[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 160 (Friday, August 18, 1995)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 43100-43104]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-20526]



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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52

[LA-22-1-6870; FRL-5280-9]


Approval and Promulgation of Section 182(f) Exemption to the 
Nitrogen Oxides (NO) Control Requirements for the Baton Rouge 
Ozone Nonattainment Area; Louisiana

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rulemaking.

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SUMMARY: The EPA proposes to approve a petition from the State of 
Louisiana requesting that the Baton Rouge ozone nonattainment area be 
exempt from NOX control requirements of section 182(f) of the 
Clean Air Act (CAA) as amended in 1990. The State of Louisiana bases 
its request for Baton Rouge upon a demonstration that additional 
NOX reductions would not contribute to ozone attainment in the 
nonattainment area.

 
[[Page 43101]]

DATES: Comments on this proposed action must be received in writing on 
or before September 18, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Written comments on this action should be addressed to Mr. 
Thomas Diggs, Chief, Air Planning Section, at the EPA Regional Office 
listed below. Copies of the documents relevant to this proposed action 
are available for public inspection during normal business hours at the 
following locations. The interested persons wanting to examine these 
documents should make an appointment with the appropriate office at 
least 24 hours before the visiting day.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 6, Multimedia Planning and 
Permitting Division, 1445 Ross Avenue, Suite 700, Dallas, Texas 75202-
2733.
Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality, H. B. Garlock Building, 
7290 Bluebonnet, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70810.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Jeanne McDaniels or Mr. Quang 
Nguyen, Air Planning Section (6PD-L), Multimedia Planning and 
Permitting Division, U.S. EPA Region 6, 1445 Ross Avenue, Dallas, Texas 
75202-2733, telephone (214) 665-7214.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    NOX are precursors to ground level (tropospheric) ozone, or 
urban ``smog.'' When released into the atmosphere, NOX will react 
with volatile organic compounds (VOC) in the presence of sunlight to 
form ozone. Tropospheric ozone is an important factor in the nation's 
urban air pollution problem.
    The 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments (CAAA) made significant changes 
to the air quality planning requirements for areas that do not meet the 
ozone NAAQS. Subparts 1 and 2 of part D, title I of the CAA as amended 
in 1990 contain the air quality planning requirements for ozone 
nonattainment areas. Title I includes new requirements to control 
NOX emissions in certain ozone nonattainment areas and ozone 
transport regions. Section 182(f) requires States to apply the same 
requirements to major stationary sources of NOX as are applied to 
major stationary sources of VOC. The new NOX requirements are 
reasonably available control technology (RACT) and new source review 
(NSR). These provisions are explained more fully in the EPA's NOX 
Supplement to the General Preamble published in the Federal Register 
(FR) on November 25, 1992 (see 57 FR 55620). In addition, the general 
and transportation conformity rules required by section 176(c) (see 58 
FR 63214 and 58 FR 62188), and the vehicle inspection and maintenance 
(I/M) rules required by section 182(c)(3) (see 57 FR 52989) also 
contain new NOX requirements.
    Baton Rouge, Louisiana, was designated nonattainment for ozone and 
classified as serious pursuant to sections 107(d)(4) and 181(a) of the 
CAA. The Baton Rouge nonattainment area consists of the following 
parishes: East Baton Rouge, West Baton Rouge, Pointe Coupee, 
Livingston, Iberville, and Ascension. Under section 181(a), serious 
areas must attain the ozone NAAQS by 1999. Please reference 56 FR 56694 
(November 6, 1991, codified for Louisiana at 40 Code of Federal 
Regulations 81.319).
Applicable EPA Guidance

    The CAA specifies in section 182(f) that if one of the conditions 
listed below is met, the new NOX requirements would not apply:
    1. In any area, the net air quality benefits are greater without 
NOX reductions from the sources concerned;
    2. In a nontransport region, additional NOX reductions would 
not contribute to ozone attainment in the nonattainment area; or
    3. In a transport region, additional NOX reductions would not 
produce net ozone benefits in the transport region.
    In addition, section 182(f)(2) states that the application of the 
new NOX requirements may be limited to the extent that any portion 
of those reductions are demonstrated to result in ``excess reductions'' 
of NOX. The NOX provisions of the conformity requirements 
would also not apply in an area that is granted a section 182(f) 
exemption (see 58 FR 63214 and 58 FR 62188). In addition, certain 
NOX provisions of the I/M requirements would not apply in an area 
that is granted a section 182(f) exemption (see 57 FR 52989).
    The EPA's Guideline for Determining the Applicability of Nitrogen 
Oxides Requirements under Section 182(f) (December 1993) describes how 
the EPA will interpret the NOX exemption provisions of section 
182(f). In addition, a memorandum signed by John S. Seitz, Director of 
the EPA Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards, dated May 27, 
1994, and subsequent modifications to that memorandum, describe certain 
revisions to the process the EPA currently intends to follow for 
granting exemptions from NOX control requirements.
    As described more fully in the Seitz memorandum, petitions 
submitted under section 182(f)(3) are not required to be submitted as 
State Implementation Plan (SIP) revisions. Consequently, the State is 
not required under the CAA to hold a public hearing in order to 
petition for an areawide NOX exemption determination. Similarly, 
it is not necessary to have the Governor submit the petition.
    Although the May 27, 1994, Seitz memorandum includes, among the 
exemptions that may be submitted under section 182(f)(3), the NOX 
requirements of both the general conformity rule (see 58 FR 63214) and 
the transportation conformity rule (see 58 FR 62188), the EPA is 
currently in the process of revising the transportation conformity rule 
to ensure consistency with section 176(c)(3). This impending rule 
revision will require areas subject to section 182(b)(1) (i.e., 
moderate, serious, severe, and extreme ozone nonattainment areas) to 
submit transportation conformity NOX exemption requests as 
revisions to the SIP. All other NOX exemptions (i.e., NOX 
NSR, NOX RACT, general conformity NOX requirements, and I/M 
NOX requirements) may still be submitted under section 182(f)(3). 
In this notice, the EPA is not proposing to approve an exemption from 
the transportation conformity NOX requirements. Rather, this will 
be accomplished through subsequent rulemaking on a future SIP revision 
submitted by the State.

State Submittal

    On November 17, 1994, the Louisiana Department of Environmental 
Quality (LDEQ) submitted to the EPA a petition pursuant to section 
182(f) which requests that the Baton Rouge nonattainment area be 
exempted by the EPA from the NOX control requirements of section 
182(f) of the CAA.
    The State bases its petition on an urban airshed modeling (UAM) 
demonstration that additional NOX reductions would not contribute 
to attainment in the area. This modeling demonstrates, consistent with 
the EPA's December 1993 section 182(f) guidance, that decreases in 
ozone concentrations resulting from VOC reductions alone are equal to 
or greater than decreases obtained from NOX reductions or a 
combination of VOC and NOX reductions. The State's submission 
includes a letter from Gustave Von Bodungen, Assistant Secretary of the 
LDEQ, to Jane N. Saginaw, Regional Administrator of the EPA Region 6, 
requesting exemption from NOX RACT and transportation conformity 
requirements for NOX in the Baton Rouge ozone nonattainment area, 
along with a summary of modeling results. 

[[Page 43102]]
The State of Louisiana also provided supplemental technical reports 
based on the modeling demonstration in the Baton Rouge post-1996 rate-
of-progress (ROP) plan submitted to the EPA on November 15, 1994, 
pursuant to the requirements of section 182(c)(2)(B) of the CAA. These 
reports contained the following: base case model inputs, base case 
performance evaluation, 1999 emissions report, and attainment modeling 
report. These additional technical reports provided supplemental detail 
and documentation on the modeling information provided to the EPA in 
the State's petition. In addition, the State submitted follow-up 
letters to the petition to (1) provide revisions to several tables 
contained in the original petition and (2) broaden the scope of the 
original request to also include exemptions under section 182(f) for 
NOX NSR, general conformity, and I/M NOX requirements.

Analysis of State Submission

    The following items are the basis for the EPA's action proposing to 
approve the State of Louisiana's section 182(f) NOX exemption 
petition for the Baton Rouge ozone nonattainment area. Please refer to 
the EPA's Technical Support Document and the State's submittal for more 
detailed information.
A. Consistency With EPA Section 182(f) Guidance

    Chapter 4 of the EPA's December 1993 section 182(f) guidance 
requires that photochemical grid modeling be used to simulate 
conditions resulting from three emission reduction scenarios: (1) 
Substantial VOC reductions; (2) substantial NOX reductions; and 
(3) both VOC and NOX reductions. To demonstrate that NOX 
reductions would not contribute to attainment, the areawide predicted 
maximum 1-hour ozone concentration for each day modeled under scenario 
(1) must be less than or equal to that from scenarios (2) and (3) for 
the same day. Chapter 7 specifies that the application of UAM should be 
consistent with the techniques specified in the EPA ``Guideline on Air 
Quality Models (Revised),'' and ``Guideline for Regulator Application 
of the UAM (July 1991).'' In addition, Chapter 8 of the EPA's December 
1993 section 182(f) guidance requires that the modeling simulating 
conditions from the NOX emission reduction scenarios include 
NOX emission increases after November 15, 1992, due to new or 
modified stationary sources of NOX. (Many of these sources would 
be subject to the best available control technology requirement through 
the prevention of significant deterioration program, but not to NSR 
offsets.) As discussed in the next section, the State has met these 
requirements by using the UAM consistent with the EPA's guidance.

B. UAM Modeling Analysis

    The LDEQ used UAM version IV, an EPA-approved photochemical grid 
model, to develop the attainment demonstration for the Baton Rouge 
area. The State's modeling activities were performed as outlined in the 
UAM modeling protocols, according to the EPA's ``Guideline for 
Regulatory Application of the Urban Airshed Model.'' A specific 
modeling protocol was developed by the State for its modeling 
activities. The State's modeling protocol was reviewed and approved by 
the EPA. The discussion below summarizes the EPA's analysis of how the 
State's modeling demonstrations complied with the EPA's guidance. 
Please refer to the EPA's Technical Support Document for more detailed 
information.
1. Episode Selection
    The State used the EPA ``Guideline For Regulatory Application of 
The Urban Airshed Model'' to select episodes for use in the Baton Rouge 
UAM modeling exercises. Data from 1987 through 1991 were examined for 
episodes which cover at least 48 consecutive hours and the worst-case 
meteorological conditions. Three episodes were selected for the UAM 
analysis for the area.
2. Model Domain and Meteorological Input
    The LDEQ used a sufficiently large modeling domain for Baton Rouge 
to ensure that the model captures the movement of ozone episodes as a 
result of the VOC and NOX emissions emitted from the surface 
sources. Meteorological data were collected from numerous monitoring 
stations in the area. The LDEQ followed the methods described in the 
UAM user's guides to develop model inputs for wind field data, mixing 
heights, temperature, and meteorological scalars for the areas.
3. Emissions Inventory
    The Baton Rouge modeling exercises were conducted using VOC and 
NOX emission inventories compiled by survey and direct measurement 
by the LDEQ. The modeling emissions inventories are composed of point 
source, area, on-road mobile, off-road mobile, and biogenic emissions. 
Where applicable, emissions were adjusted for pertinent conditions 
related to the episode day to be modeled, thus producing day-specific 
emissions. The State followed the EPA's procedures for developing 
episode-specific emission inventories.
    The EPA's section 182(f) guidance explains that, in general, the 
purpose of the section 182(f) requirements for NOX is related to 
attainment of the ozone standard, which suggests that an analysis be 
focussed on the time that attainment of that standard is required. For 
the purpose of a section 182(f) modeling demonstration, this means that 
the projected emissions inventory for the attainment year should be 
used.
    For Baton Rouge, the 1999 attainment year modeling inventory was 
developed from the 1990 base year emission inventory and adjusted to 
reflect the projected conditions for the attainment year. Demographic 
and econometric forecasting methods were employed to project activities 
levels to 1999, which, in turn, were used to develop a projected 
emissions inventory for 1999. The State then applied the VOC emission 
reductions that are projected to be realized through 1996 from the 
control regulations contained in the Baton Rouge 15 percent ROP SIP 
submitted to the EPA on November 15, 1994, and the NOX controls 
implemented between 1990 and 1994 due to facilities' voluntary 
participation in the early NOX reduction program. The 1999 
inventories did not incorporate any additional NOX emission 
reductions that would have been achieved through implementation of the 
NOX RACT, NSR, general conformity, or NOX-related I/M 
provisions.
4. Model Performance
    For Baton Rouge, both graphical and statistical performance 
measures were used to evaluate the model. Using these analyses, the 
predicted results from the model were compared to the observed results 
for each episode. These analyses indicated that, overall, the model 
performed satisfactorily for the three episodes used for the UAM 
demonstration.
5. Section 182(f) Demonstration
    The EPA's section 182(f) guidance requires the State to model three 
emission reduction scenarios to evaluate the benefits of NOX 
reductions: (1) Substantial VOC reductions; (2) substantial NOX 
reductions; and (3) both VOC and NOX reductions.
    For the section 182(f) demonstration, the LDEQ modeled the three 
emission reduction scenarios for all three episodes using the 1999 
projected emission inventory, which includes the voluntary early (1990-
1994) point 

[[Page 43103]]
source NOX reductions and the VOC emission controls to be 
implemented through 1996 (i.e., 15 percent ROP). The LDEQ modeled the 
scenarios using across-the-board reductions in the projected VOC and 
NOX point source emission inventories. The State first modeled 
substantial NOX and VOC emission reductions as follows: a 100 
percent reduction in point source VOC emissions alone; a 100 percent 
reduction in point source NOX emissions alone; and a 100 percent 
reduction in both VOC and NOX emissions combined. This reduction 
represents approximately 46 percent of the total projected 
anthropogenic VOC emissions and approximately 57% of the total 
projected NOX emissions. The State also modeled smaller across-
the-board reductions in the projected VOC and NOX point source 
emissions of 25%, 50%, and 75% separately and then combined in order to 
more accurately characterize near-term VOC and NOX control 
scenarios.
    As explained in the EPA's section 182(f) guidance, the EPA believes 
it is appropriate to focus this analysis on the areawide maximum 1-hour 
predicted ozone concentration, since this value is critical for the 
attainment demonstration. For all three episodes, the controlling day 
showed that the domain-wide predicted maximum ozone concentrations are 
lowest when only VOC reductions are modeled. In contrast, further 
NOX reductions increase the domain-wide maximum ozone 
concentrations. Please refer to the EPA's Technical Support Document 
for more detailed information.

Proposed Rulemaking Action

    In this action, the EPA proposes to approve the section 182(f) 
NOX exemption petition submitted by the State of Louisiana for the 
Baton Rouge ozone nonattainment area. If finally approved, the 
exemption would stop the mandatory sanctions clock started on July 1, 
1994, under section 179(a), as a result of the EPA's finding of failure 
to submit the NOX RACT SIP. Pursuant to section 179(a), if within 
18 months after the finding of failure to submit, the State has not 
made a complete submittal or received full approval for a section 
182(f) NOX exemption, the EPA would be required to impose the 
requirement to provide two-to-one NSR offsets. If the State has not 
corrected its deficiency within six months after imposing the offset 
sanction, the EPA would impose a second sanction, on highway funding. 
Any sanction the EPA imposes must remain in place until the EPA 
determines that the State has corrected the deficiency. In addition, 
the finding of failure to submit triggered the 24-month clock for the 
EPA to impose a Federal Implementation Plan as provided under section 
110(c)(1) of the CAA. It should be noted that, if finally approved, the 
section 182(f) exemption would not affect any other sanctions clocks 
that might be running at that time for findings issued for other 
mandatory submittals.
    The EPA believes that all section 182(f) exemptions that are 
approved should be approved only on a contingent basis. As described in 
the EPA's NOX Supplement to the General Preamble (57 FR 55628, 
November 25, 1992), the EPA would rescind a NOX exemption in cases 
where NOX reductions were later found to be beneficial in the 
area's attainment plan. That is, a modeling based exemption would last 
for only as long as the area's modeling continued to demonstrate 
attainment without the additional NOX reductions required by 
section 182(f).
    If the EPA later determines that NOX reductions are beneficial 
based on new photochemical grid modeling in an area initially exempted, 
the area would be removed from exempt status and would be required to 
adopt NOX RACT and the NOX provisions of the NSR, I/M, and 
general conformity rules except to the extent that modeling shows 
NOX reductions to be ``excess reductions.'' In the rulemaking 
action which removes the exempt status, the EPA would specify a 
schedule for States to adopt the NOX RACT and NSR rules and for 
sources to comply with the NOX RACT emission limits.
    In summary, the UAM modeling results for the Baton Rouge 
nonattainment area indicate that additional NOX reductions as well 
as NSR control of any NOX increases related to expected growth 
would not contribute to attainment of the ozone standard by 1999. The 
EPA therefore proposes to approve a NOX exemption for the Baton 
Rouge area. This exemption will remain effective for only as long as 
modeling continues to show that NOX control activities would not 
contribute to attainment in the Baton Rouge nonattainment area.

Request for Public Comments

    The EPA requests comments on all aspects of this proposal. As 
indicated at the outset of this action, the EPA will consider any 
comments received by September 18, 1995.

Regulatory Process

    Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 600 et. seq., the 
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, the 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.
    Approvals of NOX exemption petitions under section 182(f) of 
the CAA do not create any new requirements. Therefore, because the 
Federal approval of the petition does not impose any new requirements, 
the EPA certifies 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 the EPA to base its 
actions concerning SIP's 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)].

Unfunded Mandates

    Under sections 202, 203, and 205 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform 
Act of 1995 (``Unfunded Mandates Act''), signed into law on March 22, 
1995, EPA must assess whether various actions undertaken in association 
with proposed or final regulations 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.
    EPA's proposed action would relieve requirements otherwise imposed 
under the CAA and, hence, would not impose any federal 
intergovernmental mandate, as defined in section 101 of the Unfunded 
Mandates Act. This action also would not impose a mandate that may 
result in estimated costs of $100 million or more to either State, 
local or tribal governments in the aggregate, or to the private sector.

Executive Order 12866

    The Office of Management and Budget has exempted this action from 
review under Executive Order 12866.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

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


[[Page 43104]]

    Dated: August 14, 1995.
Carol M. Browner,
Administrator.

    40 CFR part 52 is proposed to be amended as follows:
    1. The authority citation for part 52 continues to read as follows:

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

Subpart T--Louisiana

    2. Section 52.992 is proposed to be amended by adding paragraph (b) 
to read as follows:


Sec. 52.992  Area-wide nitrogen oxides (NOX) exemptions.

* * * * *
    (b) The LDEQ submitted to the EPA on November 17, 1994, a petition 
requesting that the Baton Rouge ozone nonattainment area be exempted 
from the NOX control requirements of section 182(f) of the CAA. In 
addition, supplemental information was submitted to the EPA by the LDEQ 
on January 26, 1995, June 6, 1995, and June 16, 1995. The Baton Rouge 
nonattainment area consists of East Baton Rouge, West Baton Rouge, 
Point Coupee, Livingston, Iberville, and Ascension parishes. The 
exemption request was based on photochemical grid modeling which shows 
that reductions in NOX would not contribute to attainment in the 
nonattainment area. On (insert date 60 days after date of final 
approval), the EPA approved the State's request for an areawide 
exemption from the following requirements: NOX new source review, 
NOX reasonable available control technology, NOX general 
conformity, NOX inspection and maintenance requirements.

[FR Doc. 95-20526 Filed 8-17-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P