
[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 97 (Thursday, May 19, 2016)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 31511-31513]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-11626]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R10-OAR-2015-0353; FRL-9946-49-Region 10]


Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans; Alaska: 
Updates to Incorporation by Reference and Miscellaneous Revisions

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving, and 
incorporating by reference, State Implementation Plan revisions 
submitted by Alaska on May 12, 2015. The revisions updated the 
incorporation by reference of certain Federal provisions, revised rules 
to reflect changes to Federal permitting requirements and the 2013 
redesignation of the Mendenhall Valley area of Juneau, and made minor 
clarifications to Alaska air quality rules. We note that the May 12, 
2015 submission also included transportation conformity and 
infrastructure requirements. These requirements are not being addressed 
in this action. We approved the transportation conformity revisions in 
a previous action on September 8, 2015, and we intend to address the 
infrastructure requirements in a separate, future action.

DATES: This final rule is effective on June 20, 2016.

ADDRESSES: The EPA has established a docket for this action under 
Docket Identification No. EPA-R10-OAR-2015-0353. 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 the 
disclosure of which 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 EPA Region 10, Office of Air, 
Waste, and Toxics, AWT-150, 1200 Sixth Avenue, Seattle, Washington 
98101. The EPA requests that 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: Kristin Hall at (206) 553-6357, 
hall.kristin@epa.gov, or by using the above EPA, Region 10 address.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document wherever ``we,'' 
``us,'' or ``our'' is used, it is intended to refer to the EPA.

Table of Contents

I. Background
II. Final Action
III. Incorporation by Reference
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. Background

    On May 12, 2015, Alaska submitted revisions to the Alaska SIP. On 
March 4, 2016, the EPA proposed to approve specific revisions in the 
submission (81 FR 11497). Please see our proposed rulemaking for 
further explanation and the basis for our finding. The public comment 
period for the proposal ended on April 4, 2016. We received one 
comment, a letter from the Alaska

[[Page 31512]]

Department of Environmental Conservation dated May 9, 2016, 
acknowledging our work and supporting the proposal. We received no 
other comments.

II. Final Action

    The EPA is approving, and incorporating by reference into the 
Alaska SIP, changes to the following provisions, state effective April 
17, 2015:
     18 AAC 50.010 Ambient Air Quality Standards, except 
paragraphs (7) and (8);
     18 AAC 50.015 Air Quality Designations, Classifications, 
and Control Regions;
     18 AAC 50.020 Baseline Dates and Maximum Allowable 
Increases;
     18 AAC 50.035 Documents, Procedures and Methods Adopted by 
Reference, except paragraphs (a)(6) and (b)(4);
     18 AAC 50.040 Federal Standards Adopted by Reference, 
except (a), (b), (c), (d), (e), (g), (i), (j), and (k); and
     18 AAC 50.215 Ambient Air Quality Analysis Methods, except 
(a)(4).
    We note that we previously approved the submitted rule revisions 
related to transportation conformity at 18 AAC 50.700 through 18 AAC 
50.750, and 18 AAC 50.990 on September 8, 2015 (80 FR 53735). This 
action is being taken under section 110 and part C of title I of the 
CAA.

III. Incorporation by Reference

    In this rule, the EPA is finalizing regulatory text that includes 
incorporation by reference. In accordance with requirements of 1 CFR 
51.5, the EPA is finalizing the incorporation by reference of the 
Alaska regulations described in the amendments to 40 CFR part 52 set 
forth below. The EPA has made, and will continue to make, these 
documents generally available electronically through http://www.regulations.gov and/or in hard copy at the appropriate EPA office 
(see the ADDRESSES section of this preamble for more information).

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 CAA 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 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 this action does not involve technical standards; and
     does not provide the 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).
    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 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. The 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 July 18, 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, Incorporation by 
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Lead, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, 
Particulate matter, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Sulfur 
oxides, Volatile organic compounds.

    Authority:  42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.

    Dated: May 9, 2016.
Dennis J. McLerran,
Regional Administrator, Region 10.

    For the reasons set forth in the preamble, 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 C--Alaska

0
2. In Sec.  52.70, the table in paragraph (c) is amended by revising 
entries 18 AAC 50.010, 18 AAC 50.015, 18 AAC 50.020, 18 AAC 50.035, 18 
AAC 50.040, and 18 AAC 50.215.
    The revisions read as follows:


Sec.  52.70  Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (c) * * *

[[Page 31513]]



                                  EPA-Approved Alaska Regulations and Statutes
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                                                            State
         State citation              Title/subject     effective date    EPA approval date       Explanations
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   Alaska Administrative Code Title 18 Environmental Conservation, Chapter 50 Air Quality Control (18 AAC 50)
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                                                  * * * * * * *
18 AAC 50.010..................  Ambient Air Quality          4/17/15  5/19/16, [Insert      except (7) and (8).
                                  Standards.                            Federal Register
                                                                        citation].
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18 AAC 50.015..................  Air Quality                  4/17/15  5/19/16, [Insert      ...................
                                  Designations,                         Federal Register
                                  Classifications,                      citation].
                                  and Control Regions.
18 AAC 50.020..................  Baseline Dates and           4/17/15  5/19/16, [Insert      ...................
                                  Maximum Allowable                     Federal Register
                                  Increases.                            citation].
 
                                                  * * * * * * *
18 AAC 50.035..................  Documents,                   4/17/15  5/19/16, [Insert      except (a)(6) and
                                  Procedures and                        Federal Register      (b)(4).
                                  Methods Adopted by                    citation].
                                  Reference.
18 AAC 50.040..................  Federal Standards           4/17/15;  5/19/16, [Insert      except (a), (b),
                                  Adopted by                  11/9/14   Federal Register      (c), (d), (e),
                                  Reference.                            citation]; 1/7/15,    (g), (j), and (k).
                                                                        80 FR 832.
 
                                                  * * * * * * *
18 AAC 50.215..................  Ambient Air Quality          4/17/15  5/19/16, [Insert      except (a)(4).
                                  Analysis Methods.                     Federal Register
                                                                        citation].
 
                                                  * * * * * * *
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0
3. Section 52.96 is amended by revising paragraph (a) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  52.96  Significant deterioration of air quality.

    (a) The State of Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation 
Air Quality Control Regulations are approved as meeting the 
requirements of 40 CFR 51.166 and part C for preventing significant 
deterioration of air quality. The specific provisions approved are: 18 
AAC 50.010 except (7) and (8); 18 AAC 50.015; 18 AAC 50.020; 18 AAC 
50.035(a)(4), (a)(5), and (b)(1); 18 AAC 50.040(h); and 18 AAC 50.215 
except (a)(4) as in effect on April 17, 2015; 18 AAC 50.990 as in 
effect on November 9, 2014; 18 AAC 50.306 as in effect on January 4, 
2013; 18 AAC 50.345 except (b), (c)(3), and (l) as in effect on 
September 14, 2012; and 18 AAC 50.250 as in effect on October 1, 2004.
* * * * *

[FR Doc. 2016-11626 Filed 5-18-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P


