Finding of Failure To Attain by the Attainment Date for the 2010 1-Hour Primary Sulfur Dioxide National Ambient Air Quality Standard; Guam; Piti-Cabras Nonattainment Area, 103819-103823 [2024-29507]
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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 244 / Thursday, December 19, 2024 / Notices
purposes. Project operation is
coordinated with Project No. 1988,
whose releases from Lake Wishon
largely control inflow to Black Rock
Reservoir; however, spill fluctuations at
the project are possible at times when
inflow exceeds powerhouse capacity
and during powerhouse outages.
The current license requires PG&E to
maintain the following continuous
minimum flows in the North Kings
River: (1) during normal water years: (a)
from June 1 through November 31, 5 cfs
from Black Rock Reservoir, 15 cfs from
Balch Afterbay, and 30 cfs of total river
flow; and (b) from December 1 through
May 31, 2.5 cfs from Black Rock
Reservoir, 10 cfs from Balch Afterbay,
and 30 cfs of total river flow; (2) during
dry water years, as defined by the
California Department of Water
Resources, year-round flows of 2.5 cfs
from Black Rock Reservoir, 10 cfs from
Balch Afterbay, and 20 cfs of total river
flow.
PG&E proposes to continue operating
the project in a manner that is
consistent with current operation, with
the exception of the following new
proposed measures: (1) minimum flows
and water year types, (2) a recreation
plan, (3) a biological resources
management plan, (4) a historic
properties management plan, (5) lowlevel operations, (6) flood period
operations, (7) a hazardous substance
plan, (8) a gaging plan, (9) visual
resources management, (10) a fire
management and response plan, and
(11) a transportation system
management plan.
m. A copy of the application can be
viewed on the Commission’s website at
https://www.ferc.gov using the
‘‘eLibrary’’ link. Enter the docket
number excluding the last three digits in
the docket number field to access the
document (P–175). For assistance,
please contact FERC Online Support
(see item j above).
You may also register at https://
ferconline.ferc.gov/FERCOnline.aspx to
be notified via email of new filings and
issuances related to this or other
pending projects. For assistance, please
contact FERC Online Support (see item
j above).
n. The Commission’s Office of Public
Participation (OPP) supports meaningful
public engagement and participation in
Commission proceedings. OPP can help
members of the public, including
landowners, environmental justice
communities, Tribal members and
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others, access publicly available
information and navigate Commission
processes. For public inquiries and
assistance with making filings such as
interventions, comments, or requests for
rehearing, the public is encouraged to
contact OPP at (202) 502–6595 or OPP@
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o. Scoping Process: Pursuant to the
National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA), Commission staff intends to
prepare either an environmental
assessment (EA) or an environmental
impact statement (EIS) (collectively
referred to as the ‘‘NEPA document’’)
that describes and evaluates the
probable effects, including an
assessment of the site-specific and
cumulative effects, if any, of the
proposed action and alternatives. The
Commission’s scoping process will help
determine the required level of analysis
and satisfy the NEPA scoping
requirements, irrespective of whether
the Commission issues an EA or an EIS.
At this time, we do not anticipate
holding an on-site scoping meeting.
Instead, we are soliciting written
comments and suggestions on the
preliminary list of issues and
alternatives to be addressed in the
NEPA document, as described in
scoping document 1 (SD1), issued
December 13, 2024.
Copies of SD1, which outlines the
subject areas to be addressed in the
NEPA document, were distributed to the
parties on the Commission’s mailing list
and the applicant’s distribution list.
Copies of SD1 may be viewed on the
web at https://www.ferc.gov using the
‘‘eLibrary’’ link. Follow the directions
for accessing information in paragraph
m.
Dated: December 13, 2024.
Debbie-Anne A. Reese,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2024–30277 Filed 12–18–24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717–01–P
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
[EPA–R09–OAR–2024–0510; FRL–12382–
01–R9]
Finding of Failure To Attain by the
Attainment Date for the 2010 1-Hour
Primary Sulfur Dioxide National
Ambient Air Quality Standard; Guam;
Piti-Cabras Nonattainment Area
Determination of
nonattainment.
ACTION:
The Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) is determining that the
Piti-Cabras, Guam, sulfur dioxide (SO2)
nonattainment area (NAA) failed to
attain the 2010 1-hour SO2 primary
national ambient air quality standard
(NAAQS, ‘‘standard,’’ or ‘‘2010 SO2
NAAQS’’) by the applicable statutory
attainment date of April 9, 2023. This
determination is based on an analysis of
available modeling, emissions data, and
information concerning control strategy
implementation. This action addresses
the EPA’s obligation under Clean Air
Act (CAA) section 179(c) to determine
whether the Piti-Cabras SO2 NAA (‘‘PitiCabras area’’) attained the 2010 SO2
NAAQS by the April 9, 2023 attainment
date.
SUMMARY:
The EPA has established a
docket for this action under Docket ID
No. EPA–R09–OAR–2024–0510. All
documents in the docket are listed on
the https://www.regulations.gov
website. Although listed in the index,
some information is not publicly
available, e.g., Confidential Business
Information or other information whose
disclosure is restricted by statute.
Certain other material, such as
copyrighted material, is not placed on
the internet and will be publicly
available only in hard copy form.
Publicly available docket materials are
available through https://
www.regulations.gov, or please contact
the person identified in the FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT section for
additional availability information. If
you need assistance in a language other
than English or if you are a person with
a disability who needs a reasonable
accommodation at no cost to you, please
contact the person identified in the FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section.
ADDRESSES:
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Andrew Ledezma, Air Planning Office
(ARD–2), EPA Region IX, 75 Hawthorne
Street, San Francisco, CA 94105, (415)
972–3985, or by email at
Ledezma.Andrew@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Throughout this document, ‘‘we,’’ ‘‘us,’’
and ‘‘our’’ refer to the EPA.
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA).
AGENCY:
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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 244 / Thursday, December 19, 2024 / Notices
Table of Contents
I. Background
A. The 2010 1-Hour Primary SO4 NAAQS
B. Designations, Classifications, and
Attainment Dates for the 2010 SO2
NAAQS
C. Determinations of Attainment by the
Attainment Date
II. The EPA’s Evaluation and Determination
A. Area Characterization
B. Evaluation of SO2 Modeling, Emissions
Data, and Control Strategy
Implementation Information
C. Conclusion
III. The EPA’s Action
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Review
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I. Background
A. The 2010 1-Hour Primary SO2
NAAQS
Under section 109 of the CAA, the
EPA has established primary and
secondary NAAQS for certain pervasive
air pollutants (referred to as ‘‘criteria
pollutants’’) and conducts periodic
reviews of the NAAQS to determine
whether they should be revised or
whether new NAAQS should be
established. The primary NAAQS
represent ambient air quality standards
that the EPA has determined are
requisite to protect public health with
an adequate margin of safety, while the
secondary NAAQS represent ambient
air quality standards that the EPA has
determined are requisite to protect
public welfare from any known or
anticipated adverse effects associated
with the presence of the air pollutant in
the ambient air.
Under the CAA, the EPA must
establish a NAAQS for SO2, which is
primarily released to the atmosphere
through the burning of fossil fuels by
power plants and other industrial
facilities. SO2 is also emitted from
industrial processes, including metal
extraction from ore and heavy
equipment that burn fuel with a high
sulfur content. Short term exposure to
SO2 can damage the human respiratory
system and increase breathing
difficulties. Small children and people
with respiratory conditions, such as
asthma, are more sensitive to the effects
of SO2. Sulfur oxides at high
concentrations in ambient air can also
react with compounds to form small
particulates (fine particulate matter, or
‘‘PM2.5’’) that can penetrate deeply into
the lungs and cause acute health
problems and/or chronic diseases. The
EPA first established primary SO2
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standards in 1971 at 140 parts per
billion (ppb) over a 24-hour averaging
period and at 30 ppb over an annual
averaging period.1
On June 22, 2010, the EPA published
in the Federal Register a strengthened,
primary 1-hour SO2 NAAQS,
establishing a new standard at a level of
75 ppb, based on the 3-year average of
the annual 99th percentile of daily
maximum 1-hour average
concentrations of SO2.2 The revised SO2
NAAQS provides increased protection
of public health. Along with revision of
the SO2 NAAQS, the EPA revoked the
1971 primary annual and 24-hour SO2
standards for most areas of the country
following area designations under the
new NAAQS.3
as an attainment plan) must meet the
requirements of sections 110, 172(c),
191, and 192 of the CAA, and provide
for attainment of the NAAQS by the
applicable statutory attainment date,
i.e., no later than five years from the
effective date of the area’s
nonattainment designation. The
effective date of the Piti-Cabras area
nonattainment designation is April 9,
2018, so the attainment plan for the area
was due on October 9, 2019. On
November 3, 2020, the EPA issued a
finding that Guam failed to submit a SIP
revision for the Piti-Cabras area; this
finding became effective on December 4,
2020.6 Guam has not submitted a SIP
revision for the Piti-Cabras area.
B. Designations, Classifications, and
Attainment Dates for the 2010 SO2
NAAQS
Following promulgation of a new or
revised NAAQS, the EPA is required to
designate all areas of the country as
either ‘‘attainment,’’ ‘‘nonattainment,’’
or ‘‘unclassifiable,’’ pursuant to CAA
section 107(d)(1).
On December 21, 2017, the EPA
designated as nonattainment six areas in
three states and two territories in the
third round of SO2 designations.4 With
that action, the EPA designated as
nonattainment the portion of Guam
within a 6.074-km radius centered on
universal transverse mercator (UTM)
easting 249,601.60 meters and UTM
northing 1,489,602 meters (UTM zone
55N).5 Pursuant to section 192(a) of the
CAA, the statutory attainment date for
the Piti-Cabras area was established as
no later than five years after the
effective date of the initial designation,
i.e., April 9, 2023.
CAA section 191(a) requires states
that contain an area designated
nonattainment for the 2010 1-hour
primary SO2 NAAQS to develop and
submit an NAA state implementation
plan (SIP) to the EPA within 18 months
of the effective date of an area’s
designation as nonattainment. For SO2,
a NAA SIP submission (also referred to
C. Determinations of Attainment by the
Attainment Date
1 36
FR 8186 (April 30, 1971).
FR 35520, codified at 40 CFR 50.17.
3 75 FR at 35592, codified at 40 CFR 50.4(e).
4 83 FR 1098 (January 9, 2018).
5 For designations technical discussions, see
EPA’s Technical Support Document, Chapter 11,
Section 3, 6–26, at https://www.epa.gov/sites/
default/files/2017-08/documents/11_guam_so2_
rd3-final.pdf, available in the docket for this action.
2 75
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Section 179(c)(1) of the CAA requires
the EPA to determine whether a NAA
attained an applicable standard by the
applicable statutory attainment date
based on the area’s air quality as of the
attainment date within six months of
the attainment date. Thus, the EPA had
a mandatory duty under CAA section
179(c) to determine by October 9, 2023,
whether the Piti-Cabras SO2 NAA
attained the 2010 SO2 NAAQS by the
statutory attainment date of April 9,
2023.
A determination of whether an area’s
air quality meets applicable standards is
generally based upon the most recent
three years of complete, quality-assured
data gathered at established state and
local air monitoring stations (SLAMS) in
the NAA and other available
information. The EPA’s April 23, 2014
memorandum, ‘‘Guidance for 1-Hour
SO2 Nonattainment Area SIP
Submissions,’’ states, ‘‘[t]he EPA will
determine whether or not an SO2
nonattainment area has attained the
NAAQS based on air quality monitoring
data (when available) and air quality
dispersion modeling information for the
affected area, and/or a demonstration
that the control strategy has been fully
implemented.’’ 7
6 85
FR 69504 (November 3, 2020).
for 1-Hour SO2 Nonattainment Area
SIP Submissions; EPA, April 23, 2014, can be found
at https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2016-06/
documents/20140423guidance_nonattainment_
sip.pdf.
7 Guidance
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In the case of the Piti-Cabras area, the
relevant three years preceding the
statutory attainment date are 2020–
2022. There are no available SO2
monitoring data from the Piti-Cabras
SO2 NAA in this period, and the only
modeling results submitted by the Guam
Environmental Protection Agency
(Guam EPA) were the results from the
time of designation, which showed
violations of the NAAQS.8 The
modeling analysis included the largest
sources of SO2 emissions in the area and
relied upon actual hourly emissions
rates from 2011–2013. In addition, as
noted above, Guam has not submitted a
modeled attainment demonstration or
control strategy (via SIP revision) for the
NAA.
In the absence of monitoring data and
updated modeling analyses, the EPA is
evaluating whether the Piti-Cabras area
attained the 2010 1-hour primary SO2
NAAQS by the applicable statutory
attainment date of April 9, 2023, based
on available modeling, emissions data,
and information concerning control
strategy implementation.
II. The EPA’s Evaluation and
Determination
A. Area Characterization
The Piti-Cabras area is located on the
western side of the island of Guam,
centered on the Piti and Cabras power
plants. The Piti facility (also referred to
as ‘‘MEC’’ by Guam), consists of Units
8 and 9, and the Cabras facility consists
of four units (two of which, Cabras 3
and 4, have ceased operation). These
two facilities are the primary sources of
SO2 in the area. Nearby, the ‘‘TEMES’’
power plant, commercial marine vessel
ports, and the United States Navy
(‘‘Navy’’) marine vessel port are also
significant sources of SO2.
B. Evaluation of SO2 Modeling,
Emissions Data, and Control Strategy
Implementation Information
First, to determine whether the PitiCabras area attained the NAAQS, the
EPA considered the modeling that was
conducted for the designation of the
Piti-Cabras area as nonattainment. As
noted earlier, the EPA based the
nonattainment designation for the PitiCabras area on modeling submitted by
Guam EPA. In our review of that
modeling, as documented in the EPA’s
Technical Support Document (TSD) 9
accompanying the designation, we
concluded that the source
characterization, modeling parameters,
and techniques submitted by Guam EPA
for this designation conformed with the
EPA’s August 2016 guidance document,
‘‘SO2 NAAQS Designations Modeling
Technical Assistance Document.’’ 10
The EPA’s designation of the PitiCabras area relied on the modeled SO2
103821
emissions for the years 2011–2013. The
Piti, Cabras, and TEMES stationary
sources, along with marine sources from
the commercial and Navy ports, were
modeled as the largest sources of SO2
emissions in the Piti-Cabras area. For
the stationary sources, SO2 emissions
are generated by combusting diesel fuel
for electricity generation. Guam Power
Authority (GPA), the owner and
operator of the Piti, Cabras, and TEMES
facilities, compiled the data needed to
calculate hourly emissions rates for
2011–2013 based on AP–42 emissions
factors and hourly production data for
each unit included in the modeling. For
maritime sources, SO2 emissions are
generated by fuel combustion from
docking and hoteling at the commercial
and Navy ports. Guam EPA used reports
of vessels docking and hoteling at the
ports and AP–42 emissions factors to
calculate hourly emissions rates to
include in the modeling.
The peak modeled receptor design
value (DV) from the EPA’s designations
TSD is summarized in Table 1. The
modeling analysis showed that the area
was violating the 2010 1-hour primary
SO2 NAAQS based on source emissions
from 2011–2013, with a modeled DV of
585 mg/m3, nearly three times the value
of the 2010 1-hour primary SO2 NAAQS
level of 196.4 mg/m3 (equivalent to 75
ppb).
TABLE 1—SUMMARY OF 2011–2013 PEAK MODELED RECEPTOR 1-HOUR SO2 DESIGN VALUE FOR THE PITI-CABRAS
AREA a
99th percentile daily maximum 1-hour SO2
concentration (μg/m3)
Averaging period
Data period
99th Percentile 1-hour average ...........................................................................
Modeled concentration
(including background)
NAAQS level
585
b 196.4
2011–2013
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a Retrieved from EPA’s Technical Support Document, Chapter 11, Section 3, 6–26, at https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2017-08/documents/11_guam_so2_rd3-final.pdf, available in the docket for this action.
b Equivalent to the 2010 SO NAAQS of 75 ppb using 2.619 μg/m3 conversion factor.
2
We note that, on September 24, 2024,
GPA sent the EPA draft modeling files
intended to support a modeled
attainment demonstration for the PitiCabras area.11 The EPA is reviewing
these files and related information and
has not yet determined whether they
meet the requirements for such a
demonstration. However, we note that,
even if the modeling is found to be
technically sound, the emissions limits
relied upon in that modeling did not
take effect under Guam law until after
the attainment date, as explained later
in Section II.B of this document.
Therefore, the results of this modeling
cannot be relied upon to determine
whether the area attained the NAAQS
by the attainment date.
Second, to determine whether the
Piti-Cabras area attained the NAAQS,
the EPA considered annual SO2
emissions trends for the most significant
SO2 sources in the area using emissions
inventory information provided by
Guam EPA. Table 2 lists the average
reported actual SO2 emissions for 2011–
2013, which were the emissions used in
the air quality modeling underlying the
EPA’s designation of the area as
nonattainment, as well as SO2 emissions
for 2020. While the relevant three-year
DV period for the April 9, 2023
8 For designations technical discussions, see
EPA’s Technical Support Document, Chapter 11,
Section 3, 6–26, at https://www.epa.gov/sites/
default/files/2017-08/documents/11_guam_so2_
rd3-final.pdf, available in the docket for this action.
9 Id.
10 SO NAAQS Designations Modeling Technical
2
Assistance Document, EPA, August 2016, available
at https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2016-04/
documents/so2modelingtad.pdf and available in the
docket for this action.
11 See two emails dated September 24, 2024 from
Roland T. Gutierrez, Environmental Manager, GPA,
to Gale Hoffnagle, Senior Vice President and
Technical Director, TRC Corporation, Subject: ‘‘SIP
Modeling Files,’’ and from Gale Hoffnagle to
Andrew Ledezma, EPA, Subject: ‘‘RE: SIP Modeling
Files.msg,’’ included in the docket for this action.
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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 244 / Thursday, December 19, 2024 / Notices
attainment date was from 2020–2022,
we have only received complete actual
emissions data for 2020. Therefore, we
are considering those emissions because
this is the most recent, complete
emissions inventory available based on
actual emissions from the 2020–2022
DV time period.
TABLE 2—ANNUAL EMISSIONS FROM SO2 SOURCES IN THE PITI-CABRAS AREA FOR 2011–2013 AVERAGE ACTUAL
EMISSIONS AND 2020 ACTUAL EMISSIONS
Actual SO2 emissions
(tons per year, tpy)
Facility name
2011–2013
(average) a
2020 b
Cabras .........................................................................................................................................................
Piti (MEC) ....................................................................................................................................................
TEMES .........................................................................................................................................................
Marine Vessels ............................................................................................................................................
8,891
4,828
2
76
6,816
2,297
0.11
84
Total c ....................................................................................................................................................
13,797
9,197
a Actual
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SO2 emissions retrieved from EPA’s Technical Support Document, Chapter 11, Section 3, 6–26, at https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/
files/2017-08/documents/11_guam_so2_rd3-final.pdf, available in the docket for this action.
b Actual SO emissions retrieved from Guam EPA’s April 2024 draft SIP, Appendix A, available in the docket for this action.
2
c Totals may not be a precise addition of all rows due to rounding.
These data show that some reductions
in SO2 emissions did occur prior to the
attainment date, as annual emissions
from 2020 were 9,197 tpy,
approximately 33 percent lower than
the 2011–2013 average emissions of
13,797 tpy. However, there is no
evidence that we are aware of to suggest
that this level of emissions reductions
was sufficient to attain the NAAQS
given that the modeled 2011–2013
design value was 585 mg/m3, nearly
three times the NAAQS level of 196.4
mg/m3. Although the reduction of 4,600
tpy of emissions over this time period
likely lowered the design value in 2020–
2022, as compared with 2011–2013,
additional information would be needed
to determine whether such reductions
were sufficient to provide for attainment
of the NAAQS.
Third, to determine whether the PitiCabras area attained the NAAQS, the
EPA considered the available
information about control strategy
implementation. On June 30, 2023, the
Guam Legislature adopted Substitute
Bill No. 101–37 (COR), ‘‘An Act to
Repeal and Reenact § 1310 of Article 1,
Chapter 1, Title 22 Guam
Administrative Rules and Regulations,
Relative to Adopting Updated Emission
Standards For Sulfur Oxides From Fuel
Combustion to Ensure the Island of
Guam Meets the National Ambient Air
Quality Standards For Sulfur Dioxide
Transmitted by the Guam
Environmental Protection Agency.’’
Revised Title 22, Section 1310 of the
Guam Administrative Rules and
Regulations (‘‘Rule 1310’’) sets fuel
sulfur content limits of 0.2 percent for
Cabras Units 1 and 2, and 0.0015
percent for all other sources except
ocean-going vessels. The revised rule
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took effect on July 12, 2023. Rule 1310
was designed as the control strategy for
attainment of the 2010 SO2 NAAQS in
the Piti-Cabras area but was not adopted
and implemented until after the
applicable attainment date of April 9,
2023, indicating that the control strategy
that Guam EPA believes is needed to
attain the NAAQS was not fully
implemented by that date. Furthermore,
we note that, while some of the
emissions reductions that Guam EPA
believes are needed for attainment were
required to occur earlier under a
consent decree between the United
States and GPA,12 following a
modification to the consent decree,13
the compliance dates for several of the
controls were revised to July 1, 2022 (for
Piti Units 8 and 9) and December 31,
2022 (for Cabras Units 1 and 2). Given
that these dates were near to or at the
end of the 2020–2022 DV period, there
is no evidence that the original modeled
violations were remedied in time to
achieve an attaining design value in the
three-year 2020–2022 period.
C. Conclusion
We find that the Piti-Cabras area
failed to attain the 2010 1-hour primary
SO2 NAAQS by the statutory attainment
date of April 9, 2023, based on available
modeling, emissions data, and
information concerning control strategy
implementation.
Under CAA section 179(d), if the EPA
determines that an area did not attain
the NAAQS by the applicable deadline,
the responsible air agency is required,
within one year from the publication
12 D. Guam, Case 1:20–cv–00007, Document 5,
Filed 04/20/20.
13 D. Guam, Case 1:20–cv–00007, Document 7,
Filed 01/14/22.
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date of the finding, to submit a revised
plan for the area demonstrating
attainment and containing any
additional measures that the EPA may
reasonably prescribe that can be feasibly
implemented in the area in light of
technological achievability, costs, and
any non-air quality and other air
quality-related health and
environmental impacts as required.
Under CAA section 179(d)(3), such a
revised SIP submission is required to
achieve attainment of the 2010 SO2
NAAQS as expeditiously as practicable,
but no later than five years from the date
of notice of the area’s failure to attain
(i.e., five years after the EPA publishes
a determination in the Federal Register
that the area failed to attain the 2010
SO2 NAAQS).
The EPA anticipates that Guam’s
submission of a complete SO2
attainment plan for the new attainment
date in response to this finding of
failure to attain would also address the
Territory’s existing obligations to submit
an attainment plan for the 2010 SO2
NAAQS.
III. The EPA’s Action
Based on the EPA’s review of
available evidence described in this
document, the EPA finds that the PitiCabras area failed to attain the 2010 1hour primary SO2 NAAQS by the
statutory attainment date of April 9,
2023. This determination triggers the
requirements of CAA section 179(d) for
the Territory of Guam to submit a
revision to the Guam SIP for the PitiCabras nonattainment area to the EPA
within one year after publication of this
determination in the Federal Register.
The SIP revision must, among other
elements, provide for attainment of the
1-hour primary SO2 NAAQS in the Piti-
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Cabras nonattainment area as
expeditiously as practicable but no later
than five years after publication of this
determination in the Federal Register.
This action will not affect the
designation status of the area, and the
Piti-Cabras area will remain designated
nonattainment for the 2010 SO2 NAAQS
until the area meets the requirements of
the CAA for redesignation and the EPA
takes action to redesignate the area. This
action addresses the EPA’s obligation
under CAA section 179(c) to determine
if the Piti-Cabras area attained the 2010
1-hour SO2 NAAQS by the April 9, 2023
attainment date.
IV. Statutory and Executive Order
Reviews
A. Executive Order 12866: Regulatory
Planning and Review, and Executive
Order 14094: Modernizing Regulatory
Review
This action is not a ‘‘significant
regulatory action’’ under the terms of
Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 51735,
October 4, 1993) and is therefore not
subject to review under Executive Order
14094 (88 FR 21879, April 11, 2023).
B. Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA)
This action does not impose an
information collection burden under the
provisions of the PRA of 1995 (44 U.S.C.
3501 et seq.). This action does not
contain any information collection
activities and serves only to make a
determination that the Piti-Cabras
nonattainment area failed to attain the
2010 SO2 primary standard by the April
9, 2023 attainment date.
lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1
C. Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA)
I certify that this action will not have
a significant economic impact on a
substantial number of small entities
under the RFA (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.).
This action will not impose any
requirements on small entities. The
determination of failure to attain the
2010 1-hour primary SO2 NAAQS, does
not create any new requirements beyond
what is mandated by the CAA.
D. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act
(UMRA)
This action does not contain any
unfunded mandate as described in
UMRA, 2 U.S.C. 1531–1538 and does
not significantly or uniquely affect small
governments. The action imposes no
enforceable duty on any state, local or
tribal governments or the private sector.
E. Executive Order 13132: Federalism
This action does not have federalism
implications. It will not have substantial
direct effects on the states, on the
relationship between the national
VerDate Sep<11>2014
18:08 Dec 18, 2024
Jkt 265001
government and the states, or on the
distribution of power and
responsibilities among the various
levels of government. The division of
responsibility between the Federal
government and the states for purposes
of implementing the NAAQS is
established under the CAA.
F. Executive Order 13175: Consultation
and Coordination With Indian Tribal
Governments
Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249,
November 9, 2000), requires the EPA to
develop an accountable process to
ensure ‘‘meaningful and timely input by
Tribal officials in the development of
regulatory policies that have Tribal
implications.’’ This action does not have
Tribal implications as specified in
Executive Order 13175. This action does
not apply on any Indian reservation
land, any other area where EPA or an
Indian tribe has demonstrated that a
Tribe has jurisdiction, or nonreservation areas of Indian country.
Thus, Executive Order 13175 does not
apply to this action.
G. Executive Order 13045: Protection of
Children From Environmental Health
and Safety Risks
The EPA interprets Executive Order
13045 (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997) as
applying to those regulatory actions that
concern environmental health or safety
risks that the EPA has reason to believe
may disproportionately affect children,
per the definition of ‘‘covered regulatory
action’’ in section 2–202 of the
Executive Order. This action is not
subject to Executive Order 13045
because it does not establish an
environmental standard intended to
mitigate health or safety risks.
H. Executive Order 13211: Actions That
Significantly Affect Energy Supply,
Distribution, or Use
This action is not subject to Executive
Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22,
2001) because it is not a significant
regulatory action under Executive Order
12866.
I. National Technology Transfer and
Advancement Act (NTTAA)
This action does not involve technical
standards. Therefore, the EPA is not
considering the use of any voluntary
consensus standards.
J. Executive Order 12898: Federal
Actions To Address Environmental
Justice in Minority Populations and
Low-Income Populations
Executive Order 12898 (Federal
Actions To Address Environmental
Justice in Minority Populations and
PO 00000
Frm 00060
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 9990
103823
Low-Income Populations, 59 FR 7629,
February 16, 1994) directs Federal
agencies to identify and address
‘‘disproportionately high and adverse
human health or environmental effects’’
of their actions on communities with
environmental justice (EJ) concerns to
the greatest extent practicable and
permitted by law. The EPA defines EJ as
‘‘the fair treatment and meaningful
involvement of all people regardless of
race, color, national origin, or income
with respect to the development,
implementation, and enforcement of
environmental laws, regulations, and
policies.’’ The EPA further defines the
term fair treatment to mean that ‘‘no
group of people should bear a
disproportionate burden of
environmental harms and risks,
including those resulting from the
negative environmental consequences of
industrial, governmental, and
commercial operations or programs and
policies.’’
The EPA did not perform an EJ
analysis and did not consider EJ in this
action. Due to the nature of the action
being taken here, this action is expected
to have a neutral to positive impact on
the air quality of the affected area.
Consideration of EJ is not required as
part of this action, and there is no
information in the record inconsistent
with the stated goal of E.O. 12898 of
achieving environmental justice for
communities with EJ concerns.
K. Congressional Review Act
This action is not a rule and is
therefore not subject to the CRA. The
action is an informal adjudication
dealing with the application of specific
facts to preestablished discernible
criteria.
L. Judicial Review
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 February 18, 2025. Filing a
petition for reconsideration by the
Administrator of this action 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
this action. This action may not be
challenged later in proceedings to
enforce its requirements. (See section
307(b)(2).)
Dated: December 10, 2024.
Martha Guzman Aceves,
Regional Administrator, Region IX.
[FR Doc. 2024–29507 Filed 12–18–24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
E:\FR\FM\19DEN1.SGM
19DEN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 244 (Thursday, December 19, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 103819-103823]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-29507]
=======================================================================
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[EPA-R09-OAR-2024-0510; FRL-12382-01-R9]
Finding of Failure To Attain by the Attainment Date for the 2010
1-Hour Primary Sulfur Dioxide National Ambient Air Quality Standard;
Guam; Piti-Cabras Nonattainment Area
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Determination of nonattainment.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is determining that
the Piti-Cabras, Guam, sulfur dioxide (SO2) nonattainment
area (NAA) failed to attain the 2010 1-hour SO2 primary
national ambient air quality standard (NAAQS, ``standard,'' or ``2010
SO2 NAAQS'') by the applicable statutory attainment date of
April 9, 2023. This determination is based on an analysis of available
modeling, emissions data, and information concerning control strategy
implementation. This action addresses the EPA's obligation under Clean
Air Act (CAA) section 179(c) to determine whether the Piti-Cabras
SO2 NAA (``Piti-Cabras area'') attained the 2010
SO2 NAAQS by the April 9, 2023 attainment date.
ADDRESSES: The EPA has established a docket for this action under
Docket ID No. EPA-R09-OAR-2024-0510. All documents in the docket are
listed on the https://www.regulations.gov website. Although listed in
the index, some information is not publicly available, e.g.,
Confidential Business Information or other information whose disclosure
is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such as copyrighted
material, is not placed on the internet and will be publicly available
only in hard copy form. Publicly available docket materials are
available through https://www.regulations.gov, or please contact the
person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section for
additional availability information. If you need assistance in a
language other than English or if you are a person with a disability
who needs a reasonable accommodation at no cost to you, please contact
the person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Andrew Ledezma, Air Planning Office
(ARD-2), EPA Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105,
(415) 972-3985, or by email at [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, ``we,'' ``us,''
and ``our'' refer to the EPA.
[[Page 103820]]
Table of Contents
I. Background
A. The 2010 1-Hour Primary SO4 NAAQS
B. Designations, Classifications, and Attainment Dates for the
2010 SO2 NAAQS
C. Determinations of Attainment by the Attainment Date
II. The EPA's Evaluation and Determination
A. Area Characterization
B. Evaluation of SO2 Modeling, Emissions Data, and
Control Strategy Implementation Information
C. Conclusion
III. The EPA's Action
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Review
I. Background
A. The 2010 1-Hour Primary SO2 NAAQS
Under section 109 of the CAA, the EPA has established primary and
secondary NAAQS for certain pervasive air pollutants (referred to as
``criteria pollutants'') and conducts periodic reviews of the NAAQS to
determine whether they should be revised or whether new NAAQS should be
established. The primary NAAQS represent ambient air quality standards
that the EPA has determined are requisite to protect public health with
an adequate margin of safety, while the secondary NAAQS represent
ambient air quality standards that the EPA has determined are requisite
to protect public welfare from any known or anticipated adverse effects
associated with the presence of the air pollutant in the ambient air.
Under the CAA, the EPA must establish a NAAQS for SO2,
which is primarily released to the atmosphere through the burning of
fossil fuels by power plants and other industrial facilities.
SO2 is also emitted from industrial processes, including
metal extraction from ore and heavy equipment that burn fuel with a
high sulfur content. Short term exposure to SO2 can damage
the human respiratory system and increase breathing difficulties. Small
children and people with respiratory conditions, such as asthma, are
more sensitive to the effects of SO2. Sulfur oxides at high
concentrations in ambient air can also react with compounds to form
small particulates (fine particulate matter, or ``PM2.5'')
that can penetrate deeply into the lungs and cause acute health
problems and/or chronic diseases. The EPA first established primary
SO2 standards in 1971 at 140 parts per billion (ppb) over a
24-hour averaging period and at 30 ppb over an annual averaging
period.\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ 36 FR 8186 (April 30, 1971).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
On June 22, 2010, the EPA published in the Federal Register a
strengthened, primary 1-hour SO2 NAAQS, establishing a new
standard at a level of 75 ppb, based on the 3-year average of the
annual 99th percentile of daily maximum 1-hour average concentrations
of SO2.\2\ The revised SO2 NAAQS provides
increased protection of public health. Along with revision of the
SO2 NAAQS, the EPA revoked the 1971 primary annual and 24-
hour SO2 standards for most areas of the country following
area designations under the new NAAQS.\3\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ 75 FR 35520, codified at 40 CFR 50.17.
\3\ 75 FR at 35592, codified at 40 CFR 50.4(e).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
B. Designations, Classifications, and Attainment Dates for the 2010 SO2
NAAQS
Following promulgation of a new or revised NAAQS, the EPA is
required to designate all areas of the country as either
``attainment,'' ``nonattainment,'' or ``unclassifiable,'' pursuant to
CAA section 107(d)(1).
On December 21, 2017, the EPA designated as nonattainment six areas
in three states and two territories in the third round of
SO2 designations.\4\ With that action, the EPA designated as
nonattainment the portion of Guam within a 6.074-km radius centered on
universal transverse mercator (UTM) easting 249,601.60 meters and UTM
northing 1,489,602 meters (UTM zone 55N).\5\ Pursuant to section 192(a)
of the CAA, the statutory attainment date for the Piti-Cabras area was
established as no later than five years after the effective date of the
initial designation, i.e., April 9, 2023.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ 83 FR 1098 (January 9, 2018).
\5\ For designations technical discussions, see EPA's Technical
Support Document, Chapter 11, Section 3, 6-26, at https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2017-08/documents/11_guam_so2_rd3-final.pdf, available in the docket for this action.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
CAA section 191(a) requires states that contain an area designated
nonattainment for the 2010 1-hour primary SO2 NAAQS to
develop and submit an NAA state implementation plan (SIP) to the EPA
within 18 months of the effective date of an area's designation as
nonattainment. For SO2, a NAA SIP submission (also referred
to as an attainment plan) must meet the requirements of sections 110,
172(c), 191, and 192 of the CAA, and provide for attainment of the
NAAQS by the applicable statutory attainment date, i.e., no later than
five years from the effective date of the area's nonattainment
designation. The effective date of the Piti-Cabras area nonattainment
designation is April 9, 2018, so the attainment plan for the area was
due on October 9, 2019. On November 3, 2020, the EPA issued a finding
that Guam failed to submit a SIP revision for the Piti-Cabras area;
this finding became effective on December 4, 2020.\6\ Guam has not
submitted a SIP revision for the Piti-Cabras area.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\6\ 85 FR 69504 (November 3, 2020).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
C. Determinations of Attainment by the Attainment Date
Section 179(c)(1) of the CAA requires the EPA to determine whether
a NAA attained an applicable standard by the applicable statutory
attainment date based on the area's air quality as of the attainment
date within six months of the attainment date. Thus, the EPA had a
mandatory duty under CAA section 179(c) to determine by October 9,
2023, whether the Piti-Cabras SO2 NAA attained the 2010
SO2 NAAQS by the statutory attainment date of April 9, 2023.
A determination of whether an area's air quality meets applicable
standards is generally based upon the most recent three years of
complete, quality-assured data gathered at established state and local
air monitoring stations (SLAMS) in the NAA and other available
information. The EPA's April 23, 2014 memorandum, ``Guidance for 1-Hour
SO2 Nonattainment Area SIP Submissions,'' states, ``[t]he
EPA will determine whether or not an SO2 nonattainment area
has attained the NAAQS based on air quality monitoring data (when
available) and air quality dispersion modeling information for the
affected area, and/or a demonstration that the control strategy has
been fully implemented.'' \7\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\7\ Guidance for 1-Hour SO2 Nonattainment Area SIP
Submissions; EPA, April 23, 2014, can be found at https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2016-06/documents/20140423guidance_nonattainment_sip.pdf.
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[[Page 103821]]
In the case of the Piti-Cabras area, the relevant three years
preceding the statutory attainment date are 2020-2022. There are no
available SO2 monitoring data from the Piti-Cabras
SO2 NAA in this period, and the only modeling results
submitted by the Guam Environmental Protection Agency (Guam EPA) were
the results from the time of designation, which showed violations of
the NAAQS.\8\ The modeling analysis included the largest sources of
SO2 emissions in the area and relied upon actual hourly
emissions rates from 2011-2013. In addition, as noted above, Guam has
not submitted a modeled attainment demonstration or control strategy
(via SIP revision) for the NAA.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\8\ For designations technical discussions, see EPA's Technical
Support Document, Chapter 11, Section 3, 6-26, at https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2017-08/documents/11_guam_so2_rd3-final.pdf, available in the docket for this action.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
In the absence of monitoring data and updated modeling analyses,
the EPA is evaluating whether the Piti-Cabras area attained the 2010 1-
hour primary SO2 NAAQS by the applicable statutory
attainment date of April 9, 2023, based on available modeling,
emissions data, and information concerning control strategy
implementation.
II. The EPA's Evaluation and Determination
A. Area Characterization
The Piti-Cabras area is located on the western side of the island
of Guam, centered on the Piti and Cabras power plants. The Piti
facility (also referred to as ``MEC'' by Guam), consists of Units 8 and
9, and the Cabras facility consists of four units (two of which, Cabras
3 and 4, have ceased operation). These two facilities are the primary
sources of SO2 in the area. Nearby, the ``TEMES'' power
plant, commercial marine vessel ports, and the United States Navy
(``Navy'') marine vessel port are also significant sources of
SO2.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\9\ Id.
\10\ SO2 NAAQS Designations Modeling Technical
Assistance Document, EPA, August 2016, available at https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2016-04/documents/so2modelingtad.pdf
and available in the docket for this action.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
B. Evaluation of SO2 Modeling, Emissions Data, and Control Strategy
Implementation Information
First, to determine whether the Piti-Cabras area attained the
NAAQS, the EPA considered the modeling that was conducted for the
designation of the Piti-Cabras area as nonattainment. As noted earlier,
the EPA based the nonattainment designation for the Piti-Cabras area on
modeling submitted by Guam EPA. In our review of that modeling, as
documented in the EPA's Technical Support Document (TSD) \9\
accompanying the designation, we concluded that the source
characterization, modeling parameters, and techniques submitted by Guam
EPA for this designation conformed with the EPA's August 2016 guidance
document, ``SO2 NAAQS Designations Modeling Technical
Assistance Document.'' \10\
The EPA's designation of the Piti-Cabras area relied on the modeled
SO2 emissions for the years 2011-2013. The Piti, Cabras, and
TEMES stationary sources, along with marine sources from the commercial
and Navy ports, were modeled as the largest sources of SO2
emissions in the Piti-Cabras area. For the stationary sources,
SO2 emissions are generated by combusting diesel fuel for
electricity generation. Guam Power Authority (GPA), the owner and
operator of the Piti, Cabras, and TEMES facilities, compiled the data
needed to calculate hourly emissions rates for 2011-2013 based on AP-42
emissions factors and hourly production data for each unit included in
the modeling. For maritime sources, SO2 emissions are
generated by fuel combustion from docking and hoteling at the
commercial and Navy ports. Guam EPA used reports of vessels docking and
hoteling at the ports and AP-42 emissions factors to calculate hourly
emissions rates to include in the modeling.
The peak modeled receptor design value (DV) from the EPA's
designations TSD is summarized in Table 1. The modeling analysis showed
that the area was violating the 2010 1-hour primary SO2
NAAQS based on source emissions from 2011-2013, with a modeled DV of
585 [micro]g/m\3\, nearly three times the value of the 2010 1-hour
primary SO2 NAAQS level of 196.4 [micro]g/m\3\ (equivalent
to 75 ppb).
Table 1--Summary of 2011-2013 Peak Modeled Receptor 1-Hour SO2 Design Value for the Piti-Cabras Area \a\
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
99th percentile daily maximum 1-hour SO2
concentration ([micro]g/m\3\)
Averaging period Data period -----------------------------------------------
Modeled concentration
(including background) NAAQS level
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
99th Percentile 1-hour average.................. 2011-2013 585 \b\ 196.4
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\a\ Retrieved from EPA's Technical Support Document, Chapter 11, Section 3, 6-26, at https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2017-08/documents/11_guam_so2_rd3-final.pdf, available in the docket for this action.
\b\ Equivalent to the 2010 SO2 NAAQS of 75 ppb using 2.619 [micro]g/m\3\ conversion factor.
We note that, on September 24, 2024, GPA sent the EPA draft
modeling files intended to support a modeled attainment demonstration
for the Piti-Cabras area.\11\ The EPA is reviewing these files and
related information and has not yet determined whether they meet the
requirements for such a demonstration. However, we note that, even if
the modeling is found to be technically sound, the emissions limits
relied upon in that modeling did not take effect under Guam law until
after the attainment date, as explained later in Section II.B of this
document. Therefore, the results of this modeling cannot be relied upon
to determine whether the area attained the NAAQS by the attainment
date.
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\11\ See two emails dated September 24, 2024 from Roland T.
Gutierrez, Environmental Manager, GPA, to Gale Hoffnagle, Senior
Vice President and Technical Director, TRC Corporation, Subject:
``SIP Modeling Files,'' and from Gale Hoffnagle to Andrew Ledezma,
EPA, Subject: ``RE: SIP Modeling Files.msg,'' included in the docket
for this action.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Second, to determine whether the Piti-Cabras area attained the
NAAQS, the EPA considered annual SO2 emissions trends for
the most significant SO2 sources in the area using emissions
inventory information provided by Guam EPA. Table 2 lists the average
reported actual SO2 emissions for 2011-2013, which were the
emissions used in the air quality modeling underlying the EPA's
designation of the area as nonattainment, as well as SO2
emissions for 2020. While the relevant three-year DV period for the
April 9, 2023
[[Page 103822]]
attainment date was from 2020-2022, we have only received complete
actual emissions data for 2020. Therefore, we are considering those
emissions because this is the most recent, complete emissions inventory
available based on actual emissions from the 2020-2022 DV time period.
Table 2--Annual Emissions From SO2 Sources in the Piti-Cabras Area for
2011-2013 Average Actual Emissions and 2020 Actual Emissions
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Actual SO2 emissions (tons per year,
tpy)
Facility name -------------------------------------
2011-2013
(average) \a\ 2020 \b\
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cabras............................ 8,891 6,816
Piti (MEC)........................ 4,828 2,297
TEMES............................. 2 0.11
Marine Vessels.................... 76 84
-------------------------------------
Total \c\..................... 13,797 9,197
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\a\ Actual SO2 emissions retrieved from EPA's Technical Support
Document, Chapter 11, Section 3, 6-26, at https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2017-08/documents/11_guam_so2_rd3-final.pdf, available
in the docket for this action.
\b\ Actual SO2 emissions retrieved from Guam EPA's April 2024 draft SIP,
Appendix A, available in the docket for this action.
\c\ Totals may not be a precise addition of all rows due to rounding.
These data show that some reductions in SO2 emissions
did occur prior to the attainment date, as annual emissions from 2020
were 9,197 tpy, approximately 33 percent lower than the 2011-2013
average emissions of 13,797 tpy. However, there is no evidence that we
are aware of to suggest that this level of emissions reductions was
sufficient to attain the NAAQS given that the modeled 2011-2013 design
value was 585 [micro]g/m\3\, nearly three times the NAAQS level of
196.4 [micro]g/m\3\. Although the reduction of 4,600 tpy of emissions
over this time period likely lowered the design value in 2020-2022, as
compared with 2011-2013, additional information would be needed to
determine whether such reductions were sufficient to provide for
attainment of the NAAQS.
Third, to determine whether the Piti-Cabras area attained the
NAAQS, the EPA considered the available information about control
strategy implementation. On June 30, 2023, the Guam Legislature adopted
Substitute Bill No. 101-37 (COR), ``An Act to Repeal and Reenact Sec.
1310 of Article 1, Chapter 1, Title 22 Guam Administrative Rules and
Regulations, Relative to Adopting Updated Emission Standards For Sulfur
Oxides From Fuel Combustion to Ensure the Island of Guam Meets the
National Ambient Air Quality Standards For Sulfur Dioxide Transmitted
by the Guam Environmental Protection Agency.'' Revised Title 22,
Section 1310 of the Guam Administrative Rules and Regulations (``Rule
1310'') sets fuel sulfur content limits of 0.2 percent for Cabras Units
1 and 2, and 0.0015 percent for all other sources except ocean-going
vessels. The revised rule took effect on July 12, 2023. Rule 1310 was
designed as the control strategy for attainment of the 2010
SO2 NAAQS in the Piti-Cabras area but was not adopted and
implemented until after the applicable attainment date of April 9,
2023, indicating that the control strategy that Guam EPA believes is
needed to attain the NAAQS was not fully implemented by that date.
Furthermore, we note that, while some of the emissions reductions that
Guam EPA believes are needed for attainment were required to occur
earlier under a consent decree between the United States and GPA,\12\
following a modification to the consent decree,\13\ the compliance
dates for several of the controls were revised to July 1, 2022 (for
Piti Units 8 and 9) and December 31, 2022 (for Cabras Units 1 and 2).
Given that these dates were near to or at the end of the 2020-2022 DV
period, there is no evidence that the original modeled violations were
remedied in time to achieve an attaining design value in the three-year
2020-2022 period.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\12\ D. Guam, Case 1:20-cv-00007, Document 5, Filed 04/20/20.
\13\ D. Guam, Case 1:20-cv-00007, Document 7, Filed 01/14/22.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
C. Conclusion
We find that the Piti-Cabras area failed to attain the 2010 1-hour
primary SO2 NAAQS by the statutory attainment date of April
9, 2023, based on available modeling, emissions data, and information
concerning control strategy implementation.
Under CAA section 179(d), if the EPA determines that an area did
not attain the NAAQS by the applicable deadline, the responsible air
agency is required, within one year from the publication date of the
finding, to submit a revised plan for the area demonstrating attainment
and containing any additional measures that the EPA may reasonably
prescribe that can be feasibly implemented in the area in light of
technological achievability, costs, and any non-air quality and other
air quality-related health and environmental impacts as required. Under
CAA section 179(d)(3), such a revised SIP submission is required to
achieve attainment of the 2010 SO2 NAAQS as expeditiously as
practicable, but no later than five years from the date of notice of
the area's failure to attain (i.e., five years after the EPA publishes
a determination in the Federal Register that the area failed to attain
the 2010 SO2 NAAQS).
The EPA anticipates that Guam's submission of a complete
SO2 attainment plan for the new attainment date in response
to this finding of failure to attain would also address the Territory's
existing obligations to submit an attainment plan for the 2010
SO2 NAAQS.
III. The EPA's Action
Based on the EPA's review of available evidence described in this
document, the EPA finds that the Piti-Cabras area failed to attain the
2010 1-hour primary SO2 NAAQS by the statutory attainment
date of April 9, 2023. This determination triggers the requirements of
CAA section 179(d) for the Territory of Guam to submit a revision to
the Guam SIP for the Piti-Cabras nonattainment area to the EPA within
one year after publication of this determination in the Federal
Register. The SIP revision must, among other elements, provide for
attainment of the 1-hour primary SO2 NAAQS in the Piti-
[[Page 103823]]
Cabras nonattainment area as expeditiously as practicable but no later
than five years after publication of this determination in the Federal
Register. This action will not affect the designation status of the
area, and the Piti-Cabras area will remain designated nonattainment for
the 2010 SO2 NAAQS until the area meets the requirements of
the CAA for redesignation and the EPA takes action to redesignate the
area. This action addresses the EPA's obligation under CAA section
179(c) to determine if the Piti-Cabras area attained the 2010 1-hour
SO2 NAAQS by the April 9, 2023 attainment date.
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
A. Executive Order 12866: Regulatory Planning and Review, and Executive
Order 14094: Modernizing Regulatory Review
This action is not a ``significant regulatory action'' under the
terms of Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993) and is
therefore not subject to review under Executive Order 14094 (88 FR
21879, April 11, 2023).
B. Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA)
This action does not impose an information collection burden under
the provisions of the PRA of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). This action
does not contain any information collection activities and serves only
to make a determination that the Piti-Cabras nonattainment area failed
to attain the 2010 SO2 primary standard by the April 9, 2023
attainment date.
C. Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA)
I certify that this action will not have a significant economic
impact on a substantial number of small entities under the RFA (5
U.S.C. 601 et seq.). This action will not impose any requirements on
small entities. The determination of failure to attain the 2010 1-hour
primary SO2 NAAQS, does not create any new requirements
beyond what is mandated by the CAA.
D. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA)
This action does not contain any unfunded mandate as described in
UMRA, 2 U.S.C. 1531-1538 and does not significantly or uniquely affect
small governments. The action imposes no enforceable duty on any state,
local or tribal governments or the private sector.
E. Executive Order 13132: Federalism
This action does not have federalism implications. It will not have
substantial direct effects on the states, on the relationship between
the national government and the states, or on the distribution of power
and responsibilities among the various levels of government. The
division of responsibility between the Federal government and the
states for purposes of implementing the NAAQS is established under the
CAA.
F. Executive Order 13175: Consultation and Coordination With Indian
Tribal Governments
Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000), requires the
EPA to develop an accountable process to ensure ``meaningful and timely
input by Tribal officials in the development of regulatory policies
that have Tribal implications.'' This action does not have Tribal
implications as specified in Executive Order 13175. This action does
not apply on any Indian reservation land, any other area where EPA or
an Indian tribe has demonstrated that a Tribe has jurisdiction, or non-
reservation areas of Indian country. Thus, Executive Order 13175 does
not apply to this action.
G. Executive Order 13045: Protection of Children From Environmental
Health and Safety Risks
The EPA interprets Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 19885, April 23,
1997) as applying to those regulatory actions that concern
environmental health or safety risks that the EPA has reason to believe
may disproportionately affect children, per the definition of ``covered
regulatory action'' in section 2-202 of the Executive Order. This
action is not subject to Executive Order 13045 because it does not
establish an environmental standard intended to mitigate health or
safety risks.
H. Executive Order 13211: Actions That Significantly Affect Energy
Supply, Distribution, or Use
This action is not subject to Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355,
May 22, 2001) because it is not a significant regulatory action under
Executive Order 12866.
I. National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (NTTAA)
This action does not involve technical standards. Therefore, the
EPA is not considering the use of any voluntary consensus standards.
J. Executive Order 12898: Federal Actions To Address Environmental
Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations
Executive Order 12898 (Federal Actions To Address Environmental
Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations, 59 FR 7629,
February 16, 1994) directs Federal agencies to identify and address
``disproportionately high and adverse human health or environmental
effects'' of their actions on communities with environmental justice
(EJ) concerns to the greatest extent practicable and permitted by law.
The EPA defines EJ as ``the fair treatment and meaningful involvement
of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income
with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of
environmental laws, regulations, and policies.'' The EPA further
defines the term fair treatment to mean that ``no group of people
should bear a disproportionate burden of environmental harms and risks,
including those resulting from the negative environmental consequences
of industrial, governmental, and commercial operations or programs and
policies.''
The EPA did not perform an EJ analysis and did not consider EJ in
this action. Due to the nature of the action being taken here, this
action is expected to have a neutral to positive impact on the air
quality of the affected area. Consideration of EJ is not required as
part of this action, and there is no information in the record
inconsistent with the stated goal of E.O. 12898 of achieving
environmental justice for communities with EJ concerns.
K. Congressional Review Act
This action is not a rule and is therefore not subject to the CRA.
The action is an informal adjudication dealing with the application of
specific facts to preestablished discernible criteria.
L. Judicial Review
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 February 18, 2025. Filing a petition for
reconsideration by the Administrator of this action 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 this action. This
action may not be challenged later in proceedings to enforce its
requirements. (See section 307(b)(2).)
Dated: December 10, 2024.
Martha Guzman Aceves,
Regional Administrator, Region IX.
[FR Doc. 2024-29507 Filed 12-18-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
