Environmental Protection Agency August 2019 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to correct an error in the designations for three areas in Texas: Freestone and Anderson Counties, Rusk and Panola Counties, and Titus County. On December 13, 2016, portions of Freestone and Anderson Counties, Rusk and Panola Counties, and Titus County were designated as nonattainment for the 2010 primary sulfur dioxide (SO2) National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS). Under our Clean Air Act (CAA or Act) authority to correct errors, the EPA is proposing that we erred in not giving greater weight to Texas' preference to characterize air quality through monitoring, and steps undertaken by Texas to begin monitoring in these three areas, when considering all available information; in relying on available air quality analyses in making the initial designations that the EPA recognizes included certain limitations; or a combination of these two issues. Therefore, to correct these errors, the EPA is proposing that the previously designated nonattainment areas in Freestone and Anderson Counties, Rusk and Panola Counties, and Titus County in Texas each be revised to be designated as unclassifiable.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking final action to approve a State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision submitted by the State of Missouri on January 14, 2019. The revision submitted by the state is an amendment to a rule relating to reference methods for determining ambient air/atmosphere data and information necessary for the enforcement of air pollution control regulations throughout Missouri. The revision is administrative in nature and either incorporates by reference or updates state rules to match Federal regulations. This revision does not have an adverse effect on air quality. The EPA's approval of this rule revision is being done in accordance with the requirements of the Clean Air Act (CAA).

In this action, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposes a federal plan to implement the Emission Guidelines and Compliance Times for Municipal Solid Waste Landfills (2016 MSW Landfills EG) for existing MSW landfills located in states and Indian country where state plans or tribal plans are not in effect. This proposed MSW Landfills Federal Plan includes the same elements as required for a state plan: Identification of legal authority and mechanisms for implementation; inventory of designated facilities; emissions inventory; emission limits; compliance schedules; a process for the EPA or state review of design plans for site-specific gas collection and control systems (GCCS); testing, monitoring, reporting and record keeping requirements; public hearing requirements; and progress reporting requirements. Additionally, this action summarizes implementation and delegation of authority of the MSW Landfills Federal Plan.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is publishing for public comment a proposed rule providing updates and clarifications to the substantive and procedural requirements for water quality certification under Clean Water Act (CWA or the Act) section 401. CWA section 401 is a direct grant of authority to states (and tribes that have been approved for ``treatment as a state'' status) to review for compliance with appropriate federal, state, and tribal water quality requirements any proposed activity that requires a federal license or permit and may result in a discharge to waters of the United States. This proposal is intended to increase the predictability and timeliness of section 401 certification by clarifying timeframes for certification, the scope of certification review and conditions, and related certification requirements and procedures.

This notice announces EPA's order for the cancellations and amendments to terminate uses, voluntarily requested by the registrants and accepted by the Agency, of the products listed in Table 1, Table 1A, Table 1B, Table 1C, Table 1D, Table 1E and Table 2, pursuant to the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). This cancellation order follows a May 31, 2019 Federal Register Notice of Receipt of Requests from the registrants listed in Table 3 of Unit II to voluntarily cancel and amend to terminate uses of certain product registrations. In the May 31, 2019 notice, EPA indicated that it would issue an order implementing the cancellations and amendments to terminate uses, unless the Agency received substantive comments within the 30-day comment period that would merit its further review of these requests, or unless the registrants withdrew their requests. The Agency received one anonymous public comment on the notice but didn't merit its further review of the requests. Further, two registrants did withdraw their requests. The Agency has removed the requests withdrawn by the registrants. Accordingly, EPA hereby issues in this notice a cancellation order granting the requested cancellations and amendments to terminate uses. Any distribution, sale, or use of the products subject to this cancellation order is permitted only in accordance with the terms of this order, including any existing stocks provisions.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finds that the Columbus, Ohio area is attaining the 2015 ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS or standard) and is acting in accordance with a request from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA) to redesignate the area to attainment for the 2015 ozone NAAQS because the request meets the statutory requirements for redesignation under the Clean Air Act (CAA). The Columbus area includes Delaware, Fairfield, Franklin, and Licking Counties. Ohio EPA submitted this request on April 23, 2019. EPA is also approving, as a revision to the Ohio State Implementation Plan (SIP), the State's plan for maintaining the 2015 ozone NAAQS through 2030 in the Columbus area. Finally, EPA finds adequate and is approving Ohio's 2023 and 2030 volatile organic compound (VOC) and oxides of nitrogen (NOX) Motor Vehicle Emission Budgets (MVEBs) for the Columbus area.

The Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Office of Air and Radiation, Office of Atmospheric Programs, is giving notice that it proposes to create a new system of records pursuant to the provisions of the Privacy Act of 1974. This system of records contains personally identifiable information collected from approved Clean Air Act section 608 technician certification programs that are withdrawing from the program or having their approval revoked. The system will maintain the information necessary for EPA to assist certified air-conditioning and refrigeration technicians who have lost or damaged their certification cards in obtaining replacement cards when the original cards were obtained from certification programs that have withdrawn from the program or have had their approval revoked.

EPA is issuing significant new use rules (SNURs) under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) for 145 chemical substances which are the subject of premanufacture notices (PMNs). The chemical substances are subject to Orders issued by EPA pursuant to section 5(e) of TSCA. This action requires persons who intend to manufacture (defined by statute to include import) or process any of these 145 chemical substances for an activity that is designated as a significant new use by this rule to notify EPA at least 90 days before commencing that activity. The required notification initiates EPA's evaluation of the use, under the conditions of use for that chemical substance, within the applicable review period. Persons may not commence manufacture or processing for the significant new use until EPA has conducted a review of the notice, made an appropriate determination on the notice, and has taken such actions as are required by that determination.

EPA is announcing the availability of and soliciting public comment on a manufacturer request for a risk evaluation of di-isononyl phthalate (DINP) under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). The request was made by Evonik Corporation, ExxonMobil Chemical Company and Teknor Apex, through the American Chemistry Council's High Phthalates Council. EPA conducts risk evaluations to determine whether a chemical substance presents an unreasonable risk of injury to health or the environment without consideration of costs or other non-risk factors, including an unreasonable risk to potentially exposed or susceptible subpopulations, under the conditions of use. In the docket associated with this request is the manufacturer request for an EPA conducted risk evaluation and possible additional conditions of use EPA has identified for inclusion within the scope of a risk evaluation of DINP. After considering comments received in response to this solicitation, EPA will make a decision whether to grant or deny the manufacturer request. All TSCA risk evaluations, whether EPA-initiated or manufacturer- requested, will be conducted in the same manner.

Pursuant to the Federal Clean Air Act (CAA or the Act), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving revisions to New Mexico's State Implementation Plan (SIP) that incorporate updates to the New Mexico statutes. EPA is also correcting its previous approval of some statute provisions to provide clarification of the approval action taken.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving a revision to the Minnesota sulfur dioxide (SO2) State Implementation Plan (SIP) for the Flint Hills Resources, LLC Pine Bend Refinery (FHR) as submitted on October 23, 2018. The SIP revision pertains to the shutdown and replacement of certain equipment at the refinery as well as amendments to certain emission limits, resulting in an overall decrease of SO2 emissions from FHR.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve a State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision submitted by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (Illinois EPA) on January 11, 2019, concerning the state's Emissions Reduction Market System (ERMS) program for the Chicago ozone nonattainment area (NAA) in Illinois. The revision sunsets the ERMS program and effectively removes from the SIP provisions in 35 Illinois Administrative Code (35 IAC) Part 205, as the ERMS program is no longer effective in providing any additional emissions reductions or environmental benefit. The submittal also includes a demonstration under section 110(l) of the Clean Air Act (CAA) that addresses emission impacts associated with the sunsetting of the program.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve two state implementation plan (SIP) revisions submitted by the State of West Virginia, one submitted on March 27, 2018, and one on June 5, 2019. The June 5, 2019 submittal consists of a regulation that adopts the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR). Under the Federal CSAPR, large electricity generating units (EGUs) in West Virginia are subject to Federal Implementation Plans (FIPs) requiring the units to participate in CSAPR's Federal trading program for annual emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOX), one of CSAPR's two Federal trading programs for annual emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO2), and one of CSAPR's two Federal trading programs for ozone season emissions of NOX. This action would approve the State's regulation requiring large West Virginia EGUs to participate in new CSAPR state trading programs for annual NOX, annual SO2, and ozone season NOX emissions integrated with the CSAPR Federal trading programs, replacing the corresponding FIP requirements. EPA is proposing to approve the SIP revision because the submittal meets the requirements of the Clean Air Act (CAA) and EPA's regulations for approval of a CSAPR full SIP revision replacing the requirements of a CSAPR FIP. Under the CSAPR regulations, approval of the SIP revision would automatically eliminate West Virginia EGU's requirements under the corresponding CSAPR FIPs, thereby addressing West Virginia's interstate transport (or ``good neighbor'') obligations for the 1997 fine particulate matter (PM2.5) national ambient air quality standard (NAAQS), the 2006 PM2.5 NAAQS, and the 2008 ozone NAAQS. Like the CSAPR FIP requirements that would be replaced, approval of the SIP revision would fully satisfy West Virginia's good neighbor obligations for the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS, the 2006 PM2.5 NAAQS, and the 2008 ozone NAAQS. In conjunction with EPA's proposed approval of West Virginia's June 5, 2019 CSAPR regulation, EPA is also proposing to approve West Virginia's March 27, 2018 submittal related to West Virginia's good neighbor obligations under the 2008 ozone NAAQS. These actions are being taken in accordance with the CAA.

On August 8, 2019, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or agency) Administrator signed a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) providing updates and clarifications to the substantive and procedural requirements for water quality certification under Clean Water Act. The agency is announcing that a public hearing will be held in Salt Lake City, Utah on September 5 and 6, 2019, to provide interested parties the opportunity to present data, views, or information concerning the NPRM. The pre-publication version of this proposal can be found at https://www.epa.gov/cwa-401.

On June 19, 2019, the State of Florida, through the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP), submitted a request for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to redesignate the Duval County, Florida ozone unclassifiable area (hereinafter referred to as the ``Duval County Area'' or ``Area'') to attainment for the 2015 primary and secondary 8-hour ozone national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS). EPA now has sufficient data to determine that the Duval County Area is in attainment of the 2015 primary and secondary 8- hour ozone NAAQS. Therefore, EPA is proposing to approve the State's request and redesignate the Area to attainment/unclassifiable for the 2015 primary and secondary 8-hour ozone NAAQS based upon valid, quality-assured, and certified ambient air monitoring data showing that the Area is in compliance with the 2015 primary and secondary 8-hour ozone NAAQS.

The Federal Docket Management System (FDMS), is a regulatory, multi-agency use system that contains Federal Register notices, materials supporting regulatory actions such as scientific and economic analyses, and public comments. The system of records is being amended to remove all information and data elements related to the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) tracking system, FOIAonline, and to change the number assigned to the FDMS system of records. The status and storage of FOIAonline records should henceforth be detailed in a separate SORN for that system. The number previously assigned to FDMS identified the system as a government wide system of records. FDMS is a multi-agency use system and should be identified as such. The original system of records notice for FDMS was published in the Federal Register on March 24, 2005, was amended on October 2, 2013 and February 18, 2014, to add records collected and categories of records in a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) system.

This notice announces EPA's order for the cancellations, voluntarily requested by the registrants and accepted by the Agency, of the products listed in Table 1 of Unit II, pursuant to the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). This cancellation order follows a May 29, 2019 Federal Register Notice of Receipt of Requests from the registrants listed in Table 2 of Unit II to voluntarily cancel these product registrations. In the May 29, 2019 notice, EPA indicated that it would issue an order implementing the cancellations, unless the Agency received substantive comments within the 30-day comment period that would merit its further review of these requests, or unless the registrants withdrew their requests. The Agency received comments on the notice but none merited its further review of the requests. Further, the registrants did not withdraw their requests. Accordingly, EPA hereby issues in this notice a cancellation order granting the requested cancellations. Any distribution, sale, or use of the products subject to this cancellation order is permitted only in accordance with the terms of this order, including any existing stocks provisions.

In this notice, the EPA is notifying the public that we have found the motor vehicle emissions budgets (MVEBs) for volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and oxides of nitrogen (NOX) in the 2015 ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) maintenance plan for the Columbus, Ohio area (Delaware, Fairfield, Franklin, and Licking Counties) adequate for use in transportation conformity determinations under the Clean Air Act. On April 23, 2019, the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (OEPA) submitted a 2015 ozone NAAQS maintenance plan for the Columbus area, which included VOC and NOX MVEBs for 2023 and 2030. As a result of our finding of adequacy, the MVEBs from the submitted maintenance plan must be used by state and Federal agencies in determining whether proposed transportation projects conform to the State Implementation Plan (SIP) as required by the Clean Air Act.

EPA is proposing significant new use rules (SNURs) under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) for 17 chemical substances which are the subject of premanufacture notices (PMNs). This action would require persons to notify EPA at least 90 days before commencing manufacture (defined by statute to include import) or processing of any of these 17 chemical substances for an activity that is designated as a significant new use by this proposed rule. This action would further require that persons not commence manufacture or processing for the significant new use until they have submitted a Significant New Use Notice, and EPA has conducted a review of the notice, made an appropriate determination on the notice under TSCA 5(a)(3), and has taken any risk management actions as are required as a result of that determination.

The EPA is proposing to allocate production and consumption allowances for specific hydrochlorofluorocarbons, a type of ozone- depleting substance, for the years 2020 through 2029. These hydrochlorofluorocarbons may be used to service certain equipment manufactured before 2020. The EPA is also proposing to update other requirements under the program for controlling production and consumption of ozone-depleting substances, as well as proposing edits to the regulatory text for improved readability and clarity. These updates include revising the labeling requirements for containers of specific hydrochlorofluorocarbons; prohibiting the conversion of hydrochlorofluorocarbon allowances allocated through this rulemaking into allowances for hydrochlorofluorocarbons that have already been phased out; requiring the use of an electronic reporting system for producers, importers, exporters, transformers, and destroyers of class I and class II ozone-depleting substances; revising and removing recordkeeping and reporting requirements; improving the process for petitioning to import used substances for reuse; creating a certification process for importing used and virgin substances for destruction; and restricting the sale of known illegally imported substances. This notice further includes proposed clarifications to the certification requirements for methyl bromide quarantine and preshipment uses. The EPA is also proposing to add polyurethane foam systems containing ozone-depleting chlorofluorocarbons to the list of nonessential products. Lastly, the agency is proposing to update the definition of ``destruction'' as used in the context of the production and consumption phaseout and remove obsolete provisions.

There will be a 4-day, public, in-person meeting of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) Scientific Advisory Panel (SAP) to consider and review the Approaches for Quantitative Use of Surface Water Monitoring Data in Pesticide Drinking Water Assessments. Preceding the in-person meeting, there will be a preparatory, public, virtual meeting, conducted via teleconference and webcast using Adobe Connect, to consider the scope and clarity of the draft charge questions for this peer review. In addition, EPA is requesting nominations of prospective candidates for service as ad hoc reviewers to assist the FIFRA SAP with this review. Any interested person or organization may nominate qualified individuals to be considered as prospective candidates for this review by following the instructions provided in this notice.

On May 10, 2016, EPA revised the maximum permit term for Municipal Solid Waste Landfills (MSWLF) units operating under Research, Development and Demonstration (RD&D) permits. The revision allows states to increase the number of RD&D permit renewals issued to six, 3- year permit renewals, for a total permit term of up to 21 years. On May 6, 2019, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) submitted a notification to EPA Region 5 seeking Federal approval of its revised RD&D requirements per the procedures in Requirements for State Permit Program Determination of Adequacy. Subject to public review and comment, this document approves Wisconsin's revised RD&D permit requirements.

EPA is announcing the availability of documents and dates for the peer review of the draft risk evaluation for 1-Bromopropane (1-BP). The purpose of the risk evaluations under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) is to determine whether a chemical substance presents an unreasonable risk of injury to health or the environment under the conditions of use, including an unreasonable risk to a relevant potentially exposed or susceptible subpopulation. EPA is also submitting these same documents to the TSCA Science Advisory Committee on Chemicals (SACC) for peer review and is announcing that there will be a 3-day in-person meeting of the TSCA SACC to consider and review these draft risk evaluations. Preceding the in-person meeting, there will be a 3-hour preparatory virtual meeting for the panel to consider the scope and clarity of the draft charge questions for the peer reviews.

This notice provides the names, addresses, and professional affiliations of persons recently nominated to serve on the Scientific Advisory Panel (SAP) established under section 25(d) of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). The Panel was created on November 28, 1975, and made a permanent Panel by amendment to FIFRA, dated October 25, 1988. The Agency, at this time, anticipates selecting three new members to serve on the panel because of membership terms that will expire during the next year. Public comments on the current nominations are invited, as these comments will be used to assist the Agency in selecting the new members for the chartered Scientific Advisory Panel.