Reconsideration on the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) and the Utility New Source Performance Standards; Final Action, 24218-24220 [2015-10118]
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Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 83 / Thursday, April 30, 2015 / Rules and Regulations
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 June 29, 2015.
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
PART 52—APPROVAL AND
PROMULGATION OF
IMPLEMENTATION PLANS
Environmental protection, Air
pollution control, Carbon monoxide,
Incorporation by reference,
Intergovernmental relations, Lead,
Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, Particulate
matter, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements, Sulfur oxides, Volatile
organic compounds.
1. The authority citation for part 52
continues to read as follows:
■
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Subpart E—Arkansas
2. In § 52.170(c), the table titled ‘‘EPAApproved Regulations in the Arkansas
SIP’’ is amended by revising the heading
and entries for ‘‘Arkansas Regulation
No. 9: Permit Fees,’’ to read as follows:
■
Dated: April 17, 2015.
Ron Curry,
Regional Administrator, Region 6.
40 CFR part 52 is amended as follows:
§ 52.170
*
Identification of plan.
*
*
(c) * * *
*
*
EPA-APPROVED REGULATIONS IN THE ARKANSAS SIP
State
submittal/
effective
date
Title/
subject
State citation
*
*
EPA approval date
*
*
Explanation
*
*
*
Regulation No. 9: Fee Regulation
Chapter 1 ..................
Title ...........................
7/9/2012
Chapter 2 ..................
Definitions .................
7/9/2012
Chapter 3 ..................
Permit Fee Payment
7/9/2012
Chapter 5 ..................
Air Permit Fees .........
7/9/2012
Chapter 9 ..................
Administrative Procedures.
7/9/2012
*
*
*
*
*
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
40 CFR Parts 60 and 63
[EPA–HQ–OAR–2009–0234 and EPA–HQ–
OAR–2011–0044; FRL–9926–74–OAR]
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RIN 2060–AR62
Reconsideration on the Mercury and
Air Toxics Standards (MATS) and the
Utility New Source Performance
Standards; Final Action
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of final action denying
petitions for reconsideration.
AGENCY:
14:33 Apr 29, 2015
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The following definitions do not relate to the air program and are not being approved into the SIP:
‘‘Category’’, ‘‘Certificate’’, ‘‘Confined Animal Operation’’, ‘‘Discretionary Major Facility’’, ‘‘Evaluation’’,
‘‘Laboratory‘‘, ‘‘Major Municipal Facility’’, ‘‘Non-Municipal Major Facility’’, ‘‘Parameter’’, ‘‘Program’’.
4/30/2015 [Insert FR citation].
4/30/2015 [Insert FR citation].
4/30/2015 [Insert FR citation].
The U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) is providing
notice that it has responded to 23
petitions for reconsideration of the final
rules titled National Emission Standards
for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP)
From Coal- and Oil-Fired Electric Utility
Steam Generating Units and Standards
of Performance (NSPS) for Fossil-FuelFired Electric Utility, IndustrialCommercial-Institutional, and Small
Industrial-Commercial-Institutional
Steam Generating Units, published in
the Federal Register on February 16,
2012. The agency previously granted
reconsideration on several discrete
issues and took final action on
reconsideration through documents
published in the Federal Register on
April 24, 2013, and November 19, 2014.
The Administrator denied the remaining
requests for reconsideration in separate
letters to the petitioners dated April 21,
SUMMARY:
[FR Doc. 2015–09905 Filed 4–29–15; 8:45 am]
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4/30/2015 [Insert FR citation].
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2015. A document providing a full
explanation of the agency’s rationale for
each denial is in the docket for these
rules.
DATES: Effective April 30, 2015.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr.
Jim Eddinger, Sector Policies and
Programs Division (D243–01), Office of
Air Quality Planning and Standards,
Environmental Protection Agency,
Research Triangle Park, North Carolina
27711; telephone number: (919) 541–
5426; fax number: (919) 541–5450;
email address: eddinger.jim@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. How can I get copies of this document
and other related information?
This Federal Register document, the
petitions for reconsideration, the letters
denying the petitions for
reconsideration, and the document
titled ‘‘Denial of Petitions for
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Reconsideration of Certain Issues:
MATS and Utility NSPS’’
(Reconsideration Response Document)
are available in the dockets the EPA
established under Docket ID No. EPA–
HQ–OAR–2009–0234 and Docket ID No.
EPA–HQ–OAR–2011–0044. The
Reconsideration Response Document is
available in both the MATS and Utility
NSPS dockets by conducting a search of
the title ‘‘Denial of Petitions for
Reconsideration of Certain Issues:
MATS and Utility NSPS.’’ All
documents in the dockets are listed on
the www.regulations.gov Web site.
Although listed in the index, some
information is not publicly available,
e.g., confidential business information
or other information whose disclosure is
restricted by statute. Certain other
material, such as copyrighted material,
is not placed on the Internet and will be
publicly available only in hard copy
form. Publicly available docket
materials are available either
electronically through
www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at
the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), Room
3334, EPA WJC West Building, 1301
Constitution Ave. NW., Washington,
DC. The Public Reading Room is open
from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday
through Friday, excluding legal
holidays. The telephone number for the
Public Reading Room is (202) 566–1744
and the telephone number for the Air
Docket is (202) 566–1742. This Federal
Register document and the
Reconsideration Response Document
denying the petitions can also be found
on the EPA’s Web site at https://
www.epa.gov/ttn/atw/utility/
utilitypg.html.
II. Judicial Review
Section 307(b)(1) of the Clean Air Act
(CAA) indicates which Federal Courts of
Appeals have venue for petitions for
review of final EPA actions. This section
provides, in part, that the petitions for
review must be filed in the Court of
Appeals for the District of Columbia
Circuit if: (i) The agency action consists
of ‘‘nationally applicable regulations
promulgated, or final action taken, by
the Administrator,’’ or (ii) such actions
are locally or regionally applicable, if
‘‘such action is based on a
determination of nationwide scope or
effect and if in taking such action the
Administrator find and publishes that
such action is based on such a
determination.’’
The EPA has determined that its
actions denying the petitions for
reconsideration are of nationwide scope
and effect for purposes of section
307(d)(1) because the actions directly
affect the ‘‘National Emission Standards
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14:33 Apr 29, 2015
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for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP)
From Coal- and Oil-Fired Electric Utility
Steam Generating Units and Standards
of Performance (NSPS) for Fossil-FuelFired Electric Utility, IndustrialCommercial-Institutional, and Small
Industrial-Commercial-Institutional
Steam Generating Units,’’ both of which
were found to be of nationwide scope
and effect. Thus, any petitions for
review of the EPA’s decisions denying
petitioners’ requests for reconsideration
must be filed in the United States Court
of Appeals for the District of Columbia
Circuit by June 29, 2015.
III. Description of Action
On February 16, 2012, pursuant to
sections 111 and 112 of the CAA, the
EPA published the final rules titled
‘‘National Emission Standards for
Hazardous Air Pollutants from Coaland Oil-Fired Electric Utility Steam
Generating Units and Standards of
Performance for Fossil-Fuel-Fired
Electric Utility, Industrial-CommercialInstitutional, and Small IndustrialCommercial-Institutional Steam
Generating Units’’ (77 FR 9304). The
NESHAP rule issued pursuant to CAA
section 112 is referred to as the Mercury
and Air Toxics Standards (MATS), and
the NSPS rule issued pursuant to CAA
section 111 is referred to as the Utility
NSPS. Following promulgation of the
final rules, the Administrator received
petitions for reconsideration of
numerous provisions of both MATS and
the Utility NSPS pursuant to CAA
section 307(d)(7)(B).
The EPA received 20 petitions for
reconsideration of the MATS rule and 3
petitions for reconsideration of the
Utility NSPS. The EPA received
petitions for reconsideration of the
MATS rule from the following
organizations: American Public Power
Association, ARIPPA, Babcock &
Wilcox, Basin Electric Power
Cooperative, Climate Policy Group, Coal
Utilization Research Council,
Earthjustice, East Kentucky Power
Cooperative, Edgecombe/Spruance
Genco, Edison Mission Energy,
FirstEnergy, Hawaiian Electric
Company, Institute of Clean Air
Companies, International Brotherhood
of Boilermakers, Power4Georgians,
Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority,
Southern Company, State of Texas
(Texas Commission on Environmental
Quality, Texas Public Utility
Commission, Railroad Commission of
Texas), Utility Air Regulatory Group
(UARG), and Wolverine Power Supply
Cooperative. The EPA received petitions
for reconsideration of the Utility NSPS
from the following organizations: Air
Products, State of Texas (Texas
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24219
Commission on Environmental Quality,
Texas Public Utility Commission,
Railroad Commission of Texas), and
UARG.
CAA section 307(d)(7)(B) states that
‘‘[o]nly an objection to a rule or
procedure which was raised with
reasonable specificity during the period
for public comment (including any
public hearing) may be raised during
judicial review. If the person raising an
objection can demonstrate to the
Administrator that it was impracticable
to raise such objection within such time
or if the grounds for such objection
arose after the period for public
comment (but within the time specified
for judicial review) and if such objection
is of central relevance to the outcome of
the rule, the Administrator shall
convene a proceeding for
reconsideration of the rule and provide
the same procedural rights as would
have been afforded had the information
been available at the time the rule was
proposed. If the Administrator refuses to
convene such a proceeding, such person
may seek review of such refusal in the
United States court of appeals for the
appropriate circuit (as provided in
subsection (b)).’’ Thus, the EPA is only
required to grant a CAA section
307(d)(7)(B) petition for reconsideration
if the petitioner demonstrates both: (1)
That it was impractical to raise the
objection during the public comment
period, or that the grounds for such
objection arose after the public
comment period but within the time
specified for judicial review (i.e., within
60 days after publication of the final
rulemaking in the Federal Register); and
(2) that the objection is of central
relevance to the outcome of the rule.
On November 30, 2012, the EPA
issued a proposed rule reconsidering
certain new source MATS, the
requirements applicable during periods
of startup and shutdown for MATS and
the Utility NSPS (for the PM standard
only), certain definitional and
monitoring issues in the Utility NSPS,
and additional technical corrections to
both MATS and the Utility NSPS (77 FR
71323). On April 24, 2013, the EPA
issued the final action on
reconsideration of the new source
MATS, the definitional and monitoring
provisions in the Utility NSPS, and the
technical corrections in both rules (78
FR 24073). The EPA issued the final
action on reconsideration of the startup
and shutdown provisions in the MATS
and Utility NSPS on November 19, 2014
(79 FR 68777). In addition, on February
17, 2015, the EPA proposed additional
technical corrections to the final MATS
rule and the Utility NSPS (80 FR 8442).
These actions addressed many issues
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Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 83 / Thursday, April 30, 2015 / Rules and Regulations
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raised in the petitions for
reconsideration of the final MATS rule
and the Utility NSPS.
On April 21, 2015, the Administrator,
Gina McCarthy, signed letters to
petitioners denying the remaining issues
in the petitions for reconsideration. The
EPA carefully reviewed the petitions
and evaluated each issue raised in the
petitions for reconsideration to
determine if they meet the CAA section
307(d)(7)(B) criteria for reconsideration.
The EPA denied the remaining issues in
the petitions for reconsideration because
they do not meet the criteria for
reconsideration and/or are moot as
explained in detail in the
Reconsideration Response Document.
That document articulates in detail the
rationale for the EPA’s final response to
each of the remaining issues in the
petitions for reconsideration received on
the final MATS rule and the Utility
NSPS.
As explained in the Reconsideration
Response Document, a significant
majority of the issues raised in the
petitions for reconsideration were or
could have been raised in comments on
the proposed MATS and Utility NSPS.
In addition, many of the parties that
filed petitions for reconsideration of the
final MATS and Utility NSPS also filed
petitions for review of the final rules in
the United States Court of Appeals for
the District of Columbia Circuit (Court
or D.C. Circuit). Many of the issues
raised in the petitions for
reconsideration were also raised in the
D.C. Circuit litigation, and other
reconsideration issues could have been
raised in that litigation. On April 15,
2014, the Court denied all petitions for
review of MATS and the Utility NSPS.
White Stallion Energy Center v. EPA,
784 F.3d 1222 (D.C. Cir. 2014); cert.
granted, State of Michigan v. EPA, No.
14–46 (and consolidated cases). As the
Court may only consider issues raised
during the period for public comment,
issues raised in the litigation and
addressed by the Court clearly do not
meet the criteria for reconsideration in
CAA section 307(d)(7)(B). Moreover,
parties may not use this final action
denying reconsideration as a basis to
litigate issues that could have been
raised in the initial litigation.
Dated: April 21, 2015.
Gina McCarthy,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2015–10118 Filed 4–29–15; 8:45 am]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
40 CFR Part 62
[EPA–R06–OAR–2013–0763; FRL–9927–00–
Region 6]
Approval and Promulgation of State
Plans for Designated Facilities and
Pollutants; Texas, Oklahoma,
Arkansas, New Mexico, and the City of
Albuquerque, New Mexico; Control of
Emissions From Existing Sewage
Sludge Incinerator Units
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Direct final rule.
AGENCY:
The Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) is taking direct final
action to approve Clean Air Act (CAA)
section 111(d)/129 negative declarations
for the States of Texas, Oklahoma,
Arkansas, New Mexico, and the City of
Albuquerque, New Mexico, for existing
sewage sludge incinerator (SSI) units.
These negative declarations certify that
existing SSI units subject to the
requirements of sections 111(d) and 129
of the CAA do not exist within the
jurisdictions of Texas, Oklahoma,
Arkansas, and New Mexico (including
the City of Albuquerque). EPA is
accepting the negative declarations in
accordance with the requirements of the
CAA.
DATES: This rule is effective on June 29,
2015 without further notice, unless EPA
receives relevant adverse comment by
June 1, 2015. If EPA receives such
comment, EPA will publish a timely
withdrawal in the Federal Register
informing the public that this rule will
not take effect.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments,
identified by Docket No. EPA–R06–
OAR–2013–0763, by one of the
following methods:
• www.regulations.gov. Follow the
online instructions.
• Email: Mr. Kenneth W. Boyce at
boyce.kenneth@epa.gov.
• Mail or delivery: Mr. Guy
Donaldson, Chief, Air Planning Section
(6PD–L), Environmental Protection
Agency, 1445 Ross Avenue, Suite 1200,
Dallas, Texas 75202–2733.
Instructions: Direct your comments to
Docket No. EPA–R06–OAR–2013–0763.
EPA’s policy is that all comments
received will be included in the public
docket without change and may be
made available online at
www.regulations.gov, including any
personal information provided, unless
the comment includes information
claimed to be Confidential Business
Information (CBI) or other information
SUMMARY:
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whose disclosure is restricted by statute.
Do not submit information that you
consider to be CBI or otherwise
protected through www.regulations.gov
or email. The www.regulations.gov Web
site is an ‘‘anonymous access’’ system,
which means 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 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.
Docket: The index to the docket for
this action is available electronically at
www.regulations.gov and in hard copy
at EPA Region 6, 1445 Ross Avenue,
Suite 700, Dallas, Texas. While all
documents in the docket are listed in
the index, some information may be
publicly available only at the hard copy
location (e.g., copyrighted material), and
some may not be publicly available at
either location (e.g., CBI).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr.
Kenneth Boyce, (214) 665–7259, email
address boyce.kenneth@epa.gov. To
inspect the hard copy materials please
contact Mr. Boyce or Mr. Bill Deese at
(214) 665–6645.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Throughout this document, ‘‘we’’ ‘‘us’’
and ‘‘our’’ means the EPA.
Outline
I. Background
II. Final Action
III. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
I. Background
EPA’s statutory authority for the
regulation of new and existing solid
waste incineration units is outlined in
CAA sections 129 and 111. Section 129
of the CAA is specific to solid waste
combustion and requires EPA to
establish performance standards for
each category of solid waste
incineration units. These standards
include new source performance
standards (NSPS), applicable to new
units, and emissions guidelines and
other requirements applicable to
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[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 83 (Thursday, April 30, 2015)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 24218-24220]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-10118]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Parts 60 and 63
[EPA-HQ-OAR-2009-0234 and EPA-HQ-OAR-2011-0044; FRL-9926-74-OAR]
RIN 2060-AR62
Reconsideration on the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS)
and the Utility New Source Performance Standards; Final Action
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of final action denying petitions for reconsideration.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is providing
notice that it has responded to 23 petitions for reconsideration of the
final rules titled National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air
Pollutants (NESHAP) From Coal- and Oil-Fired Electric Utility Steam
Generating Units and Standards of Performance (NSPS) for Fossil-Fuel-
Fired Electric Utility, Industrial-Commercial-Institutional, and Small
Industrial-Commercial-Institutional Steam Generating Units, published
in the Federal Register on February 16, 2012. The agency previously
granted reconsideration on several discrete issues and took final
action on reconsideration through documents published in the Federal
Register on April 24, 2013, and November 19, 2014. The Administrator
denied the remaining requests for reconsideration in separate letters
to the petitioners dated April 21, 2015. A document providing a full
explanation of the agency's rationale for each denial is in the docket
for these rules.
DATES: Effective April 30, 2015.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Jim Eddinger, Sector Policies and
Programs Division (D243-01), Office of Air Quality Planning and
Standards, Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park,
North Carolina 27711; telephone number: (919) 541-5426; fax number:
(919) 541-5450; email address: eddinger.jim@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. How can I get copies of this document and other related information?
This Federal Register document, the petitions for reconsideration,
the letters denying the petitions for reconsideration, and the document
titled ``Denial of Petitions for
[[Page 24219]]
Reconsideration of Certain Issues: MATS and Utility NSPS''
(Reconsideration Response Document) are available in the dockets the
EPA established under Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2009-0234 and Docket ID
No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2011-0044. The Reconsideration Response Document is
available in both the MATS and Utility NSPS dockets by conducting a
search of the title ``Denial of Petitions for Reconsideration of
Certain Issues: MATS and Utility NSPS.'' All documents in the dockets
are listed on the www.regulations.gov Web site. Although listed in the
index, some information is not publicly available, e.g., confidential
business information or other information whose disclosure is
restricted by statute. Certain other material, such as copyrighted
material, is not placed on the Internet and will be publicly available
only in hard copy form. Publicly available docket materials are
available either electronically through www.regulations.gov or in hard
copy at the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), Room 3334, EPA WJC West
Building, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW., Washington, DC. The Public
Reading Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through
Friday, excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the Public
Reading Room is (202) 566-1744 and the telephone number for the Air
Docket is (202) 566-1742. This Federal Register document and the
Reconsideration Response Document denying the petitions can also be
found on the EPA's Web site at https://www.epa.gov/ttn/atw/utility/utilitypg.html.
II. Judicial Review
Section 307(b)(1) of the Clean Air Act (CAA) indicates which
Federal Courts of Appeals have venue for petitions for review of final
EPA actions. This section provides, in part, that the petitions for
review must be filed in the Court of Appeals for the District of
Columbia Circuit if: (i) The agency action consists of ``nationally
applicable regulations promulgated, or final action taken, by the
Administrator,'' or (ii) such actions are locally or regionally
applicable, if ``such action is based on a determination of nationwide
scope or effect and if in taking such action the Administrator find and
publishes that such action is based on such a determination.''
The EPA has determined that its actions denying the petitions for
reconsideration are of nationwide scope and effect for purposes of
section 307(d)(1) because the actions directly affect the ``National
Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) From Coal- and
Oil-Fired Electric Utility Steam Generating Units and Standards of
Performance (NSPS) for Fossil-Fuel-Fired Electric Utility, Industrial-
Commercial-Institutional, and Small Industrial-Commercial-Institutional
Steam Generating Units,'' both of which were found to be of nationwide
scope and effect. Thus, any petitions for review of the EPA's decisions
denying petitioners' requests for reconsideration must be filed in the
United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit by
June 29, 2015.
III. Description of Action
On February 16, 2012, pursuant to sections 111 and 112 of the CAA,
the EPA published the final rules titled ``National Emission Standards
for Hazardous Air Pollutants from Coal- and Oil-Fired Electric Utility
Steam Generating Units and Standards of Performance for Fossil-Fuel-
Fired Electric Utility, Industrial-Commercial-Institutional, and Small
Industrial-Commercial-Institutional Steam Generating Units'' (77 FR
9304). The NESHAP rule issued pursuant to CAA section 112 is referred
to as the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS), and the NSPS rule
issued pursuant to CAA section 111 is referred to as the Utility NSPS.
Following promulgation of the final rules, the Administrator received
petitions for reconsideration of numerous provisions of both MATS and
the Utility NSPS pursuant to CAA section 307(d)(7)(B).
The EPA received 20 petitions for reconsideration of the MATS rule
and 3 petitions for reconsideration of the Utility NSPS. The EPA
received petitions for reconsideration of the MATS rule from the
following organizations: American Public Power Association, ARIPPA,
Babcock & Wilcox, Basin Electric Power Cooperative, Climate Policy
Group, Coal Utilization Research Council, Earthjustice, East Kentucky
Power Cooperative, Edgecombe/Spruance Genco, Edison Mission Energy,
FirstEnergy, Hawaiian Electric Company, Institute of Clean Air
Companies, International Brotherhood of Boilermakers, Power4Georgians,
Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority, Southern Company, State of Texas
(Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, Texas Public Utility
Commission, Railroad Commission of Texas), Utility Air Regulatory Group
(UARG), and Wolverine Power Supply Cooperative. The EPA received
petitions for reconsideration of the Utility NSPS from the following
organizations: Air Products, State of Texas (Texas Commission on
Environmental Quality, Texas Public Utility Commission, Railroad
Commission of Texas), and UARG.
CAA section 307(d)(7)(B) states that ``[o]nly an objection to a
rule or procedure which was raised with reasonable specificity during
the period for public comment (including any public hearing) may be
raised during judicial review. If the person raising an objection can
demonstrate to the Administrator that it was impracticable to raise
such objection within such time or if the grounds for such objection
arose after the period for public comment (but within the time
specified for judicial review) and if such objection is of central
relevance to the outcome of the rule, the Administrator shall convene a
proceeding for reconsideration of the rule and provide the same
procedural rights as would have been afforded had the information been
available at the time the rule was proposed. If the Administrator
refuses to convene such a proceeding, such person may seek review of
such refusal in the United States court of appeals for the appropriate
circuit (as provided in subsection (b)).'' Thus, the EPA is only
required to grant a CAA section 307(d)(7)(B) petition for
reconsideration if the petitioner demonstrates both: (1) That it was
impractical to raise the objection during the public comment period, or
that the grounds for such objection arose after the public comment
period but within the time specified for judicial review (i.e., within
60 days after publication of the final rulemaking in the Federal
Register); and (2) that the objection is of central relevance to the
outcome of the rule.
On November 30, 2012, the EPA issued a proposed rule reconsidering
certain new source MATS, the requirements applicable during periods of
startup and shutdown for MATS and the Utility NSPS (for the PM standard
only), certain definitional and monitoring issues in the Utility NSPS,
and additional technical corrections to both MATS and the Utility NSPS
(77 FR 71323). On April 24, 2013, the EPA issued the final action on
reconsideration of the new source MATS, the definitional and monitoring
provisions in the Utility NSPS, and the technical corrections in both
rules (78 FR 24073). The EPA issued the final action on reconsideration
of the startup and shutdown provisions in the MATS and Utility NSPS on
November 19, 2014 (79 FR 68777). In addition, on February 17, 2015, the
EPA proposed additional technical corrections to the final MATS rule
and the Utility NSPS (80 FR 8442). These actions addressed many issues
[[Page 24220]]
raised in the petitions for reconsideration of the final MATS rule and
the Utility NSPS.
On April 21, 2015, the Administrator, Gina McCarthy, signed letters
to petitioners denying the remaining issues in the petitions for
reconsideration. The EPA carefully reviewed the petitions and evaluated
each issue raised in the petitions for reconsideration to determine if
they meet the CAA section 307(d)(7)(B) criteria for reconsideration.
The EPA denied the remaining issues in the petitions for
reconsideration because they do not meet the criteria for
reconsideration and/or are moot as explained in detail in the
Reconsideration Response Document. That document articulates in detail
the rationale for the EPA's final response to each of the remaining
issues in the petitions for reconsideration received on the final MATS
rule and the Utility NSPS.
As explained in the Reconsideration Response Document, a
significant majority of the issues raised in the petitions for
reconsideration were or could have been raised in comments on the
proposed MATS and Utility NSPS. In addition, many of the parties that
filed petitions for reconsideration of the final MATS and Utility NSPS
also filed petitions for review of the final rules in the United States
Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (Court or D.C.
Circuit). Many of the issues raised in the petitions for
reconsideration were also raised in the D.C. Circuit litigation, and
other reconsideration issues could have been raised in that litigation.
On April 15, 2014, the Court denied all petitions for review of MATS
and the Utility NSPS. White Stallion Energy Center v. EPA, 784 F.3d
1222 (D.C. Cir. 2014); cert. granted, State of Michigan v. EPA, No. 14-
46 (and consolidated cases). As the Court may only consider issues
raised during the period for public comment, issues raised in the
litigation and addressed by the Court clearly do not meet the criteria
for reconsideration in CAA section 307(d)(7)(B). Moreover, parties may
not use this final action denying reconsideration as a basis to
litigate issues that could have been raised in the initial litigation.
Dated: April 21, 2015.
Gina McCarthy,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2015-10118 Filed 4-29-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
