[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 83 (Monday, May 3, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 23361-23362]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-09245]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OGC-2021-0314; FRL-10023-24-OGC]


Proposed Consent Decree, Clean Air Act Citizen Suit

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of proposed consent decree; request for public comment.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Clean Air Act, as amended (CAA or the 
Act), notice is given of a proposed consent decree in Center for 
Biological Diversity, et al. v. Regan, No. 3:20-cv-05436-EMC (N.D. 
Cal.). On August 6, 2020, Plaintiffs the Center for Biological 
Diversity, the Center for Environmental Health, and the Sierra Club 
(collectively, Plaintiffs) filed a complaint in the United States 
District Court for the Northern District of California, San Francisco 
Division. On October 29, 2020, Plaintiffs filed an amended complaint. 
Plaintiffs alleged that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or the 
Agency) failed to perform certain non-discretionary duties in 
accordance with the Act to: make timely findings that certain states 
failed to timely submit required plan submissions for areas designated 
as nonattainment for the 2010 sulfur dioxide (SO2) National 
Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS); timely respond to a state 
implementation plan (SIP) submittal from the State of Illinois for the 
Alton Township 2010 SO2 NAAQS nonattainment area; and make 
timely determinations whether certain areas designated as nonattainment 
for the 2010 SO2 NAAQS attained the standard by the 
attainment date. The proposed consent decree would establish deadlines 
for EPA to undertake certain actions.

DATES: Written comments on the proposed consent decree must be received 
by June 2, 2021.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-
OGC-2021-0314, online at https://www.regulations.gov (EPA's preferred 
method). Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the Docket ID 
number for this action. Comments received may be posted without change 
to https://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information 
provided. For detailed instructions on sending comments and additional 
information on the rulemaking process, see the ``Additional Information 
about Commenting on the Proposed Consent Decree'' heading under the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document. Out of an abundance 
of caution for members of the public and our staff, the EPA Docket 
Center and Reading Room are closed to the public, with limited 
exceptions, to reduce the risk of transmitting COVID-19. Our Docket 
Center staff will continue to provide remote customer service via 
email, phone, and webform. We encourage the public to submit comments 
via https://www.regulations.gov, as there may be a delay in processing 
mail and faxes. Hand-deliveries and couriers may be received by 
scheduled appointment only. For further information on EPA Docket 
Center services and the current status, please visit us online at 
https://www.epa.gov/dockets.
    EPA continues to carefully and continuously monitor information 
from the CDC, local area health departments, and our federal partners 
so that we can respond rapidly as conditions change regarding COVID-19.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Emily Seidman, Air and Radiation Law 
Office (7426Y), Office of General Counsel, U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20460; 
telephone (202) 564-0906; email address [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Obtaining a Copy of the Proposed Consent Decree

    The official public docket for this action (identified by Docket ID 
No. EPA-HQ-OGC-2021-0314) contains a copy of the proposed consent 
decree.
    The electronic version of the public docket for this action 
contains a copy of the proposed consent decree and is available through 
https://www.regulations.gov. You may use https://www.regulations.gov to 
submit or view public comments, access the index listing of the 
contents of the official public docket, and access those documents in 
the public docket that are available electronically. Once in the 
system, key in the appropriate docket identification number then select 
``search.''

II. Additional Information About the Proposed Consent Decree

    The proposed consent decree would establish deadlines for EPA to 
take action pursuant to the CAA. First, the proposed consent decree 
would establish a deadline for EPA to take action pursuant to CAA 
section 110(k) on a SIP submission by the State of Illinois for Alton 
Township, for the Alton Township portion of the Metropolitan St. Louis 
Interstate Air Quality Control Region nonattainment area for the 2010 
SO2 NAAQS. The proposed consent decree would require EPA to 
take action on the SIP submission by no later than March 1, 2022.
    Second, the proposed consent decree would establish deadlines for 
EPA to take action pursuant to CAA section 179(c)(1) to determine 
whether the following nonattainment areas for the

[[Page 23362]]

2010 SO2 NAAQS attained the standard by the attainment date: 
Hayden (parts of Gila County and Pinal County, Arizona; Miami (part of 
Gila County), Arizona; Muscatine (part of Muscatine County), Iowa; St. 
Bernard Parish, Louisiana; Detroit (part of Wayne County), Michigan; 
Jackson County (part), Missouri; Sullivan County (part), Tennessee; and 
Rhinelander (part of Oneida County), Wisconsin. The proposed consent 
decree would require EPA to make a determination for the areas in 
Arizona, Michigan and Wisconsin by January 31, 2022 and make a 
determination for the areas in Iowa, Louisiana, Missouri and Tennessee 
by March 31, 2022.
    While the amended complaint also identified Southwest Indiana 
(parts of Daviess County and Pike County), Indiana as an area for which 
EPA was required to make a determination of whether the area attained 
the 2010 SO2 NAAQS by the attainment date, on February 22, 
2021, EPA signed a final rule redesignating the Southwest Indiana 
nonattainment area to attainment for the 2010 SO2 NAAQS. 
Final Rule, 86 FR 12107-12108 (March 2, 2021), mooting the claim as to 
Southwest Indiana.
    Third, while the amended complaint included claims regarding EPA's 
failure to make a finding of failure to submit a nonattainment SIP for 
certain nonattainment areas for the 2010 SO2 NAAQS pursuant 
to CAA section 110(k)(1)(B), on October 8, 2020, the EPA Principal 
Deputy Assistant Administrator for the Office of Air and Radiation 
signed findings of failure to submit SIPs required for attainment of 
the 2010 SO2 NAAQS for the areas identified in the amended 
complaint, and the findings were published in the Federal Register on 
November 3, 2020, Final Rule, 85 FR 69504, 69506-69508 (November 3, 
2020), mooting those claims.
    In accordance with section 113(g) of the CAA, for a period of 
thirty (30) days following the date of publication of this document, 
the Agency will accept written comments relating to the proposed 
consent decree. EPA or the Department of Justice may withdraw or 
withhold consent to the proposed consent decree if the comments 
disclose facts or considerations that indicate that such consent is 
inappropriate, improper, inadequate, or inconsistent with the 
requirements of the Act.

III. Additional Information About Commenting on the Proposed Consent 
Decree

    Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OGC-2021-
0314, via https://www.regulations.gov. Once submitted, comments cannot 
be edited or removed from this docket. EPA may publish any comment 
received to its public docket. Do not submit to EPA's docket at https://www.regulations.gov 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. 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, 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. For additional information about submitting information 
identified as CBI, please contact the person listed in the FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT section of this document. Note that written 
comments containing CBI and submitted by mail may be delayed and 
deliveries or couriers will be received by scheduled appointment only.
    If you submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you 
include your name, mailing address, and an email address or other 
contact information in the body of your comment. This ensures that you 
can be identified as the submitter of the comment and allows EPA to 
contact you in case EPA cannot read your comment due to technical 
difficulties or needs further information on the substance of your 
comment. Any identifying or contact information provided in the body of 
a comment will be included as part of the comment that is placed in the 
official public docket and made available in EPA's electronic public 
docket. If EPA cannot read your comment due to technical difficulties 
and cannot contact you for clarification, EPA may not be able to 
consider your comment.
    Use of the https://www.regulations.gov website to submit comments 
to EPA electronically is EPA's preferred method for receiving comments. 
The electronic public docket system is an ``anonymous access'' system, 
which means EPA will not know your identity, email address, or other 
contact information unless you provide it in the body of your comment.
    Please ensure that your comments are submitted within the specified 
comment period. Comments received after the close of the comment period 
will be marked ``late.'' EPA is not required to consider these late 
comments.

Gautam Srinivasan,
Associate General Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2021-09245 Filed 4-30-21; 8:45 am]
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