[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 75 (Wednesday, April 21, 2021)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 20645-20647]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-08187]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R09-OAR-2020-0414; FRL-10022-71-Region 9]


Air Plan Approval; California; Sacramento Metro Air Quality 
Management District

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to 
approve a revision to the Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality 
Management District (SMAQMD) portion of the California State 
Implementation Plan (SIP). This revision concerns emissions of oxides 
of nitrogen (NOX) from water heaters, boilers and process 
heaters. We are proposing to approve a local rule to regulate these 
emission sources under the Clean Air Act (CAA or the Act). We are 
taking comments on this proposal and plan to follow with a final 
action.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before May 21, 2021.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R09-
OAR-2020-0414 at https://www.regulations.gov. For comments submitted at 
Regulations.gov, follow the online instructions for submitting 
comments. Once submitted, comments cannot be edited or removed from 
Regulations.gov. 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 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. If you need assistance in a 
language other than English or if you are a person with disabilities 
who needs a reasonable accommodation at no cost to you, please

[[Page 20646]]

contact the person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT 
section.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Robert Schwartz, EPA Region IX, 75 
Hawthorne St., San Francisco, CA 94105. By phone: (415) 972-3286 or by 
email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, ``we,'' ``us'' and 
``our'' refer to the EPA.

Table of Contents

I. The State's Submittal
    A. What rule did the State submit?
    B. Are there other versions of this rule?
    C. What is the purpose of the submitted rule revision?
II. The EPA's Evaluation and Action
    A. How is the EPA evaluating the rule?
    B. Does the rule meet the evaluation criteria?
    C. The EPA's Recommendations To Further Improve the Rule
    D. Public Comment and Proposed Action
III. Incorporation by Reference
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. The State's Submittal

A. What rule did the State submit?

    Table 1 lists the rule addressed by this proposal with the dates 
that it was adopted by the local air agency and submitted by the 
California Air Resources Board (CARB).

                                             Table 1--Submitted Rule
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           Local agency                Rule No.              Rule title               Amended        Submitted
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SMAQMD............................             414  Water Heaters, Boilers and        10/25/2018      01/23/2019
                                                     Process Heaters Rated Less
                                                     Than 1,000,000 Btu per Hour.
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    On July 23, 2019, the submittal for SMAQMD Rule 414 was deemed by 
operation of law to meet the completeness criteria in 40 CFR part 51 
Appendix V, which must be met before formal EPA review.

B. Are there other versions of this rule?

    We approved an earlier version of Rule 414 into the SIP on April 5, 
2011 (76 FR 67366). The SMAQMD adopted revisions to the SIP-approved 
version on October 25, 2018, and CARB submitted them to us on January 
23, 2019.

C. What is the purpose of the submitted rule revision?

    Emissions of NOX contribute to the production of ground-
level ozone, smog and paticulate matter, which harm human health and 
the environment. Section 110(a) of the CAA requires states to submit 
regulations that control NOX emissions. Rule 414 limits 
NOX emissions from water heaters, boilers and process 
heaters rated less than 1 million Btu/hr.\1\ The revised rule adds an 
exemption for hot water pressure washers (``washers'') in addition to 
several housekeeping changes. Washers unintentionally fell within the 
definition of water heaters subject to Rule 414 when it was originally 
adopted in 1996 but have never been regulated by the rule.\2\ Washers 
are portable, installation of emissions controls is difficult/
impractical, and there are currently no commercially available 
certified washers within the District that meet the rule's 
NOX emissions limits.\3\ The District has never taken 
emissions reductions credit for this source because washers were never 
counted as part of the emissions inventory.\4\ Therefore, the emissions 
reductions forgone (theoretical emissions reductions if this source had 
been included from the outset) has no impact on the rule's reduction 
commitment. Further, the emissions forgone are estimated to be only 0.1 
to 0.3 percent of the 0.71 tons/day reduction commitment for Rule 414. 
The small forgone emissions will have no practical impact on the 
District's attainment plans for the 2008 or 2015 ozone national ambient 
air quality standards or reasonable further progress. The EPA's 
technical support document (TSD) has more information about this rule.
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    \1\ British thermal unit (Btu) per hour: The amount of heat 
required to raise the temperature of one pound of water from 59 
[deg]F to 60 [deg]F at one atmosphere.
    \2\ SMAQMD, Statement of Reasons, Rule 414, Water Heaters, 
Boilers and Process Heaters Rated Less Than 1,000,000 Btu per Hour, 
and Rule 419, NOX from Miscellaneous Combustion Units, 
Proposed Amendments September 24, 2018, p.5, 18.
    \3\ Email dated March 8, 2021, from Kevin J. Williams, Ph.D., 
Program Supervisor, SMAQMD, to Doris Lo, Manager, Rules Office, Air 
and Radiation Division, Region IX, US EPA.
    \4\ Id.
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II. The EPA's Evaluation and Action

A. How is the EPA evaluating the rule?

    Rules in the SIP must be enforceable (see CAA section 110(a)(2)), 
must not interfere with applicable requirements concerning attainment 
and reasonable further progress or other CAA requirements (see CAA 
section 110(l)), and must not modify certain SIP control requirements 
in nonattainment areas without ensuring equivalent or greater emissions 
reductions (see CAA section 193).
    Generally, SIP rules must require reasonably available control 
technology (RACT) for each major source of NOX in ozone 
nonattainment areas classified as Moderate or above (see CAA sections 
182(b)(2) and 182(f)). The SMAQMD regulates an ozone nonattainment area 
classified as Severe-15 for the 2008 8-hour ozone National Ambient Air 
Quality Standards (NAAQS) and Moderate for the 2015 NAAQS (40 CFR 
81.305). However, because this rule does not affect major sources, it 
does not need to implement section 182(b)(2) RACT. While section 
182(b)(2) RACT does not apply, the Sacramento Federal Ozone 
Nonattainment Area is subject to the SIP requirement to provide for the 
implementation of all reasonably available control measures (RACM) and 
for attainment of the NAAQS. Guidance and policy documents that we used 
to evaluate enforceability, revision/relaxation and rule stringency 
requirements for the applicable criteria pollutants include the 
following:
    1. ``State Implementation Plans; General Preamble for the 
Implementation of Title I of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990,'' 57 
FR 13498 (April 16, 1992); 57 FR 18070 (April 28, 1992).
    2. ``Issues Relating to VOC Regulation Cutpoints, Deficiencies, and 
Deviations,'' EPA, May 25, 1988 (the Bluebook, revised January 11, 
1990).
    3. ``Guidance Document for Correcting Common VOC & Other Rule 
Deficiencies,'' EPA Region IX, August 21, 2001 (the Little Bluebook).
    4. ``State Implementation Plans; Nitrogen Oxides Supplement to the 
General Preamble; Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 Implementation of 
Title I; Proposed Rule,'' (the NOX Supplement), 57 FR 55620, 
November 25, 1992.
    5. ``Alternative Control Techniques Document--NOX 
Emissions from Industrial/Commercial/Institutional (ICI) Boilers,'' EPA 
453/R-94-022 (March 1994).
    6. ``Alternative Control Techniques Document--NOX 
Emissions from Process Heaters (Revised),'' EPA-453/R-93-034 1993/09 
(September 1993).

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B. Does the rule meet the evaluation criteria?

    This rule meets CAA requirements and is consistent with relevant 
guidance regarding enforceability, RACM, and SIP revisions. The TSD has 
more information on our evaluation.

C. The EPA Recommendations To Further Improve the Rule

    The TSD includes recommendations for the next time the local agency 
modifies the rule.

D. Public Comment and Proposed Action

    As authorized in section 110(k)(3) of the Act, the EPA proposes to 
fully approve the submitted rule because it fulfills all relevant 
requirements. We will accept comments from the public on this proposal 
until May 21, 2021. If we take final action to approve the submitted 
rule, our final action will incorporate this rule into the federally 
enforceable SIP.

III. 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 SMAQMD rule described in Table 1 of this preamble. The 
EPA has made, and will continue to make, these materials available 
through https://www.regulations.gov and at the EPA Region IX Office 
(please contact the person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT section of this preamble for more information).

IV. 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, the EPA's role is to approve state 
choices, provided that they meet the criteria of the Clean Air Act. 
Accordingly, this proposed action merely proposes to approve 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);
     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 the EPA with the discretionary authority 
to address disproportionate human health or environmental effects with 
practical, appropriate, 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).

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Incorporation by 
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, 
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.

    Dated: April 15, 2021.
Deborah Jordan,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region IX.
[FR Doc. 2021-08187 Filed 4-20-21; 8:45 am]
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