Proposed Rule2023-28750
Air Quality Plans; California; San Luis Obispo County Air Pollution Control District; New Source Review
Primary source
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Published
December 29, 2023
Issuing agencies
Environmental Protection Agency
Abstract
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve a revision to the San Luis Obispo County Air Pollution Control District (SLOCAPCD or "District") portion of the California State Implementation Plan (SIP). In this action, we are proposing to approve a rule submitted by the SLOCAPCD governing the issuance of permits for stationary sources, focusing on the preconstruction review and permitting of major sources and major modifications under part D of title I of the Clean Air Act (CAA or "the Act"). This action also proposes to revise regulatory text to clarify that the District is not subject to the Federal Implementation Plan related to the protection of visibility. 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 88 Issue 249 (Friday, December 29, 2023)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 249 (Friday, December 29, 2023)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 90138-90141]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-28750]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA-R09-OAR-2023-0449; FRL-11378-01-R9]
Air Quality Plans; California; San Luis Obispo County Air
Pollution Control District; New Source Review
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 Luis Obispo County Air Pollution Control
District (SLOCAPCD or ``District'') portion of the California State
Implementation Plan (SIP). In this action, we are proposing to approve
a rule submitted by the SLOCAPCD governing the issuance of permits for
stationary sources, focusing on the preconstruction review and
permitting of major sources and major modifications under part D of
title I of the Clean Air Act (CAA or ``the Act''). This action also
proposes to revise regulatory text to clarify that the District is not
subject to the Federal Implementation Plan related to the protection of
visibility. We are taking comments on this proposal and plan to follow
with a final action.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before January 29, 2024.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R09-
OAR-2023-0449 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 the
disclosure of which 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 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: Manny Aquitania, EPA Region IX, 75
Hawthorne St., San Francisco, CA 94105. By phone: (415) 972-3977, or by
email at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#335242465a47525d5a521d5e525d5d4a735643521d545c45"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="b8d9c9cdd1ccd9d6d1d996d5d9d6d6c1f8ddc8d996dfd7ce">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, ``we,'' ``us'' and
``our'' refer to the EPA.
[[Page 90139]]
Table of Contents
I. The State's Submittal
A. What rule did the State submit?
B. Are there other versions of this rule?
C. What is the purpose of the submitted rule?
II. The EPA's Evaluation and Action
A. How is the EPA evaluating the rule?
B. Does the rule meet the evaluation criteria?
C. Proposed action and public comment
III. Incorporation by Reference
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
I. The State's Submittal
A. What rule did the State submit?
Table 1 lists the rule addressed by this proposal with the dates on
which it was adopted by the local air agency and submitted by the
California Air Resources Board (CARB or ``the State'').
Table 1--Submitted Rule
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Agency Rule # Rule title Adopted Submitted \1\
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SLOCAPCD........................ 224 Federal Requirements for 01/26/22 07/05/22
New and Modified Major
Sources in Non-Attainment
Areas.
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On January 5, 2023, the submittal for Rule 224 was deemed by
operation of law to meet the completeness criteria in 40 CFR part 51
Appendix V, which must be met before formal EPA review.
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\1\ The submittal was transmitted to the EPA via a letter from
CARB dated July 5, 2022.
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B. Are there other versions of this rule?
There are no previous versions of Rule 224 in the SIP.
C. What is the purpose of the submitted rule?
For areas designated nonattainment for one or more National Ambient
Air Quality Standards (NAAQS), the applicable SIP must include
preconstruction review and permitting requirements for new or modified
major stationary sources of such nonattainment pollutant(s) under part
D of title I of the Act, commonly referred to as Nonattainment New
Source Review (NNSR). In addition, to implement CAA section 169A, 40
CFR 51.307(b) requires that NNSR programs provide for review of any
major stationary source or major modification that may have an impact
on visibility in any mandatory Class I Federal area. Because the
eastern portion of San Luis Obispo County is designated as a federal
ozone nonattainment area for the 2008 and 2015 ozone NAAQS, with a
Marginal classification, the CAA requires the District to have a SIP-
approved NNSR program for new and modified major sources located in the
ozone nonattainment area that are under its jurisdiction.\2\
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\2\ The relevant nonattainment designation and classification
history for the ozone NAAQS for the eastern portion of San Luis
Obispo County is provided in our Technical Support Document (TSD)
for this action, which can be found in the docket for this rule.
Information regarding the District's attainment/nonattainment status
for other criteria pollutants is also included in our TSD.
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Rule 224 is intended to address the CAA's statutory and regulatory
requirements for NNSR permit programs for major sources emitting
nonattainment air pollutants and their precursors in the areas within
the District that are designated nonattainment for the NAAQS, including
the implementing regulations at 40 CFR 51.160-51.165, and the relevant
regulatory requirements at 40 CFR 51.307.
II. The EPA's Evaluation and Action
A. How is the EPA evaluating the rule?
The EPA reviewed Rule 224 for compliance with CAA requirements for:
(1) stationary source preconstruction permitting programs as set forth
in CAA part D, including CAA sections 172(c)(5) and 173; (2) the review
and modification of major sources in accordance with 40 CFR 51.160-
51.165 as applicable in a Marginal ozone nonattainment area; (3) the
review of new major stationary sources or major modifications in a
designated nonattainment area that may have an impact on visibility in
any mandatory Class I Federal area in accordance with 40 CFR 51.307;
(4) SIPs in general as set forth in CAA sections 110(a)(2), including
110(a)(2)(A) and 110(a)(2)(E)(i); \3\ and (5) SIP revisions as set
forth in CAA section 110(l) \4\ and 193.\5\ Our review evaluated the
submittal for compliance with the NNSR requirements applicable to ozone
nonattainment areas classified as Marginal, and ensured that the
submittal addressed the NNSR requirements for the 2008 and 2015 ozone
NAAQS.
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\3\ CAA section 110(a)(2)(A) requires that regulations submitted
to the EPA for SIP approval be clear and legally enforceable, and
CAA section 110(a)(2)(E)(i) requires that states have adequate
personnel, funding, and authority under state law to carry out their
proposed SIP revisions.
\4\ CAA section 110(l) requires SIP revisions to be subject to
reasonable notice and public hearing prior to adoption and submittal
by states to the EPA and prohibits the EPA from approving any SIP
revision that would interfere with any applicable requirement
concerning attainment and reasonable further progress, or any other
applicable requirement of the CAA.
\5\ CAA section 193 prohibits the modification of any SIP-
approved control requirement in effect before November 15, 1990 in a
nonattainment area, unless the modification ensures equivalent or
greater emission reductions of the relevant pollutants.
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B. Does the rule meet the evaluation criteria?
With respect to procedural requirements, CAA sections 110(a)(2) and
110(l) require that revisions to a SIP be adopted by the state after
reasonable notice and public hearing. Based on our review of the public
process documentation included in the July 5, 2022 submittal of Rule
224, we find that the District has provided sufficient evidence of
public notice, opportunity for comment and a public hearing prior to
adoption and submittal of the rule to the EPA.
With respect to the substantive requirements found in CAA sections
172(c)(5) and 173, and 40 CFR 51.160-51.165, we have evaluated Rule 224
in accordance with the applicable CAA and regulatory requirements that
apply to NNSR permit programs under part D of title I of the Act for
all relevant ozone NAAQS. We find that Rule 224 satisfies these
requirements as they apply to sources subject to NNSR permit program
requirements for ozone nonattainment areas classified as Marginal. We
have also determined that these rules satisfy the related visibility
requirements in 40 CFR 51.307. In addition, we have determined that the
Rule 224 satisfies the requirement in CAA section 110(a)(2)(A) that
regulations submitted to the EPA for SIP approval be clear and legally
enforceable, and have determined that the submittal demonstrates in
accordance with CAA section 110(a)(2)(E)(i) that the District has
adequate personnel, funding, and authority under state law to carry out
this proposed SIP revision.
Regarding the additional substantive requirements of CAA sections
110(l) and 193, our action will result in a more stringent SIP, while
not relaxing any
[[Page 90140]]
existing provision contained in the SIP. We have concluded that our
action would comply with section 110(l) because our approval of this
rule will not interfere with any applicable requirement concerning
attainment and reasonable further progress, or any other CAA applicable
requirement. In addition, our approval of this rule will not relax any
pre-November 15, 1990 requirement in the SIP, and therefore changes to
the SIP resulting from this action ensure greater or equivalent
emission reductions of the nonattainment pollutants and their
precursors in the District; accordingly, we have concluded that our
action is consistent with the requirements of CAA section 193.
Our TSD, which can be found in the docket for this rule, contains a
more detailed discussion of our analysis of Rule 224.
C. Proposed Action and Public Comment
As authorized in section 110(k)(3) of the Act, the EPA proposes to
fully approve the submitted rule because it fulfills all relevant
requirements.
We have concluded that our approval of the submitted rule would
comply with the relevant provisions of CAA sections 110(a)(2), 110(l),
172(c)(5), 173, and 193, and 40 CFR 51.160-51.165 and 40 CFR 51.307. If
we finalize this action as proposed, our action will be codified
through revisions to 40 CFR 52.220a (Identification of plan-in part).
In conjunction with the EPA's SIP approval of the District's
visibility provisions for sources subject to the NNSR program as
meeting the relevant requirements of 40 CFR 51.307, this action would
also revise the regulatory provision at 40 CFR 52.281(d) concerning the
applicability of the visibility Federal Implementation Plan (FIP) at 40
CFR 52.28 as it pertains to California, to provide that this FIP does
not apply to sources subject to review under the District's SIP-
approved NNSR program.
We will accept comments from the public on this proposal until
January 29, 2024.
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 Rule 224, ``Federal Requirements for New and Modified Major
Sources in Non-Attainment Areas,'' adopted on January 26, 2022. Rule
224 is intended to address the CAA's statutory and regulatory
requirements for Nonattainment New Source Review permit programs for
major sources emitting nonattainment air pollutants and their
precursors under part D of title I of the CAA. 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 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 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 proposes to approve 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.
List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52
Administrative practice and procedure, Environmental protection,
Air pollution control, Incorporation by reference, Intergovernmental
relations, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements, and Volatile organic compounds.
[[Page 90141]]
Dated: December 21, 2023.
Cheree Peterson,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region IX.
[FR Doc. 2023-28750 Filed 12-28-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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