[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 57 (Monday, March 25, 2019)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 11208-11210]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-05163]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R09-OAR-2017-0728; FRL-9990-34-Region 9]


Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality State Implementation 
Plans; California; Plumas County; Moderate Area Plan for the 2012 PM2.5 
NAAQS

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving most 
elements of state implementation plan (SIP) revisions submitted by 
California to address Clean Air Act (CAA or ``Act'') requirements for 
the 2012 annual fine particulate matter (PM2.5) national 
ambient air quality standards (NAAQS or ``standards'') in the Plumas 
County Moderate PM2.5 nonattainment area (``Portola 
nonattainment area''). The SIP revisions are the ``Portola Fine 
Particulate Matter (PM2.5) Attainment Plan'' submitted on 
February 28, 2017, and the 2019 and 2022 transportation conformity 
motor vehicle emission budgets (``budgets'') submitted on December 20, 
2017. We refer to these submittals collectively as the ``Portola 
PM2.5 Plan'' or ``Plan.'' The EPA is not taking action at 
this time on the contingency measures in the Portola PM2.5 
Plan.

DATES: This final rule is effective on April 24, 2019.

ADDRESSES: The EPA has established a docket for this action under 
Docket ID No. EPA-R09-OAR-2017-0728. All documents in the docket are 
listed on the https://www.regulations.gov website. Although listed in 
the index, some information is not publicly available, e.g., 
Confidential Business Information (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 through https://www.regulations.gov, or please 
contact the person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT 
section for additional availability information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Ungvarsky, EPA Region IX, (415) 
972-3963, [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, ``we,'' ``us,'' 
and ``our'' refer to the EPA.

Table of Contents

I. Background
II. Public Comments and EPA Responses
III. Final Action
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. Background

    Epidemiological studies have shown statistically significant 
correlations between elevated levels of PM2.5 (particulate 
matter with a diameter of 2.5 microns or less) and premature mortality. 
Other important health effects associated with PM2.5 
exposure include aggravation of respiratory and cardiovascular disease, 
changes in lung function, and increased respiratory symptoms. 
Individuals particularly sensitive to PM2.5 exposure include 
older adults, people with heart and lung disease, and children.\1\ 
PM2.5 can be emitted directly into the atmosphere as a solid 
or liquid particle (``primary PM2.5'' or ``direct 
PM2.5'') or can be formed in the atmosphere as a result of 
various chemical reactions among precursor pollutants such as nitrogen 
oxides, sulfur oxides, volatile organic compounds, and ammonia 
(``secondary PM2.5'').\2\
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    \1\ 78 FR 3086, 3088 (January 15, 2013).
    \2\ 72 FR 20586, 20589 (April 25, 2007).
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    The EPA first established annual and 24-hour NAAQS for 
PM2.5 on July 18, 1997.\3\ The annual standard was set at 
15.0 micrograms per cubic meter ([micro]g/m\3\) based on a 3-year 
average of annual mean PM2.5 concentrations, and the 24-hour 
(daily) standard was set at 65 [micro]g/m\3\ based on the 3-year 
average of the annual 98th percentile values of 24-hour 
PM2.5 concentrations at each monitor within an area.\4\ On 
October 17, 2006, the EPA revised the level of the 24-hour 
PM2.5 NAAQS to 35 [micro]g/m\3\ based on a 3-year average of 
the annual 98th percentile values of 24-hour concentrations.\5\ On 
January 15, 2013, the EPA revised the annual standard to 12.0 [micro]g/
m\3\ based on a 3-year average of annual mean PM2.5 
concentrations.\6\ We refer to this standard as the 2012 
PM2.5 NAAQS.
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    \3\ 62 FR 38652. The initial NAAQS for PM2.5 included 
annual standards of 15.0 [micro]g/m\3\ based on a 3-year average of 
annual mean PM2.5 concentrations and 24-hour (daily) 
standards of 65 [micro]g/m\3\ based on a 3-year average of 98th 
percentile 24-hour concentrations (40 CFR 50.7).
    \4\ The primary and secondary standards were set at the same 
level for both the 24-hour and the annual PM2.5 
standards.
    \5\ 71 FR 61144.
    \6\ 78 FR 3086.
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    California submitted the Portola PM2.5 Plan to provide 
for attainment of the 2012 PM2.5 NAAQS in the Portola 
nonattainment area, which the EPA has designated and classified as 
``Moderate'' nonattainment for these NAAQS.\7\ On December 18, 2018, we 
proposed to approve the following elements of the Portola 
PM2.5 Plan: The 2013 base year emissions inventories, the 
reasonably available control measure/reasonably available control 
technology (RACM/RACT) demonstration, the attainment demonstration, the 
reasonable further progress demonstration, the quantitative milestones, 
and the budgets for 2019 and 2021. We did not propose action on the 
contingency measures in the Portola PM2.5 Plan.\8\
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    \7\ 80 FR 2206 (January 15, 2015).
    \8\ 83 FR 64774.
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    As part of the December 18, 2018 action, we proposed to find that 
the collection of PM2.5 control requirements in the Portola 
PM2.5 Plan implements all RACM/RACT for the control of 
direct PM2.5 and to approve the PM2.5 RACM 
demonstration in the Portola PM2.5 Plan as meeting the 
requirements of CAA sections 172(c)(1) and 189(a)(1)(C) and 40 CFR 
51.1009. The RACM/RACT measures in the Plan include the District's 
enforceable commitment to implement the voluntary wood stove change-out 
program, the City of Portola Wood Stove and Fireplace Ordinance, CARB's 
mobile source program, the District's commitment to strengthen its open 
burning measure, and other controls on sources in the nonattainment 
area.
    We also proposed to find that the attainment demonstration in the 
Portola PM2.5 Plan satisfies the requirements of sections 
189(a)(1)(B) and 172(c)(1) of the CAA and 40 CFR 51.1011(a). In support 
of this proposal, we found that the State used two acceptable modeling 
techniques to demonstrate attainment of the 2012 PM2.5 NAAQS 
in the Portola nonattainment area, and that the plan demonstrates 
attainment as

[[Page 11209]]

expeditiously as practicable. We also found that the Portola 
PM2.5 Plan provides a clear and convincing justification for 
its extensive reliance on a voluntary wood stove change-out incentive 
program as the primary strategy for attainment, and that all of the 
control measures in the Plan, including the District's enforceable 
commitment to implement the wood stove change-out program, together 
ensure that projected emission reductions will occur in time to provide 
for attainment of the 2012 PM2.5 NAAQS by the December 31, 
2021 attainment date. Our December 18, 2018 proposed rule provides a 
more detailed discussion of our evaluation of the Plan.\9\
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    \9\ Id.
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II. Public Comments and EPA Responses

    The EPA's proposed action provided a 30-day public comment period 
that ended on January 17, 2019. We did not receive any comments during 
this period.

III. Final Action

    Under CAA section 110(k)(3), the EPA is approving SIP revisions 
submitted by California to address the Act's Moderate area planning 
requirements for the 2012 PM2.5 NAAQS in the Portola 
nonattainment area. Specifically, the EPA is approving the following 
elements of the Portola PM2.5 Plan:
    1. The 2013 base year emissions inventories as meeting the 
requirements of CAA section 172(c)(3);
    2. the reasonably available control measure/reasonably available 
control technology demonstration as meeting the requirements of CAA 
sections 172(c)(1) and 189(a)(1)(C);
    3. the attainment demonstration as meeting the requirements of CAA 
sections 172(c)(1) and 189(a)(1)(B);
    4. the reasonable further progress demonstration as meeting the 
requirements of CAA section 172(c)(2);
    5. the quantitative milestones as meeting the requirements of CAA 
section 189(c); and
    6. the motor vehicle emissions budgets for 2019 and 2021, because 
they are derived from approvable attainment and reasonable further 
progress demonstrations and meet the requirements of CAA section 176(c) 
and 40 CFR part 93, subpart A.
    The EPA is not taking action at this time on the contingency 
measures or the post-attainment year (2022) budget in the Portola 
PM2.5 Plan.

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. 42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a). Thus, in 
reviewing SIP submissions, the 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);
     is not an Executive Order 13771 (82 FR 9339, February 2, 
2017) regulatory action because SIP approvals are exempted under 
Executive Order 12866;
     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 the EPA with the discretionary authority 
to address disproportionate human health or environmental effects with 
practical, appropriate, 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 the 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 and will not 
impose substantial direct costs on tribal governments or preempt tribal 
law as specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 
2000).
    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. The 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 Clean Air Act, petitions for 
judicial review of this action must be filed in the United States Court 
of Appeals for the appropriate circuit by May 24, 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, Ammonia, 
Incorporation by reference, Intergovernmental relations, Oxides of 
nitrogen, Particulate matter, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, 
Sulfur oxides, Volatile organic compounds.

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

    Dated: February 20, 2019.
Deborah Jordan,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region IX.

    Part 52, chapter I, title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations 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.

[[Page 11210]]

Subpart F--California

0
2. Section 52.220 is amended by adding paragraphs (c)(500)(ii) and 
(c)(515) to read as follows:


Sec.  52.220  Identification of plan--in part.

* * * * *
    (c) * * *
    (500) * * *
    (ii) Additional materials. (A) Northern Sierra Air Quality 
Management District.
    (1) The ``Portola Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5) 
Attainment Plan,'' adopted January 23, 2017, excluding subchapter V.G 
(``Demonstrating Attainment of the 24-hour Standard''), subchapter VI.B 
(``Contingency Measure''), and appendices.
    (2) [Reserved]
* * * * *
    (515) The following additional materials were submitted on December 
20, 2017, by the Governor's designee.
    (i) [Reserved]
    (ii) Additional materials. (A) California Air Resources Board.
    (1) Resolution 17-28, ``Supplemental Transportation Conformity 
Emissions Budgets for the Portola Fine Particulate Matter 
(PM2.5) Attainment Plan,'' October 26, 2017, excluding the 
2022 conformity budget.
    (2) [Reserved]
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2019-05163 Filed 3-22-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P