[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 125 (Thursday, June 29, 1995)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 33779-33781]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-16003]



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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52

[WI53-01-6914; FRL-5250-2]


Redesignation of the Forest County Potawatomi Community to a PSD 
Class I Area; State of Wisconsin

AGENCY: United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA).

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.

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SUMMARY: The purpose of this action is to propose approval and seek 
public comment on the request by the Forest County Potawatomi (FCP) 
Tribal Council to redesignate lands within the FCP Reservation in the 
State of Wisconsin to Class I under USEPA's regulations for prevention 
of significant deterioration (PSD) of air quality. The Class I 
designation will result in lowering the allowable increases in ambient 
concentrations of particulate matter (PM), sulfur dioxide (SO2), 
and nitrogen oxides (NOX) on certain of the FCP Community's lands.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before September 5, 1995. An 
informational meeting and public hearing on this proposal will be held 
on August 2, 1995. The informational meeting will start at 2:00 pm CDT 
and the public hearing will immediately follow it.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be addressed to: Carlton Nash, 
Chief, Regulation Development Section, Air Toxics and Radiation Branch, 
United States Environmental Protection Agency, 77 West Jackson 
Boulevard (AT-18J), Chicago, Illinois 60604.
    An informational meeting on Class I PSD redesignations in general 
and a public hearing on the FCP redesignation request in particular 
will be held at the Indian Springs Lodge on Highway 32 in Carter, 
Wisconsin starting at 2:00 pm CDT on August 2, 1995. The hearing will 
be strictly limited to the subject matter of the proposal, which is 
that the proposed redesignation meets the procedural requirements.
    Supporting information used in developing the proposed rule and 
materials submitted to USEPA relevant to the proposed action are 
available during normal business hours for public inspection and 
copying at the Air Toxics and Radiation Branch, Region 5, United States 
Environmental Protection Agency, 77 West Jackson Boulevard (AT-18J), 
Chicago, Illinois 60604. A copy of this information and materials is 
also available for inspection at the Crandon Public Library, 104 South 
Lake Avenue, Crandon, Wisconsin 54520-1458.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Constantine Blathras, USEPA Region 5 
(AT-18J), 77 West Jackson Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 60604, (312) 
886-0671.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Part C Title I of the Clean Air Act (Act) 
provides for the prevention of significant deterioration of air 
quality. The intent of Part C is to prevent deterioration of existing 
air quality, in areas having relatively clean air--those areas 
designated pursuant to Section 107 of the Act, as ``unclassifiable'', 
or ``attainment'' relative to an areas National Ambient Air Quality 
Standard. These areas are referred to as ``PSD areas''. The Act 
provides for three basic classifications applicable to PSD areas 
located within the United States. Associated with each classification 
are increments which represent the maximum allowable increase in 
ambient air pollutant concentrations above a baseline concentration.
    Part C initially designated as Federal Class I certain areas, under 
Section 162(a) of the Act, such as international parks, wilderness 
areas, national memorial parks, and national parks.1 The PSD 
regulations provide special protection for Federal Class I areas. Class 
II applies to areas in which pollutant increases accompanying moderate 
growth is allowed. Class III applies to those areas in which 

[[Page 33780]]
considerably more air quality deterioration is considered acceptable.

    \1\ The 1990 CAA Amendments included provisions to allow the 
boundaries of existing federal Class I areas to be expanded, but no 
new Class I areas were created.
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    Under the 1977 amendments to the Act, all PSD areas, other than the 
Federal Class I areas, were initially designated Class II. Section 164 
of the Act allows States and Indian governing bodies to reclassify 
areas under their jurisdiction to accommodate the social, economic, and 
environmental needs and desires of the local population. Reservations 
that have previously been reclassified as Class I areas include the 
Northern Cheyenne, Fort Peck, and Flathead Reservations in Montana and 
the Spokane Reservation in Washington.
    A Class I redesignation results in lowering the allowable increases 
in ambient concentrations of PM, SO2, and NOX. Only 
facilities defined by the PSD regulations, 40 Code of Federal 
Regulations (CFR) 51.166 and 52.21, as major stationary sources or 
major modifications are subject to PSD and required to perform PSD air 
quality impact analysis. These facilities are typically large 
industrial sources such as refineries and electric utilities.
    It is important to note that no new permits or additional controls 
to existing sources are required as a result of a redesignation to 
Class I. The difference between the two designations is that the 
maximum increase in ambient concentration of a given pollutant 2 
allowed over a baseline concentration is lower in a Class I area. This 
affords a Class I area greater protection from the cumulative impacts 
of many facilities locating in and around the Class I area.

    \2\ There are currently PSD increments established for NOX, 
SO2, and PM. 40 CFR 52.21(c).
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Forest County Potawatomi Request for Redesignation

    On February 14, 1995 the FCP Tribal Council submitted to USEPA a 
proposal to redesignate certain FCP Reservation lands from Class II to 
Class I. FCP Reservation lands being requested for redesignation to 
Class I are limited to parcels over 80 acres, only in Forest County, 
and that are held in trust for the Tribe by the Federal government. 
With their request, the Tribal Council submitted a PSD Class I Area 
Redesignation Technical Report, maps identifying the reservation lands 
subject to the proposed redesignation, documentation of public 
notification, a record of the public hearing held on September 29, 
1994, comments received by the Tribal Council on the proposed 
redesignation, and the Tribal Council's response to comments received. 
On June 14, 1995 the Tribal Council also provided USEPA with 
information concerning Air Quality Related Values (AQRV) for the 
proposed redesignated area, including a discussion of the economic and 
energy effects of a proposed AQRV for mercury. This information is 
available at the Crandon Public Library and Region 5 offices listed in 
the Addresses section of this proposal.
Statutory and Regulatory Requirements for Redesignation

    Section 164 of the Act and Federal regulations set forth at 40 CFR 
52.21(g) outline the requirements for redesignation of areas under the 
PSD program. The Act provides that lands within the exterior boundaries 
of reservations of federally recognized Indian tribes may be 
redesignated only by the appropriate Indian Governing Body. Under 
section 164(b)(2) and 40 CFR 52.21(g)(5), USEPA may disapprove a 
redesignation only if it finds, after notice and opportunity for 
hearing, that the redesignation does not meet the procedural 
requirements of section 164 or is a mandatory Federal Class I area that 
may not be redesignated. The latter does not apply to the FCP area 
proposed for redesignation. In addition, the Indian Governing Body may 
resubmit the proposal after correcting any deficiencies noted by the 
Administrator, under 40 CFR 52.21(g)(6).
    The procedural requirements for a Class I redesignation by an 
Indian Governing Body are as follows: (1) At least one public hearing 
must be conducted in accordance with the requirements set forth at 40 
CFR 51.102; (2) other States, Indian Governing Bodies, and Federal Land 
Managers whose lands may be affected by the proposed redesignation must 
be notified at least 30 days prior to the public hearing; (3) at least 
30 days prior to the public hearing, a discussion of the reasons for 
the proposed redesignation including a satisfactory description and 
analysis of the health, environmental, economic, social and energy 
effects of the proposed redesignation must be prepared and made 
available for public inspection and the public hearing notice must 
contain appropriate notification of availability of such discussion; 
(4) prior to the issuance of the public notice for a proposed 
redesignation of an area that includes Federal lands in the 
redesignation, the redesignating authorities must provide written 
notice to the appropriate Federal Land Managers and an opportunity to 
confer and submit written comments and recommendations; and (5) prior 
to proposing the redesignation, the Indian Governing Body has consulted 
with the State(s) in which the Reservation is located and that border 
the Reservation.

Tribal Council Submittal

    The February 14, 1995 request for redesignation includes evidence 
that all of the statutory and regulatory requirements for redesignation 
of the FCP Reservation from Class II to Class I have been met by the 
FCP Tribal Council. The FCP Tribal Council is the Indian Governing Body 
for the FCP Reservation, and only land parcels within the exterior 
boundaries of the Reservation are proposed for redesignation.
    Pursuant to 40 CFR 51.102, the FCP Tribal Council conducted a 
public hearing on September 29, 1994 at the Potawatomi Tribal Hall, 
four miles east of Crandon, Wisconsin. Notice of the hearing was 
provided to the required parties, other public agencies, and interested 
parties. It was posted in public locations and was provided to local 
media. A satisfactory description and analysis of the health, 
environmental, economic, social, and energy effects of the proposed 
redesignation entitled, ``Forest County Potawatomi Community PSD Class 
I Area Redesignation Technical Report'' was completed in August 1994, 
and its availability was announced in the public hearing notices. 
Evidence that the Tribe consulted with State of Wisconsin officials 
prior to proposing the redesignation is also included in the submittal. 
Therefore, the documentation submitted by the Tribal Council shows that 
all statutory and regulatory procedural requirements for redesignation 
have been met.

Summary of Action

    Because USEPA's review has not revealed any procedural 
deficiencies, the redesignation is hereby proposed for approval. The 
public is invited to comment on whether the FCP Tribal Council has met 
all the applicable procedural requirements of 40 CFR 52.21(g)(2) & 
(g)(4). Comments should be submitted to the Region 5 address listed 
above. USEPA will hold a public hearing on this redesignation on August 
2, 1995,3 at the Indian Springs Lodge on Highway 32 in Carter, 
Wisconsin, to receive additional public comment on the subject of this 
proposal, which is whether the proposed redesignation met the 
procedural requirements summarized in this action. Public comments 
received either at the public hearing in Carter or received in writing 

[[Page 33781]]
at the Region 5 offices by September 5, 1995, will be considered in the 
final rulemaking action taken by USEPA.

    \3\  The public hearing will immediately follow an informational 
meeting on the PSD redesignation process, which will start at 2:00 
pm CDT.
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Administrative Review

    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. The Office of Management and Budget has exempted 
this regulatory action from Executive Order 12866 review.
    Nothing in this action should be construed as permitting or 
allowing or establishing a precedent for any future request for a PSD 
Class I redesignation. Each request for redesignation shall be 
considered separately and in relation to relevant statutory and 
regulatory requirements.
    Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. Section 600 et seq., 
USEPA 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, USEPA may certify that the rule 
will not have a significant 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. The proposed action does not have a significant 
direct impact on small entities and may only prospectively affect the 
amount of air quality deterioration that is allowed from major 
stationary sources and major modifications, as defined by 40 CFR 52.21, 
and will not result in any significant additional requirements for 
small entities. Therefore, I certify that this action does not have a 
significant impact on a substantial number of small entities.
    Under Sections 202, 203, and 205 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform 
Act of 1995 (Unfunded Mandates Act), signed into law on March 22, 1995, 
the USEPA must undertake various actions in association with proposed 
or final rules that include a Federal mandate that may result in 
estimated costs of $100 million or more to the private sector, or to 
State, local, or Tribal governments in the aggregate.
    Through submission of the request for redesignation, the Tribal 
government has elected to adopt an option allowed them under Section 
164 of the Act. The redesignation being proposed for approval in this 
action may bind State, local, and Tribal governments to perform certain 
actions and also may ultimately lead to the private sector being 
required to perform certain duties. However, USEPA has also determined 
that this action does not include a mandate that may result in 
estimated costs of $100 million or more to State, local, or Tribal 
governments in the aggregate or to the private sector.

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

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

    Air pollution control, Carbon monoxide, Environmental Protection, 
Hydrocarbons, Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, 
Particulate matter, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Sulfur 
oxides.

    Dated: June 19, 1995.
Valdas V. Adamkus,
Regional Administrator.
[FR Doc. 95-16003 Filed 6-28-95; 8:45 am]
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