Air Plan Approval; FL, GA, NC, SC; Interstate Transport (Prongs 1 and 2) for the 2015 8-Hour Ozone Standard, 68413-68421 [2021-26144]

Download as PDF 68413 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 229 / Thursday, December 2, 2021 / Rules and Regulations Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, Particulate matter, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Sulfur oxides, Volatile organic compounds. ‘‘Section 1.5217,’’ ‘‘Section 1.5218,’’ ‘‘Section 1.5219,’’ ‘‘Section 1.5220,’’ ‘‘Section 1.5221,’’ ‘‘Section 1.5222,’’ and ‘‘Section 1.5232’’ and adding in their place entries for ‘‘Rule 1.5212,’’ ‘‘Rule 1.5213,’’ ‘‘Rule 1.5214,’’ ‘‘Rule 1.5215,’’ ‘‘Rule 1.5217,’’ ‘‘Rule 1.5218,’’ ‘‘Rule 1.5219,’’ ‘‘Rule 1.5220,’’ ‘‘Rule 1.5221,’’ ‘‘Rule 1.5222,’’ and ‘‘Rule 1.5232’’ to read as follows: PART 52—APPROVAL AND PROMULGATION OF IMPLEMENTATION PLANS 1. The authority citation for part 52 continues to read as follows: ■ Dated: November 26, 2021. John Blevins, Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4. Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq. For the reasons stated in the preamble, EPA amends 40 CFR part 52 as follows: Subpart II—North Carolina 2. In § 52.1770(c)(3), the table is amended by removing the entries for ‘‘Section 1.5212,’’ ‘‘Section 1.5213,’’ ‘‘Section 1.5214,’’ ‘‘Section 1.5215,’’ ■ § 52.1770 * Identification of plan. * * (c) * * * * * (3) EPA APPROVED MECKLENBURG COUNTY REGULATIONS State citation State effective date Title/subject Article 1.0000 * * * Section 1.5200 * 1.5212 1.5213 1.5214 1.5215 1.5217 1.5218 ....... ....... ....... ....... ....... ....... Rule Rule Rule Rule 1.5219 1.5220 1.5221 1.5222 ....... ....... ....... ....... * Rule 1.5232 ....... * * * * * Air Quality Permits * 12/18/2018 12/18/2018 12/15/2015 12/18/2018 12/18/2018 12/18/2018 * 12/2/2021, 12/2/2021, 12/2/2021, 12/2/2021, 12/2/2021, 12/2/2021, [Insert [Insert [Insert [Insert [Insert [Insert citation citation citation citation citation citation of of of of of of * publication] publication] publication] publication] publication] publication] ..... ..... ..... ..... ..... ..... 12/18/2018 12/18/2018 12/18/2018 12/18/2018 12/2/2021, 12/2/2021, 12/2/2021, 12/2/2021, [Insert [Insert [Insert [Insert citation citation citation citation of of of of publication] publication] publication] publication] ..... ..... ..... ...... * * Issuance, Revocation, and Enforcement of Permits. * 12/18/2018 * * 12/2/2021, [Insert citation of publication] ..... * * BILLING CODE 6560–50–P ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY 40 CFR Part 52 [EPA–R04–OAR–2019–0156; FRL–8697–02– R4] Air Plan Approval; FL, GA, NC, SC; Interstate Transport (Prongs 1 and 2) for the 2015 8-Hour Ozone Standard lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with RULES1 * * * Applications .................................................. Action on Application; Issuance of Permit .... Commencement of Operation ...................... Application Processing Schedule ................. Confidential Information ................................ Compliance Schedule for Previously Exempted Activities. Retention of Permit at Permitted Facility ...... Applicability Determination ........................... Permitting of Numerous Similar Facilities .... Permitting of Facilities at Multiple Temporary Sites. [FR Doc. 2021–26141 Filed 12–1–21; 8:45 am] 16:00 Dec 01, 2021 Jkt 256001 This rule is effective January 3, 2022. EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket Identification No. EPA–R04–OAR– 2019–0156. All documents in the docket are listed on the www.regulations.gov ADDRESSES: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or Agency) is approving State Implementation Plan (SIP) SUMMARY: submissions from Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina, addressing the Clean Air Act (CAA or Act) Good Neighbor interstate transport infrastructure SIP requirements for the 2015 8-hour ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS or standards). EPA has determined that each state’s SIP contains adequate provisions to prohibit emissions that will significantly contribute to nonattainment or interfere with maintenance of the 2015 ozone NAAQS in any other state. This action is being taken in accordance with the CAA. DATES: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). ACTION: Final rule. AGENCY: VerDate Sep<11>2014 Explanation Permitting Provisions for Air Pollution Sources, Rules and Operating Regulations for Acid Rain Sources, Title V and Toxic Air Pollutants * Rule Rule Rule Rule Rule Rule EPA approval date PO 00000 Frm 00025 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 * * website. Although listed in the index, some information may not be publicly available, i.e., 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 Air Regulatory Management Section, Air Planning and Implementation Branch, Air and Radiation Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street SW, Atlanta, Georgia 30303–8960. EPA requests that if at all possible, you contact the person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section to schedule your inspection. The Regional Office’s E:\FR\FM\02DER1.SGM 02DER1 68414 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 229 / Thursday, December 2, 2021 / Rules and Regulations official hours of business are Monday through Friday 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., excluding Federal holidays. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Evan Adams of the Air Regulatory Management Section, Air Planning and Implementation Branch, Air and Radiation Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street SW, Atlanta, Georgia 30303–8960. Mr. Adams can be reached by telephone at (404) 562–9009, or via electronic mail at adams.evan@epa.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with RULES1 I. Background On December 30, 2019, EPA proposed to approve SIP submissions from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee 1 as meeting the interstate transport requirements of CAA section 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I), or the Good Neighbor provision, for the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS. See 84 FR 71854. Specifically, the 2019 notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) originally proposed to find that emissions from sources in these states will not significantly contribute to nonattainment or interfere with maintenance of the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS in any other state based on information for the analytic year 2023, consistent with the 2024 Moderate area attainment date. Refer to the December 30, 2019 NPRM for an explanation of the CAA requirements, the four-step framework that EPA applies under the Good Neighbor provision for ozone NAAQS, a detailed summary of the state submissions, and EPA’s proposed rationale for approval. See 84 FR 71854. The public comment period for the December 30, 2019, NPRM closed on January 29, 2020.2 1 The submittals from these six southeastern states were submitted separately under the following cover letters: Alabama Department of Environmental Management dated August 20, 2018 (received by EPA on August 27, 2018); Florida Department of Environmental Protection dated September 18, 2018 (received by EPA on September 26, 2018); Georgia Environmental Protection Division dated September 19, 2018 (received by EPA on September 24, 2018); North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality dated September 27, 2018 (received by EPA October 10, 2018); South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control dated and received by EPA on September 7, 2018; and Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation dated September 13, 2018 (received by EPA on September 17, 2018). 2 On March 24, 2020, former EPA Region 4 Administrator Mary Walker signed a document (hereinafter referred to as the March 24, 2020 document) that EPA had intended to become a final rule upon publication in the Federal Register. However, the March 24, 2020 document was never published in the Federal Register. Further, on January 19, 2021, former EPA Region 4 Administrator Mary Walker signed a second document (hereinafter referred to as the January 19, 2021 document) that EPA had intended to become VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:00 Dec 01, 2021 Jkt 256001 Subsequent to the publication of the NPRM on December 30, 2019, two events caused EPA to adjust its analysis of the aforementioned SIP submissions. First, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (D.C. Circuit) issued its ruling in Maryland v. EPA, 958 F.3d 1185 (D.C. Cir. 2020) (Maryland), which held that EPA must address Good Neighbor obligations consistent with the 2021 attainment date for downwind areas classified as being in Marginal nonattainment under the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS, ‘‘not at some later date.’’ 958 F.3d at 1203–04 (citing Wisconsin v. EPA, 938 F.3d 303, 314 (D.C. Cir. 2019) (Wisconsin)).3 Second, on October 30, 2020, EPA released and accepted public comment on updated 2023 modeling that used the 2016 emissions platform developed under the EPA/Multi-Jurisdictional Organization (MJO)/state collaborative project as the primary source for the base year and future year emissions data. On April 30, 2021, EPA published the final Revised Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR) Update for the 2008 ozone NAAQS (Revised CSAPR Update) using the same modeling that was made publicly available in the proposed rulemaking for the Revised CSAPR Update.4 Although that modeling focused on the year 2023, EPA conducted an interpolation analysis of these modeling results to generate air a final rule, which EPA posted to its website at https://www.epa.gov/air-quality-implementationplans/epas-approval-2015-8-hour-ozone-interstatetransport-requirements. EPA noted in that posting ‘‘Notwithstanding the fact that the EPA is posting a pre-publication version, the final rule will not be promulgated until published in the Federal Register.’’ EPA will not publish either the March 24, 2020 document or the January 19, 2021 document in the Federal Register, and now intends that this notice constitutes final action with respect to the 2019 proposal, superseding all versions of previous draft final action documents. 3 Maryland involved EPA’s denial of administrative petitions filed by the states of Maryland and Delaware under CAA section 126(b), seeking to have EPA impose emissions limits on sources in upwind states alleged to be emitting in violation of the Good Neighbor Provision. The court disagreed with EPA that use of a 2023 analytic year, consistent with the 2024 attainment date for areas classified as being in Moderate nonattainment, was a proper reading of the court’s earlier decision in Wisconsin. Id. at 1204. 4 Revised Cross-State Air Pollution Rule Update for the 2008 Ozone NAAQS, 86 FR 23054; see also Emissions Modeling TSD titled ‘‘Preparation of Emissions Inventories for the 2016v1 North American Emissions Modeling Platform.’’ This TSD is available in the docket for this action and at https://www.epa.gov/air-emissionsmodeling/ 2016v1-platform. The underlying modeling files are available on data drives in the Docket office for public review. See the docket for the Revised CSAPR Update (EPA–HQ–OAR–2020–0272). See also Air Quality Modeling Data Drives_Final RCU.pdf, available in the docket for this action for a file inventory and instructions on how to access the modeling files. PO 00000 Frm 00026 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 quality and contribution values for the 2021 analytic year, consistent with the Maryland holding, as the relevant analytic year for the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS. As a result, EPA issued a supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking (SNPRM) on July 19, 2021, which relied on the new modeling and analysis to supplement EPA’s proposed finding in the December 30, 2019 NPRM that emissions from sources in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina will not significantly contribute to nonattainment or interfere with maintenance of the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS in any other state.5 See 86 FR 37942. The new modeling and analysis indicated that Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina, individually, will not contribute greater than one percent of the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS to any potential nonattainment or maintenance receptors in 2021. In addition, EPA analyzed past and projected emissions of ozone precursors (nitrogen oxides (NOX) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs)), finding a downward trend in emissions to support the modeling analysis and indicate that the contributions from emissions from sources in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina to ozone receptors in downwind states will continue to decline and remain below one percent of the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS. Thus, the July 19, 2021 SNPRM provided that ‘‘EPA continues to propose to approve the interstate transport portions of the infrastructure SIP submissions from Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina as meeting CAA section 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I) requirements for the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS.’’ See 86 FR 37942. The technical rationale for EPA’s proposed action is given in the July 19, 2021 SNPRM and in supportive materials contained in the docket for this action. The comment period for the July 19, 2021 SNPRM closed on August 18, 2021, and EPA received no additional comments. However, EPA did receive comments on the original December 30, 2019 NPRM, and relevant responses are provided in section II. EPA is finalizing the approval of this action based on the technical rationale 5 EPA previously proposed to approve infrastructure SIP elements submitted to fulfill the interstate transport requirements of CAA section 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I) for the states of Alabama and Tennessee for the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS in the December 30, 2019, NPRM referenced previously in this rule. However, the July 19, 2021 SNPRM did not address these submissions, and EPA is deferring action on the referenced SIP submissions from Alabama and Tennessee at this time. E:\FR\FM\02DER1.SGM 02DER1 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 229 / Thursday, December 2, 2021 / Rules and Regulations lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with RULES1 presented in the July 19, 2021 SNPRM and in accordance with the CAA. II. Response to Comments EPA received four sets of adverse comments and one set of supportive comments on the December 30, 2019, NPRM. The comments were submitted by the Midwest Ozone Group, Sierra Club, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, and one anonymous commenter. The full set of comments is provided in the docket for this final rule. This section contains summaries of the comments and EPA’s responses. Comment 1: Several commenters asserted that EPA’s December 30, 2019 NPRM improperly focused on the analytic year of 2023, which the commenters argue ignores the August 2021 attainment date faced by Marginal 2015 ozone nonattainment areas. These commenters asserted that EPA’s decision focused on 2023 (consistent with the August 2024 attainment date for Moderate nonattainment areas under the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS, rather than the August 2021 attainment date for Marginal nonattainment areas), which contravenes the statutory text and the Wisconsin decision, and is arbitrary and capricious. The commenters specifically mention that the distinction EPA has drawn between Marginal and Moderate areas is misleading, that it is unreasonable for EPA to expect downwind areas to voluntarily request reclassifications to Moderate, and that EPA has not provided adequate support for its assumption that Marginal areas will achieve attainment by 2021. A commenter also contended that the CSAPR Update is insufficient to bring all downwind states into attainment with the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS, citing a conclusion made in the December 30, 2019, NPRM in support of a 2023 analytic year and monitoring data from the 2017 ozone season indicating certain 8-hour daily maximum concentrations at air quality monitors in Delaware were above the level of the NAAQS. In addition, a commenter asserted that recent monitoring data at other monitoring sites suggests that these areas will continue to have difficulty attaining the NAAQS in 2021. Response 1: The comments related to the 2023 analytic year refer to a D.C. Circuit court decision addressing, in part, the issue of the relevant analytic year for the purposes of evaluating interstate ozone transport under the Good Neighbor provision. On September 13, 2019, the D.C. Circuit VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:00 Dec 01, 2021 Jkt 256001 issued the Wisconsin decision, remanding the CSAPR Update (81 FR 74504, October 26, 2016) to the extent that it failed to require upwind states to eliminate their significant contribution no later than the next applicable attainment date by which downwind states must come into compliance with the NAAQS, as established under CAA section 181(a). See 938 F.3d 303, 313. In the December 30, 2019 NPRM, EPA had interpreted that holding as limited to the attainment dates for Moderate nonattainment area or higher classifications under CAA section 181 on the basis that Marginal nonattainment areas have reduced planning requirements and other considerations. See 84 FR 71854, 71856–58. On May 19, 2020, however, the D.C. Circuit issued the Maryland decision that cited the Wisconsin decision in holding that EPA must assess the impact of interstate transport on air quality at the next downwind attainment date, including Marginal area attainment dates, in evaluating the basis for EPA’s denial of a petition under CAA section 126(b). See 958 F.3d 1185, 1203–04. The court noted that ‘‘section 126(b) incorporates the Good Neighbor Provision,’’ and therefore ‘‘the EPA must find a violation [of section 126] if an upwind source will significantly contribute to downwind nonattainment at the next downwind attainment deadline. Therefore, the EPA must evaluate downwind air quality at that deadline, not at some later date.’’ Id. at 1204 (emphasis added). EPA interprets the court’s holding in Maryland as requiring the Agency, under the Good Neighbor provision, to address Good Neighbor obligations by no later than the next applicable attainment date for downwind areas, including a Marginal area attainment date under section 181 for ozone nonattainment.6 The December 30, 2019 NPRM proposing approval of the 2015 8-hour ozone Good Neighbor SIPs for Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina on the basis of a 2023 analytic year analysis predates the D.C. Circuit’s decisions in Wisconsin and Maryland. 6 EPA notes that the court in Maryland did not have occasion to evaluate circumstances in which EPA may determine that an upwind linkage to a downwind air quality problem exists at steps 1 and 2 of the four-step interstate transport framework by a particular attainment date, but for reasons of impossibility or profound uncertainty the Agency is unable to mandate upwind pollution controls by that date. See Wisconsin, 938 F.3d at 320. The D.C. Circuit noted in Wisconsin that upon a sufficient showing, these circumstances may warrant a certain degree of flexibility in effectuating the implementation of the Good Neighbor provision. Such circumstances are not at issue in the present action. PO 00000 Frm 00027 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 68415 In the July 19, 2021 SNPRM, EPA explained why it now considers 2021 to be the relevant analytic year for the purposes of determining whether sources in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina will significantly contribute to downwind nonattainment or interfere with maintenance of the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS in any other state. See 86 FR 37944. Also in the July 19, 2021 SNPRM, EPA conducted an additional analysis for the year 2021, and provided additional notice and opportunity for public comment. Id. Thus, comments regarding the improper use of 2023 as a model year are now moot.7 Multiple commenters stated that the approach for identifying nonattainment and maintenance receptors in the original December 30, 2019 NPRM failed to identify all of the potential receptors relevant in a 2021 analytic year. In addition to their objections to EPA’s selection of the 2023 analytic year, these commenters argued that measured design values at certain monitoring sites made clear that certain areas would not be able to attain the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS by the 2021 Marginal area attainment date. The shift in the July 19, 2021 SNPRM and this final action to a 2021 analytic year partially addresses the concerns raised by these commenters. To the extent commenters are arguing that EPA’s method of defining nonattainment and maintenance receptors for Good Neighbor purposes ignores certain areas that may have air quality problems in 2021 based solely on historical measured data, EPA disagrees with these comments. EPA’s method of defining these receptors, as described in section II of the SNPRM takes into account both measured data and reasonable projections based on modeling analysis.8 7 EPA recognizes that this action is now being finalized after the Marginal area attainment date has passed and after the close of the 2021 ozone season. However, this does not change EPA’s analysis or its conclusion. The modeling information available in the record and included in the supplemental proposal also indicates that these four states will not be linked to any downwind nonattainment or maintenance receptors in 2023 and 2028, confirming that no new linkages to downwind receptors are projected in later years. 8 Further, as recognized by the court in Wisconsin, 938 F.3d at 320, nonattainment areas that measure clean data in a given year, even if not sufficient to be redesignated to attainment based on the three-year design value, may qualify for up to two one-year extensions of their attainment dates, as provided at CAA section 181(a)(5). Thus, simply providing the value that would be needed in 2020 in order for an area to be designated to attainment using the three-year average, as some commenters did, does not present a complete picture of the likelihood that an area will be ‘‘reclassified’’ or ‘‘bumped-up.’’ E:\FR\FM\02DER1.SGM 02DER1 68416 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 229 / Thursday, December 2, 2021 / Rules and Regulations lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with RULES1 Regarding the contention that the CSAPR Update, which covered the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS, will not be sufficient to bring areas into attainment of the 2008 or 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS, this is not relevant to the analysis in support of this action. Whether downwind states may or may not reach attainment of the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS with the assistance of the upwind state emissions reductions resulting from the CSAPR Update is not determinative of whether Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina have Good Neighbor obligations for the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS pursuant to the CAA. At issue is whether Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina will significantly contribute to downwind nonattainment or interfere with maintenance of the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS in any other state. The updated information presented in the SNPRM made clear that they will not, and no party commented on that updated information. Comment 2: Several commenters call into question certain assumptions used in EPA’s 2023 air quality modeling described in the March 2018 memorandum. A number of commenters contend that EPA’s modeling was flawed because it relied on ‘‘unenforceable emissions limitations,’’ including assumptions that power plants equipped with selective catalytic reduction (SCR) controls would emit at or below 0.10 pounds per one million British Thermal Units (lb/mmBtu) beginning in 2017. One commenter contended that many plants emit above that rate. Another commenter asserts that EPA should not approve any prong 1 and 2 SIPs 9 that reflect ‘‘EPA’s flawed data showing attainment by 2023.’’ Response 2: As discussed previously and in the SNPRM, EPA is relying on updated modeling and analysis based on the 2021 analytic year and not the 2023 air quality modeling described in the March 2018 memorandum. However, EPA disagrees that its assessment of air quality and contributions at step 1 and 2 of the fourstep interstate transport framework is flawed because it relies on unenforceable emission assumptions for electric generating units (EGUs) or that those assumptions are otherwise unrealistic. As an initial matter, in this context it is appropriate for EPA to 9 Section 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I) requires SIPs to contain adequate provisions that prohibit any source or other types of emissions activity in one state from contributing significantly to nonattainment of the NAAQS in another state (prong 1) and from interfering with maintenance of the NAAQS in another state (prong 2). VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:00 Dec 01, 2021 Jkt 256001 focus on actual EGU emission projections, rather than modeling only enforceable limits (sometimes referred to as ‘‘allowable’’ emissions). EPA has previously explained that its analysis at steps 1 and 2 of the four-step interstate transport framework is appropriately focused on a projection of actual air quality concentrations and upwind-state contributions. As EPA explained in the final CSAPR Close-out, this approach to conducting future-year modeling in the Good Neighbor analysis to identify downwind air quality problems and linked states is consistent with the use of current measured data in the designations process under section 107 of the CAA. See 83 FR 65878, 65887– 88 (December 21, 2018).10 In both cases, the purpose is to determine whether there is an actual air quality problem that needs to be further addressed (in the designations context, whether an area is in nonattainment of a NAAQS; in the Good Neighbor context, whether there are expected future air quality problems (i.e., downwind nonattainment or maintenance receptors) and upwind state contribution to these downwind nonattainment or maintenance receptors that require further analysis at steps 3 and 4). EPA’s future-year air quality projections reflect a variety of factors, including current emissions data, onthe-books control measures, economic market influences, and meteorology. Like the factors that affect measured ozone concentrations used in the designations process, not all of the factors influencing EPA’s modeling projections are or can be subject to enforceable limitations on emissions or ozone concentrations. However, EPA believes that consideration of these factors contributes to a reasonable estimate of anticipated future ozone concentrations and contributions at steps 1 and 2 of the four-step interstate transport framework. In short, EPA’s consideration of these factors—even when not based on or amendable to enforceable limits or controls—in its future-year modeling projections used at steps 1 and 2 of the Good Neighbor analysis is reasonable. See 83 FR at 65888 (December 21, 2018). Only where such analysis indicates an upwind-state linkage under projected conditions does further analysis proceed at steps 3 and 4 of the four-step interstate transport framework to determine what enforceable emissions limits should be required in the linked upwind state. EPA’s air quality modeling and analysis 10 The CSAPR Close-out was vacated on grounds unrelated to this issue. See New York v. EPA, 781 F. App’x. 4 (D.C. Cir. 2019). PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 is designed to reflect what downwind air quality problems will exist in the relevant analytic year, and the assumptions used are based on realistic projections of source emissions. In response to the commenters’ contention that EPA should not model using the 0.1 lb/mmBtu emission rate assumption for EGUs because it is not enforceable and some units emit higher than this rate, this concern is addressed by the updates contained in the updated 2023 modeling used to derive EPA’s 2021 air quality analysis for this final action. Specifically, as noted in the SNPRM, EPA is relying on updated Integrated Planning Model (IPM) modeling for its EGU projection in the updated analysis for this final action. Additionally, EPA has modeled a range of scenarios reflecting alternative EGU assumptions—each resulting in the same finding made in this action.11 Although EPA disagrees with these comments regarding the modeling approach it took at the original proposal with respect to projecting EGU emissions,12 the Agency made updates to incorporate the latest modeling and data, which address the concerns expressed by the commenters. The December 30, 2019 NPRM rule relied on air quality modeling analysis and data released in 2018 that showed results from analytic work completed in 2017 (prior to the completion of the first year of CSAPR Update compliance).13 As explained in the modeling TSD referenced in the July 19, 2021 SNPRM, EPA started with the latest historical data at that time (2016) and assumed that, on average, SCR-controlled coal units would operate at 0.1 lb/mmBtu if not already doing so (reflecting the fleet’s response (on average) to the CSAPR Update that would begin in 2017).14 In this final action, EPA’s future year air quality projections are informed by actual compliance data from 2019, which allows EPA to rely less on compliance assumptions and more on actual data from the past three years in evaluating likely EGU emissions in 2021. EPA estimated future 11 See the Ozone Air Quality Assessment Tool (AQAT) spreadsheet and the Ozone Policy Analysis TSD located in the docket for this action for details about these scenarios, emissions, and air quality estimates. 12 As explained further in this rule, the analysis supporting the December 30, 2019 proposal overestimated EGU emissions. 13 See March 2018 memorandum, located in the docket for this action. 14 Technical Support Document (TSD) Additional Updates to Emissions Inventories for the Version 6.3, 2011 Emissions Modeling Platform for the Year 2023, available at https://www.epa.gov/sites/ production/files/2017-11/documents/2011v6.3_ 2023en_update_emismod_tsd_oct2017.pdf. E:\FR\FM\02DER1.SGM 02DER1 68417 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 229 / Thursday, December 2, 2021 / Rules and Regulations year emissions using the January 2020 IPM Reference Case, which was informed by actual 2018 compliance rates rather than anticipated compliance rates (i.e., 2018 reported emission rates (not a 0.1 lb/mmBtu assumption)). This largely obviates the commenters’ concern regarding the 0.1 lb/mmBtu assumption at proposal. Moreover, the IPM modeling explicitly includes the CSAPR Update enforceable limits (i.e., the states’ trading allowance budgets) at both the regional and state level. With these enforceable limits included, the model allowed covered sources to emit up to those limits if it would be economically advantageous to do so, but this did not occur in the modeling. EPA projected future 2021 and 2023 baseline EGU emissions using the version 6—January 2020 reference case of the IPM.15 16 IPM, developed by ICF Consulting, is a state-of-the-art, peerreviewed, multi-regional, dynamic, deterministic linear programming model of the contiguous U.S. electric power sector. It provides forecasts of least cost capacity expansion, electricity dispatch, and emission control strategies while meeting energy demand and environmental, transmission, dispatch, and reliability constraints. EPA has used IPM for over two decades to better understand power sector behavior under future business-as-usual conditions and to evaluate the economic and emission impacts of prospective environmental policies. The model is designed to reflect electricity markets as accurately as possible. EPA uses the best available information from utilities, industry experts, gas and coal market experts, financial institutions, and government statistics as the basis for the detailed power sector modeling in IPM. The model documentation provides additional information on the assumptions discussed here as well as all other model assumptions and inputs. The IPM version 6—January 2020 reference base case accounts for updated federal and state environmental regulations, committed EGU retirements and new builds, and technology cost and performance assumptions as of late 2019. This projected base case accounts for the effects of the finalized Mercury and Air Toxics Standards rule, the CSAPR and the CSAPR Update, New Source Review settlements, final actions EPA has taken to implement the Regional Haze Rule, and other on-thebooks federal and state rules through 2019 impacting sulfur dioxide, NOX, directly emitted particulate matter, and CO2. For the new 2023 air quality modeling used to interpolate air quality projections in 2021, EPA relied on these 2023 EGU emissions to inform the broader emissions inventory. The EGU emissions data—both historical and projected—are shown in Table 1, and compared with the CSAPR Update enforceable budget, demonstrate: (1) The reasonableness of EPA’s practice of not solely using enforceable levels in deriving projections of actual conditions and contribution at steps 1 and 2 of the interstate-transport framework for ozone, and (2) the robustness of its examination. TABLE 1—REPORTED OZONE SEASON NOX EMISSIONS FROM EGUS IN THE CSAPR UPDATE REGION 17 Reported ozone season NOX emissions (tons) 2015 2016 2017 2018 IPM projection (tons) 18 2019 2020 CSAPR Update budget (enforceable tons) 2021 2021 lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with RULES1 398,831 371,994 294,483 289,988 251,763 227,325 222,900 313,626 In sum, EPA’s EGUs assumptions show that its projected ozone-season EGU emissions levels from proposal of 283,164 tons in 2023 was, if anything, conservative—that is, it is likely that emissions levels from EGUs will be lower than what was projected in the proposal, not higher as suggested by the commenter. The 2019 ozone-season data reflected emissions that were already 20 percent below the CSAPR Update budgets, reflecting a 13 percent drop from the prior year, and at a pace of reduction that strongly suggests actual emissions from EGUs in 2021 will be well below the CSAPR Update budget levels. In other words, the emissions levels that the commenter claimed were not reasonable to expect in 2023 have already been achieved—four years ahead of that analytic year. The EGU projections EPA used in its analysis for 2021, as discussed previously, are reasonable and properly inform its analysis of ozone levels and contribution in that analytic year. In order for emissions in 2021 to rise to total budget levels (e.g., 313,626 tons, representing the aggregate budgets for the covered states), a decade-long decline in ozone-season NOX emissions would have to not only cease but reverse sharply. Supported by the most recent reported emissions data, EPA concludes that its EGU projections used in the most recent modeling and in the interpolation of that modeling to 2021 are reasonable and conservative. Thus, EPA believes it is reasonable and appropriate to rely on these emissions projections in its air quality analysis for 2021 to approve the 2015 8-hour ozone transport SIP submissions for Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina. Comment 3: A commenter states that EPA’s 2023 modeling described in the March 2018 memorandum is also flawed given the modeling’s reliance on certain federal emissions reduction programs, which the commenter argues EPA is ‘‘actively working to undermine.’’ For example, the commenter points to EPA’s proposed repeal of its rule regulating emissions from glider vehicles, glider engines, and glider kits, 82 FR 53442 (November 16, 2017) (Proposed Repeal of the Glider Rule), noting that EPA has estimated unregulated glider vehicles would increase emissions by approximately 300,000 tons annually in 2025. The 15 See https://www.epa.gov/airmarkets/analysisrevised-cross-state-air-pollution-rule-update (last accessed November 8, 2021). 16 The January 2020 IPM reference case is a later version than what was released with 2016v1. 17 This data analysis relies on 40 CFR part 75 emissions reporting data as available in EPA Air Markets Program Data available at https:// ampd.epa.gov/ampd/. 18 These values are available in the Air Quality Modeling Base Case State Emissions file (fossil >25 MW worksheet) available at https:// www.epa.gov/airmarkets/analysis-revised-crossstate-air-pollution-rule-update. Additionally, as noted in the Revised CSAPR proposal, EPA’s earlier engineering analytics used a more conservative 283,164 tons for 2023. As a sensitivity analysis for the proposed Revised CSAPR Update Modeling using IPM, EPA also used an updated engineering analytics EGU estimate (relying on 2019 data) that resulted in a 2021 estimate of 238,798 tons. VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:00 Dec 01, 2021 Jkt 256001 PO 00000 Frm 00029 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 E:\FR\FM\02DER1.SGM 02DER1 lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with RULES1 68418 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 229 / Thursday, December 2, 2021 / Rules and Regulations commenter notes that even though EPA never finalized the Proposed Repeal of the Glider Rule, EPA’s enforcement office issued a memorandum on July 6, 2018, stating that it would not enforce the Glider Rule. The commenter states that although this ‘‘no action assurance’’ is being challenged in court and has been temporarily stayed, ‘‘EPA’s nonenforcement efforts underline the unreasonableness of relying on the emissions reductions from this rule as a basis for concluding that Marginal nonattainment areas will attain the 2015 NAAQS by 2021.’’ The commenter also asserts that EPA’s recent actions ‘‘weakening’’ the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards for light-duty vehicles and EPA’s recent proposal to withdraw the Control Techniques Guidelines (CTGs) for the Oil and Natural Gas Industry call into question the accuracy of EPA’s 2023 modeling, and that ‘‘each deregulatory action . . . demonstrates the arbitrariness of EPA’s assumption that Marginal nonattainment areas will comply with the 2015 NAAQS by 2021 without additional ozone-precursor pollution reductions from southeastern upwind states.’’ Response 3: As an initial matter, the updated 2023 modeling used to interpolate 2021 contributions that was relied on did not make different regulatory assumptions than the previous 2023 modeling released with the March 2018 memorandum regarding the Glider Rule and the light-duty CAFE standards, so the comment is relevant to the updated modeling as presented in the SNPRM. However, EPA disagrees that EPA’s updated air quality modeling did not properly account for expected changes in projected emissions that would result from changes to federal programs. The mobile source and nonEGU emissions inventories in both the previous and updated modeling do not reflect changes in emissions resulting from rulemakings finalized in calendar year 2016 or later, nor do they reflect any rules proposed but not yet finalized since 2016, as only finalized rules are reflected in modeling inventories. This reflects EPA’s normal practice to only include changes in emissions from final regulatory actions in its modeling because, until such rules are finalized, any potential changes in NOX or VOC emissions are speculative. EPA did not finalize the Proposed Repeal of the Glider Rule. EPA announced in the U.S. Office of Management and Budget’s Spring 2020 Unified Agenda and Regulatory Plan that ‘‘EPA is no longer pursuing this action, and the emission standards and other requirements for heavy-duty glider VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:00 Dec 01, 2021 Jkt 256001 vehicles, glider engines, and glider kits will remain in place as published in the ‘Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Fuel Efficiency Standards for Medium- and Heavy-Duty Engines and Vehicles Phase 2’ final rule on October 26, 2016 (81 FR 73478).’’ 19 Additionally, EPA withdrew the conditional no action assurance for small manufacturers of glider vehicles in a memorandum dated July 26, 2018.20 EPA did not finalize the proposed withdrawal of the CTGs for oil and natural gas sources. On March 9, 2018, for reasons explained in the Federal Register (83 FR 10478), EPA proposed to withdraw the 2016 CTG for the oil and natural gas industry. However, EPA did not finalize the proposal to withdraw the CTG. EPA announced in the U.S. Office of Management and Budget’s Spring 2020 Unified Agenda and Regulatory Plan that ‘‘the CTG will remain in place as published on October 27, 2016 (81 FR 74798).’’ 21 EPA and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration have finalized the revisions to the greenhouse gas (GHG) and CAFE standards for light duty vehicles.22 However, that final action is not expected to have a meaningful impact on 2021 ozone-precursor emissions. Because the vehicles affected by the 2017–2025 GHG standards would still need to meet applicable criteria pollutant emissions standards (e.g., the Tier 3 emissions standards; see 79 FR 23414), the SAFE Vehicles Rule anticipated that any impacts of the SAFE Vehicles Rule on ozone precursor emissions ‘‘would most likely be far too small to observe.’’ See 85 FR 25041. Comment 4: Two commenters disagree with EPA guidance that a 1 ppb contribution threshold is acceptable to determine whether an upwind contribution is significant, stating it is arbitrary and capricious. One commenter also asserts that allowing different states contributing to a collective problem to use different air quality threshold rates to avoid regulation is inequitable. The commenters refer to EPA’s August 31, 2018 memorandum from Peter Tsirigotis, titled ‘‘Analysis of 19 See also https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/ eAgendaViewRule?pubId=202004&RIN=2060-AT79 (last accessed October 10, 2021). 20 See https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/ 2018-07/documents/memo_re_withdrawal_of_ conditional_naa_regarding_small_manufacturers_ of_glider_vehicles_07-26-2018.pdf (last accessed October 10, 2021). 21 See https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/ eAgendaViewRule?pubId=202004&RIN=2060-AT76 (last accessed October 10, 2021). 22 ‘‘The Safer Affordable Fuel-Efficient (SAFE) Vehicles Rule for Model Years 2021–2026 Passenger Cars and Light Trucks,’’ 85 FR 24174 (April 30, 2020) (SAFE Vehicles Rule). PO 00000 Frm 00030 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 Contribution Thresholds for Use in Clean Air At Section 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I) Interstate Transport State Implementation Plan Submissions for the 2015 Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards’’ (‘‘August 2018 memorandum’’),23 and generally contend that the August 2018 memorandum provides an insufficient evaluation regarding the result of such approach on downwind states’ ability to attain and maintain the relevant NAAQS and shifts the responsibility for upwind pollution from upwind to downwind states. Response 4: As the commenters correctly note, the August 2018 memorandum suggested that states could potentially justify the use of an alternative contribution threshold of 1 ppb with respect to the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS in step 2 of EPA’s fourstep interstate framework under the Good Neighbor provision. However, EPA is not making a determination in this final action to approve a state’s use of an alternative 1 ppb threshold. Neither EPA’s NPRM, SNRPM, nor this final action rely on a 1 ppb threshold and are instead based on a finding that Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina will not contribute at or above one percent of the level of the NAAQS at any projected nonattainment or maintenance receptor based on EPA modeling. The use of the one percent threshold is consistent with all of EPA’s ozone transport actions since the promulgation of the original CSAPR in 2011. For the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS, where the impacts of a state’s emissions on all out of state receptors are below a one percent of the NAAQS threshold, no further analysis is required to determine that that state is not contributing to an out of state air quality problem under the Good Neighbor provision. Therefore, there is no need to evaluate any potential higher contribution threshold, as discussed in the August 2018 memorandum, in the present final action. Comment 5: A commenter states that ozone exposure has significant health impacts, particularly for the respiratory system. The commenter cites the 2013 EPA Integrated Science Assessment for Ozone and Related Photochemical Oxidants (Final Report) and several other health studies in order to describe numerous health impacts associated with ozone exposure in detail. Response 5: EPA agrees that ozone has a number of adverse health impacts. 23 Available at https://www.epa.gov/sites/ production/files/2018-09/documents/contrib_ thresholds_transport_sip_subm_2015_ozone_ memo_08_31_18.pdf. E:\FR\FM\02DER1.SGM 02DER1 lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with RULES1 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 229 / Thursday, December 2, 2021 / Rules and Regulations See National Ambient Air Quality Standards for Ozone, Final Rule, 80 FR 65292 (October 26, 2015).24 EPA evaluates air quality criteria and impacts to public health and welfare as part of the comprehensive standard setting process. Id. EPA’s final rule revising the primary and secondary ozone NAAQS includes a thorough explanation of human exposure and health risk assessments conducted in support of the Agency’s review of evidence of ambient ozone exposures on human health effects, as well as detailed rationales for the Administrator’s decisions on both standards. See 80 FR 65292. The commenter does not explain how the information they provided regarding health impacts from ambient ozone exposure should influence EPA’s action on the Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina Good Neighbor SIP submissions for the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS, and EPA considers such comments to be outside of the scope of this action. As stated previously, EPA’s evaluation of air quality criteria and impacts to public health and welfare are part of the standard setting process, rather than a step completed through actions on individual SIP submissions that address Good Neighbor interstate transport infrastructure SIP requirements pursuant to CAA section 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I). EPA’s evaluation of individual SIP revisions is limited to determining whether the statutory criteria for implementation and attainment of the NAAQS and other CAA requirements, as applicable, have been satisfied. See CAA section 110(k)(2), (3). Comment 6: EPA received one supportive set of comments on the December 30, 2019, NPRM. The comments support EPA’s application of the 4-step process, and state that EPA correctly concluded that none of the states in EPA’s December 30, 2019, NPRM contributed above 1 percent to downwind receptors. Commenters also expressed support for flexibility in addressing the Good Neighbor SIPs. Response 6: EPA agrees with commenter that it appropriately applied steps 1 and 2 of the four-step interstate transport framework (which the commenter refers to as the 4-step process), and that, according to EPA’s analysis, neither Florida, Georgia, North Carolina nor South Carolina contribute above one percent of the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS to any downwind state. 24 See also National Ambient Air Quality Standards for Ozone, Final Rule for the 2008 NAAQS, 73 FR 16436 (March 27, 2008), 16440, 16450–51, 16470–71 & n.20. VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:00 Dec 01, 2021 Jkt 256001 With respect to the portion of the comment regarding retaining the ability for states to take different approaches to analyzing and addressing their Good Neighbor obligations, EPA’s use of certain analytic methods in this action (such as the use of a one percent of NAAQS contribution threshold or the definition of nonattainment and maintenance receptors) does not in itself necessarily preclude different approaches to Good Neighbor analysis in other contexts, where EPA determines to be appropriate and consistent with legal requirements and governing case law. III. Final Action EPA is finalizing approval of revisions to the Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina SIPs. EPA finds that emissions from sources in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina will not significantly contribute to nonattainment or interfere with maintenance of the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS in any other state. Thus, EPA is approving the interstate transport portions of the infrastructure SIP submissions from Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina, separately, as meeting CAA section 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I) requirements for the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS. IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews Under the CAA, the Administrator is required to approve a SIP submission that complies with the provisions of the Act and applicable Federal regulations. See 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 CAA. These actions merely approve state law as meeting Federal requirements and do not impose additional requirements beyond those imposed by state law. For that reason, these actions: • Are not significant regulatory actions 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); • Do not impose an information collection burden under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.); • Are 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.); • Do not contain any unfunded mandate or significantly or uniquely affect small governments, as described PO 00000 Frm 00031 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 68419 in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104–4); • Do not have Federalism implications as specified in Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999); • Are not economically significant regulatory actions based on health or safety risks subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997); • Are not significant regulatory actions subject to Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001); • Are 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 CAA; and • Do 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, for Florida, Georgia, and North Carolina, the Good Neighbor SIPs are 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. For South Carolina, because this final action merely approves state law as meeting Federal requirements and does not impose additional requirements beyond those imposed by state law, this action for the state of South Carolina does not have Tribal implications as specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000). Therefore, this final action will not impose substantial direct costs on Tribal governments or preempt Tribal law. The Catawba Indian Nation Reservation is located within the boundary of York County, South Carolina. Pursuant to the Catawba Indian Claims Settlement Act, S.C. Code Ann. 27–16–120 (Settlement Act), ‘‘[a]ll state and local environmental laws and regulations apply to the [Catawba Indian Nation and] Reservation and are fully enforceable by all relevant state and local agencies and authorities.’’ The Catawba Indian Nation also retains authority to impose regulations applying higher environmental standards to the Reservation than those imposed by state law or local governing bodies, in accordance with the Settlement Act. E:\FR\FM\02DER1.SGM 02DER1 68420 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 229 / Thursday, December 2, 2021 / Rules and Regulations 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 CAA, petitions for judicial review of this action must be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for the appropriate circuit by January 31, 2022. 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 CAA section 307(b)(2). List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52 Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Incorporation by reference, Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Volatile organic compounds. Dated: November 26, 2021. John Blevins, Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4. Agency amends 40 CFR part 52 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. Subpart K—Florida 2. In § 52.520(e), amend the table by adding a new entry for ‘‘110(a)(1) and (2) Infrastructure Requirements for the 2015 8-Hour Ozone NAAQS’’ at the end of the table to read as follows: ■ § 52.520 * For the reasons stated in the preamble, the Environmental Protection Identification of plan. * * (e) * * * * * EPA-APPROVED FLORIDA NON-REGULATORY PROVISIONS State effective date Provision * * 110(a)(1) and (2) Infrastructure Requirements for the 2015 8-Hour Ozone NAAQS. EPA approval date * 9/18/2018 12/2/2021 Federal Register notice Explanation * * [Insert citation of publication] .................... * * Addressing Prongs 1 and 2 of section 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I) only. (2) Infrastructure Requirements for the 2015 8-Hour Ozone NAAQS’’ at the end of the table to read as follows: Subpart L—Georgia 3. In § 52.570(e) amend the table by adding a new entry for ‘‘110(a)(1) and ■ § 52.570 * Identification of plan. * * (e) * * * * * EPA-APPROVED GEORGIA NON-REGULATORY PROVISIONS Name of nonregulatory SIP provision Applicable geographic or nonattainment area State submittal date/effective date * * * 110(a)(1) and (2) Infrastructure Require- Georgia ................ ments for the 2015 8-Hour Ozone NAAQS. Subpart II—North Carolina 4. In § 52.1770(e), amend the table by adding a new entry for ‘‘110(a)(1) and ■ 9/24/2018 EPA approval date Explanation * * 12/2/2021, [Insert citation of publication] * * Addressing Prongs 1 and 2 of section 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I) only. (2) Infrastructure Requirements for the 2015 8-Hour Ozone NAAQS’’ at the end of the table to read as follows: § 52.1770 * Identification of plan. * * (e) * * * * * EPA-APPROVED NORTH CAROLINA NON-REGULATORY PROVISIONS State effective date lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with RULES1 Provision * * 110(a)(1) and (2) Infrastructure Requirements for the 2015 8-Hour Ozone NAAQS. VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:00 Dec 01, 2021 Jkt 256001 EPA approval date * 9/27/2018 PO 00000 12/2/2021 Frm 00032 Federal Register citation Explanation * * [Insert citation of publication] .................... * * Addressing Prongs 1 and 2 of section 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I) only. Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 E:\FR\FM\02DER1.SGM 02DER1 68421 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 229 / Thursday, December 2, 2021 / Rules and Regulations (2) Infrastructure Requirements for the 2015 8-Hour Ozone NAAQS’’ at the end of the table to read as follows: Subpart PP—South Carolina 5. In § 52.2120(e), amend the table by adding a new entry for ‘‘110(a)(1) and ■ State effective date Provision * * 110(a)(1) and (2) Infrastructure Requirements for the 2015 8-Hour Ozone NAAQS. * 9/7/2018 [FR Doc. 2021–26144 Filed 12–1–21; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6560–50–P ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY 40 CFR Part 52 EPA–R04–OAR–2020–0428; FRL–8911–02– R4] Air Plan Approval; TN; Montgomery County Limited Maintenance Plan for the 1997 8-Hour Ozone NAAQS Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). ACTION: Final rule. AGENCY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking final action to approve a state implementation plan (SIP) revision submitted by the State of Tennessee, through the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC), Air Pollution Control Division, on June 23, 2020. The SIP revision includes the 1997 8-hour ozone national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) Limited Maintenance Plan (LMP) for the Montgomery County, Tennessee portion of the Clarksville-Hopkinsville Area (hereinafter referred to as the ‘‘Montgomery County Area’’ or ‘‘Area’’). The Clarksville-Hopkinsville Area is comprised of Montgomery County, Tennessee, and Christian County, Kentucky. EPA is approving Tennessee’s LMP for the Montgomery County Area because it provides for the maintenance of the 1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS within the Montgomery County Area through the end of the second 10year portion of the maintenance period. The effect of this action would be to make certain commitments related to maintenance of the 1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS in the Montgomery County Area federally enforceable as part of the Tennessee SIP. DATES: This rule is effective January 3, 2022. ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket ID No. EPA–R04–OAR–2020–0428. All lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with RULES1 SUMMARY: VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:00 Dec 01, 2021 Jkt 256001 * Identification of plan. * * (e) * * * EPA approval date I. Background In 1979, under section 109 of the Clean Air Act (CAA or Act), EPA established primary and secondary NAAQS for ozone at 0.12 parts per million (ppm), averaged over a 1-hour period. See 44 FR 8202 (February 8, 1979). On July 18, 1997, EPA revised the primary and secondary NAAQS for ozone to set the acceptable level of ozone in the ambient air at 0.08 ppm, averaged over an 8-hour period. See 62 FR 38856 (July 18, 1997).1 EPA set the 1 In March 2008, EPA completed another review of the primary and secondary ozone NAAQS and tightened them further by lowering the level for Frm 00033 Fmt 4700 Sfmt 4700 * * Explanation * * 12/2/2021, [Insert citation of publication] ........... documents in the docket are listed on the www.regulations.gov website. Although listed in the index, some information is not publicly available, i.e., 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 can either be retrieved electronically via www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the Air Regulatory Management Section, Air Planning and Implementation Branch, Air and Radiation Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street SW, Atlanta, Georgia 30303–8960. EPA requests that if at all possible, you contact the person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section to schedule your inspection. The Regional Office’s official hours of business are Monday through Friday 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., excluding Federal holidays. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sarah LaRocca, Air Regulatory Management Section, Air Planning and Implementation Branch, Air and Radiation Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street SW, Atlanta, Georgia 30303–8960. The telephone number is (404) 562– 8994. Ms. LaRocca can also be reached via electronic mail at larocca.sara@ epa.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: PO 00000 § 52.2120 * Addressing Prongs 1 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I) only. * and 2 of section 8-hour ozone NAAQS based on scientific evidence demonstrating that ozone causes adverse health effects at lower concentrations and over longer periods of time than was understood when the pre-existing 1-hour ozone NAAQS was set. EPA determined that the 8-hour ozone NAAQS would be more protective of human health, especially children and adults who are active outdoors, and individuals with a pre-existing respiratory disease, such as asthma. Following promulgation of a new or revised NAAQS, EPA is required by the CAA to designate areas throughout the nation as attaining or not attaining the NAAQS. On April 15, 2004, EPA designated the Clarksville-Hopkinsville Area, which included Montgomery County, Tennessee, and Christian County, Kentucky, as nonattainment for the 1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS, and the designation became effective on June 15, 2004. See 69 FR 23858 (April 30, 2004). Similarly, on May 21, 2012, EPA designated areas as unclassifiable/ attainment or nonattainment for the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS. EPA designated Montgomery County as unclassifiable/attainment for the 2008 8hour ozone NAAQS. This designation became effective on July 20, 2012. See 77 FR 30088 (May 21, 2012). In addition, on November 16, 2017, areas were designated for the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS. The Montgomery County Area was designated attainment/ unclassifiable for the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS, with an effective date of January 16, 2018. See 82 FR 54232 (November 16, 2017). A state may submit a request to redesignate a nonattainment area that is attaining a NAAQS to attainment, and, if the area has met other required criteria described in section 107(d)(3)(E) of the CAA, EPA may approve the both to 0.075 ppm. See 73 FR 16436 (March 27, 2008). Additionally, in October 2015, EPA completed a review of the primary and secondary ozone NAAQS and tightened them by lowering the level for both to 0.070 ppm. See 80 FR 65292 (October 26, 2015). E:\FR\FM\02DER1.SGM 02DER1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 229 (Thursday, December 2, 2021)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 68413-68421]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-26144]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R04-OAR-2019-0156; FRL-8697-02-R4]


Air Plan Approval; FL, GA, NC, SC; Interstate Transport (Prongs 1 
and 2) for the 2015 8-Hour Ozone Standard

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or Agency) is 
approving State Implementation Plan (SIP) submissions from Florida, 
Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina, addressing the Clean Air 
Act (CAA or Act) Good Neighbor interstate transport infrastructure SIP 
requirements for the 2015 8-hour ozone National Ambient Air Quality 
Standard (NAAQS or standards). EPA has determined that each state's SIP 
contains adequate provisions to prohibit emissions that will 
significantly contribute to nonattainment or interfere with maintenance 
of the 2015 ozone NAAQS in any other state. This action is being taken 
in accordance with the CAA.

DATES: This rule is effective January 3, 2022.

ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket 
Identification No. EPA-R04-OAR-2019-0156. All documents in the docket 
are listed on the www.regulations.gov website. Although listed in the 
index, some information may not be publicly available, i.e., 
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 Air Regulatory Management Section, Air Planning and 
Implementation Branch, Air and Radiation Division, U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street SW, Atlanta, Georgia 
30303-8960. EPA requests that if at all possible, you contact the 
person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section to 
schedule your inspection. The Regional Office's

[[Page 68414]]

official hours of business are Monday through Friday 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 
p.m., excluding Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Evan Adams of the Air Regulatory 
Management Section, Air Planning and Implementation Branch, Air and 
Radiation Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 
Forsyth Street SW, Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. Mr. Adams can be 
reached by telephone at (404) 562-9009, or via electronic mail at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    On December 30, 2019, EPA proposed to approve SIP submissions from 
Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and 
Tennessee \1\ as meeting the interstate transport requirements of CAA 
section 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I), or the Good Neighbor provision, for the 
2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS. See 84 FR 71854. Specifically, the 2019 notice 
of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) originally proposed to find that 
emissions from sources in these states will not significantly 
contribute to nonattainment or interfere with maintenance of the 2015 
8-hour ozone NAAQS in any other state based on information for the 
analytic year 2023, consistent with the 2024 Moderate area attainment 
date. Refer to the December 30, 2019 NPRM for an explanation of the CAA 
requirements, the four-step framework that EPA applies under the Good 
Neighbor provision for ozone NAAQS, a detailed summary of the state 
submissions, and EPA's proposed rationale for approval. See 84 FR 
71854. The public comment period for the December 30, 2019, NPRM closed 
on January 29, 2020.\2\
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    \1\ The submittals from these six southeastern states were 
submitted separately under the following cover letters: Alabama 
Department of Environmental Management dated August 20, 2018 
(received by EPA on August 27, 2018); Florida Department of 
Environmental Protection dated September 18, 2018 (received by EPA 
on September 26, 2018); Georgia Environmental Protection Division 
dated September 19, 2018 (received by EPA on September 24, 2018); 
North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality dated September 
27, 2018 (received by EPA October 10, 2018); South Carolina 
Department of Health and Environmental Control dated and received by 
EPA on September 7, 2018; and Tennessee Department of Environment 
and Conservation dated September 13, 2018 (received by EPA on 
September 17, 2018).
    \2\ On March 24, 2020, former EPA Region 4 Administrator Mary 
Walker signed a document (hereinafter referred to as the March 24, 
2020 document) that EPA had intended to become a final rule upon 
publication in the Federal Register. However, the March 24, 2020 
document was never published in the Federal Register. Further, on 
January 19, 2021, former EPA Region 4 Administrator Mary Walker 
signed a second document (hereinafter referred to as the January 19, 
2021 document) that EPA had intended to become a final rule, which 
EPA posted to its website at https://www.epa.gov/air-quality-implementation-plans/epas-approval-2015-8-hour-ozone-interstate-transport-requirements. EPA noted in that posting ``Notwithstanding 
the fact that the EPA is posting a pre-publication version, the 
final rule will not be promulgated until published in the Federal 
Register.'' EPA will not publish either the March 24, 2020 document 
or the January 19, 2021 document in the Federal Register, and now 
intends that this notice constitutes final action with respect to 
the 2019 proposal, superseding all versions of previous draft final 
action documents.
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    Subsequent to the publication of the NPRM on December 30, 2019, two 
events caused EPA to adjust its analysis of the aforementioned SIP 
submissions. First, the United States Court of Appeals for the District 
of Columbia Circuit (D.C. Circuit) issued its ruling in Maryland v. 
EPA, 958 F.3d 1185 (D.C. Cir. 2020) (Maryland), which held that EPA 
must address Good Neighbor obligations consistent with the 2021 
attainment date for downwind areas classified as being in Marginal 
nonattainment under the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS, ``not at some later 
date.'' 958 F.3d at 1203-04 (citing Wisconsin v. EPA, 938 F.3d 303, 314 
(D.C. Cir. 2019) (Wisconsin)).\3\ Second, on October 30, 2020, EPA 
released and accepted public comment on updated 2023 modeling that used 
the 2016 emissions platform developed under the EPA/Multi-
Jurisdictional Organization (MJO)/state collaborative project as the 
primary source for the base year and future year emissions data. On 
April 30, 2021, EPA published the final Revised Cross-State Air 
Pollution Rule (CSAPR) Update for the 2008 ozone NAAQS (Revised CSAPR 
Update) using the same modeling that was made publicly available in the 
proposed rulemaking for the Revised CSAPR Update.\4\ Although that 
modeling focused on the year 2023, EPA conducted an interpolation 
analysis of these modeling results to generate air quality and 
contribution values for the 2021 analytic year, consistent with the 
Maryland holding, as the relevant analytic year for the 2015 8-hour 
ozone NAAQS.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \3\ Maryland involved EPA's denial of administrative petitions 
filed by the states of Maryland and Delaware under CAA section 
126(b), seeking to have EPA impose emissions limits on sources in 
upwind states alleged to be emitting in violation of the Good 
Neighbor Provision. The court disagreed with EPA that use of a 2023 
analytic year, consistent with the 2024 attainment date for areas 
classified as being in Moderate nonattainment, was a proper reading 
of the court's earlier decision in Wisconsin. Id. at 1204.
    \4\ Revised Cross-State Air Pollution Rule Update for the 2008 
Ozone NAAQS, 86 FR 23054; see also Emissions Modeling TSD titled 
``Preparation of Emissions Inventories for the 2016v1 North American 
Emissions Modeling Platform.'' This TSD is available in the docket 
for this action and at https://www.epa.gov/air-emissionsmodeling/2016v1-platform. The underlying modeling files are available on data 
drives in the Docket office for public review. See the docket for 
the Revised CSAPR Update (EPA-HQ-OAR-2020-0272). See also Air 
Quality Modeling Data Drives_Final RCU.pdf, available in the docket 
for this action for a file inventory and instructions on how to 
access the modeling files.
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    As a result, EPA issued a supplemental notice of proposed 
rulemaking (SNPRM) on July 19, 2021, which relied on the new modeling 
and analysis to supplement EPA's proposed finding in the December 30, 
2019 NPRM that emissions from sources in Florida, Georgia, North 
Carolina, and South Carolina will not significantly contribute to 
nonattainment or interfere with maintenance of the 2015 8-hour ozone 
NAAQS in any other state.\5\ See 86 FR 37942. The new modeling and 
analysis indicated that Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South 
Carolina, individually, will not contribute greater than one percent of 
the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS to any potential nonattainment or 
maintenance receptors in 2021. In addition, EPA analyzed past and 
projected emissions of ozone precursors (nitrogen oxides 
(NOX) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs)), finding a 
downward trend in emissions to support the modeling analysis and 
indicate that the contributions from emissions from sources in Florida, 
Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina to ozone receptors in 
downwind states will continue to decline and remain below one percent 
of the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS. Thus, the July 19, 2021 SNPRM provided 
that ``EPA continues to propose to approve the interstate transport 
portions of the infrastructure SIP submissions from Florida, Georgia, 
North Carolina, and South Carolina as meeting CAA section 
110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I) requirements for the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS.'' See 
86 FR 37942.
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    \5\ EPA previously proposed to approve infrastructure SIP 
elements submitted to fulfill the interstate transport requirements 
of CAA section 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I) for the states of Alabama and 
Tennessee for the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS in the December 30, 2019, 
NPRM referenced previously in this rule. However, the July 19, 2021 
SNPRM did not address these submissions, and EPA is deferring action 
on the referenced SIP submissions from Alabama and Tennessee at this 
time.
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    The technical rationale for EPA's proposed action is given in the 
July 19, 2021 SNPRM and in supportive materials contained in the docket 
for this action. The comment period for the July 19, 2021 SNPRM closed 
on August 18, 2021, and EPA received no additional comments. However, 
EPA did receive comments on the original December 30, 2019 NPRM, and 
relevant responses are provided in section II. EPA is finalizing the 
approval of this action based on the technical rationale

[[Page 68415]]

presented in the July 19, 2021 SNPRM and in accordance with the CAA.

II. Response to Comments

    EPA received four sets of adverse comments and one set of 
supportive comments on the December 30, 2019, NPRM. The comments were 
submitted by the Midwest Ozone Group, Sierra Club, New Jersey 
Department of Environmental Protection, New York State Department of 
Environmental Conservation, and one anonymous commenter. The full set 
of comments is provided in the docket for this final rule. This section 
contains summaries of the comments and EPA's responses.
    Comment 1: Several commenters asserted that EPA's December 30, 2019 
NPRM improperly focused on the analytic year of 2023, which the 
commenters argue ignores the August 2021 attainment date faced by 
Marginal 2015 ozone nonattainment areas. These commenters asserted that 
EPA's decision focused on 2023 (consistent with the August 2024 
attainment date for Moderate nonattainment areas under the 2015 8-hour 
ozone NAAQS, rather than the August 2021 attainment date for Marginal 
nonattainment areas), which contravenes the statutory text and the 
Wisconsin decision, and is arbitrary and capricious. The commenters 
specifically mention that the distinction EPA has drawn between 
Marginal and Moderate areas is misleading, that it is unreasonable for 
EPA to expect downwind areas to voluntarily request reclassifications 
to Moderate, and that EPA has not provided adequate support for its 
assumption that Marginal areas will achieve attainment by 2021. A 
commenter also contended that the CSAPR Update is insufficient to bring 
all downwind states into attainment with the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS, 
citing a conclusion made in the December 30, 2019, NPRM in support of a 
2023 analytic year and monitoring data from the 2017 ozone season 
indicating certain 8-hour daily maximum concentrations at air quality 
monitors in Delaware were above the level of the NAAQS. In addition, a 
commenter asserted that recent monitoring data at other monitoring 
sites suggests that these areas will continue to have difficulty 
attaining the NAAQS in 2021.
    Response 1: The comments related to the 2023 analytic year refer to 
a D.C. Circuit court decision addressing, in part, the issue of the 
relevant analytic year for the purposes of evaluating interstate ozone 
transport under the Good Neighbor provision. On September 13, 2019, the 
D.C. Circuit issued the Wisconsin decision, remanding the CSAPR Update 
(81 FR 74504, October 26, 2016) to the extent that it failed to require 
upwind states to eliminate their significant contribution no later than 
the next applicable attainment date by which downwind states must come 
into compliance with the NAAQS, as established under CAA section 
181(a). See 938 F.3d 303, 313. In the December 30, 2019 NPRM, EPA had 
interpreted that holding as limited to the attainment dates for 
Moderate nonattainment area or higher classifications under CAA section 
181 on the basis that Marginal nonattainment areas have reduced 
planning requirements and other considerations. See 84 FR 71854, 71856-
58.
    On May 19, 2020, however, the D.C. Circuit issued the Maryland 
decision that cited the Wisconsin decision in holding that EPA must 
assess the impact of interstate transport on air quality at the next 
downwind attainment date, including Marginal area attainment dates, in 
evaluating the basis for EPA's denial of a petition under CAA section 
126(b). See 958 F.3d 1185, 1203-04. The court noted that ``section 
126(b) incorporates the Good Neighbor Provision,'' and therefore ``the 
EPA must find a violation [of section 126] if an upwind source will 
significantly contribute to downwind nonattainment at the next downwind 
attainment deadline. Therefore, the EPA must evaluate downwind air 
quality at that deadline, not at some later date.'' Id. at 1204 
(emphasis added). EPA interprets the court's holding in Maryland as 
requiring the Agency, under the Good Neighbor provision, to address 
Good Neighbor obligations by no later than the next applicable 
attainment date for downwind areas, including a Marginal area 
attainment date under section 181 for ozone nonattainment.\6\
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    \6\ EPA notes that the court in Maryland did not have occasion 
to evaluate circumstances in which EPA may determine that an upwind 
linkage to a downwind air quality problem exists at steps 1 and 2 of 
the four-step interstate transport framework by a particular 
attainment date, but for reasons of impossibility or profound 
uncertainty the Agency is unable to mandate upwind pollution 
controls by that date. See Wisconsin, 938 F.3d at 320. The D.C. 
Circuit noted in Wisconsin that upon a sufficient showing, these 
circumstances may warrant a certain degree of flexibility in 
effectuating the implementation of the Good Neighbor provision. Such 
circumstances are not at issue in the present action.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The December 30, 2019 NPRM proposing approval of the 2015 8-hour 
ozone Good Neighbor SIPs for Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and 
South Carolina on the basis of a 2023 analytic year analysis predates 
the D.C. Circuit's decisions in Wisconsin and Maryland. In the July 19, 
2021 SNPRM, EPA explained why it now considers 2021 to be the relevant 
analytic year for the purposes of determining whether sources in 
Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina will significantly 
contribute to downwind nonattainment or interfere with maintenance of 
the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS in any other state. See 86 FR 37944. Also 
in the July 19, 2021 SNPRM, EPA conducted an additional analysis for 
the year 2021, and provided additional notice and opportunity for 
public comment. Id. Thus, comments regarding the improper use of 2023 
as a model year are now moot.\7\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \7\ EPA recognizes that this action is now being finalized after 
the Marginal area attainment date has passed and after the close of 
the 2021 ozone season. However, this does not change EPA's analysis 
or its conclusion. The modeling information available in the record 
and included in the supplemental proposal also indicates that these 
four states will not be linked to any downwind nonattainment or 
maintenance receptors in 2023 and 2028, confirming that no new 
linkages to downwind receptors are projected in later years.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Multiple commenters stated that the approach for identifying 
nonattainment and maintenance receptors in the original December 30, 
2019 NPRM failed to identify all of the potential receptors relevant in 
a 2021 analytic year. In addition to their objections to EPA's 
selection of the 2023 analytic year, these commenters argued that 
measured design values at certain monitoring sites made clear that 
certain areas would not be able to attain the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS 
by the 2021 Marginal area attainment date. The shift in the July 19, 
2021 SNPRM and this final action to a 2021 analytic year partially 
addresses the concerns raised by these commenters. To the extent 
commenters are arguing that EPA's method of defining nonattainment and 
maintenance receptors for Good Neighbor purposes ignores certain areas 
that may have air quality problems in 2021 based solely on historical 
measured data, EPA disagrees with these comments. EPA's method of 
defining these receptors, as described in section II of the SNPRM takes 
into account both measured data and reasonable projections based on 
modeling analysis.\8\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \8\ Further, as recognized by the court in Wisconsin, 938 F.3d 
at 320, nonattainment areas that measure clean data in a given year, 
even if not sufficient to be redesignated to attainment based on the 
three-year design value, may qualify for up to two one-year 
extensions of their attainment dates, as provided at CAA section 
181(a)(5). Thus, simply providing the value that would be needed in 
2020 in order for an area to be designated to attainment using the 
three-year average, as some commenters did, does not present a 
complete picture of the likelihood that an area will be 
``reclassified'' or ``bumped-up.''

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[[Page 68416]]

    Regarding the contention that the CSAPR Update, which covered the 
2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS, will not be sufficient to bring areas into 
attainment of the 2008 or 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS, this is not relevant 
to the analysis in support of this action. Whether downwind states may 
or may not reach attainment of the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS with the 
assistance of the upwind state emissions reductions resulting from the 
CSAPR Update is not determinative of whether Florida, Georgia, North 
Carolina, and South Carolina have Good Neighbor obligations for the 
2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS pursuant to the CAA. At issue is whether 
Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina will significantly 
contribute to downwind nonattainment or interfere with maintenance of 
the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS in any other state. The updated information 
presented in the SNPRM made clear that they will not, and no party 
commented on that updated information.
    Comment 2: Several commenters call into question certain 
assumptions used in EPA's 2023 air quality modeling described in the 
March 2018 memorandum. A number of commenters contend that EPA's 
modeling was flawed because it relied on ``unenforceable emissions 
limitations,'' including assumptions that power plants equipped with 
selective catalytic reduction (SCR) controls would emit at or below 
0.10 pounds per one million British Thermal Units (lb/mmBtu) beginning 
in 2017. One commenter contended that many plants emit above that rate. 
Another commenter asserts that EPA should not approve any prong 1 and 2 
SIPs \9\ that reflect ``EPA's flawed data showing attainment by 2023.''
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \9\ Section 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I) requires SIPs to contain adequate 
provisions that prohibit any source or other types of emissions 
activity in one state from contributing significantly to 
nonattainment of the NAAQS in another state (prong 1) and from 
interfering with maintenance of the NAAQS in another state (prong 
2).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Response 2: As discussed previously and in the SNPRM, EPA is 
relying on updated modeling and analysis based on the 2021 analytic 
year and not the 2023 air quality modeling described in the March 2018 
memorandum. However, EPA disagrees that its assessment of air quality 
and contributions at step 1 and 2 of the four-step interstate transport 
framework is flawed because it relies on unenforceable emission 
assumptions for electric generating units (EGUs) or that those 
assumptions are otherwise unrealistic. As an initial matter, in this 
context it is appropriate for EPA to focus on actual EGU emission 
projections, rather than modeling only enforceable limits (sometimes 
referred to as ``allowable'' emissions). EPA has previously explained 
that its analysis at steps 1 and 2 of the four-step interstate 
transport framework is appropriately focused on a projection of actual 
air quality concentrations and upwind-state contributions. As EPA 
explained in the final CSAPR Close-out, this approach to conducting 
future-year modeling in the Good Neighbor analysis to identify downwind 
air quality problems and linked states is consistent with the use of 
current measured data in the designations process under section 107 of 
the CAA. See 83 FR 65878, 65887-88 (December 21, 2018).\10\ In both 
cases, the purpose is to determine whether there is an actual air 
quality problem that needs to be further addressed (in the designations 
context, whether an area is in nonattainment of a NAAQS; in the Good 
Neighbor context, whether there are expected future air quality 
problems (i.e., downwind nonattainment or maintenance receptors) and 
upwind state contribution to these downwind nonattainment or 
maintenance receptors that require further analysis at steps 3 and 4). 
EPA's future-year air quality projections reflect a variety of factors, 
including current emissions data, on-the-books control measures, 
economic market influences, and meteorology. Like the factors that 
affect measured ozone concentrations used in the designations process, 
not all of the factors influencing EPA's modeling projections are or 
can be subject to enforceable limitations on emissions or ozone 
concentrations. However, EPA believes that consideration of these 
factors contributes to a reasonable estimate of anticipated future 
ozone concentrations and contributions at steps 1 and 2 of the four-
step interstate transport framework. In short, EPA's consideration of 
these factors--even when not based on or amendable to enforceable 
limits or controls--in its future-year modeling projections used at 
steps 1 and 2 of the Good Neighbor analysis is reasonable. See 83 FR at 
65888 (December 21, 2018). Only where such analysis indicates an 
upwind-state linkage under projected conditions does further analysis 
proceed at steps 3 and 4 of the four-step interstate transport 
framework to determine what enforceable emissions limits should be 
required in the linked upwind state. EPA's air quality modeling and 
analysis is designed to reflect what downwind air quality problems will 
exist in the relevant analytic year, and the assumptions used are based 
on realistic projections of source emissions.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \10\ The CSAPR Close-out was vacated on grounds unrelated to 
this issue. See New York v. EPA, 781 F. App'x. 4 (D.C. Cir. 2019).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    In response to the commenters' contention that EPA should not model 
using the 0.1 lb/mmBtu emission rate assumption for EGUs because it is 
not enforceable and some units emit higher than this rate, this concern 
is addressed by the updates contained in the updated 2023 modeling used 
to derive EPA's 2021 air quality analysis for this final action. 
Specifically, as noted in the SNPRM, EPA is relying on updated 
Integrated Planning Model (IPM) modeling for its EGU projection in the 
updated analysis for this final action. Additionally, EPA has modeled a 
range of scenarios reflecting alternative EGU assumptions--each 
resulting in the same finding made in this action.\11\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \11\ See the Ozone Air Quality Assessment Tool (AQAT) 
spreadsheet and the Ozone Policy Analysis TSD located in the docket 
for this action for details about these scenarios, emissions, and 
air quality estimates.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Although EPA disagrees with these comments regarding the modeling 
approach it took at the original proposal with respect to projecting 
EGU emissions,\12\ the Agency made updates to incorporate the latest 
modeling and data, which address the concerns expressed by the 
commenters. The December 30, 2019 NPRM rule relied on air quality 
modeling analysis and data released in 2018 that showed results from 
analytic work completed in 2017 (prior to the completion of the first 
year of CSAPR Update compliance).\13\ As explained in the modeling TSD 
referenced in the July 19, 2021 SNPRM, EPA started with the latest 
historical data at that time (2016) and assumed that, on average, SCR-
controlled coal units would operate at 0.1 lb/mmBtu if not already 
doing so (reflecting the fleet's response (on average) to the CSAPR 
Update that would begin in 2017).\14\ In this final action, EPA's 
future year air quality projections are informed by actual compliance 
data from 2019, which allows EPA to rely less on compliance assumptions 
and more on actual data from the past three years in evaluating likely 
EGU emissions in 2021. EPA estimated future

[[Page 68417]]

year emissions using the January 2020 IPM Reference Case, which was 
informed by actual 2018 compliance rates rather than anticipated 
compliance rates (i.e., 2018 reported emission rates (not a 0.1 lb/
mmBtu assumption)). This largely obviates the commenters' concern 
regarding the 0.1 lb/mmBtu assumption at proposal. Moreover, the IPM 
modeling explicitly includes the CSAPR Update enforceable limits (i.e., 
the states' trading allowance budgets) at both the regional and state 
level. With these enforceable limits included, the model allowed 
covered sources to emit up to those limits if it would be economically 
advantageous to do so, but this did not occur in the modeling.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \12\ As explained further in this rule, the analysis supporting 
the December 30, 2019 proposal over-estimated EGU emissions.
    \13\ See March 2018 memorandum, located in the docket for this 
action.
    \14\ Technical Support Document (TSD) Additional Updates to 
Emissions Inventories for the Version 6.3, 2011 Emissions Modeling 
Platform for the Year 2023, available at https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2017-11/documents/2011v6.3_2023en_update_emismod_tsd_oct2017.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    EPA projected future 2021 and 2023 baseline EGU emissions using the 
version 6--January 2020 reference case of the IPM.15 16 IPM, 
developed by ICF Consulting, is a state-of-the-art, peer-reviewed, 
multi-regional, dynamic, deterministic linear programming model of the 
contiguous U.S. electric power sector. It provides forecasts of least 
cost capacity expansion, electricity dispatch, and emission control 
strategies while meeting energy demand and environmental, transmission, 
dispatch, and reliability constraints. EPA has used IPM for over two 
decades to better understand power sector behavior under future 
business-as-usual conditions and to evaluate the economic and emission 
impacts of prospective environmental policies. The model is designed to 
reflect electricity markets as accurately as possible. EPA uses the 
best available information from utilities, industry experts, gas and 
coal market experts, financial institutions, and government statistics 
as the basis for the detailed power sector modeling in IPM. The model 
documentation provides additional information on the assumptions 
discussed here as well as all other model assumptions and inputs. The 
IPM version 6--January 2020 reference base case accounts for updated 
federal and state environmental regulations, committed EGU retirements 
and new builds, and technology cost and performance assumptions as of 
late 2019. This projected base case accounts for the effects of the 
finalized Mercury and Air Toxics Standards rule, the CSAPR and the 
CSAPR Update, New Source Review settlements, final actions EPA has 
taken to implement the Regional Haze Rule, and other on-the-books 
federal and state rules through 2019 impacting sulfur dioxide, 
NOX, directly emitted particulate matter, and 
CO2. For the new 2023 air quality modeling used to 
interpolate air quality projections in 2021, EPA relied on these 2023 
EGU emissions to inform the broader emissions inventory.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \15\ See https://www.epa.gov/airmarkets/analysis-revised-cross-state-air-pollution-rule-update (last accessed November 8, 2021).
    \16\ The January 2020 IPM reference case is a later version than 
what was released with 2016v1.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The EGU emissions data--both historical and projected--are shown in 
Table 1, and compared with the CSAPR Update enforceable budget, 
demonstrate: (1) The reasonableness of EPA's practice of not solely 
using enforceable levels in deriving projections of actual conditions 
and contribution at steps 1 and 2 of the interstate-transport framework 
for ozone, and (2) the robustness of its examination.

             Table 1--Reported Ozone Season NOX Emissions From EGUs in the CSAPR Update Region \17\
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                     Reported ozone season NOX emissions (tons)                            IPM      CSAPR Update
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  projection      budget
                                                                                       (tons) \18\  (enforceable
                                                                                     --------------     tons)
     2015           2016          2017          2018          2019          2020                   -------------
                                                                                          2021          2021
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
     398,831        371,994       294,483       289,988       251,763       227,325       222,900       313,626
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    In sum, EPA's EGUs assumptions show that its projected ozone-season 
EGU emissions levels from proposal of 283,164 tons in 2023 was, if 
anything, conservative--that is, it is likely that emissions levels 
from EGUs will be lower than what was projected in the proposal, not 
higher as suggested by the commenter. The 2019 ozone-season data 
reflected emissions that were already 20 percent below the CSAPR Update 
budgets, reflecting a 13 percent drop from the prior year, and at a 
pace of reduction that strongly suggests actual emissions from EGUs in 
2021 will be well below the CSAPR Update budget levels. In other words, 
the emissions levels that the commenter claimed were not reasonable to 
expect in 2023 have already been achieved--four years ahead of that 
analytic year. The EGU projections EPA used in its analysis for 2021, 
as discussed previously, are reasonable and properly inform its 
analysis of ozone levels and contribution in that analytic year. In 
order for emissions in 2021 to rise to total budget levels (e.g., 
313,626 tons, representing the aggregate budgets for the covered 
states), a decade-long decline in ozone-season NOX emissions 
would have to not only cease but reverse sharply.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \17\ This data analysis relies on 40 CFR part 75 emissions 
reporting data as available in EPA Air Markets Program Data 
available at https://ampd.epa.gov/ampd/.
    \18\ These values are available in the Air Quality Modeling Base 
Case State Emissions file (fossil >25 MW worksheet) available at 
https://www.epa.gov/airmarkets/analysis-revised-cross-state-air-pollution-rule-update. Additionally, as noted in the Revised CSAPR 
proposal, EPA's earlier engineering analytics used a more 
conservative 283,164 tons for 2023. As a sensitivity analysis for 
the proposed Revised CSAPR Update Modeling using IPM, EPA also used 
an updated engineering analytics EGU estimate (relying on 2019 data) 
that resulted in a 2021 estimate of 238,798 tons.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Supported by the most recent reported emissions data, EPA concludes 
that its EGU projections used in the most recent modeling and in the 
interpolation of that modeling to 2021 are reasonable and conservative. 
Thus, EPA believes it is reasonable and appropriate to rely on these 
emissions projections in its air quality analysis for 2021 to approve 
the 2015 8-hour ozone transport SIP submissions for Florida, Georgia, 
North Carolina, and South Carolina.
    Comment 3: A commenter states that EPA's 2023 modeling described in 
the March 2018 memorandum is also flawed given the modeling's reliance 
on certain federal emissions reduction programs, which the commenter 
argues EPA is ``actively working to undermine.'' For example, the 
commenter points to EPA's proposed repeal of its rule regulating 
emissions from glider vehicles, glider engines, and glider kits, 82 FR 
53442 (November 16, 2017) (Proposed Repeal of the Glider Rule), noting 
that EPA has estimated unregulated glider vehicles would increase 
emissions by approximately 300,000 tons annually in 2025. The

[[Page 68418]]

commenter notes that even though EPA never finalized the Proposed 
Repeal of the Glider Rule, EPA's enforcement office issued a memorandum 
on July 6, 2018, stating that it would not enforce the Glider Rule. The 
commenter states that although this ``no action assurance'' is being 
challenged in court and has been temporarily stayed, ``EPA's non-
enforcement efforts underline the unreasonableness of relying on the 
emissions reductions from this rule as a basis for concluding that 
Marginal nonattainment areas will attain the 2015 NAAQS by 2021.'' The 
commenter also asserts that EPA's recent actions ``weakening'' the 
Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards for light-duty vehicles 
and EPA's recent proposal to withdraw the Control Techniques Guidelines 
(CTGs) for the Oil and Natural Gas Industry call into question the 
accuracy of EPA's 2023 modeling, and that ``each deregulatory action . 
. . demonstrates the arbitrariness of EPA's assumption that Marginal 
nonattainment areas will comply with the 2015 NAAQS by 2021 without 
additional ozone-precursor pollution reductions from southeastern 
upwind states.''
    Response 3: As an initial matter, the updated 2023 modeling used to 
interpolate 2021 contributions that was relied on did not make 
different regulatory assumptions than the previous 2023 modeling 
released with the March 2018 memorandum regarding the Glider Rule and 
the light-duty CAFE standards, so the comment is relevant to the 
updated modeling as presented in the SNPRM. However, EPA disagrees that 
EPA's updated air quality modeling did not properly account for 
expected changes in projected emissions that would result from changes 
to federal programs. The mobile source and non-EGU emissions 
inventories in both the previous and updated modeling do not reflect 
changes in emissions resulting from rulemakings finalized in calendar 
year 2016 or later, nor do they reflect any rules proposed but not yet 
finalized since 2016, as only finalized rules are reflected in modeling 
inventories. This reflects EPA's normal practice to only include 
changes in emissions from final regulatory actions in its modeling 
because, until such rules are finalized, any potential changes in 
NOX or VOC emissions are speculative.
    EPA did not finalize the Proposed Repeal of the Glider Rule. EPA 
announced in the U.S. Office of Management and Budget's Spring 2020 
Unified Agenda and Regulatory Plan that ``EPA is no longer pursuing 
this action, and the emission standards and other requirements for 
heavy-duty glider vehicles, glider engines, and glider kits will remain 
in place as published in the `Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Fuel 
Efficiency Standards for Medium- and Heavy-Duty Engines and Vehicles 
Phase 2' final rule on October 26, 2016 (81 FR 73478).'' \19\ 
Additionally, EPA withdrew the conditional no action assurance for 
small manufacturers of glider vehicles in a memorandum dated July 26, 
2018.\20\
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    \19\ See also https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/eAgendaViewRule?pubId=202004&RIN=2060-AT79 (last accessed October 
10, 2021).
    \20\ See https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2018-07/documents/memo_re_withdrawal_of_conditional_naa_regarding_small_manufacturers_of_glider_vehicles_07-26-2018.pdf (last accessed October 10, 2021).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    EPA did not finalize the proposed withdrawal of the CTGs for oil 
and natural gas sources. On March 9, 2018, for reasons explained in the 
Federal Register (83 FR 10478), EPA proposed to withdraw the 2016 CTG 
for the oil and natural gas industry. However, EPA did not finalize the 
proposal to withdraw the CTG. EPA announced in the U.S. Office of 
Management and Budget's Spring 2020 Unified Agenda and Regulatory Plan 
that ``the CTG will remain in place as published on October 27, 2016 
(81 FR 74798).'' \21\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \21\ See https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/eAgendaViewRule?pubId=202004&RIN=2060-AT76 (last accessed October 
10, 2021).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    EPA and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration have 
finalized the revisions to the greenhouse gas (GHG) and CAFE standards 
for light duty vehicles.\22\ However, that final action is not expected 
to have a meaningful impact on 2021 ozone-precursor emissions. Because 
the vehicles affected by the 2017-2025 GHG standards would still need 
to meet applicable criteria pollutant emissions standards (e.g., the 
Tier 3 emissions standards; see 79 FR 23414), the SAFE Vehicles Rule 
anticipated that any impacts of the SAFE Vehicles Rule on ozone 
precursor emissions ``would most likely be far too small to observe.'' 
See 85 FR 25041.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \22\ ``The Safer Affordable Fuel-Efficient (SAFE) Vehicles Rule 
for Model Years 2021-2026 Passenger Cars and Light Trucks,'' 85 FR 
24174 (April 30, 2020) (SAFE Vehicles Rule).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Comment 4: Two commenters disagree with EPA guidance that a 1 ppb 
contribution threshold is acceptable to determine whether an upwind 
contribution is significant, stating it is arbitrary and capricious. 
One commenter also asserts that allowing different states contributing 
to a collective problem to use different air quality threshold rates to 
avoid regulation is inequitable. The commenters refer to EPA's August 
31, 2018 memorandum from Peter Tsirigotis, titled ``Analysis of 
Contribution Thresholds for Use in Clean Air At Section 
110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I) Interstate Transport State Implementation Plan 
Submissions for the 2015 Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards'' 
(``August 2018 memorandum''),\23\ and generally contend that the August 
2018 memorandum provides an insufficient evaluation regarding the 
result of such approach on downwind states' ability to attain and 
maintain the relevant NAAQS and shifts the responsibility for upwind 
pollution from upwind to downwind states.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \23\ Available at https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2018-09/documents/contrib_thresholds_transport_sip_subm_2015_ozone_memo_08_31_18.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Response 4: As the commenters correctly note, the August 2018 
memorandum suggested that states could potentially justify the use of 
an alternative contribution threshold of 1 ppb with respect to the 2015 
8-hour ozone NAAQS in step 2 of EPA's four-step interstate framework 
under the Good Neighbor provision. However, EPA is not making a 
determination in this final action to approve a state's use of an 
alternative 1 ppb threshold. Neither EPA's NPRM, SNRPM, nor this final 
action rely on a 1 ppb threshold and are instead based on a finding 
that Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina will not 
contribute at or above one percent of the level of the NAAQS at any 
projected nonattainment or maintenance receptor based on EPA modeling. 
The use of the one percent threshold is consistent with all of EPA's 
ozone transport actions since the promulgation of the original CSAPR in 
2011. For the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS, where the impacts of a state's 
emissions on all out of state receptors are below a one percent of the 
NAAQS threshold, no further analysis is required to determine that that 
state is not contributing to an out of state air quality problem under 
the Good Neighbor provision. Therefore, there is no need to evaluate 
any potential higher contribution threshold, as discussed in the August 
2018 memorandum, in the present final action.
    Comment 5: A commenter states that ozone exposure has significant 
health impacts, particularly for the respiratory system. The commenter 
cites the 2013 EPA Integrated Science Assessment for Ozone and Related 
Photochemical Oxidants (Final Report) and several other health studies 
in order to describe numerous health impacts associated with ozone 
exposure in detail.
    Response 5: EPA agrees that ozone has a number of adverse health 
impacts.

[[Page 68419]]

See National Ambient Air Quality Standards for Ozone, Final Rule, 80 FR 
65292 (October 26, 2015).\24\ EPA evaluates air quality criteria and 
impacts to public health and welfare as part of the comprehensive 
standard setting process. Id. EPA's final rule revising the primary and 
secondary ozone NAAQS includes a thorough explanation of human exposure 
and health risk assessments conducted in support of the Agency's review 
of evidence of ambient ozone exposures on human health effects, as well 
as detailed rationales for the Administrator's decisions on both 
standards. See 80 FR 65292.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \24\ See also National Ambient Air Quality Standards for Ozone, 
Final Rule for the 2008 NAAQS, 73 FR 16436 (March 27, 2008), 16440, 
16450-51, 16470-71 & n.20.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The commenter does not explain how the information they provided 
regarding health impacts from ambient ozone exposure should influence 
EPA's action on the Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South 
Carolina Good Neighbor SIP submissions for the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS, 
and EPA considers such comments to be outside of the scope of this 
action. As stated previously, EPA's evaluation of air quality criteria 
and impacts to public health and welfare are part of the standard 
setting process, rather than a step completed through actions on 
individual SIP submissions that address Good Neighbor interstate 
transport infrastructure SIP requirements pursuant to CAA section 
110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I). EPA's evaluation of individual SIP revisions is 
limited to determining whether the statutory criteria for 
implementation and attainment of the NAAQS and other CAA requirements, 
as applicable, have been satisfied. See CAA section 110(k)(2), (3).
    Comment 6: EPA received one supportive set of comments on the 
December 30, 2019, NPRM. The comments support EPA's application of the 
4-step process, and state that EPA correctly concluded that none of the 
states in EPA's December 30, 2019, NPRM contributed above 1 percent to 
downwind receptors. Commenters also expressed support for flexibility 
in addressing the Good Neighbor SIPs.
    Response 6: EPA agrees with commenter that it appropriately applied 
steps 1 and 2 of the four-step interstate transport framework (which 
the commenter refers to as the 4-step process), and that, according to 
EPA's analysis, neither Florida, Georgia, North Carolina nor South 
Carolina contribute above one percent of the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS to 
any downwind state. With respect to the portion of the comment 
regarding retaining the ability for states to take different approaches 
to analyzing and addressing their Good Neighbor obligations, EPA's use 
of certain analytic methods in this action (such as the use of a one 
percent of NAAQS contribution threshold or the definition of 
nonattainment and maintenance receptors) does not in itself necessarily 
preclude different approaches to Good Neighbor analysis in other 
contexts, where EPA determines to be appropriate and consistent with 
legal requirements and governing case law.

III. Final Action

    EPA is finalizing approval of revisions to the Florida, Georgia, 
North Carolina, and South Carolina SIPs. EPA finds that emissions from 
sources in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina will 
not significantly contribute to nonattainment or interfere with 
maintenance of the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS in any other state. Thus, 
EPA is approving the interstate transport portions of the 
infrastructure SIP submissions from Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, 
and South Carolina, separately, as meeting CAA section 
110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I) requirements for the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS.

IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    Under the CAA, the Administrator is required to approve a SIP 
submission that complies with the provisions of the Act and applicable 
Federal regulations. See 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 CAA. These actions merely 
approve state law as meeting Federal requirements and do not impose 
additional requirements beyond those imposed by state law. For that 
reason, these actions:
     Are not significant regulatory actions 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);
     Do not impose an information collection burden under the 
provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.);
     Are 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.);
     Do 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);
     Do not have Federalism implications as specified in 
Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999);
     Are not economically significant regulatory actions based 
on health or safety risks subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 
19885, April 23, 1997);
     Are not significant regulatory actions subject to 
Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001);
     Are 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 CAA; and
     Do 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, for Florida, Georgia, and North Carolina, the Good 
Neighbor SIPs are 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.
    For South Carolina, because this final action merely approves state 
law as meeting Federal requirements and does not impose additional 
requirements beyond those imposed by state law, this action for the 
state of South Carolina does not have Tribal implications as specified 
by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000). Therefore, 
this final action will not impose substantial direct costs on Tribal 
governments or preempt Tribal law. The Catawba Indian Nation 
Reservation is located within the boundary of York County, South 
Carolina. Pursuant to the Catawba Indian Claims Settlement Act, S.C. 
Code Ann. 27-16-120 (Settlement Act), ``[a]ll state and local 
environmental laws and regulations apply to the [Catawba Indian Nation 
and] Reservation and are fully enforceable by all relevant state and 
local agencies and authorities.'' The Catawba Indian Nation also 
retains authority to impose regulations applying higher environmental 
standards to the Reservation than those imposed by state law or local 
governing bodies, in accordance with the Settlement Act.

[[Page 68420]]

    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 CAA, petitions for judicial review 
of this action must be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for 
the appropriate circuit by January 31, 2022. 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 CAA section 307(b)(2).

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Incorporation by 
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, 
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Volatile organic compounds.

    Dated: November 26, 2021.
John Blevins,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4.

    For the reasons stated in the preamble, the Environmental 
Protection Agency amends 40 CFR part 52 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.

Subpart K--Florida

0
2. In Sec.  52.520(e), amend the table by adding a new entry for 
``110(a)(1) and (2) Infrastructure Requirements for the 2015 8-Hour 
Ozone NAAQS'' at the end of the table to read as follows:


Sec.  52.520  Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (e) * * *

                                 EPA-Approved Florida Non-Regulatory Provisions
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                         State       EPA approval      Federal Register
             Provision              effective date       date               notice              Explanation
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
                                                  * * * * * * *
110(a)(1) and (2) Infrastructure         9/18/2018       12/2/2021  [Insert citation of    Addressing Prongs 1
 Requirements for the 2015 8-Hour                                    publication].          and 2 of section
 Ozone NAAQS.                                                                               110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I)
                                                                                            only.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Subpart L--Georgia

0
3. In Sec.  52.570(e) amend the table by adding a new entry for 
``110(a)(1) and (2) Infrastructure Requirements for the 2015 8-Hour 
Ozone NAAQS'' at the end of the table to read as follows:


Sec.  52.570   Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (e) * * *

                                 EPA-Approved Georgia Non-Regulatory Provisions
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                               State
   Name of nonregulatory SIP      Applicable geographic   submittal date/  EPA approval date      Explanation
           provision              or nonattainment area   effective date
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
                                                  * * * * * * *
110(a)(1) and (2)                Georgia................       9/24/2018  12/2/2021, [Insert  Addressing Prongs
 Infrastructure Requirements                                               citation of         1 and 2 of
 for the 2015 8-Hour Ozone                                                 publication].       section
 NAAQS.                                                                                        110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I
                                                                                               ) only.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Subpart II--North Carolina

0
4. In Sec.  52.1770(e), amend the table by adding a new entry for 
``110(a)(1) and (2) Infrastructure Requirements for the 2015 8-Hour 
Ozone NAAQS'' at the end of the table to read as follows:


Sec.  52.1770  Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (e) * * *

                              EPA-Approved North Carolina Non-Regulatory Provisions
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                         State       EPA approval      Federal Register
             Provision              effective date       date              citation             Explanation
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
                                                  * * * * * * *
110(a)(1) and (2) Infrastructure         9/27/2018       12/2/2021  [Insert citation of    Addressing Prongs 1
 Requirements for the 2015 8-Hour                                    publication].          and 2 of section
 Ozone NAAQS.                                                                               110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I)
                                                                                            only.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


[[Page 68421]]

Subpart PP--South Carolina

0
5. In Sec.  52.2120(e), amend the table by adding a new entry for 
``110(a)(1) and (2) Infrastructure Requirements for the 2015 8-Hour 
Ozone NAAQS'' at the end of the table to read as follows:


Sec.  52.2120  Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (e) * * *

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                               State
                Provision                 effective date       EPA approval date              Explanation
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
                                                  * * * * * * *
110(a)(1) and (2) Infrastructure                9/7/2018  12/2/2021, [Insert          Addressing Prongs 1 and 2
 Requirements for the 2015 8-Hour Ozone                    citation of publication].   of section
 NAAQS.                                                                                110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I) only.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[FR Doc. 2021-26144 Filed 12-1-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P


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