Rule2023-21255
Air Plan Approval; WA; Yakima County Outdoor and Agricultural Burning Rule Revisions
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
September 28, 2023
Effective
October 30, 2023
Issuing agencies
Environmental Protection Agency
Abstract
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving into the Washington State Implementation Plan (SIP) the Yakima Regional Clean Air Agency's (YRCAA) revised outdoor and agricultural burning rule submitted by the State of Washington (Washington or the State) on October 14, 2021. The submitted revisions improve stringency, clarity and enforceability of the rule. The EPA is proposing to approve the SIP submission as consistent with Clean Air Act (Act or CAA) requirements.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 187 (Thursday, September 28, 2023)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 187 (Thursday, September 28, 2023)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 66690-66692]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-21255]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA-R10-OAR-2021-0752; FRL-9203-02-R10]
Air Plan Approval; WA; Yakima County Outdoor and Agricultural
Burning Rule Revisions
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving into
the Washington State Implementation Plan (SIP) the Yakima Regional
Clean Air Agency's (YRCAA) revised outdoor and agricultural burning
rule submitted by the State of Washington (Washington or the State) on
October 14, 2021. The submitted revisions improve stringency, clarity
and enforceability of the rule. The EPA is proposing to approve the SIP
submission as consistent with Clean Air Act (Act or CAA) requirements.
DATES: This action is effective on October 30, 2023.
ADDRESSES: The EPA has established a docket for this action under
Docket ID No. EPA-R10-OAR-2021-0752. 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., 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.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Claudia Vaupel, EPA Region 10 at (206)
553-6121, or <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#6f190e1a1f0a03410c030e1a0b060e2f0a1f0e41080019"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="3c4a5d494c5950125f505d4958555d7c594c5d125b534a">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, wherever ``we,''
``us,'' or ``our'' is used, it means the EPA.
I. Background
On July 26, 2023, the EPA proposed to approve Washington's October
14, 2021, SIP submission which significantly revised the SIP-approved
outdoor burning rule for the Yakima area (88 FR 48147). The reasons for
our proposed approval were stated in the proposed rulemaking and will
not be re-stated here. The public comment period for our proposed
approval ended on August 25, 2023, and we did not receive comments.
Therefore, we are finalizing our action as proposed.
II. Final Action
The EPA is approving into the Washington SIP, the rule revisions
for outdoor and agricultural burning submitted by Washington on October
14, 2021, because they meet Clean Air Act requirements. The rule
revisions include updates to applicability, general prohibitions and
requirements for all burning, permit requirements and limited
exemptions, program delegation, and rule renumbering. Based on our
review, we determined that the rule revisions result in an overall
strengthening of the requirements for open and agricultural burning in
Yakima County.
The EPA is approving into the federally-approved SIP the YRCAA
Regulation 1, Article 3, Section 3.03 (regulating outdoor and
agricultural burning in Yakima County), effective September 9, 2020,
except the following provisions: 3.03.C.2.g, 3.03.E.2.a, 3.03.E.2.c,
3.03.E.3.d, 3.03.K; and the following general rule permit provisions:
General Rule Permit No. 3.03-1 Conditions: E.2.b, E.2.d, E.2.e,
and G;
General Rule Permit No. 3.03-2 Conditions: E.2.b and G;
General Rule Permit No. 3.03-3 Conditions: E.2.b and G;
General Rule Permit No. 3.03-4 Conditions: E.2.c and G; and
General Rule Permit No. 3.03-5 Conditions E.2.d and G.
We are also removing from the federally-approved SIP the outdated
Regulation 1, Article 5 provisions, Sections 5.01 through 5.05
(regulating outdoor burning in Yakima County), state effective December
15, 1995, that are replaced by Section 3.03.
III. Incorporation by Reference
In this document, the EPA is finalizing regulatory text that
includes incorporation by reference. In accordance with requirements of
1 CFR 51.5, we are finalizing the incorporation by reference of
Regulation 1, Article 3, Section 3.03 provisions described in section
II of this preamble. The EPA has made, and will continue to make, these
materials generally available through <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a> and at the
EPA Region 10 Office (please contact the person identified in the FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this preamble for more
information). Therefore, these materials have been approved by the EPA
for inclusion in the State implementation plan, have been incorporated
by reference by the EPA into that plan, are fully federally enforceable
under sections 110 and 113 of the CAA as of the effective date of the
final rule of the EPA's approval, and will be incorporated by reference
in the next update to the SIP compilation. The EPA is also removing
regulatory text that includes incorporation by
[[Page 66691]]
reference. In accordance with requirements of 1 CFR 51.5, the EPA is
removing from incorporation by reference the Regulation 1, Article 5,
Sections 5.01 through 5.05 provisions described in section II of this
preamble.
III. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
Under the CAA, the Administrator is required to approve a SIP
submission that complies with the provisions of the CAA and applicable
Federal regulations. 42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a). Thus, in
reviewing SIP submissions, EPA's role is to approve State choices,
provided that they meet the criteria of the CAA. 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 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 it 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,
February 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.''
Neither Washington nor YRCAA evaluated environmental justice
considerations as part of the SIP submittal; the CAA and applicable
implementing regulations neither prohibit nor require such an
evaluation. The EPA performed an environmental justice analysis for the
purpose of providing additional context and information about this
rulemaking to the public, not as a basis of the 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.
In addition, there is no information in the record upon which this
decision is based 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 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 CAA, petitions for judicial review
of this action must be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for
the appropriate circuit by November 27, 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, Incorporation by
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Particulate matter, Reporting
and recordkeeping requirements.
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Dated: September 22, 2023.
Casey Sixkiller,
Regional Administrator, Region 10.
For the reasons set forth in the preamble, 40 CFR part 52 is
amended 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 WW--Washington
0
2. In Sec. 52.2470, amend Table 10 in paragraph (c) by:
0
a. Adding the entry ``3.03'' in numerical order under the heading
``Article 3--Rules''; and
0
b. Removing the heading ``Article V--Emissions Standards and
Preventative Measures'' and the entries ``5.01'', ``5.02'', ``5.03'',
``5.04'', and ``5.05''.
The addition reads as follows:
Sec. 52.2470 Identification of plan.
* * * * *
(c) * * *
[[Page 66692]]
Table 10--Additional Regulations Approved for the Yakima Regional Clean Air Agency (YRCAA) Jurisdiction
[Applicable in Yakima county, excluding facilities subject to Energy Facilities Site Evaluation Council (EFSEC)
jurisdiction; facilities subject to the Washington Department of Ecology's direct jurisdiction under Chapters
173-405, 173-410, and 173-415 Washington Administrative Code (WAC); Indian reservations; any other area where
the EPA or an Indian tribe has demonstrated that a tribe has jurisdiction; and the Prevention of Significant
Deterioration (PSD) permitting of facilities subject to the applicability sections of WAC 173-400-700.]
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State/local
State/local citation Title/subject effective date EPA approval date Explanations
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Yakima Regional Clean Air Agency Regulations
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* * * * * * *
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Article 3--Rules
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3.03........................... Outdoor and 9/9/20 9/28/23, [INSERT Except subsection
Agricultural FEDERAL REGISTER 3.03.C.2.g, 3.03.E.2a,
Burning. CITATION]. 3.03.E.2.c,
3.03.E.3.d, 3.03.K;
and the following
provisions in General
Rule Permit No.: 3.03-
1.E.2.b, 3.03-1.E.2.d,
3.03-1.E.2.e, 3.03-
1.G, 3.03-2.E.2.b,
3.03-2.G, 3.03-
3.E.2.b, 3.03-3.G,
3.03-4.E.2.c, 3.03-
4.G, 3.03-5.E.2.d, and
3.03-5.G.
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[FR Doc. 2023-21255 Filed 9-27-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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</html>Indexed from Federal Register on September 28, 2023.
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