[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 130 (Thursday, July 8, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 41261-41262]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-15535]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-7783-4]
Proposed Settlement Agreement, Clean Air Act Citizen Suit
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of proposed settlement agreement; request for public
comment.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with section 113(g) of the Clean Air Act, as
amended (``Act''), 42 U.S.C. 7413(g), notice is hereby given of a
proposed settlement agreement, to address a lawsuit filed by Sierra
Club, Georgia Forestwatch, and Newton Florist Club in the U.S. District
Court for the Northern District of Georgia: Sierra Club, Georgia,
Forestwatch, and Newton Florist Club v. Leavitt, No. 04-CV-576 (MHS)
(ND GA). Plaintiffs filed the complaint in this Action on March 2,
2004, against Defendants Michael O. Leavitt, Administrator of the
United States Environmental Protection Agency, and United States
Environmental Protection Agency (collectively ``EPA'') claiming EPA
failed to respond in a timely manner to Plaintiffs petition challenging
Georgia's Title V operating permit for the Cargill Vegetable Oil Mill.
Under the terms of the proposed settlement agreement, no later than
July 16, 2004, EPA shall sign an order granting or denying Plaintiffs'
petition.
DATES: Written comments on the proposed settlement agreement must be
received by August 9, 2004.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by docket ID number OGC-
2004-0005, online at http://www.epa.gov/edocket (EPA's preferred
method); by e-mail to [email protected]; mailed to EPA Docket Center,
Environmental Protection Agency, Mailcode: 2822T, 1200 Pennsylvania
Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001; or by hand delivery or courier to
EPA Docket Center, EPA West, Room B102, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW.,
Washington, DC, between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday,
excluding legal holidays. Comments on a disk or CD-ROM should be
formatted in Wordperfect or ASCII file, avoiding the use of special
characters and any form of encryption, and may be mailed to the mailing
address above.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Amber Aranda, Air and Radiation Law
Office (2344A), Office of General Counsel, U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460,
telephone: (202) 564-1737.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Additional Information About the Proposed Settlement
Plaintiffs claim that EPA has not completed an alleged
nondiscretionary duty to grant or deny a petition pursuant to section
505(b)(2) of the Clean Air Act (``CAA''), 42 U.S.C. 7661d(b)(2) and
seeks an order from the Court establishing a deadline by which EPA must
grant or deny Plaintiffs' petition. The Plaintiffs petition requests
that EPA object to the permit amendment issued by the Georgia
Environmental Protection Division (``EPD'' or the ``Department'') to
Cargill, Inc. (``Cargill'' or ``Permittee'') for its facility located
in Gainesville (Hall County), Georgia.
No later than July 16, 2004, EPA shall sign an order granting or
denying Plaintiffs' petition. Within 5 business days following
signature of such order, EPA shall provide notice of such order to
Plaintiffs. No later than 10 calendar days following signature of such
order, EPA shall deliver a notice of the order to the Office of the
Federal Register for publication. Following such delivery to the Office
of the Federal Register, EPA shall not take any step (other than as
necessary to correct within 10 business days after submittal any
typographical or other errors in form) to delay or otherwise interfere
with publication of such notice in the Federal Register. EPA shall
additionally not take any step (other than as necessary to correct
within 10 business days after submittal
[[Page 41262]]
any typographical or other errors in form) to delay or otherwise
interfere with publication of notice in the Federal Register of orders
relating to Plaintiffs' petition.
For a period of thirty (30) days following the date of publication
of this notice, the Agency will receive written comments relating to
the proposed settlement agreement from persons who were not named as
parties or interveners to the litigation in question. EPA or the
Department of Justice may withdraw or withhold consent to the proposed
settlement agreement if the comments disclose facts or considerations
that indicate that such consent is inappropriate, improper, inadequate,
or inconsistent with the requirements of the Act. Unless EPA or the
Department of Justice determine, based on any comment which may be
submitted, that consent to the settlement agreement should be
withdrawn, the terms of the agreement will be affirmed.
II. Additional Information About Commenting on the Proposed Settlement
A. How Can I Get A Copy Of the Settlement?
EPA has established an official public docket for this action under
Docket ID No. OGC-2004-0005 which contains a copy of the settlement.
The official public docket is available for public viewing at the
Office of Environmental Information (OEI) Docket in the EPA Docket
Center, EPA West, Room B102, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW, Washington,
DC. The EPA Docket Center Public Reading Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to
4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The
telephone number for the Public Reading Room is (202) 566-1744, and the
telephone number for the OEI Docket is (202) 566-1752.
An electronic version of the public docket is available through
EPA's electronic public docket and comment system, EPA Dockets. You may
use EPA Dockets at http://www.epa.gov/edocket/ to submit or view public
comments, access the index listing of the contents of the official
public docket, and to access those documents in the public docket that
are available electronically. Once in the system, select ``search,''
then key in the appropriate docket identification number.
It is important to note that EPA's policy is that public comments,
whether submitted electronically or in paper, will be made available
for public viewing in EPA's electronic public docket as EPA receives
them and without change, unless the comment contains copyrighted
material, CBI, or other information whose disclosure is restricted by
statute. Information claimed as CBI and other information whose
disclosure is restricted by statute is not included in the official
public docket or in EPA's electronic public docket. EPA's policy is
that copyrighted material, including copyrighted material contained in
a public comment, will not be placed in EPA's electronic public docket
but will be available only in printed, paper form in the official
public docket. Although not all docket materials may be available
electronically, you may still access any of the publicly available
docket materials through the EPA Docket Center.
B. How and to Whom Do I Submit Comments?
You may submit comments as provided in the ADDRESSES section.
Please ensure that your comments are submitted within the specified
comment period. Comments received after the close of the comment period
will be marked ``late.'' EPA is not required to consider these late
comments.
If you submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you
include your name, mailing address, and an e-mail address or other
contact information in the body of your comment and with any disk or CD
ROM you submit. This ensures that you can be identified as the
submitter of the comment and allows EPA to contact you in case EPA
cannot read your comment due to technical difficulties or needs further
information on the substance of your comment. Any identifying or
contact information provided in the body of a comment will be included
as part of the comment that is placed in the official public docket,
and made available in EPA's electronic public docket. If EPA cannot
read your comment due to technical difficulties and cannot contact you
for clarification, EPA may not be able to consider your comment.
Your use of EPA's electronic public docket to submit comments to
EPA electronically is EPA's preferred method for receiving comments.
The electronic public docket system is an ``anonymous access'' system,
which means EPA will not know your identity, e-mail address, or other
contact information unless you provide it in the body of your comment.
In contrast to EPA's electronic public docket, EPA's electronic mail
(e-mail) system is not an ``anonymous access'' system. If you send an
e-mail comment directly to the Docket without going through EPA's
electronic public docket, your e-mail address is automatically captured
and included as part of the comment that is placed in the official
public docket, and made available in EPA's electronic public docket.
Dated: June 8, 2004.
Lisa K. Friedman,
Associate General Counsel, Air and Radiation Law Office, Office of
General Counsel.
[FR Doc. 04-15535 Filed 7-7-04; 8:45 am]
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