Rule2025-16468
Air Plan Approval; South Dakota; Regional Haze Plan for the Second Implementation Period
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
August 28, 2025
Effective
September 29, 2025
Issuing agencies
Environmental Protection Agency
Abstract
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving a regional haze state implementation plan (SIP) revision submitted by the State of South Dakota on July 29, 2022 (South Dakota's 2022 SIP submission), as satisfying applicable requirements under the Clean Air Act (CAA) and the EPA's Regional Haze Rule (RHR) for the program's second implementation period. The EPA is taking this action pursuant to CAA.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 165 (Thursday, August 28, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 165 (Thursday, August 28, 2025)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 41893-41895]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-16468]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA-R08-OAR-2024-0609; FRL-12596-02-R8]
Air Plan Approval; South Dakota; Regional Haze Plan for the
Second Implementation Period
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving a
regional haze state implementation plan (SIP) revision submitted by the
State of South Dakota on July 29, 2022 (South Dakota's 2022 SIP
submission), as satisfying applicable requirements under the Clean Air
Act (CAA) and the EPA's Regional Haze Rule (RHR) for the program's
second implementation period. The EPA is taking this action pursuant to
CAA.
DATES: This rule is effective on September 29, 2025.
ADDRESSES: The EPA has established a docket for this action under
Docket ID No. EPA-R08-OAR-2024-0609. 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: Joe Stein, Air and Radiation Division,
EPA, Region 8, Mailcode 8ARD-IO, 1595 Wynkoop Street, Denver, Colorado
80202-1129, telephone number: (303) 312-7078; email address:
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#abd8dfcec2c585c1c4d8cedbc3ebcedbca85ccc4dd"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="92e1e6f7fbfcbcf8fde1f7e2fad2f7e2f3bcf5fde4">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document ``we,'' ``us,'' and
``our'' means the EPA.
Table of Contents
I. What is being addressed in this document?
II. Background
III. Public Comments and EPA Responses
IV. Final Action
V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
[[Page 41894]]
I. What is being addressed in this document?
The EPA is approving a SIP revision submitted by the State of South
Dakota to the EPA on July 29, 2022, addressing the requirements of the
second implementation period of the RHR. As required by section 169A of
the CAA, the Regional Haze Rule (RHR) calls for state and federal
agencies to work together to improve visibility in 156 national parks
and wilderness areas. The rule requires the states, in coordination
with the EPA, the National Park Service (NPS), Fish and Wildlife
Service (FWS), the Forest Service (FS), and other interested parties,
to develop and implement air quality protection plans to reduce the
pollution that causes visibility impairment in mandatory Class I
Federal areas. Visibility impairing pollutants include fine and coarse
particulate matter (PM) (e.g., sulfates, nitrates, organic carbon,
elemental carbon, and soil dust) and their precursors (e.g., sulfur
dioxide (SO<INF>2</INF>), oxides of nitrogen (NO<INF>X</INF>), and, in
some cases, volatile organic compounds (VOC) and ammonia
(NH<INF>3</INF>)). As discussed in further detail in our proposed rule,
this document, and the accompanying Response to Comments (RTC)
document, the EPA finds that South Dakota submitted a regional haze SIP
that meets all of the regional haze requirements for the second
implementation period. The State's submission, the proposed rule, and
the RTC document can be found in the docket for this action.
II. Background
On April 28, 2022, South Dakota submitted a revision to its SIP to
address its regional haze obligations for the second implementation
period (2018-2028). South Dakota made this revision to satisfy the
requirements of the CAA's regional haze program pursuant to CAA
sections 169A and 169B and 40 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 51.308.
On May 14, 2025, the EPA proposed to approve South Dakota's 2022
SIP submission.\1\ Specifically, the EPA proposed to approve South
Dakota's 2022 SIP submission as satisfying the requirements of 40 CFR
51.308(f)(1): calculations of baseline, current, and natural visibility
conditions, progress to date, and the uniform rate of progress; 40 CFR
51.308(f)(2): long-term strategy; 40 CFR 51.308(f)(3): reasonable
progress goals; 40 CFR 51.308(f)(4): reasonably attributable visibility
impairment; 40 CFR 51.308(f)(5) and 40 CFR 51.308(g): progress report
requirements; 40 CFR 51.308(f)(6): monitoring strategy and other
implementation plan requirements; and 40 CFR 51.308(i): Federal Land
Manager (FLM) consultation. Our public comment period closed on June
13, 2025.
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\1\ 90 FR 20425 (May 14, 2025).
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The May 14, 2025 proposed rule provided background on the
requirements of the CAA and RHR, a summary of South Dakota's regional
haze SIP submittals and related EPA actions, and the EPA's rationale
for its proposed action. That background and rationale will not be
restated here. For the reasons stated in the proposed rule, this
document, and in the accompanying RTC document, the EPA concludes that
South Dakota's 2022 SIP submission meets the requirements of the CAA
and RHR.
III. Public Comments and EPA Responses
The public comment period on the proposal closed on June 13, 2025.
During the public comment period, we received 11 comments on our
proposal; nine sets of comments in support and two sets in opposition.
The commenters were: Conservation Groups,\2\ the Mid-Atlantic/Northeast
Visibility Union (MANEVU),\3\ Montana-Dakota Utilities,\4\ Nebraska
Dept. of Environment and Energy,\5\ Otter Tail Power Company,\6\ Power
Generators Air Coalition,\7\ South Dakota Department of Agriculture and
Natural Resources,\8\ State of Nebraska Office of the Attorney
General,\9\ Utah Department of Environmental Quality,\10\ Utilities for
Reasonable Progress,\11\ and Wyoming Department of Environmental
Quality.\12\ The full text of comments received is included in the
publicly posted docket associated with this action at <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>. Our RTC document, which is also included in the
docket associated with this action, provides detailed responses to all
significant comments received.
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\2\ Letter dated June 6, 2025.
\3\ Letter dated June 13, 2025.
\4\ Letter dated June 13, 2025.
\5\ Letter dated June 3, 2025.
\6\ Letter dated June 12, 2025.
\7\ Letter dated June 13, 2025.
\8\ Letter dated June 13, 2025.
\9\ Letter dated June 13, 2025.
\10\ Letter dated June 11, 2025.
\11\ Letter dated June 13, 2025.
\12\ Letter dated June 13, 2025.
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IV. Final Action
For the reasons stated in the preamble to the proposed rule, in the
RTC document, and in this document, we are approving South Dakota's
2022 SIP submission. Specifically, we are approving South Dakota's 2022
SIP submission relating to CAA 169A:
<bullet> Calculations of baseline, current, and natural visibility
conditions, progress to date, and uniform rate of progress (40 CFR
51.308(f)(1));
<bullet> Long-term strategy (40 CFR 51.308(f)(2));
<bullet> Reasonable progress goals (40 CFR 51.308(f)(3));
<bullet> Reasonably attributable visibility impairment (40 CFR
51.308(f)(4));
<bullet> Progress report requirements (40 CFR 51.308(f)(5) and 40
CFR 51.308(g));
<bullet> Monitoring strategy and other implementation plan
requirements (40 CFR 51.308(f)(6));
<bullet> FLM consultation (40 CFR 51.308(i)).
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 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 CAA. Accordingly, this
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 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 13563 (76 FR 3821, January 21,
2011);
<bullet> Is not subject to Executive Order 14192 (90 FR 9065,
February 6, 2025) because State Implementation Plan approvals under the
CAA are exempt from review under Executive Order 12866;
<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, 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 41895]]
<bullet> Is not a significant regulatory action subject to
Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001);
<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).
This action is subject to the Congressional Review Act (CRA), 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 October 27, 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,
Greenhouse gases, Incorporation by reference, Intergovernmental
relations, Lead, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, Particulate matter, Reporting
and recordkeeping requirements, Sulfur oxides, Volatile organic
compounds.
Dated: August 19, 2025.
Cyrus M. Western,
Regional Administrator, Region 8.
For the reasons stated in the preamble, the Environmental
Protection Agency is amending 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 QQ--South Dakota
0
2. In Sec. 52.2170, the table in paragraph (e) is amended by adding
the entry ``XXVIII. South Dakota Regional Haze State Implementation
Plan'' at the end of the table to read as follows:
Sec. 52.2170 Identification of plan.
* * * * *
(e) * * *
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State EPA
Rule title effective effective Final rule citation, date Comments
date date
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XXVIII. South Dakota Regional Haze State 4/21/2022 9/29/25 90 FR [insert Federal
Implementation Plan. Register page where the
document begins], 9/29/25.
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[FR Doc. 2025-16468 Filed 8-27-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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