[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 219 (Monday, November 17, 2025)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 51263-51266]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2025-19992]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA-R02-OAR-2025-0290; FRL-12965-01-R2]
Approval of Source-Specific Air Quality Implementation Plan; New
York; Calpine JFK Energy Center
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.
ACTION: Proposed rule.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to
determine a revision to the State of New York's State Implementation
Plan (SIP) for the ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS)
related to a Source-specific SIP (SSSIP) revision for Calpine JFK
Energy Center, located at Kennedy International Airport, Building 49,
Jamaica, NY 11430 (the Facility) is approvable. The EPA is proposing to
find that the control options in this SSSIP revision implement
Reasonably Available Control Technology (RACT) with respect to
NOX emissions from the relevant Facility sources, which are
identified as six mid-size emergency hot water boilers. This SSSIP
revision is intended to implement NOX RACT for the relevant
Facility sources in accordance with the requirements for implementation
of the 2008 and 2015 ozone NAAQS. The EPA proposes to determine that
this action will not interfere with ozone NAAQS requirements and meets
all applicable requirements of the Clean Air Act (CAA).
DATES: Comments must be received on or before December 17, 2025.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R02-
OAR-2025-0290 at https://www.regulations.gov. Although listed in the
index, some information is not publicly available, e.g., Controlled
Unclassified Information (CUI) (formerly referred to as Confidential
Business Information (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 electronically through https://www.regulations.gov. Follow
the online instructions for submitting comments. 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 CUI 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 CUI or multimedia submissions, and general
guidance on making effective comments, please visit https://www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Stephanie Lin, Air Programs Branch,
Environmental Protection Agency, Region 2 Office, 290 Broadway, 25th
Floor, New York, New York 10007-1866, telephone number: (212) 637-3711,
email address: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: For additional information on regulatory
background and the EPA's technical findings relating to the Facility
RACT, the reader can refer to the Technical Support Document (TSD) that
is contained in the EPA docket assigned to this Federal Register
document.
Table of Contents
I. Background
[[Page 51264]]
II. The EPA's Evaluation of New York's Submission and RACT Analysis
III. Proposed Action
IV. Incorporation by Reference
V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
I. Background
Ground Level Ozone Formation
Ground level ozone is predominantly a secondary air pollutant
created by chemical reactions that occur when ozone precursors,
including nitrogen oxides (NOX) and volatile organic
compounds (VOC), chemically react in the presence of sunlight.
Emissions from industrial facilities are anthropogenic sources of ozone
precursors. The potential for ground-level ozone formation tends to be
highest during months with warmer temperatures and stagnant air masses.
Ozone levels are thus generally higher during the summer months, which
is often referred to as ``the ozone season.'' In New York, the ozone
season is generally considered to be between April 15 and October 15,
while the non-ozone season is generally considered to be between
October 16 and April 14.
Ozone Nonattainment
A geographic area of the United States that is not meeting the
primary or secondary National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) for
ozone is described as a nonattainment area.\1\ Nonattainment areas are
classified as either Marginal, Moderate, Serious, Severe, or Extreme.
With respect to this proposed action, there are two relevant ozone
NAAQS standards. First, on March 12, 2008, the EPA promulgated a
revision to the ozone NAAQS, setting both the primary and secondary
standards at 0.075 parts per million (ppm) averaged over an 8-hour time
frame (2008 8-hour Ozone Standard). See 73 FR 16436 (March 27, 2008).
Second, on October 1, 2015, the EPA lowered these standards to 0.070
ppm averaged over an 8-hour time frame (2015 8-hour Ozone Standard).
See 80 FR 65292 (October 26, 2015). Under CAA section 184, the State of
New York is located within the Ozone Transport Region (OTR), which
means that it is subject to statewide RACT requirements. This Facility
is also located in the New York-N. New Jersey-Long Island (NYMA) ozone
nonattainment area for both the 2008 and 2015 ozone NAAQS and is a
major source of NOX. Therefore, RACT is also being
implemented for this facility for nonattainment planning purposes
related to CAA section 182.
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\1\ Primary standards provide public health protection,
including protecting the health of ``sensitive'' populations such as
asthmatics, children, and the elderly. Secondary standards provide
public welfare protection, including protection against decreased
visibility and damage to animals, crops, vegetation, and buildings.
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Federal RACT Requirements
RACT is defined as the lowest emission limit that a source is
capable of meeting through the application of control technology that
is reasonably available considering technological and economic
feasibility.\2\ CAA section 184(b)(2) sets forth the requirement to
establish control measures to implement RACT for major sources of VOC
located in the OTR. For major sources of NOX, CAA section
182(f)(1) also applies, ``The plan provisions required under this
subpart for major stationary sources of volatile organic compounds
shall also apply to major stationary sources (as defined in section
7602 of this title and subsections (c), (d), and (e) of this section)
of oxides of nitrogen.'' The State of New York is located within the
OTR, and thus the State is required to implement RACT for all major
sources of VOC within the State.
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\2\ See, EPA, ``Guidance for determining acceptability of SIP
regulations in non-attainment areas,'' memo 1976, Roger Strelow,
https://www3.epa.gov/ttn/naaqs/aqmguide/collection/cp2/19761209_strelow_ract.pdf.
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NYSDEC RACT Requirements
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
(NYSDEC) RACT regulations require applicable facilities to meet certain
requirements, referred to as ``presumptive RACT requirements.'' These
presumptive requirements generally require sources to implement
emission limits, control efficiency requirements, specific control
technologies, averaging plans, and/or fuel/raw material switching
practices. In some instances, the general presumptive RACT requirements
may not be technologically or economically feasible for a certain
source, and the State can make a Source-specific RACT determination,
which is submitted to the EPA as a SSSIP. The SSSIP should include the
facility's RACT plan that demonstrates how the facility will implement
RACT. The SSSIP will also include the applicable CAA title V operating
permit conditions that address RACT requirements. These RACT variance
permit conditions for the Facility will become Federally enforceable
upon the EPA's final approval of this SSSIP.
Under existing NYSDEC RACT regulations, facilities are required to
assess all technologically feasible control options that meet the
State's cost threshold. The cost threshold for NYSDEC RACT requirements
is found under NYSDEC 2013 policy, ``DAR-20 Economic and Technical
Analysis for Reasonably Available Control Technology (RACT).'' Under
this policy, facilities must consider in their RACT determinations
control technologies that remove VOC or NOX emissions up to
a certain cost threshold, expressed in a dollar amount per ton of VOC
or NOX removed, which includes an inflation-adjusted
economic threshold.\3\
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\3\ The DAR-20 cost threshold is based on 1994 dollars. State of
New York relies on the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor
Statistics inflationary calculator to adjust the RACT economic
feasibility threshold over time for inflation. See https://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm.
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II. The EPA's Evaluation of New York's Submission and RACT Analysis
This action relates to a SSSIP revision that concerns the Calpine
Corporation Kennedy International Airport Cogeneration (KIAC)/John F.
Kennedy (JFK) Energy Center (the Facility)--located in the central
terminal area of the JFK International Airport in Jamaica, NY. The
Facility supplies electricity to the airport and the Consolidated
Edison (Con Ed) Power Distribution Grid. The Facility also supplies
steam to the airport's central heating and refrigeration plant. The
sources at issue in this action are for the Facility's six mid-size
emergency hot water boilers (the Boilers). The Boilers are used
intermittently to supplement hot water generation at the airport when
the combustion turbine-based cogeneration units are unavailable or
cannot meet demand.
The NYSDEC RACT regulations establish RACT requirements for this
category of sources in 6 NYCRR subpart 227-2, ``Reasonably Available
Control Technology (RACT) For Major Facilities of Oxides of Nitrogen
(NOX),'' last approved into New York's SIP by the EPA on
July 12, 2013. See 78 FR 41846. However, as explained above, the NYSDEC
RACT regulations allow Source-specific RACT determinations if the
presumptive RACT requirements are not technologically or economically
feasible; such Source-specific determinations must be submitted to the
EPA as a SSSIP.
This SSSIP was submitted to EPA by NYSDEC on June 9, 2023. The EPA
has reviewed the RACT determination in this SSSIP submittal for the
Boilers for consistency with the CAA and EPA regulations, as
interpreted through EPA actions and guidance. The intended effect of
this Source-specific SIP revision is to establish an emission limit for
the process specific control measure for the Boilers.
[[Page 51265]]
The EPA is proposing to determine through this SSSIP action that
the NOX RACT emission limit submitted by the State in this
SSSIP for the Boilers is the lowest emission limit with the application
of control technology that is reasonably available given technological
and economic feasibility considerations. The respective NOX
RACT emission limit is contained in the Facility's air permit, Title V
operating permit, 2-6308-00096/00009 under conditions 56, 57, 58,
emission unit B-OILRS issued by the State on June 28, 2022, and expires
on June 27, 2027. EPA is proposing to approve the incorporation of
permit conditions 56, 57, and 58 into the SIP. These conditions include
monitoring, reporting, and recordkeeping requirements for the Boilers
further described in the EPA RACT analysis below.
The Facility submitted a RACT demonstration, dated January 2022, to
the NYSDEC for the emission limit requirements, and NYSDEC reviewed and
approved the emission limit as adequately implementing RACT for the
source. NYSDEC then submitted the Source-specific SIP revision package
at issue in this action for the EPA approval, and the EPA is proposing
to determine the respective emission limit as implementing RACT for
this source. The RACT variance emission limit for the Facility will
become Federally enforceable upon the EPA's final approval of this
SSSIP.
EPA RACT Analysis
The following is a summary of the EPA's analysis of how the
proposed NOX emission limit implements RACT for emission
unit B-OILRS that represent the Boilers. Further detail on this
analysis is provided in the TSD available in the docket for this
proposed rulemaking.
The RACT demonstration must show an alternate emission limit to
comprise RACT and a RACT variance can be requested pursuant to 6 NYCRR
subpart 227-2. Such a RACT variance can be approved if supported by a
RACT demonstration and submitted to the EPA for review as a SIP
revision.
The Facility's RACT demonstration shows that the control of
NOX emissions during hot water generation is the only
NOX control technology that is technologically and
economically feasible for this facility. Currently, the Facility does
not limit the NOX emissions from the Boilers with any
technologies. In its RACT demonstration, the Facility demonstrated that
no cost-effective controls were technically feasible. The Facility
operates the Boilers, which are intermittently used to produce
additional hot water for JFK Airport when the combustion turbine-based
cogeneration units are not available or cannot otherwise meet the
airport demand. As described below, the Boilers are characterized as
mid-size boilers under 6 NYCRR subpart 227-2. Based upon emission test
data, these six units do not meet the presumptive emission limitations.
In accordance with the provisions of 6 NYCRR subpart 227-2.5(c), the
owner or operator can request a higher emission limit but must
demonstrate that the emission limit in 6 NYCRR subpart 227-2.4 is not
technically or economically feasible.
As stated in permit Conditions 56, 57, and 58, the Facility must:
monitor NOX total annual emissions monthly with a rolling
12-month maximum, and report annually and monitor the Boilers when
firing low sulfur distillate oil or natural gas once every five years
with a one-hour average with a report once per batch or monitoring
occurrence.
The Boilers generate NOX emissions during hot water
generation, range in size (heat input capacity) from 40 MMBtu/hr to 75
MMBtu/hr and are capable of firing natural gas or distillate oil. Per 6
NYCRR 200.1(cm), a ``boiler'' is defined as a device that combusts
fossil fuel or wood and produces steam or heats water or any other heat
transfer medium. The Boilers combust a fossil fuel (natural gas or
distillate sulfur oil) and heat water. Per 6 NYCRR 227-2.2(b)(4), a
``mid-size boiler'' is defined as a boiler with a maximum heat input
capacity greater than 25 million Btu per hour and equal to or less than
100 million Btu per hour.
NYSDEC reviewed the RACT demonstration and determined that the
alternate emission limit implements RACT for the Boilers. Specifically,
NYSDEC approved the following case-by-case emission limit: (1) total
emissions of 24 tons per year (tons/yr) of NOX from emission
unit B-OILRS, on a rolling 12-month basis, with the total monthly
NOX emissions for each boiler calculated on a monthly basis;
(2) records of monthly NOX emissions shall be maintained in
a permanently bound log or in electronic format with reporting
requirements annually and reports due 30 days after the reporting
period; (3) maximum NOX emission rate of 0.15 lb/MMBtu per
hour for each of the Boilers when firing natural gas, and 0.25 lb/MMBtu
per hour when firing distillate oil; and (4) NOX emission
testing once every five years to verify that the actual NOX
emissions from a particular boiler are less than the maximum limits per
hour when firing low sulfur distillate oil or natural gas.
We are proposing to determine that the following additional
technically feasible control options do not need to be implemented
because they are not cost effective: (1) fuel switching; (2) low-
NOX burners; and (3) flue gas recirculation.
To determine what NOX control technologies could be
economically and technologically feasible for the Boilers, the EPA
reviewed the Reasonably Available Control Technology/Best Available
Control Technology/Lowest Achievable Emission Rate Clearinghouse
(RBLC),\4\ EPA's Alternative Control Techniques (ACT) and Control
Techniques Guidelines (CTG), and the vendor quote provided by the State
as part of the RACT evaluation. The EPA's RBLC search criteria were
based on: permit dates from June 28, 2012 to June 28, 2022, process
types for Commercial/Institutional-Size Boilers/Furnaces (<100 million
BTU/H): 13.900 Other Fuels and Combinations (e.g., solid/liquid,
liquid/gas); 13.220 Distillate Fuel Oil (ASTM #1,2, includes kerosene,
aviation, diesel fuel); 13.310 Natural Gas (includes propane and
liquefied petroleum gas), NOX pollutant, and All States. The
EPA's RBLC review reveals that there are 54 facilities in the United
States that possibly operate with similar practices as the Facility
(such as having boilers or being an energy generating facility). The
EPA also reviewed one vendor quote for the Boilers as contained in the
SSSIP submission, and they appear to be technically sound. The EPA
confirms that no cost-effective NOX control technologies
have become available that could be implemented on the Facility's
Boilers. For more information, refer to the TSD associated with this
rulemaking.
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\4\ The RBLC contains case-specific information on the best
available air pollution technologies that have been required to
reduce the emission of air pollutants from stationary sources. See
https://cfpub.epa.gov/rblc/index.cfm?action=Search.BasicSearch&lang=en.
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The EPA is proposing to determine that the proposed limit for the
Boilers implements RACT because: (1) The 6 NYCRR subpart 227-2
presumptive NOX limit for the Boilers of 0.08 lbs/MMBtu is
not economically and technologically feasible for this source; (2) no
additional control technologies beyond what are currently used at the
Boilers are technically and economically feasible; (3) emission limit
of maximum NOX emission rate of 0.15 lb/MMBtu per hour for
each of the Boilers when firing natural gas, and 0.25 lb/MMBtu per hour
when firing distillate oil comprises RACT for this
[[Page 51266]]
source; and (4) the SIP revision contains monitoring and reporting
requirements.
III. Proposed Action
The EPA is proposing to approve this current Source-specific
revision because the limits included in the SSSIP are demonstrated to
implement RACT for emission unit B-OILRS that represent the Boilers.
Based on information provided by NYSDEC, a thorough RBLC review of
similar sources and EPA's Alternative Control Techniques (ACT) and
Control Techniques Guidelines (CTG), and an analysis of this Source-
specific SIP revision, the EPA proposes to determine the Facility's
operation under the NYSDEC approved NOX emission limits for
the Facility's Boilers.
Specifically, the EPA proposes to determine the following limits
and associated requirements as implementing RACT: the Facility must:
(1) have a maximum total emissions of 24 tons/yr of NOX from
the Boilers, on a rolling 12-month basis, with the total monthly
NOX emissions for each boiler calculated on a monthly basis;
(2) maintain records of monthly NOX emissions in a
permanently bound log or in electronic format with reporting
requirements annually and reports due 30 days after the reporting
period; (3) have a maximum NOX emission rate of 0.15 lb/
MMBtu per hour for each of the Boilers when firing natural gas, and
0.25 lb/MMBtu per hour when firing distillate oil; and (4) conduct
NOX emission testing once every five years to verify that
the actual NOX emissions from a particular boiler are less
than the maximum limits per hour when firing low sulfur distillate oil
or natural gas.
IV. Incorporation by Reference
In this document, the EPA is proposing to include regulatory text
that includes incorporation by reference. In accordance with
requirements of 1 CFR 51.5, the EPA is proposing to incorporate by
reference revisions to Facility's Title V operating permit conditions
56, 57, 58 as described in section II. of this preamble. The EPA has
made, and will continue to make, these materials generally available
through https://www.regulations.gov.
V. 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 Order 12866 (58
FR 51735, October 4, 1993);
Is not subject to Executive Order 14192 (90 FR 9065,
February 6, 2025) because SIP actions are exempt from review under
Executive Order 12866:
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 subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 19885,
April 23, 1997) because it approves a state program;
Is not a significant regulatory action subject to
Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001); and
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 CAA.
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, Oxides of nitrogen, Ozone,
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Michael Martucci,
Regional Administrator, Region 2.
[FR Doc. 2025-19992 Filed 11-14-25; 8:45 am]
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