[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 144 (Thursday, July 28, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page ]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-18326]


[Federal Register: July 28, 1994]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52

[OAQPS # CA 37-10-6201; FRL-5021-7]


Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans; California 
State Implementation Plan Revision, Ventura County Air Pollution 
Control District

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).

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SUMMARY: EPA is proposing to approve revisions to the California State 
Implementation Plan (SIP) for ozone. These revisions concern the 
control of oxides of nitrogen (NOX) from boilers, steam 
generators, process heaters, and oilfield drilling operations. The 
intended effect of proposing approval of these rules is to regulate 
emissions of oxides of nitrogen (NOX) in accordance with the 
requirements of the Clean Air Act, as amended in 1990 (CAA or the Act). 
EPA's final action on this notice of proposed rulemaking will 
incorporate these rules into the federally approved SIP. EPA has 
evaluated these rules and is proposing to approve them under provisions 
of the CAA regarding EPA actions on SIP submittals, SIPs for national 
primary and secondary ambient air quality standards, and plan 
requirements for nonattainment areas.

DATES: Comments on this proposed action must be received in writing on 
or before August 29, 1994.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to: Daniel A. Meer, Rulemaking 
Section (A-5-3), Air and Toxics Division, U.S. Environmental Protection 
Agency, Region 9, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105. Please 
refer to document number CA 37-10-6201 in all correspondence.
    Copies of the rules and EPA's evaluation report of each rule are 
available for public inspection at EPA's Region 9 office during normal 
business hours. Copies of the submitted rules are also available for 
inspection at the following locations:

California Air Resources Board, Stationary Source Division, Rule 
Evaluation Section, 2020 ``L'' Street, Sacramento, CA 95814.
Ventura County Air Pollution Control District, 800 South Victoria 
Avenue, Ventura, CA 93009.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Duane F. James, Rulemaking Section (A-
5-3), Air and Toxics Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 
Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105, Telephone: 
(415) 744-1191.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Applicability

    The rules being proposed for approval into the California SIP 
include: Ventura County Air Pollution Control District's (VCAPCD) Rule 
74.15, ``Boilers, Steam Generators and Process Heaters,'' and Rule 
74.16, ``Oilfield Drilling Operations.'' These rules were submitted by 
the California Air Resources Board (ARB) to EPA on April 5, 1991 (Rule 
74.16) and June 19, 1992 (Rule 74.15).

Background

    On November 15, 1990, the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 (CAA) 
were enacted. Pub. L. 101-549, 104 Stat. 2399, codified at 42 U.S.C. 
7401-7671q. The air quality planning requirements for the reduction of 
NOX emissions through reasonably available control technology 
(RACT) are set out in section 182(f) of the CAA. On November 25, 1992, 
EPA published a NPRM entitled ``State Implementation Plans; Nitrogen 
Oxides Supplement to the General Preamble; Clean Air Act Amendments of 
1990 Implementation of Title I; Proposed Rule,'' (the NOX 
Supplement) which describes the requirements of section 182(f). The 
November 25, 1992, notice should be referred to for further information 
on the NOX requirements and is incorporated into this proposal by 
reference.
    Section 182(f) of the Clean Air Act requires States to apply the 
same requirements to major stationary sources of NOX (``major'' as 
defined in section 302 and section 182 (c), (d), and (e)) as are 
applied to major stationary sources of volatile organic compounds 
(VOCs) in moderate or above ozone nonattainment areas. The Ventura 
County Area is classified as severe;\1\ therefore this area was subject 
to the RACT requirements of section 182(b)(2), cited above, including 
the November 15, 1992 deadline.
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    \1\The Ventura County Area retained its designation of 
nonattainment and was classified by operation of law pursuant to 
sections 107(d) and 181(a) upon the date of enactment of the CAA. 
See 55 FR 56694 (November 6, 1991).
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    Section 182(b)(2) requires submittal of RACT rules for major 
stationary sources of VOC emissions (not covered by a pre-enactment 
control technologies guidelines (CTG) document or a post-enactment CTG 
document) by November 15, 1992. There were no NOX CTGs issued 
before enactment and EPA has not issued a CTG document for any NOX 
sources since enactment of the CAA. The RACT rules covering NOX 
sources and submitted as SIP revisions are expected to require final 
installation of the actual NOX controls by May 31, 1995, for those 
sources where installation by that date is practicable.
    The State of California submitted the rules being acted on in this 
document on April 5, 1991, and June 19, 1992. This document addresses 
EPA's proposed action for VCAPCD's Rule 74.15, ``Boilers, Steam 
Generators and Process Heaters,'' and Rule 74.16, ``Oilfield Drilling 
Operations.'' VCAPCD adopted Rule 74.16 on January 8, 1991, and Rule 
74.15 on December 3, 1991. These submitted rules were found to be 
complete on May 21, 1991 (Rule 74.16) and August 27, 1992 (Rule 74.15) 
pursuant to EPA's completeness criteria that are set forth in 40 CFR 
Part 51, Appendix V\2\, and are being proposed for approval into the 
SIP.
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    \2\EPA adopted the completeness criteria on February 16, 1990 
(55 FR 5830) and, pursuant to section 110(k)(1)(A) of the CAA, 
revised the criteria on August 26, 1991 (56 FR 42216).
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    NOX emissions contribute to the production of ground level 
ozone and smog. The rules were adopted as part of VCAPCD's efforts to 
achieve the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for ozone 
and in response to the CAA requirements cited above. The following is 
EPA's evaluation and proposed action for these rules.

EPA Evaluation and Proposed Action

    In determining the approvability of a NOX rule, EPA must 
evaluate the rule for consistency with the requirements of the CAA and 
EPA regulations, as found in section 110, and part D of the CAA and 40 
CFR part 51 (Requirements for Preparation, Adoption and Submittal of 
Implementation Plans). The EPA interpretation of these requirements, 
which forms the basis for this action, appears in various EPA policy 
guidance documents.\3\ Among these provisions is the requirement that a 
NOX rule must, at a minimum, provide for the implementation of 
RACT for stationary sources of NOX emissions.
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    \3\Among other things, the pre-amendment guidance consists of 
those portions of the proposed post-1987 ozone and carbon monoxide 
policy that concern RACT, 52 FR 45044 (November 24, 1987); ``Issues 
Relating to VOC Regulation Cutpoints, Deficiencies, and Deviations, 
Clarification to Appendix D of November 24, 1987 Federal Register 
Notice'' (Blue Book) (notice of availability was published in the 
Federal Register on May 25, 1988).
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    For the purposes of assisting state and local agencies in 
developing NOX RACT rules, EPA prepared the NOX Supplement to 
the General Preamble, cited above (57 FR 55620). In the NOX 
Supplement, EPA provides guidance on how RACT will be determined for 
major stationary sources of NOX emissions. While most of the 
guidance issued by EPA on what constitutes RACT for stationary sources 
has been directed towards application for VOC sources, much of the 
guidance is also applicable to RACT for stationary sources of NOX 
(see section 4.5 of the NOX Supplement). In addition, pursuant to 
section 183(c), EPA is issuing alternative control techniques documents 
(ACTs), that identify alternative controls for all categories of 
stationary sources of NOX. The ACT documents will provide 
information on control technology for stationary sources that emit or 
have the potential to emit 25 tons per year or more of NOX. 
However, the ACTs will not establish a presumptive norm for what is 
considered RACT for stationary sources of NOX. In general, the 
guidance documents cited above, as well as other relevant and 
applicable guidance documents, have been set forth to ensure that 
submitted NOX RACT rules meet federal RACT requirements and are 
fully enforceable and strengthen or maintain the SIP.
    Rule 74.15 limits the discharge of NOX from boilers, steam 
generators, and process heaters to 40 parts per million volume (ppmv) 
or 0.048 pounds per million Btu (lb/MMBtu). Rule 74.15 satisfies all 
the requirements of RACT for California with the added stringency of a 
lower emission limit. The rule's compliance date of March 2, 1992, 
satisfies the CAA's NOX RACT implementation date requirement of 
May 31, 1995 (Sec. 182(b)(2)). The District expects this rule to 
provide a 50 to 60% reduction in NOX emissions for this source 
category. This reduction corresponds to 1.34 tons per day based on the 
District's inventory.
    Rule 74.16 requires all drilling operations to be powered by 
utility electricity unless, under Section C.1, its installation is not 
cost effective. The exemption may be granted if a Best Available 
Control Technology (BACT) evaluation shows that the cost of control 
exceeds the BACT guideline cost. The costs used in the analysis are 
limited to the costs of installing sufficient and compatible electric 
capacity to power the drill rig. For drilling operations claiming an 
exemption from this requirement, the emissions of NOX from diesel-
powered engines shall not exceed 515 ppmv or 6.9 grams per brake 
horsepower-hour (g/bhp-hr). Compliance must be demonstrated annually by 
source testing. Section C.2 also grants a limited exemption for shallow 
drilling projects which use smaller rigs with engines that cannot meet 
the emission limit. This exemption applies only if the Section C.1 cost 
effectiveness exemption also applies, and, in any event, expires on 
June 1, 1995, when manufacturer certified low NOX engines are 
expected to be available. A more detailed discussion of the sources 
controlled, the controls required, and the justification for why these 
controls represent RACT can be found in the Technical Support Documents 
(TSDs) for Rules 74.15 and 74.16, date November 19, 1993.
    EPA has evaluated the submitted rules and has determined that they 
are consistent with the CAA, EPA regulations and EPA policy. Therefore, 
VCAPCD's Rule 74.15, ``Boilers, Steam Generators and Process Heaters,'' 
and Rule 74.16, ``Oilfield Drilling Operations,'' are being proposed 
for approval under section 110(k)(3) of the CAA as meeting the 
requirements of section 110(a), section 182(b)(2), section 182(f) and 
the NOX Supplement to the General Preamble.
    Nothing in this action should be construed as permitting or 
allowing or establishing a precedent for any future request for 
revision to any state implementation plan. Each request for revision to 
the state implementation plan shall be considered separately in light 
of specific technical, economic and environmental factors and in 
relation to relevant statutory and regulatory requirements.\4\
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    \4\Section C.3 of Rule 74.15 references VCAPCD Rule 32. VCAPCD 
Rule 32 was not submitted to EPA with Rule 74.15 and has not been 
approved by EPA for inclusion into the SIP. Therefore, this NPRM for 
Rule 74.15 does not constitute action on or approval of Rule 32 into 
the SIP.
    Both Rules 74.15 and 74.16 reference California Air Resources 
Board's (CARB) Method 100, which has been cited for certain 
deficiencies by the Emissions Measurement Branch. CARB has committed 
to correct these deficiencies in 1994, and final approval of Rules 
74.15 and 74.16 is contingent on these corrections.
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Regulatory Flexibility

    Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. Section 600 et. 
seq., EPA must prepare a regulatory flexibility analysis assessing the 
impact of any proposed or final rule on small entities. 5 U.S.C 
sections 603 and 604. Alternatively, EPA may certify that the rule will 
not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small 
entities. Small entities include small businesses, small not-for-profit 
enterprises, and government entities with jurisdiction over populations 
of less than 50,000.
    SIP approvals under section 110 and subchapter I, Part D of the CAA 
do not create any new requirements, but simply approve requirements 
that the State is already imposing. Therefore, because the Federal SIP-
approval does not impose any new requirements, I certify that it does 
not have a significant impact on affected small entities. Moreover, due 
to the nature of the federal-state relationship under the CAA, 
preparation of a regulatory flexibility analysis would constitute 
federal inquiry into the economic reasonableness of state action. The 
CAA forbids EPA to base its actions concerning SIPs on such grounds. 
Union Electric Co. v. U.S. E.P.A., 427 U.S. 246, 256-66 (S.Ct. 1976); 
42 U.S.C. section 7410 (a)(2).
    This action has been classified as a Table 2 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. The OMB has exempted this regulatory action from 
Executive Order 12866 review.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

    Environmental Protection Agency, Air pollution control, 
Hydrocarbons, Intergovernmental relations, Ozone, Reporting and 
recordkeeping requirements, Volatile organic compounds.

    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401-7671q.

    Dated: July 11, 1994.
Felicia Marcus,
Regional Administrator.
[FR Doc. 94-18326 Filed 7-27-94; 8:45 am]
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