[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 32 (Tuesday, February 18, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9204-9205]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-03427]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-9906-90-OGC]


Proposed Consent Decree, Clean Air Act Citizen Suit

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of proposed consent decree; request for public comment.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with section 113(g) of the Clean Air Act, as 
amended (``CAA'' or the ``Act''), notice is hereby given of a proposed 
consent decree to address a lawsuit filed by Sierra Club in the United 
States District Court for the District of Columbia: Sierra Club v. 
McCarthy, Civil Action No. 1:13-cv-00385 (BAH) (D.D.C.). On March 25, 
2013, Plaintiff filed a complaint, and on June 7, 2013 filed an amended 
complaint, alleging that Gina McCarthy, in her official capacity as 
Administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency 
(``EPA''), failed to: (a) Take timely final action to approve, 
disapprove, or partially approve/disapprove a State Implementation Plan 
(``SIP'') submission made by Georgia on July 20, 2010 addressing 
Georgia Rule for Air Quality 391-3-1-.02(uuu) and (b) take action, 
within 60 days after they were filed, granting or denying several 
petitions submitted by Sierra Club requesting that EPA object to CAA 
Title V permits issued by the Georgia Environmental Protection Division 
for Georgia Power Company's Scherer Steam-Electric Generating Plant, 
Hammond Steam-Electric Generating Plant, Wansley Steam-Electric 
Generating Plant, Kraft Steam-Electric Generating Plant, and McIntosh 
Steam-Electric Generating Plant. The proposed consent decree would 
establish deadlines for EPA to take such actions.

DATES: Written comments on the proposed consent decree must be received 
by March 20, 2014.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID number EPA-HQ-
OGC-2014-0150, online at www.regulations.gov (EPA's preferred method); 
by email to [email protected]; by mail to EPA Docket Center, 
Environmental Protection Agency, Mailcode: 2822T, 1200 Pennsylvania 
Ave. NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001; or by hand delivery or courier to 
EPA Docket Center, EPA West, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW., 
Washington, DC, between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, 
excluding legal holidays. Comments on a disk or CD-ROM should be 
formatted in Word or ASCII file, avoiding the use of special characters 
and any form of encryption, and may be mailed to the mailing address 
above.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Karen Bennett Bianco, Air and 
Radiation Law Office (2344A), Office of General Counsel, U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW., 
Washington, DC 20460; telephone: (202) 564-3298; fax number: (202) 564-
5603; email address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Additional Information About the Proposed Consent Decree

    The proposed consent decree would resolve a lawsuit filed by Sierra 
Club seeking to compel the Administrator to take actions under CAA 
sections 110(k)(2), (3) and 505(b)(2). Under the terms of the proposed 
consent decree, EPA would agree to sign a notice of final rulemaking to 
approve, disapprove, or approve in part and disapprove in part 
Georgia's July 20, 2010 SIP Submittal addressing Georgia Rule for Air 
Quality 391-3-1-.02(uuu) (``GA SIP'') no later than November 16, 2016, 
unless Georgia withdraws its July 20, 2010 SIP submittal. The proposed 
consent decree also states that no later than April 14, 2014, EPA shall 
sign its response granting or denying the Sierra Club petitions 
regarding Georgia Power Company's Scherer Steam-Electric Generating 
Plant, Permit No. 4911-207-0008-V-03-0, Hammond Steam-Electric 
Generating Plant, Permit No. 4911-115-0003-V-03-0, Wansley Steam-
Electric Generating Plan, Permit No. 4911-149-0001-V-03-0, Kraft Steam-
Generating Plant, Permit No. 4911-051-0006-V-03-0, and McIntosh Steam-
Electric Generating Plant, Permit No. 4911-103-0003-V-03-0, pursuant to 
section 505(b)(2) of the CAA.
    Under the terms of the proposed consent decree, EPA will deliver 
notice of each action to the Office of the Federal Register for review 
and publication within 15 business days of signature. In addition, the 
proposed consent decree outlines the procedure for the Plaintiff to 
request costs of litigation, including attorney fees.
    For a period of thirty (30) days following the date of publication 
of this notice, the Agency will accept written comments relating to the 
proposed consent decree from persons who are not named as parties or 
intervenors to the litigation in question. EPA or the Department of 
Justice may withdraw or withhold consent to the proposed consent decree 
if the comments disclose facts or considerations that indicate that 
such consent is inappropriate, improper, inadequate, or inconsistent 
with the requirements of the Act. Unless EPA or the Department of 
Justice determines that consent to this consent decree should be 
withdrawn, the terms of the consent decree will be affirmed.

II. Additional Information About Commenting on the Proposed Consent 
Decree

A. How can I get a copy of the consent decree?

    The official public docket for this action (identified by Docket ID 
No. EPA-HQ-OGC-2014-0150) contains a copy of the proposed consent 
decree. The official public docket is available for public viewing at 
the Office of Environmental Information (OEI) Docket in the EPA Docket 
Center, EPA West, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW., Washington, 
DC. The EPA Docket Center Public Reading Room is 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 OEI Docket is (202) 566-1752.
    An electronic version of the public docket is available through 
www.regulations.gov. You may use www.regulations.gov to submit or view 
public comments, access the index listing of the contents of the 
official public docket, and access those documents in the public docket 
that are available electronically. Once in the system, key in the 
appropriate docket identification number then select ``search''.
    It is important to note that EPA's policy is that public comments, 
whether submitted electronically or in paper,

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will be made available for public viewing online at www.regulations.gov 
without change, unless the comment contains copyrighted material, CBI, 
or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. 
Information claimed as CBI and other information whose disclosure is 
restricted by statute is not included in the official public docket or 
in the electronic public docket. EPA's policy is that copyrighted 
material, including copyrighted material contained in a public comment, 
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 materials through 
the EPA Docket Center.

B. How and to whom do i submit comments?

    You may submit comments as provided in the ADDRESSES section. 
Please ensure that your comments are submitted within the specified 
comment period. Comments received after the close of the comment period 
will be marked ``late.'' EPA is not required to consider these late 
comments.
    If you submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you 
include your name, mailing address, and an email address or other 
contact information in the body of your comment and with any disk or CD 
ROM you submit. This ensures that you can be identified as the 
submitter of the comment and allows EPA to contact you in case EPA 
cannot read your comment due to technical difficulties or needs further 
information on the substance of your comment. Any identifying or 
contact information provided in the body of a comment will be included 
as part of the comment that is placed in the official public docket, 
and made available in EPA's electronic public docket. 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.
    Use of the www.regulations.gov Web site to submit comments to EPA 
electronically is EPA's preferred method for receiving comments. The 
electronic public docket system is an ``anonymous access'' system, 
which means EPA will not know your identity, email address, or other 
contact information unless you provide it in the body of your comment. 
In contrast to EPA's electronic public docket, EPA's electronic mail 
(email) system is not an ``anonymous access'' system. If you send an 
email comment directly to the Docket without going through 
www.regulations.gov, your email address is automatically captured and 
included as part of the comment that is placed in the official public 
docket, and made available in EPA's electronic public docket.

    Dated: February 7, 2014.
Lorie J. Schmidt,
Associate General Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2014-03427 Filed 2-14-14; 8:45 am]
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