[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 24 (Monday, February 8, 2021)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 8574-8577]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-02537]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R01-OAR-2020-0719; FRL-10019-44-Region 1]


Air Plan Approval; Connecticut; Regulations To Limit Premises-
Wide Actual and Potential Emissions From Major Stationary Sources of 
Air Pollution

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rule.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to 
approve a State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision submitted by the 
State of Connecticut. This revision proposes to approve into the 
Connecticut SIP state regulations that apply restrictions on emissions 
of criteria pollutants for which EPA has established National Ambient 
Air Quality Standards. Separately, we are also proposing to approve 
Connecticut regulations that apply restrictions on emissions of 
hazardous air pollutants (HAPs). The Connecticut regulations impose 
legally and practicably enforceable emissions limitations restricting 
eligible sources' actual and potential emissions below major stationary 
source thresholds, if a source chooses to be covered by the 
regulations. Such restrictions would generally allow eligible sources 
to avoid having to comply with reasonably available control technology 
(RACT) that would otherwise apply to major stationary sources, title V 
operating permit requirements, or other requirements that apply only to 
major stationary sources. This action is being taken under the Clean 
Air Act.

DATES: Written comments must be received on or before March 10, 2021.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R01-
OAR-2020-0719 at https://www.regulations.gov, or via email to 
[email protected]. For comments submitted at Regulations.gov, follow 
the online instructions for submitting comments. Once submitted, 
comments cannot be edited or removed from Regulations.gov. For either 
manner of submission, the EPA may publish any comment received to its 
public docket. Do not submit electronically any information you 
consider to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other 
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Multimedia 
submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be accompanied by a written 
comment. The written comment is considered the

[[Page 8575]]

official comment and should include discussion of all points you wish 
to make. The EPA will generally not consider comments or comment 
contents located outside of the primary submission (i.e. on the web, 
cloud, or other file sharing system). For additional submission 
methods, please contact the person identified in the FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT section. For the full EPA public comment policy, 
information about CBI or multimedia submissions, and general guidance 
on making effective comments, please visit https://www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets. Publicly available docket materials are 
available at https://www.regulations.gov or at the U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, EPA Region 1 Regional Office, Air and Radiation 
Division, 5 Post Office Square--Suite 100, Boston, MA. EPA requests 
that if at all possible, you contact the contact 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 legal holidays and facility closures 
due to COVID-19.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Susan Lancey, 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, telephone 617-918-1656, email [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document whenever ``we,'' 
``us,'' or ``our'' is used, we mean EPA.

 Table of Contents

I. Background and Purpose
II. Evaluation Under Section 110 of the Clean Air Act
III. Evaluation Under Section 112 of the Clean Air Act
IV. Proposed Action
V. Incorporation by Reference
VI. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. Background and Purpose

    In a letter dated October 26, 2020, the Connecticut Department of 
Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) submitted a formal revision 
to its State Implementation Plan (SIP). The SIP revision consists of 
Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies (RCSA) section 22a-174-33a, 
Limit on Premises-wide Actual Emissions Below 50% of Title V 
Thresholds, effective September 24, 2020, and RCSA section 22a-174-33b, 
Limit on Premises-wide Actual Emissions Below 80% of Title V 
Thresholds, effective September 24, 2020, as the regulations relate to 
criteria pollutants. The Connecticut regulations impose legally and 
practicably enforceable emissions limitations restricting eligible 
sources' actual and potential emissions below major stationary source 
thresholds, if a source chooses to be covered by the regulations.
    Federally-enforceable limits on criteria pollutants or their 
precursors (e.g., VOCs or PM-10) may have the incidental effect of 
limiting certain HAPs listed pursuant to section 112(b) of the Clean 
Air Act (CAA or the Act). As a legal matter, no additional program 
approval by the EPA is required beyond SIP approval under section 110 
of the CAA in order for these criteria pollutant limits to be 
recognized as federally enforceable. However, section 112 of the Act 
provides the underlying authority for controlling all HAP emissions, 
regardless of their relationship to criteria pollutant controls.
    In a letter dated December 21, 2020, Connecticut DEEP also 
requested that EPA approve RCSA sections 22a-174-33a and 22a-174-33b 
under section 112(l) of the CAA, as the regulations relate to HAPs. As 
noted earlier, RCSA sections 22a-174-33a and 22a-174-33b are designed 
to limit air pollutant emissions from major stationary sources to below 
major stationary source thresholds by including legally and practicably 
enforceable restrictions on potential and actual emissions.
    On April 24, 2017 in the Federal Register, EPA approved 
Connecticut's General Permit to Limit Potential to Emit issued on 
November 9, 2015 (GPLPE). See 82 FR 18868. The GPLPE expired on 
November 8, 2020. The GPLPE was a general permit designed to limit air 
pollutant emissions from major stationary sources to below major source 
thresholds by including legally and practicably enforceable permit 
restrictions on potential and actual emissions. Connecticut adopted new 
RCSA sections 22a-174-33a and 22a-174-33b as a replacement program for 
the GPLPE, as opposed to a renewal of the GPLPE, in order to avoid a 
lapse in federal enforceability of the applicable requirements. 
Therefore, RCSA sections 22a-174-33a and 22a-174-33b are intended to 
replace the GPLPE as a means of limiting a source's potential to emit 
to below major stationary source thresholds.
    EPA's review of this material indicates the regulations satisfy the 
criteria necessary for EPA's approval as a SIP revision under section 
110 of the CAA and satisfy the criteria necessary to be approved under 
Section 112 of the CAA. EPA is proposing to approve the Connecticut SIP 
revision consisting of RCSA section 22a-174-33a, Limit on Premises-wide 
Actual Emissions Below 50% of Title V Thresholds, effective September 
24, 2020, and RCSA section 22a-174-33b, Limit on Premises-wide Actual 
Emissions Below 80% of Title V Thresholds, effective September 24, 
2020, under Section 110 of the CAA. EPA is also separately proposing to 
approve RCSA section 22a-174-33a, Limit on Premises-wide Actual 
Emissions Below 50% of Title V Thresholds, effective September 24, 
2020, and RCSA section 22a-174-33b, Limit on Premises-wide Actual 
Emissions Below 80% of Title V Thresholds, effective September 24, 
2020, under Section 112 of the CAA.

II. Evaluation Under Section 110 of the Clean Air Act

    The State of Connecticut's principal purpose in issuing RCSA 
sections 22a-174-33a and 22a-174-33b is to have a federally and 
practicably enforceable means of expeditiously restricting sources' 
potential and actual emissions of air pollutants, such that those 
eligible sources would no longer be required to comply with reasonably 
available control technology (RACT) that would otherwise apply to major 
stationary sources, title V operating permit requirements, or other 
requirements that only apply to major stationary sources. The operating 
permit provisions in title V of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 
created interest in mechanisms for limiting sources' potential to emit, 
thereby allowing eligible sources to avoid being defined as ``major'' 
with respect to title V operating permit programs. Please note, 
however, that a source that is eligible for coverage under RCSA 
sections 22a-174-33a and 22a-174-33b may still need a title V operating 
permit if EPA promulgates a National Emissions Standard for Hazardous 
Air Pollutants (NESHAP) or a New Source Performance Standard (NSPS) 
which require non-major sources to obtain a title V permit.
    Connecticut's RCSA sections 22a-174-33a and 22a-174-33b require the 
owner or operator committing to operate pursuant to the applicable 
regulation to submit a notification on forms prescribed by the 
Commissioner. The owner or operator is required to keep records that 
include, among other things, calculation of a source's actual emissions 
of regulated air pollutants and a detailed description of the 
methodology used to calculate those actual emissions. The methodology 
used by an eligible source must be selected from a preferential 
hierarchy of methodologies explicitly identified in the regulations. 
Under RCSA section

[[Page 8576]]

22a-174-33a, facilities may commit to be limited to emissions less than 
50% of the title V operating permit program thresholds for a major 
source; or, alternatively, under RCSA section 22a-174-33b, certain 
specified source categories may commit to be limited to emissions up 
to, but no more than, 80% of the title V operating permit program 
thresholds for a major stationary source provided the owner or operator 
conducts the additional specified monitoring and any other additional 
requirements required by RCSA 22a-174-33b for the relevant source 
category.
    Connecticut's RCSA sections 22a-174-33a and 22a-174-33b contain 
emissions limitations, requirements for the source to calculate actual 
emissions, recordkeeping requirements, and require subject sources to 
submit an annual compliance certification. Additionally, as noted 
above, RCSA section 22a-174-33b provides enhanced monitoring 
requirements for specific source categories at premises operating 
according to section 22a-174-33b which limits a source's potential and 
actual emissions up to, but to no more than, 80% of the title V 
operating permit program thresholds for a major source.
    This approach was developed in accordance with an EPA guidance 
document entitled ``Options for Limiting Potential to Emit of a 
Stationary Source under Section 112 and Title V of the Clean Air Act,'' 
issued by John Seitz, Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards to 
EPA Air Division Directors, dated January 25, 1995.\1\ This guidance 
outlines various approaches to establishing federally-enforceable 
mechanisms to limit emissions from sources that wish to limit potential 
emissions to below major source levels. Connecticut's RCSA 22a-174-33a 
and 22a-174-33b satisfy the criteria necessary for EPA's approval as a 
SIP revision under section 110 of the CAA. The regulations contain 
legally enforceable limitations on emissions that are also federally 
and practicably enforceable.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ See ``Options for Limiting Potential to Emit of a Stationary 
Source under Section 112 and Title V of the Clean Air Act,'' issued 
by John Seitz, Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards to EPA 
Air Division Directors, dated January 25, 1995. https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2015-07/documents/ptememo.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

III. Evaluation Under Section 112 of the Clean Air Act

    The state of Connecticut has also requested approval of RCSA 
sections 22a-174-33a and 22a-174-33b under section 112(l) of the Act 
for the purpose of creating federally enforceable limitations on the 
potential to emit of HAPs. Approval under CAA section 112(l) is 
necessary because the SIP approval discussed above, pursuant to section 
110 of the Act, does not extend to HAPs. Approval pursuant to section 
112(l) of the Act will render RCSA sections 22a-174-33a and 22a-174-33b 
federally enforceable for sources of HAPs.
    In order for EPA to approve Connecticut's RCSA sections 22a-174-33a 
and 22a-174-33b for limiting the potential to emit of HAPs, the 
regulations must meet the statutory criteria for approval under section 
112(l)(5) of the Act. In a July 10, 1996 Federal Register notice EPA 
revised 40 CFR part 63, subpart E, to provide for approval of programs 
designed to limit sources' potential to emit HAPs under the authority 
of section 112(l) of the CAA. A state must demonstrate that it has 
satisfied the general approval criteria contained in 40 CFR 63.91(d). 
The process of providing ``up-front approval'' assures that a state has 
met the criteria in section 112(l)(5) of the CAA (as codified in 40 CFR 
63.91(d)). That is, that the state has demonstrated that its program 
contains adequate authorities to assure compliance with each applicable 
Federal requirement, adequate resources for implementation, and an 
expeditious compliance schedule. To the extent that these have already 
been satisfied through a title V program approval, a state need not 
resubmit information demonstrating that it meets the general approval 
criteria in 40 CFR 63.91(d). Therefore, under 40 CFR 63.91(d)(3), 
interim or final title V operating permit program approval satisfies 
the criteria set forth in 40 CFR 63.91(d) for ``up-front approval.'' On 
May 13, 2002, EPA granted full approval of Connecticut's title V 
operating permit program. See 67 FR 31966. In addition, Connecticut's 
regulations contain legally and practicably enforceable restrictions on 
potential and actual emissions. Accordingly, the EPA is proposing to 
approve RCSA sections 22a-174-33a and 22a-174-33b pursuant to 40 CFR 
part 63, subpart E and section 112(l) of the Act because the program 
meets the applicable approval criteria in section 112(l)(5) of the Act 
and 40 CFR 63.91.

IV. Proposed Action

    EPA is proposing to approve Connecticut's RCSA section 22a-174-33a, 
Limit on Premises-wide Actual Emissions Below 50% of Title V 
Thresholds, effective September 24, 2020, and RCSA section 22a-174-33b, 
Limit on Premises-wide Actual Emissions Below 80% of Title V 
Thresholds, effective September 24, 2020, as a revision to the State's 
SIP with respect to criteria pollutants and is separately proposing to 
approve the regulations under section 112(l) of the Act with respect to 
HAPs. EPA is proposing to approve Connecticut's request in accordance 
with the requirements of sections 110 and 112 of the CAA.
    EPA is soliciting public comments on the issues discussed in this 
notice or on other relevant matters. These comments will be considered 
before taking final action. Interested parties may participate in the 
Federal rulemaking procedure by submitting written comments to this 
proposed rule by following the instructions listed in the ADDRESSES 
section of this Federal Register.

V. Incorporation by Reference

    In this rule, the EPA is proposing to include in a final EPA rule 
regulatory text that includes incorporation by reference. In accordance 
with requirements of 1 CFR 51.5, the EPA is proposing to incorporate by 
reference the Connecticut regulations to limit premises-wide actual and 
potential emissions from major stationary sources of air pollution as 
discussed in section IV. of this preamble. The EPA has made, and will 
continue to make, these documents generally available through https://www.regulations.gov and at the EPA Region 1 Office (please contact the 
person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of 
this preamble for more information).

VI. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    Under the Clean Air Act, 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 Clean Air Act. 
Accordingly, this proposed 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 proposed 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 expected to be an Executive Order 13771 regulatory 
action because this action is not significant under Executive Order 
12866;

[[Page 8577]]

     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 Clean Air Act; 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 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).

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.

    Dated: February 3, 2021.
Deborah Szaro,
Acting Regional Administrator, EPA Region 1.
[FR Doc. 2021-02537 Filed 2-5-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P