[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 136 (Tuesday, July 16, 2019)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 33850-33853]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-14879]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R04-OAR-2017-0422; FRL-9996-43-Region 4]


Air Plan Approval; NC; Emission Control Standards, Open Burning, 
and Miscellaneous Revisions

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking final 
action to approve portions of a revision to the North Carolina State 
Implementation Plan (SIP) submitted by the State of North Carolina 
through the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality 
(formerly the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural 
Resources (NCDENR)), Division of Air Quality, on January 31, 2008. The 
revision includes changes to emission control standards and open 
burning regulations. The changes are part of North Carolina's strategy 
to meet and

[[Page 33851]]

maintain the national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS). This 
action is being taken pursuant to the Clean Air Act (CAA or Act) and 
its implementing regulations.

DATES: This rule is effective August 15, 2019.

ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket 
Identification No. EPA-R04-OAR-2017-0422. All documents in the docket 
are listed on the www.regulations.gov website. Although listed in the 
index, some information is not 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 and Radiation Division (formerly the 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: Andres Febres, Air Regulatory 
Management Section, Air Planning and Implementation Branch, Air and 
Radiation Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 
Forsyth Street SW, Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. The telephone number is 
(404) 562-8966. Mr. Febres can also be reached via electronic mail at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    On January 31, 2008, the State of North Carolina, through 
NCDENR,\1\ submitted changes to the North Carolina SIP for EPA 
approval. EPA is taking final action to approve changes to the 
following regulations under 15A North Carolina Administrative Code 
(NCAC) 02D: Section .0519, Control of Nitrogen Dioxide and Nitrogen 
Oxides Emissions; Section .0540, Particulates From Fugitive Non-Process 
Dust Emission Sources; and Section .1907, Multiple Violations Arising 
From a Single Episode.\2\ These changes are a part of North Carolina's 
strategy to attain and maintain the NAAQS and are being approved 
pursuant to section 110 of the CAA. EPA has taken, will take, or, for 
various reasons, will not take separate action on all other changes 
submitted on January 31, 2008.\3\
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    \1\ NCDENR is now the North Carolina Department of Environmental 
Quality.
    \2\ In the table of North Carolina regulations federally 
approved into the SIP at 40 CFR 52.1770(c), 15A NCAC 02D is referred 
to as ``Subchapter 2D Air Pollution Control Requirements.''
    \3\ On February 5, 2015 (80 FR 6455), EPA took final action on 
2D Section .1004. On July 18, 2017 (82 FR 32767), EPA took direct 
final action on 2D Sections .1901, .1902 and .1903. EPA will be 
taking separate action on 15A NCAC Sections 2D .1904 and 2Q .0102. 
EPA is not taking action on 2D Sections .0516 and .0521, because the 
changes to these rules reference incinerator rules under CAA 
sections 111(d) and 129 and 40 CFR part 60 and are not a part of the 
federally-approved SIP. EPA is not taking action on changes to 2Q 
Section .0506 because the proposed changes reference a regulation 
not approved into the SIP and which is being repealed by North 
Carolina. Lastly, EPA is not taking action on changes to 2D Sections 
.0524, .0960, .1201, .1202, .1208, .1211, and .2303 because the 
State withdrew these regulations from its January 31, 2008, 
submittal.
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    The revisions that are the subject of this final action make 
changes to emission control standard regulations under Subchapter 2D of 
the North Carolina SIP. These changes revise the applicability of 
nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and nitrogen oxides emissions 
standards to nitric acid plants; amend definitions and expand the 
applicability of provisions related to fugitive dust emissions, 
including renaming the rule to eliminate the word ``non-process''; and 
add a new open burning rule for multiple violations that can occur from 
a single open burning event. The changes either do not interfere with 
attainment and maintenance of the NAAQS or they have the effect of 
strengthening the North Carolina SIP. In a notice of proposed 
rulemaking (NPRM) published on March 11, 2019 (84 FR 8654), EPA 
proposed to approve the aforementioned revisions to the North Carolina 
SIP. The NPRM provides additional detail regarding the background and 
rationale for EPA's action. Comments on the NPRM were due on or before 
April 10, 2019. EPA received one comment on the proposed action, but it 
is not germane to the proposed action. That comment is discussed below.

II. Response to Comments

    EPA received one comment, which addresses portions of North 
Carolina's submittal on which EPA is not acting in this rulemaking. The 
comment concerns changes to 15A NCAC 02D .0521 and .1201, as well as 
the adoption of 15A NCAC 02D .1211. As explained herein and in the 
NPRM, see 84 FR at 8655 n.3, those NCAC provisions are not the subject 
of this rulemaking, and EPA is not taking action on changes to them. 
Therefore, the comment is not relevant to this action.

III. Incorporation by Reference

    In this rule, 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 state 
regulations under Subchapter 2D Air Pollution Control Requirements, 
Section .0519, Control of Nitrogen Dioxide and Nitrogen Oxides 
Emissions; and Section .1907, Multiple Violations Arising from a Single 
Episode, which have a state effective date of July 1, 2007; as well as 
Section .0540, Particulates From Fugitive Dust Emission Sources, which 
has as effective date of August 1, 2007. 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 SIP, 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.\4\
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    \4\ See 62 FR 27968 (May 22, 1997).
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IV. Final Action

    For the reasons described above, EPA is taking final action to 
approve the aforementioned changes to the North Carolina SIP submitted 
by the State of North Carolina on January 31, 2008, pursuant to CAA 
section 110 because these changes are consistent with the CAA. Changes 
to the other sections in these submissions have been or will be 
processed in a separate action, as appropriate, for approval into the 
North Carolina SIP.

V. 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

[[Page 33852]]

the CAA. 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 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 action must be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for 
the appropriate circuit by September 16, 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, Carbon monoxide, 
Incorporation by reference, Intergovernmental relations, Lead, Nitrogen 
dioxide, Ozone, Particulate matter, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements, Sulfur oxides, Volatile organic compounds.

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

    Dated: June 26, 2019.
Mary S. Walker,
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 II--North Carolina

0
2. In Sec.  52.1770, the table in paragraph (c)(1) is amended under 
Subchapter 2D Air Pollution Control Requirements by:
0
a. Revising the entries for ``Section .0519'' and ``Section .0540''; 
and
0
b. Adding an entry for ``Section .1907'' in numerical order.
    The revisions and addition read as follows:


Sec.  52.1770  Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (c) * * *

                                   (1) EPA Approved North Carolina Regulations
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                                                      State
       State citation           Title/subject    effective date   EPA approval date          Explanation
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                                Subchapter 2D Air Pollution Control Requirements
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                                    Section .0500 Emission Control Standards
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                                                  * * * * * * *
Section .0519..............  Control of                7/1/2007  7/16/2019 [Insert
                              Nitrogen Dioxide                    citation of
                              and Nitrogen                        publication].
                              Oxides Emissions.
 
                                                  * * * * * * *
Section .0540..............  Particulates from         8/1/2007  7/16/2019 [Insert
                              Fugitive Dust                       citation of
                              Emission Sources.                   publication].
 

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                                           Section .1900 Open Burning
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                                                  * * * * * * *
Section .1907..............  Multiple                  7/1/2007  7/16/2019 [Insert
                              Violations                          citation of
                              Arising from a                      publication].
                              Single Episode.
 
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[FR Doc. 2019-14879 Filed 7-15-19; 8:45 am]
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