Environmental Protection Agency October 4, 2016 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving elements of State Implementation Plan (SIP) submittals from Louisiana which address the requirements of Clean Air Act (CAA) sections 110(a)(1) and (2) regarding the infrastructure requirements for the 2006 fine particulate matter (PM2.5), 2008 Lead (Pb), 2008 Ozone (O3), 2010 Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2), 2010 Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) and 2012 PM2.5 National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). The infrastructure requirements are designed to ensure that the structural components of each state's air quality management program are adequate to meet the state's responsibilities as defined by the CAA. These infrastructure SIP (i- SIP) submittals address how the existing SIP provides for implementation, maintenance, and enforcement of the NAAQS.

The Environmental Protection Agency is planning to submit an information collection request (ICR), ``Final Rule at 40 CFR part 8: Environmental Impact Assessment of Nongovernmental Activities in Antarctica'' (EPA ICR No. 1808.07, OMB Control No. 2020-0007) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). Before doing so, EPA is soliciting public comments on specific aspects of the proposed information collection as described below. This is a proposed extension of the ICR, which is currently approved through March 31, 2017. An Agency may not conduct or sponsor and a person is not required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is providing notice that it has clarified the scope of its July 29, 2016, response to petitions for reconsideration of the 2012 final rule titled ``Oil and Natural Gas Sector: New Source Performance Standards and National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants Reviews'' and the subsequent amendments published in the Federal Register on September 23, 2013, and December 31, 2014. The EPA has sent a letter to each of the petitioners clarifying that the July 29, 2016, action denied the above mentioned petitions only with respect to the issues related to the new source performance standards (NSPS), and was not intended to include denial of reconsideration of any issue relative to the 2012 action on the national emission standards for hazardous air Pollutants (``2012 NESHAP''). The letters further state that, to the extent the July 29, 2016, action may be construed to have denied reconsideration of issues relative to the 2012 NESHAP, the follow-up letters supersede that previous action on NESHAP-related matters.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking direct final action to approve revisions to the Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District (SMAQMD) and the San Diego County Air Pollution Control District (SDCAPCD) portions of the California State Implementation Plan (SIP). These revisions concern emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from architectural coatings. We are approving local rules that regulate these emission sources under the Clean Air Act (CAA or the Act).