[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 136 (Monday, July 18, 2005)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 41146-41148]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-13987]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[R03-OAR-2005-DE-0001; FRL-7939-1]


Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; 
Delaware; Ambient Air Quality Standard for Ozone and Fine Particulate 
Matter

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 
Delaware State Implementation Plan (SIP). The revision consists of 
modifications to the ambient air quality standards for ozone and fine 
particulate matter. EPA is approving this revision in accordance with 
the requirements of the Clean Air Act (CAA).

DATES: This rule is effective on September 16, 2005, without further 
notice, unless EPA receives adverse written comment by August 17, 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-2005-DE-0001 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-2005-DE-0001, David Campbell, 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-2005-DE-
0001. 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 Delaware Department of Natural Resources & 
Environmental Control, 89 Kings Highway, P.O. Box 1401, Dover, Delaware 
19903.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rose Quinto, (215) 814-2182, or by e-
mail at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    On April 1, 2003, the State of Delaware submitted a formal revision 
to its SIP. The SIP revision consists of an amendment which includes 
the revised ambient air quality standards for ozone and particulate 
matter. EPA promulgated the new, more stringent, national ambient 
quality standards (NAAQS) for ozone and fine particulate matter on July 
18, 1997, 62 FR 38894 and 62 FR 38711, respectively.
    In 1997, EPA adopted an 8-hour ozone NAAQS with a level of 0.08 
parts per million (ppm) to provide greater protection to public health 
than the previous standard of 0.12 ppm averaged over a 1-hour block of 
time. At the same time, EPA established a new standard for fine 
particulate matter (PM2.5) that applies to particles 2.5 
microns in diameter or less.

II. Summary of SIP Revision

    Delaware's revision incorporates the 1997 Federal 8-hour ozone and 
PM2.5 standards into Section 6, of Regulation 3, of the 
Delaware Regulations Governing the Control of Air Pollution. The new 
ozone standard incorporated in this SIP revision is the average of the 
fourth highest daily maximum 8-hour average ozone concentration that is 
less than or equal to 0.08 ppm, averaged over three consecutive years. 
In addition, the SIP revision adds a new PM 2.5 ambient air quality 
standard. The standards for PM2.5 incorporated in this SIP 
revision are 65 micrograms per cubic meter based on a 24-hour average 
concentration and 15.0 micrograms per cubic meter annual arithmetic 
mean concentration. Compliance with the new 8-hour standard and fine 
particulate matter standards are determined in a manner identical to 
the

[[Page 41147]]

NAAQS as defined at 40 CFR part 50. It should be noted that Delaware 
has not made any revisions to the existing standards for ozone (1-hour 
standard) or particulate matter (PM10).

III. Final Action

    EPA is approving Delaware's SIP revision to incorporate the 8-hour 
ambient air quality standards for ozone and fine particle matter. 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 September 16, 2005, without further 
notice unless EPA receives adverse comment by August 17, 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. Please note that if EPA receives adverse comment on an 
amendment, paragraph, or section of this rule and if that provision may 
be severed from the remainder of the rule, EPA may adopt as final those 
provisions of the rule that are not the subject of an adverse comment.

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 September 16, 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 Delaware's 8-hour ozone and fine 
particulate matter ambient air quality standards 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, Particulate matter, Reporting and 
recordkeeping requirements, Volatile organic compounds.

    Dated: July 8, 2005.
Richard J. Kampf,
Acting 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 I--Delaware

0
2. In Sec.  52.420, the table in paragraph (c) is amended by adding an 
entry for Regulation 1, Section 2 after the existing entry, and 
revising the entries for Regulation 3, Sections 1, 6, and 11 to read as 
follows:


Sec.  52.420  Identification of plan.

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

[[Page 41148]]



                                  EPA--Approved Regulations in the Delaware SIP
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                                                    State
        State citation           Title/subject    effective           EPA approval date             Additional
                                                     date                                          explanation
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                             Regulation 1 Definitions and Administrative Principles
 
                                                  * * * * * * *
Section 2....................  Definitions.....    2/11/2003  7/18/05 [Insert page number where  Added
                                                               the document begins]               definition of
                                                                                                  PM2.5.
 
                                                 * * * * * * *
                                   Regulation 3 Ambient Air Quality Standards
Section 1....................  General             2/11/2003  7/18/05 [Insert page number where  Addition of
                                provisions.                    the document begins]               section 1.6.j.
 
                                                  * * * * * * *
Section 6....................  Ozone...........    2/11/2003  7/18/05 [Insert page number where  Addition to
                                                               the document begins]               section 6.1--
                                                                                                  ``This
                                                                                                  standard shall
                                                                                                  be applicable
                                                                                                  to New Castle
                                                                                                  and Kent
                                                                                                  Counties.''
                                                                                                 ...............
                                                                                                 Addition of
                                                                                                  section 6.2.
 
                                                  * * * * * * *
Section 11...................  PM10 and PM2.5      2/11/2003  7/18/05 [Insert page number where  Section title
                                Particulates.                  the document begins]               added ``and
                                                                                                  PM2.5''
                                                                                                 ...............
                                                                                                 Addition of
                                                                                                  sections
                                                                                                  11.2.a. and
                                                                                                  11.2.b.
 
                                                  * * * * * * *
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[FR Doc. 05-13987 Filed 7-15-05; 8:45 am]
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