[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 13 (Thursday, January 21, 2010)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 3392-3394]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-1120]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 55

[EPA-R10-OAR-2009-0799; FRL-9095-8]


Outer Continental Shelf Air Regulations Consistency Update for 
Alaska

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Direct final rule.

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SUMMARY: EPA is taking direct final action to include in the 
regulations the revised applicability dates in the emissions user fees 
provision in 18 AAC 50.410. Requirements applying to Outer Continental 
Shelf (``OCS'') sources located within 25 miles of States' seaward 
boundaries must be updated periodically to remain consistent with the 
emission user fee requirements of the corresponding onshore area 
(``COA''), as mandated by section 328(a)(1) of the Clean Air Act (``the 
Act''). The portion of the OCS air regulations that is being updated 
pertains to the requirements for OCS sources operating off of the State 
of Alaska. The intended effect of approving the OCS requirements for 
the State of Alaska is to regulate emissions from OCS sources in a 
manner consistent with the requirements onshore. The change to the 
existing requirements discussed below is incorporated by reference into 
the regulations and is listed in the appendix to the OCS air 
regulations.

DATES: Effective Date: This direct final rule will be effective March 
22, 2010, without further notice, unless EPA receives adverse comment 
by February 22, 2010. If adverse comment is received, EPA will publish 
a timely withdrawal of the direct final rule in the Federal Register 
informing the public that the rule will not take effect.
    This incorporation by reference of certain publications listed in 
this rule is approved by the Director of the Federal Register as of 
March 22, 2010.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments on the direct final portion of this 
action, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R10-OAR-2009-0799, by any of 
the following methods:
     http://www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line 
instructions for submitting comments.
     E-mail: [email protected].
     Mail: Natasha Greaves, EPA Region 10, Office of Air, Waste 
and Toxics, Mail Stop AWT-107, 1200 Sixth Avenue, Suite 900, Seattle 
WA, 98101.
     Hand Delivery/Courier: EPA Region 10, 1200 Sixth Avenue, 
Suite 900, Seattle WA, 98101. Attention: Natasha Greaves, Office of 
Air, Waste and Toxics, AWT--107. Such deliveries are only accepted 
during normal hours of operation, and special arrangements should be 
made for deliveries of boxed information.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-R10-OAR-
2009-0799. 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

[[Page 3393]]

whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit information 
that you consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through http://www.regulations.gov or e-mail. 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.
    EPA has established a docket for the direct final action under 
Docket ID No. EPA-R10-OAR-2009-0799. The index to the docket is 
available electronically at http://www.regulations.gov or in hard copy 
at the Office of Air, Waste and Toxics, U.S. Environmental Protection 
Agency, Region 10, 1200 Sixth Avenue, Seattle, Washington 98101. While 
all documents in the docket are listed in the index, some information 
may be publically available only at the hard copy location (e.g., 
copyrighted materials), and some may not be publicly available in 
either location (e.g., Confidential Business Information). To inspect 
the hard copy materials, please schedule an appointment during normal 
business hours with the contact listed in the FOR FURTHER INFROMATION 
CONTACT section.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Natasha Greaves, Federal and Delegated 
Air Programs Unit, Office of Air, Waste, and Toxics, U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, Region 10, 1200 Sixth Avenue, Suite 900, Mail Stop: 
AWT-107, Seattle, WA 98101; telephone number: (206) 553-7079; e-mail 
address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, the terms ``we,'' 
``us,'' and ``our'' refer to the U.S. EPA. Organization of this 
document: The following outline is provided to aid in locating 
information in this preamble

Table of Contents

I. Background Information
II. EPA Action
III. Administrative Requirements

I. Background Information

    On September 4, 1992, EPA promulgated 40 CFR part 55,\1\ which 
established requirements to control air pollution from OCS sources in 
order to attain and maintain Federal and State ambient air quality 
standards and to comply with the provisions of part C of title I of the 
Act. Part 55 applies to all OCS sources offshore of the States except 
those located in the Gulf of Mexico west of 87.5 degrees longitude. 
Section 328 of the Act requires that for such sources located within 25 
miles of a State's seaward boundary, the requirements shall be the same 
as would be applicable if the sources were located in the COA. Because 
the OCS requirements are based on onshore requirements, and onshore 
requirements may change, section 328(a)(1) requires that EPA update the 
OCS requirements as necessary to maintain consistency with onshore 
requirements.
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    \1\ The reader may refer to the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, 
December 5, 1991 (56 FR 63774), and the preamble to the final rule 
promulgated September 4, 1992 (57 FR 40792) for further background 
and information on the OCS regulations.
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    Section 328(a) of the Act requires that EPA establish requirements 
to control air pollution from OCS sources located within 25 miles of 
States' seaward boundaries that are the same as onshore requirements. 
To comply with this statutory mandate, EPA must incorporate applicable 
onshore rules into part 55. This limits EPA's flexibility in deciding 
which requirements will be incorporated into part 55 and prevents EPA 
from making substantive changes to the requirements it incorporates. As 
a result, EPA may be incorporating rules into part 55 that do not 
conform to all of EPA's State Implementation Plan (``SIP'') guidance or 
certain requirements of the Act. Consistency updates may result in the 
inclusion of State or local rules or regulations into part 55, even 
though the same rules may ultimately be disapproved for inclusion as 
part of the SIP. Inclusion in the OCS rule does not imply that a rule 
meets the requirements of the Act for SIP approval, nor does it imply 
that the rule will be approved by EPA for inclusion in the SIP.
    On March 3, 2009, (74 FR 1980), EPA proposed to approve 
requirements into the OCS Air Regulations pertaining to the State of 
Alaska. These requirements were promulgated in response to the 
submittal of a Notice of Intent on January 9, 2009, by Shell Offshore, 
Inc. of Houston, Texas. Subsequent to EPA's March 3, 2009 proposed 
changes to 40 CFR part 55, the State of Alaska adopted regulation 
changes in Title 18, Chapter 50 of the Alaska Administrative Code 
(``ACC''). More specifically, as amended through June 18, 2009, Alaska 
revised the Air Emission User Fee provision in 18 AAC 50.410 to extend 
the date through which the current emission fee rates apply to 
stationary sources permitted under AS 46.14 from to June 30, 2009 to 
June 30, 2010 and clarified that the fee applies annually. This direct 
final action relates only to the air emission user fee provision in 18 
AAC 50.410.
    EPA has evaluated the proposed requirements to ensure that they are 
rationally related to the attainment or maintenance of federal or state 
ambient air quality standards or part C of title I of the Act, that 
they are not designed expressly to prevent exploration and development 
of the OCS, and that they are applicable to OCS sources. 40 CFR 55.1. 
EPA has also evaluated the rules to ensure that they are not arbitrary 
or capricious. 40 CFR 55.12(e). In addition, EPA has excluded 
administrative or procedural rules.
    Today EPA is taking direct final action to incorporate 18 AAC 
50.410 as amended through June 18, 2009. This direct final rule will be 
effective March 22, 2010, without further notices, unless EPA receives 
adverse comment by February 22, 2010. If adverse comment is received, 
EPA will publish a timely withdrawal of the direct final rule 
incorporating 18 AAC 50.410 as amended through June 18, 2009 in the 
Federal Register informing the public that the rule will not take 
effect.

II. EPA Action

    In this document, EPA takes direct final action to incorporate 18 
AAC 50.410, as amended through June 18, 2009, into 40 CFR part 55. As 
described above, EPA is approving the action under section 328(a)(1) of 
the Act, 42 U.S.C. 7627. Section 328(a) of the Act requires that EPA 
establish requirements to control air pollution from OCS sources 
located within 25 miles of states' seaward boundaries that are the same 
as onshore requirements. To comply with this statutory mandate, EPA 
incorporates applicable onshore rules into part 55 as they exist 
onshore.

III. Administrative Requirements

    Under the Clean Air Act, the Administrator is required to establish 
requirements to control air pollution from OCS sources located within 
25 miles of States' seaward boundaries that are the same as onshore air 
control

[[Page 3394]]

requirements. To comply with this statutory mandate, EPA must 
incorporate applicable onshore rules into part 55 as they exist 
onshore. 42 U.S.C. 7627(a)(1); 40 CFR 55.12. Thus, in promulgating OCS 
consistency updates, EPA's role is to maintain consistency between OCS 
regulations and the regulations of onshore areas, provided that they 
meet the criteria of the Clean Air Act. Accordingly, this action simply 
updates the existing OCS requirements to make them consistent with 
requirements onshore, without the exercise of policy discretion by EPA. 
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);
     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 Clean Air Act; 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 it does 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, nor does it impose 
substantial direct compliance costs on tribal governments, nor preempt 
tribal law.
    Under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. 3501 
et seq., an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not 
required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays 
a currently valid OMB control number. OMB has approved the information 
collection requirements contained in 40 CFR part 55 and, by extension, 
this update to the rules, and has assigned OMB control number 2060-
0249. Notice of OMB's approval of EPA Information Collection Request 
(``ICR'') No. 1601.07 was published in the Federal Register on February 
17, 2009 (74 FR 7432). The approval expires January 31, 2012. As EPA 
previously indicated (70 FR 65897-65898 (November 1, 2005)), the annual 
public reporting and recordkeeping burden for collection of information 
under 40 CFR part 55 is estimated to average 549 hours per response, 
using the definition of burden provided in 44 U.S.C. 3502(2).
    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 Clean Air, petitions for judicial 
review of this action must be filed in the United States Court of 
Appeals for the appropriate circuit by March 22, 2010. Filing a 
petition for reconsideration by the Administrator of this final action 
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. 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 55

    Environmental protection, Administrative practice and procedures, 
Air pollution control, Hydrocarbons, Incorporation by reference, 
Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen dioxide, Nitrogen oxides, Outer 
Continental Shelf, Ozone, Particulate matter, Permits, Reporting and 
recordkeeping requirements, Sulfur oxides.

    Dated: December 14, 2009.
Michelle L. Pirzadeh,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 10.

0
Title 40, chapter I of the Code of Federal Regulations, is amended as 
follows:

PART 55--[AMENDED]

0
1. The authority citation for part 55 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: Section 328 of the Act (42 U.S.C. 7401, et seq.) as 
amended by Pub. L. 101-549.


0
2. Section 55.14 is amended by revising paragraph (e)(2)(i)(A) to read 
as follows:


Sec.  55.14  Requirements that apply to OCS sources located within 25 
miles of States' seaward boundaries, by State.

* * * * *
    (e) * * *
    (2) * * *
    (i) * * *
    (A) State of Alaska Requirements Applicable to OCS Sources, June 
18, 2009.
* * * * *


0
3. Appendix A to CFR part 55 is amended under ``Alaska'' by revising 
paragraph (a)(1) introductory text and by revising the entry for ``18 
AAC 50.410'' under article 4 to read as follows:

APPENDIX A TO PART 55--LISTING OF STATE AND LOCAL REQUIREMENTS 
INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE INTO PART 55, BY STATE

* * * * *
    Alaska
    (a) * * *
    (1) The following State of Alaska requirements are applicable to 
OCS Sources, June 18, 2009, Alaska Administrative Code--Department 
of Environmental Conservation. The following sections of Title 18, 
Chapter 50:
* * * * *

Article 4. User Fees

* * * * *
    18 AAC 50.410. Emission Fees (effective 06/18/2009).
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2010-1120 Filed 1-20-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P