[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 48 (Wednesday, March 11, 2020)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 14147-14150]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-04855]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R04-OAR-2019-0503; FRL-10006-32-Region 4]


Air Plan Approval; GA and NC: Infrastructure Requirements for the 
2015 8-Hour Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving 
portions of the Georgia and North Carolina State Implementation Plan 
(SIP) submissions provided on September 24, 2018, and September 27, 
2018, respectively. The submissions pertain to the infrastructure 
requirements of the Clean Air Act (CAA or Act) for the 2015 8-hour 
ozone national ambient air quality standard (NAAQS). Whenever EPA 
promulgates a new or revised NAAQS, the CAA requires that each state 
adopt and submit a SIP submission to establish that state's 
implementation plan meets infrastructure requirements for the 
implementation, maintenance, and enforcement of each such NAAQS. 
Georgia and North Carolina each made the required SIP submissions to 
assure that their SIPs contain provisions that ensure the 2015 8-hour 
ozone NAAQS is implemented, enforced, and maintained in their State. 
EPA has in this action determined that the Georgia and North Carolina 
infrastructure SIP submissions satisfy certain required infrastructure 
elements for the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS.

DATES: This rule is effective April 10, 2020.

ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket 
Identification No. EPA-R04-OAR-2019-0503. All documents in the docket 
are listed on the www.regulations.gov website. 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 www.regulations.gov or in hard 
copy at the Air Regulatory Management Section, Air Planning and 
Implementation Branch, Air and Radiation Division, U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street SW, Atlanta, Georgia 
30303-8960. EPA requests that if at all possible, you contact the 
person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section to 
schedule your inspection. The Regional Office's official hours of 
business are Monday through Friday 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., excluding 
Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sean Lakeman, Air Regulatory 
Management Section, Air Planning and Implementation Branch, Air and 
Radiation Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 
Forsyth Street SW, Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. Mr. Lakeman can be 
reached via telephone at (404) 562-9043 or via electronic mail at 
lakeman.sean@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background and Overview

    On October 1, 2015, EPA promulgated revised primary and secondary 
NAAQS

[[Page 14148]]

for ozone, revising the 8-hour ozone standards from 0.075 parts per 
million (ppm) to a new more protective level of 0.070 ppm. See 80 FR 
65292 (October 26, 2015). Pursuant to section 110(a)(1) of the CAA, 
states are required to make a SIP submission meeting the applicable 
requirements of section 110(a)(2) within three years after promulgation 
of a new or revised NAAQS or within such shorter period as EPA may 
prescribe. Section 110(a)(2) requires states to address basic SIP 
elements such as requirements for monitoring, basic program 
requirements, and legal authority that are designed to assure 
attainment and maintenance of the NAAQS. This particular type of SIP 
submission is commonly referred to as an ``infrastructure SIP.'' EPA 
required states to make these infrastructure SIP submissions for the 
2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS no later than October 1, 2018.\1\
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    \1\ In these infrastructure SIP submissions, states generally 
certify evidence of compliance with sections 110(a)(1) and (2) of 
the CAA through a combination of state regulations and statutes, 
some of which have been incorporated into the SIP. In addition, 
certain federally-approved, non-SIP regulations may also be 
appropriate for demonstrating compliance with sections 110(a)(1) and 
(2).
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    This action is approving Georgia's September 24, 2018, SIP 
submission provided to EPA through the Georgia Environmental Protection 
Division (GA EPD), and North Carolina's September 27, 2018,\2\ SIP 
submission provided to EPA through the North Carolina Department of 
Environmental Quality (NC DEQ) with respect to most of the applicable 
requirements of the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS. In this action, EPA is not 
acting upon the submissions with respect to the interstate transport 
provisions of section 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I) pertaining to contribution to 
nonattainment or interference with maintenance in other states, and the 
prevention of significant deterioration (PSD) provisions related to 
major sources under sections 110(a)(2)(C), 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(II), and 
110(a)(2)(J). With respect to the interstate transport provisions of 
section 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I) and PSD provisions related to major sources 
under sections 110(a)(2)(C), 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(II), and 110(a)(2)(J), EPA 
is addressing these provisions in separate rulemaking actions.
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    \2\ The September 27, 2018, SIP submission provided by NC DEQ's 
Division of Air Quality (DAQ) was received by EPA on October 10, 
2018.
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    In a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) published on December 30, 
2019 (84 FR 71866), EPA proposed to approve Georgia and North Carolina 
SIP submissions provided on September 24, 2018, and September 27, 2018, 
respectively, for the applicable infrastructure SIP requirements of the 
2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS. The NPRM provides additional detail regarding 
the background and rationale for EPA's action. Comments on the NPRM 
were due on or before January 29, 2020.

II. Response to Comment

    EPA received two comments on the NPRM, one in support of the action 
and one opposed to the action. Both comments are included in the docket 
for this final rule, and the adverse comment is addressed below.
    Comment: The Commenter states that ``EPA fails to explain whether 
either state has submitted an approved Emergency Episode plan pursuant 
to Subpart H under section 110(a)(2)(G). Both states have at least one 
area that is classified as Priority 1 for Hydrocarbons under Part 
52.571 or 52.1771, as they apply to each state. EPA must explain where 
these emergency episode plans are in each states' SIPs or disapprove 
the States' section 110(a)(2)(G) submission.''
    Response: EPA disagrees with the commenter. Section 110(a)(2)(G) 
requires SIPs to ``provide for authority comparable to that in section 
7603 [303] of this title and adequate contingency plans to implement 
such authority.'' Section 303 of the CAA authorizes the EPA 
Administrator to seek a court order to restrain any source from causing 
or contributing to emissions that present an ``imminent and substantial 
endangerment to public health or welfare, or the environment.'' EPA's 
September 13, 2013 ``Guidance on Infrastructure State Implementation 
Plan (SIP) Elements under Clean Air Act Sections 110(a)(1) and 
110(a)(2),'' explains that EPA interprets section 110(a)(2)(G) to 
impose two requirements for purposes of an infrastructure SIP 
submission.\3\ First, a state's submission should identify the relevant 
statutes or regulations that provide the air agency or official with 
authority comparable to that of the EPA Administrator under section 
303.4 5 Second, the state's implementation plan is required 
to include an adequate contingency plan to meet the requirements of 40 
CFR part 51, subpart H.
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    \3\ See ``Guidance on Infrastructure State Implementation Plan 
(SIP) Elements under Clean Air Act Sections 110(a)(1) and 
110(a)(2),'' September 13, 2013, p. 47.
    \4\ EPA explains that the best practice is for the statutory or 
regulatory provisions that provide authority comparable to section 
303 to be included in the SIP, but provides that an air agency may 
choose not to include such provision in the SIP, in which case the 
submission should provide a reference or citation to the authority 
provisions, along with a narrative explanation of how they meet the 
requirements of this element.
    \5\ A discussion of how Georgia and North Carolina have 
authority comparable to CAA section 303 is found in the NPRM at 84 
FR 71872.
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    The Commenter expresses concern about the states' compliance with 
the second 110(a)(2)(G) requirement--an adequate contingency plan to 
meet the requirements of 40 CFR part 51, subpart H. Specifically, the 
Commenter questions whether the Georgia and North Carolina SIPs contain 
the required subpart H emergency episode plan and contends that EPA 
failed to explain whether either state has such a plan. In the NPRM at 
84 FR 71872, EPA cited to the emergency episodes and contingency plan 
in Georgia's existing SIP, which is Air Quality Control Rule 391-3-
1-.04, ``Air Quality Control Episodes.'' This rule authorizes the GA 
EPD Director to proclaim an air pollution alert, warning, or emergency; 
and authorizes the Director to require the owner, operator or lessee of 
any source to prepare, submit, and implement a plan to reduce air 
contaminants when notified of an air pollution alert, warning, or 
emergency. Similarly, EPA explained in the NPRM at 84 FR 71872, that 
North Carolina's existing SIP contains an emergency episode and 
contingency plan in 15A NCAC 2D .0300, ``Air Pollution Emergencies.'' 
This rule authorizes the NC DEQ Director to proclaim an air pollution 
alert, warning, or emergency; requires larger source to develop actions 
plans; lists other abatement measures; and provides that such plans and 
measures must be implemented when an alert, warning or emergency has 
been declared.
    EPA notes that Georgia Air Quality Control Rule 391-3-1-.04, ``Air 
Quality Control Episodes,'' and North Carolina 15A NCAC 2D .0300, ``Air 
Pollution Emergencies'' are already approved into each state's 
respective SIP.\6\ Thus, contrary to Commenter's assertion, EPA 
identified each state's SIP-approved emergency episode plan in the 
NPRM. The Commenter did not provide any information to suggest that 
either Georgia's or North Carolina's existing SIP-approved rules were 
inadequate or otherwise suggest that these states lacked authority 
comparable to that in CAA section 303.
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    \6\ In footnote 3 of the NPRM (84 FR 71867), EPA explained that 
regulations cited to in the NPRM as Georgia's Air Quality Control 
Rule and North Carolina's NCAC have been approved into the SIP, 
unless otherwise indicated.
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III. Final Action

    With the exception of interstate transport provisions of section 
110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I) and (II) (prongs 1 and 2) pertaining to contribution 
to nonattainment or interference with

[[Page 14149]]

maintenance in other states, and PSD provisions related to major 
sources under sections 110(a)(2)(C), 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(II) (prong 3), and 
110(a)(2)(J), EPA is approving Georgia's and North Carolina's September 
24, 2018, and September 27, 2018, SIP submissions for the 2015 8-hour 
ozone NAAQS. EPA is approving Georgia's and North Carolina's 
infrastructure SIP submissions for certain requirements related to the 
2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS because the submissions are consistent with 
section 110 of the CAA.

IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    Under the CAA, the Administrator is required to approve a SIP 
submission that complies with the provisions of the Act and applicable 
Federal regulations. See 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. These actions merely 
approve state law as meeting Federal requirements and do not impose 
additional requirements beyond those imposed by state law. For that 
reason, these actions:
     Are not significant regulatory actions 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);
     Are not Executive Order 13771 (82 FR 9339, February 2, 
2017) regulatory actions because SIP approvals are exempted under 
Executive Order 12866;
     Do not impose an information collection burden under the 
provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.);
     Are 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.);
     Do 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);
     Do not have Federalism implications as specified in 
Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999);
     Are not an economically significant regulatory actions 
based on health or safety risks subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 
19885, April 23, 1997);
     Are not significant regulatory actions subject to 
Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001);
     Are 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; and
     Do not provide EPA with the discretionary authority to 
address, as appropriate, disproportionate human health or environmental 
effects, using practicable and legally permissible methods, under 
Executive Order 12898 (59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994).
    The SIPs subject to these actions are 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 as specified 
by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000), nor will it 
impose substantial direct costs on tribal governments or preempt tribal 
law.
    The Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 801 et seq., as added by the 
Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, generally 
provides that before a rule may take effect, the agency promulgating 
the rule must submit a rule report, which includes a copy of the rule, 
to each House of the Congress and to the Comptroller General of the 
United States. EPA will submit a report containing this action and 
other required information to the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House of 
Representatives, and the Comptroller General of the United States prior 
to publication of the rule in the Federal Register. A major rule cannot 
take effect until 60 days after it is published in the Federal 
Register. This action is not a ``major rule'' as defined by 5 U.S.C. 
804(2).
    Under section 307(b)(1) of the CAA, petitions for judicial review 
of this action must be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for 
the appropriate circuit by May 11, 2020. Filing a petition for 
reconsideration by the Administrator of this final rule does not affect 
the finality of this action for the purposes of judicial review nor 
does it extend the time within which a petition for judicial review may 
be filed, and shall not postpone the effectiveness of such rule or 
action. This action may not be challenged later in proceedings to 
enforce its requirements. See section 307(b)(2).

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Incorporation by 
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, 
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Volatile organic compounds.

    Dated: February 27, 2020.
Mary S. Walker,
Regional Administrator, Region 4.

    40 CFR part 52 is amended as follows:

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 L--Georgia

0
2. Section 52.570, is amended in paragraph (e) by adding an entry for 
``110(a)(1) and (2) Infrastructure Requirements for the 2015 8-Hour 
Ozone NAAQS'' at the end of the table to read as follows:


Sec.  52.570  Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (e) * * *

                                 EPA-Approved Georgia Non-Regulatory Provisions
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                                                              State
  Name of nonregulatory SIP    Applicable geographic or  submittal date/   EPA approval         Explanation
          provision               nonattainment area     effective date        date
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                                                  * * * * * * *
110(a)(1) and (2)              Georgia.................       9/24/2018  3/11/2020,        With the exception of
 Infrastructure Requirements                                              [Insert           110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I)
 for the 2015 8-Hour Ozone                                                citation of       (prongs 1 and 2) and
 NAAQS.                                                                   publication].     PSD provisions
                                                                                            related to major
                                                                                            sources under
                                                                                            sections
                                                                                            110(a)(2)(C),
                                                                                            110(a)(2)(D)(i)(II)
                                                                                            (prong 3), and
                                                                                            110(a)(2)(J).
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[[Page 14150]]

Subpart II--North Carolina

0
3. Section 52.1770, is amended in paragraph (e) by adding an entry for 
``110(a)(1) and (2) Infrastructure Requirements for the 2015 8-Hour 
Ozone NAAQS'' at the end of the table to read as follows:


Sec.  52.1770  Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (e) * * *

                              EPA-Approved North Carolina Non-Regulatory Provisions
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                                        State       EPA approval     Federal Register
            Provision              effective date       date             citation              Explanation
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                                                  * * * * * * *
110(a)(1) and (2) Infrastructure        9/27/2018       3/11/2020  [Insert citation of  With the exception of
 Requirements for the 2015 8-Hour                                   publication].        110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I)
 Ozone NAAQS.                                                                            (prongs 1 and 2) and
                                                                                         PSD provisions related
                                                                                         to major sources under
                                                                                         sections 110(a)(2)(C),
                                                                                         110(a)(2)(D)(i)(II)
                                                                                         (prong 3), and
                                                                                         110(a)(2)(J).
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[FR Doc. 2020-04855 Filed 3-10-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P


