[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 190 (Tuesday, October 3, 2017)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 45997-46000]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-21106]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R03-OAR-2017-0396; FRL-9968-54-Region 3]


Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; 
Maryland; 2011 Base Year Inventory for the 2008 8-Hour Ozone National 
Ambient Air Quality Standard for the Baltimore, Maryland Nonattainment 
Area

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 the 2011 base year inventory for the Baltimore, 
Maryland moderate nonattainment area for the 2008 8-hour ozone national 
ambient air quality standard (NAAQS). The State of Maryland submitted 
the emission inventory through the Maryland Department of the 
Environment (MDE) to meet the nonattainment requirements for moderate 
ozone nonattainment areas for the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS. EPA is 
approving the 2011 base year emissions inventory for the 2008 8-hour 
ozone NAAQS as a revision to the Maryland state implementation plan 
(SIP) in accordance with the requirements of the Clean Air Act (CAA).

DATES: This rule is effective on December 4, 2017 without further 
notice, unless EPA receives adverse written comment by November 2, 
2017. 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-R03-
OAR-2017-0396 at https://www.regulations.gov, or via email to 
[email protected]. For comments submitted at Regulations.gov, 
follow the online instructions for submitting comments. Once submitted, 
comments cannot be edited or removed from Regulations.gov. For either 
manner of submission, EPA may publish any comment received to its 
public docket. Do not submit electronically any information you 
consider to be confidential business information (CBI) or other 
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Multimedia 
submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be accompanied by a written 
comment. The written comment is considered the official comment and 
should include discussion of all points you wish to make. EPA will 
generally not consider comments or comment contents located outside of 
the primary submission (i.e. on the web, cloud, or other file sharing 
system). For additional submission methods, please contact the person 
identified in the For Further Information Contact section. For the full 
EPA public comment policy, information about CBI or multimedia 
submissions, and general guidance on making effective comments, please 
visit http://www2.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gavin Huang, (215) 814-2042, or by 
email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    Ground level ozone is formed when nitrogen oxides (NOX) 
and volatile organic compounds (VOC) react in the presence of sunlight. 
NOX and VOC are referred to as ozone precursors and are 
emitted by many types of pollution sources, including motor vehicles, 
power plants, 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 exposure 
to ozone. These effects are more pronounced in 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. In response to this scientific 
evidence, EPA promulgated in 1979 the first ozone NAAQS, the 0.12 part 
per million (ppm) 1-hour ozone NAAQS. See 44 FR 8202 (February 8, 
1979). Before the first ozone NAAQS, EPA had previously promulgated a 
NAAQS for total photochemical oxidants. See 36 FR 8186 (April 30, 
1971).
    On July 18, 1997, EPA promulgated a revised ozone NAAQS of 0.08 
ppm, averaged over eight hours. 62 FR 38855. This 8-hour ozone NAAQS 
was determined to be more protective of public health than the previous 
1979 1-hour ozone NAAQS. In 2008, EPA revised the 8-hour ozone NAAQS 
from 0.08 to 0.075 ppm. See 73 FR 16436 (March 27, 2008).\1\
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    \1\ On October 1, 2015, EPA strengthened the 8-hour ozone NAAQS 
to 0.070 ppm. See 80 FR 65292 (October 16, 2015). This rulemaking 
addresses the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS and does not address the 2015 
8-hour ozone NAAQS.

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[[Page 45998]]

    On May 21, 2012, the Baltimore, Maryland area was designated as 
moderate nonattainment for the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS. 77 FR 30088. 
The designation of the Baltimore, Maryland area as moderate 
nonattainment was effective July 20, 2012. The Baltimore, Maryland 
nonattainment area is comprised of Anne Arundel County, Baltimore 
County, Baltimore City, Carroll County, Harford County, and Howard 
County. Under section 172(c)(3) of the CAA, Maryland is required to 
submit a comprehensive, accurate, and current inventory of actual 
emissions from all sources of the relevant pollutants in its moderate 
nonattainment area.

II. Summary of SIP Revision and EPA Analysis

    Under CAA section 172(c)(3), states are required to submit a 
comprehensive, accurate, and current account of actual emissions from 
all sources (point, nonpoint, nonroad, and onroad) in the nonattainment 
area. CAA section 182(a)(1) and (b) requires that areas designated as 
nonattainment and classified as moderate submit an inventory of all 
sources of ozone precursors no later than 2 years after the effective 
date of designation. EPA's guidance for emissions inventory development 
calls for actual emissions to be used in the base year inventory. The 
state must report annual emissions as well as ``summer day emissions.'' 
As defined in 40 CFR 51.900(v), ``summer day emissions'' means, ``an 
average day's emissions for a typical summer work weekday. The state 
will select the particular month(s) in summer and the day(s) in the 
work week to be represented.''
    On December 30, 2016, MDE submitted a formal revision (SIP #16-16) 
to its SIP. The SIP revision consists of the 2011 base year inventory 
for the Baltimore, Maryland nonattainment area for the 2008 8-hour 
ozone NAAQS. In accordance with EPA's requirements for ozone SIP 
planning, ``Implementation of the 2008 National Ambient Air Quality 
Standards for Ozone: State Implementation Plan Requirements,'' MDE 
selected 2011 for its base year emissions inventory. See 80 FR 12263 
(March 6, 2015). MDE's 2011 base year inventory includes emissions 
estimates covering the general source categories of stationary point, 
area (nonpoint), quasi-point, nonroad mobile, onroad mobile, and 
Marine-Air-Rail (M-A-R). In its 2011 base year inventory, MDE reported 
actual annual emissions and typical summer day emissions for the months 
of May through September for VOC, NOX, and carbon monoxide 
(CO). Although MDE also reported annual emissions for fine particulate 
matter (PM2.5), sulfur dioxide (SO2), and ammonia 
(NH3) and typical summer day emissions for CO, in this 
approval of the 2011 base year emissions inventory for the 2008 ozone 
NAAQS, EPA is approving only relevant ozone precursors, which are VOC 
and NOX.
    Table 1 summarizes the 2011 VOC and NOX emission 
inventory by source sector for Maryland's moderate nonattainment area. 
Annual emissions are given in tons per year (tpy) and summer weekday 
emissions are given by tons per day (tpd).

                Table 1--Summary of 2011 Emissions for the Baltimore, Maryland Nonattainment Area
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                                                     Ozone season daily (tpd)              Annual (tpy)
                 Source category                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
                                                        VOC             NOX             VOC             NOX
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Point...........................................           8.228         107.676        2,153.41       16,950.46
Quasi-Point.....................................           1.080           5.383         387.102        1,946.98
Area............................................          68.093           8.502       21,827.01        5,441.14
Nonroad.........................................          38.618          28.628        9,678.69        8,799.27
Onroad..........................................           45.34          116.73       15,761.71       41,265.21
M-A-R...........................................            1.64           18.43          597.27        6,727.63
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Anthropogenic BNAA * Subtotal...............         162.999         285.352      50,405.190      81,130.694
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* Baltimore Nonattainment Area (BNAA).

    Point sources are large, stationary, and identifiable sources of 
emissions that release pollutants into the atmosphere. For the 2011 
inventory, point sources are defined as stationary commercial or 
industrial operations that emit more than 10 tpy of VOC or 25 tpy of 
NOX. Maryland obtained its point source data from the MDE 
Air and Radiation Management Administration (ARMA) point source 
emissions inventory. ARMA identifies and inventories stationary sources 
for the point source emissions inventory through inspections, 
investigations, permitting, and equipment registrations.
    Quasi-point sources are sources that contain a wide variety of air 
emission sources, including traditional point sources, on-road mobile 
sources, off-road mobile sources, and area sources. For these sources, 
the emissions are totaled under a single point source and referred to 
as a ``quasi-point source.'' MDE identified three facilities that met 
these requirements which include the Aberdeen Proving Grounds, 
Baltimore Washington International Airport, and the Port of Baltimore.
    Nonpoint sources, also known as area sources, are sources of 
pollution that are small and numerous and have not been inventoried as 
specific point or mobile sources. For example, these sources include 
residential heating emissions and emissions from consumer solvents. To 
inventory these sources, they are grouped so that emissions can be 
estimated collectively using one methodology. MDE calculated nonpoint 
emissions for the Baltimore, Maryland nonattainment area by multiplying 
emissions factors specific for each source category with some known 
indicator of collective activity for each source category, such as 
population or employment data.
    Nonroad sources are mobile sources other than onroad vehicles, 
including aircraft, locomotives, construction and agricultural 
equipment, and marine vessels. Emissions from different source 
categories are calculated using various methodologies. The 
methodologies used for nonroad source emission estimates include EPA's 
National Mobile

[[Page 45999]]

Inventory Model (NMIM--April 5, 2009) and EPA's emission factors.
    Onroad or highway sources are vehicles, such as cars, trucks, and 
buses, which are operated on public roadways. These onroad emissions 
were estimated using EPA's Motor Vehicle Emission Simulator (MOVES) 
model, version 2010a, using appropriate activity levels, such as 
vehicle miles traveled (VMT) estimates developed from vehicle count 
data maintained by the State Highway Administration (SHA) of the 
Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT).
    M-A-R sources include marine vessels, airports, and railroad 
locomotives. M-A-R emissions were estimated using data from surveyed 
sources or state and federal reporting agencies.
    EPA reviewed Maryland's 2011 base year emission inventory's 
results, procedures, and methodologies for the Baltimore, Maryland 
moderate nonattainment area and found them to meet the applicable 
requirements for approval under sections 110, 172(c)(3) and 182(a)(1) 
and (b) of the CAA. EPA's review and analysis is detailed in a 
Technical Support Document (TSD) prepared for this rulemaking. The TSD 
is available online at http://www.regulations.gov, Docket Number EPA-
R03-OAR-2017-0396.

III. Final Action

    EPA is approving the Maryland SIP revision which includes the 2011 
base year inventory for the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS for the Baltimore, 
Maryland moderate nonattainment area because the inventory was prepared 
in accordance with requirements in sections 110, 172(c)(3) and 
182(a)(1) and (b) of the CAA and its implementing regulations including 
40 CFR 51.915. EPA is publishing this rule without prior proposal 
because EPA views this as a noncontroversial amendment and anticipates 
no adverse comment. However, in the ``Proposed Rules'' section of this 
issue of the Federal Register, EPA is publishing a separate document 
that will serve as the proposal to approve the SIP revision if adverse 
comments are filed. This rule will be effective on December 4, 2017 
without further notice unless EPA receives adverse comment by November 
2, 2017. If EPA receives adverse comment, EPA will publish a timely 
withdrawal in the Federal Register informing the public that the rule 
will not take effect. EPA will address all public comments in a 
subsequent final rule based on the proposed rule. EPA will not 
institute a second comment period on this action. Any parties 
interested in commenting must do so at this time.

IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

A. General Requirements

    Under the CAA, the Administrator is required to approve a SIP 
submission that complies with the provisions of the CAA and applicable 
federal regulations. 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 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 Orders 
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, this rule 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 located in 
the state, and EPA notes that it will not impose substantial direct 
costs on tribal governments or preempt tribal law.

B. Submission to Congress and the Comptroller General

    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).

C. Petitions for Judicial Review

    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 4, 2017. 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 this issue of the 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 action.
    This action approving Maryland's 2011 base year inventory for the 
2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS for the Baltimore, Maryland moderate 
nonattainment area 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, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements, Volatile organic compounds.


[[Page 46000]]


    Dated: September 7, 2017.
Cecil Rodrigues,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region III.

    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 V--Maryland

0
2. In Sec.  52.1070, the table in paragraph (e) is amended by adding an 
entry for ``2011 Base Year Inventory for the 2008 8-Hour Ozone National 
Ambient Air Quality Standard'' at the end of the table to read as 
follows:


Sec.  52.1070   Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (e) * * *

                            EPA Approved Non-Regulatory and Quasi-Regulatory Material
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  Name of non-regulatory SIP      Applicable         State                                       Additional
           revision            geographic area  submittal date      EPA approval date           explanation
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                                                  * * * * * * *
2011 Base Year Emissions       Baltimore,           12/30/2016  10/3/2017 [Insert Federal  See Sec.
 Inventory for the 2008 8-      Maryland 2008                    Register citation].        52.1075(r).
 Hour Ozone National Ambient    Ozone Moderate
 Air Quality Standard.          Nonattainment
                                Area.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


0
3. Section 52.1075 is amended by adding paragraph (r) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  52.1075   Base year emissions inventory.

* * * * *
    (r) EPA approves as a revision to the Maryland state implementation 
plan the 2011 base year emissions inventory for the Baltimore, Maryland 
moderate nonattainment area for the 2008 8-hour ozone national ambient 
air quality standards submitted by the Maryland Department of the 
Environment on December 30, 2016. The 2011 base year emissions 
inventory includes emissions estimates that cover the general source 
categories of stationary point, quasi-point, area (nonpoint), nonroad 
mobile, onroad mobile, and Marine-Air-Rail (M-A-R). The inventory 
includes actual annual emissions and typical summer day emissions for 
the months of May through September for the ozone precursors, VOC and 
NOX.
[FR Doc. 2017-21106 Filed 10-2-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P