[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 15 (Tuesday, January 24, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4178-4179]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-01303]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OGC-2023-0028; FRL-10587-01-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), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or the Agency) is 
providing notice of a proposed consent decree in California Communities 
Against Toxics, et al. v. Regan, No. 1:22-cv-01012-CRC (D.D.C.). On 
April 12, 2022, Plaintiffs California Communities Against Toxics, 
Coalition For A Safe Environment, and Sierra Club filed a complaint in 
the United States District Court in the District of Columbia. In the 
complaint, which was amended on July 6, 2022, Plaintiffs allege that 
EPA failed to perform its non-discretionary duty to review and revise 
as necessary the National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air 
Pollutants from Oil and Natural Gas Production Facilities and Natural 
Gas Transmission and Storage Facilities. Plaintiffs further allege that 
EPA has unreasonably delayed in responding to Plaintiffs' 2012 petition 
for administrative reconsideration of the final rule Oil and Natural 
Gas Sector: New Source Performance Standards and National Emission 
Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants Reviews. The proposed consent 
decree would establish deadlines for EPA to sign proposed and final 
actions.

DATES: Written comments on the proposed consent decree must be received 
by February 23, 2023.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-
OGC-2023-0028, 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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Amy Huang Branning, Air and Radiation 
Law Office, Office of General Counsel, U.S. Environmental Protection 
Agency; telephone (202) 564-1744; 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-2023-0028) contains a copy of the proposed consent 
decree. The official public docket is available for public viewing at 
the Office of Environmental Information (OEI) Docket in the EPA Docket 
Center, EPA West, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, DC. 
The EPA Docket Center Public Reading Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 
4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The 
telephone number for the Public Reading Room is (202) 566-1744, and the 
telephone number for the OEI Docket is (202) 566-1752.
    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

    On April 12, 2022, Plaintiffs California Communities Against 
Toxics, Coalition For A Safe Environment, and Sierra Club (collectively 
``Plaintiffs'') filed a complaint in the United States District Court 
for the District of Columbia alleging that EPA has failed to

[[Page 4179]]

perform its non-discretionary duty under CAA section 112(d)(6) to 
``review, and revise as necessary'' the National Emission Standards for 
Hazardous Air Pollutants from Oil and Natural Gas Production Facilities 
and Natural Gas Transmission and Storage Facilities, 40 CFR part 60, 
subparts HH and HHH respectively (``Oil and Gas NESHAP''), at least 
every eight years. On July 6, 2022, Plaintiffs amended the complaint to 
also claim that EPA has unreasonably delayed in taking final action on 
Plaintiffs' 2012 petition for administrative reconsideration of the 
final rule Oil and Natural Gas Sector: New Source Performance Standards 
and National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants Reviews, 
77 FR 49490 (Aug. 16, 2012) (``2012 Rule'').
    The 2012 Rule contains actions on both the new source performance 
standards (``NSPS'') for the oil and natural gas sector under CAA 
section 111 and the Oil and Gas NESHAP under CAA section 112. Multiple 
parties, including Plaintiffs, sought judicial review of the 2012 Rule 
in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of the Columbia (``D.C. 
Circuit''). In addition, Plaintiffs submitted to EPA a petition for 
administrative reconsideration of the 2012 Rule (``Reconsideration 
Petition''). In that petition, Plaintiffs objected to multiple aspects 
of the NESHAP portion of the 2012 Rule, including provision of an 
affirmative defense to civil penalties for violating emissions 
standards caused by malfunctions (``affirmative defense'').
    The D.C. Circuit consolidated all petitions for judicial review of 
the 2012 Rule and granted EPA's motion to (1) sever NESHAP-related 
challenges from NSPS-related challenges and (2) hold the former in 
abeyance pending EPA's reconsideration of the NESHAP portion of the 
rule. American Petroleum Institute v. EPA, No. 12-1405 (D.C. Cir.). In 
a letter dated December 14, 2016, EPA informed Plaintiffs' counsel that 
EPA's reconsideration of the NESHAP portion of the 2012 Rule was still 
ongoing and that it was reviewing, among several other issues, the 
affirmative defense provisions raised in the Reconsideration Petition.
    The proposed consent decree, if finalized, would establish 
deadlines for EPA to take proposed and final actions under CAA section 
112(d)(6) for the Oil and Gas NESHAP and for addressing the 
Reconsideration Petition. Specifically, EPA would be required to sign 
the proposed action addressing the affirmative defense issue in the 
Reconsideration Petition by February 12, 2024, and final action by 
December 10, 2024. EPA would also be required to sign the proposed 
action on its review of the Oil and Gas NESHAP under CAA section 
112(d)(6) and on other Reconsideration Petition issues that EPA is 
reconsidering by December 10, 2024, and the final action by December 
10, 2025.
    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-2023-
0028, 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. 2023-01303 Filed 1-23-23; 8:45 am]
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