[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 121 (Thursday, June 22, 2000)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 38740-38744]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-15288]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 62
[AZ 025-MWIa; FRL-6717-7a]
Approval and Promulgation of State Plans for Designated
Facilities and Pollutants; Arizona; Control of Emissions From Existing
Hospital/Medical/Infectious Waste Incinerators
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Direct final rule.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: This action approves the Arizona State hospital/medical/
infectious waste incinerator (HMIWI) 111(d)/129 plan (the ``plan'')
submitted on November 16, 1999 by the Arizona Department of
Environmental Quality (ADEQ). The plan was submitted to fulfill
requirements of the Clean Air Act (CAA). The plan establishes emission
limitations and other requirements for existing HMIWIs and provides for
the implementation and enforcement of those limitations and
requirements.
[[Page 38741]]
DATES: This final rule is effective August 21, 2000 unless by July 24,
2000 adverse or critical comments are received. If adverse comment is
received, EPA will publish a timely withdrawal of the direct final rule
in the Federal Register and inform the public that the rule will not
take effect.
ADDRESSES: Comments must be submitted to Andrew Steckel at the Region
IX office listed below. Copies of the submitted Plan and EPA's
evaluation report are available for public inspection at EPA's Region
IX office during normal business hours. Copies of the submitted Plan
are available for inspection at the following locations:
Rulemaking Office (AIR-4), Air Division, U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105
Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, 3033 North Central,
Phoenix, Arizona 85012
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Patricia A. Bowlin, (AIR-4), Air
Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne
Street, San Francisco, CA 94105-3901, Telephone: (415) 744-1188.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This document is divided into Sections I
through V and answers the questions posed below.
I. General Provisions
What action is EPA approving?
What is a State 111(d)/129 plan?
What pollutants will this action control?
What are the expected environmental and public health benefits from
controlling HMIWI emissions?
II. Federal Requirements the Arizona HMIWI 111(d)/129 Plan Must Meet
for Approval
What general EPA requirements must Arizona meet to receive approval
of its County 111(d)/129 plan?
What does the Arizona plan contain?
Does the Arizona State plan meet all EPA requirements for approval?
III. Requirements for Affected HMIWI Owners/Operators
How do I determine if my HMIWI is subject to the Arizona 111(d)/129
plan?
What general requirements must I meet under the Arizona 111(d)/129
plan?
What emissions limits must I meet, and in what time frame?
Are there any operational requirements for my HMIWI and emissions
control system?
What are the testing, monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting
requirements for my HMIWI?
Is there a requirement for obtaining a Title V permit?
IV. Final EPA Action
V. Administrative Requirements
I. General Provisions
Q. What Action Is EPA Approving?
A. EPA is approving the Arizona 111(d)/129 plan (the ``plan'') for
the control of air pollutant emissions from hospital/medical/infectious
waste incinerators (HMIWIs). The plan was submitted to EPA by the
Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) on November 16,
1999. The plan contains requirements applicable to HMIWIs located in
the jurisdictions of ADEQ and the Maricopa County Environmental
Services Department (MCESD). EPA is publishing this approval action
without prior proposal because we view this as a noncontroversial
action and anticipate no adverse comments.
Q. What Is a State 111(d)/129 Plan?
A. Section 111(d) of the Clean Air Act (CAA) requires that
``designated'' pollutants, controlled under standards of performance
for new stationary sources by section 111(b) of the CAA, must also be
controlled at existing sources in the same source category to a level
stipulated in an emission guidelines (EG) document. Section 129 of the
CAA specifically addresses solid waste incineration and emissions
controls based on what is commonly referred to as maximum achievable
control technology (MACT). Section 129 requires EPA to promulgate a
MACT based emission guideline (EG) document and then requires states to
develop 111(d)/129 plans that implement and enforce the EG
requirements. The HMIWI EG at 40 CFR part 60, subpart Ce, establish the
MACT requirements under the authority of both sections 111(d) and 129
of the CAA. These requirements must be incorporated into a State
111(d)/129 plan that is ``at least as protective'' as the EG and is
Federally enforceable upon approval by EPA.
The procedures for adoption and submittal of State 111(d)/129 plans
are codified in 40 CFR part 60, subpart B. Additional information on
the submittal of State plans is provided in the EPA document,
``Hospital/Medical/Infectious Waste Incinerator Emission Guidelines:
Summary of the Requirements for Section 111(d)/129 State Plan, EPA-456/
R-97-007, November, 1997.''
Q. What Pollutant(s) Will This Action Control?
A. The September 15, 1997 promulgated EG, Subpart Ce, are
applicable to all existing HMIWIs (i.e., the designated facilities).
HMIWIs emit metals (cadmium, lead, mercury, particulate matter, and
opacity), acid gases (hydrogen chloride and sulphur dioxide), organics
(dioxins/furans), carbon monoxide, and nitrogen oxides. This action
establishes emission limitations for each of these pollutants.
Q. What Are the Expected Environmental and Public Health Benefits From
Controlling HMIWI Emissions?
A. HMIWI emissions can have adverse effects on both public health
and the environment. Dioxin, lead, and mercury can bioaccumulate in the
environment. Exposure to dioxins/furans has been linked to reproductive
and developmental effects, changes in hormone level, and chloracne.
Respiratory and other effects are associated with exposure to
particulate matter, sulfur dioxide, cadmium, hydrogen chloride, and
mercury. Health effects associated with exposure to cadmium and lead
include probable carcinogenic effects. Acid gases contribute to the
acid rain that lowers the pH of surface waters and watersheds, harms
forests, and damages buildings.
II. Federal Requirements the Arizona HMIWI 111(d)/129 Plan Must
Meet for Approval
Q. What General Requirements Must Arizona Meet To Receive Approval of
Its County 111(d)/129 Plan?
A. The plan must meet the requirements of both 40 CFR part 60,
subparts B and Ce. Subpart B specifies detailed procedures for the
adoption and submittal of State plans for designated pollutants and
facilities. The EG, subpart Ce, and the related new source performance
standards (NSPS), subpart Ec, contain the requirements for the control
of designated pollutants, as listed above, in accordance with sections
111(d) and 129 of the CAA. In general, the applicable provisions of
subpart Ec relate to compliance and performance testing, monitoring,
reporting, and recordkeeping. More specifically, the Arizona plan must
meet the requirements of (1) 40 CFR part 60, subpart Ce, sections
60.30e through 60.39c, and the related subpart Ec provisions; and (2)
40 CFR part 60, subpart B, sections 60.23 through 26.
Q. What Does the Arizona Plan Contain?
A. Consistent with the requirements of subparts B, Ce and Ec, the
Arizona plan contains the following elements:
1. A demonstration of the ADEQ's and MCESD's legal authority to
implement
[[Page 38742]]
the plan, in their respective jurisdictions, under Arizona law;
2. Identification of the plan's enforceable mechanisms, Arizona
Administrative Code (AAC) R18-2-732 (Standards of Performance for
Existing Hospital/Medical/Infectious Waste Incinerators), and Maricopa
County Rule 317 (Hospital/Medical/Infectious Waste Incinerators);
3. Source and emission inventories, as required;
4. Emission limitation requirements that are no less stringent than
those in Subpart Ce;
5. A source compliance schedule, including increments of progress,
as required;
6. Source testing, monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting
requirements;
7. HMIWI operator training and qualification requirements;
8. Requirements for development of a Waste Management Plan;
9. Records of the public hearing on the State plan;
10. Provision for State submittal to EPA of annual reports on
progress in plan enforcement; and
11. A Title V permit application due date.
The State regulation, AAC R18-2-732, was adopted by the Governor's
Regulatory Review Council on August 3, 1999 and became effective on
August 10, 1999. The Maricopa County regulation, Rule 317, was adopted
by MCESD on April 7, 1999 and became effective on April 7, 1999. Both
regulations incorporate by reference (IBR) applicable subpart Ec
requirements.
Q. Does the Arizona State Plan Meet All EPA Requirements for Approval?
A. Yes. The ADEQ has submitted a plan that conforms to all EPA
Subpart B and Ce requirements. Each of the above listed plan elements
is approvable. Details regarding the approvability of the plan elements
are included in the technical support document (TSD) associated with
this action. A copy of the TSD is available, upon request, from the EPA
Regional Office listed in the ADDRESSES section of this document.
III. Requirements Affected HMIWI Owners/Operators
Q. How Do I Determine if My HMIWI Is Subject to the Arizona 111(d)/129
Plan?
A. The Arizona plan only applies to HMIWIs under the jurisdictions
of ADEQ and MCSED.\1\ If construction commenced on your HMIWI on or
before June 20, 1996, your HMIWI is classified as an existing or
designated facility that may be subject to the plan. The plan contains
no lower applicability threshold based on incinerator capacity.
However, there are designated facility exemptions. Those exemptions
include incinerators that burn only pathological, low level
radioactive, and/or chemotherapeutic waste; co-fired combustors;
incinerators permitted under section 3005 of the Solid Waste Disposal
Act; municipal waste combustors (MWC) subject to EPA's municipal waste
combustor rule; pyrolysis units; and cement kilns. The provisions
regarding applicability and exemptions are found in section A of AAC
R18-2-732 and in section 102 of Maricopa Rule 317.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The submitted Arizona HMIWI plan does not apply to HMIWIs
located in the counties of Pima and Pinal. The Pima County
Department of Environmental Quality and the Pinal County Air Quality
Control District intend to adopt regulations to implement the EG
later this year. In the future, ADEQ will submit these regulations
to EPA as amendments to the Arizona HMIWI plan.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q. What General Requirements Must I Meet Under the Arizona 111(d)/129
Plan?
A. In general, the State and Maricopa County HMIWI regulations
establish the following requirements:
Emission limitations for particulate matter (PM), opacity,
carbon monoxide (CO), dioxins/furans (CDD/CDF), hydrogen chloride
(HCl), sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxides
(NOX), lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), and mercury (Hg)
Compliance and performance testing
Operating parameter monitoring
Operator training and qualification
Development of a waste management plan
Source testing, recordkeeping and reporting
A Title V permit
A full and comprehensive statement of the above requirements is
incorporated in the AAC R18-2-732 and Maricopa Rule 317.
Q. What Emissions Limits Must I Meet, and in What Time Frame?
A. You must install an emissions control system capable of meeting
the maximum available control technology (MACT) emission limitations
for the pollutants identified above. The emissions limitations are
stipulated in section E of AAC R18-2-732 and in sections 302 and 303 of
Maricopa Rule 317. All designated facilities must be in compliance with
the emission limitations on or before the effective date of the
relevant regulation.
Q. Are There Any Operational Requirements for My HMIWI and Emissions
Control System?
A. Yes, there are operational requirements. In summary, the
operational requirements relate to: (1) The HMIWI and air pollution
control devices (APCD) operating within certain established parameter
limits, determined during the initial performance test; (2) the use of
a trained and qualified HMIWI operator; and (3) the completion of an
annual update of operation and maintenance information, and its review
by the HMIWI operators.
Failure to operate the HMIWI or APCD within the established
operating parameter limits constitutes an emissions violation for the
controlled air pollutants. However, as a HMIWI owner/operator, you are
provided an opportunity to establish revised operating limits, and
demonstrate that your facility is meeting the required emission
limitations, providing a repeat performance test is conducted in a
timely manner.
A fully trained and qualified operator must be available at your
facility during the operation of the HMIWI, or the operator must be
readily available to the facility within one hour. In order to be
classified as a qualified operator, you must complete an appropriate
HMIWI operator training course that meets the Subpart Ec criteria
referenced in AAC R18-2-732 at section F and in Maricopa Rule 317 at
sections 301 and 306. The Arizona plan requires compliance with this
training requirement within one year of EPA approval of the State Plan.
Also, as a HMIWI owner/operator, you are required to develop and
update annually site-specific information regarding your facilities'
operations. Each of your HMIWI operators is required on an annual basis
to review the updated operational information. The ADEQ and MCESD
regulations IBR the applicable operational requirements of the EG and
the related NSPS. See subpart Ec, sections 60.53c, 60.56c, and 60.58c,
respectively for details regarding these operational requirements.
Q. What Are the Testing, Monitoring, Recordkeeping, and Reporting
Requirements for My HMIWI?
A. Testing, monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements
are summarized below:
You are required to conduct an initial stack test to determine
compliance with the emission limitations for PM, opacity, CO, CDD/CDF,
HCl, Pb, Cd, and Hg. As noted above, operating parameter limits are
monitored and established during the initial performance test.
[[Page 38743]]
Monitored HMIWI operating parameters include, for example, waste charge
rate, secondary chamber and bypass stack temperatures. APCD operating
parameters include, for example, CDD/CDF and Hg sorbent (e.g., carbon)
flow rate, hydrogen chloride sorbent (e.g., lime) flow rate, PM control
device inlet temperature, pressure drop across the control system, and
liquid flow rate, including pH. After the initial stack test,
compliance testing is then required annually to determine compliance
with the emission limitations for PM, CO, and HCl.
Recordkeeping and reporting are required in order to document: (1)
The results of the initial and annual performance tests, (2) monitoring
of site-specific operating parameters, (3) compliance with the operator
training and qualification requirements, and (4) development of the
waste management plan. Records must be maintained for at least five
years.
The ADEQ and MCESD regulations IBR the applicable testing,
monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements of the EG and
related NSPS. See subpart Ec, sections 60.56c, 60.57c, and 60.58c,
respectively for details regarding these requirements.
Q. Is There a Requirement for Obtaining a Title V Permit?
A. Yes, affected facilities are required to operate under a Title V
permit no later than September 15, 2000. This is required under section
D of AAC R18-2-732 and section 401 of Maricopa Rule 317.
IV. Final EPA Action
Based upon the rationale discussed above and in further detail in
the TSD associated with this action, EPA is approving the Arizona
111(d)/129 plan for the control of HMIWI emissions from designated
facilities.\2\ As provided by 40 CFR 60.28(c), any revisions to the
Arizona plan or associated regulations will not be considered part of
the applicable plan until submitted by the ADEQ in accordance with 40
CFR 60.28(a) or (b), as applicable, and until approved by EPA in
accordance with 40 CFR part 60, subpart B.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ The State did not submit evidence of authority to regulate
existing HMIWIs in Indian Country; therefore, EPA is not approving
this Plan as it relates to those sources.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
EPA is publishing this action without prior proposal because the
Agency views this as a noncontroversial amendment and anticipates no
adverse comments. However, in the proposed rules section of this
Federal Register publication, EPA is publishing a separate document
that will serve as the proposal to approve the 111(d) plan should
relevant adverse or critical comments be filed. This rule will be
effective August 21, 2000 without further notice unless the Agency
receives relevant adverse comments by July 24, 2000. If EPA receives
such comments, then EPA will publish a document withdrawing the final
rule and informing the public that the rule will not take effect. All
public comments received will then be addressed in a subsequent final
rule based on the proposed rule. The EPA will not institute a second
comment period on this rule. Parties interested in commenting on this
rule should do so at this time. If no such comments are received, the
public is advised that this rule will be effective on August 21, 2000
and no further action will be taken on the proposed rule.
V. Administrative Requirements
A. General Requirements
Under Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993), this
action is not a ``significant regulatory action'' and therefore is not
subject to review by the Office of Management and Budget. This action
merely approves state law as meeting federal requirements and imposes
no additional requirements beyond those imposed by state law.
Accordingly, the Administrator certifies that this rule will not have a
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities
under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.). Because
this rule approves pre-existing requirements under state law and does
not impose any additional enforceable duty beyond that required by
state law, it does not contain any unfunded mandate or significantly or
uniquely affect small governments, as described in the Unfunded
Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (Public Law 104-4). For the same reason,
this rule also does not significantly or uniquely affect the
communities of tribal governments, as specified by Executive Order
13084 (63 FR 27655, May 10, 1998). This rule will not have substantial
direct effects on the States, on the relationship between the national
government and the States, or on the distribution of power and
responsibilities among the various levels of government, as specified
in Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999), because it
merely approves a state rule implementing a federal standard and does
not alter the relationship or the distribution of power and
responsibilities established in the Clean Air Act. This rule also is
not subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997),
because it is not economically significant. In reviewing 111(d)/129
plan submissions, EPA's role is to approve state choices, provided that
they meet the criteria of the Clean Air Act. In this context, in the
absence of a prior existing requirement for the State to use voluntary
consensus standards (VCS), EPA has no authority to disapprove a 111(d)/
129 plan submission for failure to use VCS. It would thus be
inconsistent with applicable law for EPA, when it reviews a 111(d)/129
plan submission, to use VCS in place of a 111(d)/129 plan submission
that otherwise satisfies the provisions of the Clean Air Act. Thus, the
requirements of section 12(d) of the National Technology Transfer and
Advancement Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272 note) do not apply. As required
by section 3 of Executive Order 12988 (61 FR 4729, February 7, 1996),
in issuing this rule, EPA has taken the necessary steps to eliminate
drafting errors and ambiguity, minimize potential litigation, and
provide a clear legal standard for affected conduct. EPA has complied
with Executive Order 12630 (53 FR 8859, March 15, 1988) by examining
the takings implications of the rule in accordance with the ``Attorney
General's Supplemental Guidelines for the Evaluation of Risk and
Avoidance of Unanticipated Takings'' issued under the executive order.
This rule does not impose an information collection burden under the
provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et
seq.).
B. Submission to Congress and the Comptroller General
The Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 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 the Congress and to the Comptroller General of the
United States. EPA will submit a report containing this rule and other
required information to the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House of
Representatives, and the Comptroller General of the United States prior
to publication of the rule in the Federal Register. This rule is not a
``major rule'' as defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2).
C. 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 21, 2000. Filing a
petition for reconsideration by the Administrator of this final rule
does
[[Page 38744]]
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).)
List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 62
Environmental protection, Administrative practice and procedure,
Air pollution control, Intergovernmental relations, Hospital/medical/
infectious waste incinerators, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements.
Dated: June 5, 2000
Laura Yoshii,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region IX.
40 CFR Part 62, Subpart D, is amended as follows:
PART 62--[AMENDED]
1. The authority citation for part 62 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401-7671q.
Subpart D--Arizona
2. A new center heading, and Secs. 62.630, 62.631, and 62.632, are
added to Subpart D to read as follows:
Emissions From Existing Hospital/Medical/Infectious Waste
Incinerators
Sec. 62.630 Identification of plan.
The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality submitted on
November 16, 1999 the State of Arizona's section 111(d)/129 Plan for
Existing Hospital/Medical/Infectious Waste Incinerators (HMIWI). The
submitted plan does not apply to sources located in Pima and Pinal
counties.
Sec. 62.631 Identification of sources.
The plan applies to existing HMIWI for which construction was
commenced on or before June 20, 1996, as described in 40 CFR part 60,
subpart Ce.
Sec. 62.632 Effective date.
The effective date of EPA approval of the plan is August 21, 2000.
[FR Doc. 00-15288 Filed 6-21-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P