Revisions to California State Implementation Plan; South Coast Air Quality Management District; Stationary Source Permits, 39012-39014 [2018-16877]
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39012
Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 153 / Wednesday, August 8, 2018 / Proposed Rules
Dated: July 24, 2018.
Cecil Rodrigues,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region III.
Program. We are taking comments on
this proposal and a final action will
follow.
[FR Doc. 2018–16776 Filed 8–7–18; 8:45 am]
DATES:
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA–R09–OAR–2018–0413; FRL–9981–
73—Region 9]
Revisions to California State
Implementation Plan; South Coast Air
Quality Management District;
Stationary Source Permits
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Proposed rule.
AGENCY:
The Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) is proposing action on a
revision to the South Coast Air Quality
Management District (SCAQMD or
District) portion of the California State
Implementation Plan (SIP). We are
proposing a conditional approval of an
update to provisions governing issuance
of permits for stationary sources,
including review and permitting of
major sources and major modifications
under part D of title I of the Clean Air
Act (CAA). Specifically, the revision
pertains to SCAQMD Rule 1325—
Federal PM2.5 New Source Review
SUMMARY:
Any comments must arrive by
September 7, 2018.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments,
identified by Docket ID No. EPA–R09–
OAR–2018–0413 at https://
www.regulations.gov, or via email to
R9AirPermits@epa.gov. For comments
submitted at Regulations.gov, follow the
online instructions for submitting
comments. Once submitted, comments
cannot be removed or edited from
Regulations.gov. For either manner of
submission, the EPA may publish any
comment received to its public docket.
Do not submit electronically any
information you consider to be
Confidential Business Information (CBI)
or other information whose disclosure is
restricted by statute. Multimedia
submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be
accompanied by a written comment.
The written comment is considered the
official comment and should include
discussion of all points you wish to
make. The EPA will generally not
consider comments or comment
contents located outside of the primary
submission (i.e. on the web, cloud, or
other file sharing system). For
additional submission methods, please
contact the person identified in the FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section.
For the full EPA public comment policy,
information about CBI or multimedia
submissions, and general guidance on
making effective comments, please visit
https://www2.epa.gov/dockets/
commenting-epa-dockets.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Laura Yannayon, EPA Region 9, (415)
972–3534, yannayon.laura@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Throughout this document, the terms
‘‘we,’’ ‘‘us,’’ and ‘‘our’’ refer to EPA.
Table of Contents
I. The State’s Submittal
A. What rule did the State submit?
B. Are there other versions of this rule?
C. What is the purpose of the submitted
rule?
II. The EPA’s Evaluation
A. How is the EPA evaluating the rule?
B. Does the rule meet the evaluation
criteria?
III. Proposed Action and Public Comment
IV. Incorporation by Reference
V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
I. The State’s Submittal
A. What rule did the State submit?
Table 1 lists the rule addressed by this
proposal with the date it was adopted
by SCAQMD and submitted by the
California Air Resources Board (CARB),
the governor’s designee for California
SIP submittals. Rule 1325 contains the
District’s New Source Review (NSR)
permit program applicable to new and
modified major sources emitting fine
particulate matter (PM2.5) and PM2.5
precursors.
TABLE 1—SUBMITTED RULE
Rule No.
Rule title
1325 ...............
Federal PM2.5 New Source Review Program .............................................................................
On November 1, 2017, CARB’s May 8,
2017 submittal of Rule 1325 was
deemed to meet the completeness
criteria in 40 CFR part 51, appendix V.
Completeness criteria must be met
before formal EPA review.
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B. Are there other versions of this rule?
The current SIP contains a version of
Rule 1325—Federal PM2.5 New Source
Review Program, approved into the SIP
on May 1, 2015 (80 FR 24821).
Consistent with the District’s stated
intent to have the submitted rule replace
the existing SIP-approved rule in its
entirety, EPA’s conditional approval of
the rule identified above in Table 1
would have the effect of entirely
superseding our prior approval of the
same rule in the current SIP-approved
program.
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Amended
11/4/16
Submitted
5/8/17
C. What is the purpose of the submitted
rule?
Requirements (‘‘2016 Implementation
Rule’’).1
For areas designated as nonattainment
for one or more National Ambient Air
Quality Standards (NAAQS), the SIP
must include preconstruction permit
requirements for new or modified major
stationary sources of such
nonattainment pollutant(s), commonly
referred to as ‘‘Nonattainment New
Source Review’’ (NNSR). CAA 172(c)(5).
SCAQMD Rule 1325 addresses NNSR
permit requirements for major sources
of PM2.5. Rule 1325 has been amended
to address SCAQMD’s reclassification
from a Moderate to a Serious PM2.5
nonattainment area and to implement
additional provisions pertaining to
precursors, as promulgated in EPA’s
rule entitled Fine Particulate Matter
National Ambient Air Quality
Standards: State Implementation Plan
II. The EPA’s Evaluation and Action
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A. How is the EPA evaluating the rule?
Under EPA’s 2016 Implementation
Rule, which implements the D.C. Circuit
court’s January 2013 decision in NRDC
v. EPA,2 areas classified as
nonattainment for any PM2.5 NAAQS
are required to comply with the parts of
CAA subpart 4 section 189(e) 3 that
require the control of major stationary
sources of PM10 precursors (and hence
under the court decision, PM2.5
precursors) ‘‘except where the
Administrator determines that such
sources do not contribute significantly
1 81
FR 58010, August 24, 2016.
F.3d 428 (D.C. Cir. 2013).
3 This requirement was codified in 40 CFR
51.165(a)(13). See 81 FR 58010, August 24, 2016.
2 706
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to PM10 levels which exceed the
standard in the area.’’ The 2016
Implementation Rule amended the
definitions of (1) Regulated NSR
Pollutant with regards to PM2.5
precursors; (2) Major Stationary Source
with regards to major sources locating in
PM2.5 nonattainment areas classified as
Moderate and Serious; and (3)
Significant with regards to emissions of
PM2.5 precursors. Rule 1325 is subject to
these new regulatory requirements.
The SCAQMD is classified as a
Moderate nonattainment area for the
2012 PM2.5 NAAQS. On January 13,
2016,4 the SCAQMD was reclassified
from a Moderate to a Serious PM2.5
nonattainment area for the 2006 PM2.5
NAAQS. The major source permitting
threshold for a Moderate PM2.5
nonattainment area is 100 tons per year
(tpy) of direct PM2.5 or any PM2.5
precursor, and 70 tpy for a Serious PM2.5
nonattainment area.
In addition, EPA has reviewed the
submitted rule for compliance with: (1)
The requirements for SIPs as set forth in
CAA section 110(a)(2); (2) the
requirements related to SIP revisions in
CAA sections 110(l) and 193; (3) the
requirements for stationary source
preconstruction permitting programs in
CAA section 173(a) through (c); and (4)
the requirements related to the review
and modification of major sources in 40
CFR part 51.165 that pertain to a PM2.5
nonattainment area classified as
Serious.
B. Does the rule meet the evaluation
criteria?
In our previous May 1, 2015 5 action
we evaluated Rule 1325 in accordance
with the CAA and regulatory
requirements listed in Section II.A of
this preamble. In that action, we
determined Rule 1325 satisfied the
applicable requirements for a PM2.5
NNSR permit program. Below we
discuss and evaluate the revised
portions of submitted Rule 1325 to
determine if the revisions meet current
applicable requirements for a PM2.5
NNSR permit program.
Section (a)—Applicability, contains
minor revisions to clarify that the rule
applies to major polluting facilities that
will emit PM2.5 or its precursors in areas
federally-designated as nonattainment
for PM2.5. EPA finds these clarifying
revisions approvable.
Section (b)—Definitions, has been
revised to update: (1) The effective date
of the referenced 40 CFR 51.165(a)(1)
definitions; (2) the definition of Major
Polluting Facility to include a 70 tpy
4 81
5 80
FR 1514, January 13, 2016.
FR 24821.
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emissions threshold, effective upon the
date of the EPA’s approval of the
November 4, 2016 amendments to Rule
1325; (3) the definition of Precursors to
include volatile organic compounds
(VOC) and ammonia, effective upon the
date of the EPA’s approval of the
November 4, 2016 amendments to Rule
1325; and (4) the definition of
‘‘Significant’’ to include VOC and
ammonia and specify a 40 tpy
threshold. EPA finds these revisions
approvable, as they are consistent with
current applicable requirements for a
serious PM2.5 nonattainment area.
The definition of Regulated NSR
Pollutant was not revised to include
VOC and ammonia as PM2.5 precursors.
Because the definition for the term
Major Modification relies on the
definition of Regulated NSR Pollutant,
Rule 1325 does not satisfy the
requirement to include VOC and
ammonia as PM2.5 precursors when
evaluating if a project will result in a
major modification, and it is therefore
deficient.
Section (f)—Two Year Limit on
Facility Exemption has been revised to
lower the emissions threshold for this
exemption provision from 100 tpy to 70
tpy, effective upon the date of the EPA’s
approval of the November 4, 2016
amendments to Rule 1325. The
provision requires a source to aggregate
its PM2.5 emissions from any permit
actions that occur within a two-year
period to determine if emissions exceed
70 tpy; if so, offsets are required for the
aggregated emission increase. This
provision requiring PM2.5 emissions to
be aggregated is more stringent that
CAA requirements. Therefore, EPA
finds this more stringent provision
acceptable.
Section (j)—Offset Exemptions for
Regulatory Compliance has been added.
This provision allows the Executive
Officer to exempt new or modified
sources installed solely to comply with
District, state or federal air pollution
control regulations from the otherwise
applicable offset requirements. EPA
finds this new provision approvable.
In addition, other minor editorial or
conforming edits have been made
throughout the rule. EPA finds these
revisions approvable.
With respect to procedural
requirements, CAA sections 110(a)(2)
and 110(l) require that revisions to a SIP
be adopted by the state after reasonable
notice and public hearing. EPA has
promulgated specific procedural
requirements for SIP revisions in 40
CFR part 51, subpart V. These
requirements include publication of
notices by prominent advertisement in
the relevant geographic area, a public
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39013
hearing or notice of an opportunity for
a public hearing on the proposed
revisions, and a public comment period
of at least 30 days.
Based on our review of the public
process documentation included in the
May 5, 2017 submittal, we find that
SCAQMD has provided sufficient
evidence of public notice and
opportunity for comment and a public
hearing prior to adoption and submittal
of these rules to EPA.
Section 193 of the Act, which was
added by the Clean Air Act
Amendments of 1990, includes a clause
providing in pertinent part: ‘‘No control
requirement in effect, or required to be
adopted by an order, settlement
agreement, or plan in effect before
November 15, 1990, in any area which
is a nonattainment area for any air
pollutant may be modified after
November 15, 1990, in any manner
unless the modification insures
equivalent or greater emission
reductions of such air pollutant.’’ Since
PM2.5 is a NAAQS adopted after 1990,
there are no existing PM2.5 control
requirements that would be subject to
the provisions of Section 193 of the
CAA. Therefore, for the purposes of our
analysis of Rule 1325, we find that
Section 193 of the CAA does not apply
to this action.
III. Proposed Action and Public
Comment
Because the revisions to Rule 1325 do
not ensure VOC and ammonia emissions
are evaluated to determine if a proposed
project will result in a major
modification, EPA cannot grant full
approval of this rule under section
110(k)(3) of the Act. However, in a letter
dated June 26, 2018, the District
committed to adopt and submit specific
enforceable measures to address this
deficiency. The District committed to
submit these revisions to CARB within
11 months of the date of EPA’s final
action. In addition, in a letter dated July
16, 2018, CARB committed to submit
the adopted rule revisions to EPA no
later than 12 months from the date of
EPA’s final action. Accordingly,
pursuant to section 110(k)(4) of the Act,
EPA is proposing a conditional approval
of the submitted rule. We are proposing
to conditionally approve the submitted
rule based on our determination that
separate from the deficiency listed
above, the rule satisfies the applicable
requirements discussed in Section II.A
of this action.
In support of this proposed action, we
have concluded that our conditional
approval of the submitted rule would
comply with section 110(l) of the Act
because the amended rule, as a whole,
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Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 153 / Wednesday, August 8, 2018 / Proposed Rules
would not interfere with continued
attainment of the NAAQS in the South
Coast Air Basin. The intended effect of
our proposed conditional approval
action is to update the applicable SIP
with current SCAQMD rules and
provide SCAQMD the opportunity to
correct the identified deficiencies, as
discussed in their commitment letter
dated June 26, 2018. If we finalize this
action as proposed, our action would
incorporate this rule into the federally
enforceable SIP and be codified through
revisions to 40 CFR 52.220
(Identification of plan) and 40 CFR
52.119 (Part D conditional approval).
If the State meets its commitment to
submit the required measures within 12
months of the date of EPA’s final action,
Rule 1325 will remain a part of the SIP
until EPA takes final action approving
or disapproving any subsequently
submitted SIP revision. However, if the
District fails to submit a revision within
the required timeframe, the conditional
approval will automatically become a
disapproval, and EPA will issue a
finding of disapproval. EPA is not
required to propose the finding of
disapproval.
We will accept comments from the
public on this proposal until September
7, 2018. If we take final action to
approve the submitted rule, our final
action will incorporate this rule into the
federally enforceable SIP.
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IV. Incorporation by Reference
In this rule, the EPA is proposing to
include in a final EPA rule, regulatory
text that includes incorporation by
reference. In accordance with
requirements of 1 CFR 51.5, the EPA is
proposing to incorporate by reference
the SCAQMD rule listed in Table 1 of
this preamble. The EPA has made, and
will continue to make, these materials
available electronically through
www.regulations.gov and in hard copy
at the EPA Region IX Office (please
contact the person identified in the FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of
this preamble for more information).
V. Statutory and Executive Order
Reviews
Under the Clean Air Act, the
Administrator is required to approve a
SIP submission that complies with the
provisions of the Act and applicable
federal regulations. 42 U.S.C. 7410(k);
40 CFR 52.02(a). Thus, in reviewing SIP
submissions, the EPA’s role is to
approve state choices, provided that
they meet the criteria of the Clean Air
Act. Accordingly, this proposed action
merely proposes to approve state law as
meeting federal requirements and does
not impose additional requirements
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beyond those imposed by state law. For
that reason, this proposed action:
• Is not a ‘‘significant regulatory
action’’ subject to review by the Office
of Management and Budget under
Executive Orders 12866 (58 FR 51735,
October 4, 1993) and 13563 (76 FR 3821,
January 21, 2011);
• Is not an Executive Order 13771 (82
FR 9339, February 2, 2017) regulatory
action because SIP approvals are
exempted under Executive Order 12866;
• 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 the EPA with the
discretionary authority to address
disproportionate human health or
environmental effects with practical,
appropriate, 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 the 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 and will not impose
substantial direct costs on tribal
governments or preempt tribal law as
specified by Executive Order 13175 (65
FR 67249, November 9, 2000).
List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52
Environmental protection, Air
pollution control, Incorporation by
reference, Intergovernmental relations,
Particulate matter, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements.
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Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Dated: July 24, 2018.
Michael Stoker,
Regional Administrator, Region IX.
[FR Doc. 2018–16877 Filed 8–7–18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA–R03–OAR–2018–0507; FRL–9981–
77—Region 3]
Approval and Promulgation of Air
Quality Implementation Plans;
Maryland; NOX Ozone Season
Emissions Caps for Non-Trading Large
NOX Units and Associated Revisions to
General Administrative Provisions and
Kraft Pulp Mill Regulation
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Proposed rule.
AGENCY:
The Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve a
state implementation plan (SIP) revision
submitted by the State of Maryland.
This revision (Maryland SIP Revision
#18–03) pertains to a new Maryland
regulation that establishes ozone season
nitrogen oxides (NOX) emissions caps
and other requirements for large nonelectric generating units (non-EGU) in
Maryland and includes associated
revisions to two other Maryland
regulations. The revisions will enable
Maryland to meet NOX reduction
requirements related to interstate
transport of pollution that contributes to
other states’ nonattainment or interferes
with other states’ maintenance of the
ozone national ambient air quality
standards (NAAQS). This action is being
taken under the Clean Air Act (CAA).
DATES: Written comments must be
received on or before September 7,
2018.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments,
identified by Docket ID No. EPA–R03–
OAR–2018–0507 at https://
www.regulations.gov, or via email to
spielberger.susan@epa.gov. For
comments submitted at Regulations.gov,
follow the online instructions for
submitting comments. Once submitted,
comments cannot be edited or removed
from Regulations.gov. For either manner
of submission, EPA may publish any
comment received to its public docket.
Do not submit electronically any
information you consider to be
confidential business information (CBI)
or other information whose disclosure is
restricted by statute. Multimedia
SUMMARY:
E:\FR\FM\08AUP1.SGM
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Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 153 (Wednesday, August 8, 2018)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 39012-39014]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-16877]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA-R09-OAR-2018-0413; FRL-9981-73--Region 9]
Revisions to California State Implementation Plan; South Coast
Air Quality Management District; Stationary Source Permits
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Proposed rule.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing action
on a revision to the South Coast Air Quality Management District
(SCAQMD or District) portion of the California State Implementation
Plan (SIP). We are proposing a conditional approval of an update to
provisions governing issuance of permits for stationary sources,
including review and permitting of major sources and major
modifications under part D of title I of the Clean Air Act (CAA).
Specifically, the revision pertains to SCAQMD Rule 1325--Federal PM2.5
New Source Review Program. We are taking comments on this proposal and
a final action will follow.
DATES: Any comments must arrive by September 7, 2018.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R09-
OAR-2018-0413 at https://www.regulations.gov, or via email to
[email protected]. For comments submitted at Regulations.gov, follow
the online instructions for submitting comments. Once submitted,
comments cannot be removed or edited from Regulations.gov. For either
manner of submission, the EPA may publish any comment received to its
public docket. Do not submit electronically any information you
consider to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Multimedia
submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be accompanied by a written
comment. The written comment is considered the official comment and
should include discussion of all points you wish to make. The EPA will
generally not consider comments or comment contents located outside of
the primary submission (i.e. on the web, cloud, or other file sharing
system). For additional submission methods, please contact the person
identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section. For the full
EPA public comment policy, information about CBI or multimedia
submissions, and general guidance on making effective comments, please
visit https://www2.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Laura Yannayon, EPA Region 9, (415)
972-3534, [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, the terms ``we,''
``us,'' and ``our'' refer to EPA.
Table of Contents
I. The State's Submittal
A. What rule did the State submit?
B. Are there other versions of this rule?
C. What is the purpose of the submitted rule?
II. The EPA's Evaluation
A. How is the EPA evaluating the rule?
B. Does the rule meet the evaluation criteria?
III. Proposed Action and Public Comment
IV. Incorporation by Reference
V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
I. The State's Submittal
A. What rule did the State submit?
Table 1 lists the rule addressed by this proposal with the date it
was adopted by SCAQMD and submitted by the California Air Resources
Board (CARB), the governor's designee for California SIP submittals.
Rule 1325 contains the District's New Source Review (NSR) permit
program applicable to new and modified major sources emitting fine
particulate matter (PM2.5) and PM2.5 precursors.
Table 1--Submitted Rule
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rule No. Rule title Amended Submitted
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1325.............. Federal PM2.5 New 11/4/16 5/8/17
Source Review
Program.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
On November 1, 2017, CARB's May 8, 2017 submittal of Rule 1325 was
deemed to meet the completeness criteria in 40 CFR part 51, appendix V.
Completeness criteria must be met before formal EPA review.
B. Are there other versions of this rule?
The current SIP contains a version of Rule 1325--Federal PM2.5 New
Source Review Program, approved into the SIP on May 1, 2015 (80 FR
24821). Consistent with the District's stated intent to have the
submitted rule replace the existing SIP-approved rule in its entirety,
EPA's conditional approval of the rule identified above in Table 1
would have the effect of entirely superseding our prior approval of the
same rule in the current SIP-approved program.
C. What is the purpose of the submitted rule?
For areas designated as nonattainment for one or more National
Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS), the SIP must include
preconstruction permit requirements for new or modified major
stationary sources of such nonattainment pollutant(s), commonly
referred to as ``Nonattainment New Source Review'' (NNSR). CAA
172(c)(5).
SCAQMD Rule 1325 addresses NNSR permit requirements for major
sources of PM2.5. Rule 1325 has been amended to address
SCAQMD's reclassification from a Moderate to a Serious PM2.5
nonattainment area and to implement additional provisions pertaining to
precursors, as promulgated in EPA's rule entitled Fine Particulate
Matter National Ambient Air Quality Standards: State Implementation
Plan Requirements (``2016 Implementation Rule'').\1\
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\1\ 81 FR 58010, August 24, 2016.
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II. The EPA's Evaluation and Action
A. How is the EPA evaluating the rule?
Under EPA's 2016 Implementation Rule, which implements the D.C.
Circuit court's January 2013 decision in NRDC v. EPA,\2\ areas
classified as nonattainment for any PM2.5 NAAQS are required
to comply with the parts of CAA subpart 4 section 189(e) \3\ that
require the control of major stationary sources of PM10
precursors (and hence under the court decision, PM2.5
precursors) ``except where the Administrator determines that such
sources do not contribute significantly
[[Page 39013]]
to PM10 levels which exceed the standard in the area.'' The
2016 Implementation Rule amended the definitions of (1) Regulated NSR
Pollutant with regards to PM2.5 precursors; (2) Major
Stationary Source with regards to major sources locating in
PM2.5 nonattainment areas classified as Moderate and
Serious; and (3) Significant with regards to emissions of
PM2.5 precursors. Rule 1325 is subject to these new
regulatory requirements.
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\2\ 706 F.3d 428 (D.C. Cir. 2013).
\3\ This requirement was codified in 40 CFR 51.165(a)(13). See
81 FR 58010, August 24, 2016.
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The SCAQMD is classified as a Moderate nonattainment area for the
2012 PM2.5 NAAQS. On January 13, 2016,\4\ the SCAQMD was
reclassified from a Moderate to a Serious PM2.5
nonattainment area for the 2006 PM2.5 NAAQS. The major
source permitting threshold for a Moderate PM2.5
nonattainment area is 100 tons per year (tpy) of direct
PM2.5 or any PM2.5 precursor, and 70 tpy for a
Serious PM2.5 nonattainment area.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ 81 FR 1514, January 13, 2016.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
In addition, EPA has reviewed the submitted rule for compliance
with: (1) The requirements for SIPs as set forth in CAA section
110(a)(2); (2) the requirements related to SIP revisions in CAA
sections 110(l) and 193; (3) the requirements for stationary source
preconstruction permitting programs in CAA section 173(a) through (c);
and (4) the requirements related to the review and modification of
major sources in 40 CFR part 51.165 that pertain to a PM2.5
nonattainment area classified as Serious.
B. Does the rule meet the evaluation criteria?
In our previous May 1, 2015 \5\ action we evaluated Rule 1325 in
accordance with the CAA and regulatory requirements listed in Section
II.A of this preamble. In that action, we determined Rule 1325
satisfied the applicable requirements for a PM2.5 NNSR
permit program. Below we discuss and evaluate the revised portions of
submitted Rule 1325 to determine if the revisions meet current
applicable requirements for a PM2.5 NNSR permit program.
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\5\ 80 FR 24821.
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Section (a)--Applicability, contains minor revisions to clarify
that the rule applies to major polluting facilities that will emit
PM2.5 or its precursors in areas federally-designated as
nonattainment for PM2.5. EPA finds these clarifying
revisions approvable.
Section (b)--Definitions, has been revised to update: (1) The
effective date of the referenced 40 CFR 51.165(a)(1) definitions; (2)
the definition of Major Polluting Facility to include a 70 tpy
emissions threshold, effective upon the date of the EPA's approval of
the November 4, 2016 amendments to Rule 1325; (3) the definition of
Precursors to include volatile organic compounds (VOC) and ammonia,
effective upon the date of the EPA's approval of the November 4, 2016
amendments to Rule 1325; and (4) the definition of ``Significant'' to
include VOC and ammonia and specify a 40 tpy threshold. EPA finds these
revisions approvable, as they are consistent with current applicable
requirements for a serious PM2.5 nonattainment area.
The definition of Regulated NSR Pollutant was not revised to
include VOC and ammonia as PM2.5 precursors. Because the
definition for the term Major Modification relies on the definition of
Regulated NSR Pollutant, Rule 1325 does not satisfy the requirement to
include VOC and ammonia as PM2.5 precursors when evaluating
if a project will result in a major modification, and it is therefore
deficient.
Section (f)--Two Year Limit on Facility Exemption has been revised
to lower the emissions threshold for this exemption provision from 100
tpy to 70 tpy, effective upon the date of the EPA's approval of the
November 4, 2016 amendments to Rule 1325. The provision requires a
source to aggregate its PM2.5 emissions from any permit
actions that occur within a two-year period to determine if emissions
exceed 70 tpy; if so, offsets are required for the aggregated emission
increase. This provision requiring PM2.5 emissions to be
aggregated is more stringent that CAA requirements. Therefore, EPA
finds this more stringent provision acceptable.
Section (j)--Offset Exemptions for Regulatory Compliance has been
added.
This provision allows the Executive Officer to exempt new or
modified sources installed solely to comply with District, state or
federal air pollution control regulations from the otherwise applicable
offset requirements. EPA finds this new provision approvable.
In addition, other minor editorial or conforming edits have been
made throughout the rule. EPA finds these revisions approvable.
With respect to procedural requirements, CAA sections 110(a)(2) and
110(l) require that revisions to a SIP be adopted by the state after
reasonable notice and public hearing. EPA has promulgated specific
procedural requirements for SIP revisions in 40 CFR part 51, subpart V.
These requirements include publication of notices by prominent
advertisement in the relevant geographic area, a public hearing or
notice of an opportunity for a public hearing on the proposed
revisions, and a public comment period of at least 30 days.
Based on our review of the public process documentation included in
the May 5, 2017 submittal, we find that SCAQMD has provided sufficient
evidence of public notice and opportunity for comment and a public
hearing prior to adoption and submittal of these rules to EPA.
Section 193 of the Act, which was added by the Clean Air Act
Amendments of 1990, includes a clause providing in pertinent part: ``No
control requirement in effect, or required to be adopted by an order,
settlement agreement, or plan in effect before November 15, 1990, in
any area which is a nonattainment area for any air pollutant may be
modified after November 15, 1990, in any manner unless the modification
insures equivalent or greater emission reductions of such air
pollutant.'' Since PM2.5 is a NAAQS adopted after 1990,
there are no existing PM2.5 control requirements that would
be subject to the provisions of Section 193 of the CAA. Therefore, for
the purposes of our analysis of Rule 1325, we find that Section 193 of
the CAA does not apply to this action.
III. Proposed Action and Public Comment
Because the revisions to Rule 1325 do not ensure VOC and ammonia
emissions are evaluated to determine if a proposed project will result
in a major modification, EPA cannot grant full approval of this rule
under section 110(k)(3) of the Act. However, in a letter dated June 26,
2018, the District committed to adopt and submit specific enforceable
measures to address this deficiency. The District committed to submit
these revisions to CARB within 11 months of the date of EPA's final
action. In addition, in a letter dated July 16, 2018, CARB committed to
submit the adopted rule revisions to EPA no later than 12 months from
the date of EPA's final action. Accordingly, pursuant to section
110(k)(4) of the Act, EPA is proposing a conditional approval of the
submitted rule. We are proposing to conditionally approve the submitted
rule based on our determination that separate from the deficiency
listed above, the rule satisfies the applicable requirements discussed
in Section II.A of this action.
In support of this proposed action, we have concluded that our
conditional approval of the submitted rule would comply with section
110(l) of the Act because the amended rule, as a whole,
[[Page 39014]]
would not interfere with continued attainment of the NAAQS in the South
Coast Air Basin. The intended effect of our proposed conditional
approval action is to update the applicable SIP with current SCAQMD
rules and provide SCAQMD the opportunity to correct the identified
deficiencies, as discussed in their commitment letter dated June 26,
2018. If we finalize this action as proposed, our action would
incorporate this rule into the federally enforceable SIP and be
codified through revisions to 40 CFR 52.220 (Identification of plan)
and 40 CFR 52.119 (Part D conditional approval).
If the State meets its commitment to submit the required measures
within 12 months of the date of EPA's final action, Rule 1325 will
remain a part of the SIP until EPA takes final action approving or
disapproving any subsequently submitted SIP revision. However, if the
District fails to submit a revision within the required timeframe, the
conditional approval will automatically become a disapproval, and EPA
will issue a finding of disapproval. EPA is not required to propose the
finding of disapproval.
We will accept comments from the public on this proposal until
September 7, 2018. If we take final action to approve the submitted
rule, our final action will incorporate this rule into the federally
enforceable SIP.
IV. Incorporation by Reference
In this rule, the EPA is proposing to include in a final EPA rule,
regulatory text that includes incorporation by reference. In accordance
with requirements of 1 CFR 51.5, the EPA is proposing to incorporate by
reference the SCAQMD rule listed in Table 1 of this preamble. The EPA
has made, and will continue to make, these materials available
electronically through www.regulations.gov and in hard copy at the EPA
Region IX Office (please contact the person identified in the FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this preamble for more
information).
V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
Under the Clean Air Act, the Administrator is required to approve a
SIP submission that complies with the provisions of the Act and
applicable federal regulations. 42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a).
Thus, in reviewing SIP submissions, the EPA's role is to approve state
choices, provided that they meet the criteria of the Clean Air Act.
Accordingly, this proposed action merely proposes to approve state law
as meeting federal requirements and does not impose additional
requirements beyond those imposed by state law. For that reason, this
proposed action:
Is not a ``significant regulatory action'' subject to
review by the Office of Management and Budget under Executive Orders
12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993) and 13563 (76 FR 3821, January 21,
2011);
Is not an Executive Order 13771 (82 FR 9339, February 2,
2017) regulatory action because SIP approvals are exempted under
Executive Order 12866;
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 the EPA with the discretionary authority
to address disproportionate human health or environmental effects with
practical, appropriate, 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 the 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 and will not
impose substantial direct costs on tribal governments or preempt tribal
law as specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9,
2000).
List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52
Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Incorporation by
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Particulate matter, Reporting
and recordkeeping requirements.
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Dated: July 24, 2018.
Michael Stoker,
Regional Administrator, Region IX.
[FR Doc. 2018-16877 Filed 8-7-18; 8:45 am]
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