[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 24 (Monday, February 7, 2005)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 6388-6390]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-2304]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 63

[OAR-2003-0194; FRL-7869-6]
RIN 2060-AL89


National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for 
Leather Finishing Operations

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rule; amendments.

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SUMMARY: On February 27, 2002, the EPA issued national emission 
standards for hazardous air pollutants (NESHAP) for leather finishing 
operations, which were issued under section 112 of the Clean Air Act 
(CAA). This action would amend the standards to clarify the frequency 
for categorizing leather product process types, modify the definition 
of ``specialty leather,'' add a definition for ``vacuum mulling,'' and 
add an alternative procedure for determining the actual monthly solvent 
loss from an affected source.
    In the Rules and Regulations section of this Federal Register, we 
are taking direct final action on the proposed amendments because we 
view the amendments as noncontroversial and anticipate no adverse 
comments. We have explained our reasons for the amendments in the 
direct final rule. If we receive no significant adverse comments, we 
will take no further action on the proposed amendments. If we receive 
significant adverse comments, we will withdraw only those provisions on 
which we received significant adverse comments. We will publish a 
timely withdrawal in the Federal Register indicating which provisions 
will become effective and which provisions are being withdrawn. If part 
or all of the direct final rule in the Rules and Regulations section of 
today's Federal Register is withdrawn, all comments pertaining to those 
provisions will be addressed in a subsequent final rule based on the 
proposed amendments. We will not institute a second comment period on 
the subsequent final action. Any parties interested in commenting must 
do so at this time.

DATES: Comments. Written comments must be received on or before 
February 17, 2005 unless a hearing is requested by February 14, 2005. 
If a hearing is requested, written comments must be received on or 
before February 22, 2005.
    Public Hearing. If anyone contacts the EPA requesting to speak at a 
public hearing, a public hearing will be held on February 17, 2005.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. OAR-2003-
0194, by one of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the on-line instructions for submitting comments.
     Agency Web site: http://www.epa.gov/edocket. EDOCKET, 
EPA's electronic public docket and comment system, is EPA's preferred 
method for receiving comments. Follow the on-line instructions for 
submitting comments.
     E-mail: [email protected].
     Fax: (202) 566-1741.
     Mail: EPA Docket Center, EPA, Mailcode: 6102T, 1200 
Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460. Please include a 
duplicate copy, if possible.
     Hand Delivery: Air and Radiation Docket, EPA, 1301 
Constitution Avenue, NW., Room B-108, Washington, DC 20460. Such 
deliveries are only accepted during the Docket's normal hours of 
operation, and special arrangements should be made for deliveries of 
boxed information.

    We request that a separate copy also be sent to the contact person 
listed below (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT).
    Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. OAR-2003-0194. 
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.epa.gov/edocket, 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 EDOCKET, regulations.gov, or e-
mail. The EPA EDOCKET and the federal regulations.gov Web sites are 
``anonymous access'' systems, 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 EDOCKET 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. For additional information about EPA's public 
docket visit EDOCKET on-line or see the Federal Register of May 31, 
2002 (67 FR 38102).
    Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the EDOCKET index 
at http://www.epa.gov/edocket. 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 EDOCKET or in hard 
copy at the Air and Radiation Docket, EPA/DC, EPA West, Room B102, 1301 
Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The Public Reading Room is open 
from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal 
holidays. The telephone number for the Public Reading Room is (202) 
566-1744, and the telephone number for the Air Docket is (202) 566-
1742.
    Public Hearing. If a public hearing is held, it will be held at 10 
a.m. at the EPA's Environmental Research Center Auditorium, Research 
Triangle Park, North Carolina or at an alternate site nearby.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. William Schrock, Organic Chemicals 
Group, Emission Standards Division (C504-04), Office of Air Quality 
Planning and Standards, U.S. EPA, Research Triangle Park, North 
Carolina 27711; telephone number (919) 541-5032; facsimile number (919) 
541-3470;

[[Page 6389]]

electronic mail (email) address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Regulated Entities. Categories and entities 
potentially regulated by this action include:

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                  Category                     NAICS* code              Examples of regulated entities
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Industry...................................            3161  Leather finishing operations.
                                                      31611  Leather finishing operations.
                                                     316110  Leather finishing operations.
Federal government.........................  ..............  Not affected
State/local/tribal government..............  ..............  Not affected.
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* North American Industrial Classification System.

    This table is not intended to be exhaustive, but rather provides a 
guide for readers regarding entities likely to be regulated by this 
action. To determine whether your facility is regulated by this action, 
you should carefully examine the applicability criteria in Sec.  
63.5285 of the national emission standards. If you have any questions 
regarding the applicability of this action to a particular entity, 
consult the person listed in the preceding FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT section.
    What should I consider as I prepare my comments for EPA? Submitting 
CBI. Do not submit this information to EPA through EDOCKET, 
regulations.gov or e-mail. Clearly mark the part or all of the 
information that you claim to be CBI. For CBI information in a disk or 
CD ROM that you mail to EPA, mark the outside of the disk or CD ROM as 
CBI and then identify electronically within the disk or CD ROM the 
specific information that is claimed as CBI. In addition to one 
complete version of the comment that includes information claimed as 
CBI, a copy of the comment that does not contain the information 
claimed as CBI must be submitted for inclusion in the public docket. 
Information so marked will not be disclosed except in accordance with 
procedures set forth in 40 CFR part 2.
    Tips for Preparing Your Comments. When submitting comments, 
remember to:
     Identify the rulemaking by docket number and other 
identifying information (subject heading, Federal Register date and 
page number).
     Follow directions--The agency may ask you to respond to 
specific questions or organize comments by referencing a Code of 
Federal Regulations (CFR) part or section number.
     Explain why you agree or disagree; suggest alternatives 
and substitute language for your requested changes.
     Describe any assumptions and provide any technical 
information and/or data that you used.
     If you estimate potential costs or burdens, explain how 
you arrived at your estimate in sufficient detail to allow for it to be 
reproduced.
     Provide specific examples to illustrate your concerns, and 
suggest alternatives.
     Explain your views as clearly as possible, avoiding the 
use of profanity or personal threats.
     Make sure to submit your comments by the comment period 
deadline identified.
    Public Hearing. Persons interested in presenting oral testimony or 
inquiring as to whether a hearing is to be held should contact Mr. 
William Schrock, Organic Chemicals Group, Emission Standards Division 
(Mail Code C504-04), U.S. EPA, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina 
27711, telephone number (919) 541-5032, electronic mail address 
[email protected]., at least 2 days in advance of the potential date 
of the public hearing. Persons interested in attending the public 
hearing must also call Mr. William Schrock to verify the time, date, 
and location of the hearing. The public hearing will provide interested 
parties the opportunity to present data, views, or arguments concerning 
these proposed emission standards.
    Worldwide Web (WWW). In addition to being available in the docket, 
an electronic copy of today's proposal will also be available through 
the WWW. Following the Administrator's signature, a copy of this action 
will be posted on EPA's Technology Transfer Network (TTN) policy and 
guidance page for newly proposed or promulgated rules http://www.epa.gov/ttn/oarpg. The TTN at EPA's Web site provides information 
and technology exchange in various areas of air pollution control. If 
more information regarding the TTN is needed, call the TTN HELP line at 
(919) 541-5384.
    Direct Final Rule. A direct final rule identical to the proposal is 
published in the Rules and Regulations section of today's Federal 
Register. If we receive any adverse comment pertaining to the 
amendments in the proposal, we will publish a timely notice in the 
Federal Register informing the public that the amendments are being 
withdrawn due to adverse comment. We will address all public comments 
concerning the withdrawn amendments in a subsequent final rule. If no 
relevant adverse comments are received, no further action will be taken 
on the proposal, and the direct final rule will become effective as 
provided in that action.
    The regulatory text for the proposal is identical to that for the 
direct final rule published in the Rules and Regulations section of 
today's Federal Register. For further supplementary information, the 
detailed rationale for the proposal and the regulatory revisions, see 
the direct final rule published in a separate part of this Federal 
Register.

Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    For a complete discussion of all of the administrative requirements 
applicable to this action, see the direct final rule in the Rules and 
Regulations section of today's Federal Register.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    The Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), as amended by the Small 
Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996 (SBREFA), 5 U.S.C. 
601 et seq., generally requires an agency to prepare a regulatory 
flexibility analysis of any rule subject to notice and comment 
rulemaking requirements under the Administrative Procedure Act or any 
other statute unless the Agency certifies that the rule will not have a 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. 
Small entities include small businesses, small organizations, and small 
governmental jurisdictions.
    For purposes of assessing the impact of today's technical 
amendments on small entities, small entities are defined as: (1) A 
small business that has fewer than 750 employees; (2) a small 
governmental jurisdiction that is a government of a city, county, town, 
school district or special district with a population of less than 
50,000; and (3) a small organization that is any not-for-profit 
enterprise which is independently owned and operated and is not 
dominant in its field.
    After considering the economic impacts of today's proposed rule 
amendments on small entities, I certify

[[Page 6390]]

that this action will not have a significant impact on a substantial 
number of small entities. The rule amendments will not impose any new 
requirements on small entities. We continue to be interested in the 
potential impacts of the proposed rule on small entities and welcome 
comments on issues related to such impacts.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 63

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Hazardous 
substances, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

    Dated: February 1, 2005.
Stephen L. Johnson,
Acting Administrator.
[FR Doc. 05-2304 Filed 2-4-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P