[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 149 (Thursday, August 2, 2012)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 45965-45967]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-18666]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R09-OAR-2012-0234; FRL-9708-4]


Determination of Attainment for the Paul Spur/Douglas 
PM10 Nonattainment Area, Arizona; Determination Regarding 
Applicability of Clean Air Act Requirements

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: EPA is finalizing a determination that the Paul Spur/Douglas 
nonattainment area in Arizona is currently attaining the National 
Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) for particulate matter with an 
aerodynamic diameter of less than or equal to a nominal ten micrometers 
(PM10) based on certified, quality-assured ambient air 
monitoring data for the years 2009-2011. Given our determination that 
the Paul Spur/Douglas nonattainment area is currently attaining the 
PM10 NAAQS, EPA is also determining that Arizona's 
obligation to make submissions to meet certain Clean Air Act 
requirements related to attainment of the NAAQS is not applicable for 
as long as the Paul Spur/Douglas nonattainment area continues to attain 
the NAAQS and that the obligation on EPA to promulgate a Federal 
Implementation Plan to address the State's attainment-related 
requirements is also suspended for as

[[Page 45966]]

long as Arizona's underlying obligation is suspended.

DATES:  Effective Date: This rule is effective on September 4, 2012.

ADDRESSES: EPA has established docket number EPA-R09-OAR-2012-0234 for 
this action. The index to the docket for this action is available 
electronically at www.regulations.gov and in hard copy at EPA Region 
IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, California. While all documents 
in the docket are listed in the index, some information may be publicly 
available only at the hard copy location (e.g., copyrighted material), 
and some may not be publicly available at either location (e.g., CBI). 
To inspect the hard copy materials, please schedule an appointment 
during normal business hours with the contact listed in the FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT section.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jerry Wamsley, Air Planning Office, 
AIR-2, EPA Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105-
3901, telephone number: (415) 947-4111, or email address, 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, wherever ``we'', 
``us'' or ``our'' are used, we mean EPA. We are providing the following 
table of contents for ease of locating information in this proposal.

Table of Contents

I. EPA's Proposed Action
II. Public Comments and EPA Responses
III. EPA Action
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. EPA's Proposed Action

    On May 25, 2012, EPA proposed to find that the Paul Spur/Douglas 
nonattainment area (NA) \1\ is currently attaining the 24-hour 
PM10 NAAQS based on certified and quality-assured data from 
the most recent three-year period, 2009-2011, and to suspend certain 
Clean Air Act (CAA) requirements related to attainment for so long as 
the area continues to attain the standard. See 77 FR 31268; (May 25, 
2012).
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    \1\ The Paul Spur/Douglas NA covers approximately 220 square 
miles along the border with Mexico within Cochise County. Cities and 
towns within this area include Douglas, 2010 population 17,378, 
(U.S. Census) and Pirtleville, 2010 population 1,744, (U.S. Census). 
The 2010 population of Agua Prieta, Mexico, just across the border 
from Douglas, is 78,138 (Instituto Nacional de Estadistica y 
Geografia).
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    To summarize our proposed rule, we described the 24-hour 
PM10 NAAQS, which is 150 micrograms per cubic meter ([mu]g/
m\3\), and reviewed the designation and classification of the Paul 
Spur/Douglas NA for that standard. We then discussed how EPA makes 
attainment determinations for PM10 and indicated that the 
24-hour PM10 NAAQS is attained when the expected number of 
exceedances averaged over a three-year period is less than or equal to 
one at each monitoring site within the nonattainment area. See 40 CFR 
part 50, appendix K.
    We described Arizona Department of Environmental Quality's (ADEQ's) 
two PM10 monitoring sites in the Paul Spur/Douglas area. We 
noted that ADEQ's annual network plans have met the applicable 
requirements for such plans, and based on the findings of our technical 
system audit report, ADEQ's monitoring network meets or exceeds the 
applicable requirements. Finally, we noted that ADEQ has certified the 
data it submits to EPA's Air Quality System (AQS) database as quality-
assured.
    Next, we reviewed the ambient PM10 data collected at the 
two PM10 monitoring sites in the Paul Spur/Douglas area for 
the most recent three-year period, 2009-2011. We noted that the highest 
annual 24-hour average PM10 concentrations over the past 
three years ranged from 46 to 85 [mu]g/m\3\ at the Paul Spur monitor 
and from 83 to 138 [mu]g/m\3\ at the Douglas monitor. As a result, we 
concluded that the area is attaining the PM10 standard 
because the expected number of exceedances per year for the Paul Spur/
Douglas NA was less than 1.0. For additional information on the 
PM10 NAAQS, the designation and classification of the Paul 
Spur/Douglas NA, ADEQ's monitoring network plans and certifications, 
the monitoring sites in the Paul Spur/Douglas area, and the data we 
relied on for our clean data finding, please see 77 FR 31269-31271.
    In conjunction with and based on our proposed determination that 
the Paul Spur/Douglas NA is currently attaining the PM10 
NAAQS, EPA proposed to determine that Arizona's obligation to submit 
revisions to the Arizona State Implementation Plan (SIP) to meet the 
following CAA requirements is not applicable for so long as the Paul 
Spur/Douglas NA continues to attain the PM10 standard: The 
part D, subpart 4 obligation to provide an attainment demonstration 
pursuant to section 189(a)(1)(B); the reasonably available control 
measure (RACM) provisions of section 189(a)(1)(C); the reasonable 
further progress (RFP) provisions of section 189(c); and, the 
attainment demonstration, RACM, RFP and contingency measure provisions 
of part D, subpart 1 contained in section 172. We proposed to suspend 
these SIP requirements based on application of the Clean Data Policy to 
the Paul Spur/Douglas NA. In doing so, we noted that our application of 
the Clean Data Policy to the Paul Spur/Douglas NA is consistent with a 
number of actions we have taken for other PM10 nonattainment 
areas that we also determined were attaining the NAAQS. For a detailed 
explanation of our Clean Data Policy and its application to the Paul 
Spur/Douglas NA, please see 77 FR 31271-31273.
    Lastly, we noted that suspension of the State's SIP obligation 
would also serve to suspend EPA's obligation to promulgate a Federal 
Implementation Plan (FIP) to address the same attainment-related 
requirements. See 77 FR 31273-31274.

II. Public Comments and EPA Responses

    EPA's proposed action provided a 30-day public comment period. 
During this period, we received a comment from a private citizen 
expressing a general skepticism of the ability to regulate 
PM10 in a desert environment; no general information and no 
Paul Spur/Douglas NA specific information was provided to support the 
comment. Furthermore, no information was provided to dispute either the 
2009-2011 Paul Spur/Douglas ambient PM10 data, or our 
proposed suspension of attainment-related SIP obligations or the 
related FIP obligations. Therefore, no response is necessary. We note, 
however, that many effective measures exist to reduce dust from 
anthropogenic sources in desert environments, including paving unpaved 
roads and other unpaved surfaces used by motor vehicles, restricting 
off-road vehicle use to a designated time of year and/or location where 
the effects can be mitigated, and stabilizing soil in areas that have 
been disturbed by human activity.

III. EPA Action

    No comments were submitted that change EPA's assessment of the 
2009-2011 ambient PM10 data collected in the Paul Spur/
Douglas NA and related finding that the area is attaining the NAAQS, or 
our application of the Clean Data Policy as described in our proposed 
action. Therefore, EPA is finalizing its determination that the Paul 
Spur/Douglas NA in Arizona is currently attaining the NAAQS for 
PM10.
    EPA is also taking final action to determine that Arizona's 
obligation to make SIP submissions to meet the following CAA 
requirements is not applicable for as long as the Paul Spur/Douglas NA 
continues to attain the PM10 NAAQS: The part D, subpart 4 
obligation to provide an attainment

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demonstration pursuant to section 189(a)(1)(B); the reasonably 
available control measure (RACM) provisions of section 189(a)(1)(C); 
the reasonable further progress (RFP) provisions of section 189(c); 
and, the attainment demonstration, RACM, RFP and contingency measure 
provisions of part D, subpart 1 contained in section 172.
    Lastly, EPA finds that our obligation to promulgate a FIP 
addressing the Paul Spur/Douglas NA attainment-related requirements is 
suspended for as long as the underlying State obligation is suspended.
    This final action does not constitute a redesignation to attainment 
under CAA section 107(d)(3) because Arizona has not submitted a 
maintenance plan and EPA has not approved such a plan for the Paul 
Spur/Douglas NA as meeting the requirements of section 175A of the CAA, 
nor has EPA determined that Arizona has met the other CAA requirements 
for redesignation. The classification and designation status in 40 CFR 
part 81 remains moderate nonattainment for the Paul Spur/Douglas NA 
until such time as EPA determines that Arizona has met the CAA 
requirements for redesignating the Paul Spur/Douglas NA to attainment.

IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    With this action, we are making a determination regarding 
attainment of the PM10 NAAQS based on air quality data and, 
based on this determination, suspending certain Federal requirements. 
Therefore, this action would not impose additional requirements beyond 
those imposed by State law or by the CAA. 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 Clean Air Act; and
     Does not provide EPA with the discretionary authority to 
address disproportionate human health or environmental effects with 
practical, appropriate, and legally permissible methods under Executive 
Order 12898 (59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994).
    In addition, this action does not have Tribal implications as 
specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000), 
because the SIP obligations discussed herein do not apply to Indian 
Tribes and thus 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 October 1, 2012. 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. 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 52

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Incorporation by 
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Particulate matter, Reporting 
and recordkeeping requirements.

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

    Dated: July 20, 2012.
Jared Blumenfeld,
Regional Administrator, EPA Region IX.
[FR Doc. 2012-18666 Filed 8-1-12; 8:45 am]
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