April 7, 2015 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

NMFS published a proposed rule in the Federal Register on March 19, 2015, to amend the regulations implementing the Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Plan. This action proposed to change the minimum number of traps per trawl to allow fishing with a single trap in certain Massachusetts and Rhode Island state waters; and proposed to modify the requirement to use one endline on trawls within certain areas in Massachusetts state waters. NMFS also proposed a \1/4\ mile buffer in waters surrounding certain islands in Maine to allow fishing with a single trap. In addition, NMFS proposed additional gear marking requirements for those waters allowing single traps as well as two new high use areas for humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) and North Atlantic right whales (Eubalaena glacialis). In that proposal, NMFS provided the wrong address for the submission of electronic comments. With this document, we correct our error by publishing the correct ADDRESSES section in its entirety.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is establishing air quality designations in the United States (U.S.) for the 2012 primary annual fine particle (PM2.5) National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for five areas in Georgia and neighboring counties in Alabama and South Carolina. The EPA is also changing the initial designation of one area in Ohio, two areas in Pennsylvania, one area shared between Indiana and Kentucky, and one area shared between Kentucky and Ohio for the 2012 PM2.5 NAAQS. These states have recently submitted complete, quality-assured, and certified air quality data for 2014, and based on that data the EPA is finalizing appropriate initial designations for these areas. Lastly, the EPA is making one minor technical amendment to correct an inadvertent error in the initial designation for a county in Pennsylvania with respect to the 2012 PM2.5 NAAQS.

NMFS is opening directed fishing for northern rockfish in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area (BSAI). This action is necessary to fully use the 2015 total allowable catch (TAC) of northern rockfish in the BSAI.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission published a document in the Federal Register on Tuesday, January 20, 2015 (80 FR 2591), providing the annual update to the fee schedule in Appendix A to Part 11, which lists per-acre rental fees by county (or other geographic area) for use of government lands by hydropower licensees and updating Appendix A to Part 11 with the fee schedule of per-acre rental fees by county (or other geographic area) from October 1, 2014, through September 30, 2015 (Fiscal Year 2015).

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (Commission or CPSC) published a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPR) in the Federal Register on November 19, 2014, concerning recreational off-highway vehicles (ROVs). The NPR invited the public to submit written comments by February 2, 2015. In response to two requests for an extension, the Commission extended the comment period to April 8, 2015. In response to two requests for an additional extension, the Commission is extending the comment period to June 19, 2015.

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) is amending the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to reflect changes to the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) Annex that were agreed to by MTCR member countries at the September and October 2014 Plenary in Oslo, Norway, and pursuant to the 2014 Technical Experts Meeting in Prague, Czech Republic. This rule also makes conforming changes to correlate the Commerce Control List (CCL) (Supplement No. 1 to Part 774 of the EAR) with the current MTCR Annex. This final rule revises six Export Control Classification Numbers (ECCNs) to implement the changes that were agreed to at the meetings and to better align the MT controls on the CCL with the MTCR Annex.

EPA proposes a Clean Water Act (CWA) regulation that would better protect human health and the environment and protect the operational integrity of publicly owned treatment works (POTWs) by establishing pretreatment standards that would prevent the discharge of pollutants in wastewater from onshore unconventional oil and gas extraction facilities to POTWs. Unconventional oil and gas (UOG) extraction wastewater can be generated in large quantities and contains constituents that are potentially harmful to human health and the environment. Because they are not typical of POTW influent wastewater, some UOG extraction wastewater constituents can be discharged, untreated, from the POTW to the receiving stream; can disrupt the operation of the POTW (e.g., by inhibiting biological treatment); can accumulate in biosolids (sewage sludge), limiting their use; and can facilitate the formation of harmful disinfection by-products (DBPs). Based on the information collected by EPA, the requirements in this proposal reflect current industry practices for unconventional oil and gas extraction facilities, therefore, EPA does not project the proposed rule will impose any costs or lead to pollutant removals, but will ensure that such current industry best practice is maintained over time.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking final action to reclassify the San Joaquin Valley (SJV) Moderate nonattainment area, including areas of Indian country within it, as a Serious nonattainment area for the 1997 PM2.5 national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) based on EPA's determination that the area cannot practicably attain these NAAQS by the applicable attainment date of April 5, 2015 and in response to a request from the SJV Air Pollution Control District that we reclassify the area. As a consequence of this reclassification, California must submit a Serious area plan including a demonstration that the plan provides for attainment of the 1997 annual and 24-hour PM2.5 standards in the SJV area by the applicable attainment date, which is no later than December 31, 2015, or by the most expeditious alternative date practicable, in accordance with the requirements of part D of title I of the Clean Air Act.

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce a 12-month finding on a petition to list the Big Sandy crayfish (known at the time of the petition as Cambarus veteranus, but now known as two distinct species: Guyandotte River crayfish, C. veteranus, and Big Sandy crayfish, C. callainus) as endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act, as amended (Act), and to designate critical habitat. After review of the best available scientific and commercial information, we find that listing the Big Sandy crayfish and the Guyandotte River crayfish is warranted. Accordingly, we propose to list both the Big Sandy crayfish (C. callainus), a freshwater crustacean from Kentucky, Virginia, and West Virginia, and the Guyandotte River crayfish (C. veteranus), a freshwater crustacean from West Virginia, as endangered species under the Act. If we finalize this rule as proposed, it would extend the Act's protections to both species and would add both species to the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife. The Service seeks data and comments from the public on this proposed listing rule.