
[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 179 (Tuesday, September 16, 2014)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Page 55412]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-21973]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Parts 51 and 52

[EPA-HQ-OAR-2006-0605; FRL-9916-63-OAR]
RIN 2060-AO24


Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) for Particulate 
Matter Less Than 2.5 Micrometers (PM2.5)--Increments, Significant 
Impact Levels (SILs) and Significant Monitoring Concentration (SMC)--
Notice of Action Denying Petition for Reconsideration and Amended 
Rulemaking

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Action denying petition for reconsideration and amended 
rulemaking.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is providing notice 
that it has responded to a petition for reconsideration and amended 
rulemaking of certain provisions of the final rule, ``Prevention of 
Significant Deterioration (PSD) for Particulate Matter Less Than 2.5 
Micrometers (PM2.5)--Increments, Significant Impact Levels 
(SILs) and Significant Monitoring Concentration (SMC),'' published on 
October 20, 2010. The final rule set forth provisions identifying the 
maximum allowable increases in ambient pollutant concentrations 
(``increments'') for PM2.5, modifying the definitions for 
the baseline dates and the baseline area, and adding two screening 
tools known as SILs and an SMC for PM2.5. On December 23, 
2013, the EPA received a petition for reconsideration pursuant to the 
Clean Air Act (CAA) and for an amended rulemaking pursuant to the 
Administrative Procedures Act, from the state of North Carolina. The 
EPA considered the petition for reconsideration and amended rulemaking, 
along with information contained in the rulemaking docket, in reaching 
a decision on the petition. The EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy denied 
the petition for reconsideration and amended rulemaking in a letter to 
the Attorney General of North Carolina dated August 28, 2014. The 
letter documents the EPA's reasons for the denial and can be found in 
the rulemaking docket.

DATES: The EPA's response to this petition was signed on August. 28, 
2014. Any petitions for review of the final letter denying the petition 
for reconsideration and amended rulemaking of certain provisions of the 
final rule published in the Federal Register on October 20, 2010 (75 FR 
64864) must be filed in the Court of Appeal for the District of 
Columbia Circuit on or before November 17, 2014.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Dan deRoeck, Air Quality Policy 
Division (C504-03), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Research 
Triangle Park, NC, 27711; telephone number: (919) 541-5593; or email 
address: deroeck.dan@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. How can I get copies of this document and other related information?

    This Federal Register document, the petition for reconsideration 
and amended rulemaking, and the letter denying the petition are 
available in the docket that the EPA has established for the 
``Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) for Particulate Matter 
Less Than 2.5 Micrometers (PM2.5)--Increments, Significant 
Impact Levels (SILs) and Significant Monitoring Concentration (SMC)'' 
rulemaking under Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2006-0605. The table below 
identifies the petitioner, the date of the petition, the document 
identification number for the petition, the date of the EPA's response, 
and the document identification number for the EPA's response.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                         Petition:
             Petitioner                  Date of        Document No.     Date of EPA     EPA response: Document
                                     petition to EPA     in docket         response           No. in docket
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
State of North Carolina............      12/23/2013            -0065        8/28/2014       -0066, -0067, -0068
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Note that all document numbers listed in the table are in the form 
of ``EPA-HQ-OAR-2006-0605-xxxx.
    All documents in the docket are listed on the http://www.regulations.gov Web site. Although listed in the index, some 
information may not be publicly available, i.e., confidential business 
information 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 either 
electronically through http://www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at 
the EPA Docket Center, Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2006-0605, EPA William 
Jefferson Clinton West Building, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW., 
Washington, DC. The 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 EPA Docket Center is (202) 566-1742.
    In addition to being available in the docket, an electronic copy of 
this notice of the EPA's decision denying the petition for 
reconsideration and amended rulemaking and of the EPA's response letter 
outlining reasons for the denial will also be available on the World 
Wide Web. Following signature of this document by the Acting Assistant 
Administrator, Office of Air and Radiation, a copy of this document 
will be posted on EPA's New Source Review Web site, under Regulations & 
Standards, at http://www.epa.gov/nsr.

II. Judicial Review

    Under CAA section 307(b), judicial review of this final action is 
available only by filing a petition for review in the U.S. Court of 
Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on or before November 17, 
2014.

    Dated: September 5, 2014.
Janet G. McCabe,
Acting Assistant Administrator for Air and Radiation.
[FR Doc. 2014-21973 Filed 9-15-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P


