[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 234 (Thursday, December 6, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 62860-62861]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-26481]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-9987-53-OAR]
Allocations of Cross-State Air Pollution Rule Allowances From New
Unit Set-Asides for 2018 Control Periods
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of data availability (NODA).
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is providing notice
of the availability of preliminary lists of units eligible for second-
round allocations of emission allowances for the 2018 control periods
from the new unit set-asides (NUSAs) established under the Cross-State
Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR)
[[Page 62861]]
trading programs. EPA has posted spreadsheets containing the lists on
EPA's website. EPA will consider timely objections to the lists before
determining the amounts of the second-round allocations.
DATES: Objections to the information referenced in this notice must be
received on or before January 4, 2019.
ADDRESSES: Submit your objections via email to [email protected].
Include ``2018 NUSA allocations'' in the email subject line and include
your name, title, affiliation, address, phone number, and email address
in the body of the email.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions concerning this action
should be addressed to Kenon Smith at (202) 343-9164 or
[email protected] or Jason Kuhns at (202) 564-3236 or
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under each CSAPR trading program where EPA
is responsible for determining emission allowance allocations, a
portion of each state's emissions budget for the program for each
control period is reserved in a NUSA (and in an additional Indian
country NUSA in the case of states with Indian country within their
borders) for allocation to certain units that would not otherwise
receive allowance allocations. The procedures for identifying the
eligible units for each control period and for allocating allowances
from the NUSAs and Indian country NUSAs to these units are set forth in
the CSAPR trading program regulations at 40 CFR 97.411(b) and 97.412
(NOX Annual), 97.511(b) and 97.512 (NOX Ozone
Season Group 1), 97.611(b) and 97.612 (SO2 Group 1),
97.711(b) and 97.712 (SO2 Group 2), and 97.811(b) and 97.812
(NOX Ozone Season Group 2). Each NUSA allowance allocation
process involves up to two rounds of allocations to eligible units,
termed ``new'' units, followed by the allocation to ``existing'' units
of any allowances not allocated to new units.
This notice concerns EPA's preliminary identification of units
eligible to receive allowances in the second round of NUSA allocations
for the 2018 control periods. The units eligible for second-round
allocations for a given control period are CSAPR-affected units that
commenced commercial operation between January 1 of the year before
that control period and November 30 of the year of that control period.
In the case of the 2018 control periods, an eligible unit therefore
must have commenced commercial operation between January 1, 2017 and
November 30, 2018 (inclusive). Generally, where a unit is eligible to
receive a second-round NUSA allocation under a given CSAPR trading
program for a given control period, the unit's maximum potential
second-round allocation equals the positive difference (if any) between
the unit's emissions during the control period as reported under 40 CFR
part 75 and any first-round NUSA allocation the unit received. If the
total of such maximum potential allocations to all eligible units would
exceed the total allowances remaining in the NUSA, the allocations are
reduced on a pro-rata basis. EPA notes that under 40 CFR 97.406(c)(3),
97.506(c)(3), 97.606(c)(3), 97.706(c)(3), and 97.806(c)(3), a unit's
emissions occurring before its monitor certification deadline are not
considered to have occurred during a control period and consequently
are not included in the emission amounts used to determine NUSA
allocations.
The preliminary lists of eligible units are set forth in Excel
spreadsheets titled
``CSAPR_NUSA_2018_NOX_Annual_2nd_Round_Prelim_Data,''
``CSAPR_NUSA_2018_NOX_Ozone_Season_2nd_Round_Preli
m_Data,'' and ``CSAPR_NUSA_2018_SO2_2nd_Round_Prelim_Data''
available on EPA's website at https://www.epa.gov/csapr/csapr-compliance-year-2018-nusa-nodas. Each spreadsheet contains a separate
worksheet for each state covered by that program showing each unit
preliminarily identified as eligible for a second-round NUSA
allocation. Each state worksheet also contains a summary showing (1)
the quantity of allowances initially available in that state's 2018
NUSA, (2) the sum of the 2018 NUSA allowance allocations that were made
in the first round to new units in that state, if any, and (3) the
quantity of allowances in the 2018 NUSA available for second-round
allocations to new units (or ultimately for allocations to existing
units), if any.
Objections should be strictly limited to whether EPA has correctly
identified the units eligible for second-round 2018 NUSA allocations
according to the criteria established in the regulations and should be
emailed to the address identified in ADDRESSES. Objections must
include: (1) Precise identification of the specific data the commenter
believes are inaccurate, (2) new proposed data upon which the commenter
believes EPA should rely instead, and (3) the reasons why EPA should
rely on the commenter's proposed data and not the data referenced in
this notice.
EPA notes that an allocation or lack of allocation of allowances to
a given unit does not constitute a determination that CSAPR does or
does not apply to the unit. EPA also notes that under 40 CFR 97.411(c),
97.511(c), 97.611(c), 97.711(c), and 97.811(c), allocations are subject
to potential correction if a unit to which NUSA allowances have been
allocated for a given control period is not actually an affected unit
as of the start of that control period.
(Authority: 40 CFR 97.411(b), 97.511(b), 97.611(b), 97.711(b), and
97.811(b).)
Dated: November 1, 2018.
Reid P. Harvey,
Director, Clean Air Markets Division, Office of Atmospheric Programs,
Office of Air and Radiation.
[FR Doc. 2018-26481 Filed 12-4-18; 8:45 am]
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