[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 128 (Tuesday, July 3, 2012)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 39458-39459]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-16301]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R03-OAR-2012-0436; FRL-9696-7]


Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; 
West Virginia; Section 110(a)(2) Infrastructure Requirements for the 
2008 Lead National Ambient Air Quality Standards

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: EPA is proposing to approve a State Implementation Plan (SIP) 
revision submitted by West Virginia. This SIP revision provides the 
basic program elements specified in Clean Air Act (CAA) section 
110(a)(2) necessary to implement, maintain, and enforce the 2008 lead 
national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS).

DATES: Written comments must be received on or August 2, 2012.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID Number EPA-
R03-OAR-2012-0436 by one of the following methods:
    A. www.regulations.gov. Follow the on-line instructions for 
submitting comments.
    B. Email: [email protected].
    C. Mail: EPA-R03-OAR-2012-0436, Donna Mastro, Acting Associate 
Director, Office of Air Program Planning, Mailcode 3AP30, U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency, Region III, 1650 Arch Street, 
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103.
    D. Hand Delivery: At the previously-listed EPA Region III address. 
Such deliveries are only accepted during the Docket's normal hours of 
operation, and special arrangements should be made for deliveries of 
boxed information.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-R03-OAR-
2012-0436. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included 
in the public docket without change, and may be made available online 
at 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 information that you consider to 
be CBI or otherwise protected through www.regulations.gov or email. The 
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 email comment 
directly to EPA without going through www.regulations.gov, your email 
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.
    Docket: All documents in the electronic docket are listed in the 
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 www.regulations.gov or 
in hard copy during normal business hours at the Air Protection 
Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region III, 1650 Arch 
Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103. Copies of the State submittal 
are available at the West Virginia Department of Environmental 
Protection, Division of Air Quality, 601 57th Street SE., Charleston, 
West Virginia 25304.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Emlyn V[eacute]lez-Rosa, (215) 814-
2038, or by email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, whenever ``we,'' 
``us,'' or ``our'' is used, we mean EPA.

I. Background

    On October 15, 2008, EPA substantially strengthened the primary and 
secondary lead NAAQS (hereafter the ``2008 lead NAAQS''), revising the 
level of the primary (health-based) standard from 1.5 micrograms per 
cubic meter ([mu]g/m3) to 0.15 [mu]g/m3, measured as total suspended 
particles (TSP), not to be exceeded with an averaging time of a rolling 
3-month period. EPA also revised the secondary (welfare-based) standard 
to be identical to the primary standard, as well as the associated 
ambient air monitoring requirements. See 40 CFR 50.16.
    Section 110(a) of the CAA requires states to submit SIP revisions 
that provide for the implementation, maintenance, and enforcement of 
new or revised NAAQS within 3 years following the promulgation of such 
NAAQS. Section 110(a)(2) of the CAA lists specific elements that states 
must meet or continue to meet in these SIP submissions. Under this 
section, the CAA directs all states to develop and maintain an air 
quality management infrastructure that includes enforceable emission 
limitations, an ambient monitoring program, an enforcement program, air 
quality modeling capabilities, and adequate personnel, resources, and 
legal authority.
    For the 2008 lead NAAQS, states typically have met many of the 
basic program elements required in CAA section 110(a)(2) through 
earlier SIP submissions in connection with previous lead NAAQS. 
Nevertheless, pursuant to CAA section 110(a)(1), states will have to 
review and revise, as appropriate, their existing lead NAAQS SIPs to 
ensure that the SIPs are adequate to address the 2008 lead NAAQS. 
States must provide SIP submissions, or provide a certification that 
the SIP addresses the elements in section 110(a)(2)(A) through (M) of 
the CAA. To assist states in meeting this statutory requirement, EPA 
issued a guidance on October 14, 2011, entitled, ``Guidance on 
Infrastructure State Implementation Plan (SIP) Elements Required Under 
sections 110(a)(1) and 110(a) (2) for the 2008 Lead (Pb) National 
Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS)'' (hereafter the ``2011 Lead 
Infrastructure Guidance''), which lists the basic elements that states 
must include in their SIPs for the 2008 lead NAAQS.

II. Summary of State Submittal

    On October 26, 2011, the West Virginia Department of Environmental 
Protection (WVDEP) provided a submittal to satisfy the requirements of 
section 110(a)(2) of the CAA for the

[[Page 39459]]

2008 lead NAAQS. This submittal addressed the following infrastructure 
elements, which EPA is proposing to approve: CAA section 110(a)(2)(A), 
(B), (C), (D), (E), (F), (G), (H), (J), (K), (L), and (M), or portions 
thereof. A detailed summary of EPA's review and rationale for approving 
West Virginia's submittal may be found in the Technical Support 
Document (TSD) for this proposed rulemaking action, which is available 
online at www.regulations.gov, Docket number EPA-R03-OAR-2012-0436.

III. Proposed Action

    EPA is proposing to approve West Virginia's SIP revision that 
provides the basic program elements specified in CAA section 110(a)(2) 
necessary to implement, maintain, and enforce the 2008 lead NAAQS. This 
SIP revision was submitted on October 26, 2011. This action does not 
include the sections, or portions thereof, of 110(a)(2)(C) and 
110(a)(2)(I) of the CAA which pertain to the nonattainment requirements 
of part D, Title I of the CAA, since these two elements are not 
required to be submitted by the 3-year submission deadline of CAA 
section 110(a)(1), and will be addressed in a separate process. 
Additionally, EPA is taking separate action on the portions of CAA 
section 110(a)(2) infrastructure elements for the 2008 lead NAAQS as 
they relate to West Virginia's PSD program, as required by part C of 
Title I of the CAA. This includes portions of the following 
infrastructure elements: CAA section 110(a)(2)(C), (D) and (J). EPA is 
soliciting public comments on the issues discussed in this document. 
These comments will be considered before taking final action.

IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    Under the CAA, the Administrator is required to approve a SIP 
submission that complies with the provisions of the CAA and applicable 
Federal regulations. 42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a). Thus, in 
reviewing SIP submissions, EPA's role is to approve state choices, 
provided that they meet the criteria of the CAA. Accordingly, this 
action merely proposes to approve state law as meeting Federal 
requirements and does not impose additional requirements beyond those 
imposed by state law. For that reason, this proposed 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 proposed rule does not have tribal implications 
as specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000), 
because the SIP 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.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Reporting and 
recordkeeping requirements.

    Authority:  42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.

    Dated: June 21, 2012.
W.C. Early,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region III.
[FR Doc. 2012-16301 Filed 7-2-12; 8:45 am]
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