[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 46 (Wednesday, March 11, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 10573-10574]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-5219]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-8773-4; EPA-HQ-OW-2008-0055]


Notice Regarding National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System 
(NPDES) General Permit for Discharges Incidental to the Normal 
Operation of a Vessel

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of availability.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: EPA previously announced the final NPDES general permit for 
discharges incidental to the normal operation of vessels, also referred 
to as the Vessel General Permit (VGP), in the Federal Register on 
December 29, 2008 (73 FR 79493). The permit was signed on December 18, 
2008 and became effective on December 19, 2008. EPA subsequently 
noticed final issuance of the VGP for the states of Hawaii and Alaska, 
after receipt of a certification pursuant to section 401 of the Clean 
Water Act (CWA) from Hawaii and a final response on the national 
consistency determination required by section 307(c)(1) of the Coastal 
Zone Management Act (CZMA) from Alaska, which was signed on February 2, 
2009, with an effective date of February 6, 2009. Today's notice of 
availability provides notice of EPA's deletion of specific State 
section 401 certification conditions from Part 6 of the VGP for the 
States of New Jersey, Illinois, and California.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information on the final 
vessel NPDES general permit, contact Ryan Albert at EPA Headquarters, 
Office of Water, Office of Wastewater Management, Mail Code 4203M, 1200 
Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460; or at tel. 202-564-0763; 
or Juhi Saxena at EPA Headquarters, Office of Water, Office of 
Wastewater Management, Mail Code 4203M, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., 
Washington, DC 20460; or at tel. 202-564-0719; or e-mail: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

A. General Information

    Pursuant to Clean Water Act section 401(a) and EPA's implementing 
regulations, EPA may not issue a NPDES permit (including the VGP) until 
the appropriate State certifications have been granted or waived. 40 
CFR 124.53(a). Through the certification process, States were given the 
opportunity, before the VGP was issued, to add conditions to the permit 
they believe are necessary to ensure that the permit complies with the 
Clean Water Act and other appropriate requirements of State law, 
including State water quality standards.
    New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection issued its 
section 401 certification for the VGP on September 24, 2008, and 
modified its certification on February 2, 2009. This modification 
deleted certification conditions 1 and 2. Illinois 
Environmental Protection Agency issued its section 401 certification 
for the VGP on November 21, 2008, and modified its certification on 
February 4, 2009. This modification deleted certification condition 
9. California State Water Resources Control Board issued its 
section 401 certification for the VGP on December 17, 2008, and 
modified its certification on February 4, 2009. This modification 
deleted certification conditions 1, 2, 5, 
7, 8, 9, 10, 13, 
14, 15, and 7.1 and 7.2 from certification condition 
16 and Attachments 4, 5, and 6 from certification condition 
17. Pursuant to EPA's implementing regulations at 40 CFR 
124.55(b), EPA may, at the request of a permittee, modify the VGP based 
on a modified certification received after final agency action on the 
permit ``only to the extent necessary to delete any conditions based on 
a condition in a certification invalidated by a court of competent 
jurisdiction or by an appropriate State board or agency.'' 40 CFR 
124.55(b). In accordance with this provision, EPA has removed these 
deleted certification conditions from the VGP.\1\ EPA's letters 
notifying the requesting permittees that their requests to delete the 
permit conditions were granted, and a copy of the VGP reflecting those 
deletions, can be found in the docket for the VGP (Docket ID No. EPA-
HQ-OW-2008-0055).\2\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ In addition, the regulations at 40 CFR 124.55(b) also 
require that EPA receive a request from a permittee for the deleted 
certification conditions to be removed from the permit. EPA received 
such requests to remove deleted conditions from Express Marine Inc. 
on February 3, 2009 in New Jersey, Canal Barge Company Inc. on 
February 4, 2009 in Illinois and from Foss Maritime Company on 
February 5, 2009 in California.
    \2\ In addition, the permit may be found at http://www.epa.gov/npdes/vessels.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

B. How Can I Get Copies of These Documents and Other Related 
Information?

    1. Docket. EPA has established an official public docket for this 
action under Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OW-2008-0055. The official public 
docket is the collection of materials, including the administrative 
record, for the final permit, required by 40 CFR 124.18. It is 
available for public viewing at the Water Docket in the EPA Docket 
Center, (EPA/DC) EPA West, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., 
Washington, DC 20460. Although all documents in the docket are listed 
in an index, some information is not publicly available, i.e., CBI or 
other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Publicly 
available docket materials are available electronically through 
www.regulations.gov and in hard copy at the EPA Docket Center Public 
Reading Room, 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 Water Docket is 
(202) 566-2426.
    2. Electronic Access. You may access this Federal Register document 
electronically through the EPA Internet under the ``Federal Register'' 
listings at http://www.epa.gov/fedrgstr/.

An electronic version of the public docket is available through the 
Federal Docket Management System (FDMS) found at http://www.regulations.gov. You may use the FDMS to view public comments, 
access the index listing of the contents of the official public docket, 
and to access those documents in the public docket that are available 
electronically. Once at the Web site, enter the appropriate Docket ID 
No. in the ``Search'' box to view the docket.
    Certain types of information will not be placed in the EPA dockets. 
Information claimed as CBI and other information whose disclosure is 
restricted by statute, which is not included in the official public 
docket, will not be available for public viewing in EPA's electronic 
public docket. EPA policy is that copyrighted material will not be 
placed in EPA's electronic public docket but will be available only in 
printed, paper form in the official public docket. Although not all 
docket materials may be available electronically, you may still access 
any of the publicly available docket

[[Page 10574]]

materials through the docket facility identified in Section B.1.
    1. Authority: Clean Water Act, 33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.
    2. Authority: Clean Water Act, 33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.
    3. Authority: Clean Water Act, 33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.

    Dated: February 5, 2009.
Ronald J. Borsellino,
Acting Director, Division of Environmental Planning and Protection, EPA 
Region 2.
    Dated: February 5, 2009.
Tinka Hyde,
Director, Water Division, EPA Region 5.
    Dated: February 5, 2009.
Alexis Strauss,
Director, Water Division, EPA Region 9.
[FR Doc. E9-5219 Filed 3-10-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P