[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 126 (Wednesday, July 1, 1998)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 35842-35844]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-17517]
[[Page 35842]]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[IL163-1a; FRL-6119-2]
Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans; Illinois
AGENCY: United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA).
ACTION: Direct Final Rule.
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SUMMARY: On August 21, 1995, U.S. EPA promulgated a site-specific
volatile organic material (VOM) rule for Riverside Laboratories, Inc.'s
(Riverside) Kane County facility. The rule consisted primarily of a
compliance date extension for Riverside through December 31, 1996,
after which time Riverside is required to meet the applicable
requirements of the Chicago-area Federal Implementation Plan (FIP). On
October 10, 1997, the State of Illinois requested that U.S. EPA approve
a change in regulatory status for Riverside, based on Riverside's
current compliance with the applicable State Implementation Plan (SIP)
rule. For the reasons discussed below, U.S. EPA is today approving the
State plan as applying to Riverside.
U.S. EPA is taking this action as a ``direct final'' rulemaking;
the rationale for this approach is set forth below. Elsewhere in this
Federal Register, U.S. EPA is proposing this action and soliciting
comment. If adverse written comments or a request for a public hearing
are received, U.S. EPA will withdraw the direct final rule and it will
not take effect. U.S. EPA will address the comments received in a new
final rule. If no adverse written comments are received, no further
rulemaking will occur on this requested SIP revision.
DATES: This final rule is effective August 31, 1998 unless written
adverse comments or a request for a public hearing are received by July
31, 1998. If adverse comment is received, EPA will publish a timely
withdrawal of the direct final rule in the Federal Register and inform
the public the rule will not take effect.
ADDRESSES: Written comments can be mailed to: J. Elmer Bortzer, Chief,
Regulation Development Section, Air Programs Branch (AR-18J), Air and
Radiation Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 77 West
Jackson Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois, 60604.
A public hearing may be requested, to be held in Chicago, Illinois.
Requests for a hearing should be submitted to J. Elmer Bortzer.
Interested persons may call Steven Rosenthal at (312) 886-6062 to see
if a hearing will be held and the date and location of the hearing. Any
hearing will be strictly limited to the subject matter of this action,
the scope of which is discussed below.
Copies of the SIP revision request are available for inspection at
the following address: (It is recommended that you telephone Steven
Rosenthal at (312) 886-6052, before visiting the Region 5 office.)
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 5, Air and Radiation
Division, 77 West Jackson Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois, 60604.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Steven Rosenthal, Air Programs Branch
(AR-18J) at (312) 886-6052.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
On June 29, 1990, U.S. EPA promulgated a FIP which contained
Reasonably Available Control Technology (RACT) regulations for
stationary sources of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) located in six
northeastern Illinois (Chicago area) counties: Cook, DuPage, Kane,
Lake, McHenry, and Will.1 Included in U.S. EPA's rules was a
requirement that paper coating sources be subject to 40 CFR
52.741(e)(1)(C), which requires that a source achieves either a coating
limit of 2.9 pounds of VOC per gallon of coating or an 81 percent
reduction in emissions. On August 30, 1990, Riverside filed a petition
for review of the FIP in the United States Court of Appeals for the
Seventh Circuit, Riverside Laboratories, Inc., v. U.S. EPA, Case No.
90-2886. On August 20, 1991, Riverside filed a petition for
reconsideration (amended on September 5, 1991) with U.S. EPA, in which
it contended that its economic status prevented the federal rules from
being RACT for its facility. Based on the information provided, U.S.
EPA agreed to reconsider the RACT rules for Riverside. U.S. EPA also
agreed to issue an administrative stay of the applicable FIP rules,
pending reconsideration. See 57 FR 27935 (June 23, 1992).
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\1\ A definition of RACT is cited in a General Preamble-
Supplement on CTGs, published at 44 FR at 53761 (September 17,
1979). RACT is defined as the lowest emission limitation that a
particular source is capable of meeting by the application of
control technology that is reasonably available, considering
technological and economic feasibility.
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On September 9, 1994, U.S. EPA approved a number of Illinois
volatile organic material (VOM) 2 RACT rules, adopted as 35
Ill. Admin. Code Part 218. 59 FR 46562. These rules established State
VOM RACT requirements for surface coating operations in the Chicago and
Metro-East St. Louis ozone nonattainment areas, and replaced a large
section of the Chicago FIP. These regulations include 35 Ill. Admin.
Code Sec. 218.204, which contains a RACT rule for paper coating
operations that is identical to the applicable FIP rule of 2.9 lbs./
gal. (40 CFR 52.741(e)(1)(C)). They also contain the Applicability
section, at 35 Ill. Admin. Code Sec. 218.203. Under Section
218.103(a)(2), the effectiveness of the Part 218 rules is stayed as to
any source which appealed the FIP and received a stay of the
effectiveness of the FIP pending reconsideration. The rule further
provides that:
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\2\ VOM, as defined by the State of Illinois, is identical to
VOC, as defined by U.S. EPA.
When USEPA has published in the Federal Register final action to
revise or affirm the provisions of the FIP specifically applicable
to such individual source or category of sources or such stay is
otherwise terminated, the Board shall take corresponding action and
the Agency shall submit such action to USEPA for approval. Until
such time as USEPA approves the corresponding amendment to this
Part, the FIP rule shall remain the applicable implementation plan
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for that source. * * *
On August 21, 1995, U.S. EPA promulgated a site-specific rule for
Riverside (60 FR 43388). This rule consists of a compliance date
extension for Riverside through December 31, 1996. During the period of
the compliance date extension Riverside was required to, among other
things, decrease the use of VOC-containing material. Starting on
January 1, 1997, Riverside's polyester paper coating lines were
required to meet the applicable FIP requirements in 40 CFR
52.741(e)(1), (e)(2), and (e)(6). In this rulemaking, U.S. EPA also
terminated the stay of the FIP.
On February 13, 1996, U.S. EPA approved a revision to the Illinois
RACT rules for paper coating operations at 35 Ill. Admin. Code
218.204(c), which further reduced the applicable VOM pounds-per-gallon
limitation to 2.3 lbs./gal. 61 FR 5511.
On October 10, 1997, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency
(IEPA) submitted a request to U.S. EPA that it change the regulatory
status for Riverside to recognize the applicability of Illinois' SIP,
as federally approved on February 13, 1996. In its letter, IEPA states
that, as a matter of State law, Riverside is subject to the 2.3 pounds
VOC per gallon limit in 35 Ill. Administrative Code 218.204(c). For
that reason, IEPA has requested that the Board not be required to
conduct further rulemaking. The State intends its October 10, 1997,
request to fulfill the ``corresponding action'' condition of
[[Page 35843]]
Section 218.103(a)(2). U.S. EPA agrees that it is not necessary to
require Illinois to conduct additional rulemaking, since the
regulations are already in the SIP and Riverside does not contest their
applicability (See Riverside's March 26, 1998, letter regarding rule
applicability.).
II. Applicability
As a result of this action, the approved State of Illinois
regulations, including the emission limits in 35 Ill. Admin. Code
218.204(c) and the associated control requirements, test methods and
recordkeeping requirements in Part 218 and the associated definitions
in Part 211 shall become the federally approved regulations applicable
to Riverside on August 31, 1998. The site-specific rule applicable to
Riverside promulgated by U.S. EPA on August 21, 1995, remains in effect
and is enforceable after August 31, 1998 for the period before August
31, 1998.
III. Final Action
At the time U.S. EPA approved Ill. Admin. Code Part 218, the Agency
determined that the generally applicable rules, along with the
appropriate test methods, recordkeeping requirements and definitions,
met the applicable statutory requirements for RACT. U.S. EPA also has
concluded that the provisions of Ill. Admin. Code 218.204(c) constitute
RACT for Riverside's Kane County paper coating operations. They are
thus reasonable replacements for the FIP rule that was promulgated by
U.S. EPA on June 29, 1990, and the site-specific compliance date
extension promulgated for Riverside by U.S. EPA on August 21, 1995.
The U.S. EPA is publishing this action without prior proposal
because U.S. EPA views this as a noncontroversial revision and
anticipates no adverse comments. However, in a separate document in
this Federal Register publication, U.S. EPA is proposing this action
should adverse comments be filed or a request for a hearing be
received. This action will become effective without further notice
unless the U.S. EPA receives relevant adverse comments or a request for
a hearing on the parallel proposed rule (published in the proposed
rules section of this Federal Register) by July 31, 1998. Should the
U.S. EPA receive such comments or a request for a hearing, it will
withdraw this final rule and publish a document informing the public
that this action did not take effect. Any parties interested in
commenting on this action should do so at this time. If no such
comments are received, the public is advised that this action will be
effective on August 31, 1998.
Nothing in this action should be construed as permitting, allowing
or establishing a precedent for any future request for revision to any
SIP. Each request for revision to the SIP shall be considered
separately in light of specific technical, economic, and environmental
factors and in relation to relevant statutory and regulatory
requirements.
IV. Administrative Requirements
A. Executive Order 12866
The Office of Management and Budget has exempted this regulatory
action from Executive Order 12866 review.
B. Regulatory Flexibility
Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 600 et seq., U.S.
EPA must prepare a regulatory flexibility analysis assessing the impact
of any proposed or final rule on small entities. 5 U.S.C. 603 and 604.
Alternatively, U.S. EPA may certify that the rule will not have a
significant impact on a substantial number of small entities. Small
entities include small businesses, small not-for-profit enterprises,
and government entities with jurisdiction over populations of less than
50,000.
This action (SIP approval and a supersession of the FIP under
section 110) does not create any new requirements, but simply approves
requirements that the State is already imposing. Therefore, because the
Federal SIP approval does not impose any new requirements, the
Administrator certifies that it does not have a significant impact on
any small entities affected. Moreover, due to the nature of the
Federal-State relationship under the Act, preparation of a flexibility
analysis would constitute Federal inquiry into the economic
reasonableness of the State action. The Clean Air Act forbids U.S. EPA
to base its actions concerning SIPs on such grounds. Union Electric Co.
v. EPA., 427 U.S. 246, 256-66 (1976); 42 U.S.C. 7410(a)(2).
C. Unfunded Mandates
Under Section 202 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995,
signed into law on March 22, 1995, U.S. EPA must undertake various
actions in association with any proposed or final rule that includes a
Federal mandate that may result in estimated costs to state, local, or
tribal governments in the aggregate; or to the private sector, of $100
million or more. This Federal action approves pre-existing requirements
under state or local law, and imposes no new requirements. Accordingly,
no additional costs to state, local, or tribal governments, or the
private sector, result from this action.
D. Petitions for Judicial Review
Under section 307(b)(1) of the Clean Air Act, petitions for
judicial review of this action must be filed in the United States Court
of Appeals for the appropriate circuit by August 31, 1998. Filing a
petition for reconsideration by the Administrator of this final rule
does not affect the finality of this rule for the purposes of judicial
review nor does it extend the time within which a petition for judicial
review may be filed, and shall not postpone the effectiveness of such
rule or action. This action may not be challenged later in proceedings
to enforce its requirements. (See Section 307(b)(2)).
E. Congressional Review Act
The Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. section 801 et seq., as
added by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of
1996, generally provides that before a rule may take effect, the agency
promulgating the rule must submit a rule report, which includes a copy
of the rule, to each House of Congress and to the Comptroller General
of the United States. Section 804, however, exempts from section 801
the following types of rules: rules of particular applicability; rules
relating to agency management or personnel; and rules of agency
organization, procedure, or practice that do not substantially affect
the rights or obligations of non-agency parties. 5 U.S.C. section
804(3). U.S. EPA is not required to submit a rule report regarding
today's action under section 801 because this is a rule of particular
applicability.
List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52
Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Hydrocarbons,
Intergovernmental relations, Ozone, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements.
Dated: June 25, 1998.
Carol M. Browner,
Administrator.
For the reasons stated in the preamble, part 52, chapter I, title
40 of the Code of Federal Regulations is amended as follows:
PART 52--[AMENDED]
1. The authority citation for part 52 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
[[Page 35844]]
Subpart O--Illinois
2. Section 52.726 is amended by adding paragraph (s) to read as
follows:
Sec. 52.726 Control strategy: Ozone.
* * * * *
(s) On October 10, 1997, Illinois submitted a site-specific
revision to the State Implementation Plan, in the form of a letter from
Bharat Mathur, Chief, Bureau of Air, Illinois Environmental Protection
Agency. This October 10, 1997, letter requests a change in regulatory
status for Riverside Laboratories, Inc.'s Kane County facility, to
reflect that the Federal site-specific rule for Riverside (40 CFR
52.741(e)(10)) has been superseded by the State of Illinois
regulations, including the emission limits in 35 Illinois
Administrative Code 218.204(c) and the associated control requirements,
test methods and recordkeeping requirements in Part 218 and the
associated definitions in Part 211. These State regulations shall
become the federally approved regulations applicable to Riverside on
August 31, 1998. The site-specific rule, applicable to Riverside,
promulgated by the Environmental Protection Agency on August 21, 1995
(40 CFR 52.741(e)(10)), remains in effect and is enforceable after
August 31, 1998 for the period before August 31, 1998.
[FR Doc. 98-17517 Filed 6-30-98; 8:45 am]
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