[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 245 (Monday, December 21, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 83078-83079]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-28115]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-10018-24-OAR]
Allocations of Cross-State Air Pollution Rule Allowances From New
Unit Set-Asides for 2020 Control Periods
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of data availability (NODA).
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is providing notice
of the availability of preliminary lists of units eligible for second-
round allocations of emission allowances for the 2020 control periods
from the new unit set-asides (NUSAs) established under the Cross-State
Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR) trading programs. EPA has posted
spreadsheets containing the lists on EPA's website. EPA will consider
timely objections to the lists before determining the amounts of the
second-round allocations.
DATES: Objections to the information referenced in this notice must be
received on or before January 21, 2021.
ADDRESSES: Submit your objections via email to [email protected].
Include ``2020 NUSA allocations'' in the email subject line and include
your name, title, affiliation, address, phone number, and email address
in the body of the email.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions concerning this action
should be addressed to Jason Kuhns at (202) 564-3236 or
[email protected] or Andrew Reighart at (202) 564-0418 or
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under each CSAPR trading program where EPA
is responsible for determining
[[Page 83079]]
emission allowance allocations, a portion of each state's emissions
budget for the program for each control period is reserved in a NUSA
(and in an additional Indian country NUSA in the case of states with
Indian country within their borders) for allocation to certain units
that would not otherwise receive allowance allocations. The procedures
for identifying the eligible units for each control period and for
allocating allowances from the NUSAs and Indian country NUSAs to these
units are set forth in the CSAPR trading program regulations at 40 CFR
97.411(b) and 97.412 (NOX Annual), 97.511(b) and 97.512
(NOX Ozone Season Group 1), 97.611(b) and 97.612
(SO2 Group 1), 97.711(b) and 97.712 (SO2 Group
2), and 97.811(b) and 97.812 (NOX Ozone Season Group 2).
Each NUSA allowance allocation process involves up to two rounds of
allocations to eligible units, termed ``new'' units, followed by the
allocation to ``existing'' units of any allowances not allocated to new
units.
This notice concerns EPA's preliminary identification of units
eligible to receive allowances in the second round of NUSA allocations
for the 2020 control periods. The units eligible for second-round
allocations for a given control period are CSAPR-affected units that
commenced commercial operation between January 1 of the year before
that control period and November 30 of the year of that control period.
In the case of the 2020 control periods, an eligible unit therefore
must have commenced commercial operation between January 1, 2019 and
November 30, 2020 (inclusive). Generally, where a unit is eligible to
receive a second-round NUSA allocation under a given CSAPR trading
program for a given control period, the unit's maximum potential
second-round allocation equals the positive difference (if any) between
the unit's emissions during the control period as reported under 40 CFR
part 75 and any first-round NUSA allocation the unit received. If the
total of such maximum potential allocations to all eligible units would
exceed the total allowances remaining in the NUSA, the allocations are
reduced on a pro-rata basis. EPA notes that under 40 CFR 97.406(c)(3),
97.506(c)(3), 97.606(c)(3), 97.706(c)(3), and 97.806(c)(3), a unit's
emissions occurring before its monitor certification deadline are not
considered to have occurred during a control period and consequently
are not included in the emission amounts used to determine NUSA
allocations.
The preliminary lists of eligible units are set forth in Excel
spreadsheets titled
``CSAPR_NUSA_2020_NOx_Annual_2nd_Round_Prelim_Data,''
``CSAPR_NUSA_2020_NOx_Ozone_Season_2nd_Round_Prelim_Data,''
and ``CSAPR_NUSA_2020_SO2_2nd_Round_Prelim_Data'' available
on EPA's website at https://www.epa.gov/csapr/csapr-compliance-year-2020-nusa-nodas. Each spreadsheet contains a separate worksheet for
each state covered by that program showing each unit preliminarily
identified as eligible for a second-round NUSA allocation. Each state
worksheet also contains a summary showing (1) the quantity of
allowances initially available in that state's 2020 NUSA, (2) the sum
of the 2020 NUSA allowance allocations that were made in the first
round to new units in that state, if any, and (3) the quantity of
allowances in the 2020 NUSA available for second-round allocations to
new units (or ultimately for allocations to existing units), if any.
Objections should be strictly limited to whether EPA has correctly
identified the units eligible for second-round 2020 NUSA allocations
according to the criteria established in the regulations and should be
emailed to the address identified in ADDRESSES. Objections must
include: (1) Precise identification of the specific data the commenter
believes are inaccurate, (2) new proposed data upon which the commenter
believes EPA should rely instead, and (3) the reasons why EPA should
rely on the commenter's proposed data and not the data referenced in
this notice.
EPA notes that an allocation or lack of allocation of allowances to
a given unit does not constitute a determination that CSAPR does or
does not apply to the unit. EPA also notes that under 40 CFR 97.411(c),
97.511(c), 97.611(c), 97.711(c), and 97.811(c), allocations are subject
to potential correction if a unit to which NUSA allowances have been
allocated for a given control period is not actually an affected unit
as of the start of that control period.
(Authority: 40 CFR 97.411(b), 97.511(b), 97.611(b), 97.711(b), and
97.811(b).)
Dated: December 2, 2020.
Reid P. Harvey,
Director, Clean Air Markets Division, Office of Atmospheric Programs,
Office of Air and Radiation.
[FR Doc. 2020-28115 Filed 12-18-20; 8:45 am]
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