Environmental Protection Agency August 12, 2016 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This document announces the Agency's receipt of several initial filings of pesticide petitions requesting the establishment or modification of regulations for residues of pesticide chemicals in or on various commodities.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is disapproving the portion of a Louisiana State Implementation Plan (SIP) submittal pertaining to interstate transport of air pollution which will significantly contribute to nonattainment or interfere with maintenance of the 2008 ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) in other states. Disapproval will establish a 2-year deadline, under Clean Air Act (CAA) Section 110(c), for the EPA to promulgate a Federal Implementation Plan (FIP) for Louisiana to address the CAA interstate transport requirements pertaining to significant contribution to nonattainment and interference with maintenance of the 2008 ozone NAAQS in other states, unless the EPA approves a SIP that meets these requirements. Disapproval does not start a mandatory sanctions clock for Louisiana.

The Jackson Steel Superfund site (Site), located in the Village of Mineola, Nassau County, New York, contains a building formerly used as a metal-forming facility. The Site is bordered to the north by commercial spaces and single-family dwellings, to the east by a two-story apartment complex, to the south by a daycare center and to the west by an office building and restaurant. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 2 is publishing this direct final Notice of Deletion (NOD) of the Site from the National Priorities List (NPL). The NPL, promulgated pursuant to Section 105 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) of 1980, as amended, is an appendix of the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP). This direct final deletion is being published by EPA with the concurrence of the State of New York, through the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC), because EPA has determined that all appropriate response actions under CERCLA have been completed at the Site and that the soil on the Site and the groundwater beneath the Site no longer pose a threat to public health or the environment. Because elevated concentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are present under the slab of the vacant Jackson Steel building and the occupied daycare center, operation and maintenance of the subslab vapor intrusion mitigation systems under the daycare center, periodic vapor intrusion monitoring, and five-year reviews will continue. The deletion does not preclude future actions under Superfund.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving a revision to the Indiana State Implementation Plan (SIP) submitted by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) on October 16, 2015. The submittal consists of an order issued by the Commissioner of IDEM (Commissioner's Order No. 2015-01) approving alternative control technology requirements for Abengoa Bioenergy of Indiana (Abengoa). These requirements include the use of a carbon adsorption/ absorption hydrocarbon vapor recovery system with a minimum overall control efficiency of 98% to control volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions from the ethanol loading racks at Abengoa. A continuous emissions monitoring system (CEMS) must be used to monitor the carbon adsorption/absorption hydrocarbon vapor recovery system for breakthrough of VOC emissions. For the reasons discussed below, EPA is approving this submittal as a revision to Indiana's SIP.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve a revision to the Indiana State Implementation Plan (SIP) submitted by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) on October 16, 2015. The submittal consists of an order issued by the Commissioner of IDEM (Commissioner's Order No. 2015-01) approving alternative control technology requirements for Abengoa Bioenergy of Indiana (Abengoa). These requirements include the use of a carbon adsorption/absorption hydrocarbon vapor recovery system with a minimum overall control efficiency of 98% to control volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions from the ethanol loading racks at Abengoa. A continuous emissions monitoring system (CEMS) must be used to monitor the carbon adsorption/absorption hydrocarbon vapor recovery system for breakthrough of VOC emissions.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is finalizing a limited approval and limited disapproval of a demonstration of creditable emission reductions submitted by California for approval into the San Joaquin Valley (SJV) portion of the California State Implementation Plan (SIP). This SIP submittal demonstrates that certain state incentive funding programs have achieved specified amounts of reductions in emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOX) and fine particulate matter (PM2.5) in the SJV area by 2014. The effect of this action would be to approve specific amounts of emission reductions for credit toward an emission reduction commitment in the California SIP. We are approving these emission reductions under the Clean Air Act (CAA or the Act).

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking final action to approve and conditionally approve revisions to the State of California's State Implementation Plan (SIP) for the San Joaquin Valley (SJV) area. The revisions consist of an update to the Motor Vehicle Emissions Budgets (``budgets'') for nitrogen oxides (NOX) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) for the 1997 8-hour ozone national ambient air quality standard (NAAQS or ``standard'') for the SJV ozone nonattainment area and for NOX and coarse particulate matter (PM10) for the 1987 24-hour PM10 standard for the SJV PM10 maintenance area. The EPA is approving the SJV ozone revised budgets and conditionally approving the PM10 budgets in accordance with the requirements of the Clean Air Act (CAA or ``Act'') and the EPA's regulations.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve State Implementation Plan (SIP) revisions submitted by the State of Wyoming on May 28, 2015 and November 6, 2015. The amendments update the version of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) incorporated by reference into the rules of the State of Wyoming for Chapter 2, Section 12; Chapter 3, General Emission Standards, Section 9; and Chapter 6, Prevention of Significant Deterioration, Section 4. The May 28, 2015 submittal updates a citation to a Federal Register article (i.e., Federal Register notice) under the definition of ``tpy CO2 equivalent emissions (CO2e),'' and lists a new minor source baseline date for fine particulate. The State also proposes to update the primary air quality standards for particulate matter (PM2.5) to reflect federal updates that went into effect in January 2013. The updated primary PM2.5 standard is 12 micrograms per cubic meter ([micro]g/m\3\) annual arithmetic mean concentration, which is lowered from its previous level of 15 [micro]g/ m\3\. The EPA is also proposing approval of portions of the State's February 6, 2014 2008 ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) infrastructure certification regarding prevention of significant deterioration (PSD) and the good neighbor provision. The EPA is not taking action on the Chapter 6, Permitting Requirements, Section 14 portion of the May 24, 2012 submittal because it has been superseded by a November 6, 2015 submittal (81 FR 35271). The EPA is not taking action on a May 24, 2012 submittal or a March 8, 2013 submittal because they have been superseded by the May 28, 2015 submittal.