[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 232 (Friday, December 4, 2009)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 63613-63616]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-28969]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 63
[EPA-RO4-OAR-2009-0793; FRL-9089-2]
Approval of Section 112(l) Authority for Hazardous Air
Pollutants; Equivalency by Permit Provisions; National Emission
Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants; Plywood and Composite Wood
Products
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Direct final rule.
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SUMMARY: On August 26, 2003, the EPA published in the Federal Register
a direct final rule to approve the North Carolina Department of
Environment and Natural Resource's (NC DENR) equivalency by permit
program, pursuant to section 112(l) of the Clean Air Act, to implement
and enforce State permit terms and conditions that substitute for the
National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants from the pulp
and paper industry for the International Paper Riegelwood mill in
Riegelwood, North Carolina. Then, on April 12, 2004, the EPA published
in the Federal Register a direct final rule to amend the August 26,
2003, direct final rule in order to extend its coverage to include an
additional four mills in North Carolina. This action is taken to once
again amend the August 26, 2003, direct final rule in order to expand
the NC DENR equivalency by permit program coverage to include all 32
sources in North Carolina subject to the plywood and composite wood
products rule.
DATES: This direct final rule is effective February 2, 2010 without
further notice, unless EPA receives adverse comment by January 4, 2010.
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 No. EPA-RO4-
OAR-2009-0793 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: 404-562-9095.
4. Mail: ``EPA-R04-OAR-2009-0793'', Air Toxics Assessment and
Implementation Section, Air Toxics and Monitoring 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: Lee Page, Air Toxics and Monitoring
Branch, 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 No. EPA-RO4-OAR-
2009-0793. 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'' systems, 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
[[Page 63614]]
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 Air Toxics Assessment and
Implementation Section, Air Toxics and Monitoring 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
Federal holidays.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lee Page, Air Toxics Assessment and
Implementation Section, Air Toxics and Monitoring 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) 562-9131. Mr. Page can also
be reached via electronic mail at [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
On April 15, 1998, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
promulgated the National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air
Pollutants from the Pulp and Paper Industry (see 63 FR 18504) which was
codified in 40 CFR part 63, subpart S, ``National Emission Standards
for Hazardous Air Pollutants from the Pulp and Paper Industry.''
Subsequently, on January 12, 2001, EPA promulgated the National
Emission Standard for Hazardous Air Pollutants from the Pulp and Paper
Industry (see 66 FR 3180) which has been codified in 40 CFR part 63,
subpart MM, ``National Emission Standards for Chemical Recovery
Combustion Sources at Kraft, Soda, Sulfite and Stand-alone Semi-
chemical Pulp Mills.''
On March 4, 2003, the North Carolina Department of Environment and
Natural Resources (NC DENR) requested approval of their program to
implement and enforce approved alternative title V permit terms and
conditions for certain sources in place of the otherwise applicable
requirements of subpart S and subpart MM under the equivalency by
permit process outlined in 40 CFR section 63.94.
On August 26, 2003, the EPA published in the Federal Register a
direct final rule to approve the NC DENR equivalency by permit program,
pursuant to section 112(l) of the Clean Air Act, to implement and
enforce State permit terms and conditions that substitute for subpart S
and subpart MM, for the International Paper Riegelwood Mill in
Riegelwood, North Carolina.
On February 6, 2004, NC DENR requested that EPA amend the list of
approved facilities to implement and enforce approved alternative title
V permit terms and conditions in place of the otherwise applicable
requirements of subpart S and subpart MM to include four additional
mills. This request was approved by EPA and published in the Federal
Register on April 12, 2004.
On September 21, 2009, NC DENR requested that EPA amend the
original equivalency by permit program approval (i.e., the August 26,
2003, program approval) to expand its coverage to all 32 sources
subject to the National Emission Standard for Hazardous Air Pollutants-
Plywood and Composite Wood Products, as promulgated on July 30, 2004,
and codified in 40 CFR Part 63, subpart DDDD. EPA received this request
on September 25, 2009.
II. Discussion
Under CAA section 112(l), EPA may approve State or local rules or
programs to be implemented and enforced in place of certain otherwise
applicable CAA section 112 Federal rules, emission standards, or
requirements. The Federal regulations governing EPA's approval of state
and local rules or programs under section 112(l) are located at 40 CFR
part 63, subpart E (see 65 FR 55810, dated September 14, 2000). Under
these regulations, a state or local air pollution control agency has
the option to request EPA's approval to substitute alternative
requirements and authorities that take the form of permit terms and
conditions instead of source category regulations. This option is
referred to as the equivalency by permit (EBP) option. To receive EPA
approval using this option, the requirements of 40 CFR 63.91 and 63.94
must be met.
The EBP process comprises three steps. The first step (see 40 CFR
63.94(a) and (b)) is the ``up-front approval'' of the state EBP
program. The second step (see 40 CFR 63.94(c) and (d)) is EPA review
and approval of the state alternative section 112 requirements in the
form of pre-draft permit terms and conditions. The third step (see 40
CFR 63.94(e)) is incorporation of the approved pre-draft permit terms
and conditions into a specific title V permit and the title V permit
issuance process itself. The final approval of the State alternative
requirements that substitute for the Federal standard does not occur
for purposes of the Act, section 112(l)(5), until the completion of
step three.
The purpose of step one, the ``up-front approval'' of the EBP
program, is three fold: (1) It ensures that NC DENR meets the 63.91(b)
criteria for up-front approval common to all approval options; (2) it
provides a legal foundation for NC DENR to replace the otherwise
applicable Federal section 112 requirements with alternative, federally
enforceable requirements that will be reflected in final title V permit
terms and conditions; and (3) it delineates the specific sources and
Federal emission standards for which NC DENR will be accepting
delegation under the EBP option.
Under Sec. Sec. 63.94(b) and 63.91, NC's request for EBP program
approval was required to include the identification of the sources and
the source categories for which the state is seeking authority to
implement and enforce alternative requirements, as well as a one time
demonstration that the State has an approved title V operating permit
program that permits the affected sources. There are no limitations on
the number of sources in a source category for which the State can seek
authority to implement and enforce alternative requirements.
III. Final Action
After reviewing the request to expand the coverage of NC DENR's EBP
program for subpart DDDD, EPA has determined that this request meets
all the requirements necessary to qualify for approval under CAA
section 112(l) and 40 CFR 63.91 and 63.94. Accordingly, EPA approves NC
DENR's request to implement and enforce alternative requirements in the
form of title V permit terms and conditions for New South Lumber
Company, Inc. Graham Plant, Alamance County, North Carolina; HDM
Furniture Industries, Inc., Henredon Furniture Plant 1 & 2, Burke
County, North Carolina; Kohler Co., DBA Baker Furniture, Burke County,
North Carolina; Bernhardt Furniture Company Plants 3 & 7, Caldwell
County, North Carolina; Thomasville Furniture Industries, Inc., Lenoir
Plant, Caldwell County, North
[[Page 63615]]
Carolina; Kincaid Furniture Company, Inc., Plant No. 1, Caldwell
County, North Carolina; Hickory Chair Company, Catawba County, North
Carolina; Uniboard USA LLC, Chatham County, North Carolina; Georgia
Pacific Whiteville Plant, Columbus County, North Carolina; West Fraser,
Inc., Armour Lumber Mill, Columbus County, North Carolina; Weyerhaeuser
NR Company, New Bern Lumber Facility, Craven County, North Carolina;
Linwood Furniture, Inc., Davidson County, North Carolina; Warvel
Products, Inc., Davidson County, North Carolina; Thomasville Furniture
Industries, Inc., Plant C/M/W/SB, Davidson County, North Carolina;
Lexington Furniture Inc., Plant 5, Davidson County, North Carolina;
Stanley Furniture Company, Inc., Graham County, North Carolina; Georgia
Pacific, Creedmoor Chip-N-Saw Plant, Granville County, North Carolina;
JELD-WEN, Inc., McDowell County, North Carolina; Weyerhaeuser NR
Company, Martin County, North Carolina; Jordan Lumber & Supply Co.,
Montgomery County, North Carolina; Troy Lumber Co., Montgomery County,
North Carolina; Unilin Flooring N.V., Montgomery County, North
Carolina; West Fraser, Seaboard Lumber Mill, Northampton County, North
Carolina; Georgia Pacific Roxboro, Person County, North Carolina;
Louisiana Pacific Corp., Roxboro, Person County, North Carolina;
Weyerhaeuser Company, Grifton, Pitt County, North Carolina; Vaughan
Bassett Furniture Co., Elkin Furniture, Surry County, North Carolina;
Weyerhaeuser NR Company, Elkin Facility, Surry County, North Carolina;
Georgia Pacific Plywood/OSB/CNS, Dudley, Wayne County, North Carolina;
Louisiana Pacific Corp., Roaring River, Wilkes County, North Carolina;
and American Drew, Inc., Plant 13, Wilkes County, North Carolina, for
subpart DDDD. This action is contingent upon NC DENR including in title
V permits, terms and conditions that are no less stringent than the
Federal standard. In addition, the requirement applicable to the
sources and the ``applicable requirement'' for title V purposes remains
the Federal section 112 requirement until EPA has approved the
alternative permit terms and conditions and the final title V permit is
issued.
The 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 section 112(l)
provisions should adverse comments be filed. This rule will be
effective February 2, 2010 without further notice unless the Agency
receives adverse comments by January 4, 2010.
If the EPA receives such comments, then EPA will publish a document
withdrawing the final rule and informing the public that the rule will
not take effect. All public comments received will then be addressed in
a subsequent final rule based on the proposed rule. The 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 February 2, 2010 and no
further action will be taken on the proposed rule. Please note that if
we receive adverse comment on an amendment, paragraph, or section of
this rule and if that provision may be severed from the remainder of
the rule, we may adopt as final those provisions of the rule that are
not the subject of an adverse comment.
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
Under the CAA, the Administrator is required to approve a section
112(l) delegation request that complies with the provisions of the Act
and applicable Federal regulations. Thus, in reviewing section 112(l)
submissions, EPA's role is to approve State choices, provided that they
meet the criteria of the CAA. Accordingly, this action merely expands
the previous EPA approved State program under section 112(l) and does
not impose additional requirements beyond those imposed by state law.
For that reason, this action:
Is not a ``significant regulatory action'' subject to
review by the Office of Management and Budget under Executive Order
12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993);
Does not impose an information collection burden under the
provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.);
Is certified as not having a significant economic impact
on a substantial number of small entities under the Regulatory
Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.);
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);
Does not have Federalism implications as specified in
Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999);
Is not an economically significant regulatory action based
on health or safety risks subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR
19885, April 23, 1997);
Is not a significant regulatory action subject to
Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001);
Is not subject to requirements of Section 12(d) of the
National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272
note) because application of those requirements would be inconsistent
with the CAA; and
Does not provide EPA with the discretionary authority to
address, as appropriate, disproportionate human health or environmental
effects, using practicable and legally permissible methods, under
Executive Order 12898 (59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994).
In addition, this rule does not have tribal implications as specified
by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000), because the
action is not approved to apply in Indian country located in the state,
and EPA notes that it will not impose substantial direct costs on
tribal governments or preempt tribal law.
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 action 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 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 February 2, 2010. Filing a
petition for reconsideration by the Administrator of this final rule
does not affect the finality of this action 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. Parties with objections to this direct final
rule are encouraged to file a comment in response to the parallel
notice of proposed rulemaking for this action published in the Proposed
Rules section of today's Federal Register, rather than
[[Page 63616]]
file an immediate petition for judicial review of this direct final
rule, so that EPA can withdraw this direct final rule and address the
comment in the proposed rulemaking. 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 63
Administrative practice and procedure, Air pollution control,
National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants, Hazardous air
pollutants.
Dated: November 16, 2009.
J. Scott Gordon,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4.
0
Title 40, chapter I, part 63 of the Code of Federal Regulations is
amended as follows:
PART 63--[AMENDED]
0
1. The authority citation for part 63 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 42.U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Subpart E--Approval of State Programs and Delegation of Federal
Authorities
0
2. Section 63.99 is amended by adding a new paragraph (a)(34)(iii) to
read as follows:
Sec. 63.99 Delegated Federal authorities.
(a) * * *
(34) * * *
(iii) North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural
Resources (NC DENR) may implement and enforce alternative requirements
in the form of title V permit terms and conditions for New South Lumber
Company, Inc. Graham Plant, Alamance County, North Carolina; HDM
Furniture Industries, Inc., Henredon Furniture Plant 1 & 2, Burke
County, North Carolina; Kohler Co., DBA Baker Furniture, Burke County,
North Carolina; Bernhardt Furniture Company Plants 3 & 7, Caldwell
County, North Carolina; Thomasville Furniture Industries, Inc., Lenoir
Plant, Caldwell County, North Carolina; Kincaid Furniture Company,
Inc., Plant No. 1, Caldwell County, North Carolina; Hickory Chair
Company, Catawba County, North Carolina; Uniboard USA LLC, Chatham
County, North Carolina; Georgia Pacific Whiteville Plant, Columbus
County, North Carolina; West Fraser, Inc., Armour Lumber Mill, Columbus
County, North Carolina; Weyerhaeuser NR Company, New Bern Lumber
Facility, Craven County, North Carolina; Linwood Furniture, Inc.,
Davidson County, North Carolina; Warvel Products, Inc., Davidson
County, North Carolina; Thomasville Furniture Industries, Inc., Plant
C/M/W/SB, Davidson County, North Carolina; Lexington Furniture Inc.,
Plant 5, Davidson County, North Carolina; Stanley Furniture Company,
Inc., Graham County, North Carolina; Georgia Pacific, Creedmoor Chip-N-
Saw Plant, Granville County, North Carolina; JELD-WEN, Inc., McDowell
County, North Carolina; Weyerhaeuser NR Company, Martin County, North
Carolina; Jordan Lumber & Supply Co., Montgomery County, North
Carolina; Troy Lumber Co., Montgomery County, North Carolina; Unilin
Flooring N.V., Montgomery County, North Carolina; West Fraser, Seaboard
Lumber Mill, Northampton County, North Carolina; Georgia Pacific
Roxboro, Person County, North Carolina; Louisiana Pacific Corp.,
Roxboro, Person County, North Carolina; Weyerhaeuser Company, Grifton,
Pitt County, North Carolina; Vaughan Bassett Furniture Co., Elkin
Furniture, Surry County, North Carolina; Weyerhaeuser NR Company, Elkin
Facility, Surry County, North Carolina; Georgia Pacific Plywood/OSB/
CNS, Dudley, Wayne County, North Carolina; Louisiana Pacific Corp.,
Roaring River, Wilkes County, North Carolina; and American Drew, Inc.,
Plant 13, Wilkes County, North Carolina, for subpart DDDD of this Part-
National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants: Plywood and
Composite Wood Products. This action is contingent upon NC DENR
including, in title V permits, terms and conditions that are no less
stringent than the Federal standard. In addition, the requirements
applicable to the sources remain the Federal section 112 requirements
until EPA has approved the alternative permit terms and conditions and
the final title V permit is issued.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. E9-28969 Filed 12-3-09; 8:45 am]
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