[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 22 (Monday, February 3, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5956-5957]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-02010]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[Petition I-2019-3; FRL-10004-45-Region 1]


Clean Air Act Operating Permit Program; Petition for Objection to 
State Operating Permit for Wheelabrator Environmental System Inc., 
Wheelabrator Concord Company, L.P., Concord, New Hampshire

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of final order on petition to object to state operating 
permits.

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SUMMARY: The EPA Administrator signed an Order, dated October 30, 2019, 
denying a petition dated March 14, 2019, filed by Anthony Caplan, 
Katherine Lajoie, Rebecca MacKenzie, and Janet Ward (the Petitioners). 
The Petitioners requested that the EPA object to a proposed Clean Air 
Act (CAA) title V operating permit (Permit No. TV-0032) issued by the 
New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (NHDES) to 
Wheelabrator Environmental System, Inc., Wheelabrator Concord Company, 
L.P. (Wheelabrator), a large municipal waste incinerator located in 
Concord, New Hampshire.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the Order, the petition, and all pertinent 
information relating thereto are on file at the following location: EPA 
Region 1; Air and Radiation Division; 5 Post Office Square--Suite 100, 
(Mail code 05-2), Boston, MA 02109-3912. The Order is also available 
electronically at the following address: https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2019-11/documents/wheelabrator_rensponse2019.pdf.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jessica Kilpatrick, Air Permits, 
Toxics, and Indoor Programs Branch, U.S. Environmental Protection 
Agency, EPA Region 1, 5 Post Office Square--Suite 100, (Mail code 05-
2), Boston, MA 02109-3912, tel. (617) 918-1652, email 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The CAA affords the EPA a 45-day period to 
review and, as appropriate, the authority to object to operating 
permits proposed by state permitting authorities under title V of the 
CAA, 42 U.S.C. 7661-7661f. Section 505(b)(2) of the CAA and 40 CFR 
70.8(d) authorizes any person to petition the EPA Administrator to 
object to a title V operating permit within 60 days after the 
expiration of the EPA's 45-day review period if the EPA has not 
objected on its own initiative. Petitions must be based only on 
objections to the permit that were raised with reasonable specificity 
during the public comment period provided by the state, unless the 
petitioner demonstrates that it was impracticable to raise these issues 
during the comment period or the grounds for the issues arose after 
this period.
    The Petitioners submitted a petition on March 14, 2019, requesting 
that the EPA object to the proposed CAA title V operating permit issued 
by NHDES to Wheelabrator (Permit No. TV-0032). The Petitioners alleged 
that (1) the operation of the Wheelabrator incinerator violates New 
Hampshire's Revised Statutes Annotated (RSA) 125-C, Title 10 Public 
Health, Chapter 125-C Air Pollution Control, Section 125-C:1 and 
releases persistent toxic substances, such as lead, mercury, cadmium, 
and dioxin, that ``accumulate in our bodies (known as body burden) and 
in our environment (known as toxic loading) and cause harm in low 
doses;'' (2) that ``[s]napshot testing of smokestack emissions can 
neither determine nor ensure continuous compliance with air standards 
that are themselves not health based;'' and that NHDES ``has 
discretionary authority to either deny or approve a Title V permit and 
is not constrained by a requirement to only consider whether 
Wheelabrator's stack test results comply with emission standards;'' (3) 
Wheelabrator violated state and federal law by incinerating

[[Page 5957]]

used baghouse filters; and (4) the NHDES has mischaracterized its 
authority under New Hampshire's RSA 125C:13 and CAA Sec.  129(e) and 
that NHDES can deny, suspend, or revoke the permit, or order measures 
beyond existing emission limitations to protect public health.
    On October 30, 2019, the Administrator issued an Order denying the 
petition. The Order explains the EPA's basis for denying the petition.
    Pursuant to sections 307(b) and 505(b)(2) of the CAA, a petition 
for judicial review of those parts of the Order that deny issues in the 
petition may be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for the 
appropriate circuit by April 3, 2020, 60 days from the date this notice 
is published in the Federal Register.

    Dated: January 21, 2020.
Dennis Deziel,
Regional Administrator, EPA Region 1.
[FR Doc. 2020-02010 Filed 1-31-20; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P