[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 248 (Tuesday, December 28, 2004)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 77645-77647]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-28195]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[RME R03-OAR-2004-DC-0002; FRL-7855-1]


Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; 
District of Columbia; Approval of Minor Clarifications to Municipal 
Regulations

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Direct final rule.

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SUMMARY: EPA is taking direct final action to approve revisions to the 
District of Columbia State Implementation Plan (SIP). The revisions 
include minor changes to clarify that the allowable emission rates for 
particulates and nitrogen oxides (NOX) are expressed in 
pounds of pollutant per million BTUs (lbs/MMBTUs) of heat input in 
District of Columbia Municipal Regulations (DCMRs). This action is 
being taken in accordance with the Clean Air Act (CAA).

DATES: This rule is effective on February 28, 2005 without further 
notice, unless EPA receives adverse written comment by January 27, 
2005. If EPA receives such comments, it 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: Submit your comments, identified by Regional Material in 
EDocket (RME) ID Number R03-OAR-2004-DC-0002 by one of the following 
methods:
    A. Federal eRulemaking Portal:
http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the on-line instructions for 
submitting comments.
    B. Agency Web site: http://www.docket.epa.gov/rmepub/ RME, EPA's 
electronic public docket and comment system, is EPA's preferred method 
for receiving comments. Follow the on-line instructions for submitting 
comments.
    C. E-mail: [email protected].
    D. Mail: R03-OAR-2004-DC-0002, Makeba Morris, Chief, Air Quality 
Planning Branch, Mailcode 3AP21, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 
Region III, 1650 Arch Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103.
    E. Hand Delivery: At the previously-listed EPA Region III address. 
Such deliveries are only accepted during the Docket's normal hours of 
operation, and special arrangements should be made for deliveries of 
boxed information.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to RME ID No. R03-OAR-2004-DC-
0002. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included in 
the public docket without change, and may be made available online at 
http://www.docket.epa.gov/rmepub/, including any personal information 
provided, unless the comment includes information claimed to be 
Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose 
disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit information that you 
consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through RME, regulations.gov 
or e-mail. The EPA RME and the Federal regulations.gov Web sites are an 
``anonymous access'' system, which means EPA will not know your 
identity or contact information unless you provide it in the body of 
your comment. If you send an e-mail comment directly to EPA without 
going through RME or regulations.gov, your e-mail address will be 
automatically captured and included as part of the comment that is 
placed in the public docket and made available on the Internet. If you 
submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you include your name 
and other contact information in the body of your comment and with any 
disk or CD-ROM you submit. If EPA cannot read your comment due to 
technical difficulties and cannot contact you for clarification, EPA 
may not be able to consider your comment. Electronic files should avoid 
the use of special characters, any form of encryption, and be free of 
any defects or viruses.
    Docket: All documents in the electronic docket are listed in the 
RME index at http://www.docket.epa.gov/rmepub/. Although listed in the 
index, some information is not publicly available, i.e., CBI or other 
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other 
material, such as copyrighted material, is not placed on the Internet 
and will be publicly available only in hard copy form. Publicly 
available docket materials are available either electronically in RME 
or in hard copy during normal business hours at the Air Protection 
Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region III, 1650 Arch 
Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103. Copies of the State submittal 
are available at the District of Columbia Department of Public Health, 
Air Quality Division, 51 N Street, NE., Washington, DC 20002.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Linda Miller, (215) 814-2068, or by e-
mail at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    The District of Columbia submitted SIP revisions on April 16, 2004 
pertaining to changes necessary to meet the more stringent requirements 
of section 182(d) of the CAA and to make certain clarifications. This 
action pertains to changes made to previously SIP-approved Sections 
600.1 and 805.5 of Title 20 of the DCMRs to clarify that the allowable 
emission rates for particulates and NOX are expressed in 
pounds of pollutant per million BTUs (lbs/MMBTUs).

[[Page 77646]]

II. Summary of SIP Revision

    The April 16, 2004 SIP submittal requested approval of revisions to 
portions of the regulations in the 20 DCMR Chapters 6 and 8. The 
federally approved SIP version of these DCMRs correctly prescribes 
allowable particulate and NOX emission rates in pounds of 
pollutant per million BTUs of heat input. However, some confusion has 
arisen from how these allowable emission rates actually appear in the 
current SIP version of the regulations. For example, one such limit for 
particulate emissions is expressed as follows: thirteen hundredths 
(0.13) pounds per million BTU of heat input. While not incorrect, this 
has led to the allowable emission rate being abbreviated and then 
interpreted as 0.13 ppm, which is parts per million, rather than as 
0.13lbs/MMBTUs. The revised language clarifies all of the allowable 
emission rates for particulates and NOX, respectively, in 20 
DCMR Sections 600.1 and 805.5 to avoid this confusion. For example, the 
clarified version of the previously referenced particulate emission 
limit now reads as follows: thirteen hundredths pounds (0.13 lb) per 
million BTU of heat input. By expressing the allowable emission limits 
in this fashion, they will properly be abbreviated and correctly 
interpreted in lbs/MMBTUs. These revisions to clarify 20 DCMR Chapters 
6 and 8 do not affect the stringency of these previously SIP-approved 
regulations.

III. Final Action

    EPA is approving revisions to Sections 600.1 and 805.5 of 20 DCMR 
to clarify how the allowable emission rates for particulates and 
NOX are expressed. EPA is publishing this rule without prior 
proposal because the Agency views this as a noncontroversial amendment 
and anticipates no adverse comment. However, in the ``Proposed Rules'' 
section of today's Federal Register, EPA is publishing a separate 
document that will serve as the proposal to approve the SIP revision if 
adverse comments are filed. This rule will be effective on February 28, 
2005 without further notice unless EPA receives adverse comment by 
January 27, 2005. If EPA receives adverse comment, EPA will publish a 
timely withdrawal in the Federal Register informing the public that the 
rule will not take effect. EPA will address all public comments in a 
subsequent final rule based on the proposed rule. EPA will not 
institute a second comment period on this action. Any parties 
interested in commenting must do so at this time.

IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

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. For this 
reason, this action is also not subject to Executive Order 13211, 
``Actions Concerning Regulations That Significantly Affect Energy 
Supply, Distribution, or Use'' (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001). 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). This rule also does not 
have tribal implications because it will not have a substantial direct 
effect on one or more Indian tribes, on the relationship between the 
Federal Government and Indian tribes, or on the distribution of power 
and responsibilities between the Federal Government and Indian tribes, 
as specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000). 
This action also does not have Federalism implications because it does 
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). 
This action 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 ``Protection of Children 
from Environmental Health Risks and Safety Risks'' (62 FR 19885, April 
23, 1997), because it is not economically significant.
    In reviewing SIP 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 SIP submission for failure to use VCS. It would thus be 
inconsistent with applicable law for EPA, when it reviews a SIP 
submission, to use VCS in place of a SIP 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. 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 February 28, 2005. 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 to approve minor clarifications to the 
allowable emissions rates for particulates and NOX such that 
they are clearly expressed in pounds of pollutant per million BTUs 
(lbs/MMBTUs) may not be challenged later in proceedings to enforce its 
requirements. (See section 307(b)(2).)

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

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


[[Page 77647]]


    Dated: December 14, 2004.
Donald S. Welsh,
Regional Administrator, Region III.

0
40 CFR part 52 is amended as follows:

PART 52--[AMENDED]

0
1. The authority citation for part 52 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.

Subpart J--District of Columbia

0
2. In Section 52.470, the table in paragraph (c) is amended by revising 
the entry for Chapter 6, Section 600 and adding an entry for Chapter 8, 
Section 805 after the existing entry for Chapter 8, Section 805 to read 
as follows:


Sec.  52.470  Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (c) EPA-approved regulations.

                                  EPA-Approved District of Columbia Regulations
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                                                               State                              Additional
         State citation               Title/subject       effective date   EPA approval date      explanation
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
                                                  * * * * * * *
--------------------------------
                                             Chapter 6 Particulates
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Section 600....................  Fuel-Burning                    4/16/04  12/28/04 [Insert    Revision to
                                  Particulate Emissions.                   page number where   paragraph 600.1.
                                                                           the document
                                                                           begins].
--------------------------------
 
                                                  * * * * * * *
--------------------------------
                                 Chapter 8 Asbestos, Sulfur and Nitrogen Oxides
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
                                                  * * * * * * *
Section 805....................  Nitrogen Oxides........         4/16/04  12/28/04 [Insert    Revision to
                                                                           page number where   paragraph
                                                                           the document        805.5(b) and (c)
                                                                           begins].
 
                                                  * * * * * * *
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[FR Doc. 04-28195 Filed 12-27-04; 8:45 am]
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