[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 87 (Friday, May 7, 2021)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 24569-24573]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-09686]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R05-OAR-2019-0031; FRL-10023-37-Region 5]


Air Plan Approval; Illinois; 2008 Ozone Moderate VOC RACT for 
Chicago

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to 
approve volatile organic compound (VOC) reasonably available control 
technology (RACT) State Implementation Plan (SIP) revisions for the 
Illinois portion of the Chicago-Naperville, IL-IN-WI nonattainment area 
(Illinois portion) under the 2008 8-hour ozone National Ambient Air 
Quality Standard (``NAAQS'' or ``standard'') submitted by the Illinois 
Environmental Protection Agency (``Illinois'' or ``Illinois EPA'') on 
January 10, 2019 and supplemented on April 30, 2020. EPA is also 
proposing to approve the Stepan Co. construction permit submitted by 
Illinois on March 29, 2021 as a revision to the Illinois SIP. The 
Illinois portion consists of Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry, and 
Will Counties and portions of Grundy (Aux Sable and Goose Lake 
Townships) and Kendall (Oswego Township) Counties. These VOC RACT SIP 
submittals satisfy the moderate VOC RACT requirements of section 
182(b)(2) of the Clean Air Act (CAA).

DATES: Comments must be received on or before June 7, 2021.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R05-
OAR-2019-0031 at http://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, 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.

[[Page 24570]]

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, 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 http://www2.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Katie Mullen, Environmental Engineer, 
Attainment Planning and Maintenance Section, Air Programs Branch (AR-
18J), Environmental Protection Agency, Region 5, 77 West Jackson 
Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 60604, (312) 353-3490, 
[email protected]. The EPA Region 5 office is open from 8:30 a.m. 
to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding Federal holidays and 
facility closures due to COVID-19.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document whenever ``we,'' 
``us,'' or ``our'' is used, we mean EPA. This supplementary information 
section is arranged as follows:

I. What is EPA proposing?
II. What is the background for this action?
III. What is EPA's evaluation of Illinois' VOC RACT submittal?
IV. What action is EPA taking?
V. Incorporation by Reference
VI. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. What is EPA proposing?

    EPA is proposing to approve VOC RACT SIP revisions submitted by 
Illinois on January 10, 2019 and supplemented on April 30, 2020. EPA is 
also proposing to approve the Stepan Co. construction permit submitted 
by Illinois on March 29, 2021 as a revision to the Illinois SIP, making 
the throughput limits federally enforceable. These revisions satisfy 
the moderate VOC RACT requirements of section 182(b)(2) of the CAA for 
the Illinois portion under the 2008 8-hour ozone standard.

II. What is the background for this action?

    VOCs contribute to the production of ground-level ozone, or smog, 
which harms human health and the environment. Sections 172(c)(1) and 
182(b)(2) of the CAA require states to implement RACT in ozone 
nonattainment areas classified as moderate (and higher). Specifically, 
these areas are required to implement RACT for all major VOC sources 
and for all sources covered by a Control Techniques Guideline (CTG). A 
CTG is a document issued by EPA which establishes a ``presumptive 
norm'' for RACT for a specific VOC source category. States must submit 
rules, or negative declarations when no such sources exist for CTG 
source categories.
    EPA's SIP Requirements Rule for the 2008 ozone NAAQS indicates that 
states may meet RACT through the establishment of new or more stringent 
requirements that meet RACT control levels, through a certification 
that previously adopted RACT controls in their SIPs approved by EPA for 
a prior ozone NAAQS also represent adequate RACT control levels for 
attainment of the 2008 ozone NAAQS, or with a combination of these two 
approaches. See 80 FR 12,264, 12,278-79 (Mar. 6, 2015). As stated 
above, a state may submit a negative declaration in instances where 
there are no CTG sources.
    On June 11, 2012, EPA designated the Chicago-Naperville, IL-IN-WI 
nonattainment area as a marginal nonattainment area for the 2008 ozone 
NAAQS (77 FR 34221). The Illinois portion includes Cook, DuPage, Kane, 
Lake, McHenry, and Will Counties and parts of Grundy and Kendall 
Counties. On May 4, 2016, pursuant to section 181(b)(2) of the CAA, EPA 
determined that the Chicago-Naperville, IL-IN-WI nonattainment area 
failed to attain the 2008 ozone NAAQS by the July 20, 2015, marginal 
area attainment deadline and thus reclassified the area from marginal 
to moderate nonattainment (81 FR 26697). In that action, EPA 
established January 1, 2017, as the due date for the state to submit 
all moderate area nonattainment plan SIP requirements applicable to 
newly reclassified areas. On August 23, 2019, pursuant to section 
181(b)(2) of the CAA, EPA determined that the Chicago-Naperville, IL-
IN-WI nonattainment area failed to attain the 2008 ozone NAAQS by the 
July 20, 2018, moderate area attainment deadline and thus reclassified 
the area from moderate to serious nonattainment (84 FR 44238). In that 
action, EPA established August 3, 2020 and March 23, 2021 as the due 
dates for serious area nonattainment plan SIP submissions for newly 
reclassified areas. This action only addresses the moderate VOC RACT 
SIP submissions.

III. What is EPA's evaluation of Illinois' VOC RACT submittal?

    Illinois previously addressed RACT requirements for the Illinois 
portion under the 1979 and 1997 ozone standards (45 FR 11472, 52 FR 
45333, 59 FR 46562, and 77 FR 16940). Illinois' VOC RACT rules for the 
Illinois portion are contained in 35 Ill. Adm. Code Part 218 (Part 
218). Illinois has evaluated the regulations previously approved by EPA 
and determined that these rules continue to satisfy RACT requirements 
under the 2008 ozone NAAQS.
    The rules in Part 218 include rules addressing CTG categories 
adopted by EPA through 2018 for which there are existing sources in the 
Illinois portion. Negative declarations for other CTG categories are 
detailed below.
    Major non-CTG VOC sources, which are subject to RACT, are 
stationary sources that have the potential to emit (PTE) at least 100 
tons per year (TPY) of VOCs in moderate ozone nonattainment areas and 
are not subject to the applicability criteria in the CTGs. Many major 
non-CTG VOC sources located in the ozone nonattainment area that are 
not subject to specific RACT rules are subject to generic RACT rules. 
Thus, Illinois has met the obligation to implement RACT for many major 
non-CTG VOC sources in the Illinois portion with SIP-approved 
regulations under Part 218 subparts PP, QQ, RR, and TT.
    Illinois has previously submitted several negative declarations for 
CTG categories for which there were no applicable sources found in 
Illinois that meet the applicability criteria for those CTGs. In those 
cases, it was unnecessary to adopt new state rules and submit SIP 
revisions to address those CTG categories. Illinois has determined that 
these negative declarations are still valid and appropriate for the 
CTGs for the Shipbuilding and Ship Repair Industry, Natural Gas/
Gasoline Processing Plants, Aerospace Manufacturing and Rework 
Facilities, High-Density Polyethylene/Polypropylene Manufacturing, 
Vegetable Oil Processing, and Oil and Natural Gas Industry.

Shipbuilding and Ship Repair Industry

    On November 11, 1996, Illinois submitted to EPA a negative 
declaration letter for the Ship Building and Ship Repair Industry. This 
CTG applies to sources with potential emissions greater than or equal 
to 25 tons of VOC per year for this category. Illinois determined that 
there were no such sources in the Illinois portion of the nonattainment 
area.
    Illinois reviewed its most recent inventory to determine if any 
sources fall under this category. Illinois found four sources that 
required further review. All four of these sources are barge cleaning 
sources with VOC emissions limitations under 25 TPY.

[[Page 24571]]

Therefore, the negative declaration is still valid and appropriate for 
this CTG category.

Natural Gas/Gasoline Processing Plants

    On November 14, 1985, Illinois submitted to EPA a negative 
declaration letter for the Natural Gas/Gasoline Processing Plant 
industry. Illinois determined that there were no sources of any size in 
this source category in the Illinois portion.
    Illinois reviewed its most recent inventory to determine if any 
sources fall under this category. There were 35 sources that required 
further review. One source (SIC 1321) does have emission units that 
fall under the CTG. This source was built after Illinois' negative 
declaration for this CTG category and is subject to the control 
requirements in the New Source Performance Standard (NSPS) 40 CFR 60 
subpart KKK Standards of Performance for Equipment Leaks of VOC from 
Onshore Natural Gas Processing Plants. The NSPS standards and control 
requirements are equivalent to or more stringent than the CTG 
requirements.
    The other 34 sources (SIC 4922, 4923, and 4924) are natural gas 
pipelines that are used to transport gas across Illinois to nearby 
states. None of these sources have emission units that fall under this 
CTG category. Therefore, the negative declaration/RACT certification is 
still valid and appropriate for the CTG category.

Aerospace Manufacturing and Rework Facilities

    On October 11, 1996, Illinois submitted to EPA a negative 
declaration letter for the Aerospace Manufacturing and Rework 
Operations CTG. This CTG applies to sources in this category with 
potential emissions greater than or equal to 25 tons of VOC per year. 
Illinois determined that there were no such sources in the Illinois 
portion.
    Illinois reviewed its most recent inventory to determine if any 
sources fall under this category. Illinois found 11 sources under SIC 
codes 3728, 4512, 4581, and 9711. None of these sources have emission 
units that fall under this CTG category. Therefore, the negative 
declaration is still valid and appropriate for the CTG category.

High-Density Polyethylene, Polypropylene, and Polystyrene Resins

    The Control of Volatile Organic Compound Emissions from Manufacture 
of High-Density Polyethylene, Polypropylene, and Polystyrene Resins CTG 
covers the manufacture of those three materials. Illinois previously 
submitted a negative declaration to EPA that applied to two of those 
materials, Polyethylene and Polypropylene, and certified that there 
were no sources manufacturing those materials in the Illinois portion. 
The third material, Polystyrene, is regulated by State RACT rules in 
Part 218 subpart BB: Polystyrene Plants.
    Illinois reviewed its most recent inventory and confirmed that no 
sources fall under the four SIC codes (2821, 2822, 2823, and 2824) for 
this CTG category for the manufacture of polyethylene and 
polypropylene. There are two sources out of 11 under SIC 2821 that 
manufacture polystyrene resin and are subject to Part 218 subpart BB 
Polystyrene Plants, the current RACT rule in Illinois. Therefore, the 
negative declaration/RACT certification is still valid and appropriate 
for the CTG category.

Vegetable Oil Processing

    Illinois determined there were no such sources in the Illinois 
portion. Illinois reviewed its most recent inventory to determine if 
any sources fall under this category and found one source that required 
further review. This source is subject to the control requirements in 
the NESHAP 40 CFR 63 subpart GGGG for Solvent Extraction for Vegetable 
Oil Production.
    The NESHAP standards for control are equivalent to or more 
stringent than the outdated former CTG. Thus, the negative declaration/
RACT certification is still valid and appropriate.

Oil and Natural Gas Industry

    On December 5, 2018 Illinois submitted to EPA a negative 
declaration for the Oil and Natural Gas Industry, which is the subject 
of the October 20, 2016 CTG. Illinois reviewed the Chicago-Naperville, 
IL-IN-WI nonattainment area emission inventory and performed 
assessments for sources and units that might require additional 
regulation pursuant to the Oil and Gas CTG. Illinois found no oil or 
gas producing wells, and found no sources or units affected by this CTG 
in the Illinois portion for which a SIP revision is necessary to 
achieve RACT level control. Most of the sources identified in the oil 
and gas industry in the Illinois portion are involved exclusively in 
the processing, transmission and distribution of oil and gas. Sources 
and units that were found to be potentially affected by the Oil and Gas 
CTG were found to be exempt and are already controlled by Federal and/
or State regulations that include requirements more stringent than the 
CTG RACT requirements. Thus, the negative declaration/RACT 
certification is valid.

Industrial Wastewater

    EPA issued a draft CTG for the industrial wastewater category in 
September 1992. However, because this CTG was never finalized, 
industrial wastewater sources are considered to be non-CTG VOC sources. 
Industrial wastewater is a category that is not covered by the Illinois 
non-CTG VOC RACT rules.
    On December 23, 1999, Illinois submitted to EPA a negative 
declaration letter for the Illinois portion covering industrial 
wastewater sources. At that time, Illinois determined that all sources 
in the Illinois portion to which the draft CTG would be applicable were 
covered by other regulations that were as stringent or more stringent 
than the draft CTG. Those sources were two refineries and one chemical 
plant that were subject to Federal regulations covering waste 
operations.
    Illinois reviewed its most recent inventory to determine if any 
sources fall under the industrial wastewater category, including: 
Organic chemicals, plastics, and synthetic fibers; pharmaceuticals; 
pesticides manufacturing; petroleum refining; pulp, paper, and 
paperboard mills; and hazardous waste treatment, storage, and disposal 
facilities. Illinois found 54 sources that required further review. 
Illinois examined each unit at these sources and the operating permits 
of those sources to determine whether a source was a significant source 
of wastewater or if the draft CTG was potentially applicable to a 
source or unit. Of those 54 sources, it was determined that the draft 
CTG would be applicable to only six sources. It was found that all 
subject sources were covered under the NESHAP 40 CFR 63 subpart G, the 
NESHAP 40 CFR 63 subpart FFFF, or by Part 218 subpart C, all of which 
are equivalent or more stringent than the draft CTG.
    EPA requested additional information for twelve industrial 
wastewater sources that were identified as potentially being subject to 
non-CTG VOC RACT based on historical emissions. On April 30, 2020, 
Illinois submitted supplementary information demonstrating that either 
the existing levels of control represent RACT (RACT equivalence) or 
that the sources' potential to emit VOC are below the 100 TPY non-CTG 
VOC moderate area major source threshold and thus the sources are not 
subject to non-CTG VOC RACT.
    The twelve sources that the EPA evaluated include the following 
refineries and chemical plants: Ester

[[Page 24572]]

Solutions, Hexion Inc., INEOS Joliet, INEOS Styrolution America LLC, 
Polynt Composites USA, Akzo Nobel, AbbVie, LyondellBasell, Exxon Mobil 
Oil Corp., Citgo Petroleum, Koppers Inc., and Stepan Co.
    Ester in Bedford Park, IL, Hexion in Bedford Park, IL, INEOS 
Styrolution America LLC in Channahon, IL, and Polynt in 
Carpentersville, IL are not subject to RACT because the PTE VOC from 
each of these sources is less than 100 TPY.
    The second INEOS source, INEOS Joliet, is also located in 
Channahon, IL. The supporting documentation provided by INEOS Joliet 
indicates that some of the wastewater streams are hard piped to two 
emission points. These two emission points are a storage tank vent and 
an anaerobic flare, each of which has a federally enforceable permitted 
limit of 0.44 TPY. The remaining wastewater streams at this source are 
directed through open sewers to the wastewater treatment system. After 
considering the federally enforceable permitted limit, EPA calculated 
the total PTE VOC to be 41.1 TPY, which is below the 100 TPY non-CTG 
threshold.
    Akzo Nobel is located in Morris, IL and has two wastewater emission 
units. One unit is classified as an insignificant activity (less than 
0.1 pounds per hour and less than 0.44 TPY) and the other unit is 
required by a SIP-approved rule to route its VOC emissions to an 
afterburner that achieves at least 85 percent control. After 
considering this federally enforceable control, the total PTE VOC from 
wastewater at Akzo Nobel was determined to be less than 1 TPY.
    AbbVie in North Chicago, IL demonstrated RACT equivalence. Most of 
its wastewater is taken off site for treatment. The remaining VOC-
containing wastewater streams are well controlled at the on-site 
wastewater treatment plant. The requirements to conduct pretreatment 
are federally enforceable through its Discharge Control Document, which 
was issued by the publicly owned treatment works as required by its 
National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit issued by 
Illinois EPA. A comparison of controlled and uncontrolled emissions 
demonstrated approximately 98 percent control of VOC from their 
wastewater operations. EPA concluded that AbbVie is well controlled and 
that this level of control represents RACT.
    LyondellBasell is subject to the Miscellaneous Organic Chemical 
Manufacturing NESHAP and Benzene Waste Operations NESHAP (BWON). After 
considering these applicable NESHAPs, the EPA calculated the total PTE 
VOC to be 20.38 TPY, which is below the 100 TPY non-CTG threshold.
    Both Exxon Mobil Oil Corporation's Joliet Refinery and Citgo 
Petroleum's Lemont Refinery demonstrated that potential VOC emissions 
from sources at each facility not subject to a CTG are below the 100 
TPY non-CTG threshold for moderate areas. Both refineries are subject 
to the BWON NESHAP (40 CFR 61, subpart FF). After considering BWON 
restrictions, the PTE VOC from refinery wastewater was calculated to be 
75.3 TPY, which is below the 100 TPY non-CTG threshold. This value was 
derived from BWON NESHAP's 6.0 megagrams per year benzene limit and 
EPA's technology review in support of the recent amendments to the 
Petroleum Refinery Sector Rule.
    Koppers in Cicero, IL submitted a modeling demonstration for the 
wastewater system at the plant. Environmental Resources Management, 
Inc. modeled the Koppers wastewater treatment plant using a Toxchem 
model to predict the annual PTE VOC. The total PTE VOC at Koppers was 
estimated to be 2.25 TPY, which is far below the 100 TPY non-CTG 
threshold.
    Stepan Co. in Elwood, IL applied for a construction permit that 
provides operational limits on throughput from upstream processes into 
the wastewater stream. The operational limits on throughput are on the 
masses of methanol and other VOC compounds in the wastewater, which 
contribute to the VOC wastewater emissions. Biodegradation is also 
required to meet the effluent limitation in the federally enforceable 
National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit. After 
considering the application of biodegradation provided by the three 
aeration tanks at Stepan Co., the operational limits result in a 
potential to emit VOC of 97.8 TPY, which is below the 100 TPY non-CTG 
threshold. EPA is proposing to approve this construction permit as a 
revision to the Illinois SIP, making the throughput limits federally 
enforceable.
    Based on the information that Illinois provided, we agree that that 
these sources either demonstrated RACT equivalence or are below the 100 
TPY non-CTG major source threshold for moderate areas. Therefore, the 
VOC RACT SIP submittals for the Illinois portion are approvable as 
meeting the moderate VOC RACT requirements of section 182(b)(2) of the 
CAA.

IV. What action is EPA taking?

    EPA is proposing to approve negative declarations, a VOC RACT 
certification, and the Stepan Co. construction permit submitted by 
Illinois as meeting the CAA section 182(b)(2) moderate RACT 
requirements for the Illinois portion under the 2008 8-hour ozone 
NAAQS.

V. Incorporation by Reference

    In this rule, 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, EPA is proposing to incorporate by 
reference the Illinois construction permit for Stepan Company's 
Millsdale Plant, issued October 30, 2020, as described in section III. 
of this preamble. EPA has made, and will continue to make, these 
documents generally available through www.regulations.gov and at the 
EPA Region 5 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 CAA, the Administrator is required to approve a SIP 
submission that complies with the provisions of the CAA 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 CAA. Accordingly, this 
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 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);

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     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, Incorporation by 
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Ozone, Volatile organic 
compounds.

    Dated: May 3, 2021.
Cheryl Newton,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 5.
[FR Doc. 2021-09686 Filed 5-6-21; 8:45 am]
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