effective November 10, 2014.
[[Page 60986]]
ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket ID
No. EPA-R06-OAR-2014-0214. 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., Confidential Business
Information or other information the disclosure of which 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 Planning Section (6PD-
L), Environmental Protection Agency, 1445 Ross Avenue, Suite 700,
Dallas, Texas 75202-2733. The file will be made available by
appointment for public inspection in the Region 6 FOIA Review Room
between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. weekdays except for legal
holidays. Contact the person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT paragraph below or Mr. Bill Deese at 214-665-7253 to make an
appointment. If possible, please make the appointment at least two
working days in advance of your visit. A 15 cent per page fee will be
charged for making photocopies of documents. On the day of the visit,
please check in at the EPA Region 6 reception area on the seventh floor
at 1445 Ross Avenue, Suite 700, Dallas, Texas 75202-2733.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Michael Feldman (214) 665-9793,
email feldman.michael@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document whenever ``we,''
``us,'' or ``our'' is used, we mean EPA.
Table of Contents
I. What is the background for this action?
II. What final action is EPA taking?
III. Response to Comments
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
I. What is the background for this action?
The background for today's final rule is discussed in detail in our
May 12, 2014 document, in which we proposed to approve New Mexico's SIP
revisions. See 79 FR 26909. The comment period on the proposed action
was open for 30 days, and several comments were received.
II. What final action is EPA taking?
We are approving New Mexico's regional haze SIP revisions submitted
on October 7, 2013 and November 5, 2013 (``2013 RH SIP revision''),
that build on a SIP revision submitted on July 5, 2011 (``2011 RH SIP
revision'').\1\ The 2013 RH SIP revision contains a new NOX
BART determination for the SJGS (referred to as the ``State
Alternative''). The State Alternative consists of a previously un-
contemplated control scenario involving unit shutdowns at the SJGS.
With this approval, the State Alternative supersedes the State's
previous NOX BART determination that was included in the
2011 RH SIP revision. The State Alternative reflects the terms of the
tentative agreement signed between the PNM, the New Mexico Environment
Department (NMED), and EPA to address the regional haze requirements
applicable to the SJGS. This agreement is included as Exhibit 5 of the
2013 RH SIP revision.\2\ The 2013 RH SIP revision also includes a
preconstruction permit submitted on November 5, 2013,\3\ that sets a
NOX emission limit based upon the State Alternative,
compliance schedules, a compliance deadline for the shutdown of two
units, and monitoring and testing requirements. More specifically, the
2013 RH SIP revision requires the following:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ We are acting on everything not yet acted upon in the 2011
RH SIP revision that pertains to the 2013 NOX BART
determination. The 2013 RH SIP revision explains that the revised,
more recent NOX BART determination would ``supersede''
the 2011 NOX BART determination if EPA approves it.
Certain NMED documents from the 2011 RH SIP revision are relevant to
the state's 2013 conclusions regarding NOX BART, but
other information that relates solely to the 2011 NOX
BART determination is now moot with EPA's finalized approval of the
superseding BART determination.
\2\ Term Sheet Between the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,
Public Service Company of New Mexico and the State of New Mexico
(``Term Sheet''), February 15, 2013.
\3\ NSR Technical Permit Revision, NSR Permit No. 0063-M6R3,
November 1, 2013.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fifteen (15) months after EPA's final approval of the 2013
RH SIP revision, but no earlier than January 31, 2016, PNM will
complete installation of SNCR technology on SJGS Units 1 and 4 and meet
an emission limit of 0.23 lb/MMBtu on a rolling 30-day average basis;
\4\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ The permit conditions at A112C specify the averaging time
and calculation methodology for the enforceable emission limit for
NOX on Units 1 and 4 of 0.23 lb/MMBtu on a boiler-
operating-day basis, averaged across the two units.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
PNM will retire SJGS Units 2 and 3 by December 31, 2017;
and
PNM will commence a program of testing and evaluation,
after the installation of the SNCRs, to determine if additional
NOX emission reductions can be achieved. The Testing
Program, consisting of SNCR performance testing, fuel performance
testing, and long-term performance evaluation, must be completed no
later than January 31, 2017.\5\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\5\ A delay may be allowed under special circumstances that
would limit the number of evaluation days during both summer and
winter months, as discussed in the paragraph 1(d)(iv) of the Term
Sheet.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
In addition to approving New Mexico's revised enforceable
NOX BART determination for SJGS, we are also approving New
Mexico's 2011 Visibility Transport SIP revision, as revised in 2013,
because it demonstrates that emissions from all sources in New Mexico
are sufficiently controlled to eliminate interference with the
visibility programs of other states. We are also approving as part of
New Mexico's SIP the operative sections of the 2013 permit for SJGS on
the basis that the SO2 and NOX emission limits
for the SJGS will sufficiently prevent emissions from sources in New
Mexico from interfering with the visibility programs of other states.
New Mexico has incorporated emission limits and requirements for
unit shutdowns into the 2013 preconstruction permit that was submitted
as part of the SIP revisions. Specifically, as a source-specific
requirement of the New Mexico SIP for regional haze and visibility
transport, section A112C of the 2013 SJGS permit provides a more
stringent SO2 emission limit (i.e., than previously
permitted or SIP-required) as part of the State Alternative and a
NOX emission limit reflecting the State Alternative. The
permit contains three independent scenarios under section A112: A, B,
and C. Consistent with the terms of the permit, our final approval puts
Scenario C into effect, while the other two scenarios are now moot.
We have determined that the 2013 RH SIP revision and corresponding
visibility transport SIP revisions are approvable because the revisions
were adopted and submitted in accordance with the CAA and EPA's
regulations regarding the regional haze program and meet the CAA
provisions concerning non-interference with programs to protect
visibility in other states. We are taking this final action today under
section 110 and part C of the CAA. Consistent with the discussion
provided in our proposal, the 2011 RH SIP provision for NOX
BART is fully superseded and/or moot with today's approval and does not
constitute a SIP submittal pending EPA review and action.
In addition, as our May 12, 2014 proposal explained, the approval
of the SIP submittals enables EPA to withdraw or rescind the Federal
Implementation Plan (FIP) that was earlier promulgated
[[Page 60987]]
to address the same requirements. See 79 FR 26909. Accordingly, as a
result of today's approval action, we are also taking action to
withdraw the regional haze FIP for New Mexico at 40 CFR 52.1628. The
action to withdraw the FIP is in a separate action contained in today's
Federal Register. Upon the effective date of the Federal Register
documents, the requirements in the approved SIP apply and the FIP
requirements for the SJGS are withdrawn.
III. Response to Comments
We received several comments on our proposed approval of the 2013
RH SIP revision that were submitted by PNM, NMED, the Navajo Nation,
the National Park Service, Tucson Electric Power Company, Utah
Associated Municipal Power Systems, a consortium of environmental
organizations,\6\ Santa Fe Monthly Meeting Peace and Social Concerns
Committee, and Earth Justice. Copies of the comments are available in
the docket for this rulemaking. Summaries of the issues raised in the
comment letters, and our responses, follow:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\6\ Western Resource Advocates, New Energy Economy, WildEarth
Guardians, Conservation Voters of New Mexico, Physicians for Social
Responsibility (NM), Environment New Mexico/Environment New Mexico
Research and Policy Center, New Mexico Independent Power Producers
Climate Change Leadership Institute, Santa Fe Innovation Park, The
Global Warming Express, Chainbreaker Collective, Center for Civic
Policy, Citizens' Climate Lobby, and 350.org. These stakeholders
also submitted a letter that has been added to the docket as a late
comment; it raises no issues not already addressed by our response
to comments.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Comment: A commenter, identified as a part owner of SJGS Unit 4,
requested a 12-month extension of the SIP's compliance period for
meeting the new NOX limits. The commenter referred to the
EPA proposal, ``Carbon Pollution Emission Guidelines for Existing
Stationary Sources: Electric Utility Generating Units,'' subsequently
published at 79 FR 34829 (June 18, 2014), and asserted that an
extension would allow for adequate consideration of the impacts of the
proposal relative to the investment considerations of installing SNCRs
at the SJGS. The commenter stated that ownership of SJGS presently
includes utilities from five Western states, and the interstate nature
of ownership and emissions complicates a coordinated compliance
planning process. Another commenter, identified as a part owner of SJGS
Units 1 and 2, supported the costs, anticipated haze reduction, and
other environmental benefits associated with the 2013 RH SIP revision,
but similarly requested that EPA amend its approval and provide
additional time for installation of SNCR on the basis that more time is
needed to study the proposed standards for reducing carbon pollution at
existing EGUs.
Response: EPA believes that CAA section 111(d) efforts and actions
will tend to contribute to overall air quality improvements and thus
should be complementary to criteria pollutant and regional haze SIP
efforts but do not provide a basis for delaying implementation of these
efforts. See 79 FR at 34931. The 111(d) proposal specifically mentions
the next 10-year SIP revision for regional haze that is due by July
2018 and covers the time period through 2028, explaining that the
timeframes proposed for submittal of the CAA section 111(d) state plans
will allow considerable time for coordination by states in the
development of their respective plans. The proposal does not suggest
that further delays are warranted for implementing the regional haze
requirements that were first due in December 2007. Indeed, states and
affected sources will be able to take into account requirements of
programs such as Regional Haze in considering the development of state
plans under section 111(d).
More importantly here, EPA cannot alter an otherwise approvable SIP
revision to extend a compliance date. The 2013 RH SIP revision
submitted by New Mexico provides the compliance date. Moreover, the
compliance dates that New Mexico set are as ``expeditious as
practicable,'' as required by the CAA. See CAA section 169A(b)(2)(A),
(g)(2). Because the compliance dates meet CAA requirements, EPA cannot
establish different compliance dates when taking action on the SIP
revision. See CAA section 110(k)(3), (l).
Comment: A commenter stated that unit retirements and
NOX controls at SJGS would reduce regional haze and provide
other significant environmental, economic, and health benefits, and
states that ``these additional benefits must be recognized.'' The
commenter requested, however, that EPA's approval contain a statement
reflecting EPA's willingness to consider eliminating the NOX
emission control requirements on Units 1 and 4 if, by December 31,
2016, there is a commitment to permanently retire Unit 1 and/or 4
within a reasonably short time-frame. PNM responded to this request in
its own comment (although it mistakenly cited the date of December 31,
2015 when paraphrasing the comment). PNM's comment stated that EPA
should reject the request for an EPA statement regarding the retirement
of additional capacity because the Agency lacks any analysis or basis
upon which to evaluate the efficacy or legality of the request.
Response: We decline to endorse a proposal not before us, as
suggested by the commenter. Because the 2013 RH SIP revision meets CAA
requirements, we are required to approve it. See CAA section
110(k)(3),(l).
Comment: PNM submitted a comment supporting the proposed rule,
agreeing that the 2013 RH SIP revision is reasonable, even when EPA's
estimated SCR costs are used. PNM asserted, however, that its own
estimated SCR capital costs were confirmed by detailed bids from
engineering, procurement, and construction contractors, and that none
of the bids were in the range of EPA's estimated SCR costs. PNM
believed that these bids should satisfy any requirement for enhanced
documentation to support higher SCR costs, but acknowledged that their
cost estimates provide different treatment to items such as sorbent
injection, apportionment of balanced draft costs, and fees and
contingencies.
Response: We appreciate PMN's comment supporting approval. As
identified by the comment, EPA's cost analysis for SCR was based on a
different design (e.g., no costs for sorbent injection) than the design
PNM used when soliciting bids from vendors. PNM's bids were not
submitted with the comment and, based on the available documentation,
we remain unable to conclude that certain line items in PNM's SCR cost
estimates are well supported. While the BART Guidelines explain that
data from vendor bids may be used in developing equipment cost
estimates, this does not mean that bottom-line figures can serve as a
substitute for a full cost analysis or that all costs included therein
would be appropriate for making an assessment of cost-effectiveness.
The expectation remains that the cost analysis maintain and improve
consistency through adherence to the OAQPS Control Cost Manual, where
possible. Moreover, the BART Guidelines state that documentation is
expected, and indeed especially important, where a state believes that
costs will be unreasonable even though other recent retrofits have
cost-effectiveness values that are within what has been considered a
reasonable range. As we established in our FIP, recent SCR retrofits at
coal-fired power plants have been found to be cost-effective, and this
cost effectiveness is generally validated by large emission reductions
even when there are large capital costs.
[[Page 60988]]
Comment: NMED provided comments in support of approval and stated
that they generally concur with our description and evaluation of the
State Alternative for NOX BART.
Response: We appreciate this comment.
Comment: NMED commented that states cannot be required to take a
unit-specific (or unit-by-unit) approach to assessing the BART factors.
In American Corn Growers v. EPA, 291 F.3d 1, 8 (D.C. Cir. 2002), a
reviewing court held that it was invalid to consider visibility impacts
on a multiple-source basis while employing a source-specific approach
to the other four BART factors. The commenter stated that requiring
states to assess visibility on a facility-wide basis while considering
the other factors on a unit-by-unit basis would be similarly
unsupported by the statute and would impermissibly constrain state
authority.
Response: We disagree with this comment. In American Corn Growers,
the D.C. Circuit held that EPA could not adopt a ``group-BART
approach'' to the visibility factor because it could force states to
require BART controls at some sources without any empirical evidence of
a particular source's contribution to visibility impairment in a Class
I area. As a result, the Regional Haze Rule and BART Guidelines require
states to analyze the five statutory factors for each BART-eligible
source without reference to the benefits that BART will achieve at
other sources. Beyond this, however, the court did not opine on how the
BART factors should be analyzed or weighed by states, let alone
proscribe a unit-specific or prescribe a facility-wide approach to
BART.
As we recently explained in our action on the Wyoming regional haze
SIP, see 79 FR 5031 (Jan. 30, 2014), the BART Guidelines prescribe that
states ``must conduct a visibility improvement determination for the
source(s) as part of the BART determination,'' \7\ and we interpret
this language as requiring states to consider the visibility
improvement from BART applied to the BART-eligible source as a whole.
We do not believe that either the CAA or the BART Guidelines mandate
either a unit-specific or a facility-wide approach to analyzing or
weighing the remaining BART factors. In most circumstances, however, we
believe that states should use a unit-specific approach to assessing
the technical feasibility and costs of controls options, as well as the
existing controls and remaining useful life of BART-eligible units.
This approach is clearly contemplated by the BART Guidelines and has
been used for decades in other CAA contexts, such as the evaluation of
Best Available Control Technology (BACT) for new and modified major
stationary sources.\8\ A unit-specific approach to these factors is
appropriate because the age, type, size, location, and emission
characteristics of the various emission units at a source can differ
greatly, and many control options by design apply to a single unit.
However, in unique circumstances, such as in situations where a control
strategy can be implemented facility-wide or where the benefits of unit
shutdowns must be taken into account, then we believe that the CAA and
BART Guidelines provide states with the flexibility to analyze and
weigh the BART factors for the source as a whole, rather than for its
constituent emission units.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\7\ 40 CFR part 51, app. Y, section IV.D.5.
\8\ See New Source Review Workshop Manual (Oct. 1990), available
at https://www.epa.gov/ttn/nsr/gen/wkshpman.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Comment: NMED responded to a statement in the proposal that
expressed some concern with the appropriateness of including
SO2 reductions from units 1 and 4 in one of the
NOX BART control options analyzed, rather than as part of
the facility's baseline emissions, by explaining that the
SO2 limit of 0.10 lbs/MMBtu is required by the 2013 RH SIP
revision alone and would not be required if the FIP continues to remain
in force.
Response: While the inclusion of the SO2 reductions in
the SIP helps to further demonstrate non-interference with the
visibility protection programs of other states, in keeping with the
visibility transport requirements of CAA section 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I),
and helps in showing the overall visibility benefits of the 2013 RH SIP
revision, we had noted that those reductions do not specifically lend
support to a visibility improvement determination for NOX
BART through the application of NOX controls. However, no
commenters took issue with the inclusion of SO2 reductions
in the studied scenarios or insisted that refinements were necessary on
this point, and it remains our view that the inclusion of the
reductions did not meaningfully impact the evaluation of visibility
benefits due to NOX reductions at the facility.
Comment: The Navajo Nation submitted a comment supporting the
proposal as the best scenario for meeting BART, endorsing it for having
reasonable costs of compliance and a realistic timeframe. The comment
also stated that the 2013 RH SIP revision addressed concerns regarding
potential job losses faced by Navajo work forces at the SJGS and San
Juan mine more effectively than EPA's FIP.
Response: We appreciate this comment supporting approval.
Comment: One commenter stated that the 2013 RH SIP revision appears
to be an alternative consistent with the intent of 40 CFR 51.308(e)(2)
and therefore needs to demonstrate greater reasonable progress than
EPA's BART determination. The fact that the 2013 RH SIP revision does
not demonstrate greater reasonable progress than EPA's BART
determination gave the commenter concern because the commenter
considered it a departure from rules and guidance. The commenter also
asserted that previous EPA decisions have required a source to
demonstrate its proposed alternative is better than EPA's BART
determination, citing actions for Idaho and the Four Corners Power
Plant.\9\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\9\ The comment provided a citation to 79 FR 23273 (April 28,
2014) relating to the Tasco facility in Idaho, and one to ``78 FR
24112,'' which we interpret as having intended to refer to 78 FR
60700 (October 2, 2013) (bearing ``FR Doc. 2013-24112'').
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Response: We disagree that the 2013 RH SIP revision appears to be a
BART alternative under section 51.308(e)(2). New Mexico explicitly
stated that it was not evaluating a BART alternative when responding to
comments during the state process and again when submitting comments to
support our proposed approval. Therefore, New Mexico was not required
to make a demonstration of greater reasonable progress. Instead, New
Mexico evaluated a new, source-specific BART determination under
section 51.308(e)(1). To fully account for the source owner's proposed
unit shutdowns, New Mexico chose to weigh the BART factors in light of
source-wide considerations. As explained in our proposal and elsewhere
in our responses to comments, we believe that this approach is
permissible under the CAA and the BART Guidelines. The prior EPA
actions cited by the commenter are not relevant to our action on New
Mexico's NOX BART determination for SJGS. While both the
Four Corners and Idaho actions contained BART alternatives that
demonstrated greater reasonable progress, we are not evaluating a BART
alternative here. Moreover, while the Idaho action also involved two
new BART determinations that happened to be more stringent than the
state's original BART determinations, neither the CAA nor our
regulations require a new BART determination to be more stringent in
every instance in order to supersede a prior BART determination.
Comment: One commenter argued that the CAA requires that any
[[Page 60989]]
alternative regional haze strategy must outperform the visibility gains
of the existing strategy or, in other words, be ``better than BART,''
and the 2013 RH SIP revision fails to accomplish this. Citing to CAA
section 7410(a) and (l), the commenter argued that the characterization
of the 2013 RH SIP revision as including a new BART determination is
plainly unlawful because the State has not undertaken the BART analysis
required by the CAA and BART Guidelines, and EPA did not provide any
explanation for why the SIP revision is approvable when the FIP had a
more stringent BART determination.
Response: As explained above, the 2013 RH SIP revision was not
submitted to meet section 51.308(e)(2) requirements, so it is not
required to be better than BART. As we stated in the proposal, the 2013
RH SIP revision contains a new, source-specific BART analysis that is
based on different underlying facts than those that were present when
we evaluated our FIP. Thus, the commenter's assertion that the state
failed to undertake a BART analysis is clearly incorrect. Finally,
contrary to the commenter's assertion, CAA section 110(l) does not
prohibit a state from submitting a SIP that is less stringent than a
FIP. Our proposal provided an analysis conducted under section 110(l),
which showed that the 2013 RH SIP revision would not interfere with the
attainment or maintenance of any NAAQS or any other CAA requirement.
See 79 FR at 26920. Because New Mexico complied with the CAA's
visibility protection provisions, the Regional Haze Rule, and the BART
Guidelines, and made a reasonable control determination based on the
weighing of the five factors, EPA is required to approve the 2013 RH
SIP revision.
Comment: One commenter stated that the 2013 RH SIP revision does
not comply with the mandatory unit-specific analytical approach
required by the CAA. The commenter argued that the BART Guidelines
require BART to be determined on a unit-specific basis because a BART
emission limit must be established for each affected emission unit. The
commenter also pointed out that the BART Guidelines provide an example
of a unit-specific approach where they state that ``control options
must be analyzed for Units B through H as well as Unit A.''
Consequently, the commenter concluded that New Mexico and EPA are
required to follow the unit-specific approach.
Response: We disagree with this comment. The portion of the BART
Guidelines cited by the commenter explains how all BART units at the
subject to BART source must be included in the BART analysis. The 2013
SIP revision implements BART at each BART-subject unit by requiring
either shutdowns or controls. Also, while the BART Guidelines clearly
contemplate that states will analyze technical feasibility and cost-
effectiveness on a unit-specific basis, they do not explicitly require
such an approach, nor do they provide guidance for situations in which
a source proposes unit shutdowns as an emission-reduction strategy.
Moreover, contrary to the commenter's assertion, the CAA does not
mandate any specific analytical approach. Consequently, in situations
where a state is contemplating a novel control scenario not
contemplated by the BART Guidelines, such as one that involves unit
shutdowns, we believe that states have the flexibility to tailor their
BART analyses by evaluating and weighing the BART factors on a
facility-wide (i.e., ``source'') basis rather than on a unit-specific
basis in order to account for the emission reductions and benefits that
would directly result from the shutdowns. Moreover, while BART emission
limits are also typically established for each unit that comprises the
BART-eligible source, as New Mexico chose to do here, nothing in the
CAA or BART Guidelines prevents a state from setting an emission limit
that averages emissions across multiple units, so long as that limit is
``based on the degree of reduction achievable through the best system
of continuous emission reduction for each pollutant.'' See 40 CFR
51.301.
Comment: One commenter stated that a facility-wide BART
determination is inconsistent with other EPA actions. The commenter
cited to EPA actions in Indiana and Montana to support this
contention.\10\ The commenter also pointed out that EPA used a unit-
specific approach to analyzing the first four factors when promulgating
its FIP for SJGS. The commenter called EPA's proposal an unexplained
departure from EPA's past practice in implementing its binding
guidelines.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\10\ Specifically, the commenter cited our Indiana regional haze
SIP action (77 FR 3975, 3982 (Jan. 26, 2012)) for its statement that
a source needs to ``implement BART at each BART-subject unit,'' and
the Montana regional haze FIP (77 FR 57864, Sept. 18, 2012) for
discussing statutory BART factors for units at a BART source.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Response: We disagree with this comment for the same reasons
explained above. EPA's actions in Indiana, Montana, and our FIP for
SJGS did not involve unit shutdowns and therefore are not determinative
of how the BART statutory factors should be considered and weighed in
this context. Also, contrary to the commenter's assertion, we explained
in our proposal why New Mexico's approach was reasonable in light of
the unique circumstances presented and, on that basis, cannot validly
be seen as any departure from past actions. As was stated, the state's
approach reasonably takes into account the visibility, energy, and non-
air quality environmental benefits associated with unit shutdowns. See
79 FR 26918. Furthermore, the 2013 SIP revision implements BART at each
BART-subject unit by requiring either shutdowns or controls.
Comment: A commenter stated that EPA's proposal arbitrarily
rejected SCR in favor of less effective pollution controls even though
EPA found that an emission limitation based on SCR was BART in the FIP.
The commenter explained that SCR provides the best visibility outcomes
and is cost-effective.
Response: Under different factual circumstances, we determined that
SCR for the four SJGS units had reasonable average cost-effectiveness
values and would promote significant visibility improvements, thereby
supporting the basis for the emission limits set forth in the FIP. In
the 2013 RH SIP revision, New Mexico demonstrated that SNCR in tandem
with shutdowns has visibility benefits on par with those anticipated
from the FIP at much lower overall costs, while also reducing overall
energy and non-air quality environmental impacts. Although we continue
to believe that SCR is a cost-effective control and are not abandoning
the legal and technical basis for our FIP, we believe that when cost,
energy and non-air quality environmental impacts, and anticipated
visibility benefits are all taken into consideration, New Mexico's
determination that the State Alternative is BART is reasonable. While
SCR remains cost-effective on a $/ton basis, the incremental visibility
benefit of the four-SCR scenario of the FIP over the State Alternative
is small at most Class I areas, and New Mexico reasonably concluded
that this small additional visibility benefit, when considered with the
difference in the energy and non-air quality environmental impacts, did
not justify the large increase in costs associated with the
installation of SCR on all four units.
Comment: One commenter stated that the visibility impacts of the
State Alternative are significantly worse than the four-SCR scenario in
the FIP. The commenter explained that the difference in visibility
impacts between the two scenarios will be 0.47 dv at Mesa Verde, 0.24
dv at Canyonlands, and 0.13 dv at
[[Page 60990]]
Weminuche. The sum of these visibility differences is 0.84 dv, which is
above the 0.5 dv threshold that is used to determine ``significance.''
Also, the State Alternative will result in five more days with impacts
over 1 dv at Mesa Verde, three more days at Arches, and two more days
at both Canyonlands and La Garita when compared to the four-SCR
scenario in the FIP.
Response: As we stated in the proposal when comparing the two
scenarios, while we have some concern with the modeled visibility
differences between the two control scenarios for Mesa Verde and
Canyonlands, we find that the State's decision to select the State
Alternative was ultimately reasonable, especially considering the costs
of compliance and the energy and non-air quality environmental impacts
of the two scenarios. We noted that the difference in visibility
impacts between the two scenarios are negligible at most of the Class I
areas examined. The average difference at the 13 other Class I areas
(other than Mesa Verde, Canyonlands, and Weminuche) is less than 0.1 dv
between the two control scenarios. In considering the number of days
impacted, eleven Class I areas show no difference in the number of days
with impacts over 1 dv. We also note that the typical application of
0.5 dv as a contribution threshold comes in the context of assessing
impacts at a single Class I area, not cumulative impacts across
multiple Class I areas.
Comment: One commenter stated that the CAA requires EPA to either
improve the State Alternative or reject it altogether.
Response: We disagree with this comment. As we explained earlier,
EPA is required to approve any SIP revision that meets CAA
requirements. See CAA section 110(k)(3), (l). EPA does not have
authority to improve a SIP revision that is otherwise approvable, and
the commenter has provided no basis for EPA to disapprove the 2013 RH
SIP revision.
Comment: One commenter stated that EPA based its proposed approval
on a fundamentally flawed cost-benefit analysis that artificially
inflated the cost and artificially reduced the benefits of SCR. The
commenter also thought that New Mexico underestimated the costs of
SNCR. The commenter argued that EPA had no rational basis for
concluding that cost refinements would not change the result. The
commenter cited to Center for Biological Diversity v. National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration, 538 F.3d 1172, 1201-03 (9th Cir. 2008),
for the proposition that EPA must re-calculate a cost value that would
significantly alter the analysis. With cost corrections, the commenter
believed that New Mexico's capital cost assumptions for SCR would be
cut in half, demonstrating that SCR remains cost-effective at Units 1
and 4. The commenter provided an attachment that highlighted how New
Mexico's cost range for SCR at SJGS was well above the cost per
kilowatt for SCR demonstrated by other cost studies for comparable
retrofits.
Response: We maintain our view that SCR has favorable and
reasonable average cost-effectiveness values at SJGS under the
technical record developed for the FIP, and we agree with the comment
that New Mexico's cost range for SCR is still high compared to other
cost studies. Even so, as discussed in response to comments from PNM
concerning cost, the state's BART selection in this case is reasonable.
New Mexico was advantaged with the full technical record that we
developed to promulgate the FIP, and the state declared that it would
favor the 2013 RH SIP revision even if it were to adopt and utilize the
lower costs for SCR that we had relied on in promulgating the FIP. In
addition, in our proposed action, we recalculated the annual cost and
incremental cost-effectiveness of the four-SCR option using the cost
estimates presented in the FIP. Thus, there is a significant record
basis for our finding that lower SCR costs would not change the result
of our action.
As to the state's alleged underestimation of SNCR costs, the
comment does not provide any details to enable us to provide a
response. We also considered the Ninth Circuit's decision in Center for
Biological Diversity v. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
and do not see how it has any bearing on the issue of costs in this
case. In that case, the Ninth Circuit faulted NHTSA for its failure to
monetize the value of carbon emissions in setting fuel economy
standards. In addition to the fact that the case did not concern BART
determinations, the comment does not identify any particular line item
in the state's analysis of SCR costs that has not been monetized.
Comment: One commenter stated that our proposal failed to consider
the prospect of installing SCR on Units 1 and 4, while still shutting
down Units 2 and 3. The commenter noted that such a scenario would lead
to even greater visibility benefits. The commenter provided modeled
visibility results and estimates of the level of emission reductions
that would result from this scenario and concluded that the State
Alternative was inferior.
Response: While we acknowledge that a scenario at SJGS involving
two shutdowns and two SCRs would result in superior visibility benefits
than the State Alternative or even the FIP, the state did not present
this scenario to us in the 2013 RH SIP revision. As we explained above,
we are required to evaluate the SIP revision that is before us.
Moreover, in situations that involve the voluntary retirement of units,
states need the flexibility to analyze control scenarios that have the
support of the source owner. There is no evidence in the record
indicating that PNM would have volunteered to retire two of its units
if SCR were required on the remaining units.
Comment: One commenter stated that the NMED's BART analysis
contains a flawed visibility analysis. The commenter argued that NMED
arbitrarily ignored fourteen Class I areas between 300 km and 440 km
from SJGS in its cumulative visibility analysis, which was an arbitrary
and unexplained departure from EPA's analytical approach that was
followed in analyzing the Big Stone and Colstrip power plants. The
commenter concluded that the failure to assess impacts at more distant
Class I areas masked the full visibility benefit of SCR. Finally, the
commenter referred to comments submitted by the National Park Service
to New Mexico on their proposed SIP revision, which stated that the
visibility modeling was not done according to the BART Guidelines.
Response: We disagree with this comment. In regard to selecting a
model and developing a modeling protocol, the BART Guidelines refer to
our Guideline on Air Quality Models \11\ and the Interagency Workgroup
on Air Quality Modeling (IWAQM) Phase 2 report.\12\ The IWAQM report
reviewed model-performance evaluations of CALPUFF as a function of
distance from the source and recommended the use of CALPUFF for
transport distances of order 200 km and less. The report also
recommended that the use of CALPUFF for characterizing transport beyond
200 to 300 km should be done cautiously with
[[Page 60991]]
an awareness of the likely problems involved. Consistent with this
recommendation, we believe that it is reasonable to use CALPUFF to
evaluate visibility impacts up to 300 km. While we agree with the
commenter that emissions from SJGS may impact Class I areas at
distances greater than 300 km, the IWAQM report cautions that CALPUFF
results are less reliable at distances greater than 300 km. Therefore,
we do not think that it is arbitrary to exclude more distant receptors
from a visibility analysis or to base the visibility assessment for a
BART determination on visibility impacts within 300 km from the source.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\11\ Appendix W to 40 CFR Part 51 ``Guideline to Air Quality
Models'' states: ``It was concluded from these case studies that the
CALPUFF dispersion model had performed in a reasonable manner, and
had no apparent bias toward over or under prediction, so long as the
transport distance was limited to less than 300 km.''
\12\ Environmental Protection Agency, 1998. Interagency
Workgroup on Air Quality Modeling (IWAQM) Phase 2 Summary Report and
Recommendations for Modeling Long-Range Transport Impacts.
Publication No. EPA-454/R-98-019. Office of Air Quality Planning &
Standards, Research Triangle Park, NC. (NTIS No. PB 99-121089)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Contrary to the commenter's suggestion, this was the same approach
followed when modeling the visibility benefits associated with various
control scenarios at the Colstrip power plant. See 77 FR 57867-68. In
regard to the Big Stone power plant, South Dakota performed modeling
for Class I areas beyond 300 km only because there were no Class I
areas within 300 km of the source. As a result, South Dakota worked
with EPA to develop a special modeling protocol that incorporated
CALPUFF's puff-splitting option despite the IWAQM report's conceptual
concerns with that feature. Moreover, South Dakota expressly
acknowledged that it was departing from EPA's guidance. Consequently,
we believe that Big Stone presented an exception to the general rule
that CALPUFF be applied to assess visibility impacts only on those
Class I areas within 300 km of the source. Finally, in regard to NPS's
comments concerning the visibility analysis during the state process,
we agree with the response provided at the time by NMED \13\ and note
that NPS did not raise these concerns again in their comments on our
proposed action.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\13\ Available as NMED Ex. 14 of the 2013 RH SIP revision.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Comment: A commenter stated that the proposed 0.23 lb/MMBtu limit
does not apply to each unit due to a cross-unit averaging provision, so
the emissions from a given unit could be higher than 0.23 lb/MMbtu.
Response: In this case, it is appropriate for the 2013 RH SIP
revision to allow SJGS to average emissions across its BART-eligible
emission units within the fence line. The BART Guidelines allow this
approach when, as here, the reductions would be equal to those
reductions that would be obtained by simply controlling each of the
BART-eligible units that constitute the BART source. Because SJGS is
required to demonstrate continuous compliance over a reasonable
averaging time, the reductions associated with the assigned limit are
assured. As part of its five-factor analysis, New Mexico evaluated the
control effectiveness of SNCR and determined that SNCR could achieve an
emission rate of 0.23 lb/MMBtu on each unit based on tests and an
updated performance guarantee from the vendor.\14\ Consistent with the
BART Guidelines, the permit conditions at A112C specify the averaging
time and calculation methodology for the enforceable emission limit,
which must be calculated on a 30-boiler-operating-day basis, averaged
across the two units. While we agree with the commenter that emissions
from either unit may exceed 0.23 lb/MMBtu on a given day, the combined
emissions from both units cannot exceed 0.23 lb/MMBtu over the course
of the averaging period, so total emission reductions will be equal to
those that would be obtained under two separate limits.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\14\ Public Service Company of New Mexico, San Juan Generating
Station, Revised SNCR Analysis, February 11, 2011 (2011 NM RH SIP,
NMED Ex. 7t).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Comment: One commenter alleged that our proposal implied that PNM's
decision to retire Units 2 and 3 was solely taken for the purpose of
meeting BART. The commenter suggested that EPA should explicitly state
whether this was the case for the record or discuss whether independent
reasons would require or motivate the shutdown of the units.
Response: We fail to see how this comment is relevant to our
evaluation of the 2013 RH SIP revision. Nevertheless, we note that,
when developing the FIP, we assumed that the remaining useful life of
all four units at SJGS exceeded 30 years, and the 2013 RH SIP revision
provides no information that would change that assumption. Nor does the
SIP revision provide any information to suggest that PNM had
motivations other than creating a more cost-effective BART-compliance
scenario when volunteering to shut down Units 2 and 3.
Comment: A commenter stated that, while our proposal implied that
there will be no capacity increase elsewhere or at the SJGS to replace
the lost capacity from Units 2 and 3, the final rule should make this
explicit to properly give weight to the benefits from their retirement.
Response: We disagree with this comment. As an initial matter, our
proposal did not imply that the retirement of Units 2 and 3 could be
undertaken without the possible need to address lost capacity. Most
likely, the lost capacity will be replaced through some combination of
conservation, efficiency, and new capacity. More importantly, however,
the CAA does not require an analysis of the statutory factors to
include the consideration of hypothetical emissions increases at other
facilities or even at the same facility due to lost capacity. We also
note that any emissions units that might be constructed at SJGS in the
future would likely be subject to both BACT and any applicable new
source performance standards. Moreover, all emission units would be
subject to analysis under the regional haze requirements for reasonable
progress in future planning periods.
Comment: One commenter asserted that our proposal failed to explain
how New Mexico could permissibly reach a conclusion that directly
opposes EPA's conclusion in the FIP. The commenter stated that the
voluntary retirement of Units 2 and 3 did not change the fact that SCR
remains cost-effective at the Units 1 and 4.
Response: We disagree that the 2013 RH SIP reached a conclusion
that directly opposes the conclusion we made in promulgating the FIP.
Under different factual circumstances, we determined that SCR for the
four SJGS units had reasonable average cost-effectiveness values and
would promote significant visibility improvements, thereby supporting
the basis for the emission limits set forth in the FIP. As we stated in
the proposal, the 2013 RH SIP revision contains a new, source-specific
BART analysis that is based on different underlying facts than those
that were present when we evaluated our FIP. We were not presented with
the retirement of Units 2 and 3 when we promulgated the FIP. With this
information in hand, New Mexico permissibly conducted a new BART
analysis using a facility-wide approach that allowed the full range of
visibility, energy, and non-air quality environmental benefits
associated with the shutdowns to be taken into account. While the
average cost-effectiveness of SCR on Units 1 and 4 remains reasonable,
New Mexico demonstrated that the incremental cost-effectiveness of the
four-SCR scenario in our FIP over the State Alternative was high when
compared against the additional visibility improvements from the
former, while also considering the energy, and non-air quality
environmental benefits associated with the State Alternative.
Comment: One commenter thought that the timeline for the
installation of SNCR was too long because SNCR is a simpler technology
to install than SCR.
Response: We agree that SNCR is a simpler technology to install
than SCR
[[Page 60992]]
and requires less time for installation. New Mexico determined, and we
agree, that the compliance timeframe in the 2013 RH SIP revision is as
expeditious as practicable, as required under 40 CFR 51.308(e)(1)(iv).
Comment: One commenter thought that the 0.05 lb/MMBtu rate used for
the study of SCR as a BART control option was likely too high. The
commenter suggested that many units, such as those in Dry Fork, WY and
Morgantown, MD, are routinely achieving emission rates in the range of
0.02-0.04 lb/MMBtu. Reducing the studied emission limit for SCR to 0.04
lb/MMBtu would show the option to be even more cost-effective.
Response: We disagree that lower control rates needed to be
evaluated for SCR. We evaluated the monthly emission data from these
two facilities for the past several years (available at EPA's Air
Market Program data Web site: www.epa.gov/ampd). All three units have
monthly emission rates that sometimes exceed 0.04 lb/MMBtu. Indeed, the
Morgantown units have months where the monthly emission rate is 0.05
lb/MMBtu or higher. In promulgating the FIP, we evaluated the
performance of both new and retrofit SCRs and determined that 0.05 lb/
MMBtu on a 30-boiler-operating-day average was the appropriate emission
limit for SCR at the SJGS units. See 76 FR 491 and 76 FR 52388. New
Mexico appropriately used this same rate in their cost and visibility
analyses for the four-SCR scenario as part of its BART evaluation.
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
The Administrator is required to approve a SIP submission that
complies with the provisions of the Clean Air Act and applicable
Federal regulations. 42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a). Thus, in
reviewing SIP submissions, EPA's role is to approve state choices,
provided that they meet the criteria of the Clean Air Act. 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 Clean Air Act; and
does not provide 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, the SIP is not approved to apply on any Indian
reservation land or in any other area where EPA or an Indian tribe has
demonstrated that a tribe has jurisdiction. In those areas of Indian
country, the rule does not have tribal implications as specified by
Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000), nor will it
impose substantial direct costs on tribal governments or preempt tribal
law. Consistent with EPA policy, EPA offered consultation to tribes
regarding this rulemaking action.
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. EPA will submit a report containing this action and
other required information to the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House of
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 Clean Air Act, petitions for
judicial review of this action must be filed in the United States Court
of Appeals for the appropriate circuit by December 8, 2014. Filing a
petition for reconsideration by the Administrator of this final rule
does not affect the finality of this action for the purposed 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. 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, Incorporation by
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen dioxide, Particulate
matter, Regional haze, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Sulfur
dioxide, and Visibility.
Dated: September 26, 2014.
Samuel Coleman,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 6
Therefore, 40 CFR part 52 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.
0
2. In Sec. 52.1620:
0
a. In paragraph (d), the table titled ``EPA-Approved New Mexico Source-
Specific Requirements'' is amended by adding a first entry for ``Units
1, 2, 3, & 4 of the San Juan Generating Station'' to the table.
0
b. In paragraph (e), the second table entitled ``EPA Approved
Nonregulatory Provisions and Quasi-Regulatory Measures in the New
Mexico SIP,'' is amended by revising the entry for ``Regional Haze SIP
under 40 CFR 51.309, Statewide (except Bernalillo County)'' and adding
a new entry at the end for ``Revision to satisfy the requirements of
Clean Air Act 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(II) with respect to visibility for the 8-
hour Ozone and PM2.5 NAAQS''.
The additions and revisions read as follows:
Sec. 52.1620. Identification of plan.
* * * * *
(d) * * *
[[Page 60993]]
EPA-Approved New Mexico Source-Specific Requirements
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
State
approval/ EPA Approval
Name of source Permit number effective date Explanation
date
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Units 1, 2, 3, & 4 of the San NSR Permit No. 11/1/2013 10/9/14 [Insert Ch. 10 (BART) of SIP under 40 CFR
Juan Generating Station. 0063-M6R3, FR citation]. 51.309(g).
Section A112C.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(e) * * *
* * * * *
EPA Approved Nonregulatory Provisions and Quasi-Regulatory Measures in the New Mexico SIP
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
State
Applicable submittal/
Name of SIP provision geographic or effective EPA approval date Explanation
nonattainment area date
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* * * * * * *
Regional Haze SIP under 40 CFR Statewide (except 6/24/2011, 11/27/2012, 77 FR .......................
51.309. Bernalillo County). 10/7/2013, 70693, 10/9/14
11/1/2013 [Insert FR
citation].
* * * * * * *
Revision to satisfy the Statewide (except 10/7/2013, 10/9/14 [Insert FR
requirements of Clean Air Act Bernalillo County). 11/1/2013 citation].
110(a)(2)(D)(i)(II) with
respect to visibility for the 8-
hour Ozone and PM2.5 NAAQS.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sec. 52.1629 [Removed and Reserved]
0
3. Section 52.1629 is removed and reserved.
[FR Doc. 2014-23904 Filed 10-8-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P