Rule2024-30741
Air Plan Approval; KY; Revisions to Jefferson County Control of Open Burning
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 27, 2024
Effective
January 27, 2025
Issuing agencies
Environmental Protection Agency
Abstract
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving changes to the Jefferson County portion of the Kentucky State Implementation Plan (SIP) submitted by the Commonwealth of Kentucky through the Kentucky Division for Air Quality (KDAQ) on May 30, 2023. The changes were submitted by KDAQ on behalf of the Louisville Metro Air Pollution Control District (District, also referred to herein as Jefferson County). EPA is approving changes to the District's rules which clarify that a fire for general agricultural production must be a controlled burn; to allow the use of District-approved accelerants to start certain fires; and to adjust paragraph numbering. EPA is approving the changes pursuant to the Clean Air Act (CAA or Act) and its implementing regulations.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 248 (Friday, December 27, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 248 (Friday, December 27, 2024)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 105463-105465]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-30741]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA-R04-OAR-2023-0339; FRL-12355-02-R4]
Air Plan Approval; KY; Revisions to Jefferson County Control of
Open Burning
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving changes
to the Jefferson County portion of the Kentucky State Implementation
Plan (SIP) submitted by the Commonwealth of Kentucky through the
Kentucky Division for Air Quality (KDAQ) on May 30, 2023. The changes
were submitted by KDAQ on behalf of the Louisville Metro Air Pollution
Control District (District, also referred to herein as Jefferson
County). EPA is approving changes to the District's rules which clarify
that a fire for general agricultural production must be a controlled
burn; to allow the use of District-approved accelerants to start
certain fires; and to adjust paragraph numbering. EPA is approving the
changes pursuant to the Clean Air Act (CAA or Act) and its implementing
regulations.
DATES: This rule is effective January 27, 2025.
ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket
Identification No. EPA-R04-OAR-2023-0339. All documents in the docket
are listed on the <a href="http://regulations.gov">regulations.gov</a> website. Although listed in the
index, some information may not be publicly available, i.e.,
Confidential Business Information 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 either electronically through <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a> or in hard
copy at the 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. EPA requests that, if at all possible, you contact the
person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section to
schedule your inspection. The Regional Office's official hours of
business are Monday through Friday 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., excluding
Federal holidays.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Simone Jarvis, Air Regulatory
Management Section, Air Planning and Implementation Branch, Air and
Radiation Division, Region 4, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 61
Forsyth Street SW, Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. The telephone number is
(404) 562-8393. Ms. Jarvis can also be reached via electronic mail at
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#f0ba9182869983dea3999d9f9e95b0958091de979f86"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="97ddf6e5e1fee4b9c4fefaf8f9f2d7f2e7f6b9f0f8e1">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
On May 31, 2023,\1\ KDAQ, on behalf of the District, submitted
changes to the Jefferson County portion of the Kentucky SIP for EPA
approval.<SUP>2 3</SUP> In this rulemaking, EPA is approving changes to
Regulation 1.11, Control of Open Burning.
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\1\ EPA received the May 30, 2023, submittal on May 31, 2023.
For clarity, throughout this document EPA will refer to the May 31,
2023, submission by its cover letter date of May 30, 2023.
\2\ The May 30, 2023, submittal also contains changes to
Jefferson County Regulation 1.02, Definitions, in the Jefferson
County portion of the Kentucky SIP. EPA addressed those changes in a
separate rulemaking. See 89 FR 41319 (May 13, 2024).
\3\ In 2003, the City of Louisville and Jefferson County
governments merged, and the ``Jefferson County Air Pollution Control
District'' was renamed the ``Louisville Metro Air Pollution Control
District.'' However, to be consistent with the terminology used in
the subheading in Table 2 of 40 CFR 52.920(c), throughout this
document we refer to the District regulations contained in the
Jefferson County portion of the Kentucky SIP as the ``Jefferson
County'' regulations.
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Through a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) published on October
31, 2024 (89 FR 86771), EPA proposed to approve changes to the
District's Regulation 1.11, Control of Open Burning, which included
three changes. The first change was the addition of the phrase ``i.e.,
a controlled burn'' to Section 2.1.4 to clarify that ``a fire for
general agricultural production'' must be a controlled burn. The second
change was the addition of an exception to Section 2.4 allowing the use
of District-approved liquid accelerants to start fires for general
agricultural production for weed abatement, disease control, or pest
prevention or for recognized silvicultural, range, native grassland, or
wildlife management practices that have been approved by the District
pursuant to Section 2.1.4. The third and final change renumbers the
paragraph breaks for subsections 2.1.8 and 2.1.9 and removes subsection
2.1.10. These numbering changes do not affect the language of the rule
or otherwise have any substantive impact.
In this rulemaking, EPA is finalizing its approval of the
District's May 31, 2023, request to incorporate Version 11 of
Regulation 1.11 into the SIP, replacing Version 10, the version of the
rule currently in the SIP. EPA's rationale for approving the changes is
described in the October 31, 2024, NPRM. Comments on the October 31,
2024, NPRM were due on or before December 2, 2024. No comments were
received on the October 31, 2024, NPRM, adverse or otherwise.
II. Incorporation by Reference
In this document, EPA is finalizing regulatory text that includes
incorporation by reference. In accordance with requirements of 1 CFR
51.5, and as discussed in Section I of this preamble, EPA is finalizing
the incorporation by reference of Jefferson County Regulation 1.11,
Version 11, Control of Open Burning, District-effective on March 15,
2023, which clarifies that a fire for general
[[Page 105464]]
agricultural production must be a controlled burn; allows the use of
District-approved accelerants to start certain fires; and adjusts
paragraph numbering. 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). Therefore, these materials have been approved by EPA for
inclusion in the SIP, have been incorporated by reference by EPA into
that plan, are fully federally enforceable under sections 110 and 113
of the CAA as of the effective date of the final rulemaking of EPA's
approval, and will be incorporated by reference in the next update to
the SIP compilation.\4\
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\4\ 62 FR 27968 (May 22, 1997).
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III. Final Action
EPA is approving the aforementioned changes to Regulation 1.11,
Control of Open Burning, submitted to EPA on May 31, 2023. EPA has
determined that the requested changes in Kentucky's May 31, 2023, SIP
revision will not interfere with any applicable requirement concerning
attainment, or any other applicable requirement of the CAA.
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 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 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 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 communities with environmental justice
(EJ) concerns to the greatest extent practicable and permitted by law.
Executive Order 14096 (Revitalizing Our Nation's Commitment to
Environmental Justice for All, 88 FR 25251, April 26, 2023) builds on
and supplements E.O. 12898 and defines EJ as, among other things, the
just treatment and meaningful involvement of all people, regardless of
income, race, color, national origin, or Tribal affiliation, or
disability in agency decision-making and other Federal activities that
affect human health and the environment.
The District 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 action. 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. 12898/14096 of
achieving EJ for communities with EJ concerns.
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 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 February 25, 2025. 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, Lead, Nitrogen
dioxide, Ozone, Particulate matter, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements, Sulfur oxides, Volatile organic compounds.
Dated: December 19, 2024.
Jeaneanne Gettle,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4.
For the reasons stated in the preamble, the EPA amends 40 CFR part
52 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 S--Kentucky
0
2. In Sec. 52.920(c), in Table 2 under the center heading ``Reg 1--
General Provisions'' revise the entry for 1.11 to read as follows:
Sec. 52.920 Identification of plan.
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(c) * * *
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Table 2 to Paragraph (c)--EPA-Approved Jefferson County Regulations for Kentucky
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EPA approval Federal Register District
Reg Title/subject date notice effective date Explanation
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Reg 1--General Provisions
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1.11............ Control of Open 12/27/24 [Insert first page of 3/15/2023
Burning. Federal Register
citation].
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[FR Doc. 2024-30741 Filed 12-26-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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</html>Indexed from Federal Register on December 27, 2024.
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