[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 78 (Friday, April 22, 2022)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 24058-24060]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-08392]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R01-OAR-2021-0672; FRL-9558-02-R1]


Air Plan Approval; New Hampshire; Boston-Manchester-Portsmouth 
Area Second 10-Year Limited Maintenance Plan for 1997 Ozone NAAQS

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving a State 
Implementation Plan (SIP) revision submitted by the State of New 
Hampshire. On July 29, 2021, the State submitted its 1997 ozone 
national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) Limited Maintenance Plan 
(LMP) for the Boston-Manchester-Portsmouth (Portsmouth) area. EPA is 
approving the Portsmouth area LMP because it provides for the 
maintenance of the 1997 ozone NAAQS through the end of the second 10-
year portion of the maintenance period. The effect of this action will 
be to make certain commitments related to maintenance of the 1997 ozone 
NAAQS in the Portsmouth maintenance area part of the New Hampshire SIP 
and therefore federally enforceable. This action is being taken in 
accordance with the Clean Air Act.

DATES: This rule is effective on May 23, 2022.

ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket 
Identification No. EPA-R01-OAR-2021-0672. All documents in the docket 
are listed on the https://www.regulations.gov website. Although listed 
in the index, some information is not publicly available, i.e., CBI or 
other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain 
other material, such as copyrighted material, is not placed on the 
internet and will be publicly available only in hard copy form. 
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.

[[Page 24059]]


FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Eric Rackauskas, Air Quality Branch, 
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA Region 1, 5 Post Office 
Square--Suite 100, (Mail code 05-2), Boston, MA 02109-3912, tel. (617) 
918-1628, 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. Final Action
III. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. Background and Purpose

    On March 1, 2022 (87 FR 11373), EPA published a Notice of Proposed 
Rulemaking (NPRM) for the State of New Hampshire.
    The NPRM proposed approval of the State's 1997 ozone national 
ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) Limited Maintenance Plan (LMP) 
for the Boston-Manchester-Portsmouth (Portsmouth) area. The formal SIP 
revision was submitted by New Hampshire on July 29, 2021. The 
Portsmouth area 8-hour ozone nonattainment area in the southeastern-
most portion of the state includes 52 cities and towns with a combined 
population of 729,071 in Hillsborough, Merrimack, Rockingham and 
Strafford counties. On June 15, 2004, the Portsmouth area was 
designated as nonattainment for the 1997 ozone NAAQS. On March 4, 2013, 
the area was redesignated to attainment with that standard.
    The Portsmouth area's LMP for the 1997 ozone NAAQS submitted by the 
New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (DES) is designed to 
maintain the 1997 ozone NAAQS within this area through the end of the 
second ten-year period of the maintenance period. We are approving the 
plan because it meets all applicable requirements under CAA sections 
110 and 175A. Other specific requirements of the LMP and the rationale 
for EPA's proposed action are explained in the NPRM and will not be 
restated here. No public comments were received on the NPRM.

II. Final Action

    EPA is approving the New Hampshire 1997 ozone national ambient air 
quality standards (NAAQS) Limited Maintenance Plan for the Boston-
Manchester-Portsmouth area as a revision to the New Hampshire SIP.

III. 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 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);
     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).
    The Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 801 et seq., as added by the 
Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, generally 
provides that before a rule may take effect, the agency promulgating 
the rule must submit a rule report, which includes a copy of the rule, 
to each House of the Congress and to the Comptroller General of the 
United States. EPA will submit a report containing this action and 
other required information to the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House of 
Representatives, and the Comptroller General of the United States prior 
to publication of the rule in the Federal Register. A major rule cannot 
take effect until 60 days after it is published in the Federal 
Register. This action is not a ``major rule'' as defined by 5 U.S.C. 
804(2).
    Under section 307(b)(1) of the Clean Air Act, petitions for 
judicial review of this action must be filed in the United States Court 
of Appeals for the appropriate circuit by June 21, 2022. Filing a 
petition for reconsideration by the Administrator of this final rule 
does not affect the finality of this action for the purposes of 
judicial review nor does it extend the time within which a petition for 
judicial review may be filed, and shall not postpone the effectiveness 
of such rule or action. This action may not be challenged later in 
proceedings to enforce its requirements. (See section 307(b)(2).)

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: April 14, 2022.
David Cash,
Regional Administrator, EPA Region 1.

    Part 52 of chapter I, title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations 
is amended as follows:

PART 52--APPROVAL AND PROMULGATION OF IMPLEMENTATION PLANS

0
1. The authority citation for part 52 continues to read as follows:

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

[[Page 24060]]

Subpart EE--New Hampshire

0
2. In Sec.  52.1520(e) amend the table by adding entries for ``Boston-
Manchester-Portsmouth Area Second 10-Year Limited Maintenance Plan for 
1997 Ozone NAAQS'' and ``Letter from New Hampshire and attachment G 
Amendment'' at the end of the table to read as follows:


Sec.  52.1520   Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (e) * * *

                                          New Hampshire Non-Regulatory
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                                                             State
    Name of nonregulatory SIP           Applicable         submittal     EPA approved date
            provision                 geographic or          date/              \1\              Explanations
                                    nonattainment area  effective date
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                                                  * * * * * * *
Boston-Manchester-Portsmouth Area  Boston-Manchester-        7/29/2021  4/22/2022 [Insert    Approval for 2nd 10-
 Second 10-Year Limited             Portsmouth                           Federal Register     year LMP for 1997
 Maintenance Plan for 1997 Ozone    Maintenance Area.                    citation].           ozone NAAQS.
 NAAQS.
Letter from New Hampshire and      Boston-Manchester-       12/23/2021  4/22/2022 [Insert    Supplemental
 attachment G Amendment.            Portsmouth                           Federal Register     information for
                                    Maintenance Area.                    citation].           2nd 10-year LMP
                                                                                              for 1997 ozone
                                                                                              NAAQS.
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\1\ In order to determine the EPA effective date for a specific provision listed in this table, consult the
  Federal Register notice cited in this column for the particular provision.

[FR Doc. 2022-08392 Filed 4-21-22; 8:45 am]
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