[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 110 (Thursday, June 9, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-14015]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: June 9, 1994]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52

[CO32-1-6417; FRL-4894-5]

 

Clean Air Act Approval and Promulgation of PM-10 Implementation 
Plan for Colorado

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: In this action, the EPA is approving the State implementation 
plan (SIP) submitted by the State of Colorado for the purposes of 
bringing about the attainment of the National ambient air quality 
standards (NAAQS) for particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter 
less than or equal to a nominal 10 micrometers (PM-10). The SIP was 
submitted by the State on May 27, 1993 to satisfy certain Federal 
requirements for an approvable nonattainment area PM-10 plan for Lamar, 
Colorado.

EFFECTIVE DATE: This rule will become effective on July 11, 1994.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the State's submittal and other information are 
available for inspection during normal business hours at the following 
locations: Air Programs Branch, Environmental Protection Agency, Region 
VIII, 999 18th Street, suite 500, Denver, Colorado 80202-2466; and Air 
Pollution Control Division, Colorado Department of Health, 4300 Cherry 
Creek Drive South, Denver, Colorado 80222-1530.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Vicki Stamper, 8ART-AP, Environmental 
Protection Agency, Region VIII, 999 18th Street, suite 500, Denver, 
Colorado 80202-2466, (303) 293-1765.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Lamar, Colorado was designated nonattainment for PM-10 and 
classified as moderate under sections 107(d)(4)(B) and 188(a) of the 
Clean Air Act (Act) upon enactment of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 
1990.1 (See 56 FR 56694, November 6, 1991; 40 CFR 81.306 
(specifying nonattainment designation for Lamar.)) The air quality 
planning requirements for moderate PM-10 nonattainment areas are set 
out in subparts 1 and 4 of part D of title I of the Act. The EPA has 
issued a ``General Preamble'' describing EPA's preliminary views on how 
EPA intends to review SIPs and SIP revisions submitted under title I of 
the Act, including those State submittals containing moderate PM-10 
nonattainment area SIP requirements (see generally 57 FR 13498 (April 
16, 1992) and 57 FR 18070 (April 28, 1992)). Because EPA is describing 
its interpretations here only in broad terms, the reader should refer 
to the General Preamble for a more detailed discussion of the 
interpretations of title I advanced in this final action and the 
supporting rationale.
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    \1\The 1990 Amendments to the Clean Air Act made significant 
changes to the Act. See Public Law No. 101-549, 104 Stat. 2399. 
References herein are to the Clean Air Act, as amended (``the 
Act''). The Clean Air Act is codified, as amended, in the U.S. Code 
at 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
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    Those states containing initial moderate PM-10 nonattainment areas 
(i.e., those areas designated nonattainment for PM-10 under section 
107(d)(4)(B) of the Act) were required to submit, among other things, 
the following provisions by November 15, 1991:

    1. Provisions to assure that reasonably available control measures 
(RACM) (including such reductions in emissions from existing sources in 
the area as may be obtained through the adoption, at a minimum, of 
reasonably available control technology-RACT) shall be implemented no 
later than December 10, 1993;
    2. Either a demonstration (including air quality modeling) that the 
plan will provide for attainment as expeditiously as practicable but no 
later than December 31, 1994, or a demonstration that attainment by 
that date is impracticable;
    3. Quantitative milestones which are to be achieved every 3 years 
and which demonstrate reasonable further progress (RFP) toward 
attainment by December 31, 1994; and
    4. Provisions to assure that the control requirements applicable to 
major stationary sources of PM-10 also apply to major stationary 
sources of PM-10 precursors except where the Administrator determines 
that such sources do not contribute significantly to PM-10 levels which 
exceed the NAAQS in the area. See sections 172(c), 188, and 189 of the 
Act.
    Some provisions were due at a later date. States with initial 
moderate PM-10 nonattainment areas were required to submit a permit 
program for the construction and operation of new and modified major 
stationary sources of PM-10 by June 30, 1992 (see section 189(a)). 
Revisions to satisfy these requirements were submitted by the State on 
January 14, 1993, and EPA will be taking action on these requirements 
in a separate Federal Register document. Such States were also required 
to submit contingency measures by November 15, 1993 which become 
effective without further action by the State or EPA, upon a 
determination by EPA that the area has failed to achieve RFP or to 
attain the PM-10 NAAQS by the applicable statutory deadline. (See 
section 172(c)(9) of the Act and 57 FR 13543-13544.) The State 
submitted PM-10 contingency measures for the Lamar PM-10 nonattainment 
area on December 9, 1993. EPA will take action on these contingency 
measures in a separate Federal Register document.
    On April 6, 1994, EPA announced its proposed approval of the Lamar, 
Colorado PM-10 nonattainment area SIP as meeting those moderate PM-10 
nonattainment area requirements due on November 15, 1991 (see 59 FR 
16158-16162). In that proposed rulemaking action and related Technical 
Support Document (TSD), EPA described in detail its interpretations of 
title I and its rationale for proposing to approve the Lamar moderate 
nonattainment area PM-10 SIP, taking into consideration the specific 
factual issues presented. EPA requested public comments on all aspects 
of the proposed rulemaking pertaining to Lamar (see 59 FR 16162). No 
comments were received on the proposed rulemaking.

This Action

    Section 110(k) of the Act sets out provisions governing EPA's 
review of SIP submittals (see 57 FR 13565-13566). On May 27, 1993, the 
Governor of Colorado submitted revisions to the SIP which were intended 
to satisfy those moderate PM-10 nonattainment area SIP requirements due 
for Lamar on November 15, 1991. As described in EPA's notice of 
proposed approval of this SIP submittal, the Lamar moderate PM-10 
nonattainment area plan includes, among other things: (1) A 
comprehensive and accurate emissions inventory; (2) reliance on 
existing Federal control measures that satisfy the RACM requirement; 
(3) a demonstration (including air quality modeling) that attainment of 
the PM-10 NAAQS will be achieved in Lamar by December 31, 1994 and 
maintained through December 31, 1997; (4) an explanation that the 
implementation of available control measures are not reasonably 
required for attainment and maintenance of the PM-10 NAAQS in Lamar, 
thus satisfying the November 15, 1994 quantitative milestone and RFP 
requirements; and (5) enforceability documentation. In that document, 
EPA also proposed to determine that major sources of precursors of PM-
10 do not contribute significantly to PM-10 levels in excess of the 
NAAQS in Lamar. Please refer to EPA's April 6, 1994 notice of proposed 
rulemaking (59 FR 16158-16162) and the TSD for that action for a more 
detailed discussion of these elements of the Lamar plan.
    EPA finds that the State of Colorado's PM-10 SIP for the Lamar 
moderate PM-10 nonattainment area meets the RACM, including RACT, 
requirement. Wind erosion from agricultural lands was identified as the 
principal contributor to the PM-10 nonattainment problem in Lamar and, 
therefore, was targeted for control in the SIP. The State chose to rely 
on the soil conservation measures of the Federal Food Security Act 
(FSA) to control emissions from agricultural land wind erosion. While 
the State is relying on these provisions to reduce PM-10 emissions from 
wind erosion in the Lamar area, the State did not adopt these measures 
into the SIP because these measures are federally-mandated and will be 
implemented by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Further, no credit 
was taken for these measures because of the difficulty in estimating 
the effectiveness of these measures and because no credit was needed to 
demonstrate attainment or maintenance of the PM-10 NAAQS in Lamar. 
Nevertheless, EPA does believe that the provisions of the FSA will have 
a significant impact on the emissions from wind erosion from 
agricultural land in the Lamar area. It does not appear that applying 
further control measures to these or other sources would expedite 
attainment. Thus, EPA believes the Lamar PM-10 moderate nonattainment 
area plan has adequately satisfied the RACM (including RACT) 
requirement.
    A more detailed discussion of the individual source contributions, 
their associated control measures (including available control 
technology) and an explanation of why certain available control 
measures were not implemented, can be found in the TSD accompanying 
EPA's proposed approval of the Lamar moderate PM-10 nonattainment area 
SIP.
    The Lamar PM-10 nonattainment area plan adequately demonstrates 
that the Lamar area will attain the PM-10 NAAQS by December 31, 1994 
and maintain the PM-10 NAAQS through December 31. 1997. Thus, EPA 
believes the State has met all of the moderate PM-10 nonattainment area 
requirements for the Lamar moderate PM-10 nonattainment area which were 
due to EPA on November 15, 1991 and submitted by the State on May 27, 
1993. By this action, EPA is approving the Lamar PM-10 moderate 
nonattainment area plan.
    In this document, EPA is also announcing its determination that 
major stationary sources of precursors of PM-10 do not contribute 
significantly to PM-10 levels in excess of the NAAQS in Lamar.2
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    \2\The consequences of this finding are to exclude these sources 
from the applicability of PM-10 nonattainment area control 
requirements. Note that EPA's finding is based on the current 
character of the area including, for example, the existing mix of 
sources in the area. It is possible, therefore, that future growth 
could change the significance of precursors in the area.
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    Nothing in this action should be construed as permitting or 
allowing or establishing a precedent for any future request for a 
revision to any SIP. Each request for a revision to the SIP shall be 
considered separately in light of specific technical, economic, and 
environmental factors, and in relation to relevant statutory and 
regulatory requirements.

Final Action

    This document makes final the action proposed on April 6, 1994 (59 
FR 16158). As noted elsewhere in this final action, EPA received no 
public comments on the proposed action. As a direct result, the 
Regional Administrator has reclassified this action from Table 2 to 
Table 3 under the processing procedures established at 54 FR 2214, 
January 19, 1989.
    This action has been classified as a Table 3 action by the Regional 
Administrator under the procedures published in the Federal Register on 
January 19, 1989 (54 FR 2214-2225), as revised by an October 4, 1993 
memorandum from Michael H. Shapiro, Acting Assistant Administrator for 
Air and Radiation. A future document will inform the general public of 
these tables. On January 6, 1989, the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) waived Table 2 and Table 3 SIP revisions (54 FR 2222) from the 
requirements of Section 3 of Executive Order 12291 for 2 years. The EPA 
has submitted a request for a permanent waiver for Table 2 and Table 3 
SIP revisions. The OMB has agreed to continue the waiver until such 
time as it rules on EPA's request. This request continues in effect 
under Executive Order 12866 which superseded Executive Order 12291 on 
September 30, 1993. The OMB has exempted this regulatory action from 
Executive Order 12866 review.
    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 August 8, 1994. Filing a 
petition for reconsideration by the Administrator of this final rule 
does not affect the finality of this rule for the purposes of judicial 
review nor does it extend the time within which a petition for judicial 
review may be file, 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, Hydrocarbons, 
Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen dioxide, Particulate matter, 
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Sulfur dioxide, Volatile 
organic compounds.

    Dated: June 1, 1994.
Nola Y. Cooke,
Acting Regional Administrator.

    Part 52, chapter I, title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations is 
amended as follows:

PART 52--[AMENDED]

    1. The authority citation for part 52 continues to read as follows:
    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401-7671q.

Subpart G--Colorado

    2. Section 52.332 is amended by adding paragraph (c) to read as 
follows:


Sec. 52.332  Moderate PM-10 nonattainment area plans.

* * * * *
    (c) On May 27, 1993, the Governor of Colorado submitted the 
moderate PM-10 nonattainment area plan for the Lamar area. The 
submittal was made to satisfy those moderate PM-10 nonattainment area 
SIP requirements which were due for Lamar on November 15, 1991.
[FR Doc. 94-14015 Filed 6-8-94; 8:45 am]
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