[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 100 (Thursday, May 22, 2008)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 29731-29733]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-11484]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA-R04-OAR-2008-0115-200806; FRL-8570-1]
Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans South Carolina:
Interstate Transport of Pollution
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Proposed rule.
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SUMMARY: EPA is proposing to approve a State Implementation Plan (SIP)
revision submitted by the South Carolina Department of Health and
Environmental Control (SC DHEC), on June 25, 2007, pursuant to the
requirements of section 110(a)(2)(D)(i) of the Clean Air Act (CAA).
Section 110(a)(2)(D)(i) of the CAA requires each state to submit a SIP
revision within three years of a revision to the national ambient air
quality standards (NAAQS). The SIP revision must include provisions
adequate to address emissions that may adversely affect another state's
air quality through interstate transport of the revised NAAQS pursuant
to the CAA. On July 18, 1997, EPA published revisions to the NAAQS for
ozone and fine particulate matter (PM2.5). SC DHEC's June
25, 2007, SIP revision addresses the elements required by section
110(a)(2)(D)(i) of the CAA with regard to ozone and PM2.5,
and as a result, it is approvable.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before June 23, 2008.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R04-
OAR-2008-0115, by one of the following methods:
1. http://www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line instructions for
submitting comments.
2. E-mail: [email protected].
3. Fax: (404) 562-9019.
4. Mail: EPA-R04-OAR-2008-0115, Regulatory Development Section, Air
Planning Branch, Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management Division, U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street, SW.,
Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960.
5. Hand Delivery or Courier: Stacy Harder, Regulatory Development
Section, Air Planning Branch, Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management
Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth
Street, SW., Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. Such deliveries are only
accepted during the Regional Office's normal hours of operation. The
Regional Office's official
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hours of business are Monday through Friday, 8:30 to 4:30, excluding
federal holidays.
Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-R04-OAR-
2008-0115. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included
in the public docket without change and may be made available online at
http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information
provided, unless the comment includes information claimed to be
Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose
disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit through http://www.regulations.gov or e-mail information that you consider to be CBI
or otherwise protected. The http://www.regulations.gov Web site is an
``anonymous access'' system, which means EPA will not know your
identity or contact information unless you provide it in the body of
your comment. If you send an e-mail comment directly to EPA without
going through http://www.regulations.gov, your e-mail address will be
automatically captured and included as part of the comment that is
placed in the public docket and made available on the Internet. If you
submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you include your name
and other contact information in the body of your comment and with any
disk or CD-ROM you submit. 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. Electronic files should avoid
the use of special characters, any form of encryption, and be free of
any defects or viruses. For additional information about EPA's public
docket visit the EPA Docket Center homepage at http://www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm.
Docket: All documents in the electronic docket are listed in the
http://www.regulations.gov index. Although listed in the index, some
information is not publicly available, i.e., CBI or other information
whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such
as copyrighted material, is not placed on the Internet and will be
publicly available only in hard copy form. Publicly available docket
materials are available either electronically in http://www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the Regulatory Development
Section, Air Planning Branch, Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management
Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth
Street, SW., Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. EPA requests that if at all
possible, you contact the person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT section to schedule your inspection. The Regional Office's
official hours of business are Monday through Friday, 8:30 to 4:30,
excluding federal holidays.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Stacy Harder of the Regulatory
Development Section at the Air Planning Branch, Air, Pesticides and
Toxics Management Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,
Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street, SW., Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. Ms.
Harder's telephone number is (404) 562-9042. She can also be reached
via electronic mail at [email protected]. For further information
relating to the South Carolina SIP, please contact Ms. Nacosta Ward.
Ms. Ward can be reached at (404) 562-9140, or [email protected].
Table of Contents
I. What Is the Background for EPA's Action?
II. Proposed Action
III. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. What Is the Background for EPA's Action?
EPA is proposing to approve a SIP revision submitted by SC DHEC on
June 25, 2007. This SIP revision addresses the requirements of CAA
section 110(a)(2)(D)(i). This SIP revision was public noticed on April
25, 2007, and a public hearing was held on May 30, 2007; no comments
were received.
Section 110(a)(1) of the CAA requires that each state submit to EPA
a SIP revision within three years after promulgation of a NAAQS.
Section 110(a)(2)(D)(i) requires that the aforementioned SIP contain
adequate provisions to prohibit any source or other type of emissions
activity within the state from emitting any air pollutant in amounts
which will:
(I) contribute significantly to nonattainment in, or interfere
with maintenance by, any other State with respect to any such
national primary or secondary ambient air quality standard, or (II)
interfere with measures required to be included in the applicable
implementation plan for any other State under part C of this
subchapter to prevent significant deterioration of air quality or to
protect visibility * * *
CAA section 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I) and (II). The provision quoted above can
be described as including four separate but related elements that an
applicable SIP revision should include: (1) Provisions prohibiting a
state from contributing significantly to nonattainment of the NAAQS for
areas in another state; (2) provisions prohibiting interference with
maintenance of the NAAQS in another state; (3) provisions prohibiting
interference with measures required to meet implementation plan
requirements related to prevention of significant deterioration (PSD)
for any other state; and (4) provisions prohibiting interference with
measures required to meet implementation plan requirements related to
regional haze for any other state.
On July 18, 1997, EPA published revisions to the NAAQS for ozone
(62 FR 2) and PM2.5 (62 FR 38652). The current SIP revision
by South Carolina is intended to satisfy the requirements of Section
110(a)(2)(D)(i) of the CAA for the 1997 ozone and PM2.5
NAAQS. As is described below, the current SIP revision by South
Carolina adequately addresses all four sub-elements of section
110(a)(2)(D)(i) of the CAA, and is therefore approvable.
The first two sub-elements of section 110(a)(2)(D)(i) of the CAA
regard the prohibition of one state from interfering with maintenance
or attainment of a NAAQS in another state. These first two sub-elements
of Section 110(a)(2)(D)(i) were met by South Carolina's SIP revision
regarding EPA's Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR). EPA promulgated CAIR
on May 12, 2005 (70 FR 25162). CAIR requires certain states to reduce
emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides
(NOX) that significantly contribute to, and interfere with
maintenance of, the NAAQS for PM2.5 and/or ozone in any
downwind state, thus addressing the two revised NAAQS pollutants at
issue as well as the issue of interstate interference with maintenance
or attainment of the NAAQS. CAIR established state budgets for
SO2 and NOX and requires states to submit SIP
revisions that implement these budgets in states that EPA concluded did
contribute to nonattainment in other states.
South Carolina is a CAIR-State for both ozone and PM2.5
(see 60 FR 25162, May 12, 2005). Because South Carolina adopted CAIR,
EPA has already concluded that South Carolina can meet its section
110(a)(2)(D)(i) obligations to address the significant contribution and
interference with maintenance requirements by complying with the CAIR
requirements. EPA published a direct final action approving the South
Carolina CAIR SIP revision for its allocation methodology on October 9,
2007 (72 FR 57257). In addition, South Carolina remains covered by the
CAIR Federal Implementation Plan (FIP) for the remainder of its trading
program. Therefore, EPA has determined that through the above actions,
South Carolina has adequately addressed the first two sub-elements of
the CAA section 110(a)(2)(D)(i) requirements (i.e.,
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to prevent emissions that contribute significantly to other state's
nonattainment of, or interfere with the maintenance of, the NAAQS).
The third CAA section 110(a)(2)(D)(i) sub-element addressed by
South Carolina in its June 25, 2007, submittal relates to the
prevention of significant deterioration (PSD) program. For ozone and
PM2.5, South Carolina has met its obligation by confirming
that major sources in the State are currently subject to PSD and/or
Nonattainment New Source Review programs that implement the 1997 8-hour
ozone standard and the PM2.5 standard.
The fourth CAA section 110(a)(2)(D)(i) sub-element regards
visibility. South Carolina addressed this fourth sub-element through
its SIP submittal describing its Regional Haze Implementation Plan.
This revision was submitted to EPA on December 17, 2007.
II. Proposed Action
EPA is now proposing to approve South Carolina's CAA section
110(a)(2)(D)(i) SIP revision submitted on June 25, 2007. EPA has
reviewed South Carolina's 110(a)(2)(D)(i) revision and has found that
it is consistent with the relevant CAA requirements as discussed above.
III. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
Under the CAA, the Administrator is required to approve a SIP
submission that complies with the provisions of the Act and applicable
Federal regulations. 42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a). Thus, in
reviewing SIP submissions, EPA's role is to approve state choices,
provided that they meet the criteria of the CAA. Accordingly, this
proposed action merely approves state law as meeting Federal
requirements and does not impose additional requirements beyond those
imposed by state law. For that reason, this proposed action:
Is not a ``significant regulatory action'' subject to
review by the Office of Management and Budget under Executive Order
12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993);
Does not impose an information collection burden under the
provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.);
Is certified as not having a significant economic impact
on a substantial number of small entities under the Regulatory
Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.);
Does not contain any unfunded mandate or significantly or
uniquely affect small governments, as described in the Unfunded
Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-4);
Does not have Federalism implications as specified in
Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999);
Is not an economically significant regulatory action based
on health or safety risks subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR
19885, April 23, 1997);
Is not a significant regulatory action subject to
Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001);
Is not subject to requirements of section 12(d) of the
National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272
note) because application of those requirements would be inconsistent
with the CAA; and
Does not provide EPA with the discretionary authority to
address, as appropriate, disproportionate human health or environmental
effects, using practicable and legally permissible methods, under
Executive Order 12898 (59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994).
In addition, this rule does not have tribal implications as
specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000),
because the SIP is not approved to apply in Indian country located in
the State, and EPA notes that it will not impose substantial direct
costs on tribal governments or preempt tribal law.
List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52
Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Carbon monoxide,
Incorporation by reference, Intergovernmental relations, Lead, Nitrogen
dioxide, Ozone, Particulate matter, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements, Sulphur oxides, Volatile organic compounds.
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Dated: May 9, 2008.
J.I. Palmer, Jr.,
Regional Administrator, Region 4.
[FR Doc. E8-11484 Filed 5-21-08; 8:45 am]
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