[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 120 (Thursday, June 22, 2006)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 35801-35804]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 06-5598]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R04-OAR-2006-0376-200611a; FRL-8187-1]


Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans Alabama: Open 
Burning Revision

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

[[Page 35802]]


ACTION: Direct final rule.

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SUMMARY: EPA is approving revisions to the Alabama State Implementation 
Plan (SIP), submitted by the Alabama Department of Environmental 
Management (ADEM) on March 9, 2006. 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) for 
fine particulates (PM2.5) and ozone. Open burning creates smoke that 
contains fine particles, volatile organic compounds and nitrogen 
oxides, precursors to ozone. ADEM has found that elevated levels of 
PM2.5 mirror the months when ozone levels are highest (May-September), 
and that PM2.5 levels remain elevated into October. These rules are 
intended to help control levels of PM2.5 and ozone precursors that 
contribute to high ozone and PM2.5 levels. This action is being taken 
pursuant to section 110 of the Clean Air Act (CAA).

DATES: This direct final rule is effective August 21, 2006 without 
further notice, unless EPA receives adverse comment by July 24, 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-2006-0376,'' 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-2006-0376,'' 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-2006-0376.'' 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 March 9, 2006, 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 April 4, 2006.
    In summary, the revisions submitted by ADEM include changes to the 
duration and location of open burning, and add other specific 
requirements for open burning for 2006 only. The original provisions 
that were part of Chapter 335-3-3-.01(2) still exist, with the 
exception of subpart (d), which was modified to include the month of 
October and four additional counties. These requirements include 
expansion of the seasonal May, June, July, August and September ban on 
open burning to now include the month of October, and the additional 
counties of DeKalb, Etowah, Russell, and Talladega. In addition, a new 
provision, 335-3-3-.01(2)(e) was added. The new provision also 
describes additional requirements for open burning during 2006 only, 
which allows open burning during the months of May, June, July, August, 
September and October in DeKalb, Etowah, Russell, and Talladega 
Counties, provided an air curtain incinerator is used to conduct the 
open burning. The proposed revisions summarized above are approvable 
pursuant to section 110 of the CAA.

II. Final Action

    EPA is now taking direct final action to approve the proposed 
revisions, specifically, AAC Chapter 335-3-3-.01, into the Alabama SIP. 
This revision was submitted by ADEM on March 9, 2006. These revisions 
include the entirety of Alabama's open burning rules and are part of 
the State's strategy to meet the NAAQS by reducing emissions of 
volatile organic compounds, fine particulates and nitrogen oxides.
    EPA is publishing this rule without prior proposal because the 
Agency views this as a noncontroversial submittal and anticipates no 
adverse

[[Page 35803]]

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 August 21, 2006 without 
further notice unless the Agency receives adverse comments by July 24, 
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 August 21, 
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, U.S.C. section 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 August 21, 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: June 12, 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 the entry for ``Section 335-
3-3.01'' to read as follows:


Sec.  52.50  Identification of plan.

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    (c) * * *

                                        EPA Approved Alabama Regulations
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                                                    State       EPA approval
       State citation          Title/subject   effective date       date                  Explanation
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               Chapter 335-3-3   Control of Open Burning and Incineration
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Section 335-3-3-.01........  Open Burning....      04/04/2006      06/22/2006
                                                                      [Insert
                                                                  citation of
                                                                 publication]
 
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[FR Doc. 06-5598 Filed 6-21-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P