Proposed Rule2023-28085
Air Plan Approval; GA; Miscellaneous Rule Revision
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
December 21, 2023
Issuing agencies
Environmental Protection Agency
Abstract
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve a State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision submitted by the State of Georgia, through the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) via a letter dated October 20, 2022. The revision seeks to change Georgia's Rules for Air Quality Control in the SIP by removing the 1971 annual and 24-hour ambient air quality primary standard for sulfur dioxide (SO<INF>2</INF>), which no longer applied in Georgia as of April 30, 2022. EPA is proposing to approve this SIP revision because the State has demonstrated that this change is consistent with the Clean Air Act (CAA or Act).
Full Text
<html>
<head>
<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 244 (Thursday, December 21, 2023)</title>
</head>
<body><pre>
[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 244 (Thursday, December 21, 2023)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 88308-88310]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-28085]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA-R04-OAR-2023-0232; FRL-11600-01-R4]
Air Plan Approval; GA; Miscellaneous Rule Revision
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Proposed rule.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to
approve a State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision submitted by the
State of Georgia, through the Georgia Environmental Protection Division
(EPD) via a letter dated October 20, 2022. The revision seeks to change
Georgia's Rules for Air Quality Control in the SIP by removing the 1971
annual and 24-hour ambient air quality primary standard for sulfur
dioxide (SO<INF>2</INF>), which no longer applied in Georgia as of
April 30, 2022. EPA is proposing to approve this SIP revision because
the State has demonstrated that this change is consistent with the
Clean Air Act (CAA or Act).
DATES: Comments must be received on or before January 22, 2024.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. at EPA-
R04-OAR-2023-0232 at <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.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>. 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. 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, 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>.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Josue Ortiz Borrero, Air Regulatory
Management Section, Air Planning and Implementation Branch, Air and
Radiation Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61
Forsyth Street SW, Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. The telephone number is
(404) 562-8085. Mr. Ortiz Borrero can also be reached via electronic
mail at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#422d30362b38202d303027302d6c282d313727022732236c252d34"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="9ff0edebf6e5fdf0ededfaedf0b1f5f0eceafadffaeffeb1f8f0e9">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
On June 2, 2010, EPA revised the primary SO<INF>2</INF> national
ambient air quality standards (NAAQS or standards) to provide requisite
protection of public health with an adequate margin of safety. See 75
FR 35520 (June 22, 2010). Specifically, EPA established a new 1-hour
SO<INF>2</INF> standard at a level of 75 parts per billion (ppb),
codified at 40 CFR 50.17.<SUP>1 2</SUP> The 1-hour standard is met at
an ambient air quality monitoring site when the 3-year average of the
annual 99th percentile of daily maximum 1-hour average concentrations
is less than or equal to 75 ppb, as determined in accordance with
Appendix T of 40 CFR part 50 and 40 CFR 50.17(a) and (b).\3\ EPA set
this new 1-hour short-term standard to replace the 1971 primary 24-hour
standard of 0.14 parts per million (ppm) and the annual SO<INF>2</INF>
standard set of 0.03 ppm.<SUP>4 5</SUP> In the 2010 SO<INF>2</INF>
NAAQS final rulemaking, the Administrator concluded it was appropriate
to revoke the 24-hour and annual primary standards,\6\ stating ``a 1-
hour standard at [a] level of 75 ppb would have the effect of
maintaining 24-hour and annual SO<INF>2</INF> concentrations generally
well below the levels of the current 24-hour and annual NAAQS.'' See 75
FR at 35550. The final rule also states, based on health evidence and
risk-based information, that the 1971 SO<INF>2</INF> standards `` `are
not adequate to protect public health, especially in relation to short-
term exposures to SO<INF>2</INF> (5-10 minutes) by exercising
asthmatics' '' and that the new 1-hour standard would provide requisite
protection of public health with an adequate margin of safety. See 75
FR at 35530, 35550.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ See 75 FR 35520 and <a href="https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2010-06-22/pdf/2010-13947.pdf">https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2010-06-22/pdf/2010-13947.pdf</a>.
\2\ See also NAAQS Table at <a href="https://www.epa.gov/criteria-air-pollutants/naaqs-table">https://www.epa.gov/criteria-air-pollutants/naaqs-table</a>.
\3\ On February 25, 2019, EPA finalized a second review of the
SO<INF>2</INF> standard, retaining the existing primary 1-hour
SO<INF>2</INF> NAAQS based on a review of the full body of currently
available scientific evidence and exposure/risk information at the
time. See 84 FR 9866 and <a href="https://www.epa.gov/so2-pollution/primary-national-ambient-air-quality-standard-naaqs-sulfur-dioxide">https://www.epa.gov/so2-pollution/primary-national-ambient-air-quality-standard-naaqs-sulfur-dioxide</a>.
\4\ EPA promulgated the 1971 primary and secondary NAAQS for
SO<INF>2</INF> on April 30, 1971. See 36 FR 8186. The 1971 primary
SO<INF>2</INF> standards of 365 [mu]g/m\3\ (0.14 ppm), averaged over
a period of 24 hours and not to be exceeded more than once per year,
and 80 [mu]g/m\3\ (0.03 ppm), as an annual arithmetic mean.
\5\ EPA did not revise the secondary 3-hour SO<INF>2</INF> NAAQS
set at 0.5 ppm in the 2010 or 2019 NAAQS review.
\6\ EPA arrived at the same conclusion in the 2019 review of the
SO<INF>2</INF> standard when the agency retained the 1-hour
SO<INF>2</INF> standard of 75 ppb stating (respecting the rationale
to revoke the previous SO<INF>2</INF> standard) ``the evidence in
this review [2019] is not substantively changed from that in the
last review [2010].'' See 84 FR 9866 (March 18, 2019).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Anti-Backsliding
When EPA revised the SO<INF>2</INF> NAAQS in 2010, replacing the
annual and 24-hour standards with a short term 1-hour standard, EPA
also addressed the section 172(e) anti-backsliding provision of the CAA
and determined what provisions are appropriate to provide for
transition to the new standard. Section 172(e) of the CAA specifies
that if EPA relaxes a NAAQS, control obligations no less stringent than
those that apply in nonattainment area SIPs may not be relaxed, and
adopting those controls that have not yet been adopted as needed may
not be avoided. Even though the 2010 1-hour standard is more protective
than the previous SO<INF>2</INF> NAAQS, anti-backsliding provisions
were necessary to insure that the health protection provided by the
prior NAAQS continues to be achieved as well as maintained as states
transition to the new standard.\7\ Specifically, EPA established at 40
CFR 50.4(e) when the 1971 SO<INF>2</INF> NAAQS would be revoked in
areas, and when it was necessary to retain the older SO<INF>2</INF>
standards, setting conditions needed for the eventual transition to the
new 1-hour SO<INF>2</INF> NAAQS. Specifically, 40 CFR 50.4(e) provides
that the 1971 SO<INF>2</INF> NAAQS will no longer apply to an area one
year after the effective date of the designation of that area for the
2010 SO<INF>2</INF> NAAQS set forth in Sec. 50.17; except that the
1971 SO<INF>2</INF> NAAQS remains in effect for areas that are
nonattainment for that NAAQS as of the effective date of the 2010
SO<INF>2</INF> NAAQS, and areas not meeting the requirements of a SIP
call with respect to requirements for the 1971 SO<INF>2</INF> NAAQS
until that area submits, and EPA approves, an
[[Page 88309]]
implementation plan providing for attainment of the 2010 SO<INF>2</INF>
NAAQS.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\7\ The owner or operator of a new or modified source will still
be required to demonstrate compliance with the annual and 24-hour
SO<INF>2</INF> increments, even when their counterpart NAAQS are
revoked. The annual and 24-hour increments are established in the
CAA and will need to remain in the prevention of significant
deterioration regulations because EPA does not interpret the CAA to
authorize EPA to remove them. See 75 FR at 35578.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
SO2 NAAQS Designations
After EPA promulgates a new or revised NAAQS, the agency is
required to designate all areas of the country as either
``nonattainment,'' ``attainment,'' or ``unclassifiable'' for that NAAQS
pursuant to section 107(d) of the CAA. The CAA requires EPA to complete
the initial designations process within two years of promulgating a new
or revised standard or June 2012 for the 1-hour SO<INF>2</INF> NAAQS.
If the Administrator has insufficient information to make these
designations by that deadline, the CAA provides EPA authority to extend
the deadline for completing designations by up to one year. However,
due to a lack of available and sufficient air quality data to inform
designations, EPA was not prepared to issue designations for the 2010
primary SO<INF>2</INF> standard for the entire country within the CAA's
two-year deadline.\8\ On July 27, 2012, EPA extended the deadline for
area designations for the 2010 primary SO<INF>2</INF> standard from
June 2012 by one year to June 2013 due to having insufficient
information to make initial area designations in two years. See 77 FR
46295 (August 3, 2012). With this extension, EPA completed initial
designations on June 3, 2013, based on air quality monitoring data
available at the time.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\8\ This led EPA to convene a stakeholder process with state,
tribes, industry, and non-governmental organizations in 2012 to
refine the agency's analytical approach to inform designations, with
credible air quality data. With input from a diverse group of
stakeholders, EPA developed a comprehensive implementation strategy
for the future SO<INF>2</INF> designations actions that focused
resources on identifying and addressing unhealthy levels of
SO<INF>2</INF> in areas where people are most likely to be exposed
to violations of the standard. This resulted in the promulgation of
the Data Requirements Rule (DRR) on August 21, 2015 (80 FR 51052),
to inform the remaining designations.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subsequently, lawsuits were filed against EPA alleging that the
Agency had failed to perform a nondiscretionary duty under the CAA by
not designating all portions of the country by June 3, 2013.\9\ EPA
eventually entered into a consent decree on March 2, 2015, which
required the agency to complete the remaining area designations in
three specific deadlines or ``rounds'' of designations: July 2, 2016
(``Round 2''), December 31, 2017 (``Round 3''), and December 31, 2020
(``Round 4''). Round 1 designations were finalized as part of the 1-
year extension in August 2013. Subsequently, EPA published Federal
Register notices completing the remaining three rounds of
SO<INF>2</INF> designations by the court-ordered deadlines. For
Georgia, EPA designated areas in the state as attainment/unclassifiable
in Rounds 2, 3, and 4 from 2016 through 2021, resulting in the entire
state being designated as attainment/unclassifiable.\10\ Thus, on April
30, 2022, one year after the effective date of the Round 4
designations, the primary 24-hour and annual SO<INF>2</INF> NAAQS no
longer applied in Georgia.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\9\ Following the initial August 5, 2013, designations, three
lawsuits were filed against EPA in different U.S. District Courts,
alleging the agency had failed to perform a nondiscretionary duty
under the CAA by not designating all portions of the country by the
June 2, 2013, deadline. In an effort intended to resolve the
litigation in one of those cases, EPA and the plaintiffs, Sierra
Club, and the Natural Resources Defense Council, filed a proposed
consent decree with the U.S. District Court for the Northern
District of California. On March 2, 2015, the court entered the
consent decree and issued an enforceable order for EPA to complete
the area designations by three specific deadlines according to the
court-ordered schedule.
\10\ See 40 CFR 81.311.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
II. EPA's Analysis of Georgia's Submittal
Georgia's October 22, 2022, submittal proposes to revise Rule 391-
3-1-.02(4), ``Ambient Air Standards'', at subparagraphs (b)1 and (b)2
of paragraph (b), ``Sulfur Dioxide'' to remove the 1971 annual and 24-
hour ambient air quality primary SO<INF>2</INF> standards which, as
discussed in section I, no longer applied in Georgia after April 30,
2022. The subsequent subparagraphs at Rule 391-3-.02(4)(b), are
renumbered respectively.
As described above, EPA designated all counties in Georgia as
attainment/unclassifiable through the three rounds of designations for
the 2010 1-hour primary NAAQS, with the final Round 4 designations
effective on April 30, 2021. Thus, these 1971 standards no longer
applied anywhere in Georgia effective on April 30, 2022. Moreover, with
no SO<INF>2</INF> nonattainment areas in Georgia for the 1971 or 2010
SO<INF>2</INF> NAAQS, the revocation of the 1971 SO<INF>2</INF>
standards would not be deferred until nonattainment and maintenance
planning requirements are met as described above. For these reasons,
EPA is proposing to approve Georgia's October 22, 2022, revision to
Rule 391-3-1-.02(4), ``Ambient Air Standards'', at paragraph (b),
``Sulfur Dioxide.''
III. Incorporation by Reference
In this document, 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, and as explained in sections I and II
of this preamble, EPA is proposing to incorporate by reference Georgia
Rule 391-3-1-.02(4), ``Ambient Air Standards,'' paragraph (b), ``Sulfur
Dioxide,'' State effective September 19, 2022, to remove subparagraphs
(b)1 and (b)2 and renumber the remaining provisions accordingly. 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 4 Office (please
contact the person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
section of this preamble for more information).
IV. Proposed Action
EPA is proposing to approve Georgia's October 20, 2022, SIP
submittal, which would remove the 1971 annual and 24-hour primary
SO<INF>2</INF> NAAQS from the Georgia SIP at Rule 391-3-1-.02(4) and
renumber the remaining provisions of Rule 391-3-1-.02(4)(b) accordingly
for the reasons discussed herein.
V. 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
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 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;
[[Page 88310]]
<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 CAA.
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 proposed 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,
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.
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.'' 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.''
Georgia EPD did not evaluate EJ considerations as part of its SIP
submittal; the CAA and applicable implementing regulations neither
prohibit nor require such an evaluation. EPA did not perform an EJ
analysis and did not consider EJ in this proposed action. Consideration
of EJ is not required as part of this proposed 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.
List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52
Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Incorporation by
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone,
Particulate matter, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Sulfur
oxides.
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Dated: December 14, 2023.
Jeaneanne Gettle,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4.
[FR Doc. 2023-28085 Filed 12-20-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
</pre><script data-cfasync="false" src="/cdn-cgi/scripts/5c5dd728/cloudflare-static/email-decode.min.js"></script></body>
</html>Indexed from Federal Register on December 21, 2023.
This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.