[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 214 (Thursday, November 5, 2015)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 68448-68451]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-28105]



[[Page 68448]]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R04-OAR-2015-0456; FRL-9936-57-Region 4]


Air Plan Approval; TN; Knox County Emissions Statements

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Direct final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking direct 
final action to approve changes to the Tennessee state implementation 
plan (SIP) submitted by the State of Tennessee, through the Tennessee 
Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) on behalf of the Knox 
County Department of Air Quality Management (County Department), on 
March 14, 2014, and May 14, 2015, that require certain sources in Knox 
County, Tennessee, to report actual emissions of volatile organic 
compounds (VOC) and oxides of nitrogen (NOX) to the County 
Department annually. These changes amend the Knox County Air Quality 
Management Regulations in the Knox County portion of the Tennessee SIP 
to reflect the State of Tennessee's SIP-approved emissions statement 
requirements for Knox County. This action is being taken pursuant to 
the Clean Air Act (CAA or Act) and its implementing regulations.

DATES: This direct final rule is effective January 4, 2016 without 
further notice, unless EPA receives adverse comment by December 7, 
2015. If EPA receives such comments, it will publish a timely 
withdrawal of the direct final rule in the Federal Register and inform 
the public that the rule will not take effect.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R04-
OAR-2015-0456 by one of the following methods:
    1. www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line instructions for 
submitting comments.
    2. Email: [email protected].
    3. Fax: (404) 562-9019.
    4. Mail: ``EPA-R04-OAR-2015-0456'', Air Regulatory Management 
Section (formerly Regulatory Development Section), Air Planning and 
Implementation Branch, Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management Division, 
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street SW., 
Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960.
    5. Hand Delivery or Courier: Lynorae Benjamin, Chief, Air 
Regulatory Management Section, Air Planning and Implementation Branch, 
Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management Division, U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street SW., Atlanta, Georgia 
30303-8960. Such deliveries are only accepted during the Regional 
Office's normal hours of operation. The Regional Office's official 
hours of business are Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., 
excluding Federal holidays.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. ``EPA-R04-OAR-
2015-0456''. 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 through 
www.regulations.gov or email, information that you consider to be CBI 
or otherwise protected. 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 additional information about EPA's public 
docket visit the EPA Docket Center homepage at http://www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm.
    Docket: All documents in the electronic docket are listed in the 
www.regulations.gov index. Although listed in the index, some 
information may not be 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 at the Air Regulatory Management 
Section, Air Planning and Implementation Branch, Air, Pesticides and 
Toxics Management Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 
Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street SW., Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. EPA 
requests that if at all possible, you contact the person listed in the 
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section to schedule your inspection. 
The Regional Office's official hours of business are Monday through 
Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., excluding Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tiereny Bell, Air Regulatory 
Management Section, Air Planning and Implementation Branch, Air, 
Pesticides and Toxics Management Division, U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street SW., Atlanta, Georgia 
30303-8960. Ms. Bell can be reached at (404) 562-9088 or via email at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background

    On March 12, 2008, EPA promulgated revised 8-hour ozone national 
ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) of 0.075 parts per million (ppm). 
See 73 FR 16436 (March 27, 2008). Under EPA's regulations at 40 CFR 
part 50, the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS is attained when the 3-year 
average of the annual fourth-highest daily maximum 8-hour average 
ambient air quality ozone concentrations is less than or equal to 0.075 
ppm. See 40 CFR 50.15. Ambient air quality monitoring data for the 3-
year period must meet a data completeness requirement. The ambient air 
quality monitoring data completeness requirement is met when the 
average percent of days with valid ambient monitoring data is greater 
than 90 percent, and no single year has less than 75 percent data 
completeness as determined in Appendix I of part 50.
    Upon promulgation of a new or revised NAAQS, the CAA requires EPA 
to designate as nonattainment any area that is violating the NAAQS, 
based on the three most recent years of ambient air quality data at the 
conclusion of the designation process. EPA designated Blount and Knox 
Counties in Tennessee as a nonattainment area (hereinafter referred to 
as the ``Knoxville Area'' or ``Area'') for the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS 
on April 30, 2012 (effective July 20, 2012) using 2008-2010 ambient air 
quality data. See 77 FR 30088 (May 21, 2012). At the time of 
designation, the Knoxville Area was classified as a marginal 
nonattainment area for the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS. On March 6, 2015, 
EPA finalized a rule entitled ``Implementation of the 2008 National 
Ambient Air Quality Standards for

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Ozone: State Implementation Plan Requirements'' (SIP Requirements Rule) 
that establishes the requirements that state, tribal, and local air 
quality management agencies must meet as they develop implementation 
plans for areas where air quality exceeds the 2008 8-hour ozone 
NAAQS.\1\ See 80 FR 12264. This rule establishes nonattainment area 
attainment dates based on Table 1 of section 181(a) of the CAA, 
including an attainment date three years after the July 20, 2012, 
effective date, for areas classified as marginal for the 2008 8-hour 
ozone NAAQS. Therefore, the attainment date for the Knoxville Area is 
July 20, 2015.\2\ On July 13, 2015, EPA determined that the Area had 
attained the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS and redesignated the Area to 
attainment. See 80 FR 39970.
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    \1\ The SIP Requirements Rule addresses a range of nonattainment 
area SIP requirements for the 2008 ozone NAAQS, including 
requirements pertaining to attainment demonstrations, reasonable 
further progress (RFP), reasonably available control technology, 
reasonably available control measures, major new source review, 
emission inventories, and the timing of SIP submissions and of 
compliance with emission control measures in the SIP. The rule also 
revokes the 1997 ozone NAAQS and establishes anti-backsliding 
requirements.
    \2\ On August 27, 2015, EPA proposed to determine that the Area 
attained the standard by the attainment date. 80 FR 51992.
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    Ground level ozone is not emitted directly into the air, but is 
created by chemical reactions between NOX and VOC in the 
presence of sunlight. Emissions from industrial facilities and electric 
utilities, motor vehicle exhaust, gasoline vapors, and chemical 
solvents are some of the major sources of NOX and VOC. 
Section 182(a)(3)(B) of the CAA requires each state with ozone 
nonattainment areas to submit a SIP revision requiring annual emissions 
statements to be submitted to the state by the owner or operator of 
each NOX or VOC stationary source \3\ located within a 
nonattainment area showing the actual emissions of NOX and 
VOC from that source. The first statement is due three years from the 
area's nonattainment designation, and subsequent statements are due at 
least annually thereafter. The State of Tennessee satisfied the 
obligation to develop a nonattainment SIP revision for the Knoxville 
Area addressing section 182(a)(3)(B). EPA approved the State's SIP 
revision addressing emissions statement requirements for the 2008 8-
hour ozone standard on March 5, 2015. See 80 FR 11974.
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    \3\ A state may waive the emissions statements requirement for 
any class or category of stationary sources which emit less than 25 
tons per year of VOCs or NOX if the state meets the 
requirements of section 182(a)(3)(B)(ii).
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    The Knox County Air Pollution Control Board (County Board) adopted 
a new regulation, Knox County Air Quality Management Regulation Section 
26.5.C--Emissions Statement, on October 16, 2013, requiring certain 
sources to report actual emissions of VOC and NOX to the 
County Department annually and amended that regulation on January 21, 
2015, to more closely reflect the Tennessee emissions statements 
requirements for the 2008 8-hour ozone standard in Tennessee Air 
Pollution Control Regulation 1200-3-18ndash;.02--General Provisions and 
Applicability. EPA is approving the portion of the March 14, 2014, SIP 
submittal containing the version of Section 26.5.C adopted by the 
County Board on October 16, 2013, and the May 14, 2015, SIP submittal 
containing the revisions to Section 26.5.C adopted by the County Board 
on January 21, 2015. More information on EPA's analysis of the SIP 
revisions is provided below.

II. Analysis of State's Submittal

    The March 14, 2014, and May 14, 2015, submittals seek to add Knox 
County Air Quality Management Regulation Section 26.5.C to the Knox 
County portion of the Tennessee SIP. EPA initially approved Knox County 
Air Quality Management Regulation Section 26.5--Monitoring, Recording, 
and Reporting of Source Emissions, into the Tennessee SIP in 1972. See 
37 FR 10842 (May 31, 1972). Knox County is amending Section 26.5 to 
include Section 26.5.C--Emissions Statement that reflects the State of 
Tennessee's SIP-approved emissions statement requirements in Tennessee 
Air Pollution Control Regulation 1200-3-18-.02. Section 26.5.C requires 
owners and operators of sources with actual emissions of 25 tons per 
year or more of VOC or NOX to submit annual reports of 
actual emissions to the County Department. Tennessee's May 14, 2015, 
SIP submittal contains the County Board's January 21, 2015, revisions 
to Section 26.5.C. that modify the submission deadline and include more 
detailed certification requirements. The revisions set a June 15 
deadline to submit emissions statements to the County Department for 
2015 and a March 31 deadline for 2016 and beyond. The revisions also 
require that an official of the company sign the report, certifying 
that the information and data contained in the report is accurate to 
the best knowledge of the individual certifying the report. EPA has 
determined that these SIP submissions meet the requirements of the CAA.

III. Incorporation by Reference

    In this rule, EPA is finalizing regulatory text that includes 
incorporation by reference. In accordance with requirements of 1 CFR 
51.5, EPA is finalizing the incorporation by reference of Knox County 
Air Quality Management Regulation Section 26.0 entitled ``Monitoring, 
Recording, and Reporting'', effective January 21, 2015, addressing 
annual emissions statements for certain VOC and NOX sources 
in Knox County. EPA has made, and will continue to make, these 
documents generally available electronically through 
www.regulations.gov and/or in hard copy at the EPA Region 4 office (see 
the ADDRESSES section of this preamble for more information).

IV. Final Action

    EPA is approving the portion of the March 14, 2014, SIP submittal 
containing the version of Section 26.5.C adopted by the County Board on 
October 16, 2013, and the May 14, 2015, SIP submittal containing the 
revisions to Section 26.5.C adopted by the County Board on January 21, 
2015. EPA is publishing this rule without prior proposal because the 
Agency views this as a noncontroversial submittal and anticipates no 
adverse comments. However, in the proposed rules section of this 
Federal Register publication, EPA is publishing a separate document 
that will serve as the proposal to approve the SIP revision should 
adverse comments be filed. This rule will be effective January 4, 2016 
without further notice unless the Agency receives adverse comments by 
December 7, 2015.
    If EPA receives such comments, then EPA will publish a document 
withdrawing the final rule and informing the public that the rule will 
not take effect. All adverse comments received will then be addressed 
in a subsequent final rule based on the proposed rule. EPA will not 
institute a second comment period. Parties interested in commenting 
should do so at this time. If no such comments are received, the public 
is advised that this rule will be effective on January 4, 2016 and no 
further action will be taken on the proposed rule.

V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    Under the CAA, the Administrator is required to approve a SIP 
submission that complies with the provisions of the Act and applicable 
Federal regulations. See 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

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the CAA. Accordingly, this action merely approves state law as meeting 
Federal requirements and does 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) and 13563 (76 FR 3821, January 21, 2011);
     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, the SIP is not approved to apply on any Indian 
reservation land or in any other area where EPA or an Indian tribe has 
demonstrated that a tribe has jurisdiction. In those areas of Indian 
country, the rule does not have tribal implications as specified by 
Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000), nor will it 
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 January 4, 2016. 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. 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).

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

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

    Dated: October 20, 2015.
Heather McTeer Toney,
Regional Administrator, Region 4.

    40 CFR part 52 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 RR--Tennessee

0
2. Section 52.2220(c), is amended under Table 3--EPA Approved Knox 
County, Regulations by revising the entry for ``Section 26.0'' to read 
as follows:


Sec.  52.2220  Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (c) * * *

                                 Table 3--EPA Approved Knox County, Regulations
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                                                            State
       State section              Title/Subject        effective date      EPA approval date        Explanation
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                                                  * * * * * * *
26.0......................  Monitoring, Recording,          1/21/2015  11/5/2015 [Insert
                             and Reporting.                             citation of Federal
                                                                        Register].
 
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[FR Doc. 2015-28105 Filed 11-4-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P