[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 46 (Thursday, March 9, 2006)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 12138-12141]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 06-2184]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R04-OAR-2005-AL-0002-200528a; FRL-8042-9]


Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans; Alabama: State 
Implementation Plan Revision

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Direct final rule.

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[[Page 12139]]

SUMMARY: EPA is approving revisions to the Alabama State Implementation 
Plan (SIP), submitted by the Alabama Department of Environmental 
Management (ADEM) on September 11, 2003. The revisions include 
modifications to Alabama's open burning rules found at Alabama 
Administrative Code (AAC) Chapter 335-3-3-.01. These revisions are part 
of Alabama's strategy to meet the national ambient air quality 
standards (NAAQS) by reducing emissions of volatile organic compounds 
and nitrogen oxides. Open burning creates smoke that contains fine 
particles (PM2.5) and precursors to ozone. ADEM has found that elevated 
levels of PM2.5 mirror the months when ozone levels are highest (May-
September). These rules are intended to help control levels of PM2.5 
and ozone precursors that contribute to high ozone and PM2.5 levels. 
Today's action is being taken pursuant to section 110 of the Clean Air 
Act (CAA). In its September 11, 2003, submittal, ADEM also proposed SIP 
revisions to include changes to AAC Chapter 335-3-4, concerning 
opacity. EPA is not acting on that part of the revision at this time.

DATES: This direct final rule is effective May 8, 2006 without further 
notice, unless EPA receives adverse comment by April 10, 2006. 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: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID Number, ``EPA-
R04-OAR-2005-AL-0002,'' by one of the following methods:
    1. http://www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line instructions for 
submitting comments.
    2. E-mail: [email protected].
    3. Fax: 404-562-9019.
    4. Mail: ``EPA-R04-OAR-2005-AL-0002,'' Regulatory Development 
Section, Air Planning Branch, Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management 
Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth 
Street, SW., Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960.
    5. Hand Delivery or Courier: Stacy DiFrank, Regulatory Development 
Section, Air Planning Branch, Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management 
Division 12th floor, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 
Forsyth Street, SW., Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. Such deliveries are 
only accepted during the Regional Office's normal hours of operation. 
The Regional Office's official hours of business are Monday through 
Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., excluding Federal holidays.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID Number, ``EPA-R04-
OAR-2005-AL-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.regulations.gov, 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 through http://www.regulations.gov or e-mail, information that you consider to be CBI 
or otherwise protected. The http://www.regulations.gov Web site is 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 http://www.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 the EPA Docket Center homepage at http://www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm.
    Docket: All documents in the electronic docket are listed in the 
http://www.regulations.gov index. 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 http://www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the Regulatory Development 
Section, Air Planning Branch, Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management 
Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth 
Street, SW., Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. EPA requests that if at all 
possible, you contact the person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT section to schedule your inspection. The Regional Office's 
official hours of business are Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 
p.m. excluding legal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Stacy DiFrank, Regulatory Development 
Section, Air Planning Branch, Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management 
Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth 
Street, SW., Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. The telephone number is (404) 
562-9042. Ms. DiFrank can also be reached via electronic mail at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Today's Action

    On September 11, 2003, ADEM submitted to EPA proposed SIP revisions 
for review and approval into the Alabama SIP. The proposed revisions 
include changes made by the State of Alabama to its open burning 
regulations, found at AAC Chapter 335-3-3-.01. These rules became state 
effective on October 2, 2003.
    The original provisions that were part of Chapter 335-3-3-.01(1) 
still exists, with the exception of subpart (i), which was deleted and 
included as part of the newly added provision, 335-3-3-.01(2). In 
summary, the revisions submitted by ADEM include changes to the 
duration, timing, and location of open burning, and add other specific 
requirements for open burning.
    These other requirements include expansion of the seasonal ban on 
open burning to now include the months of May and September, and the 
additional counties of Baldwin, Lawrence, Madison, Mobile, Montgomery, 
Morgan, and Shelby. The new provision, Chapter 335-3-3-.01(2), also 
describes new requirements for open burning which include, among 
others: (1) A limitation on open burning of vegetation or untreated 
wood for only the specified purposes; (2) a specification regarding 
fuel; (3) setbacks for all open burning; (4) a requirement to reduce 
traffic hazards associated with the burning; and (5) a limit on the 
hours of open burning. No action is being taken with regard to the last 
paragraph of Chapter 335-3-3-.01(2)(d), referring to open burning in 
Morgan County during 2003, because it was removed from the Alabama SIP 
in a separate action in December 2005 (70 FR 76694, December 28, 2005). 
The proposed revisions summarized above are approvable pursuant to 
section 110 of the CAA.
    EPA is now taking direct final action to approve the proposed 
revisions, specifically, AAC Chapter 335-3-3-.01(1) and .01(2), into 
the Alabama SIP. These revisions include the entirety of Alabama's open 
burning rules and are

[[Page 12140]]

part of the State's strategy to meet the NAAQS by reducing emissions of 
volatile organic compounds and nitrogen oxides.

II. Final Action

    EPA is taking direct final action to approve revisions to the 
Alabama SIP to include changes made to Alabama's open burning rules 
found at AAC Chapter 335-3-3-.01, as submitted on September 11, 2003, 
with the exception of one sentence in 335-3-3-.01(2)(d) regarding 
Morgan County. In addition, at this time, EPA is not acting on the 
revision to AAC Chapter 335-3-4 concerning opacity.
    EPA is publishing this rule without prior proposal because the 
Agency views this as a noncontroversial submittal 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 SIP revision should 
adverse comments be filed. This rule will be effective May 8, 2006 
without further notice unless the Agency receives adverse comments by 
April 10, 2006.
    If EPA receives such comments, EPA will then publish a document 
withdrawing the direct final rule and informing the public that such 
rule will not take effect. All public comments received will then be 
addressed in a subsequent final rule based on the proposed rule. EPA 
will not institute a second comment period. Parties interested in 
commenting should do so at this time. If no such comments are received, 
the public is advised that this rule will be effective on May 8, 2006 
and no further action will be taken on the proposed rule.

III. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    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 (Pub. L. 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 CAA. 
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 CAA. 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 CAA. 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.).
    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. A major rule cannot 
take effect until 60 days after it is published in the Federal 
Register. This action is not a ``major rule'' as defined by 5 U.S.C. 
804(2).
    Under section 307(b)(1) of the CAA, petitions for judicial review 
of this action must be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for 
the appropriate circuit by May 8, 2006. 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)).

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Carbon monoxide, 
Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, Particulate 
matter, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Sulfur oxides, 
Volatile organic compounds.

    Dated: February 17, 2006.
A. Stanley Meiburg,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4.


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 B--Alabama

0
2. Section 52.50(c) is amended by revising entries for ``Section 335-3-
3.01'' to read as follows:


Sec.  52.50  Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (c) * * *

[[Page 12141]]



                                        EPA Approved Alabama Regulations
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                                                             State
          State citation              Title/subject     effective date   EPA approval date       Explanation
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                    Chapter 335-3-3        Control of Open Burning and Incineration
 
                                                  * * * * * * *
Section 335-3-3-.01..............  Open Burning.......       10/2/2003  3/9/2006 [Insert     We are not acting
                                                                         citation of          on the portion of
                                                                         publication].        section 2(d)
                                                                                              stating ``During
                                                                                              2003 only burning
                                                                                              may be conducted
                                                                                              in Morgan County
                                                                                              if any air curtain
                                                                                              incinerator is
                                                                                              used to burn the
                                                                                              materials.''
 
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[FR Doc. 06-2184 Filed 3-8-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P