Proposed Rule2021-27797
Air Plan Approval; California; San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution Control District; Open Burning
Primary source
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Published
December 23, 2021
Issuing agencies
Environmental Protection Agency
Abstract
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve a revision to the San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution Control District (SJVUAPCD or the "District") portion of the California State Implementation Plan (SIP). This revision concerns emissions of oxides of nitrogen (NO<INF>X</INF>) and particulate matter (PM) from agricultural open burning. We are proposing to approve additional local restrictions on such burning under the Clean Air Act (CAA or the Act). We are taking comments on this proposal and plan to follow with a final action.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 244 (Thursday, December 23, 2021)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 244 (Thursday, December 23, 2021)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 72906-72908]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2021-27797]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA-R09-OAR-2021-0799; FRL-9246-01-R9]
Air Plan Approval; California; San Joaquin Valley Unified Air
Pollution Control District; Open Burning
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Proposed rule.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to
approve a revision to the San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution
Control District (SJVUAPCD or the ``District'') portion of the
California State Implementation Plan (SIP). This revision concerns
emissions of oxides of nitrogen (NO<INF>X</INF>) and particulate matter
(PM) from agricultural open burning. We are proposing to approve
additional local restrictions on such burning under the Clean Air Act
(CAA or the Act). We are taking comments on this proposal and plan to
follow with a final action.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before January 24, 2022.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R09-
OAR-2021-0799 at <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>. For comments submitted at
<a href="http://Regulations.gov">Regulations.gov</a>, follow the online instructions for submitting
comments. Once submitted, comments cannot be edited or removed from
<a href="http://Regulations.gov">Regulations.gov</a>. The EPA may publish any comment received to its public
docket. Do not submit electronically any information you consider to be
Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose
disclosure is restricted by statute. Multimedia submissions (audio,
video, etc.) must be accompanied by a written comment. The written
comment is considered the official comment and should include
discussion of all points you wish to make. The EPA will generally not
consider comments or comment contents located outside of the primary
submission (i.e. on the web, cloud, or other file sharing system). For
additional submission methods, please contact the person identified in
the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section. For the full EPA public
comment policy, information about CBI or multimedia submissions, and
general guidance on making effective comments, please visit <a href="https://www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets">https://www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets</a>. If you need assistance in a
language other than English or if you are a person with disabilities
who needs a reasonable accommodation at no cost to you, please contact
the person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kevin Gong, EPA Region IX, 75
Hawthorne St., San Francisco, CA 94105. By phone: (415) 972-3073 or by
email at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#6e0901000940050b1807002e0b1e0f40090118"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="3f5850515811545a4956517f5a4f5e11585049">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, ``we,'' ``us'' and
``our'' refer to the EPA.
I. The State's Submittal
A. Background
B. What did the State submit?
C. Completeness Review of the 2021 Technical Submittal
D. What is the purpose of the submitted SIP revision?
II. The EPA's Evaluation and Action
A. How is the EPA evaluating the SIP revision?
B. Does the SIP revision meet the evaluation criteria?
C. The EPA's Recommendations To Further Improve the Control
Measure
D. Public Comment and Proposed Action
III. Incorporation by Reference
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
I. The State's Submittal
A. Background
Most open burning activities in the San Joaquin Valley Air Basin
(``San Joaquin Valley'') are regulated by District Rule 4103 ``Open
Burning'' (``Rule 4103'' or ``the Rule''), which was most recently
revised by the District on April 15, 2010. Rule 4103's provisions on
open burning of agricultural waste, which constitutes the bulk of
activity regulated under this local measure, are implemented as a part
of a broader state-wide strategy on agricultural open burning, codified
in California Health and Safety Code sections 41855.5 and 41855.6.
Under Rule 4103's provisions implementing those State law requirements,
the SJVUAPCD may grant a temporary postponement of the prohibition of
open burning for specific agricultural material categories, if the
following four criteria are all met: (1) The SJVUAPCD Governing Board
(``District Board'') determines that there is no economically feasible
alternative of eliminating the waste; (2) the District Board determines
that there is no long-term Federal or State funding commitment for the
continued operation of biomass combustion facilities in the San Joaquin
Valley or development of alternatives to burning; (3) the District
Board determines that the continued issuance of permits for that
specific category or crop will not cause, or substantially contribute
to, a violation of an applicable Federal ambient air quality standard;
and (4) the California Air Resources Board (CARB or the ``State
Board'') concurs with the District Board's determinations.\1\ The
District's staff reports and the associated District Board and CARB
resolutions approving the postponements must be submitted to the EPA as
SIP revisions.\2\
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\1\ Rule 4103, section 5.5.2.
\2\ Id. section 6.3.
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The EPA approved Rule 4103 and an initial prohibition schedule
(``2010 Schedule'') (entitled ``Table 9-1, Final Staff Report and
Recommendations on Agricultural Burning'') into the SIP on January 4,
2012.\3\
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\3\ 77 FR 214.
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B. What did the State submit?
On November 29, 2021, CARB submitted a document entitled ``Proposed
District Rule 4103 (Open Burning) Technical Submittal for Receiving SIP
Credit for Reductions in Agricultural Burning,'' dated November 18,
2021 (the ``2021 Technical Submittal''), to the EPA for inclusion in
the California SIP.\4\ The 2021 Technical Submittal includes a document
called the ``Supplemental Report and Recommendations on Agricultural
Burning'' (``2021 Supplemental Report''). Table 2-1 of the 2021
Supplemental Report, ``Accelerated Reductions by Crop Category''
includes an updated schedule of prohibitions (``2021 Schedule''), which
is the focus of our rulemaking. Further discussion and explanation of
this material is detailed in section I.D of this proposed rule.
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\4\ CARB had previously submitted a proposed version of this
document with a request for parallel processing pursuant to 40 CFR
part 51, appendix V, section 2.3.1. The only substantive revision in
the final document was the addition of a response to public comments
submitted during the public comment period and hearing.
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C. Completeness Review of the 2021 Technical Submittal
Section 110(k)(1)(B) of the CAA requires the EPA to determine
whether a SIP submission is complete within 60 days of receipt. The
EPA's SIP completeness criteria are found in 40 CFR part 51, appendix
V. The EPA has reviewed the 2021 Technical Submittal and finds that it
fulfills the completeness criteria of appendix V.
D. What is the purpose of the submitted SIP revision?
The open burning of various materials regulated under the
District's authority, including agricultural waste, generates emissions
of NO<INF>X</INF> and PM. Emissions of NO<INF>X</INF> contribute to the
production of ground-level ozone, smog, and PM, which harm human health
and the environment. Direct emissions of PM, including PM equal to or
less than 2.5 microns in diameter (PM<INF>2.5</INF>) and PM
[[Page 72907]]
equal to or less than 10 microns in diameter (PM<INF>10</INF>),
contribute to effects that are harmful to human health and the
environment, including premature mortality, aggravation of respiratory
and cardiovascular disease, decreased lung function, visibility
impairment, and damage to vegetation and ecosystems. Section 110(a) and
title I, part D of the CAA require states to submit regulations that
control NO<INF>X</INF> and PM emissions.
Under the provisions of California Health and Safety Code sections
41855.5 and 41855.6 and SIP-approved District Rule 4103, the District
must review at least once every five years the feasibility for
prohibition from open burning the remaining categories of agricultural
waste that were previously found to be infeasible under the four
criteria described above in section I.A. That review results in a
``District Staff Report and Recommendations on Agricultural Burning,''
which must be approved by the District Board and receive concurrence
from the State Board in order to become effective. The District reports
have in the past contained a schedule for prohibiting additional
categories of agricultural waste from open burning, additional
limitations on open burning for that category, or a determination that
open burning should be allowed. This schedule implements sections 5.5.2
and 6.3 of the Rule and supports the enforceability of the control
requirements in Rule 4103. Therefore, it must be approved into the SIP
to ensure the integrity of the control strategy. As noted above, the
EPA approved the 2010 Schedule into the SIP in 2012.
Pursuant to Rule 4103 section 5.5.2, the District adopted the 2021
Supplemental Report, including the 2021 Schedule, on June 17, 2021. The
CARB Executive Officer concurred on the 2021 Schedule in a letter dated
June 18, 2021, effective through December 31, 2024.\5\ The 2021
Schedule thus constitutes the enforceable measure needed to update the
SIP-approved open burning control measure.
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\5\ The State Board had delegated the authority for this
concurrence on February 25, 2021.
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The 2021 Schedule prohibits open burning for several previously
postponed categories of agricultural waste effective January 1, 2021,
and establishes a schedule for phase-out of open burning for other
categories including vineyard removals, orchard removals, and surface
harvested prunings by January 1, 2025. The EPA's technical support
document (TSD) has more information about the specific requirements in
the 2021 Schedule.
II. The EPA's Evaluation and Action
A. How is the EPA evaluating the SIP revision?
Rules in the SIP must be enforceable (see CAA section 110(a)(2)),
must not interfere with applicable requirements concerning attainment
and reasonable further progress or other CAA requirements (see CAA
section 110(l)), and must not modify certain SIP control requirements
in nonattainment areas without ensuring equivalent or greater emissions
reductions (see CAA section 193).
The San Joaquin Valley is designated and classified as an Extreme
nonattainment area for the 1979 1-hour and 1997, 2008, and 2015 8-hour
ozone national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS).\6\ CAA section
172(c)(1) requires ozone nonattainment areas to implement all
reasonably available control measures (RACM), including such reductions
in emissions from existing sources in the area as may be obtained
through the adoption, at a minimum, of reasonably available control
technology (RACT), as expeditiously as practicable. While our
stringency discussion below focuses on PM emissions, we are not aware
of reasonably available control measures for ozone precursors that are
not also best available control measures for PM for this source
category.
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\6\ 40 CFR 81.305.
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San Joaquin Valley is designated and classified as a Serious
nonattainment area for the 1997, 2006, and 2012 PM<INF>2.5</INF>
NAAQS.\7\ CAA section 189(b)(1)(B) requires Serious PM<INF>2.5</INF>
nonattainment areas to implement best available control measures
(BACM), including best available control technology (BACT), within four
years after reclassification of the area to Serious. Therefore,
SJVUAPCD must implement BACM, including BACT, for PM<INF>2.5</INF> and
PM<INF>2.5</INF> precursors. Guidance and policy documents that we used
to evaluate enforceability, revision/relaxation and rule stringency
requirements for the applicable criteria pollutants include the
following:
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\7\ Id. For the 2012 PM<INF>2.5</INF> NAAQS, the EPA
reclassified the San Joaquin Valley as Serious nonattainment in a
final rule published November 26, 2021. 86 FR 67343. The effective
date of this reclassification is December 27, 2021.
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1. ``State Implementation Plans; General Preamble for the
Implementation of Title I of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990,'' 57
FR 13498 (April 16, 1992); 57 FR 18070 (April 28, 1992).
2. ``Issues Relating to VOC Regulation Cutpoints, Deficiencies, and
Deviations,'' EPA, May 25, 1988 (the Bluebook, revised January 11,
1990).
3. ``Guidance Document for Correcting Common VOC & Other Rule
Deficiencies,'' EPA Region 9, August 21, 2001 (the Little Bluebook).
4. Preamble, Fine Particulate Matter National Ambient Air Quality
Standards: State Implementation Plan Requirements, 81 FR 58010 (August
24, 2016).
B. Does the SIP revision meet the evaluation criteria?
The 2021 Schedule significantly enhances the overall stringency of
the District's open burning requirements by prohibiting open burning
for most remaining waste types by 2025. Furthermore, the District and
State have justified the remaining postponements on the basis of
technical and/or economic feasibility. Although the 2021 Schedule is
less stringent than the 2010 Schedule for the rice stubble category,
the potential emissions increase from this relaxation is more than
offset by the emissions reductions from additional prohibitions on
other categories of agricultural waste. Therefore, the EPA's initial
evaluation indicates that this SIP revision meets CAA requirements and
is consistent with relevant guidance regarding enforceability,
stringency, and SIP revisions. The EPA's TSD has more information on
our evaluation.
C. The EPA's Recommendations To Further Improve the Control Measure
The EPA's TSD includes recommendations for the next time the
SJVUAPCD modifies the control measure.
D. Public Comment and Proposed Action
As authorized in section 110(k)(3) of the Act, the EPA proposes to
fully approve the submitted SIP revision because it fulfills all
relevant requirements. We will accept comments from the public on this
proposal until January 24, 2022. If we take final action to approve
Table 2-1 and the associated materials, our final action will
incorporate this revision into the federally enforceable SIP.
III. Incorporation by Reference
In this rule, the EPA is proposing to include in a final EPA rule
regulatory text that includes incorporation by reference. In accordance
with requirements of 1 CFR 51.5, the EPA is proposing to incorporate by
reference the following materials: Table 2-1 ``Accelerated Reductions
by Crop Category'' of the ``Supplemental Report and Recommendations on
Agricultural
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Burning'' and Resolution 21-06-12 that were adopted by the SJVUAPCD
Board on June 17, 2021; Resolution 21-4 ``San Joaquin Agricultural
Burning Assessment'' adopted by CARB on February 25, 2021; and the
letter dated June 18, 2021 from Richard W. Corey, Executive Officer,
CARB, to Samir Sheikh, Executive Director, SJVUAPCD, concurring on the
2021 Supplemental Report. The EPA has made, and will continue to make,
these materials available through <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> and at
the EPA Region IX Office (please contact the person identified in the
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this preamble for more
information).
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
Under the CAA, the Administrator is required to approve a SIP
submission that complies with the provisions of the Act and applicable
Federal regulations. 42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a). Thus, in
reviewing SIP submissions, the EPA's role is to approve state choices,
provided that they meet the criteria of the Act. Accordingly, this
proposed action merely proposes to approve state law as meeting Federal
requirements and does not impose additional requirements beyond those
imposed by state law. For that reason, this proposed action:
<bullet> Is not a ``significant regulatory action'' subject to
review by the Office of Management and Budget under Executive Orders
12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993) and 13563 (76 FR 3821, January 21,
2011);
<bullet> Does not impose an information collection burden under the
provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.);
<bullet> Is certified as not having a significant economic impact
on a substantial number of small entities under the Regulatory
Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.);
<bullet> 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);
<bullet> Does not have federalism implications as specified in
Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999);
<bullet> Is not an economically significant regulatory action based
on health or safety risks subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR
19885, April 23, 1997);
<bullet> Is not a significant regulatory action subject to
Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001);
<bullet> Is not subject to requirements of Section 12(d) of the
National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272
note) because application of those requirements would be inconsistent
with the CAA; and
<bullet> Does not provide the EPA with the discretionary authority
to address disproportionate human health or environmental effects with
practical, appropriate, and legally permissible methods under Executive
Order 12898 (59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994).
In addition, the SIP is not approved to apply on any Indian
reservation land or in any other area where the EPA or an Indian tribe
has demonstrated that a tribe has jurisdiction. In those areas of
Indian country, the rule does not have tribal implications and will not
impose substantial direct costs on tribal governments or preempt tribal
law as specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9,
2000).
List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52
Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Incorporation by
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Ozone, Particulate matter,
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Dated: December 16, 2021.
Deborah Jordan,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region IX.
[FR Doc. 2021-27797 Filed 12-22-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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