[Federal Register: December 19, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 243)]
[Notices]
[Page 75962-75963]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr19de06-59]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-8258-6]
Proposed Consent Decree, Clean Air Act Citizen Suit
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of Proposed Consent Decree; request for public comment.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
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 consent decree, to address a deadline suit filed by Sierra
Club and Coosa River Basin Initiative (``Coosa River''): Sierra Club v.
EPA, No. 1:06CV1523 (N.D. GA). On December 20, 2005 and January 3,
2006, Sierra Club, Coosa River, and the Georgia Public Interest
Research Group petitioned EPA to object to certain Clean Air Act Title
V permit amendments proposed by the Georgia Environmental Protection
Division for steam generating plants at Georgia Power's (1) Bowen and
Branch Steam-Electric Generating Plants, and (2) Hammond and Scherer
Steam-Electric Generating Plants, all of which are in the State of
Georgia. Subsequently, Sierra Club and Coosa River filed suit, alleging
that the Administrator failed to perform his nondiscretionary duty to
respond to the petitions within sixty days of the date they were filed.
Under the terms of today's proposed consent decree, EPA has agreed to
respond to the petitions by January 8, 2007, and Sierra Club and Coosa
River have agreed that if EPA does so, and after parties negotiate
attorneys' fees, they will move to dismiss their suit with prejudice.
DATES: Written comments on the proposed consent decree must be received
by January 18, 2007.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID number EPA-HQ-
OGC-2006-0972, online at http://www.regulations.gov (EPA's preferred method); by e-mail to oei.docket@epa.gov; 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 3334, 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 Word 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: Howard J. Hoffman, Air and Radiation
Law Office (2344A), Office of General Counsel, U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460;
telephone: (202) 564-5582; fax number (202) 564-5603; e-mail address:
hoffman.howard@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Additional Information about the Proposed Consent Decree
This proposed consent decree would resolve a deadline suit to
require EPA to respond to two administrative petitions that EPA object
to certain Title V permit
[[Page 75963]]
amendments proposed by the Georgia Environmental Protection Division
for the Bowen and Branch plants as well as the Hammond and Scherer
plants in the State of Georgia. Under the proposed decree, the parties
would seek to stay the pending litigation, and Sierra Club and Coosa
River would agree to dismiss the lawsuit if the Administrator responds
to the petitions by January 8, 2007. The consent decree does not
specify the type of response that the Administrator must make to the
petitions. If the consent decree becomes final and the Administrator
responds to the petitions by January 8, 2007, and after the parties
negotiate attorneys' fees, Sierra Club and Coosa River will dismiss the
case.
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 consent decree 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 consent decree
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 determines, based on any comment which may be submitted, that
consent to the consent decree should be withdrawn, the terms of the
decree will be affirmed.
II. Additional Information about Commenting on the Proposed Consent
Decree
A. How Can I Get a Copy of the Consent Decree?
The official public docket for this action (identified by Docket ID
No. EPA-HQ-OGC-2006-0972) contains a copy of the consent decree. 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 3334, 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
http://www.regulations.gov. You may use the www.regulations.gov 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 online at http://www.regulations.gov 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 the 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.
Use of the http://www.regulations.gov Web site 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
http://www.regulations.gov, 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: December 12, 2006.
Richard B. Ossias,
Associate General Counsel.
[FR Doc. E6-21600 Filed 12-18-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P