[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 206 (Thursday, October 26, 2017)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 49511-49512]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-23229]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 62

[EPA-R03-OAR-2017-0509; FRL-9969-92-Region 3]


Approval and Promulgation of State Air Quality Plans for 
Designated Facilities and Pollutants; City of Philadelphia; Control of 
Emissions From Existing Sewage Sludge Incineration Units

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 notify the public that it has received a negative 
declaration for sewage sludge incineration (SSI) units within the City 
of Philadelphia. This negative declaration certifies that SSI units 
subject to the requirements of sections 111(d) and 129 of the Clean Air 
Act (CAA) do not exist within the jurisdictional boundaries of the 
Philadelphia Air Management Service (AMS). EPA is accepting the 
negative declaration in accordance with the requirements of the CAA.

DATES: This rule is effective on December 26, 2017 without further 
notice, unless EPA receives adverse written comment by November 27, 
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 Number EPA-
R03-OAR-2017-0509 at http://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: Mike Gordon, (215) 814-2039, or by 
email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background

    Sections 111(d) and 129 of the CAA require states to submit plans 
to control certain pollutants (designated pollutants) at existing solid 
waste combustor facilities (designated facilities) whenever standards 
of performance have been established under section 111(b) for new 
sources of the same type, and EPA has established emission guidelines 
(EG) for such existing sources. A designated pollutant is any pollutant 
for which no air quality criteria have been issued, and which is not 
included on a list published under section 108(a) or section 
112(b)(1)(A) of the CAA, but emissions of which are subject to a 
standard of performance for new stationary sources. On March 21, 2011 
(76 FR 15372), EPA promulgated SSI unit new source performance 
standards, 40 CFR part 60, subpart LLLL, and emission guidelines, 
subpart MMMM. The designated facilities to which the EG apply are 
existing SSI units that: (1) Commenced construction on or before 
October 14, 2010; (2) that meet the definition of a SSI unit as defined 
in Sec.  60.5250; and (3) are not exempt under Sec.  60.5065.
    Subpart B of 40 CFR part 60 establishes procedures to be followed 
and requirements to be met in the development and submission of state 
plans for controlling designated pollutants. Also, 40 CFR part 62 
provides the procedural framework for the submission of these plans. 
When designated facilities are located in a state, the state must then 
develop and submit a plan for the control of the designated pollutant. 
However, 40 CFR 60.23(b) and 62.06 provide that if there are no 
existing sources of the designated pollutant in the state, the state 
may submit a letter of certification to that effect (i.e., negative 
declaration) in lieu of a plan. The negative declaration exempts the 
state from the requirements of subpart B that require the submittal of 
a 111(d)/129 plan.

II. State Submittal and EPA Analysis

    Philadelphia AMS has determined that there are no SSI units subject 
to the requirements of Sections CAA 111(d) and 129 of the CAA in their 
respective air pollution control jurisdiction. Accordingly, 
Philadelphia AMS submitted a negative declaration letter to EPA 
certifying this fact on March 28, 2012. The negative declaration letter 
and EPA's technical support document for this action are available in 
the docket for this the docket for this rulemaking and available online 
at www.regulations.gov.

III. Final Action

    In this direct final action, EPA is amending part 62 to reflect 
receipt of the negative declaration letter from Philadelphia AMS. EPA 
is publishing this rule without prior proposal because EPA views this 
as a noncontroversial amendment and anticipates no adverse

[[Page 49512]]

comment. However, in the ``Proposed Rules'' section of today's Federal 
Register, EPA is publishing a separate document that will serve as the 
proposal to approve the revision if adverse comments are filed. This 
rule will be effective on December 26, 2017 without further notice 
unless EPA receives adverse comment by November 27, 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 Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993), this 
action is not a ``significant regulatory action'' and therefore is not 
subject to review by the Office of Management and Budget. For this 
reason, this action is also not subject to Executive Order 13211, 
``Actions Concerning Regulations That Significantly Affect Energy 
Supply, Distribution, or Use'' (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001). This action 
merely notifies the public of EPA receipt of a negative declaration 
from an air pollution control agency without any existing SSI units in 
their jurisdiction. This action imposes no requirements. Accordingly, 
EPA certifies that this rule will not have a significant economic 
impact on a substantial number of small entities under the Regulatory 
Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.). Because this action does not 
impose any additional enforceable duty beyond that required by state 
law, it 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). This action also does not 
have tribal implications because it will not have a substantial direct 
effect on one or more Indian tribes, on the relationship between the 
Federal Government and Indian tribes, or on the distribution of power 
and responsibilities between the Federal Government and Indian tribes, 
as specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000). 
This action also does not have Federalism implications because it does 
not have substantial direct effects on the States, on the relationship 
between the national government and the States, or on the distribution 
of power and responsibilities among the various levels of government, 
as specified in Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999). 
This action merely approves the negative declaration for existing SSI 
units from the Philadelphia AMS and does not alter the relationship or 
the distribution of power and responsibilities established in the Clean 
Air Act. This action also is not subject to Executive Order 13045 
``Protection of Children from Environmental Health Risks and Safety 
Risks'' (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997), because it is not economically 
significant.
    With regard to negative declarations for designated facilities 
received by EPA from states, EPA's role is to notify the public of the 
receipt of such negative declarations and revise 40 CFR part 62 
accordingly. In this context, in the absence of a prior existing 
requirement for the State to use voluntary consensus standards (VCS), 
EPA has no authority to approve or disapprove a CAA section 111(d)/129 
plan negative declaration submission for failure to use VCS. It would 
thus be inconsistent with applicable law for EPA, when it reviews a CAA 
section 111(d)/129 negative declaration, to use VCS in place of a 
section 111(d)/129 negative declaration that otherwise satisfies the 
provisions of the Clean Air Act. Thus, the requirements of section 
12(d) of the National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 
(15 U.S.C. 272 note) do not apply. This action does not impose an 
information collection burden under the provisions of the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

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 26, 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 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 approving a negative declaration submitted by 
Philadelphia AMS for SSI units may not be challenged later in 
proceedings to enforce its requirements. (See section 307(b)(2).)

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 62

    Environmental protection, Administrative practice and procedure, 
Air pollution control, Intergovernmental relations, Reporting and 
recordkeeping requirements, Waste treatment and disposal.

    Dated: October 11, 2017.
Cecil Rodrigues,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region III.

    40 CFR part 62 is amended as follows:

PART 62--APPROVAL AND PROMULGATION OF STATE PLANS FOR DESIGNATED 
FACILITIES AND POLLUTANTS

0
1. The authority citation for part 62 continues to read as follows:

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

Subpart NN--Pennsylvania

0
2. Add an undesignated heading and Sec.  [thinsp]62.9665 to subpart NN 
to read as follows:

Emissions From Existing Sewage Sludge Incineration Units


Sec.  62.9665  Identification of plan--negative declaration.

    Letter from the City of Philadelphia, Department of Public Health, 
submitted March 28, 2012, certifying that there are no existing sewage 
sludge incineration units within the City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 
that are subject to 40 CFR part 60, subpart Ce.

[FR Doc. 2017-23229 Filed 10-25-17; 8:45 am]
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