[Federal Register: December 27, 2002 (Volume 67, Number 249)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 78980-78983]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr27de02-18]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[NC 102-200304(a); FRL-7425-2]
Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans North Carolina:
Approval of Revisions to Miscellaneous Regulations Within the North
Carolina State Implementation Plan
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Direct final rule.
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SUMMARY: On August 7, 2002, the North Carolina Department of
Environment and Natural Resources submitted revisions to the North
Carolina State Implementation Plan (SIP). North Carolina is adopting
rule 15A NCAC 2D .0542, Control of Particulate Emissions from Cotton
Ginning Operations. In addition, North Carolina is amending rules 15A
NCAC 2D .0504, Particulates from Wood Burning Indirect Heat Exchangers,
.0927, Bulk Gasoline Terminals, .0932, Gasoline Truck Tanks and Vapor
Collection Systems and 15A NCAC 2Q .0102, Activities Exempt From
Permitting Requirements and .0104, Where to Obtain and File Permit
Applications. The EPA is approving these revisions.
DATES: This direct final rule is effective February 25, 2003 without
further notice, unless EPA receives adverse comment by January 27,
2003. 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: All comments should be addressed to: Randy Terry at the EPA,
Region 4 Air Planning Branch, 61 Forsyth Street, SW, Atlanta, Georgia
30303-8960.
Copies of the State submittal(s) are available at the following
addresses for inspection during normal business hours:
Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, Air Planning Branch, 61
Forsyth Street, SW, Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. Randy Terry, 404/562-
9032.
North Carolina Department of Environment, Health, and Natural
Resources, 512 North Salisbury Street, Raleigh, North Carolina 27604.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Randy B. Terry, Regulatory Development
Section, Air Planning Branch, Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management
Division, Region 4, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 61 Forsyth
Street, SW, Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. The telephone number is (404)
562-9032. Mr. Terry can also be reached via electronic mail at
terry.randy@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
On August 7, 2002, the North Carolina Department of Environment and
Natural Resources submitted revisions to the North Carolina SIP. These
revisions involve the adoption of rule 15A NCAC 2D .0542, Control of
Particulate Emissions from Cotton Ginning Operations, the amending of
multiple rules within Section 15A NCAC 2D .0900 Volatile Organic
Compounds, and several other miscellaneous revisions. An analysis of
each of the major revisions submitted is listed below.
II. Analysis of State's Submittal
15A NCAC 2D
.0504 Particulates From Wood Burning Indirect Heat Exchangers
This rule has been amended to correct the reference to paragraph
(d) of this rule to paragraph (f).
[[Page 78981]]
.0542 Control of Particulate Emissions from Cotton Ginning Operations
This rule has been adopted to establish particulate control
requirements specific to cotton ginning operations. The rule applies to
all cotton gins and requires one or more 1D-3D cyclones or an
equivalent device to achieve 95 percent efficiency on all high pressure
exhausts and lint cleaning exhausts, and one or more 2D-2D cyclones or
an equivalent device to achieve 90 percent efficiency on all remaining
low pressure exhausts. Small gins that do not already have control
devices on lint cleaners and battery condensers are not required to
install controls on them. The rule also requires:
[sbull] Raincaps to be removed,
[sbull] Sp;an inspection and maintenance schedule,
[sbull] A three-sided enclosure or a wet suppression system at the
trash cyclone dump area, trash stacker/composting,
[sbull] Daily cleaning of lint from non-storage areas of the gin
yard,
[sbull] Cleaning of lint and debris from paved areas,
[sbull] Dust suppression and speed limits in unpaved areas,
[sbull] Covering of trucks transporting trash material,
[sbull] Removal of overspill from trucks, and
[sbull] Daily cleaning of the trash hopper dump area.
In addition, the rule requires a baseline study of the air flow
system to ensure air flows are within design range for the collection
device and monitoring devices for pressure, flow rate, and other
operating conditions to ensure proper operation an maintenance of the
control devices. The owner or operator is also required to take and
record monthly static pressure readings, conduct daily inspections of
the system and record problems and corrective actions in a logbook, and
at the conclusion of the season conduct an inspection to identify all
maintenance activities and repairs needed prior to the next season. The
rule also requires the owner to keep records of parameters established
in the baseline study, monthly static pressure checks, observations of
daily inspections and corrective actions. Gin owners or operators are
also required to submit an annual report of the number of bales of
cotton produced during the previous ginning season and a schedule of
repair and maintenance to be conducted prior to the start of the next
season. The rule also contains provisions for request and approval of
alternative control measures.
.0927 Bulk Gasoline Terminals and .0932 Gasoline Truck Tanks and Vapor
Collection Systems
These rules have been amended to require the owner or operator of
the truck tank to file a copy of its most recent leak tightness
certification test with bulk gasoline terminals where the tank is
loaded. The amendments also require bulk gasoline terminals to keep on
file a copy of the leak tight certification for each truck tank that
they load.
15A NCAC 2Q
.0102 Activities Exempt From Permitting Requirements
This rule is being amended to add language that allows the
Director, if he finds that an activity exempted under paragraph (b) of
this rule is in violation of or has violated a rule in 15A NCAC 2D., to
revoke the permit exemption for that activity and require that activity
to be permitted under this Subchapter.
.0104 Where to Obtain and File Permit Applications
This rule is being amended to correct the address for the North
Carolina Division of Air Quality.
III. Final Action
EPA is approving the aforementioned changes to the SIP because the
revisions are consistent with Clean Air Act and EPA regulatory
requirements. The EPA is publishing this rule without prior proposal
because the Agency views this as a noncontroversial submittal 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 SIP revision
should adverse comments be filed. This rule will be effective February
25, 2003 without further notice unless the Agency receives adverse
comments by January 27, 2003.
If the 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. Parties interested in commenting
should do so at this time. If no such comments are received, the public
is advised that this rule will be effective on February 25, 2003 and no
further action will be taken on the proposed rule. Please note that if
we receive adverse comment on an amendment, paragraph, or section of
this rule and if that provision may be severed from the remainder of
the rule, we may adopt as final those provisions of the rule that are
not the subject of an adverse comment.
IV. Administrative 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. For this
reason, this action is also not subject to Executive Order 13211,
``Actions Concerning Regulations That Significantly Affect Energy
Supply, Distribution, or Use'' (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001). 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 (Pub. L. 104-4).
This rule also does not have tribal implications because it will
not have a substantial direct effect on one or more Indian tribes, on
the relationship between the Federal Government and Indian tribes, or
on the distribution of power and responsibilities between the Federal
Government and Indian tribes, as specified by Executive Order 13175 (65
FR 67249, November 9, 2000). This action also does not have Federalism
implications because it does 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). This action 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
``Protection of Children from Environmental Health Risks and Safety
Risks'' (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997), because it is not economically
significant.
In reviewing SIP submissions, EPA's role is to approve state
choices,
[[Page 78982]]
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 SIP submission for failure to use VCS. It would thus be
inconsistent with applicable law for EPA, when it reviews a SIP
submission, to use VCS in place of a SIP 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. 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.).
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. A major rule cannot
take effect until 60 days after it is published in the Federal
Register. This action is not a ``major rule'' as defined by 5 U.S.C.
804(2).
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 February 25, 2003. 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).)
List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52
Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Carbon monoxide,
Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements.
Dated: October 31, 2002.
A. Stanley Meiburg,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4.
PART 52--[AMENDED]
1. The authority for citation for part 52 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Subpart II--North Carolina
2. In Sec. 52.1770(c), Table 1 is amended to read as follows:
a. Under subchapter 2D, section .0500, by adding a new entry .0542,
and revising entry .0504;
b. Under subchapter 2D, section .0900, by revising entries .0927
and .0932; and
c. Under subchapter 2Q, section .0100, by revising entries .0102
and .0104.
Sec. 52.1770 Identification of plan.
* * * * *
(c) * * *
Table 1--EPA Approved North Carolina Regulations
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State effective EPA approval
State citation Title/subject date date Comments
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Subchapter 2D................... Air Pollution Control Requirements
* * * * * * *
Section .0500................... Emissions Control Standards
* * * * * * *
Sect. .0504..................... Particulates From Wood 7/01/02 12/27/02 ................
Burning Indirect Heat
Exchangers.
* * * * * * *
Sect. .0542..................... Control of Particulate 07/01/02 12/27/02 ................
Emissions From Cotton
Ginning Operations.
* * * * * * *
Section .0900................... Volatile Organic Compounds
* * * * * * *
Sect. .0927..................... Bulk Gasoline Terminals. 07/01/02 12/27/02 ................
* * * * * * *
Sect. .0932..................... Gasoline Truck Tanks and 07/01/02 12/27/02 ................
Vapor Collection
Systems.
* * * * * * *
Subchapter 2Q................... Air Quality Permits
Section .0100................... General Provisions
* * * * * * *
Sect. .0102..................... Activities Exempt From 07/01/02 12/27/02 ................
Permitting Requirements.
* * * * * * *
Sect. .0104..................... Where to Obtain and File 07/01/02 12/27/02 ................
Permit Applications.
[[Page 78983]]
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[FR Doc. 02-32137 Filed 12-26-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P