Rule2025-00651

Clean Air Act Operating Permit Program; Notice of Issuance of Title V Federal Operating Permit to Deseret Generation and Transmission Co-operative

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
January 16, 2025

Issuing agencies

Environmental Protection Agency

Abstract

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a final permit decision under title V of the Clean Air Act (CAA) to Deseret Bonanza and Transmission Co-operative (Deseret) for the operation of Deseret's Uintah County, Utah, Bonanza Power Plant (Bonanza).

Full Text

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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 10 (Thursday, January 16, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 10 (Thursday, January 16, 2025)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 4651-4652]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-00651]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R08-OAR-2019-0350; FRL-12535-01-R8]


Clean Air Act Operating Permit Program; Notice of Issuance of 
Title V Federal Operating Permit to Deseret Generation and Transmission 
Co-operative

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notification of final action.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a final 
permit decision under title V of the Clean Air Act (CAA) to Deseret 
Bonanza and Transmission Co-operative (Deseret) for the operation of 
Deseret's Uintah County, Utah, Bonanza Power Plant (Bonanza).

DATES: EPA issued title V Permit to Operate No. V-UO-000004-2019.00 to 
Deseret on December 4, 2023, under 40 CFR part 71. This permit was 
appealed to the Environmental Appeals Board by the Ute Tribe of Utah. 
The Board denied review of the permit on September 10, 2024, and EPA 
issued the final permit decision on December 17, 2024. Pursuant to 
section 307(b)(1) of the CAA, judicial review of EPA's final permit 
decision, to the extent it is available, may be sought by filing a 
petition for review in the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth 
Circuit by March 17, 2025.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Suman Kunwar, Air and Radiation 
Division, EPA, Region 8, Mailcode 8ARD-AP-P, 1595 Wynkoop Street, 
Denver, Colorado, 80202-1129, telephone number: (303) 312-6095, email 
address: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#056e706b7264772b767068646b456075642b626a73"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="cca7b9a2bbadbee2bfb9a1ada28ca9bcade2aba3ba">[email&#160;protected]</span></a>.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document wherever ``we,'' 
``us,'' or ``our'' is used, we mean the EPA. This SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION is arranged as follows:

I. How can I get copies of this document and other related information?

    EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket ID No. 
EPA-R08-OAR-2019-0350. 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 Environmental Protection Agency, Region 8, Air and 
Radiation Division, 1595 Wynkoop Street, Denver, Colorado 80202. This 
facility is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
excluding Federal holidays. We recommend that you telephone Suman 
Kunwar, Environmental Engineer, at (303) 312-6095 with any questions 
about reviewing the docket material before visiting the Region 8 
office.

II. Background

    The 1990 amendments to the CAA established a comprehensive air 
quality permit program under the authority of Title V of the CAA. Title 
V requires certain facilities that emit large amounts of air pollution, 
or that meet other specified criteria, to obtain an operating permit, 
known as a title V permit, after the source has begun to operate. This 
permit is an enforceable compilation of all enforceable terms, 
conditions, and limitations applicable to the source, and is designed 
to improve compliance by clarifying what facilities must do to control 
air pollution. EPA regulations implementing title V are codified at 40 
CFR part 71 for permits issued by EPA or its delegates, and at 40 CFR 
part 70 for permits issued by states and local agencies pursuant to 
approved programs. A title V permit is valid for no more than five 
years and may be renewed in five-year-increments.
    Deseret operates a facility, Bonanza, in Uintah County, Utah. 
Bonanza is a coal-fired power plant located on the Uintah and Ouray 
Reservation. Coal is delivered to the Facility by train and is crushed 
and pulverized before being fed into the main boiler. The boiler 
produces steam, which powers a turbine to generate electricity. On 
December 5, 2014, EPA Region 8 issued an initial title V Permit to 
Deseret for Bonanza pursuant to 40 CFR part 71.
    On December 4, 2023, EPA Region 8 renewed Deseret's Title V permit 
for a new five-year term. See title V Permit to Operate No. V-UO-
000004-2019.00, Docket ID: EPA-R08-OAR-2019-0350. On January 3, 2024, 
the Ute Indian Tribe filed an appeal of the title V permit for Bonanza 
with the Environmental Appeals Board. The Tribe did not petition to 
review certain terms and conditions of the renewed title V permit but 
contended that the Region failed to

[[Page 4652]]

address the Tribe's concerns about the health and environmental impacts 
of the Bonanza plant and acted contrary to Executive Orders and EPA 
policies regarding environmental justice and Tribal consultation, and 
contrary to the Federal trust responsibility to federally-recognized 
Indian Tribes. In addition, the Tribe asserted that EPA abused its 
discretion and violated the Federal trust responsibility by not 
providing the results of an investigation identifying potential non-
compliance with coal combustion residual requirements under the 
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (``RCRA'') until after the CAA 
title V permit was issued. Consequently, under 40 CFR 71.11(i)(2)(ii), 
the effective date of the permit was delayed.

III. Effect of this Action

    On September 10, 2024, the EAB denied the petition for review. See 
In re Deseret Generation and Transmission Co-operative Bonanza Power 
Plant, Permit No. V-UO-000004-2019.00, CAA Appeal No. 24-01 (EAB, 
September 10, 2024) (Order Denying Review). The Tribe requested that 
the EAB reconsider its Order Denying Review and on November 8, 2024, 
the EAB denied the Tribe's Motion for Reconsideration. Following the 
EAB's action, pursuant to 40 CFR 124.19(l)(2)(i), the EPA issued a 
final permit decision on December 17, 2024. The final title V permit is 
effective immediately and will expire on December 17, 2029.

    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.

KC Becker,
Regional Administrator, Region 8.
[FR Doc. 2025-00651 Filed 1-15-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P


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Indexed from Federal Register on January 16, 2025.

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