[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 146 (Tuesday, July 31, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 41752-41754]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-14772]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-8447-8]


Draft NPDES General Permits for Log Transfer Facilities in Alaska 
(Permit Nos. AK-G70-0000 and AK-G70-1000) and Request for Public 
Comment

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of availability of draft NPDES general permits and 
request for public comment.

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SUMMARY: The Director of the Office of Water and Watersheds, EPA Region 
10, is publishing notice of the availability of two draft National 
Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) general permits (numbers 
AK-G70-0000 and AK-G70-1000) to provide Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 
et seq.) authorization for log transfer facilities (LTFs) operating in 
Alaska. General permit (GP) AK-G70-0000 (the ``Pre-1985'' GP) includes 
section 402 modifications to section 404 permits issued to LTFs prior 
to October 22, 1985, in accordance with section 407 of the Water 
Quality Act of 1987 (Public Law 100-4). All other LTFs can apply to be 
authorized to discharge under AK-G70-1000 (the ``Post-1985'' GP) if 
they meet eligibility requirements.
    The draft Post-1985 GP is a reissuance of a previously issued LTF 
GP that became effective on March 21, 2000, and was subsequently 
modified on April 27, 2004 (69 FR 19417). The Post-1985 GP expired on 
March 21, 2005, and has been administratively extended since that time. 
The draft Pre-1985 GP contains additional modifications to section 404 
permits issued to LTFs prior to October 22, 1985. The modifications 
implemented by the Pre-1985 GP became effective as of April 27, 2004, 
and did not expire because the section 404 permits had no expiration 
date.
    New LTFs or existing LTFs not currently authorized to discharge, 
and which meet the eligibility criteria under the Post-1985 permit, 
must submit a written Notice of Intent (NOI) to be covered at least 60 
days prior to the anticipated commencement of in-water log storage or 
transfer operations. For existing LTFs that are operating under an 
administratively extended permit pursuant to 40 CFR 122.6, NOIs were to 
be submitted 180 days prior to the expiration of the permit (i.e., 
September 22, 2004). If changes have occurred since that time that 
require a revised NOI to be submitted, such revised NOIs must be 
submitted no later than 60 days from the effective date of the final 
GP. Pre-1985 LTFs seeking coverage or continued coverage under GP No. 
AK-G70-0000 must submit written Notification within 90 days of the 
effective date of the final Pre-1985 permit if they have not already 
done so. Facility operators which received a section 404 permit from 
the Army Corps of Engineers prior to October 22, 1985, but who did not 
provide Notification under the Pre-1985 GP and who fail to submit a 
timely written Notification in accordance with the proposed 2007 
modifications, must seek coverage under the Post-1985 permit prior to 
commencing discharges of bark and wood debris.
    In order to be authorized to discharge under the Post-1985 GP, 
owners or operators of an LTF must: (1) Submit a NOI as described in 
Part V to EPA and the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation 
(ADEC); (2) develop and implement a Pollution Prevention Plan (PPP); 
(3) receive written authorization for a project area zone of deposit 
(ZOD) from ADEC; and, (4) receive written authorization to discharge 
bark and wood debris from EPA. In order to be able to discharge in 
compliance with the Pre-1985 GP modifications, owners or operators of 
an LTF must: (1) Submit a Notification to EPA and ADEC; (2) develop and

[[Page 41753]]

implement a PPP; (3) receive written authorization for a project area 
ZOD from ADEC; and, (4) receive a NPDES number from EPA. A fact sheet 
has been prepared which sets forth the principle factual, legal, 
policy, and scientific information considered in the development of the 
general permits. Both GPs contain a combination of technology-based 
requirements and water quality-based effluent limits, standards, or 
conditions.
    Public Comment and Public Hearing: Interested persons may submit 
written comments on the draft GPs to the attention of Kai Shum at the 
address below. Copies of the draft GPs and fact sheet are available 
upon request. The permits and fact sheet may also be downloaded from 
the Region 10 Web site at: http://www.epa.gov/r10earth/waterpermits.htm 
(click on ``draft permits'', then ``Alaska'').
    All comments should include the name, address, and telephone number 
of the commenter and a concise statement of comment and the relevant 
facts upon which it is based. Comments of either support or concern 
which are directed at specific, cited permit requirements are 
appreciated.
    The EPA and ADEC will host a public hearing to present information 
relevant to the LTF GPs, to answer questions, and to receive verbal 
comments on the draft general permits. The hearing is scheduled as 
follows: Thursday, September 6, 2007, 7 p.m.-11 p.m.; Centennial Hall 
and Convention Center; 101 Eagan Drive; Juneau, Alaska 99801.
    After the expiration date of the Public Notice on September 25, the 
Director, Office of Water and Watersheds, EPA Region 10, will make a 
final determination with respect to issuance of the permits. Response 
to comments will be published with the final permits. The proposed 
requirements contained in the draft GPs will become final 30 days after 
publication of the final permits in the Federal Register.

ADDRESSES: Comments on the proposed GPs should be sent to Kai Shum; 
USEPA Region 10; 1200 6th Ave., OWW-130; Seattle, Washington 98101. 
Comments may also be received via electronic mail at: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Administrative Record

    The complete administrative record for the draft GPs are available 
for public review at the EPA Region 10 headquarters at the address 
listed above.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Additional information can be obtained 
by contacting Kai Shum at the address above, or by visiting the Region 
10 Web site at: http://www.epa.gov/r10earth/waterpermits.htm. Requests 
may also be made to Audrey Washington at (206) 553-0523, or 
electronically mailed to: [email protected].

Other Legal Requirements

State Water Quality Standards and State Certification

    EPA is also providing Public Notice of ADEC's intent to certify the 
permits pursuant to section 401 of the Clean Water Act. ADEC has 
provided draft certification that the draft GPs comply with State Water 
Quality Standards (18 AAC 70), including the State's antidegradation 
policy. Comments on the state's draft section 401 certifications of the 
permits should be sent to Chris Foley; ADEC; P.O. Box 11180; 410 
Willoughby Ave., Suite 303; Juneau, Alaska 99811-1800. Comments may 
also be received via electronic mail at: [email protected].

National Environmental Policy Act

    The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) at 42 U.S.C. 4322, 
requires federal agencies to conduct an environmental review of their 
actions (including permitting activity) that may significantly affect 
the quality of the human environment. EPA regulations which implement 
NEPA (40 CFR part 6) clarify this requirement as it pertains to NPDES 
permitting actions for new sources of discharge types with promulgated 
effluent limitation guidelines. No effluent limitation guidelines have 
been proposed or promulgated for discharges from LTFs pursuant to CWA 
Section 306, thus, new LTFs that may seek to discharge under the 
proposed GPs do not meet the criteria for new sources. Therefore, a 
NEPA environmental review is not required for the permits.

Endangered Species Act

    Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act requires EPA to consult 
with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and NOAA Fisheries regarding 
the potential effects that an action may have on listed endangered or 
threatened species or their critical habitat. To address these ESA 
requirements, and in support of EPA's informal consultation with the 
Services, a Biological Evaluation (BE) was prepared to analyze these 
potential effects. During the development of the draft general permits, 
information provided by the Services was used to identify 12 species of 
interest for consideration in the BE. The results of the BE concluded 
that discharges from LTFs will either have no effect or are not likely 
to adversely affect threatened or endangered species in the vicinity of 
the discharge. The fact sheet, the draft permits and the BE are being 
reviewed by the Services for consistency with those programs 
established for the conservation of endangered and threatened species. 
Any additional comments or conservation recommendations received from 
the Services regarding threatened or endangered species will be 
considered prior to issuance of the GPs.

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act

    Section 305(b) of the Magnuson-Stevens Act (16 U.S.C. 1855(b)) 
requires federal agencies to consult with NOAA Fisheries when any 
activity proposed to be permitted, funded, or undertaken by a federal 
agency may have an adverse effect on designated Essential Fish Habitat 
(EFH) as defined by the Act. To address the requirements of the 
Magnuson-Stevens Act, EPA prepared an EFH Assessment concluding that 
LTF operations are not likely to have an adverse effect on EFH as the 
total area likely to be adversely impacted is an extremely small 
proportion of the total available habitat. As with ESA, any additional 
comments or conservation recommendations received from NOAA Fisheries 
regarding EFH will be considered prior to issuance of the GPs.

Alaska Coastal Management Program

    The State of Alaska, Department of Natural Resources (ADNR), Office 
of Project Management and Permitting (OPMP), will review this 
permitting action for consistency as provided in section 307(c)(3) of 
the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972, as amended (16 U.S.C. 
1456(c)(3)). EPA has determined that the activities authorized by the 
proposed GPs are consistent to the maximum extent practicable with the 
state's Coastal Zone Management Plan. EPA will seek concurrence with 
this determination from the ADNR OPMP prior to issuing the final 
permits. Comments on the state's consistency determination should be 
sent to Joe Donohue; ADNR OPMP; P.O. Box 111030; Juneau, Alaska 99811-
1030. Comments may also be received via electronic mail at: 
[email protected].

Executive Order 12866

    EPA has determined that these GPs are not a ``significant 
regulatory action'' under the terms of Executive Order 12866 and is 
therefore not subject to OMB review.

[[Page 41754]]

Paperwork Reduction Act

    The information collection requirements of these GPs were 
previously approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under 
the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq., 
and assigned OMB control numbers 2040-0086 (NPDES permit application) 
and 2040-0004 (discharge monitoring reports).

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    The Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), 5 U.S.C. 601 et seq., 
requires that EPA prepare a regulatory flexibility analysis for rules 
subject to the requirements of 5 U.S.C. 553(b) that have a significant 
impact on a substantial number of small entities. However, general 
NPDES permits are not ``rules'' subject to the requirements of 5 U.S.C. 
553(b), and is therefore not subject to the RFA.

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act

    Section 201 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA), Public Law 
104-4, generally requires Federal agencies to assess the effects of 
their ``regulatory actions'' (defined to be the same as ``rules'' 
subject to the RFA) on tribal, state, and local governments and the 
private sector. However, general NPDES permits are not ``rules'' 
subject to the requirements of 5 U.S.C. 553(b), and is therefore not 
subject to the RFA.

    Signed this 23rd day of July, 2007.
Michael F. Gearheard,
Director, Office of Water and Watersheds, Region 10.
 [FR Doc. E7-14772 Filed 7-30-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P