[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 205 (Thursday, October 23, 2014)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 63332-63335]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-24753]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R09-OAR-2012-0542; FRL-9917-77-Region 9]


Approval of Air Quality Implementation Plans; California; 
Imperial County; Ozone Precursor Emissions Inventories

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Direct final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving 
revisions to California's State Implementation Plan (SIP) for Imperial 
County that address Clean Air Act (CAA) requirements concerning ozone 
precursor emissions inventories of volatile organic compounds and 
oxides of nitrogen. These emissions inventories were submitted by 
California to meet CAA requirements for Imperial County, which was 
designated as a moderate nonattainment areas under the 1997 8-hour 
ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard.

DATES: This action will be effective on December 22, 2014, without 
further notice, unless EPA receives adverse comments by November 24, 
2014. If we receive such comments, we will publish a timely withdrawal 
in the Federal Register to notify the public that this rule will not 
take effect and that we will respond to submitted comments and take 
subsequent final action.

ADDRESSES: Submit comments, identified by docket number EPA-R09-OAR-
2012-0542, by one of the following methods:
    1. Federal eRulemaking Portal: www.regulations.gov. Follow the on-
line instructions.
    2. Email: [email protected].
    3. Mail or delivery: Jerry Wamsley, Air Division (AIR-2), U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency--Region 9, 75 Hawthorne Street, San 
Francisco, CA 94105.
    Instructions: All comments 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 Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information 
whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Information that you 
consider CBI or otherwise protected should be clearly identified as 
such and should not be submitted through www.regulations.gov or email. 
www.regulations.gov is an ``anonymous access'' system, and EPA will not 
know your identity or contact information unless you provide it in the 
body of your comment. If you send email directly to EPA, your email 
address will be automatically captured and included as part of the 
public comment. 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.
    Docket: 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 in 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 below.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jerry Wamsley, Air Division, U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency--Region 9, (415) 947-4111, or via 
email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: For the purpose of this document, we are 
giving meaning to certain words or abbreviations described here. The 
words or abbreviation ``the Act'' or ``CAA'' mean or refer to the Clean 
Air Act, unless the context indicates otherwise. The terms ``we,'' 
``us,'' and ``our'' refer to the United States Environmental Protection 
Agency.

Table of Contents

I. Background
II. California's Submittal
III. Today's Action
    A. Ozone Precursors Emissions Inventories
IV. Final Action
V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. Background

    Ground-level ozone is formed when oxides of nitrogen 
(NOX) and volatile organic compounds (VOC) react in the 
presence of sunlight. Referred to as

[[Page 63333]]

ozone precursor compounds, these two pollutants are emitted by many 
types of pollution sources, including on- and off-road motor vehicles 
and engines, power plants and industrial facilities, and area-wide 
sources, such as consumer products and lawn and garden equipment. 
Scientific evidence indicates that adverse public health effects occur 
following a person's exposure to ozone, particularly children and 
adults with lung disease. Breathing air containing ozone can reduce 
lung function and inflame airways, which can increase respiratory 
symptoms and aggravate asthma or other lung diseases.\1\ As a 
consequence of this scientific evidence, we promulgated the 0.12 part 
per million (ppm) 1-hour ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard 
(NAAQS) in 1979 (44 FR 8202, February 8, 1979).
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    \1\ See ``Fact Sheet, Proposal To Revise the National Ambient 
Air Quality Standards for Ozone,'' January 6, 2010 and 75 FR 2938, 
January 19, 2010.
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    On July 18, 1997, EPA promulgated a revised ozone NAAQS of 0.08 
ppm, averaged over eight hours (62 FR 38855). This standard was 
determined to be more protective of public health and more stringent 
than the previous 1979 1-hour ozone standard. On April 30, 2004, we 
designated areas as attaining or not attaining the 1997 8-hour ozone 
NAAQS and classified Imperial County as a marginal non-attainment area 
with an applicable attainment date of June 15, 2007 (69 FR 23858). On 
February 13, 2008, EPA found that Imperial County failed to attain the 
1997 8-hour ozone standard by this June 15, 2007 deadline (73 FR 8209). 
Consequently, Imperial County was reclassified by operation of law as a 
moderate ozone non-attainment area with a new attainment date of as 
expeditiously as practicable, but no later than June 15, 2010.
    Subsequently, EPA revised the 8-hour ozone NAAQS from 0.08 to 0.075 
ppm (73 FR 16436, March 27, 2008). We finalized designations for the 
2008 8-hour ozone standard on May 21, 2012 (77 FR 30088). Imperial 
County was designated marginal for the more stringent 8-hour ozone 
standard. In a separate and future rulemaking, EPA will finalize the 
requirements that must be implemented as part of meeting the 2008 8-
hour ozone standard.\2\ In this action today, however, we are 
addressing requirements related to the 1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS only.
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    \2\ EPA published the proposed rule concerning implementation of 
the 8-hour 2008 ozone NAAQS on June 6, 2013, (78 FR 34178). The 
public comment period on this implementation rule closed on August 
5, 2013. EPA is reviewing comments and intends to publish a final 
rule in the near future.
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    On December 3, 2009, EPA published our determination that Imperial 
County had met the 1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS based on certified ambient 
air monitoring data for the 2006-2008 monitoring period (74 FR 
63309).\3\ Pursuant to 40 CFR 51.918 and this clean data determination, 
EPA suspended the requirements for Imperial County and California to 
submit the following air quality plan elements: An attainment 
demonstration, reasonably available control measures, a reasonable 
further progress plan, and contingency measures. These requirements 
remain suspended for so long as Imperial County continues to attain the 
1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS. Under CAA section 172(c)(3), Imperial County 
is required to submit emissions inventories for VOC and NOX. 
These ozone precursor emissions inventories are the subject of today's 
action.
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    \3\ For further discussion of our clean data determination and 
application of our Clean Data Policy, see our proposed rule at 74 FR 
48495, (September 23, 2009).
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II. California's Submittal

    On December 21, 2010, California submitted Imperial County's 
``Final 2009 1997 8-hour Ozone Modified Air Quality Management Plan'' 
(2009 Ozone AQMP) to EPA for incorporation into the SIP.\4\ Imperial 
County adopted the 2009 Ozone AQMP on July 13, 2010 and the California 
Air Resources Board (CARB) adopted the plan on November 18, 2010.\5\ 
The Imperial County and CARB adoptions were each preceded by a 30-day 
public comment period, therefore, the State has met the requirement for 
adequate public notice.
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    \4\ See letter from Lynn Terry (for James Goldstene), California 
Air Resources Board to Jared Blumenfeld, EPA-Region 9, dated 
December 21, 2010, included in the docket for this rulemaking.
    \5\ See the Imperial County Board of Supervisor's ``Minute Order 
of the Air Pollution Control Board'', Number 15, dated July 13, 
2010, and California Air Resources Board, Resolution 10-35, dated 
November 18, 2010, included in the docket for this rulemaking.
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    As explained earlier, the elements of California's 2009 Ozone AQMP 
that we are acting on today consist of 2002 base year VOC and 
NOX emissions inventories. These emissions inventories and 
the 2009 Ozone AQMP as a whole were complete by operation of law on 
June 21, 2011.\6\
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    \6\ If we do not determine a submittal to be complete within 6 
months of its submittal, it is deemed to be complete by operation of 
law. See 40 CFR part 51, appendix V for the completeness criteria 
applied to SIP submittals.
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III. Today's Action

    EPA is approving the 2002 VOC and NOX emissions 
inventories elements of the 2009 Ozone AQMP that California submitted 
to address moderate nonattainment area requirements for Imperial County 
under the 1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS. Our rationale and basis for this 
action is discussed below.

A. Ozone Precursors Emissions Inventories

    A comprehensive, accurate and current inventory of actual emissions 
from all sources of the relevant pollutant or pollutants is required by 
CAA sections 172(c)(3). Imperial County's 2009 Ozone AQMP includes 
complete VOC and NOX emissions inventories for the base year 
of 2002.\7\ Emissions from different source types vary by season, time 
of day, or day of the week. The months from May through October are 
known as the ``summer planning inventory'' and are the months when 
ozone formation is pronounced and exceedances of ozone air quality 
standards are most likely to occur. Consequently, California used the 
summer planning emissions inventory for the 2009 Ozone AQMP to provide 
a worst case representation and a daily emissions inventory in tons per 
day (tpd). This summer planning inventory includes data for the 
pollutants reactive organic gas (ROG) and NOX, the two 
primary precursors in the formation of ground-level ozone pollution.\8\ 
We have summarized Imperial County's 2002 base year emissions 
inventories for ozone precursors in Table 1.
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    \7\ 2002 is the designated base year for SIP planning purposes 
under the 1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS. See Memorandum of November 18, 
2002, from Lydia Wegman and Peter Tsirigotis, ``2002 Base Year 
Emission Inventory SIP Planning: 8-hour Ozone, PM2.5 and 
Regional Haze Programs'' and 70 FR 71612, (November 29, 2005), EPA's 
Phase II implementation rule for the 1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS.
    \8\ The California Air Resources Board (CARB) uses the term 
reactive organic gases (ROG) for planning and inventory purposes and 
uses it synonymously with its own definition of ``volatile organic 
compound'' for regulatory purposes.

[[Page 63334]]



  Table 1--Imperial County, California: 2002 Emissions Inventories for Reactive Organic Gas (ROG) and Oxides of
                                     Nitrogen (NOX) by Major Source Category
                                                 [Tons per day]
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                                                                    Percent of                      Percent of
                 Source category                        ROG            total            NOX            total
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Stationary Sources:
    Fuel combustion.............................            0.12            0.32            3.57            9.54
    Waste Disposal..............................            0.02            0.05            0.00            0.00
    Cleaning and Surface Coatings...............            0.42            1.13            0.00            0.00
    Petroleum Pro. and Marketing................            0.65            1.74            0.00            0.00
    Industrial Processes........................            0.07            0.19            0.03            0.08
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
        Subtotals...............................            1.28            3.43            3.60            9.62
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Area-Wide Sources:
    Solvent Evaporation.........................            9.01           24.14            0.00            0.00
    Miscellaneous Processes.....................           11.81           31.65            0.92            2.46
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
        Subtotals...............................           20.82           55.79            0.92            2.46
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Mobile Sources:
    On-Road.....................................            8.77           23.50           20.21           53.99
    Off-Road Vehicles...........................            6.45           17.28           12.70           33.93
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
        Subtotals...............................           15.22           40.78           32.91           87.92
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
            Totals for Imperial County..........           37.32          100.00           37.43          100.00
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Source: 2009 Ozone AQMP, Table 4-1, Page 26.

    California develops a complete emissions inventory every year and 
assembles and maintains this inventory in the California Emission 
Inventory Development and Reporting System (CEIDARS) and the California 
Emission Forecasting System (CEFS). All reportable sources are 
categorized as either stationary, area-wide, or mobile. Stationary 
sources of air pollution include sources such as power plants, 
refineries, and manufacturing facilities and are facilities that are 
typically required by California to acquire and maintain a permit to 
operate. These sources directly report their emissions to California, 
which in-turn uses this data to compile a complete emissions inventory 
for air pollution control districts, such as Imperial County.
    Area-wide sources of emissions are those where the emissions are 
spread throughout the nonattainment area, such as consumer products and 
farming operations. California uses a variety of methods to estimate 
emissions for approximately 500 area-wide emission sources. A complete 
compilation of these methodologies can be obtained from http://www.arb.ca.gov/ei/areasrc/index0.htm.
    Mobile source emissions are further divided into on-road sources 
and off-road sources. On-road sources include passenger cars, school 
buses, and trucks. Off-road sources include construction equipment, 
garden equipment, boats, and outdoor recreational vehicles. California 
is continually updating and improving its official model to estimate 
emissions from mobile sources. Although California released its 
EMFAC2011 model, the State used its EMFAC2007 model to develop the 2002 
base year emissions for on-road sources.\9\ At the time of the 
development of this 2002 emissions inventory for ROG and 
NOX, EMFAC2007 was the latest EPA approved mobile source 
emissions model. California used its OFFROAD2007 model to develop 
emissions from off-road sources for the 2002 base year emissions 
inventory.\10\ \11\
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    \9\ On January 18, 2008, EPA approved and announced the 
availability of EMFAC 2007 Motor Vehicle Emission Factor Model for 
use in SIP development in the State of California (73 FR 3464).
    \10\ The OFFROAD2007 model is now replaced by category specific 
methods and inventory models developed for specific regulatory 
support projects.
    \11\ Further information on California's official mobile source 
inventory models, as well as links to the mobile source emissions 
databases, can be obtained from http://www.arb.ca.gov/msei/msei.htm.
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    We have evaluated Imperial County's base year 2002 emissions 
inventory shown in Table 1 by verifying this inventory for consistency 
with past and current emissions inventories and spot-checking the 
accuracy of the emissions inventory from raw data and accepted 
emissions factors and estimation methods. We find the 2002 base-year 
inventory to be a comprehensive and accurate representation of actual 
emissions and approve it as meeting the requirements of the CAA and EPA 
guidance.
    The on-road motor vehicle emission inventories for VOC and 
NOX that we are approving today do not change our previous 
actions concerning the motor vehicle emissions budgets used for 
determining the conformity of federally-funded transportation plans, 
programs, and projects in Imperial County, per section 176(c) of the 
CAA. In May 2008, we found the 2009 motor vehicle emissions budgets 
within the ``Imperial County 8-hour Ozone Early Progress Plan'' to be 
adequate for the purpose of determining transportation conformity: 7 
tons per day of VOC; and 17 tons per day of NOX.\12\ State 
transportation and metropolitan planning agencies should continue to 
use these motor vehicle emissions budgets for determining the 
conformity of federally funded transportation plans, programs and 
projects within the Imperial County ozone non-attainment area.
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    \12\ See 73 FR 24594, (May 5, 2008).
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IV. Final Action

    EPA is approving the 2002 VOC and NOX emissions 
inventories within Chapter 4 of Imperial County's 2009 Ozone AQMP. EPA 
is approving these emissions inventories because they meet the 
requirements of the CAA and EPA guidance.

[[Page 63335]]

V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    This action approves a SIP revision that meets certain emissions 
inventories requirements for the 1997 8-hour ozone standard. This 
action would 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 approval of an emissions inventories SIP revision 
for the Imperial County non-attainment area of California 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, 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 CAA, petitions for judicial review of 
this action must be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for the 
appropriate circuit by December 22, 2014. Filing a petition for 
reconsideration by the Administrator of this final rule do not affect 
the finality of these actions 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. 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 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) of the 
CAA.)

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Incorporation by 
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Oxides of nitrogen, Ozone, 
Volatile organic compounds, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

    Dated: September 24, 2014.
Jared Blumenfeld,
Regional Administrator, EPA Region 9.
    Part 52, Chapter I, Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations is 
amended as follows:

PART 52--APPROVAL AND PROMULGATION OF IMPLEMENTATION PLANS

0
1. The authority citation for part 52 continues to read as follows:

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

Subpart F--California

0
2. Section 52.220 is amended by adding paragraph (c)(445) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  52.220  Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (c) * * *
    (445) A plan revision submitted on December 21, 2010 by the 
Governor's Designee.
    (i) [Reserved]
    (ii) Additional materials.
    (A) State of California Air Resources Board.
    (1) California Air Resources Board Resolution No. 10-35, adopted 
November 18, 2010.
    (B) Imperial County Air Pollution Control District.
    (1) Imperial County Air Pollution Control Board, Minute Order No. 
15, adopted July 13, 2010.
    (2) Chapter 4--Emission Inventory, in ``Imperial County 2009 1997 
8-Hour Ozone Modified Air Quality Management Plan'', adopted on July 
13, 2010.

[FR Doc. 2014-24753 Filed 10-22-14; 8:45 am]
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