[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 44 (Wednesday, March 6, 2019)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 7998-8001]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-03956]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA-R04-OAR-2018-0631; FRL-9990-32-Region 4]
Air Plan Approval; Tennessee; NOX SIP Call and CAIR
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking final
action to conditionally approve a portion of a State Implementation
Plan (SIP) revision submitted by the State of Tennessee, through the
Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) with a
letter dated February 27, 2017, to establish a SIP-approved state
control program to comply with the obligations of the Nitrogen Oxides
(NOX) SIP Call with respect to certain sources. EPA is also
taking final action to fully approve the remaining portion of the same
Tennessee SIP revision to remove the SIP-approved portions of the
State's Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR) Program rules from the
Tennessee SIP. In addition, EPA is also fully approving a revision to
the Tennessee SIP submitted with a letter dated April 3, 2018, to
remove regulations related to a previous NOX trading
program.
DATES: This rule will be effective April 5, 2019.
ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket
Identification No. EPA-R04-OAR-2018-0631. All documents in the docket
are listed on the www.regulations.gov website. Although listed in the
index, some information may not be publicly available, i.e.,
Confidential Business Information 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 through 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: Madolyn Sanchez, Air Regulatory
Management Section, Air Planning and Implementation Branch, Pesticides
and Toxics Management Division, Region 4, U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency, 61 Forsyth Street SW, Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. Ms. Sanchez
can be reached by telephone at (404) 562-9644 or via electronic mail at
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
Under Clean Air Act (CAA or Act) section 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I), which
EPA has traditionally termed the good neighbor provision, states are
required to address the interstate transport of air pollution.
Specifically, the good neighbor provision requires that each state's
implementation plan contain adequate provisions to prohibit air
pollutant emissions from within the state that significantly contribute
to nonattainment of the national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS),
or that interfere with maintenance of the NAAQS, in any other state.
In October 1998 (63 FR 57356), EPA finalized the ``Finding of
Significant Contribution and Rulemaking for Certain States in the Ozone
Transport Assessment Group Region for Purposes of Reducing Regional
Transport of Ozone''--commonly called the ``NOX SIP Call.''
The NOX SIP Call addressed the good neighbor provision for
the 1979 1-hour ozone NAAQS and was designed to mitigate the impact of
transported NOX emissions, one of the precursors of
ozone.\1\ The rule originally required 22 states--including Tennessee--
and the District of Columbia to amend their SIPs to reduce
NOX emissions that contribute to ozone nonattainment in
downwind states. EPA developed the NOX Budget Trading
Program, an allowance trading program that states could adopt to meet
their obligations under the NOX SIP Call. The NOX
Budget Trading Program allowed certain types of sources to participate
in a regional NOX cap and trade program: generally electric
generating units (EGUs) greater than 25 megawatts (MW); and industrial
non-electric generating units, such as boilers and turbines, with a
rated heat input greater than 250 million British thermal units per
hour
[[Page 7999]]
(MMBtu/hr), referred to as ``large non-EGUs.'' \2\ On January 22, 2004,
EPA approved into the Tennessee SIP the State's NOX Budget
Trading Program rule.\3\ The NOX Budget Trading Program was
implemented from 2003 to 2008, and in 2009 it was effectively replaced
by the ozone season NOX program under CAIR.
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\1\ See 63 FR 57356 (October 27, 1998). As originally
promulgated, the NOX SIP Call also addressed good
neighbor obligations under the 1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS, but EPA
subsequently stayed the rule's provisions with respect to that
standard. 40 CFR 51.121(q).
\2\ The NOX SIP Call also identified potential
emissions reductions from other non-EGUs, including cement kilns and
stationary internal combustion (IC) engines.
\3\ See 69 FR 3015 (January 22, 2004).
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On May 12, 2005 (70 FR 25162), EPA promulgated CAIR to address
transported emissions that would significantly contribute to downwind
states' nonattainment or interfere with maintenance of the 1997 ozone
and fine particulate matter (PM2.5) NAAQS. CAIR required SIP
revisions in 28 states--including Tennessee--and the District of
Columbia to reduce emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO2) and/or
NOX, precursors of PM2.5 (SO2 and
NOX) and ozone (NOX). Under CAIR, EPA developed
separate cap-and-trade programs for annual NOX, ozone season
NOX, and annual SO2 emissions. On April 28, 2006
(71 FR 25328), EPA also promulgated federal implementation plans (FIPs)
requiring the EGUs greater than 25 MW in each affected state, but not
large non-EGUs, to participate in the CAIR trading programs. An
affected state could comply with the requirements of CAIR either by
remaining under the FIP, which applied only to EGUs, or by submitting a
CAIR SIP revision that achieved the required emission reductions from
EGUs and/or other types of sources. States had the further option to
remain subject to the CAIR FIP generally, but also adopt
``abbreviated'' CAIR SIP provisions that made certain modifications to
the trading programs by allocating allowances among covered units,
allowing units to opt-in to the trading programs, or expanding
applicability of the CAIR ozone season NOX trading program
to the non-EGUs that formerly participated in the NOX Budget
Trading Program under the NOX SIP Call.
On August 20, 2007, EPA approved into the Tennessee SIP an
abbreviated CAIR SIP revision with allowance allocation and opt-in
provisions.\4\ On November 25, 2009, EPA approved into the Tennessee
SIP a further abbreviated CAIR SIP revision expanding applicability of
the CAIR ozone season NOX trading program to NOX
SIP Call non-EGUs.\5\
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\4\ See 72 FR 46388 (August 20, 2007).
\5\ See 74 FR 61535 (November 25, 2009).
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EPA discontinued administration of the NOX Budget
Trading Program in 2009 upon the start of the CAIR trading programs.
The NOX SIP Call requirements continued to apply, however,
and EGUs that formerly participated in the NOX Budget
Trading Program in almost all states continued to meet their
NOX SIP Call requirements under the generally more stringent
requirements of the CAIR ozone season trading program. States needed to
assess their NOX SIP Call requirements and take other
regulatory action as necessary to ensure that their obligations for the
large non-EGUs continued to be met either through submission of a CAIR
SIP or other NOX regulation. EPA has implementing
regulations for the NOX SIP Call at 40 CFR 51.121.
On December 23, 2008, CAIR was remanded to EPA by the United States
Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (D.C. Circuit) in
North Carolina v. EPA, 531 F.3d 896 (2008), modified on rehearing, 550
F.3d 1176. This ruling allowed CAIR to remain in effect until a new
interstate transport rule consistent with the Court's opinion was
developed. While EPA worked on developing a new rule to address the
interstate transport of air pollution, the CAIR program continued to be
implemented with the NOX annual and ozone season programs
beginning in 2009 and the SO2 annual program beginning in
2010.
EPA issued the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR) in July 2011
to replace CAIR \6\ and address the requirements of the good neighbor
provision for the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS, the 2006 24-hour
PM2.5 NAAQS, and the 1997 8-hour Ozone NAAQS. As amended
(including by the 2016 CSAPR Update, which addressed good neighbor
requirements for the 2008 8-hour Ozone NAAQS), CSAPR currently requires
27 Eastern states--including Tennessee--to limit their statewide
emissions of SO2 and/or NOX in order to mitigate
transported air pollution impacting other states' ability to attain or
maintain the previously-listed NAAQS. As a mechanism for achieving
compliance with the emissions limitations, CSAPR establishes five
federal emissions trading programs: A program for annual NOX
emissions, two geographically separate programs for annual
SO2 emissions, and two geographically separate programs for
ozone-season NOX emissions. Currently, through FIP
provisions established in CSAPR and subsequent SIP revisions from
various states, each affected state's units are required to participate
in up to three of the five CSAPR trading programs.
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\6\ Implementation of CAIR was formally sunset upon the
implementation of CSAPR, which--because of extended litigation--was
delayed until 2015. See 79 FR 71663 (December 3, 2014) and 81 FR
13275 (March 14, 2016).
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The CSAPR trading programs for annual NOX, annual
SO2, and ozone season NOX are applicable to the
large EGUs (i.e., EGUs that are greater than 25 MW) in each covered
state, and a state may also expand trading program applicability to
include certain smaller EGUs. Under CSAPR as originally promulgated,
states could not expand the applicability under CSAPR's ozone season
NOX trading program to include non-EGUs that formerly
participated in the NOX Budget Trading Program. Starting in
2017, with implementation of the CSAPR Update, states once again have
this option, as they did under CAIR.
With respect to Tennessee, large EGUs in Tennessee are currently
subject to three of the CSAPR trading programs, including one
addressing ozone season NOX emissions. Tennessee has not
chosen to expand CSAPR applicability to small EGUs or non-EGUs.
In a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) published on December 17,
2018 (83 FR 64497), EPA proposed to conditionally approve the portion
of a February 27, 2017, SIP revision to add Tennessee Comprehensive
Rules and Regulation (TCRR) 1200-03-27-.12--``NOX SIP Call
Requirements for Stationary Boilers and Combustion Turbines'' (except
paragraph 1200-03-27-.12(7)(b)4.) to the Tennessee SIP,\7\ which
establishes a state control program to comply with the obligations of
the NOX SIP Call, as clarified in a July 24, 2018,
letter.\8\ EPA stated that approval of this portion of the February 27,
2017, SIP revision would be conditioned on Tennessee submitting by
December 31, 2019, a complete SIP revision amending the rule's
[[Page 8000]]
applicability provisions to cover certain potential new units as
discussed in section II.A. of the NPRM, consistent with the State's
commitment in letters to EPA dated May 11, 2018, and October 11,
2018.\9\ In addition, EPA proposed to fully approve the portion of the
February 27, 2017, SIP submission to remove the SIP-approved portions
of the State's CAIR trading program rules from the Tennessee SIP at
TCRR 1200-03-14-.04--``CAIR SO2 Annual Trading Program,''
1200-03-27-.10--``CAIR NOX Annual Trading Program,'' and
1200-03-27-.11--``CAIR NOX Ozone Season Trading Program.''
Further, EPA proposed to fully approve an April 3, 2018, SIP revision
to remove a previous NOX SIP Call trading program at TCRR
1200-03-27-.06--``NOX Budget Trading Program for State
Implementation Plans.'' The details of Tennessee's submissions and the
rationale for EPA's actions are explained in the NPRM. Comments on the
proposed rulemaking were due on or before January 16, 2019. EPA did not
receive any comments on the proposed action. EPA is now taking final
action consistent with its proposal.
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\7\ TCRR 1200-03-27-.12(7)(b) specifies additional reporting and
recordkeeping requirements related to each facility, which require
the facility to report its emissions and to generally maintain
records for at least five years. The February 27, 2018 SIP
submission contains paragraph 1200-3-27-.12(7)(b)4 that requires
sources to report to the Tennessee Division of Air Pollution
Control, in addition to EPA. However, as reporting to EPA continues
to be required for sources, Tennessee withdrew 1200-3-27-.12(7)(b)4
from the February 27, 2018 submission in a July 24, 2018 letter
(hereinafter ``the July 24, 2018 Letter''). As a result, EPA is not
acting on the withdrawn paragraph.
\8\ The July 24, 2018 Letter clarifies that, consistent with
TCRR 1200-03-27-.12(6)(a), the State interprets TCRR 1200-03-
27-.12(6)(d) to require that any adjusted allowance allocation
amounts for existing affected units under 1200-03-27.12(6)(d) be
submitted to EPA for approval as a SIP revision to be incorporated
into the SIP prior to allocation. EPA's action on Tennessee's SIP is
therefore based on the clarification of the State's interpretation
of this provision as explained in the July 24, 2018 Letter.
\9\ On May 11, 2018, Tennessee submitted a commitment letter
requesting conditional approval of the 2017 NOX SIP Call
Rule and committing to provide a SIP revision to EPA by April 30,
2019, that addresses the deficiency discussed in Section II.A. of
the NPRM by revising the definition of ``affected unit'' to remove
the unqualified exclusion for any unit that serves a generator that
produces power for sale. In a letter dated October 11, 2018,
Tennessee revised the commitment date from April 30, 2019, to
December 31, 2019.
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II. Incorporation by Reference
In this document, 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 TCRR 1200-03-
27-.12--``NOX SIP Call Requirements for Stationary Boilers
and Combustion Turbines'' (with the exception of paragraph 1200-3-
27-.12(7)(b)4.), state effective February 19, 2017, which establishes a
state control program to comply with the obligations of the
NOX SIP Call. EPA has made, and will continue to make, these
materials generally available through www.regulations.gov and at the
EPA Region 4 Office (please contact the person identified in the ``For
Further Information Contact'' section of this preamble for more
information). Therefore, these materials have been approved by EPA for
inclusion in the State implementation plan, have been incorporated by
reference by EPA into that plan, are fully federally enforceable under
sections 110 and 113 of the CAA as of the effective date of the final
rulemaking of EPA's approval, and will be incorporated by reference in
the next update to the SIP compilation.\10\
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\10\ See 62 FR 27968 (May 22, 1997).
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III. Final Action
As described above and in the NPRM, EPA is conditionally approving
the portion of the February 27, 2017, SIP revision to add TCRR 1200-03-
27-.12--``NOX SIP Call Requirements for Stationary Boilers
and Combustion Turbines'' (except paragraph 1200-03-27-.12(7)(b)4.) to
the Tennessee SIP, as clarified in the July 24, 2018 Letter. Approval
of this portion of the February 27, 2017, SIP revision is conditioned
on Tennessee submitting by December 31, 2019, a complete SIP revision
amending the rule's applicability provisions to cover certain potential
new units as discussed in section II.A. of the NPRM, consistent with
the State's commitment. In addition, EPA is approving the portion of
the February 27, 2017 SIP submission to remove the SIP-approved
portions of the State's CAIR trading program rules from the Tennessee
SIP at TCRR 1200-03-14-.04--``CAIR SO2 Annual Trading
Program,'' 1200-03-27-.10--``CAIR NOX Annual Trading
Program,'' and 1200-03-27-.11--``CAIR NOX Ozone Season
Trading Program.'' Further, EPA is approving the April 3, 2018, SIP
revision to remove a previous NOX SIP Call trading program
at TCRR 1200-03-27-.06--``NOX Budget Trading Program for
State Implementation Plans.''
IV. 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 the CAA. These actions merely
approve state law as meeting Federal requirements and do not impose
additional requirements beyond those imposed by state law. For that
reason, these actions:
Are not significant regulatory actions 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);
Are not Executive Order 13771 (82 FR 9339, February 2,
2017) regulatory actions because SIP approvals are exempted under
Executive Order 12866;
Do not impose an information collection burden under the
provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.);
Are certified as not having significant economic impact on
a substantial number of small entities under the Regulatory Flexibility
Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.);
Do 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);
Do not have Federalism implications as specified in
Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999);
Are not economically significant regulatory actions based
on health or safety risks subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR
19885, April 23, 1997);
Are not significant regulatory actions subject to
Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001);
Are 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
Do 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).
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
[[Page 8001]]
action must be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for the
appropriate circuit by May 6, 2019. 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. 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: February 20, 2019.
Mary S. Walker,
Acting 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 52.2219 is added to read as follows:
Sec. 52.2219 Conditional approval.
Tennessee submitted a SIP revision on February 27, 2017, to add
TCRR 1200-03-27-.12--``NOX SIP Call Requirements for
Stationary Boilers and Combustion Turbines'' (except paragraph 1200-03-
27-.12(7)(b)4.) to the Tennessee SIP, which establishes a state control
program to comply with the obligations of the NOX SIP Call.
In letters dated May 11, 2018 and October 11, 2018, Tennessee committed
to submit, by December 31, 2019, a complete SIP revision amending the
rule's applicability provisions to cover certain potential new units.
EPA conditionally approved the portion of the February 27, 2017, SIP
revision to add TCRR 1200-03-27-.12 to the SIP in an action published
in the Federal Register on March 6, 2019 based on this commitment. If
Tennessee fails to meet its commitment by December 31, 2019, the
conditional approval will become a disapproval and EPA will issue a
notice to that effect.
0
3. Section 52.2220(c) Table 1 is amended:
0
a. Under CHAPTER 1200-3-14 by removing the entry for ``Section 1200-3-
14-.04'', and
0
b. Under CHAPTER 1200-3-27 by:
0
i. Removing the entries for ``Section 1200-3-27-.06'', ``Section 1200-
3-27-.10'', and ``Section 1200-3-27-.11''; and
0
ii. Adding an entry in numerical order for ``Section 1200-3-27-.12''.
The revisions and additions read as follows:
Sec. 52.2220 Identification of plan.
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(c) * * *
Table 1--EPA Approved Tennessee Regulations
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State
State citation Title/subject effective date EPA approval date Explanation
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CHAPTER 1200-3-27 Nitrogen Oxides
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Section 1200-3-27-.12......... NOX SIP Call 2/19/17 3/6/19 [Insert With the exception of
Requirements for Federal Register paragraph 1200-3-27-
Stationary Boilers citation]. .12(7)(b)4. The
and Combustion remainder of Section
Turbines. 1200-3-27-.12 is
conditionally
approved through
December 31, 2019.
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[FR Doc. 2019-03956 Filed 3-5-19; 8:45 am]
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