Environmental Protection Agency August 3, 2012 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Under Section 122(h) of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980, as amended (``CERCLA''), notice is hereby given of two proposed administrative settlements for recovery of past response costs concerning the Buckbee-Mears Co. Superfund Site located in Cortland, Cortland County, New York (the ``Site'') with each of the following settling parties: the City of Cortland (``City'') and the County of Cortland (``County'')(collectively the ``Municipal Settlements''). In order to resolve competing liens on two parcels of land within the Site (``Properties''), the Municipal Settlements provide that the City and the County agree to facilitate the sale and redevelopment of the Properties. In addition, if the Properties are sold pursuant to a pending foreclosure action by the State Bank of India, New York Branch (the ``Bank''), the Bank will pay to the City, in full satisfaction of the City's tax lien, the greater of $302,881 (being the amount of City Taxes in arrears as of September 29, 2006) or fifteen percent (15%) of the proceeds from the sale of the Properties, and the Bank will pay to the County $2,120 in full satisfaction of its tax lien, after the Bank is paid $150,000 attributable to the costs of marketing and selling the Properties. Any proceeds from the Bank's foreclosure sale remaining after the above payments to the Bank, the City and the County, shall be distributed in proportion to the percentage that the following amounts represent in relation to the combined total of said amounts: (1) For EPA, $8,323,204; (2) for the Bank, $8,434,911; (3) for the City, $1,194,043 minus the greater of $302,881 or fifteen percent (15%) of the proceeds from the sale of the Properties. Also under the terms of the Municipal Agreements, if the Properties are not sold through the Bank's foreclosure action, the City and County will foreclosure on the Properties, transfer the Properties and pay to EPA 50% of the selling price, after the transaction costs associated with the sale have been paid. The transaction costs are capped at $5,000 for the County and $150,000 for the City. EPA has also agreed to discharge its CERCLA Section 107(l) lien on the Properties and has agreed to waive any windfall lien it may have on the Properties under CERCLA Section 107(r). For thirty (30) days following the date of publication of this notice, the Agency will receive written comments relating to the Municipal Agreements. The Agency will consider all comments received and may modify or withdraw its consent to the two settlements if comments received disclose facts or considerations which indicate that either of the settlements is inappropriate, improper, or inadequate.

EPA is proposing to approve in part, and conditionally approve in part, the State Implementation Plan (SIP) revisions, submitted by the Commonwealth of Kentucky through the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet, Division for Air Quality (DAQ), as demonstrating that the Commonwealth meets the requirements of sections 110(a)(1) and (2) of the Clean Air Act (CAA or Act) for the 1997 annual and 2006 24- hour fine particulate matter (PM2.5) national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS). Kentucky certified that the Kentucky SIP contains provisions that ensure the 1997 annual and 2006 24-hour PM2.5 NAAQS are implemented, enforced, and maintained in Kentucky (hereafter referred to as ``infrastructure submission''). EPA is now taking three related actions on Kentucky DAQ's infrastructure submissions for the Commonwealth. First, EPA is proposing to determine that Kentucky DAQ's infrastructure submissions, provided to EPA on August 26, 2008, and July 17, 2012, satisfy certain required infrastructure elements for the 1997 annual and 2006 24-hour PM2.5 NAAQS. Second, EPA is proposing to approve several Kentucky Revised Statutes (KRS) into the SIP to address element 110(a)(2)(E)(ii), that relates to state board requirements. Third, with respect to sections 110(a)(2)(C) and 110(a)(2)(J) as they relate to PSD requirements, EPA is proposing to conditionally approve the SIP submissions as meeting these requirements.

EPA is promulgating a rule that identifies provisions of Florida's Water Quality Standards for Phosphorus in the Everglades Protection Area (Phosphorus Rule) and Florida's Amended Everglades Forever Act (EFA) that EPA has disapproved and that therefore are not applicable water quality standards for purposes of the Clean Water Act. EPA is promulgating this final rule following EPA's disapproval of these provisions and EPA's specific directions to the State of Florida to correct these deficiencies in the Phosphorus Rule and EFA. EPA's disapproval, specific directions to the State, and this rule implement two orders by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

EPA issued a final rule in the Federal Register of May 14, 2012, concerning the establishment of pesticide tolerances for the new fungicide active ingredient fluxapyroxad. Inadvertently, the terminology for the oilseed crop group and for dried plums was incorrect. This technical amendment is being issued to correct the terminology.