[Federal Register: September 4, 2003 (Volume 68, Number 171)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 52510-52512]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr04se03-8]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[CA 287-0410a; FRL-7548-3]
Revisions to the California State Implementation Plan, Kern
County Air Pollution Control District and San Joaquin Valley Unified
Air Pollution Control District
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Direct final rule.
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SUMMARY: EPA is taking direct final action to approve revisions to the
Kern County Air Pollution Control District (KCAPCD) and San Joaquin
Valley Unified Air Pollution Control District (SJVUAPCD) portions of
the California State Implementation Plan (SIP). The KCAPCD revisions
concern the emission of particulate matter (PM-10) from agricultural
burning and prescribed burning. The SJVUAPCD revision concerns the
emission of nitrogen oxides (NOX) from lime kilns. We are approving
local rules that regulate these emission sources under the Clean Air
Act as amended in 1990 (CAA or the Act).
DATES: This rule is effective on November 3, 2003 without further
notice, unless EPA receives adverse comments by October 6, 2003. If we
receive such comments, we will publish a timely withdrawal in the
Federal Register to notify the public that this rule will not take
effect.
ADDRESSES: Mail or e-mail comments to Andy Steckel, Rulemaking Office
Chief (AIR-4), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region IX, 75
Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105; steckel.andrew@epa.gov. You can inspect copies of the submitted rule revisions and EPA's
technical support documents (TSDs) at our Region IX office during
normal business hours. You may also see copies of the submitted rule
revisions and TSDs at the following locations:
Environmental Protection Agency, Air Docket (6102), Ariel Rios
Building, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington DC 20460.
California Air Resources Board, Stationary Source Division, Rule
Evaluation Section, 1001 ``I'' Street, Sacramento, CA 95814.
Kern County Air Pollution Control District, 2700 ``M'' Street,
Suite 302, Bakersfield, CA 93301.
San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution Control District, 1990
East Gettysburg Street, Fresno, CA 93726.
A copy of the rule may also be available via the Internet at http://www.arb.ca.gov/drdb/drdbltxt.htm.
Please be advised that this is not
an EPA website and may not contain the same version of the rule that
was submitted to EPA.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Al Petersen, Rulemaking Office (AIR-
4), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region IX; (415) 947-4118.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, ``we,'' ``us'' and
``our'' refer to EPA.
Table of Contents
I. The State's Submittal
A. What rules did the State submit?
B. Are there other versions of these rules?
C. What is the purpose of the submitted rule or rule revisions?
II. EPA's Evaluation and Action
A. How is EPA evaluating the rules?
B. Do the rules meet the evaluation criteria?
C. Public comment and final action
III. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
I. The State's Submittal
A. What Rules Did the State Submit?
Table 1 lists the rules we are approving with the date that they
were adopted by the local air agencies and submitted by the California
Air Resources Board (CARB).
Table 1.--Submitted Rules
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Local agency Rule No. Rule title Adopted or amended Submitted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
KCAPCD................................ 417 Agricultural and 03/13/03 Amended.... 06/05/03
Prescribed Burning.
SJVUAPCD.............................. 4313 Lime Kilns................ 03/27/03 Adopted.... 06/05/03
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On July 1, 2003, this submittal was found to meet the completeness
criteria in 40 CFR part 51, appendix V, which must be met before formal
EPA review.
B. Are There Other Versions of These Rules?
We approved KCAPCD Rule 417 into the SIP on August 19, 1999 (64 FR
45170), originally adopted on April 18, 1972. SJVUAPCD Rule 4313 is a
new rule.
C. What Is the Purpose of the Submitted Rule or Rule Revisions?
NOX helps produce ground-level ozone, smog and
particulate matter, which harm human health and the environment.
Section 110(a) of the CAA requires states to submit regulations that
control NOX and particulate matter emissions.
The purpose of the revisions to KCAPCD Rule 417 is to make the
following changes:
[sbull] Added are 19 new definitions.
[sbull] Added is the concept of a marginal-burn day, where limited
burning would be allowed when conditions are close to those of a
permissive-burn day.
[sbull] Added is 48-hour forecast, in addition to the present 72-
hour outlook.
[sbull] Added are the Smoke Management Guidelines promulgated under
title 17, California Code of Regulations (CCR) (September 18, 2001).
These guidelines require that smoke management plans be prepared for
prescribed burning of greater than 10 acres, with additional plan
requirements at the 100-acre and 250-acre thresholds.
[sbull] Meteorological criteria for permissive-burn days in the
Mohave Desert Air Basin are incorporated by reference from title 17,
CCR, section 80311 (September 18, 2001).
[sbull] Deleted is the exemption to do Range Improvement Burning on
a no-burn day if over 50% is brush-treated.
The purpose of new SJVUAPCD Rule 4313 is to regulate NOX
emissions from lime kilns.
II. EPA's Evaluation and Action
A. How Is EPA Evaluating the Rules?
Generally, SIP rules must be enforceable (see section 110(a) of the
CAA) and must not relax existing requirements (see sections 110(l) and
193).
Section 189(a) of the CAA requires moderate nonattainment areas
with significant PM-10 sources to adopt reasonably available control
measures (RACM), including reasonably available
[[Page 52511]]
control technology (RACT). KCAPCD is a PM-10 maintenance attainment
area that was previously PM-10 moderate nonattainment. The PM-10
Attainment Demonstration Maintenance Plan and Redesignation Request,
KCAPCD (September 5, 2003) does not rely on Rule 417 for attainment,
therefore fulfilling RACM/RACT is not required.
Major NOX sources in severe ozone nonattainment areas
are required to adopt Reasonably Available Control Technology (RACT)
(see sections 182(a)(2)(A) and 182(f)). SJVUAPCD is a severe ozone
nonattainment area and must fulfill the requirements of RACT.
The following guidance documents were used for reference:
[sbull] Requirements for Preparation, Adoption, and Submittal of
Implementation Plans, U.S. EPA, 40 CFR part 51.
[sbull] General Preamble Appendix C3--Prescribed Burning Control
Measures (57 FR 18072, April 28, 1992).
[sbull] Prescribed Burning Background Document and Technical
Information Document for Best Available Control Measures (EPA-450/2-92-
003).
[sbull] General Preamble for the Implementation of Title I of the
Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990, 57 FR 13498, 13540 (April 16, 1992).
[sbull] PM-10 Attainment Demonstration Maintenance Plan and
Redesignation Request, KCAPCD (September 5, 2003).
[sbull] Issues Relating to VOC Regulation Cutpoints, Deficiencies,
and Deviations, U.S. EPA (May 25, 1988) (the Bluebook).
[sbull] State Implementation Plans; Nitrogen Oxides Supplement to
the General Preamble for the Implementation of Title I of the Clean Air
Act Amendments of 1990 (the ``NOX Supplement to the General
Preamble''), U.S. EPA, 57 FR 55620 (November 25, 1992).
[sbull] Guidance Document for Correcting Common VOC & Other Rule
Deficiencies, U.S. EPA Region IX (August 21, 2001) (the Little
Bluebook).
B. Do the Rules Meet the Evaluation Criteria?
We believe the rules are consistent with the relevant policy and
guidance regarding enforceability, SIP relaxations, and fulfilling
RACM/RACT or RACT requirements.
The TSDs have more information on our evaluation.
C. Public Comment and Final Action
As authorized in section 110(k)(3) of the CAA, EPA is fully
approving the submitted rules because we believe they fulfill all
relevant requirements. We do not think anyone will object to this, so
we are finalizing the approval without proposing it in advance.
However, in the Proposed Rules section of this Federal Register, we are
simultaneously proposing approval of the same submitted rules. If we
receive adverse comments by October 6, 2003, we will publish a timely
withdrawal in the Federal Register to notify the public that the direct
final approval will not take effect and we will address the comments in
a subsequent final action based on the proposal. If we do not receive
timely adverse comments, the direct final approval will be effective
without further notice on November 3, 2003. This will incorporate these
rules into the federally-enforceable SIP.
Please note that if EPA receives adverse comment on an amendment,
paragraph, or section of this direct final rule and if that provision
may be severed from the remainder of the rule, EPA may adopt as final
those provisions of the rule that are not the subject of an adverse
comment.
III. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
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 (Public Law 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, 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 November 3, 2003. Filing a
petition for reconsideration by the Administrator of this final rule
does not affect the finality
[[Page 52512]]
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, Incorporation by
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen oxides, Ozone,
Particulate matter, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Volatile
organic compounds.
Dated: August 7, 2003.
Debbie Jordan,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region IX.
0
Part 52, chapter I, title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations is
amended as follows:
PART 52--[AMENDED]
0
1. The authority citation for Part 52 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Subpart F--California
0
2. Section 52.220 is amended by adding paragraph (c)(316) to read as
follows:
Sec. 52.220 Identification of plan.
* * * * *
(c) * * *
(316) New and amended regulations for the following APCDs were
submitted on June 5, 2003, by the Governor's designee.
(i) Incorporation by reference.
(A) Kern County Air Pollution Control District.
(1) Rule 417, originally adopted on April 18, 1972, amended on
March 13, 2003.
(B) San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution Control District.
(1) Rule 4313, adopted on March 27, 2003.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 03-22445 Filed 9-3-03; 8:45 am]
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