[Federal Register: March 10, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 46)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 11879-11882]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr10mr05-20]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[R01-OAR-2005-ME-0001; A-1-FRL-7881-2]
Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans;
Maine; NOX Control Program
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Direct final rule.
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SUMMARY: EPA is approving a State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision
submitted by the State of Maine. This revision establishes requirements
to reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides from large stationary sources.
The intended effect of this action is to approve these requirements
into the Maine SIP. EPA is taking this action in accordance with the
Clean Air Act (CAA).
DATES: This direct final rule will be effective May 9, 2005, unless EPA
receives adverse comments by April 11, 2005. If EPA receives adverse
comments, the Agency will publish a timely withdrawal of the direct
final rule in the Federal Register informing the public that the rule
will not take effect.
ADDRESSES: When submitting your comments, include the Regional Material
in EDocket (RME) ID Number R01-OAR-2005-ME-0001 by one of the following
methods:
1. Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow
the on-line instructions for submitting comments.
2. Agency Web site: http://docket.epa.gov/rmepub/ Regional Material
in EDocket (RME), EPA's electronic public docket and comment system, is
EPA's preferred method for receiving comments. Once in the system,
select ``quick search,'' then key in the appropriate RME Docket
identification number. Follow the on-line instructions for submitting
comments.
3. E-mail: conroy.dave@epa.gov.
4. Fax: (617) 918-0661.
5. Mail: ``RME ID Number R01-OAR-2005-ME-0001'' David Conroy, U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency, EPA New England Regional Office, One
Congress Street, Suite 1100 (mail code CAQ), Boston, MA 02114-2023.
6. Hand Delivery or Courier. Deliver your comments to: David
Conroy, Unit Manager, Air Quality Planning, Office of Ecosystem
Protection, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA New England
Regional Office, One Congress Street, 11th floor, (CAQ), Boston, MA
02114-2023. Such deliveries are only accepted during the Regional
Office's normal hours of operation. The Regional Office's official
hours of business are Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.,
excluding Federal holidays.
Instructions: Direct your comments to Regional Material in EDocket
(RME) ID Number R01-OAR-2005-ME-0001. 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://docket.epa.gov/rmepub/, 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 information that you consider to be CBI or otherwise protected
through Regional Material in EDocket (RME), regulations.gov, or e-mail.
The EPA RME Web site and the Federal regulations.gov Web site are
``anonymous access'' systems, 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 RME or 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
[[Page 11880]]
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 or any form of encryption, and be free of
any defects or viruses.
Docket: All documents in the electronic docket are listed in the
Regional Material in EDocket (RME) index at http://docket.epa.gov/rmepub/.
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 RME or in hard copy at the Office of
Ecosystem Protection, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA New
England Regional Office, One Congress Street, Suite 1100, Boston, MA.
EPA requests that if at all possible, you contact the contact 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 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., excluding Federal holidays.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Christine Sansevero, Air Quality
Planning Unit, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA New England
Regional Office, One Congress Street, Suite 1100 (CAQ), Boston, MA
02114-2023, (617) 918-1699, sansevero.christine@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. General Information
A. How Can I Get Copies of This Document and Other Related Information?
In addition to the publicly available docket materials available
for inspection electronically in Regional Material in EDocket, and the
hard copy available at the Regional Office, which are identified in the
ADDRESSES section above, copies of the state submittal and EPA's
technical support document are also available for public inspection
during normal business hours, by appointment at the Bureau of Air
Quality Control, Department of Environmental Protection, First Floor of
the Tyson Building, Augusta Mental Health Institute Complex, Augusta,
ME 04333-0017.
II. Rulemaking Information
This section is organized as follows:
A. What Action is EPA Taking?
B. What are the Requirements of Maine's New Regulation?
C. Why is EPA Approving Maine's Regulation?
D. What is the Process for EPA To Approve This SIP Revision?
A. What Action is EPA Taking?
EPA is approving Maine's Chapter 145, ``NOX Control
Program'' and incorporating this regulation into the Maine SIP.
B. What are the Requirements of Maine's New Regulation?
Chapter 145 sets year-round NOX emission limits for all
electric generating facilities and industrial sources with a heat input
of greater than 250 million British Thermal Units (BTU) per hour
located in York, Cumberland, Sagadahoc, Androscoggin, Kennebec,
Lincoln, and Knox counties. The rule establishes control requirements
for electric generating units (EGUs) and industrial boilers, through
both ``interim'' and ``final'' emission limits (in pounds per million
BTU) as indicated in Table 1 below. The limits are to be met on a 90-
day rolling average basis. The rule includes the appropriate testing
and recordkeeping requirements to ensure compliance with the specified
emission limits. The rule also includes provisions for averaging
emissions between units in certain circumstances as well as appropriate
monitoring requirements.
Table 1.--Interim and Final Emission Limits for Large Stationary Sources
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Interim limits June 15, 2003 thru
Affected source December 30, 2004 Final limits December 30, 2004
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Fossil fuel fired EGU with heat 0.27 lbs/mmBTU........................ 0.22 lbs/mmBTU.
input less than 750 mmBTU/hr.
Fossil fuel fired EGU with heat 0.19 lbs/mmBTU........................ 0.15 lbs/mmBTU.
input greater than or equal to
750 mmBTU/hr.
Fossil fuel fired heat 0.20 lbs/mmBTU........................ 0.20 lbs/mmBTU.
exchangers, primary boilers and
resource recovery units with
heat input greater than 250
mmBTU/hr.
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While an affected source must comply with the interim limits, the
regulation provides for alternative emission limitations for sources
that cannot meet the final emission limits using NOX control
technology approved by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection
Commissioner or Maine Board of Environmental Protection under Chapter
145. If an affected source fails to meet the final emission limitation
after installing the approved NOX control technology, they
can apply to the Board to establish an alternative emission limitation
based on the actual performance of the NOX control
technology. Affected sources must apply to the Board for an alternative
emission limit by January 1, 2005. The Board will process any
application for alternative emission limits as a license amendment.
The authority to establish alternative emission limits is the
functional equivalent of a director's discretion provision. Director's
discretion provisions are not acceptable for inclusion in SIPs if the
state is relying on the provision to satisfy a Clean Air Act
requirement, or to receive credit under its SIP for enforceable
emission reductions. Chapter 145, however, is an additional control
measure undertaken by Maine that goes beyond what is minimally required
by the Clean Air Act. This rule is not meant to implement a Reasonably
Available Control Technology requirement and Maine is not covered by
the NOX SIP call. Therefore, EPA is approving this rule as a
SIP strengthening measure despite the provision allowing the Board to
set alternative limits. Fortunately, the rule limits the time frame for
requesting an alternative limit; after January 1, 2005 no source may
apply for such a limit. As a result, we now know the universe of
emissions units that may be receiving an alternative limit. Imposing a
limit on the time frame to request an alternate limit has the effect of
eliminating the operation of the director's discretion provision after
passage of this deadline.
Maine DEP has notified EPA that, on December 28, 2004, one such
affected facility, FPL Energy, submitted an application for alternative
emission
[[Page 11881]]
limits for units 3 and 4 of their Wyman station in Yarmouth, Maine.
Once the Board has made a final determination of the alternative limits
for units 3 and 4 at Wyman Station, EPA and the public will know what
emissions limits are in effect under the rule for these units.
Moreover, Maine DEP has committed to submit any alternative emission
limits to EPA as a single-source SIP revision \1\. Once the state
establishes those limits in an operating license and submits them to
EPA for approval as a revision to the SIP, EPA will be able to assign
SIP credit for the final emission limits for these units, and there
will be no further opportunity for the state to change the limits under
the rule unless it is done as a revision to the SIP.
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\1\ See response to comment number 108 on page 95 of DEP's
Supplemental Basis Statement for Chapter 145.
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C. Why is EPA Approving Maine's Regulation?
EPA has evaluated Maine's Chapter 145 and has determined that this
regulation strengthens the existing SIP requirements for large
stationary sources. The specific requirements of the regulation and
EPA's evaluation of these requirements are detailed in a memorandum
dated January 24, 2005, entitled ``Technical Support Document--Maine--
NOX Control Program Regulation'' (TSD). The TSD and Maine's
Chapter 145 are available in the docket supporting this action.
D. What is the Process for EPA To Approve This SIP Revision?
The EPA is publishing this rule 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 SIP revision should
adverse comments be filed. This action will be effective May 9, 2005,
without further notice unless the EPA receives adverse comments by
April 11, 2005.
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 May 9, 2005, and no
further action will be taken on the proposed rule.
III. Final Action
EPA is approving Maine's Chapter 145, ``NOX Control
Program'' and incorporating this regulation into the Maine SIP.
IV. 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 (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), 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
``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 May 9, 2005. Interested
parties should comment in response to the proposed rule rather than
petition for judicial review, unless the objection arises after the
comment period allowed for in the proposal. 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, Incorporation by
[[Page 11882]]
reference, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements.
Dated: February 18, 2005.
Robert W. Varney,
Regional Administrator, EPA New England.
Part 52 of 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 U--Maine
0
2. Section 52.1020 is amended by adding paragraph (c)(56) to read as
follows:
Sec. 52.1020 Identification of plan.
* * * * *
(c) * * *
(56) Revisions to the State Implementation Plan submitted by the
Maine Department of Environmental Protection on February 12, 2004.
(i) Incorporation by reference.
(A) Chapter 145 of the Maine Department of Environmental Protection
Regulations, ``NOX Control Program,'' effective in the State
of Maine on July 22, 2001.
(ii) Additional materials.
(A) Nonregulatory portions of the submittal.
0
3. In Sec. 52.1031, Table 52.1031 is amended by adding a new state
citation, 145, in numerical order to read as follows:
Sec. 52.1031 EPA-approved Maine regulations.
* * * * *
Table 52.1031.--EPA-Approved Rules and Regulations
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Date Date
State citation Title/subject adopted approved Federal Register 52.1020
by State by EPA citation
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* * * * * * *
145........... NOX Control Program 6/21/01 4/10/05 [Insert FR (c)(56).
citation from
published date].
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Note.--1. The regulations are effective statewide unless stated otherwise in comments section.
[FR Doc. 05-4709 Filed 3-9-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P