[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 182 (Wednesday, September 21, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-23351]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: September 21, 1994]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[CA37-10-6383; FRL-5076-4]

 

Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans; California 
State Implementation Plan Revision, Santa Barbara 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 a revision to the California State 
Implementation Plan (SIP) for ozone. The revision concerns the control 
of oxides of nitrogen (NOx) from industrial boilers, steam 
generators, and process heaters in Santa Barbara County. The rule 
limits NOx and carbon monoxide emissions from these sources. The 
intended effect of proposing approval of this rule is to regulate 
emissions of 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 this rule into the 
federally approved SIP. EPA has evaluated this rule and is proposing to 
approve it 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 October 21, 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.
    Copies of the rule revision 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 rule revisions 
are also available for inspection at the following locations:

    Stationary Source Rulemaking Section (A-5-3), Air and Toxics 
Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne 
Street, San Francisco, CA 94105.
    California Air Resources Board, Stationary Source Division, Rule 
Evaluation Section, 2020 ``L'' Street, Sacramento, CA 95812.
    Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District, Rule 
Development Section, 26 Castilian Drive B-23, Goleta, CA 93117

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Wendy Colombo, Stationary Source 
Rulemaking, (A-5-3), Air and Toxics Division, U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 
94105 Telephone: (415) 744-1202

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On November 15, 1990, the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 (CAA) 
were enacted. Public Law 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, document should be referred to for further 
information on the NOx requirements and is incorporated into this 
document 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 sections 302 and 182(c), (d), and (e)) as are applied to 
major stationary sources of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), in 
moderate or above ozone nonattainment areas. Santa Barbara County is 
classified as a moderate nonattainment area for ozone;1 therefore 
the Santa Barbara County area is subject to the RACT requirements of 
section 182(b)(2), cited above.
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    \1\ Santa Barbara County was designated nonattainment and 
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 
category 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.
    This document addresses EPA's proposed action for Santa Barbara 
County Air Pollution Control District (SBCAPCD) Rule 342, Control of 
NOx from Boilers, Steam Generators, and Process Heaters. The rule 
was adopted by the SBCAPCD on March 10, 1992 and submitted by the State 
of California on June 19, 1992. Submitted Rule 342 was found to be 
complete on August 27, 1992 pursuant to EPA's completeness criteria 
that are set forth in 40 CFR part 51, appendix V2 and is 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. Rule 342 controls emissions of NOx and carbon 
monoxide from commercial and industrial boilers, steam generators, and 
process heaters which are used in a wide variety of applications 
providing steam, heat, and hot water for industrial, institutional, and 
commercial operations. Rule 342 was adopted as part of SBCAPCD'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 Rule 342.

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 the NOx 
Supplement and 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 
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 technique 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 342 applies to all boilers, steam generators, and process 
heaters with rated heat inputs greater than or equal to 5 million 
British Thermal Units per hour (MMBtu/hr) used in industrial, 
institutional, and commercial operations. The rule limits NOx 
emissions from units with rated heat inputs greater than or equal to 5 
MMBtu/hr and with annual heat input greater than or equal to 9 billion 
Btu to 30 parts per million (ppm) or 0.036 pound per million BTU (lb/
MMBtu) when operated on gas. For the same size units with annual heat 
inputs of the same level, which are operated on nongaseous fuel, the 
rule limits NOx emissions to 40ppm or 0.052 lb/MMBtu of heat 
input. The same size units operating with annual heat inputs of less 
than 9 billion Btu are required to maintain stack-gas oxygen 
concentrations at less than 3 percent or perform annual tune-ups. Final 
compliance with these limits is required by March 10, 1996.
    The RACT limits specified in the California Air Resources Board's 
(CARB's) reasonably available control technology/best available 
retrofit control technology (RACT/BARCT) determination for these types 
of units are 70 ppm (0.084 lb/MMBtu) and 115 ppm (0.150 lb/MMBtu) for 
units fired with gas and nongaseous fuels while those for BARCT are 30 
ppm and 40 ppm, respectively. Although Rule 342's BARCT limits (30ppm/
40ppm) are more stringent than what EPA would consider as RACT (70ppm/
115ppm) for these sources, the additional reductions obtained beyond 
those attributable to RACT are assumed necessary for SBCAPCD's 
attainment planning purposes.
    In evaluating the rule, EPA must also determine whether the CAA 
requirement for RACT implementation by May 31, 1995 is met. The rule 
was written such that final compliance is not required until 4 years 
after the date of adoption. Since the rule was adopted in March 1992, 
final compliance is not required until March 1996. Under certain 
circumstances, the determination of what constitutes RACT could include 
consideration of advanced control technologies, i.e., California's 
requirement for BARCT. In these cases, the CAA's May 1995 date for RACT 
implementation may be satisfied in BARCT rules that establish ``interim 
RACT'' by May 1995, and require emission limitations based on advanced 
control technologies (BARCT) be met after May 1995. Rule 342 requires 
that interim control measures be met to ensure progress toward final 
compliance. The interim control measures include applying for a permit 
to operate and authority to construct and the development and 
submission of a compliance plan. 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 
Document (TSD) for Rule 342, dated May 1994.
    EPA has evaluated the submitted rule and has determined that it is 
consistent with the CAA, EPA regulations and EPA policy. Therefore, 
SBCAPCD Rule 342, Control of NOx from Boilers, Steam Generators, 
and Process Heaters is being proposed for approval under section 
110(k)(3) of the CAA as meeting the requirements of section 110(a) and 
part D. 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.

Regulatory Process

    Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 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 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. 7410 (a)(2).
    The OMB has exempted this action from E.O. 12866 review.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Hydrocarbons, 
Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, Reporting and 
recordkeeping requirements, Volatile organic compounds.

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

    Dated: September 8, 1994.
John Wise,
Acting Regional Administrator.
[FR Doc. 94-23351 Filed 9-20-94; 8:45 am]
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