

[Federal Register: February 10, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 28)]
[Notices]               
[Page 7037-7038]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr10fe06-65]                         

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-8031-1]

 
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 section 113(g) of the Clean Air Act, as 
amended (``Act''), 42 U.S.C. 7413(g), notice is hereby given of a 
proposed consent decree, to address a deadline suit filed by Sierra 
Club: Sierra Club v. Johnson, No. 05CV02177 (RMC) (D. DC). On July 9, 
2002 and November 18, 2002, Sierra Club petitioned EPA to object to 
certain Clean Air Act Title V permit amendments proposed by the Georgia 
Environmental Protection Division for steam generating plants at (1) 
Georgia Power's Bowen Steam-Electric Generating Plant (``the Bowen 
plant'') and (2) the Bowen, McDonough/Atkinson, Yates, Hammond, 
Wansley, Scherer, and Branch Steam-Electric Generating Plants 
(collectively ``the seven power plants'') in the State of Georgia. 
Subsequently, Sierra Club filed suit, alleging that the Administrator 
failed to perform his nondiscretionary duty to respond to the petitions 
within sixty days of the date they were filed. Under the terms of 
today's proposed consent decree, EPA has agreed to respond to the 
petitions by March 15, 2006, and Sierra Club has agreed that if EPA 
does so, Sierra Club will dismiss its suit with prejudice. In addition, 
EPA has agreed to pay Sierra Club a specified amount in settlement for 
attorneys' fees in this matter.

DATES: Written comments on the proposed consent decree must be received 
by March 13, 2006.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID number EPA-HQ-
OGC-2006-0105, online at http://www.regulations.gov (EPA's preferred method); by e-mail to oei.docket@epa.gov; mailed to EPA Docket Center, 

Environmental Protection Agency, Mailcode: 2822T, 1200 Pennsylvania 
Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001; or by hand delivery or courier to 
EPA Docket Center, EPA West, Room B102, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., 
Washington, DC, between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, 
excluding legal holidays. Comments on a disk or CD-ROM should be 
formatted in Wordperfect or ASCII file, avoiding the use of special 
characters and any form

[[Page 7038]]

of encryption, and may be mailed to the mailing address above.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Howard J. Hoffman, Air and Radiation 
Law Office (2344A), Office of General Counsel, U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460; 
telephone: (202) 564-5582; fax number (202) 564-5603; e-mail address: 
hoffman.howard@epa.gov.


SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Additional Information About the Proposed Consent Decree

    This proposed consent decree would resolve a deadline suit to 
require EPA to respond to two administrative petitions that EPA object 
to certain Title V permit amendments proposed by the Georgia 
Environmental Protection Division for the Bowen plant and the seven 
power plants in the State of Georgia. Under the proposed decree, Sierra 
Club would agree to dismiss the lawsuit if the Administrator responds 
to the petitions by March 15, 2006. The consent decree does not specify 
the type of response that the Administrator must make to the petitions. 
If the consent decree becomes final and the Administrator responds to 
the petitions by March 15, 2006, Sierra Club will dismiss the case and 
EPA will pay Sierra Club a specified amount in settlement of its claims 
for attorneys' fees.
    For a period of thirty (30) days following the date of publication 
of this notice, the Agency will receive written comments relating to 
the proposed consent decree from persons who were not named as parties 
or interveners to the litigation in question. 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. Unless EPA or the Department of 
Justice determines, based on any comment which may be submitted, that 
consent to the consent decree should be withdrawn, the terms of the 
decree will be affirmed.

II. Additional Information About Commenting on the Proposed Consent 
Decree

A. How Can I Get a Copy of the Consent Decree?

    Direct your comments to the official public docket for this action 
under Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OGC-2006-0105 which contains a copy of the 
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 B102, 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.
    An electronic version of the public docket is available through 
http://www.regulations.gov. You may use the www.regulations.gov Web site to 

submit or view public comments, to access the index listing of the 
contents of the official public docket, and to access those documents 
in the public docket that are available electronically. Once in the 
system, select ``search,'' then key in the appropriate docket 
identification number.
    It is important to note that EPA's policy is that public comments, 
whether submitted electronically or in paper, will be made available 
for public viewing online at http://www.regulations.gov without change, 

unless the comment contains copyrighted material, CBI, or other 
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Information 
claimed as CBI and other information whose disclosure is restricted by 
statute is not included in the official public docket or in the 
electronic public docket. EPA's policy is that copyrighted material, 
including copyrighted material contained in a public comment, will not 
be placed in EPA's electronic public docket but will be available only 
in printed, paper form in the official public docket. Although not all 
docket materials may be available electronically, you may still access 
any of the publicly available docket materials through the EPA Docket 
Center.

B. How and To Whom Do I Submit Comments?

    You may submit comments as provided in the ADDRESSES section. 
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.
    If you submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you 
include your name, mailing address, and an e-mail address or other 
contact information in the body of your comment and with any disk or 
CD-ROM you submit. 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 http://www.regulations.gov Web site 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, e-mail address, or other 
contact information unless you provide it in the body of your comment. 
In contrast to EPA's electronic public docket, EPA's electronic mail 
(e-mail) system is not an ``anonymous access'' system. If you send an 
e-mail comment directly to the Docket without going through 
http://www.regulations.gov, your e-mail address is automatically captured and 

included as part of the comment that is placed in the official public 
docket, and made available in EPA's electronic public docket.

    Dated: February 1, 2006.
Richard B. Ossias,
Associate General Counsel.
[FR Doc. E6-1912 Filed 2-9-06; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
