[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 121 (Thursday, June 22, 2000)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 38740-38744]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-15288]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 62

[AZ 025-MWIa; FRL-6717-7a]


Approval and Promulgation of State Plans for Designated 
Facilities and Pollutants; Arizona; Control of Emissions From Existing 
Hospital/Medical/Infectious Waste Incinerators

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Direct final rule.

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SUMMARY: This action approves the Arizona State hospital/medical/
infectious waste incinerator (HMIWI) 111(d)/129 plan (the ``plan'') 
submitted on November 16, 1999 by the Arizona Department of 
Environmental Quality (ADEQ). The plan was submitted to fulfill 
requirements of the Clean Air Act (CAA). The plan establishes emission 
limitations and other requirements for existing HMIWIs and provides for 
the implementation and enforcement of those limitations and 
requirements.

[[Page 38741]]


DATES: This final rule is effective August 21, 2000 unless by July 24, 
2000 adverse or critical comments are received. If adverse comment is 
received, EPA will publish a timely withdrawal of the direct final rule 
in the Federal Register and inform the public that the rule will not 
take effect.

ADDRESSES: Comments must be submitted to Andrew Steckel at the Region 
IX office listed below. Copies of the submitted Plan and EPA's 
evaluation report are available for public inspection at EPA's Region 
IX office during normal business hours. Copies of the submitted Plan 
are available for inspection at the following locations:

Rulemaking Office (AIR-4), Air Division, U.S. Environmental Protection 
Agency, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105
Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, 3033 North Central, 
Phoenix, Arizona 85012

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Patricia A. Bowlin, (AIR-4), Air 
Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne 
Street, San Francisco, CA 94105-3901, Telephone: (415) 744-1188.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This document is divided into Sections I 
through V and answers the questions posed below.

I. General Provisions

What action is EPA approving?
What is a State 111(d)/129 plan?
What pollutants will this action control?
What are the expected environmental and public health benefits from 
controlling HMIWI emissions?

II. Federal Requirements the Arizona HMIWI 111(d)/129 Plan Must Meet 
for Approval

What general EPA requirements must Arizona meet to receive approval 
of its County 111(d)/129 plan?
What does the Arizona plan contain?
Does the Arizona State plan meet all EPA requirements for approval?

III. Requirements for Affected HMIWI Owners/Operators

How do I determine if my HMIWI is subject to the Arizona 111(d)/129 
plan?
What general requirements must I meet under the Arizona 111(d)/129 
plan?
What emissions limits must I meet, and in what time frame?
Are there any operational requirements for my HMIWI and emissions 
control system?
What are the testing, monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting 
requirements for my HMIWI?
Is there a requirement for obtaining a Title V permit?

IV. Final EPA Action

V. Administrative Requirements

I. General Provisions

Q. What Action Is EPA Approving?

    A. EPA is approving the Arizona 111(d)/129 plan (the ``plan'') for 
the control of air pollutant emissions from hospital/medical/infectious 
waste incinerators (HMIWIs). The plan was submitted to EPA by the 
Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) on November 16, 
1999. The plan contains requirements applicable to HMIWIs located in 
the jurisdictions of ADEQ and the Maricopa County Environmental 
Services Department (MCESD). EPA is publishing this approval action 
without prior proposal because we view this as a noncontroversial 
action and anticipate no adverse comments.

Q. What Is a State 111(d)/129 Plan?

    A. Section 111(d) of the Clean Air Act (CAA) requires that 
``designated'' pollutants, controlled under standards of performance 
for new stationary sources by section 111(b) of the CAA, must also be 
controlled at existing sources in the same source category to a level 
stipulated in an emission guidelines (EG) document. Section 129 of the 
CAA specifically addresses solid waste incineration and emissions 
controls based on what is commonly referred to as maximum achievable 
control technology (MACT). Section 129 requires EPA to promulgate a 
MACT based emission guideline (EG) document and then requires states to 
develop 111(d)/129 plans that implement and enforce the EG 
requirements. The HMIWI EG at 40 CFR part 60, subpart Ce, establish the 
MACT requirements under the authority of both sections 111(d) and 129 
of the CAA. These requirements must be incorporated into a State 
111(d)/129 plan that is ``at least as protective'' as the EG and is 
Federally enforceable upon approval by EPA.
    The procedures for adoption and submittal of State 111(d)/129 plans 
are codified in 40 CFR part 60, subpart B. Additional information on 
the submittal of State plans is provided in the EPA document, 
``Hospital/Medical/Infectious Waste Incinerator Emission Guidelines: 
Summary of the Requirements for Section 111(d)/129 State Plan, EPA-456/
R-97-007, November, 1997.''

Q. What Pollutant(s) Will This Action Control?

    A. The September 15, 1997 promulgated EG, Subpart Ce, are 
applicable to all existing HMIWIs (i.e., the designated facilities). 
HMIWIs emit metals (cadmium, lead, mercury, particulate matter, and 
opacity), acid gases (hydrogen chloride and sulphur dioxide), organics 
(dioxins/furans), carbon monoxide, and nitrogen oxides. This action 
establishes emission limitations for each of these pollutants.

Q. What Are the Expected Environmental and Public Health Benefits From 
Controlling HMIWI Emissions?

    A. HMIWI emissions can have adverse effects on both public health 
and the environment. Dioxin, lead, and mercury can bioaccumulate in the 
environment. Exposure to dioxins/furans has been linked to reproductive 
and developmental effects, changes in hormone level, and chloracne. 
Respiratory and other effects are associated with exposure to 
particulate matter, sulfur dioxide, cadmium, hydrogen chloride, and 
mercury. Health effects associated with exposure to cadmium and lead 
include probable carcinogenic effects. Acid gases contribute to the 
acid rain that lowers the pH of surface waters and watersheds, harms 
forests, and damages buildings.

II. Federal Requirements the Arizona HMIWI 111(d)/129 Plan Must 
Meet for Approval

Q. What General Requirements Must Arizona Meet To Receive Approval of 
Its County 111(d)/129 Plan?

    A. The plan must meet the requirements of both 40 CFR part 60, 
subparts B and Ce. Subpart B specifies detailed procedures for the 
adoption and submittal of State plans for designated pollutants and 
facilities. The EG, subpart Ce, and the related new source performance 
standards (NSPS), subpart Ec, contain the requirements for the control 
of designated pollutants, as listed above, in accordance with sections 
111(d) and 129 of the CAA. In general, the applicable provisions of 
subpart Ec relate to compliance and performance testing, monitoring, 
reporting, and recordkeeping. More specifically, the Arizona plan must 
meet the requirements of (1) 40 CFR part 60, subpart Ce, sections 
60.30e through 60.39c, and the related subpart Ec provisions; and (2) 
40 CFR part 60, subpart B, sections 60.23 through 26.

Q. What Does the Arizona Plan Contain?

    A. Consistent with the requirements of subparts B, Ce and Ec, the 
Arizona plan contains the following elements:
    1. A demonstration of the ADEQ's and MCESD's legal authority to 
implement

[[Page 38742]]

the plan, in their respective jurisdictions, under Arizona law;
    2. Identification of the plan's enforceable mechanisms, Arizona 
Administrative Code (AAC) R18-2-732 (Standards of Performance for 
Existing Hospital/Medical/Infectious Waste Incinerators), and Maricopa 
County Rule 317 (Hospital/Medical/Infectious Waste Incinerators);
    3. Source and emission inventories, as required;
    4. Emission limitation requirements that are no less stringent than 
those in Subpart Ce;
    5. A source compliance schedule, including increments of progress, 
as required;
    6. Source testing, monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting 
requirements;
    7. HMIWI operator training and qualification requirements;
    8. Requirements for development of a Waste Management Plan;
    9. Records of the public hearing on the State plan;
    10. Provision for State submittal to EPA of annual reports on 
progress in plan enforcement; and
    11. A Title V permit application due date.
    The State regulation, AAC R18-2-732, was adopted by the Governor's 
Regulatory Review Council on August 3, 1999 and became effective on 
August 10, 1999. The Maricopa County regulation, Rule 317, was adopted 
by MCESD on April 7, 1999 and became effective on April 7, 1999. Both 
regulations incorporate by reference (IBR) applicable subpart Ec 
requirements.

Q. Does the Arizona State Plan Meet All EPA Requirements for Approval?

    A. Yes. The ADEQ has submitted a plan that conforms to all EPA 
Subpart B and Ce requirements. Each of the above listed plan elements 
is approvable. Details regarding the approvability of the plan elements 
are included in the technical support document (TSD) associated with 
this action. A copy of the TSD is available, upon request, from the EPA 
Regional Office listed in the ADDRESSES section of this document.

III. Requirements Affected HMIWI Owners/Operators

Q. How Do I Determine if My HMIWI Is Subject to the Arizona 111(d)/129 
Plan?

    A. The Arizona plan only applies to HMIWIs under the jurisdictions 
of ADEQ and MCSED.\1\ If construction commenced on your HMIWI on or 
before June 20, 1996, your HMIWI is classified as an existing or 
designated facility that may be subject to the plan. The plan contains 
no lower applicability threshold based on incinerator capacity. 
However, there are designated facility exemptions. Those exemptions 
include incinerators that burn only pathological, low level 
radioactive, and/or chemotherapeutic waste; co-fired combustors; 
incinerators permitted under section 3005 of the Solid Waste Disposal 
Act; municipal waste combustors (MWC) subject to EPA's municipal waste 
combustor rule; pyrolysis units; and cement kilns. The provisions 
regarding applicability and exemptions are found in section A of AAC 
R18-2-732 and in section 102 of Maricopa Rule 317.
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    \1\ The submitted Arizona HMIWI plan does not apply to HMIWIs 
located in the counties of Pima and Pinal. The Pima County 
Department of Environmental Quality and the Pinal County Air Quality 
Control District intend to adopt regulations to implement the EG 
later this year. In the future, ADEQ will submit these regulations 
to EPA as amendments to the Arizona HMIWI plan.
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Q. What General Requirements Must I Meet Under the Arizona 111(d)/129 
Plan?

    A. In general, the State and Maricopa County HMIWI regulations 
establish the following requirements:
     Emission limitations for particulate matter (PM), opacity, 
carbon monoxide (CO), dioxins/furans (CDD/CDF), hydrogen chloride 
(HCl), sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxides 
(NOX), lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), and mercury (Hg)
     Compliance and performance testing
     Operating parameter monitoring
     Operator training and qualification
     Development of a waste management plan
     Source testing, recordkeeping and reporting
     A Title V permit
    A full and comprehensive statement of the above requirements is 
incorporated in the AAC R18-2-732 and Maricopa Rule 317.

Q. What Emissions Limits Must I Meet, and in What Time Frame?

    A. You must install an emissions control system capable of meeting 
the maximum available control technology (MACT) emission limitations 
for the pollutants identified above. The emissions limitations are 
stipulated in section E of AAC R18-2-732 and in sections 302 and 303 of 
Maricopa Rule 317. All designated facilities must be in compliance with 
the emission limitations on or before the effective date of the 
relevant regulation.

Q. Are There Any Operational Requirements for My HMIWI and Emissions 
Control System?

    A. Yes, there are operational requirements. In summary, the 
operational requirements relate to: (1) The HMIWI and air pollution 
control devices (APCD) operating within certain established parameter 
limits, determined during the initial performance test; (2) the use of 
a trained and qualified HMIWI operator; and (3) the completion of an 
annual update of operation and maintenance information, and its review 
by the HMIWI operators.
    Failure to operate the HMIWI or APCD within the established 
operating parameter limits constitutes an emissions violation for the 
controlled air pollutants. However, as a HMIWI owner/operator, you are 
provided an opportunity to establish revised operating limits, and 
demonstrate that your facility is meeting the required emission 
limitations, providing a repeat performance test is conducted in a 
timely manner.
    A fully trained and qualified operator must be available at your 
facility during the operation of the HMIWI, or the operator must be 
readily available to the facility within one hour. In order to be 
classified as a qualified operator, you must complete an appropriate 
HMIWI operator training course that meets the Subpart Ec criteria 
referenced in AAC R18-2-732 at section F and in Maricopa Rule 317 at 
sections 301 and 306. The Arizona plan requires compliance with this 
training requirement within one year of EPA approval of the State Plan.
    Also, as a HMIWI owner/operator, you are required to develop and 
update annually site-specific information regarding your facilities' 
operations. Each of your HMIWI operators is required on an annual basis 
to review the updated operational information. The ADEQ and MCESD 
regulations IBR the applicable operational requirements of the EG and 
the related NSPS. See subpart Ec, sections 60.53c, 60.56c, and 60.58c, 
respectively for details regarding these operational requirements.

Q. What Are the Testing, Monitoring, Recordkeeping, and Reporting 
Requirements for My HMIWI?

    A. Testing, monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements 
are summarized below:
    You are required to conduct an initial stack test to determine 
compliance with the emission limitations for PM, opacity, CO, CDD/CDF, 
HCl, Pb, Cd, and Hg. As noted above, operating parameter limits are 
monitored and established during the initial performance test.

[[Page 38743]]

Monitored HMIWI operating parameters include, for example, waste charge 
rate, secondary chamber and bypass stack temperatures. APCD operating 
parameters include, for example, CDD/CDF and Hg sorbent (e.g., carbon) 
flow rate, hydrogen chloride sorbent (e.g., lime) flow rate, PM control 
device inlet temperature, pressure drop across the control system, and 
liquid flow rate, including pH. After the initial stack test, 
compliance testing is then required annually to determine compliance 
with the emission limitations for PM, CO, and HCl.
    Recordkeeping and reporting are required in order to document: (1) 
The results of the initial and annual performance tests, (2) monitoring 
of site-specific operating parameters, (3) compliance with the operator 
training and qualification requirements, and (4) development of the 
waste management plan. Records must be maintained for at least five 
years.
    The ADEQ and MCESD regulations IBR the applicable testing, 
monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements of the EG and 
related NSPS. See subpart Ec, sections 60.56c, 60.57c, and 60.58c, 
respectively for details regarding these requirements.

Q. Is There a Requirement for Obtaining a Title V Permit?

    A. Yes, affected facilities are required to operate under a Title V 
permit no later than September 15, 2000. This is required under section 
D of AAC R18-2-732 and section 401 of Maricopa Rule 317.

IV. Final EPA Action

    Based upon the rationale discussed above and in further detail in 
the TSD associated with this action, EPA is approving the Arizona 
111(d)/129 plan for the control of HMIWI emissions from designated 
facilities.\2\ As provided by 40 CFR 60.28(c), any revisions to the 
Arizona plan or associated regulations will not be considered part of 
the applicable plan until submitted by the ADEQ in accordance with 40 
CFR 60.28(a) or (b), as applicable, and until approved by EPA in 
accordance with 40 CFR part 60, subpart B.
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    \2\ The State did not submit evidence of authority to regulate 
existing HMIWIs in Indian Country; therefore, EPA is not approving 
this Plan as it relates to those sources.
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    EPA is publishing this action without prior proposal because the 
Agency views this as a noncontroversial amendment and anticipates no 
adverse comments. However, in the proposed rules section of this 
Federal Register publication, EPA is publishing a separate document 
that will serve as the proposal to approve the 111(d) plan should 
relevant adverse or critical comments be filed. This rule will be 
effective August 21, 2000 without further notice unless the Agency 
receives relevant adverse comments by July 24, 2000. If EPA receives 
such comments, then EPA will publish a document withdrawing the final 
rule and informing the public that the rule will not take effect. All 
public comments received will then be addressed in a subsequent final 
rule based on the proposed rule. The EPA will not institute a second 
comment period on this rule. Parties interested in commenting on this 
rule should do so at this time. If no such comments are received, the 
public is advised that this rule will be effective on August 21, 2000 
and no further action will be taken on the proposed rule.

V. Administrative Requirements

A. General Requirements

    Under Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993), this 
action is not a ``significant regulatory action'' and therefore is not 
subject to review by the Office of Management and Budget. This action 
merely approves state law as meeting federal requirements and imposes 
no additional requirements beyond those imposed by state law. 
Accordingly, the Administrator certifies that this rule will not have a 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities 
under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.). Because 
this rule approves pre-existing requirements under state law and does 
not impose any additional enforceable duty beyond that required by 
state law, it does not contain any unfunded mandate or significantly or 
uniquely affect small governments, as described in the Unfunded 
Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (Public Law 104-4). For the same reason, 
this rule also does not significantly or uniquely affect the 
communities of tribal governments, as specified by Executive Order 
13084 (63 FR 27655, May 10, 1998). This rule will not have substantial 
direct effects on the States, on the relationship between the national 
government and the States, or on the distribution of power and 
responsibilities among the various levels of government, as specified 
in Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999), because it 
merely approves a state rule implementing a federal standard and does 
not alter the relationship or the distribution of power and 
responsibilities established in the Clean Air Act. This rule also is 
not subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997), 
because it is not economically significant. In reviewing 111(d)/129 
plan submissions, EPA's role is to approve state choices, provided that 
they meet the criteria of the Clean Air Act. In this context, in the 
absence of a prior existing requirement for the State to use voluntary 
consensus standards (VCS), EPA has no authority to disapprove a 111(d)/
129 plan submission for failure to use VCS. It would thus be 
inconsistent with applicable law for EPA, when it reviews a 111(d)/129 
plan submission, to use VCS in place of a 111(d)/129 plan submission 
that otherwise satisfies the provisions of the Clean Air Act. Thus, the 
requirements of section 12(d) of the National Technology Transfer and 
Advancement Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272 note) do not apply. As required 
by section 3 of Executive Order 12988 (61 FR 4729, February 7, 1996), 
in issuing this rule, EPA has taken the necessary steps to eliminate 
drafting errors and ambiguity, minimize potential litigation, and 
provide a clear legal standard for affected conduct. EPA has complied 
with Executive Order 12630 (53 FR 8859, March 15, 1988) by examining 
the takings implications of the rule in accordance with the ``Attorney 
General's Supplemental Guidelines for the Evaluation of Risk and 
Avoidance of Unanticipated Takings'' issued under the executive order. 
This rule does not impose an information collection burden under the 
provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et 
seq.).

B. Submission to Congress and the Comptroller General

    The Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 801 et seq., as added by the 
Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, generally 
provides that before a rule may take effect, the agency promulgating 
the rule must submit a rule report, which includes a copy of the rule, 
to each House of the Congress and to the Comptroller General of the 
United States. EPA will submit 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 United States prior 
to publication of the rule in the Federal Register. This rule is not a 
``major rule'' as defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2).

C. 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 August 21, 2000. Filing a 
petition for reconsideration by the Administrator of this final rule 
does

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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).)

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 62

    Environmental protection, Administrative practice and procedure, 
Air pollution control, Intergovernmental relations, Hospital/medical/
infectious waste incinerators, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements.

    Dated: June 5, 2000
Laura Yoshii,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region IX.

    40 CFR Part 62, Subpart D, is amended as follows:

PART 62--[AMENDED]

    1. The authority citation for part 62 continues to read as follows:

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

Subpart D--Arizona

    2. A new center heading, and Secs. 62.630, 62.631, and 62.632, are 
added to Subpart D to read as follows:

Emissions From Existing Hospital/Medical/Infectious Waste 
Incinerators


Sec. 62.630  Identification of plan.

    The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality submitted on 
November 16, 1999 the State of Arizona's section 111(d)/129 Plan for 
Existing Hospital/Medical/Infectious Waste Incinerators (HMIWI). The 
submitted plan does not apply to sources located in Pima and Pinal 
counties.


Sec. 62.631  Identification of sources.

    The plan applies to existing HMIWI for which construction was 
commenced on or before June 20, 1996, as described in 40 CFR part 60, 
subpart Ce.


Sec. 62.632  Effective date.

    The effective date of EPA approval of the plan is August 21, 2000.
[FR Doc. 00-15288 Filed 6-21-00; 8:45 am]
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