Proposed Rule2025-22610
Air Plan Approval; New Hampshire; Single Source VOC RACT Order for Hutchinson Sealing Systems
Primary source
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Published
December 11, 2025
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 New Hampshire. This revision proposes to approve a revised reasonable available control technology (RACT) order for Hutchinson Sealing Systems, Inc., located in Newfields, New Hampshire. This action is being taken under the Clean Air Act.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 236 (Thursday, December 11, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 236 (Thursday, December 11, 2025)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 57416-57418]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-22610]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA-R01-OAR-2025-1741; FRL-13115-01-R1]
Air Plan Approval; New Hampshire; Single Source VOC RACT Order
for Hutchinson Sealing Systems
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Proposed rule.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to
approve a State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision submitted by the
State of New Hampshire. This revision proposes to approve a revised
reasonable available control technology (RACT) order for Hutchinson
Sealing Systems, Inc., located in Newfields, New Hampshire. This action
is being taken under the Clean Air Act.
DATES: Written comments must be received on or before January 12, 2026.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R01-
OAR-2025-1741 at <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>, or via email to Meredith
Gutierrez at: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#abccdedfc2ced9d9ced185c6ced9cecfc2dfc3ebcedbca85ccc4dd"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="1d7a686974786f6f78673370786f78797469755d786d7c337a726b">[email protected]</span></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>. For either manner of submission, 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 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. 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>. Publicly available docket materials are available at <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> or at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA
Region 1 Regional Office, Air and Radiation Division, 5 Post Office
Square--Suite 100, Boston, MA. EPA requests that, if at all possible,
you contact the contact listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
section to schedule your inspection.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Meredith Gutierrez, Energy and
Resilience Branch (ERB), Air and Radiation Division (ARD) (Mail Code 5-
MD), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 1, 5 Post Office
Square, Suite 100, Boston, Massachusetts, 02109-3912; (617) 918-1193;
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#d9beacadb0bcababbca3f7b4bcabbcbdb0adb199bca9b8f7beb6af"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="c8afbdbca1adbabaadb2e6a5adbaadaca1bca088adb8a9e6afa7be">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document whenever ``we,''
``us,'' or ``our'' is used, we mean EPA.
Table of Contents
I. Background and Purpose
II. Proposed Action
III. Incorporation by Reference
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
I. Background and Purpose
Hutchinson Sealing Systems, Inc. (HSS) produces sealing systems,
body seals, and soft rubber glass-run channels used in automobiles and
various other applications. HSS owns and operates a facility located at
171 Exeter Road in Newfields, New Hampshire. The sealing strips are
produced by several complex processes involving metal roll foaming,
rubber and plastic extruding, flocking (or the application of a low-
friction coating), and curing, followed by certain secondary operations
including but not limited to trimming, notching, saw cutting, stretch
bending, molding, and assembly.
The New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (NH DES)
submitted Reasonably Available Control Technology (RACT) Order ARD-11-
001 to the EPA as a State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision on March
23, 2012. RACT Order ARD-11-001 required HSS to comply with a volatile
organic compound (VOC) content limit of 6.3 lb. VOC/gallon of coating
as applied (excluding water and exempt VOC compounds) for motor vehicle
weatherstrip adhesive coatings, as specified in Env-A 1220.02,
Compliance Standards for Miscellaneous Industrial Adhesives.\1\ Order
ARD-11-001 contained an allowance for alternate compliance to be met by
using add-on controls, bubbling, discrete emissions reductions (DERs),
emissions reduction credits (ERCs), or any combination of the previous
methods to comply with the limit. In addition, Order ARD-11-001
indicated that the company will install and operate a catalytic
oxidizer to control VOC emissions from emissions unit Thermoplastics
Extrusion Line #9 (TPV Line #9) at the facility. On August 28, 2012,
HSS submitted a permit application to NH DES to allow for the
modification of Thermoplastics Extrusion Line #6 (TPV Line #6) and the
installation of a catalytic oxidizer control device to control HAP
emissions. The adhesives used in TPV Line #6 are subject to the VOC
content limits in the RACT order.
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\1\ These standards are approved in the NH SIP as part of Env-A
1200, Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) Reasonably Available Control
Technology (RACT) (see 77 FR 66388, November 5, 2012; and 87 FR
26999, May 6, 2022).
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On November 5, 2012, the EPA approved New Hampshire's March 23,
2012 submittal for a single source order requiring RACT at HSS into the
New Hampshire SIP.\2\ Subsequently, on December 21, 2012, NH DES issued
permit TP-0115 to HSS requiring the use of a catalytic oxidizer to
control emissions from TPV Line #6. Although RACT Order ARD-11-001
allows the facility to use an add-on control device as a compliance
option for the emission limit, the requirement to use a catalytic
oxidizer to control emissions from TPV Line #6 was only included in NH
DES's December 21, 2012 permit and was not
[[Page 57417]]
part of EPA's 2012 approval of RACT Order ARD-11-001 into the SIP.
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\2\ See 77 FR 66388.
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On April 24, 2023, HSS submitted a request to NH DES for a
modification to its State Permit to Operate (SP-0141) to, among other
items, remove TPV Line #9 and its associated control device from the
permit, since that process no longer emits VOCs. On September 29, 2023,
HSS submitted a permit application to NH DES for the renewal of SP-
0141, which included a request to remove the required use of the
catalytic oxidizer associated with TPV Line #6 since the motor vehicle
weatherstrip adhesives used in the process meet the VOC content limit
without the need for additional control. The revised RACT Order ARD-11-
001, issued on January 24, 2025, by NH DES, maintains the existing RACT
requirement for HSS to comply with the VOC limit of 6.3 lb. VOC/gallon
for motor vehicle weatherstrip coatings. The Order specifies that HSS
shall continue to research and test water-based and/or high solids
coatings as new products become available. The Order also outlines the
processes through which HSS shall be allowed to use DERs, ERCs, and/or
bubbling for the purpose of complying with VOC RACT.\3\ Furthermore,
the Order removes the alternate compliance option to use an add-on
control device as an alternative to meet the VOC limit. In addition,
the Order removes the allowance for HSS to generate discrete emission
reduction credits due to the removal of the catalytic oxidizer. On
April 17, 2025, NH DES submitted a revision to its SIP consisting of
the revised RACT Order ARD-11-001, which is intended to limit emissions
of VOCs from the facility.
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\3\ Hutchinson only needs to use credits when non-compliant
coatings are employed, which is on an infrequent basis and is being
phased out over time, though no anticipated deadline has been given
for the removal of these coatings from their processes.
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According to Economic Incentive Program Rules (59 FR 16690), the
ability of RACT sources to meet RACT requirements through RACT or non-
RACT trading shall result in ``an exceptional environmental benefit,''
which can be demonstrated through ``a trading ratio of 1.1 to 1, at a
minimum.'' This is further clarified in Env-A 3100, Discrete Emissions
Reductions Trading Program, which states that users of DERs ``shall
permanently retire ten percent of all DERs dedicated to that particular
use, such that the amount of DERs required to demonstrate compliance
shall equal the source's calculated need divided by 0.9.''
HSS was issued an ERC certificate (98VHSS01C) on August 1, 2002,
that allows them to generate 22 tons of VOC credits per year from the
permanent shutdown of the Body Stock Preparation Process and the Metal
Parts Painting Operation (also referred to as the ``King-Way Line'').
These 22 tons per year are the difference between the baseline before
the shutdown of those two processes and the facility-wide emissions
after the shutdown. HSS is allowed to use these credits each year, but
unused credits do not roll over to succeeding years. Additionally,
these credits cannot be sold, transferred, or traded. The use of these
credits, ERCs generated by other facilities, or DERs for the purpose of
complying with VOC RACT shall comply with recordkeeping and reporting
requirements outlined in Env-A 3000, Emissions Reduction Credits
Trading Program, and Env-A 3100, Discrete Emissions Reductions Trading
Program. HSS is also required to true up the balance of credits
required for the previous year (from June 1 to May 31) annually by
September 1 and report the balance to NH DES. Additional reporting
requirements listed in the Order are detailed in SIP-approved Env-A
900, Owner or Operator Recordkeeping and Reporting Obligations.
Neither Env-A 3000, Emissions Reduction Credits Trading Program,
nor Env-A 3100, Discrete Emissions Reductions Trading Program, are in
the New Hampshire SIP. Consequently, in order to comply with VOC RACT,
approval to generate and use ERCs and DERs must be approved on a
facility-by-facility basis. EPA approved into the New Hampshire SIP
RACT Order ARD-11-001 in 2012, which contained a VOC content limit of
6.3 lb. VOC/gallon for motor vehicle weatherstrip adhesive coatings at
HSS, and an allowance for alternate compliance to be met by using add-
on controls, bubbling, DERs, ERCs, or any combination of the previous
methods to comply with the limit. HSS is no longer able to meet the
facility-wide emission rate of 15% uncontrolled emissions required for
DERs generation, as specified in Env-A 3100, due to the removal of the
catalytic oxidizer control device on TPV Line #6. Thus, the revised
RACT Order ARD-11-001 removes self-generation of DERs and the use of
add-on controls as methods of compliance.
The revised RACT Order for HSS maintains the same 6.3 lb. VOC/
gallon emissions limit, which is consistent with Env-A 1220, which EPA
previously approved as RACT in 2022. EPA also approved New Hampshire's
VOC RACT certification for the 2008 and 2015 ozone standards on
September 6, 2023 (88 FR 60893). EPA is proposing to approve the
revisions to RACT Order ARD-11-001 into the New Hampshire SIP, which do
not change the previously approved 6.3 lb. VOC/gallon emissions limit
for motor vehicle weatherstrip adhesive coatings at HSS.
IV. Proposed Action
EPA is proposing to approve the revised RACT Order ARD-11-001 into
the New Hampshire SIP. The Order was issued by the New Hampshire DES to
Hutchinson Sealing Systems of Newfields on January 24, 2025, and
submitted to EPA as a SIP revision on April 17, 2025. Clean Air Act
(CAA) section 110(l) provides that EPA may approve a SIP revision that
removes or modifies control measures in the SIP only if such removal or
modification would not interfere with attainment and maintenance of the
NAAQS, reasonable further progress, or any other applicable requirement
of the CAA. EPA is proposing to determine that the revisions to the
RACT order issued to HSS are consistent with CAA section 110(l) because
the removal of the add-on control device as an alternate compliance
option will not interfere with any applicable requirement concerning
attainment and reasonable further process, or any other applicable
requirement of the CAA. EPA is soliciting public comments on the issues
discussed in this notice or on other relevant matters. These comments
will be considered before taking final action. Interested parties may
participate in the Federal rulemaking procedure by submitting written
comments to this proposed rule by following the instructions listed in
the ADDRESSES section of this Federal Register.
V. 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 RACT Order ARD-11-001 dated January 24, 2025, issued by the
New Hampshire DES to Hutchinson Sealing Systems, Inc. of Newfields. The
EPA has made, and will continue to make, these documents generally
available through <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> and at the EPA Region 1
Office (please contact the person identified in the FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT section of this preamble for more information).
VI. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
Under the Clean Air Act, the Administrator is required to approve a
SIP submission that complies with the
[[Page 57418]]
provisions of the Clean Air Act and applicable Federal regulations. See
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 Clean Air Act. Accordingly, this proposed 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 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);
<bullet> Is not subject to Executive Order 14192 (90 FR 9065,
February 6, 2025) because SIP actions 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, as described in the Unfunded
Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (Public Law 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 Clean Air Act.
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).
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.
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Dated: December 3, 2025.
Mark Sanborn,
Regional Administrator, EPA Region 1.
[FR Doc. 2025-22610 Filed 12-10-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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