[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 184 (Monday, September 23, 2019)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 49661-49663]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-20321]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA-R07-OAR-2019-0328; FRL-9999-73--Region 7]
Air Plan Approval; Missouri; Rescission of Information on Sales
of Fuels To Be Provided and Maintained and Certain Coals To Be Washed
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving two
State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision submissions from the State of
Missouri. In these submissions, the State requested that two rules
relating to the sales of fuel and coal washing be rescinded from the
Missouri SIP. The EPA received both submissions on December 4, 2018,
and received supplemental information for both submissions on May 6,
2019. The EPA reviewed the submissions and supplemental information and
determined that rescission of these rules from the SIP does not impact
the stringency of the SIP or air quality. Approval of the submissions
will ensure consistency between state and federally approved rules and
is being done in accordance with the requirements of the Clean Air Act
(CAA).
DATES: This final rule is effective on October 23, 2019.
ADDRESSES: The EPA has established a docket for this action under
Docket ID No. EPA-R07-OAR-2019-0328. 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, i.e., 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 information.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tracey Casburn, Environmental
Protection Agency, Region 7 Office, Air Quality and Planning Branch,
11201 Renner Boulevard, Lenexa, Kansas 66219; telephone number (913)
551-
[[Page 49662]]
7016; email address [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document ``we,'' ``us,'' and
``our'' refer to EPA.
Table of Contents
I. Background
II. What is being addressed in this document?
III. Have the requirements for approval of a SIP revision been met?
IV. What is the EPA's response to comment received?
V. What action is the EPA taking?
VI. Incorporation by Reference
VII. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
I. Background
On July 2, 2019, the EPA proposed the rescission of two rules
relating to the sales of fuel and coal washing be rescinded from the
Missouri SIP in the Federal Register. See 84 FR 31541. The EPA
solicited comments on the proposed SIP revisions and received one
comment.
II. What is being addressed in this document?
The EPA is approving two requests to revise the Missouri SIP,
received on December 4, 2018. Supplemental information for both
submissions was received on May 6, 2019. In the submissions, the State
requested that two rules, found at Title 10, Division 10 of the code of
state regulations (CSR)-10 CSR 10-5.120 Information on Sales of Fuels
to be Provided and Maintained and 10 CSR 10-5.130 Certain Coals to be
Washed- be rescinded from the Missouri SIP. A detailed discussion of
the submissions was provided in the EPA's July 2, 2019, Federal
Register document and in a technical support document (TSD) in the
docket to this action. See 84 FR 31541.
III. Have the requirements for approval of a SIP revision been met?
The State submission has met the public notice requirements for SIP
submissions in accordance with 40 CFR 51.102. The submissions also
satisfied the completeness criteria of 40 CFR part 51, appendix V. The
State provided public notice of the revisions from June 15, 2018, to
September 6, 2018, and held a public hearing on August 30, 2018. The
State received and addressed one comment. The comment was from the EPA
and was general in nature. No changes were made to the proposals to
rescind the rules in response to the EPA's comment. As explained in
more detail in the TSD, which is part of this docket, the SIP revision
submissions met the substantive requirements of the CAA, including
section 110 and implementing regulations.
IV. What is the EPA's response to comment received?
The public comment period opened the date of the publication the
EPA's proposed rule in the Federal Register, July 2, 2019, and closed
on August 1, 2019. During this period, the EPA received one comment.
Comment: The commenter stated that the EPA must perform it's own
search of residential sources and positively determine whether there
are any residences that burn coal or residual fuel oil as a heating
source, and, if the EPA were to find a residential source, it must
evaluate any relaxations that could occur by allowing the State to
remove the regulations from the SIP.
Response: The commenter is concerned that the EPA did not fully
evaluate if rescinding the coal washing and fuel sale receipt rules
would result in relaxations in air quality standards because there may
or may not be residential consumers of coal and/or fuel oil. As noted
in the TSD (provided in the docket to this rulemaking), the EPA did not
evaluate potential emissions from residential consumers because it and
the state were not aware of any. The rules pre-dated the CAA and were
promulgated to reduce impacts from smoke and soot in the St. Louis
metropolitan area. When the rules were promulgated in the 1960's,
inexpensive bituminous coal, high in sulfur content and ash, was in
abundant supply in nearby southern Illinois. Almost all industrial and
commercial facilities, as well apartment buildings and single-family
homes, burned this coal contributing to the smoke problem in the city.
The rules were intended to move consumers toward burning better quality
coal and fuel oil in the metro area. 10 CSR 10-5.120 functioned purely
to monitor the sale of fuel oil and coal and 10 CSR 10-5.130 required
consumers of coal with more than 2 percent sulfur and/or 12 percent ash
to wash the coal prior to burning it.
In order to address the commenter's concern regarding the EPA's
consideration of impacts from residential users, the EPA reviewed
historical household fuel use data provided by the U.S. Census
Bureau.\1\ As shown in Table 1, in 2000, there are were no residential
users of coal and only 0.6 percent of households using fuel oil, in all
of Missouri. A review of heating fuel use from 1940 to 2000 shows a
significant decline in residential fuel oil and coal usage and a
significant increase in residential use of utility gas and electricity.
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\1\ https://www.census.gov/hhes/www/housing/census/historic/fuels.html.
Table 1--Missouri Historical Census--House Heating Fuel Use
[Fuel use provided in percent]
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Occupied
Year units Utility gas LP gas Electricity Fuel oil Coal Wood Other No fuel
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2000............................ 2,194,594 57.5 13.4 24.5 0.6 0 3.5 0.2 0.2
1990............................ 1,961,206 60.4 12 18.1 1.5 0 7.6 0.2 0.1
1980............................ 1,793,399 65 14.3 11.7 3.5 0.1 5.2 0.2 0
1970............................ 1,520,567 67.8 16.7 2.9 8.7 0.9 2.5 0.4 0.1
1960............................ 1,359,973 51.3 9.9 0.4 17.1 12.2 8.8 0.2 0.1
1950............................ 1,162,305 24.5 2 0.2 15.8 40.1 15.4 1.4 0.3
1940............................ 1,049,033 4.7 NA NA 3.5 61.7 29.9 0.1 0.1
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Even if the EPA were to become aware of a residential consumer of
coal or fuel oil in the St. Louis metropolatin area, neither rule
regulated emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO2) or particulate
matter (PM), nor did the rules limit the amount of fuel oil or coal
that could be burned. There would not be a relaxation in direct
emissions from residential consumers attributed to the rules'
rescission because, as mentioned, there was no existing limitation on
those direct emissions. Additionally, the state did not rely on 10 CSR
10-5.120 or 10 CSR 10-5.130 for any quantifiable emission reductions in
any plan to attain or maintain any National Ambient Air Quality
Standard (NAAQS).
[[Page 49663]]
V. What action is the EPA taking?
The EPA is ammending the Missouri SIP by rescinding 10 CSR 10-5.120
Information on Sales of Fuels to be Provided and Maintained and 10 CSR
10-5.130 Certain Coals to be Washed. Approval of these revisions will
ensure consistency between State and federally-approved rules. These
rescissions will not impact air quality since the rules do not
effectively limit emissions or the amount of fuel that can be burned
and do not function to achieve attainment or maintenance of the
National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS).
VI. Incorporation by Reference
In this document, as described in the amendments to 40 CFR part 52
set forth below, the EPA is removing provisions of the EPA Approved
Missouri Regulations and Statutes from the Missouri State
Implementation Plan, which is incorporated by reference in accordance
with the requirements of 1 CFR part 51.
VII. 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, 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 the National Technology
Transfer and Advancement Act (NTTA) because this rulemaking does not
involve technical standards; 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).
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. 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 November 22, 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, Certain coals to
be washed, Incorporation by reference, Information on fuel sales,
Particulate matter, Rescission, Sulfur dioxide.
Dated: September 11, 2019.
Mike Brincks,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 7.
For the reasons stated in the preamble, the EPA amends 40 CFR part
52 as set forth below:
PART 52--APPROVAL AND PROMULGATION OF IMPLEMENTATION PLANS
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1. The authority citation for part 52 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Subpart--AA Missouri
Sec. 52.1320 [Amended]
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2. In Sec. 52.1320, the table in paragraph (c) is amended by removing
entries ``10-5.120'' and ``10-5.130'' under the heading ``Chapter 5--
Air Quality Standards and Air Pollution Control Regulations for the St.
Louis Metropolitan Area''.
[FR Doc. 2019-20321 Filed 9-20-19; 8:45 am]
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