Environmental Protection Agency September 15, 2011 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

EPA announced a 60-day public comment period and a listening session on August 31, 2011 (76 FR 54227) for the external review draft human health assessment titled, ``Toxicological Review of n-Butanol: In Support of Summary Information on the Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS)'' (EPA/635/R-11/081A). EPA is extending the public comment period one week because of a one-week delay in the release of the Toxicological Review to the public. The draft assessment was prepared by the National Center for Environmental Assessment (NCEA) within the EPA Office of Research and Development (ORD). EPA is releasing this draft assessment solely for the purpose of pre- dissemination peer review under applicable information quality guidelines. This draft assessment has not been formally disseminated by EPA. It does not represent and should not be construed to represent any Agency policy or determination. After public review and comment, an EPA contractor will convene an expert panel for independent external peer review of this draft assessment. The public comment period and external peer review meeting are separate processes that provide opportunities for all interested parties to comment on the assessment. The external peer review meeting will be scheduled at a later date and announced in the Federal Register. Public comments submitted during the public comment period will be provided to the external peer reviewers before the panel meeting and considered by EPA in the disposition of public comments. Public comments received after the public comment period closes will not be submitted to the external peer reviewers and will only be considered by EPA if time permits. The listening session will be held on October 26, 2011, during the public comment period for this draft assessment. The purpose of the listening session is to allow all interested parties to present scientific and technical comments on draft IRIS health assessments to EPA and other interested parties attending the listening session.

On July 25, 2011, EPA published a direct final rule approving portions of three revisions to the Texas State Implementation Plan (SIP) submitted on August 31, 1993; July 22, 1998; and October 5, 2010. The revisions amend existing sections and create new sections in Title 30 of the Texas Administrative Code (TAC), Chapter 116Control of Air Pollution by Permits for New Construction or Modification. The August 31, 1993, revision creates two new sections at 30 TAC 116.174 and 116.175 for the use of emission reductions as offsets in new source review permitting. The July 22, 1998, revision creates 30 TAC 116.116(f) allowing for the use of Discrete Emission Reduction Credits (DERC) to exceed emission limits in permits (permit allowables) and amends 30 TAC 116.174 to update internal citations to other Texas regulations. The October 5, 2010, revision amends 30 TAC 116.116(f) to update internal citations to other Texas regulations. The direct final action was published without prior proposal because EPA anticipated no adverse comments. EPA stated in the direct final rule that if we received relevant, adverse comments by August 24, 2011, EPA would publish a timely withdrawal in the Federal Register. EPA subsequently received timely adverse comments on the direct final rule. Therefore, EPA is withdrawing the direct final approval. EPA will address all relevant, adverse comments submitted by August 24, 2011, in a subsequent final action based on the parallel proposal also published on July 25, 2011. As stated in the parallel proposal, EPA will not institute a second comment period on this action.

EPA proposes to approve the State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision submitted by the State of West Virginia for the purpose of amending the 8-hour ozone maintenance plan for the Charleston, Huntington, Parkersburg, Weirton, and Wheeling 8-hour ozone maintenance areas. This revision amends the maintenance plans' 2009 and 2018 motor vehicle emissions budgets (MVEBs) by reallocating a portion of the plans' safety margins which results in an increase in the MVEBs. In the Final Rules section of this Federal Register, EPA is approving the State's SIP submittal as a direct final rule without prior proposal because the Agency views this as a noncontroversial submittal and anticipates no adverse comments. A detailed rationale for the approval is set forth in the direct final rule. If no adverse comments are received in response to this action, no further activity is contemplated. If EPA receives adverse comments, the direct final rule will be withdrawn and all public comments received will be addressed in a subsequent final rule based on this proposed rule. EPA will not institute a second comment period. Any parties interested in commenting on this action should do so at this time.

EPA and NHTSA, on behalf of the Department of Transportation, are each finalizing rules to establish a comprehensive Heavy-Duty National Program that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and fuel consumption for on-road heavy-duty vehicles, responding to the President's directive on May 21, 2010, to take coordinated steps to produce a new generation of clean vehicles. NHTSA's final fuel consumption standards and EPA's final carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions standards are tailored to each of three regulatory categories of heavy-duty vehicles: Combination Tractors; Heavy-duty Pickup Trucks and Vans; and Vocational Vehicles. The rules include separate standards for the engines that power combination tractors and vocational vehicles. Certain rules are exclusive to the EPA program. These include EPA's final hydrofluorocarbon standards to control leakage from air conditioning systems in combination tractors, and pickup trucks and vans. These also include EPA's final nitrous oxide (N2O) and methane (CH4) emissions standards that apply to all heavy- duty engines, pickup trucks and vans. EPA's final greenhouse gas emission standards under the Clean Air Act will begin with model year 2014. NHTSA's final fuel consumption standards under the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 will be voluntary in model years 2014 and 2015, becoming mandatory with model year 2016 for most regulatory categories. Commercial trailers are not regulated in this phase of the Heavy-Duty National Program. The agencies estimate that the combined standards will reduce CO2 emissions by approximately 270 million metric tons and save 530 million barrels of oil over the life of vehicles sold during the 2014 through 2018 model years, providing over $7 billion in net societal benefits, and $49 billion in net societal benefits when private fuel savings are considered. EPA is also finalizing provisions allowing light-duty vehicle manufacturers to use CO2 credits to meet the light-duty vehicle N2O and CH4 standards, technical amendments to the fuel economy provisions for light-duty vehicles, and a technical amendment to the criteria pollutant emissions requirements for certain switch locomotives.