[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 178 (Tuesday, September 15, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 55352-55355]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-23056]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[EPA-HQ-OECA-2015-0628; FRL-9933-77-OECA]
Public Comment on EPA's National Enforcement Initiatives for
Fiscal Years 2017-2019
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of public comment period.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is soliciting public
comment and recommendations on national enforcement initiatives (NEI)
for fiscal years 2017-2019. EPA selects these initiatives every three
years in order to focus federal resources on the most important
environmental problems where noncompliance is a significant
contributing factor and where federal enforcement attention can make a
difference. The current initiatives as well as potential new
initiatives under consideration are described in the SUPPLEMENTARY
INFORMATION section, with additional descriptions and data on current
initiatives available on our Web site: http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/national-enforcement-initiatives.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before October 14, 2015.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments via www.regulations.gov, identified by
Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OECA-2015-0628; FRL-9933-77-OECA. Follow the on-
line instructions for submitting comments.
Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OECA-
2015-0628. 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. 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.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Daniel Palmer, Deputy Director,
Planning Measures and Oversight Division, Office of Enforcement and
Compliance Assurance, Mail Code: M2221A, Environmental Protection
Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone
number: 202-564-5034; fax number: 202-564-0027; email address:
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. What are EPA enforcement and compliance national initiatives?
EPA is soliciting public comment and recommendations on national
enforcement initiatives to be undertaken in fiscal years 2017-2019. EPA
selects these initiatives every three years in order to focus federal
resources on the most important environmental problems
[[Page 55353]]
where noncompliance is a significant contributing factor and where
federal enforcement attention can make a difference. This notice is an
Agency planning document and does not impose any legally binding
requirements on EPA or any outside parties.
II. On what is EPA requesting comment?
EPA's Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance is collecting
comment on which of the current national enforcement initiatives should
continue, be expanded or returned to the standard enforcement program.
Current initiatives may be carried forward, refined or concluded for
the FY 2017-2019 cycle. EPA is also seeking comment on the list of
potential NEIs described above which are currently being considered for
the FY 2017-2019 national enforcement cycle. The public is invited to
propose any other areas for consideration, keeping in mind resource
constraints.
III. What are the current FY 2014-2016 national enforcement initiatives
(which can be extended)?
For the six current initiatives, EPA invites the public to comment
on whether each NEI should continue into the FY 17-19 cycle or return
to the standard enforcement program for completion of remaining work.
EPA also invites comment on whether EPA should add new areas of focus
within those NEIs that are recommended for extension.
(1) Reducing air pollution from the largest sources. This national
enforcement initiative has focused on ensuring that large industrial
facilities comply with the Clean Air Act when building new facilities
or making modifications to existing facilities. In keeping with the
purpose of NEIs to address the largest, highest impact sources of
pollution, this NEI has been centered on industrial sectors with the
largest amounts of air pollution that can significantly impact human
health: Coal fired power plants, as well as acid, glass and cement
manufacturing facilities. Large percentages of facilities in these
sectors are now under enforceable commitments to reduce pollution,
although there are still violating facilities with substantial
pollution. For coal-fired power plants alone, the injunctive relief in
these cases, when fully implemented, will mean reductions in serious
air pollution of nearly 3 million tons each year. Although significant
progress has been made to address noncompliance in several sub-
categories of this initiative, more work may be needed on new cases and
EPA has an on-going commitment to monitor progress under existing
consent agreements to assure that the required actions are implemented
and air pollution reductions from completed enforcement actions
actually occur.
(2) Cutting toxic air pollution. Toxic air pollution from
industrial facilities is a national problem, which is nowhere more
urgent than in the fence line communities that bear the brunt of
unlawful pollution. This national enforcement initiative has focused on
the substantial illegal emissions of hazardous air pollutants (HAPs)
from leaks, flares, and excess emissions at industrial facilities that
are putting neighbors' health at risk. Through active investigations
and use of innovative monitoring technologies, EPA has identified many
violating facilities where toxic air pollution was much greater than
what had previously been estimated. EPA has conducted hundreds of
evaluations and brought numerous enforcement actions to require these
facilities to reduce pollution and to comply with the law. Based on
what we have learned about the sources of the largest toxic emissions
and the causes of the releases, EPA is considering expanding this
initiative into new focus areas and sources where noncompliance is a
growing threat, as described further below.
(3) Assuring energy extraction and production activities comply
with environmental laws. EPA has been working with states to assure
that domestic land-based natural gas extraction and production is done
in an environmentally protective manner and in compliance with
environmental laws. Natural gas development activities in energy rich
areas of the country have led to concerns about increases in air
pollution levels, pollution of surface and ground waters, the safety of
community drinking water supplies, and damage to ecosystems. EPA has
brought a number of high impact enforcement actions to address serious
violations in this industry. This sector continues to develop and
change rapidly, and EPA is continuing to evaluate the best way to
address pollution problems in this sector, including opportunities for
greater use of advanced monitoring.
(4) Reducing pollution from mineral processing operations: Mining
and mineral processing facilities generate more toxic and hazardous
waste than any other industrial sector. Improper handling of those
wastes can lead to expensive cleanups that can cost taxpayers billions
of dollars. This NEI has been focused on the largest and highest risk
mineral processing operations, to ensure that they properly manage
their wastes and have sufficient financial assurance to properly close
facilities. This NEI has resulted in a number of large, high impact
cases to ensure proper handling of these hazardous wastes. By the end
of FY16 many of the highest risk mineral processing facilities are
expected to be under enforceable agreements or orders that will require
them to properly address hazardous waste.
(5) Keeping raw sewage and contaminated stormwater out of our
Nation's waters: Discharges of raw sewage and contaminated stormwater
are a serious pollution problem in waters across the country. Under
this initiative, EPA has tackled significant water pollution problems
within communities that result from Clean Water Act noncompliance. Many
communities with raw sewage discharges are now under enforceable
commitments to reduce pollution, including numerous communities that
have embraced green infrastructure as a solution. Green infrastructure
can provide benefits beyond compliance with the Clean Water Act and can
be more cost effective. EPA will need to continue to monitor
implementation of these long-term agreements, and to adapt them to
changing circumstances and new information, such as the increasing
commitment of cities to implement green infrastructure, changes in
financial capability, or technological advances. Municipal stormwater
pollution also remains an important clean water challenge in
communities around the country.
(6) Preventing animal waste from contaminating surface and ground
water: Animal waste is a significant contributor to serious water
quality issues and can result in environmental and human health risks
such as water quality impairment, fish kills, algal blooms,
contamination of drinking water sources, and transmission of disease-
causing bacteria and parasites associated with food and waterborne
diseases. The focus of this national enforcement initiative has been
reduction of animal waste pollution that impairs our nation's waters,
threatens drinking water sources, and adversely impacts communities.
These impacts are often acutely felt in rural communities of
environmental justice concern. EPA's enforcement strategy for this NEI
has focused on animal agriculture operations that have a big impact or
where action is necessary to ensure that all operations in the sector
play by the same rules. For the future, EPA is considering an updated
strategy
[[Page 55354]]
to explore the use of nutrient recovery technologies that show promise
to reduce water pollution, implementation of instream monitoring to
demonstrate impacts to water quality and identify violations, as well
as new tools to identify the most significant violators.
IV. What are the FY 2017-2019 potential NEIs currently under
consideration?
In addition to evaluating the current NEIs to determine which
should continue and potentially be expanded and which can return to the
standard enforcement program, EPA is also considering new initiatives
for FY 2017-2019. We are very mindful that our resources have been
declining over the past five years, so we need to keep resource
constraints very much in mind as we consider taking on new work. A
brief description and pertinent background information for each
potential new FY 2017-2019 initiative is provided below.
(1) Protecting Communities from Exposure to Toxic Air Emissions.
EPA is currently implementing an air toxics NEI and is considering
expanding the initiative to include emissions from additional sources
and industries. Emissions of toxic air pollutants continue to be a
concern that threatens the health of communities. EPA seeks public
comment on whether to significantly increase our commitment to
addressing this national problem by expanding into one or both of the
following two areas:
Organic Liquid Storage Tanks: In addition to the current areas of
focus--flares and leaks--large storage tanks can be significant sources
of excess air emissions at many sites, including terminals, refineries,
and chemical plants. Using advanced monitoring, including optical
remote sensing techniques, such as differential absorption light
detection and ranging technology and optical gas imaging cameras, EPA
has observed that volatile organic compound (VOC) and hazardous air
pollutant (HAP) emissions from storage tanks can greatly exceed the
permitted and/or estimated emissions. In many instances, EPA has
observed that emissions are the result of violations, including
inadequate maintenance of the tanks and associated emissions controls,
design flaws, and expansion of production volumes without corresponding
increases in emissions control. There are thousands of tanks operating
in the United States at refineries, chemical plants, and other bulk
storage facilities that are located in ozone nonattainment areas,
communities of environmental justice concern, or other areas with
sensitive populations.
Hazardous Waste Air Emissions: The handling of hazardous waste can
also result in toxic air emissions, which present many of the same
public health risks that led to the selection of air toxics as an NEI.
In addition, these hazardous wastes, if improperly handled, can also
present a potential for increased fire or explosion risk due to their
high corrosivity and ignitability. Such catastrophic events not only
create a safety risk for workers and the surrounding community, they
also create the potential for significant associated releases of toxic
air pollutants that have both acute and chronic health effects. Based
on EPA's observations during field work, as well as the publicly
available compliance information on Enforcement and Compliance History
Online (ECHO), it appears that widespread violations of the air
emission requirements under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
(RCRA) are a significant contributing cause of these problems.
Violations observed include the improper use of monitoring and control
devices by facilities, resulting in releases of emissions from RCRA
regulated units. Of particular concern are the toxic air emissions that
result from the handling of hazardous waste at treatment, storage, and
disposal facilities (TSDFs) and large quantity generators (LQGs) that
are not properly controlling hazardous waste releases to the air as
required by regulation.
One of the reasons to consider these areas for an expanded NEI is
to support a level playing field, so that all industries with toxic air
releases, which usually operate in multiple states across the country,
are held to a common, consistent standard. EPA invites comment on
whether to expand our work to reduce toxic air emissions to these two
new focus areas.
(2) Keeping Industrial Pollutants out of the nation's Waters Many
waters (including sediments) around the country are polluted by
nutrients and metals. Certain industrial sectors contribute a
disproportionate amount of the pollution over discharge limits. This
potential NEI would focus on the top sectors that have many violations
and are responsible for contributing to surface water pollution and
putting our drinking water at risk: Mining, chemical manufacturing,
food processing and primary metals manufacturing. A number of
facilities in the top sectors discharge pollution in excess of their
permit limits. In addition to being a focused attempt to significantly
reduce serious water pollution across the nation, selecting this as an
NEI would allow for a national approach for those companies that
operate in more than one state and would support a consistent national
strategy to achieve compliance across industry sectors.
(3) Reducing the Risks and Impacts of Industrial Accidents and
Releases. It is an all too common occurrence for industrial facilities
to have serious accidents and explosions that kill or injure employees
and emergency responders, and release chemicals that threaten
neighboring communities. Thousands of facilities across the country
produce, process, store, and use extremely hazardous substances that
are acutely toxic or can cause serious accidents. These facilities vary
widely in nature, from municipal water treatment plants to the largest
refineries in the United States and are often extremely large and
complex. Across the country, approximately 150 catastrophic accidents
occur per year among the universe of regulated facilities. These
accidents pose a risk to neighboring communities and workers because
they result in fatalities, injuries, significant property damage,
evacuations, sheltering in place, or environmental damage.
Approximately 2,000 facilities are currently considered ``high-risk''
because of their proximity to densely populated areas, the quantity and
number of extremely hazardous substances they use, or their history of
significant accidents.
Most of these serious accidents are preventable if the necessary
precautions and actions are taken. Failure to adequately train
personnel, maintain equipment, conduct routine inspections, or take
other common sense precautions contribute to the dangers these
facilities pose to their workers and to surrounding communities. This
potential NEI would be a targeted focus on the facilities and the
chemicals that pose the greatest risks, with a goal of increasing
industry attention to preventing accidents, instead of addressing
problems after accidents happen, thereby reducing the risk of harm to
communities and workers.
For all of the NEIs that EPA ultimately selects for FY17-19, we
intend to incorporate Next Generation Compliance approaches into our
work. Our goal will be to use the most current monitoring technologies,
data analytics and transparency, as well as the latest thinking on what
drives better compliance, to get better results even in a time of
serious resource constraints. We invite comment on what some of these
Next Gen opportunities might be for the continuing and potential new
NEIs.
[[Page 55355]]
EPA will consider all public comments in determining whether and to
what extent to continue or expand an initiative or to select a new one,
but will not respond to the comments received. Final selection will be
incorporated into the EPA Office of Enforcement and Compliance
Assurance FY 2017 National Program Manager Guidance Addendum that
provides national program direction for all EPA regional offices.
Information in support of this Notice of Public Comment is
available via the Internet at: http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/national-enforcement-initiatives.
V. Can the deadline for comments be extended?
No. EPA will include the final selection of the national
enforcement initiatives in the National Program Manager Guidance (NPM
Guidance) to enable EPA, states, and federally-recognized Indian tribes
(tribes) to effectively align their joint implementation of
environmental laws to achieve mutual goals. The NPM guidance must be
timely released for public comment in order to allow the EPA regions,
as well as states and tribes with approved programs, to consider the
NPM Guidance fully in their annual planning processes which direct the
use of resources according to the fiscal calendar. As a result, EPA
must receive public comments by October 14, 2015 in order to make
selections in keeping with this schedule.
Dated: September 3, 2015.
Betsy Smidinger,
Acting Director, Office of Compliance.
[FR Doc. 2015-23056 Filed 9-14-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P