
[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 157 (Monday, August 15, 2016)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 53924-53926]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-19041]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R07-OAR-2014-0365; FRL-9949-82-Region 7]


Approval of Iowa's Air Quality Implementation Plans; Regional 
Haze State Implementation Plan Revision and 2013 Five-Year Progress 
Report

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking final 
action to approve the Iowa State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision 
submitted to EPA by the State of Iowa on July 19, 2013, documenting 
that the State's existing plan is making adequate progress to achieve 
visibility goals by 2018. The Iowa SIP revision addressed the Regional 
Haze Rule (RHR) requirements under the Clean Air Act (CAA or Act) to 
submit a report describing progress in achieving reasonable progress 
goals (RPGs) to improve visibility in Federally designated areas in 
nearby states that may be affected by emissions from sources in Iowa. 
EPA is taking final action to approve Iowa's determination that the 
existing Regional Haze (RH) SIP is adequate to meet the visibility 
goals and requires no substantive revision at this time.

DATES: This final rule is effective September 14, 2016.

ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket ID 
No. EPA-R07-OAR-2014-0365. All documents in the docket are listed on 
the www.regulations.gov Web site. Although listed in the index, some 
information is not publicly available, i.e., 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 either electronically through 
www.regulations.gov or at the Environmental Protection Agency, Air 
Planning and Development Branch, 11201 Renner Boulevard, Lenexa, Kansas 
66219. The Regional Office's official hours of business are Monday 
through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., excluding Federal holidays. The 
interested persons wanting to examine these documents should make an 
appointment with the office at least 24 hours in advance.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Stephen Krabbe, Environmental 
Protection Agency, Air Planning and Development Branch, 11201 Renner 
Boulevard, Lenexa, Kansas 66219 at 913-551-7991, or by email at 
krabbe.stephen@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document ``we,'' ``us,'' or 
``our'' refer to EPA. This section provides additional information by 
addressing the following:

I. Background
II. Summary of SIP Revision
III. Final Action
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. Background

    On July 3, 2014, (79 FR 37976), EPA published a notice of proposed 
rulemaking (NPR) for the State of Iowa. In the NPR, EPA proposed 
approval of Iowa's progress report SIP, a report on progress made in 
the first implementation period towards RPGs for Class I areas that are 
affected by emissions from Iowa sources. This progress report SIP and 
accompanying cover letter also included a determination that Iowa's 
existing regional haze SIP requires no

[[Page 53925]]

substantive revision to achieve the established regional haze 
visibility improvement and emissions reduction goals for 2018.
    On July 31, 2015, (80 FR 45631), EPA published a supplement to the 
NPR (SNPR) for the State of Iowa. In the SNPR, EPA addressed the 
potential effects on the NPR from the April 29, 2014, decision of the 
United States Supreme Court (Supreme Court) remanding to the United 
States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (D.C. 
Circuit) EPA's Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR) for further 
proceedings and the D.C. Circuit's decision to lift the stay of CSAPR. 
The supplemental notice provided clarity regarding how the court cases 
impacted Iowa's regional haze rule.
    States are required to submit a progress report in the form of a 
SIP revision every five years that evaluates progress towards the RPGs 
for each mandatory Class I Federal area within the state and in each 
mandatory Class I Federal area outside the state which may be affected 
by emissions from within the state. See 40 CFR 51.308(g). In addition, 
the provisions under 40 CFR 51.308(h) require states to submit, at the 
same time as the 40 CFR 51.308(g) progress report, a determination of 
the adequacy of the state's existing regional haze SIP. The first 
progress report SIP is due five years after submittal of the initial 
regional haze SIP. IDNR submitted its regional haze SIP on March 25, 
2008, and submitted its progress report SIP revision on July 19, 2013. 
EPA finds that it satisfies the requirements of 40 CFR 51.308(g) and 
(h). No comments regarding the NPR or SNPR were received during the 
public comment period.

II. Summary of SIP Revision

    On July 19, 2013, Iowa submitted a SIP revision describing the 
progress made toward the RPGs of Class I areas outside Iowa that are 
affected by emissions from Iowa's sources in accordance with 
requirements in the Regional Haze Rule.\1\ This progress report SIP 
also included an assessment of whether Iowa's existing regional haze 
SIP is sufficient to allow nearby states with Class I areas to achieve 
the reasonable progress goals by the end of the first planning period.
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    \1\ EPA promulgated a rule to address regional haze on July 1, 
1999 (64 FR 35713) known as the Regional Haze Rule. The Regional 
Haze Rule revised the existing visibility regulations to integrate 
into the regulation provisions addressing regional haze impairment 
and established a comprehensive visibility protection program for 
Class I areas. See 40 CFR 51.308 and 51.309.
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    The provisions in 40 CFR 51.308(g) require a progress report SIP to 
address seven elements. In the NPR, EPA proposed to approve the SIP as 
adequately addressing each element under 40 CFR 51.308(g). The seven 
elements and EPA's proposed conclusions in the NPR are briefly 
summarized below.
    The provisions in 40 CFR 51.308(g) require progress report SIPs to 
include a description of the status of measures in the regional haze 
implementation plan; a summary of the emissions reductions achieved; an 
assessment of the visibility conditions for each Class I area in the 
state; an analysis of the changes in emissions from sources and 
activities within the state; an assessment of any significant changes 
in anthropogenic emissions within or outside the state that have 
limited or impeded visibility improvement progress in Class I areas 
impacted by the state's sources; an assessment of the sufficiency of 
the regional haze implementation plan to enable states to meet 
reasonable progress goals; and a review of the state's visibility 
monitoring strategy. As explained in detail in the NPR and the SNPR, 
EPA proposed Iowa's progress report SIP addressed each element and 
therefore satisfied the requirements under 40 CFR 51.308(g).
    In addition, pursuant to 40 CFR 51.308(h), states are required to 
submit, at the same time as the progress report SIP revision, a 
determination of the adequacy of their existing regional haze SIP and 
to take one of four possible actions based on information in the 
progress report. In its progress report SIP, Iowa determined that its 
regional haze SIP is sufficient to meet its obligations related to the 
reasonable progress goals for Class I areas affected by Iowa's sources. 
The State accordingly provided EPA with a negative declaration that 
further revision of the existing regional haze implementation plan was 
not needed at this time. See 40 CFR 51.308(h)(1). As explained in 
detail in the NPR and the SNPR, EPA proposed to determine that Iowa had 
adequately addressed 40 CFR 51.308(h) because the visibility data 
trends at the Class I areas impacted by Iowa's sources and the 
emissions trends of the largest emitters in Iowa of visibility-
impairing pollutants both indicate that the reasonable progress goals 
for 2018 for these areas will be met or exceeded. Therefore, in our NPR 
and SNPR, EPA proposed to approve Iowa's progress report SIP as meeting 
the requirements of 40 CFR 51.308(g) and (h).

III. Final Action

    EPA is taking final action to approve Iowa's regional haze five-
year progress report and SIP revision, submitted July 19, 2013, as 
meeting the applicable regional haze requirements as set forth in 40 
CFR 51.308(g) and 51.308 (h).

IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    Under the Clean Air Act (CAA), the Administrator is required to 
approve a SIP submission that complies with the provisions of the Act 
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 Orders 12866 (58 
FR 51735, October 4, 1993) and 13563 (76 FR 3821, January 21, 2011);
     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 an economically significant regulatory action based 
on health or safety risks subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 
19885, April 23, 1997);
     Is not a significant regulatory action subject to 
Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001);
     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; and
     Does 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).

[[Page 53926]]

    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).
    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 October 14, 2016. 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, Carbon monoxide, 
Incorporation by reference, Intergovernmental relations, Lead, Nitrogen 
dioxide, Ozone, Particulate matter, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements, Sulfur oxides, Volatile organic compounds.

    Dated: July 20, 2016.
Mark Hague,
Regional Administrator, Region 7.

    For the reasons stated in the preamble, EPA amends 40 CFR part 52 
as set forth below:

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 Q--Iowa

0
2. In Sec.  52.820(e) the table is amended by adding and reserving 
entry (43), and by adding entry (44) in numerical order to read as 
follows:


Sec.  52.820  Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (e) * * *

                                   EPA-Approved Iowa Nonregulatory Provisions
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                                      Applicable
   Name of nonregulatory SIP         geographic or          State        EPA approval date       Explanation
           provision              nonattainment area   submittal date
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                                                  * * * * * * *
(43) Reserved]
(44) State Implementation Plan   Statewide...........         7/19/13  8/15/16, [Insert      [EPA-R07-OAR-2014-0
 (SIP) Revision for the                                                 Federal Register      365; FRL-9949-82-
 Attainment and Maintenance of                                          citation].            Region 7.
 National Ambient Air Quality
 Standards for Regional Haze
 (2013 Five-Year Progress
 Report).
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[FR Doc. 2016-19041 Filed 8-12-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P


