[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 209 (Tuesday, October 29, 2019)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 57824-57826]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-23376]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA-R04-OAR-2018-0819; FRL-10001-49-Region 4]
Air Plan Approval; Georgia; Revisions to Sulfur Dioxide Ambient
Air Quality Standards
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving a State
Implementation Plan (SIP) revision submitted by the State of Georgia
through the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) through a
letter dated July 31, 2018. EPA is approving into the SIP a
modification to Georgia's Ambient Air Quality Standards regulation. The
SIP revision updates Georgia's air quality standards for sulfur dioxide
(SO2) to be consistent with the National Ambient Air Quality
Standards (NAAQS). EPA is approving the SIP revision because the change
is consistent with the Clean Air Act (CAA or Act) and Federal
regulations.
DATES: This rule will be effective November 29, 2019.
ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket
Identification No. EPA-R04-OAR-2018-0819. 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 and Radiation 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: Tiereny Bell, Air Regulatory
Management Section, Air Planning and Implementation Branch, Air and
Radiation Division, Region 4, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 61
Forsyth Street SW, Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. The telephone number is
(404) 562-9088. Ms. Bell can also be reached via electronic mail at
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
On June 22, 2010, EPA promulgated a revised primary SO2
NAAQS. The revised SO2 NAAQS is an hourly standard of 75
parts per billion (ppb), based on a 3-year average of the annual 99th
percentile of 1-hour daily maximum concentrations. The June 22, 2010
action that promulgated the revised primary SO2 NAAQS also
addressed revocation of the 1971 24-hour and annual primary
SO2 NAAQS. See 75 FR 35520. Pursuant to the June 22, 2010
action and 40 CFR 50.4, the 1971 primary SO2 annual and 24-
hour NAAQS will continue to apply in an area until one year after the
effective date of the designation of that area for the 2010
SO2 NAAQS. See 42 U.S.C. 7407; 40 CFR 50.17.\1\
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\1\ See 75 FR at 35581. No areas in Georgia were designated as
nonattainment for the 1971 standards at the time of promulgation of
the 2010 1-hour SO2 annual and 24-hour SO2
standards. See id.
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Accordingly, in the July 31, 2018,\2\ SIP submittal, Georgia
revised Rule 391-3-1-.02(4)(b) to provide clarity that the 1971
standard continues to apply in Georgia.\3\ Specifically, the changes
reflect the historical and current NAAQS for SO2 and update
the former primary SO2 NAAQS for the 1971 annual and 24-hour
ambient air quality standards to be consistent with the Federal
regulations. The SIP submission can be found in the docket for this
rulemaking at www.regulations.gov.
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\2\ EPA received the SIP revision on August 2, 2018.
\3\ See 40 CFR 81.311 for designated areas in the State of
Georgia for the 2010 SO2 standard. EPA notes that Floyd
County is the only county in Georgia that has not yet been
designated for the 2010 SO2 standard, and thus is still
subject to the 1971 annual and 24-hour SO2 standards. See
81 FR 45039 (July 12, 2016); 83 FR 1098 (January 9, 2018).
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In a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) published on July 2, 2019
(84 FR 31540), EPA proposed to approve the revision to the Georgia air
quality rules addressing Rule 391-3-1-.02(4), Ambient Air Standards,
into the Georgia SIP.\4\ Comments on the NPRM were due on or before
August 1, 2019. EPA received no comments on the proposed action.
Consistent with the NPRM, which contains additional detail on the
submittal, EPA's analysis, and EPA's rationale for approval, EPA is now
taking final action to approve the above-referenced revision.
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\4\ As discussed in the NPRM, EPA received several SIP revisions
from Georgia through the July 31, 2018, letter and is considering
action on the additional SIP revisions in separate actions.
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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 Georgia Rule
391-3-1-.02(4), Ambient Air Standards, paragraph (b) Sulfur Dioxide,
State-effective July 23, 2018, which updates the former primary
SO2 NAAQS for the 1971 annual and 24-hour ambient air
quality standards to be consistent with the Federal regulations. 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
[[Page 57825]]
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.\5\
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\5\ See 62 FR 27968 (May 22, 1997).
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III. Final Action
EPA is taking final action to approve the State of Georgia's July
31, 2018, SIP submission revising Rule 391-3-1-.02(4), Ambient Air
Standards, paragraph (b) Sulfur Dioxide. This revision is consistent
with the CAA.
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. 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 final 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 December 30, 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, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements, Sulfur oxides, Volatile organic compounds.
Dated: October 10, 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 L--Georgia
0
2. Section 52.570(c), is amended under Emission Standards by revising
the entry for ``391-3-1-.02(4)'' to read as follows:
Sec. 52.570 Identification of plan.
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(c) * * *
EPA-Approved Georgia Regulations
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State
State citation Title/subject effective date EPA approval date Explanation
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* * * * * * *
391-3-1-.02(4)................. Ambient Air 7/23/2018 10/29/2019, Except paragraphs (a),
Standards. [Insert citation (c), (d), (e), (f),
of publication]. (g), and (h), approved
on 12/4/2018 with a
State-effective date
of 7/20/2017.
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[[Page 57826]]
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[FR Doc. 2019-23376 Filed 10-28-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P