[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 169 (Thursday, September 1, 2022)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 53703-53705]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-18724]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA-R07-OAR-2022-0722; FRL-10156-01-R7]
Air Plan Approval; Missouri; Ameren Sioux Sulfur Dioxide Consent
Agreement
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Proposed rule.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing
approval of source-specific revisions to the Missouri State
Implementation Plan (SIP) received on April 21, 2022. In the
submission, Missouri requests that the EPA incorporate into the SIP an
additional sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions limit for the
Ameren Missouri (Ameren)--Sioux Energy Center (Sioux). Specifically,
the EPA is proposing to approve, into the SIP, an additional
SO2 emissions limit and associated operating restrictions,
monitoring, recordkeeping, reporting (MRR) and testing compliance
requirements established in a consent agreement as permanent and
enforceable SO2 control measures.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before October 3, 2022.
ADDRESSES: You may send comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R07-
OAR-2022-0722 to www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions
for submitting comments.
Instructions: All submissions received must include the Docket ID
No. for this rulemaking. Comments received will be posted without
change to www.regulations.gov/, including any personal information
provided. For detailed instructions on sending comments and additional
information on the rulemaking process, see the ``Written Comments''
heading of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jason Heitman, Environmental
Protection Agency, Region 7 Office, Air Quality Planning Branch, 11201
Renner Boulevard, Lenexa, Kansas 66219; telephone number: (913) 551-
7664; email address: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document ``we,'' ``us,'' and
``our'' refer to the EPA.
Table of Contents
I. Written Comments
II. What is the background for this proposed action?
III. Have the requirements for approval of a SIP revision been met?
IV. What did Missouri submit in the source-specific SIP revision for
Ameren Sioux?
V. What is the EPA's analysis of Missouri's source-specific SIP
revision?
VI. What action is the EPA proposing?
VII. Environmental Justice Concerns
VIII. Incorporation by Reference
IX. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
I. Written Comments
Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R07-OAR-2022-
0722, at www.regulations.gov. 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, the full EPA
public comment policy, information about CBI or multimedia submissions,
and general guidance on making effective comments, please visit
www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets.
II. What is the background for this proposed action?
The Ameren Sioux facility is located in St. Charles County,
Missouri, along the Mississippi River, just north of the City of St.
Louis. The EPA designated the area surrounding Ameren Sioux as
attainment/unclassifiable for the 2010 1-hour SO2 NAAQS in
early 2018 (83 FR 1098, January 9, 2018). Unlike with a nonattainment
designation, a designation of attainment/unclassifiable does not impose
any new SO2 planning requirements on the Missouri Department
of Natural Resources (MoDNR) for Ameren Sioux in Missouri's SIP.
Ameren Sioux operates two coal-fired boilers that generate
electricity for use in the region. In 2010, Ameren Sioux installed wet
flue-gas desulfurization control technology at their two boilers. The
existing enforceable SO2 emissions limit in the Missouri SIP
for Sioux is much higher than recent actual emissions and therefore
does not reflect operation of the control technology. This control
technology reduced the actual SO2 emissions at Ameren Sioux
by nearly 90 percent.
Ameren Sioux is required to operate a continuous emission
monitoring system (CEMS) for SO2 on both of their
boilers.\1\ This allows for the reporting of actual hourly emissions
levels coming from the two boilers at the facility. The Consent
Agreement included in this proposed SIP revision also requires the use
of their CEMS to demonstrate compliance with the additional enforceable
limit in the Consent Agreement.
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\1\ See 40 CFR part 75.
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III. Have the requirements for approval of a SIP revision been met?
The State submission has met the public notice requirements for SIP
submissions in accordance with 40 CFR 51.102. The submission also
satisfied the completeness criteria of 40 CFR part 51, appendix V. The
State provided public notice on this SIP revision from December 27,
2021 to February 3, 2022 and received one comment. In addition, the
revision meets the substantive SIP requirements of the CAA, including
section 110 and implementing regulations.
IV. What did Missouri submit in the source-specific SIP revision for
Ameren Sioux?
The SO2 emissions limit and averaging time included in
the Consent
[[Page 53704]]
Agreement for Ameren Sioux are provided in Table 1. The limit is listed
as a facility-wide limit, but only applies to Boilers 1 and 2 at the
facility.
Table 1--Ameren Missouri Sioux Energy Center SO2 Emission Limit
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Emission limit
per source
Source Source ID (pounds SO2 per Averaging time
hour)
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Ameren Missouri--Sioux Energy Center......... 1830001 7,342 24-hour block average.
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Ameren will maintain all hourly data and computations related to
demonstrating compliance with the 24-hour block average emissions limit
and keep this data for a period of at least five years. Ameren shall
report on compliance with the emissions limit in Table 1 on the same
schedule as the annual compliance certification required in accordance
with the operating permits issued under 40 CFR part 70.
V. What is the EPA's analysis of Missouri's source-specific SIP
revision?
The EPA is proposing to determine that the limit in the Consent
Agreement is practically enforceable through the following analysis.
The Consent Agreement requires Ameren to determine compliance with the
emissions restrictions by use of the SO2 CEMS installed on
Boilers 1 and 2 at Sioux. The CEMS will be operated in accordance with
40 CFR part 75. The limit in the Consent Agreement is based on 24-hour
block averages. The total pounds of SO2 emitted during each
calendar day, as measured by the CEMS, is first summed for the subject
units, then divided by the number of actual operating hours in that
day. If this is less than or equal to the limit in Table 1, the
facility is in compliance with the emissions limit. Only hours that
meet the primary equipment hourly operating requirements of 40 CFR
75.10(d) are used in calculating the daily 24-hour block average. For
example, if the source only meets 40 CFR 75.10(d) operational
requirements for one hour in a particular 24-hour block period, the
compliance with the emissions limit would be calculated by the total
emissions divided by the one hour of operation that meets 40 CFR
75.10(d). Therefore, any day with at least one hour that meets
operational requirements will have a calculated block average that will
be used to demonstrate compliance with the emissions limit.
While the Consent Agreement may be terminated under state law by
mutual agreement by both parties at the current time, this action, once
finalized, would approve that Agreement into the SIP. At that point the
requirements of the Consent Agreement would be permanent and federally
enforceable and would remain applicable until Missouri submits a SIP
revision and the EPA approves that revision. That revision would be
subject to CAA section 110(l), i.e., the state must demonstrate that
the revision would not interfere with the attainment or maintenance of
any NAAQS.
VI. What action is the EPA proposing?
The EPA is proposing to approve Missouri's April 21, 2022, source-
specific SIP revision into the Missouri SIP. This revision includes a
specific SO2 emissions limit and associated operating
restrictions, MRR, and testing compliance requirements for the Ameren
Sioux Facility as contained in Consent Agreement number APCP-2021-018.
A copy of the Consent Agreement is included in the docket for this
rulemaking.
The purpose of the Consent Agreement is to provide for the new
SO2 emissions limit at Ameren Sioux to be credited as an
additional permanent and federally enforceable measure in Missouri's
SIP. Ameren has voluntarily agreed to enter into this Consent Agreement
to strengthen Missouri's SIP.
The Consent Agreement includes a facility-wide 24-hour block
average emissions limit. The additional SO2 emissions limit
that the EPA proposes to approve is in addition to the SO2
requirements currently in the SIP for Ameren Sioux. Incorporating an
additional specific SO2 limit and associated operating
restrictions, MRR, and testing compliance parameters for Ameren Sioux
into the Missouri SIP would establish this additional specific
SO2 limit and associated operating and compliance parameters
as permanent and federally enforceable control measures and strengthen
the Missouri SIP.
The purpose of this rulemaking is to act on Missouri's request to
approve into the SIP an additional specific facility-wide
SO2 limit (listed in Table 1), and associated operating,
MRR, and testing requirements established in a Consent Agreement,
thereby making this limit permanent and federally enforceable to
strengthen the Missouri SIP.
VII. Environmental Justice Concerns
When the EPA establishes a new or revised NAAQS, the CAA requires
the EPA to designate all areas of the U.S. as either nonattainment,
attainment, or unclassifiable. Area designations address environmental
justice concerns by ensuring that the public is properly informed about
the air quality in an area. In this action, the EPA is proposing to
approve an additional emissions limit for a source into the Missouri
SIP.
The EPA utilized the EJSCREEN tool to evaluate environmental and
demographic indicators within the area. The tool outputs report is
contained in the docket for this action. While the EPA's EJSCREEN tool
demonstrates that demographic indicators are consistent or lower than
national averages, there are vulnerable populations in the area
including low-income populations and persons over 64 years of age.
Based on the information presented in this document, this proposed
action does not result in disproportionately high and adverse human
health or environmental effects on minority populations, low-income
populations and/or indigenous peoples.
VIII. Incorporation by Reference
In this document, the EPA is proposing to include regulatory text
in an EPA final rule that includes incorporation by reference. In
accordance with requirements of 1 CFR 51.5, the EPA is proposing to
incorporate by reference the Missouri Consent Agreement discussed in
section VI of this preamble and as set forth below in the proposed
revision to 40 CFR part 52. The EPA has made, and will continue to
make, these materials generally available through www.regulations.gov
and at the EPA Region 7 Office (please contact the person identified in
the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this preamble for more
information).
[[Page 53705]]
IX. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
Under the Clean Air Act (CAA), 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 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);
Is not a significant regulatory action subject to
Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001);
Is not subject to requirements of the National Technology
Transfer and Advancement Act (NTTA) because this rulemaking does not
involve technical standards; and
This action does not have disproportionately high and
adverse human health or environmental effects on minority populations,
low-income populations and/or indigenous peoples, as specified in
Executive Order 12898 (59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994). The basis for
this determination is contained in section VII of this action,
``Environmental Justice Concerns.''
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
proposed 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, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements, Sulfur oxides.
Dated: August 24, 2022.
Meghan A. McCollister,
Regional Administrator, Region 7.
For the reasons stated in the preamble, the EPA proposes to amend
40 CFR part 52 as set forth below:
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.
Subpart AA--Missouri
0
2. In Sec. 52.1320, the table in paragraph (d) is amended by adding
the entry ``(37)'' in numerical order to read as follows:
Sec. 52.1320 Identification of plan.
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(d) * * *
EPA-Approved Missouri Source-Specific Permits and Orders
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State
Name of source Order/permit No. effective EPA approval date Explanation
date
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* * * * * * *
(37) Ameren Missouri--Sioux Consent Agreement 3/31/2022 [Date of publication
Energy Center. No. APCP-2021-018. of the final rule
in the Federal
Register], [Federal
Register citation
of the final rule].
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[FR Doc. 2022-18724 Filed 8-31-22; 8:45 am]
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