[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 195 (Friday, October 8, 2010)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 62323]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-25465]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA-R04-OAR-2010-0604-201046; FRL-9212-2]
Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans;
Atlanta, GA; Notice of Completeness Determination for the Purpose of
Stopping Sanctions Clock
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of Letter to Governor Regarding Completeness and
Stopping of Sanctions Clock.
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SUMMARY: EPA is now giving notice of an action that EPA has already
taken to find a State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision complete and
stop the sanctions clocks associated with the Atlanta, Georgia, 1997
fine particulate matter (PM2.5) national ambient air quality
standards (NAAQS) nonattainment area (hereafter referred to as the
``Atlanta Area''). Pursuant to the Clean Air Act (CAA) and its
implementing regulations, EPA has made an affirmative determination of
completeness for the attainment demonstration, reasonably available
control measures and reasonably available control technology, annual
emissions reductions to ensure reasonable further progress, and
contingency measures (hereafter referred to as ``nonattainment area
submittals'') submitted by the State of Georgia for the Atlanta Area.
On September 3, 2010, a letter announcing this determination was sent
to the Governor of Georgia, effectively stopping the sanctions clocks
started on November 27, 2009, by ``a finding of failure to submit'' the
1997 PM2.5 nonattainment submittals for the Atlanta Area.
Today's notice is simply an announcement of a determination that EPA
has already made.
ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket
Identification No. EPA-R04-OAR-2010-0604. All documents in the docket
are listed on the www.regulations.gov Web site. Although listed in the
index, some information is not publicly available, i.e., Confidential
Business Information 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 through 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 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., excluding
federal holidays.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joel Huey or Sara Waterson, 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. The telephone number
is (404) 562-9104. Mr. Huey can also be reached via electronic mail at
[email protected]. Ms. Waterson may be reached by phone at (404) 562-
9061 or via electronic mail at [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Effective April 5, 2005, the Atlanta Area
was designated nonattainment for the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS. The
Atlanta Area is comprised of Barrow, Bartow, Carroll, Cherokee,
Clayton, Cobb, Coweta, DeKalb, Douglas, Fayette, Forsyth, Fulton,
Gwinnett, Hall, Henry, Newton, Paulding, Rockdale, Spalding, and Walton
Counties and portions of Heard and Putnam Counties. For the 1997
PM2.5 NAAQS, the State of Georgia was required to submit
nonattainment area submittals by April 5, 2008. On November 27, 2009,
EPA published a finding of failure to submit final rulemaking for the
required SIPs (74 FR 62251).
On July 6, 2010, Georgia submitted all components for the
nonattainment area submittals for the Atlanta Area. EPA has done a
completeness review, in accordance with Section 2.0 ``Criteria'' of
Appendix V of 40 CFR part 51--Criteria for Determining the Completeness
of Plan Submissions, to ensure that the State has submitted all of the
required information for the SIP submission.
As explained in the letter sent by EPA to the Governor of Georgia,
on September 3, 2010, EPA has determined that the State has corrected
the deficiency identified in EPA's promulgated finding of failure to
submit the required nonattainment area SIP submittals for the Atlanta
Area. Specifically, EPA has determined that Georgia has submitted
complete SIP submittals for the Atlanta Area to meet the CAA
requirement for a nonattainment area under the 1997 PM2.5
NAAQS. EPA will make a determination on the approvability of the
nonattainment area submittals for the Atlanta Area in a separate
action. Today's announcement only relates to a completeness
determination for the nonattainment area submittals for the Atlanta
Area, and is separate from EPA's determination of approvability of
these submittals. Today's action is simply a notice of a determination
that EPA already made through correspondence with the Governor of
Georgia.
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Dated: September 28, 2010.
Gwendolyn Keyes Fleming,
Regional Administrator, Region 4.
[FR Doc. 2010-25465 Filed 10-7-10; 8:45 am]
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