[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 106 (Friday, June 2, 2023)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 36249-36251]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-11683]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R09-OAR-2021-0923; FRL-9882-02-R9]


Air Plan Approval; California; Mojave Desert Air Quality 
Management District

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking final 
action to approve a revision to the Mojave Desert Air Quality 
Management District (MDAQMD or ``District'') portion of the California 
State Implementation Plan (SIP). This revision concerns emissions of 
oxides of nitrogen (NOX) from Portland cement kilns. We are 
approving a local rule that regulates these emission sources under the 
Clean Air Act (CAA or the Act). Approving this rule corrects a 
deficiency identified in MDAQMD's reasonably available control 
technology (RACT) demonstrations for the 1997 8-hour ozone National 
Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) and the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS.

DATES: This rule is effective July 3, 2023.

ADDRESSES: The EPA has established a docket for this action under 
Docket ID No. EPA-R09-OAR-2021-0923. All documents in the docket are 
listed on the https://www.regulations.gov website. Although listed in 
the index, some information is not publicly available, e.g., 
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 through https://www.regulations.gov, or please 
contact the person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT 
section for additional availability information. If you need assistance 
in a language other than English or if you are a person with a 
disability who needs a reasonable accommodation at no cost to you, 
please contact the person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT section.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Elijah Gordon, EPA Region IX, 75 
Hawthorne St., San Francisco, CA 94105. By phone: (415) 972-3158 or by 
email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, ``we,'' ``us'' and 
``our'' refer to the EPA.

Table of Contents

I. Proposed Action
II. Public Comments and EPA Responses
III. EPA Action
IV. Incorporation by Reference
V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. Proposed Action

    On July 15, 2022 (87 FR 42422), the EPA proposed to approve the 
following rule into the California SIP.

[[Page 36250]]



                                             Table 1--Submitted Rule
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
             Local agency                  Rule No.            Rule title             Amended        Submitted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MDAQMD................................            1161  Portland Cement Kilns...      01/22/2018      05/23/2018
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    As mentioned in our proposed action, submitted Rule 1161 meets the 
requirement to correct a deficiency identified in the EPA's February 
12, 2018 (83 FR 5921) partial conditional approval of MDAQMD's RACT 
demonstrations for the 1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS and the 2008 8-hour 
ozone NAAQS. The partial conditional approval was based, in part, on 
commitments from MDAQMD to revise and submit amendments to Rule 1161 
that would meet current RACT requirements. Revisions to Rule 1161, 
submitted to the EPA on May 23, 2018, addressed this deficiency by 
establishing a more stringent NOX limit for Portland cement 
kilns. These revisions fulfill the commitment made by MDAQMD and the 
California Air Resources Board, with respect to Rule 1161, necessary 
for the EPA to fully approve the rule. Our proposed action contains 
more information on the rule and our evaluation.

II. Public Comments and EPA Responses

    The EPA's proposed action provided a 30-day public comment period. 
During this period, we received no comments.

III. EPA Action

    No comments were submitted. Therefore, as authorized in section 
110(k)(3) of the Act, the EPA is fully approving this rule into the 
California SIP. The January 22, 2018 version of Rule 1161 will replace 
the previously approved version of this rule in the SIP. This action 
corrects the deficiency related to Rule 1161 that was previously 
identified in the EPA's action on MDAQMD's RACT demonstrations for the 
1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS and the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS.

IV. Incorporation by Reference

    In this rule, the EPA is finalizing regulatory text that includes 
incorporation by reference. In accordance with the requirements of 1 
CFR 51.5, the EPA is finalizing the incorporation by reference of 
MDAQMD Rule 1161, ``Portland Cement Kilns,'' amended on January 22, 
2018, which regulates NOX emissions from the operation of 
cement kilns. The EPA has made, and will continue to make, these 
documents available through www.regulations.gov and at the EPA Region 
IX Office (please contact the person identified in the FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT section of this preamble for more information).

V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    Under the Clean Air Act, 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, the EPA's role is to approve state 
choices, provided that they meet the criteria of the Clean Air Act. 
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); 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 Clean Air Act.
    In addition, the SIP is not approved to apply on any Indian 
reservation land or in any other area where the 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).
    Executive Order 12898 (Federal Actions to Address Environmental 
Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations, 59 FR 7629, 
Feb. 16, 1994) directs Federal agencies to identify and address 
``disproportionately high and adverse human health or environmental 
effects'' of their actions on minority populations and low-income 
populations to the greatest extent practicable and permitted by law. 
EPA defines environmental justice (EJ) as ``the fair treatment and 
meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, 
national origin, or income with respect to the development, 
implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and 
policies.'' EPA further defines the term fair treatment to mean that 
``no group of people should bear a disproportionate burden of 
environmental harms and risks, including those resulting from the 
negative environmental consequences of industrial, governmental, and 
commercial operations or programs and policies.''
    The State did not evaluate environmental justice considerations as 
part of its SIP submittal; the CAA and applicable implementing 
regulations neither prohibit nor require such an evaluation. EPA did 
not perform an EJ analysis and did not consider EJ in this action. Due 
to the nature of the action being taken here, this action is expected 
to have a neutral impact on the air quality of the affected area. 
Consideration of EJ is not required as part of this action, and there 
is no information in the record inconsistent with the stated goal of 
E.O. 12898 of achieving environmental justice for people of color, low-
income populations, and Indigenous peoples.
    This action is subject to the Congressional Review Act, and EPA 
will submit a rule report to each House of the Congress and to the 
Comptroller General of the United States. This action is not a ``major 
rule'' as defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2).
    Under section 307(b)(1) of the Clean Air Act, petitions for 
judicial review of

[[Page 36251]]

this action must be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for the 
appropriate circuit by August 1, 2023. 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 oxides, Ozone, 
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

    Dated: May 25, 2023.
Martha Guzman Aceves,
Regional Administrator, Region IX.

    For the reasons stated in the preamble, the Environmental 
Protection Agency amends Part 52, chapter I, title 40 of the Code of 
Federal Regulations 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 F--California

0
2. Section 52.220 is amended by adding paragraphs (c)(300)(i)(A)(2) and 
(c)(518)(i)(A)(9) to read as follows:


Sec.  52.220  Identification of plan--in part.

* * * * *
    (c) * * *
    (300) * * *
    (i) * * *
    (A) * * *
    (2) Previously approved on February 27, 2003 in paragraph 
(c)(300)(i)(A)(1) of this section and now deleted with replacement in 
paragraph (c)(518)(i)(A)(9): Rule 1161, amended on March 25, 2002.
* * * * *
    (518) * * *
    (i) * * *
    (A) * * *
    (9) Rule 1161, ``Portland Cement Kilns,'' amended on January 22, 
2018.
* * * * *


Sec.  52.248  [Amended]

0
3. Section 52.248 is amended by removing and reserving paragraph 
(d)(1)(ix).

[FR Doc. 2023-11683 Filed 6-1-23; 8:45 am]
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