[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 85 (Friday, May 2, 1997)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 24038-24040]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-11483]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 81

[ME3-1-5258a; A-1-FRL-5815-2]


Approval and Promulgation of Redesignation; Maine; Redesignation 
of Millinocket to Attainment for Sulfur Dioxide

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Direct final rule.

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SUMMARY: EPA is approving a redesignation request submitted by the 
State of Maine. This request will redesignate Millinocket, ME from 
nonattainment to attainment for sulfur dioxide (SO2). This 
action is being taken in accordance with the Clean Air Act.

DATES: This action will become effective July 1, 1997, unless notice is 
received by June 2, 1997 that adverse or critical comments will be 
submitted. If the effective date is delayed, timely notice will be 
published in the Federal Register.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to Susan Studlien, Deputy Director, 
Office of Ecosystems Protection, Region I, JFK Federal Building, 
Boston, MA 02203. Copies of the documents relevant to this action are 
available for public inspection during normal business hours, by 
appointment at the Office of Ecosystems Protection, U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, Region I, One Congress Street, 10th floor, Boston, 
MA; Air and Radiation Docket and Information Center, U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, 401 M Street, S.W., (LE-131), Washington, D.C. 
20460; and the Bureau of Air Quality Control, Department of 
Environmental Protection, 71 Hospital Street, Augusta, ME 04333;

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ian D. Cohen, (617) 565-3568.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On April 30, 1984, the Maine Department of 
Environmental Protection (DEP) submitted a request to redesignate the 
area of Millinocket, ME from nonattainment to attainment for 
SO2. The area was designated nonattainment in 1978 based on 
several monitored exceedences of the 24-hour National Ambient Air 
Quality Standard (NAAQS) for SO2.
    Section 107(d)(3)(D) of the Clean Air Act of 1990 (CAA) allows the 
Governor of a state to request the redesignation of an area designated 
nonattainment to attainment.
    Section 107(d)(3)(E) of the CAA lists the requirements which must 
be met before EPA can redesignate an area to attainment.

Background

    In 1978, Millinocket was declared nonattainment for SO2. 
The only significant source of SO2 in the area is a paper 
mill, operated at the time by the Great Northern Paper Company. The 
mill is currently operated by Bowater, Inc. In 1980, a sulfur dioxide 
attainment plan for Millinocket was submitted and approved by EPA (45 
FR 81941).
    After this plan was approved, the area maintained compliance with 
the NAAQS for 12 consecutive quarters, and on December 29, 1983, the 
Governor of the State of Maine submitted a request to redesignate the 
area to attainment. EPA determined that the original request was 
incomplete since the monitored data alone was not sufficient to declare 
the area attainment. Maine DEP resubmitted the request accompanied by a 
modeling study on April 30, 1984. EPA then determined that the request 
was complete on June 19, 1984.
    EPA was unable to process the redesignation request, however, 
because of a pending challenge to the use of ``merged'' stacks to 
comply with the ambient standards. See NRDC v. Thomas, 838 F.2d 1224 
(D.C. Cir. 1988), cert. denied 109 S.Ct. 219 (1988). As part of the 
attainment plan, Great Northern had built a single merged stack for 
three exhaust streams. Litigants in NRDC v. Thomas had challenged 
whether it was proper to consider such a configuration in a modeling 
study. EPA has determined that these air streams were merged for sound 
economic and engineering reasons prior to 1985, and that sulfur 
emissions did not increase as a result of the merged stack. Therefore, 
EPA has determined that the merged stack is not a dispersion technique 
and may be included in the modelling. See 40 CFR 51.100(hh)(2)(ii)(C) 
and NRDC v. Thomas, 838 F.2d at 1255. The publicly available docket 
supporting this action

[[Page 24039]]

includes a technical support document which describes the basis for 
this determination in more detail.
    Monitors in the Millinocket area have shown that since the original 
plan was implemented, the area has never violated the SO2 
standard during the last 16 years.
    Section 107(d)(3)(E) requires the state to submit a maintenance 
plan as described in Section 175A. Maine has agreed to a maintenance 
plan which will protect the air quality in the Millinocket area. The 
plan includes contingency measures to be taken if future violations of 
the NAAQS occur. EPA requires the contingency measures for 
SO2 maintenance plans to include a program to identify 
sources of violations of the SO2 NAAQS and to undertake 
aggressive enforcement activity to address any SIP violations. 57 FR 
13498, #13547 (April 16, 1992). The Bowater mill is the only large 
sulfur source in Millinocket likely to be responsible for sulfur NAAQS 
exceedences, and Maine has an ample enforcement program to assure that 
it complies with the SIP. The plan is part of the publicly available 
docket supporting this action.
    EPA's review of this material indicates that Millinocket should be 
redesignated to attainment for SO2.

Summary of This Action

    This action will redesignate Millinocket, ME from nonattainment for 
SO2 to attainment for SO2. By doing this, the 
entire Air Quality Control Region 109 will be in attainment for 
SO2.
    EPA is publishing this action without prior proposal because the 
Agency views this as a noncontroversial amendment and anticipates no 
adverse comments. However, in a separate document in this Federal 
Register publication, EPA is proposing to approve the SIP revision 
should adverse or critical comments be filed. This action will be 
effective July 1, 1997 unless adverse or critical comments are received 
by June 2, 1997.
    If the EPA receives such comments, this action will be withdrawn 
before the effective date by simultaneously publishing a subsequent 
document that will withdraw the final action. All public comments 
received will then be addressed in a subsequent final rule based on 
this action serving as a proposed rule. The EPA will not institute a 
second comment period on this action. Any parties interested in 
commenting on this action should do so at this time. If no such 
comments are received, the public is advised that this action will be 
effective on July 1, 1997.

Final Action

    EPA is approving Maine's request to redesignate Millinocket to 
attainment for SO2.
    This action has been classified as a Table 3 action for signature 
by the Regional Administrator under the procedures published in the 
Federal Register on January 19, 1989 (54 FR 2214-2225), as revised by a 
July 10, 1995 memorandum from Mary Nichols, Assistant Administrator for 
Air and Radiation. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has 
exempted this regulatory action from review under Executive Order 
12866.

Administrative Requirements

A. Executive Order 12866

    This action has been classified as a Table 3 action for signature 
by the Regional Administrator under the procedures published in the 
Federal Register on January 19, 1989 (54 FR 2214-2225), as revised by a 
July 10, 1995 memorandum from Mary Nichols, Assistant Administrator for 
Air and Radiation. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has 
exempted this regulatory action from E.O. 12866 review.

B. Regulatory Flexibility Act

    Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. Sec. 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. Secs. 603 and 
604. Alternatively, EPA 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 SIP approvals under section 110 and subchapter I, part D of the 
Clean Air Act (Act) do not create any new requirements by 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 any small 
entities affected. Moreover, due to the nature of the Federal-State 
relationship under the Act, preparation of a flexibility analysis would 
constitute Federal inquiry into the economic reasonableness of State 
action. The Act forbids EPA to base its actions concerning SIPs on such 
grounds. See Union Electric Co. v. U.S. EPA, 427 U.S. 246, 255-66 
(1976); 42 U.S.C. 7410(a)(2).

C. Unfunded Mandates

    Under Sections 202 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 
(``Unfunded Mandates Act''), signed into law on March 22, 1995, EPA 
must prepare a budgetary impact statement to accompany any proposed or 
final rule that includes a Federal mandate that may result in estimated 
costs to State, local, or tribal governments in the aggregate; or to 
the private sector, of $100 million or more. Under Section 205, EPA 
must select the most cost-effective and least burdensome alternative 
that achieves the objectives of the rule and is consistent with 
statutory requirements. Section 203 requires EPA to establish a plan 
for informing and advising any small governments that may be 
significantly or uniquely impacted by the rule.
    EPA has determined that the approval action promulgated does not 
include a Federal 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. This Federal action approves pre-
existing requirements under State or local law, and imposes no new 
requirements. Accordingly, no additional costs to State, local, or 
tribal governments, or to the private sector, result from this action.

D. Submission to Congress and the General Accounting Office

    Under 5 U.S.C. 801(a)(1)(A) as added by the Small Business 
Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, EPA submitted a report 
containing this rule and other required information to the U.S. Senate, 
the U.S. House of Representatives and the Comptroller General of the 
General Accounting Office prior to publication of the rule in today's 
Federal Register. This rule is not a ``major rule'' as defined by 5 
U.S.C. 804(2).

E. Petitions for Judicial 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 July 1, 1997. 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 filed, 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).) EPA encourages 
interested parties to comment in response to the proposed rule rather 
than petition for judicial review, unless the objection arises after 
the comment period allowed for in the proposal.

[[Page 24040]]

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 81

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Reporting and 
recordkeeping requirements, Sulfur oxides.

    Dated: March 20, 1997.
John P. DeVillars,
Regional Administrator, Region I.
    Part 81 of chapter I, title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations 
is amended as follows:

PART 81--[AMENDED]

    1. The authority for part 81 continues to read as follows:

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

Subpart C--Maine

    2. Section 81.320 is amended by revising the table for 
SO2 to read as follows:


Sec. 81.320  Maine.

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                                                                           SO2                                                                          
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                                         Does not meet primary       Does not meet secondary                                     Better than national   
           Designated area                     standards                    standards              Cannot be  classified               standard         
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AQCR 110............................  ...........................  ...........................  ...........................  X                          
AQCR 107............................  ...........................  ...........................  ...........................  X                          
AQCR 109............................  ...........................  ...........................  ...........................  X                          
AQCR 108-Madawaska..................  ...........................  ...........................  X..........................  ...........................
    Rest of region..................  ...........................  ...........................  ...........................  X                          
AQCR 111............................  ...........................  ...........................  ...........................  X                          
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[FR Doc. 97-11483 Filed 5-1-97; 8:45 am]
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