Rule2023-18110
Air Plan Approval; California; San Diego County Air Pollution Control District; Oxides of Nitrogen
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
August 23, 2023
Effective
September 22, 2023
Issuing agencies
Environmental Protection Agency
Abstract
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking final action to approve a revision to the San Diego County Air Pollution Control District (SDCAPCD) portion of the California State Implementation Plan (SIP). The California Air Resources Board (CARB) submitted the rule, on behalf of SDCAPCD, to the EPA as part of the requirement to implement major source reasonable available control technology (RACT) for emissions of oxides of nitrogen (NO<INF>X</INF>) for the San Diego County ozone nonattainment area. This revision concerns NO<INF>X</INF> emissions from boilers, process heaters, and steam generators. We are approving a local rule to regulate these emission sources under the Clean Air Act (CAA or the "Act").
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 162 (Wednesday, August 23, 2023)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 162 (Wednesday, August 23, 2023)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 57361-57363]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-18110]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA-R09-OAR-2022-0682; FRL-10126-02-R9]
Air Plan Approval; California; San Diego County Air Pollution
Control District; Oxides of Nitrogen
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking final
action to approve a revision to the San Diego County Air Pollution
Control District (SDCAPCD) portion of the California State
Implementation Plan (SIP). The California Air Resources Board (CARB)
submitted the rule, on behalf of SDCAPCD, to the EPA as part of the
requirement to implement major source reasonable available control
technology (RACT) for emissions of oxides of nitrogen (NO<INF>X</INF>)
for the San Diego County ozone nonattainment area. This revision
concerns NO<INF>X</INF> emissions from boilers, process heaters, and
steam generators. We are approving a local rule to regulate these
emission sources under the Clean Air Act (CAA or the ``Act'').
DATES: This rule is effective September 22, 2023.
ADDRESSES: The EPA has established a docket for this action under
Docket ID No. EPA-R09-OAR-2022-0682. All documents in the docket are
listed on the <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> website. Although listed in
the index, some information is not publicly available, e.g.,
Confidential Business Information (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 through <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>, or please
contact the person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
section for additional availability information. If you need assistance
in a language other than English or if you are a person with a
disability 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: La Kenya Evans-Hopper, EPA Region IX,
75 Hawthorne St., San Francisco, CA 94105. By phone: (415) 972-3245 or
by email at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#d5b0a3b4bba6bdbaa5a5b0a7fbb9b4beb0bbacb495b0a5b4fbb2baa3"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="a4c1d2c5cad7cccbd4d4c1d68ac8c5cfc1caddc5e4c1d4c58ac3cbd2">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, ``we,'' ``us,''
and ``our'' refer to the EPA.
Table of Contents
I. Proposed Action
II. Public Comments and EPA Responses
III. EPA Action
IV. Incorporation by Reference
V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
I. Proposed Action
On January 30, 2023 (88 FR 5833), the EPA proposed to approve the
following rule into the California SIP.
Table 1--Submitted Rule
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Local agency Rule No. Rule title Adopted Submitted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SDCAPCD........................... 69.2.2 Medium Boilers, Process 09/09/21 03/09/22
Heaters, and Steam
Generators.
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We proposed to approve this rule because we determined that it
complies with the relevant CAA requirements. Our proposed action
contains more information on the rule and our evaluation.
II. Public Comments and EPA Responses
The EPA's proposed action provided a 30-day public comment period.
During this period, we received three comments, two of which were
submitted by the same commenter. The full text of all three comments is
available in the docket for this rulemaking. The comments were broadly
supportive of SIPs, in the general sense, as a necessary tool to
[[Page 57362]]
address air pollution, particularly NO<INF>X</INF> emissions, although
they were not specific to this rulemaking action. After stating the
need for the EPA to approve and enforce SIPs to ensure areas meet the
national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS), one comment contained a
general statement that SIPs could be argued to be overly burdensome
because of their economic impacts on businesses and consumers. After
reviewing this comment, the EPA has determined that the comment does
not raise issues germane to our proposed finding that SDCAPCD Rule
69.2.2 satisfies the requirements of CAA sections 110 and part D, which
focuses the rule evaluation on enforceability, stringency, and
interference with CAA requirements. Therefore, we have determined that
this comment does not necessitate a response, and the EPA will not
provide a specific response to the comment in this document.
III. EPA Action
No comments were submitted that change our assessment of the rule
as described in our proposed action that this rule meets CAA
requirements and is consistent with relevant guidance regarding
enforceability, RACT, and SIP revisions. Therefore, as authorized in
section 110(k)(3) of the Act, the EPA is fully approving this rule into
the California SIP.
IV. Incorporation by Reference
In this rule, the EPA is finalizing regulatory text that includes
incorporation by reference. In accordance with requirements of 1 CFR
51.5, the EPA is finalizing the incorporation by reference of San Diego
County Air Pollution Control District, Rule 69.2.2, ``Medium Boilers,
Process Heaters, and Steam Generators,'' adopted on September 9, 2021,
which regulates NO<INF>X</INF> emissions from boilers, process heaters,
and steam generators with a heat input rating greater than 2 million
British thermal unit (Btu) per hour to less than 5 million Btu per hour
that are manufactured, sold, offered for sale or distributed, or
installed for use within San Diego County. The EPA has made, and will
continue to make, these documents 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).
V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
Under the Clean Air Act, 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 Clean Air Act.
Accordingly, this action merely approves state law as meeting Federal
requirements and does not impose additional requirements beyond those
imposed by state law. For that reason, this 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 14094 (88 FR 21879, April 11, 2023);
<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 subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 19885,
April 23, 1997) because it approves a state program;
<bullet> Is not a significant regulatory action subject to
Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001); and
<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 Clean Air Act.
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).
Executive Order 12898 (Federal Actions To Address Environmental
Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations, 59 FR 7629,
Feb. 16, 1994) directs Federal agencies to identify and address
``disproportionately high and adverse human health or environmental
effects'' of their actions on minority populations and low-income
populations to the greatest extent practicable and permitted by law.
The EPA defines environmental justice (EJ) as ``the fair treatment and
meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color,
national origin, or income with respect to the development,
implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and
policies.'' The EPA further defines the term fair treatment to mean
that ``no group of people should bear a disproportionate burden of
environmental harms and risks, including those resulting from the
negative environmental consequences of industrial, governmental, and
commercial operations or programs and policies.''
The State did not evaluate environmental justice considerations as
part of its SIP submittal; the CAA and applicable implementing
regulations neither prohibit nor require such an evaluation. The EPA
did not perform an EJ analysis and did not consider EJ in this action.
Due to the nature of the action being taken here, this action is
expected to have a neutral to positive impact on the air quality of the
affected area. Consideration of EJ is not required as part of this
action, and there is no information in the record inconsistent with the
stated goal of E.O. 12898 of achieving environmental justice for people
of color, low-income populations, and Indigenous peoples.
This action is subject to the Congressional Review Act, and the EPA
will submit a rule report to each House of the Congress and to the
Comptroller General of the United States. 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 October 23, 2023. Filing a
petition for reconsideration by the Administrator of this final rule
does not affect the finality of this action 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, Carbon monoxide,
Incorporation by reference, Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen
dioxide, Ozone, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
[[Page 57363]]
Dated: August 17, 2023.
Cheree Peterson,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region IX.
For the reasons stated in the preamble, the Environmental
Protection Agency amends part 52, chapter I, title 40 of the Code of
Federal Regulations as follows:
PART 52--APPROVAL AND PROMULGATION OF IMPLEMENTATION PLANS
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)(604) to read as
follows:
Sec. 52.220 Identification of plan.
* * * * *
(c) * * *
(604) The following regulations were submitted on March 9, 2022, by
the Governor's designee as an attachment to a letter dated March 9,
2022.
(i) Incorporation by reference. (A) San Diego County Air Pollution
Control District.
(1) Rule 69.2.2, ``Medium Boilers, Process Heaters, and Steam
Generators,'' adopted on September 9, 2021.
(2) [Reserved]
(B) [Reserved]
(ii) [Reserved]
[FR Doc. 2023-18110 Filed 8-22-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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