[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 186 (Monday, September 26, 2011)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 59345-59361]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-24644]
[[Page 59345]]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Parts 52 and 81
[EPA-R04-OAR-2009-1011-201066; FRL-9464-3]
Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans and Designation
of Areas for Air Quality Planning Purposes; North Carolina:
Redesignation of the Greensboro-Winston-Salem-High Point 1997 Annual
Fine Particulate Matter Nonattainment Area to Attainment
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Proposed rule.
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SUMMARY: EPA is proposing to approve SIP revisions submitted on
December 18, 2009, and December 22, 2010 (supplemental submission) by
the State of North Carolina, through the North Carolina Department of
Environment and Natural Resources (NC DENR), Division of Air Quality
(DAQ), to support North Carolina's request to redesignate the
Greensboro-Winston-Salem-High Point fine particulate matter
(PM2.5) nonattainment area (hereafter the ``Greensboro
Area'' or ``Area'') to attainment for the 1997 Annual PM2.5
National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). The Greensboro Area is
comprised of Davidson and Guilford Counties in their entireties. EPA is
now proposing four separate but related actions. First, EPA is
proposing to approve the December 18, 2009, PM2.5
redesignation request, including the December 22, 2010, Motor Vehicle
Emission Simulator (MOVES) mobile model supplement for the Greensboro
Area, provided that EPA takes final action to approve specific
provisions of the North Carolina Clean Smokestacks Act (NCCSA). Second,
EPA is proposing to approve North Carolina's 2008 emissions inventory
for the Greensboro Area under section 172(c)(3) of the Clean Air Act
(CAA or Act). Third, subject to the same proviso regarding the NCCSA
and final approval of the 2008 emissions inventory, EPA is proposing to
approve the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS maintenance plan for the
Greensboro Area, including the 2008 baseline emissions inventory, and
the motor vehicle emission budgets (MVEBs) for PM2.5 and
nitrogen oxides (NOX) for the years 2011 and 2021 for the
Greensboro Area. EPA is also describing the status of its
transportation conformity adequacy determination for the new 2011 and
2021 MVEBs for PM2.5 and NOX that are contained
in the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS maintenance plan for the
Greensboro Area. Fourth and separate from the action to redesignate the
Area, EPA is proposing to determine that the Greensboro Area has
attained the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS by its applicable
attainment date of April 5, 2010. These proposed actions are being
taken pursuant to the CAA and its implementing regulations.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before October 26, 2011.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R04-
OAR-2009-1011, by one of the following methods:
1. http://www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line instructions for
submitting comments.
2. E-mail: [email protected].
3. Fax: (404) 562-9019.
4. Mail: EPA-R04-OAR-2009-1011, Regulatory Development Section, Air
Planning Branch, Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management Division, U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street, SW.,
Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960.
5. Hand Delivery or Courier: Ms. Lynorae Benjamin, Chief,
Regulatory Development Section, Air Planning Branch, Air, Pesticides
and Toxics Management Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,
Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street, SW., Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. Such
deliveries are only accepted during the Regional Office's normal hours
of operation. The Regional Office's official hours of business are
Monday through Friday, 8:30 to 4:30, excluding Federal holidays.
Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-R04-OAR-
2009-1011. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included
in the public docket without change and may be made available online at
http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information
provided, unless the comment includes information claimed to be
Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose
disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit through http://www.regulations.gov or e-mail, information that you consider to be CBI
or otherwise protected. The http://www.regulations.gov Web site is an
``anonymous access'' system, which means EPA will not know your
identity or contact information unless you provide it in the body of
your comment. If you send an e-mail comment directly to EPA without
going through http://www.regulations.gov, your e-mail address will be
automatically captured and included as part of the comment that is
placed in the public docket and made available on the Internet. If you
submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you include your name
and other contact information in the body of your comment and with any
disk or CD-ROM you submit. 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. Electronic files should avoid
the use of special characters, any form of encryption, and be free of
any defects or viruses. For additional information about EPA's public
docket visit the EPA Docket Center homepage at http://www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm.
Docket: All documents in the electronic docket are listed in the
http://www.regulations.gov index. 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 in http://www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the Regulatory Development
Section, Air Planning Branch, Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management
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 to 4:30,
excluding Federal holidays.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joel Huey, Regulatory Development
Section, Air Planning Branch, Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management
Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth
Street, SW., Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. Joel Huey may be reached by
phone at (404) 562-9104 or via electronic mail at [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Table of Contents
I. What are the actions EPA is proposing to take?
II. What is the background for EPA's proposed actions?
III. What are the criteria for redesignation?
IV. Why is EPA proposing these actions?
V. What is the effect of EPA's proposed actions?
VI. What is EPA's analysis of the request?
[[Page 59346]]
VII. What is EPA's analysis of North Carolina's proposed
PM2.5 and NOX MVEBs for the Greensboro area?
VIII. What is the status of EPA's adequacy determination for the
proposed PM2.5 and NOX MVEBs for 2011 and 2021
for the Greensboro area?
IX. What is EPA's analysis of the proposed 2008 base year emissions
inventory for the Greensboro area?
X. Proposed Action on the Redesignation Request and Maintenance Plan
SIP Revision Including Proposed Approval of the 2011 and 2021
PM2.5 and NOX MVEBs for the Greensboro Area
XI. Proposed Action on the Determination That the Greensboro Area
Has Attained the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS by Its Applicable
Attainment Date
XII. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
I. What are the actions EPA is proposing to take?
EPA is proposing to take the following four separate but related
actions, some of which involve multiple elements: (1) To redesignate
the Greensboro Area to attainment for the 1997 Annual PM2.5
NAAQS, provided EPA approves the emissions inventory submitted with the
maintenance plan as well as the NCCSA which is the subject of separate
Federal rulemaking action; (2) to approve, under section 172(c)(3) of
the CAA, the emissions inventory submitted with the maintenance plan;
(3) to approve into the North Carolina SIP, under section 175A of the
CAA, Greensboro's 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS maintenance plan,
including the associated MVEBs (EPA is also notifying the public of the
status of EPA's adequacy determination for the Greensboro Area MVEBs);
and (4) to determine, pursuant to section 179(c) of the CAA, that the
Greensboro Area attained the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS by its
attainment date of April 5, 2010. On January 4, 2010, at 75 FR 54, EPA
determined that the Greensboro Area was attaining the 1997
PM2.5 NAAQS. EPA is now proposing to determine that the Area
is continuing to attain the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS and to take
several additional related actions regarding the Area, which are
summarized below and described in greater detail throughout this notice
of proposed rulemaking.
First, EPA proposes to determine that, if EPA's proposed approvals
of the 2008 baseline emissions inventory for the Greensboro Area and
the NCCSA Federal rulemaking action are finalized, the Area has met the
requirements for redesignation under section 107(d)(3)(E) of the CAA.
In this action, EPA is proposing to approve a request to change the
legal designation of Davidson and Guilford Counties in the Greensboro
Area from nonattainment to attainment for the 1997 Annual
PM2.5 NAAQS. The emissions inventory is being proposed for
approval today, and the NCCSA rules were proposed for approval in a
separate action on June 22, 2011 (76 FR 36468).
Second, EPA is proposing to approve North Carolina's 2008 emissions
inventory for the Greensboro Area (under CAA section 172(c)(3)). North
Carolina selected 2008 as the attainment emissions inventory year for
the Greensboro Area. This attainment inventory identifies a level of
emissions in the Area that is sufficient to attain the 1997 Annual
PM2.5 NAAQS and is a current, comprehensive inventory that
meets the requirements of section 172(c)(3).
Third, subject to EPA's final approval of the NCCSA into the SIP,
EPA is proposing to approve North Carolina's 1997 Annual
PM2.5 NAAQS maintenance plan for the Greensboro Area as
meeting the requirements of CAA section 175A (such approval being one
of the CAA criteria for redesignation to attainment status). The
maintenance plan is designed to help keep the Greensboro Area in
attainment of the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS through 2021.
Consistent with the CAA, the maintenance plan that EPA is proposing to
approve today also includes PM2.5 and NOX MVEBs
for the years 2011 and 2021. EPA is proposing to approve into the North
Carolina SIP the 2011 and 2021 MVEBs that are included as part of North
Carolina's maintenance plan for the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS.
On a related matter to this third action, EPA is also notifying the
public of the status of EPA's adequacy process (Adequacy) for the
newly-established PM2.5 and NOX MVEBs for 2011
and 2021 for the Greensboro Area. The Adequacy comment period for the
Greensboro Area 2011 and 2021 MVEBs began on November 23, 2010, with
EPA's posting of the availability of this submittal on EPA's Adequacy
Web site (http://www.epa.gov/otaq/stateresources/transconf/currsips.htm). The Adequacy comment period for these MVEBs closed on
December 23, 2010, and EPA received no adverse comments. Please see
section VIII of this proposed rulemaking for further explanation of
this process and for more details on the MVEBs determination.
Fourth and separate from the action to redesignate the Area, EPA is
proposing to determine, based on quality-assured and certified
monitoring data for the 2007-2009 monitoring period, that the
Greensboro Area has attained the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS by
its applicable attainment date of April 5, 2010.
Today's notice of proposed rulemaking is in response to North
Carolina's December 18, 2009, SIP submittal and subsequent supplement
of December 22, 2010. Those documents address the specific issues
summarized above and the necessary elements described in section
107(d)(3)(E) of the CAA for redesignation of the Greensboro Area to
attainment for the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS.
II. What is the background for EPA's proposed actions?
Fine particle pollution can be emitted directly or formed
secondarily in the atmosphere. The main precursors of PM2.5
are sulfur dioxide (SO2), NOX, ammonia and
volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Unless otherwise noted by the State
or EPA, ammonia and VOCs are presumed to be insignificant contributors
to PM2.5 formation, whereas SO2 and
NOX are presumed to be significant contributors to
PM2.5 formation. Sulfates are a type of secondary particle
formed from SO2 emissions of power plants and industrial
facilities. Nitrates, another common type of secondary particle, are
formed from NOX emissions of power plants, automobiles, and
other combustion sources.
On July 18, 1997, EPA promulgated the first air quality standards
for PM2.5. EPA promulgated an annual standard at a level of
15 micrograms per cubic meter ([mu]g/m\3\), based on a three-year
average of annual mean PM2.5 concentrations. In the same
rulemaking, EPA promulgated a 24-hour standard of 65 [mu]g/m\3\, based
on a three-year average of the 98th percentile of 24-hour
concentrations. On October 17, 2006, at 71 FR 61144, EPA retained the
annual average NAAQS at 15 [mu]g/m\3\ but revised the 24-hour NAAQS to
35 [mu]g/m\3\, based again on the three-year average of the 98th
percentile of 24-hour concentrations.\1\ Under EPA regulations at 40
CFR part 50, the primary and secondary 1997 Annual PM2.5
NAAQS are attained when the annual arithmetic mean concentration, as
determined in accordance with 40 CFR part 50, Appendix N, is less than
or equal to 15.0 [micro]g/m\3\ at all relevant monitoring sites in the
subject area over a 3-year period.
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\1\ In response to legal challenges of the annual standard
promulgated in 2006, the United States Court of Appeals for the
District of Columbia Circuit (D.C. Circuit) remanded this NAAQS to
EPA for further consideration. See American Farm Bureau Federation
and National Pork Producers Council, et al. v. EPA, 559 F.3d 512
(D.C. Cir. 2009). However, given that the 1997 and 2006 annual NAAQS
are essentially identical, attainment of the 1997 Annual NAAQS would
also indicate attainment of the remanded 2006 Annual NAAQS.
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On January 5, 2005, at 70 FR 944, and as supplemented on April 14,
2005, at 70 FR 19844, EPA designated the Greensboro Area as
nonattainment for
[[Page 59347]]
the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS. In that action, EPA defined the
Greensboro Area to include Davidson and Guilford Counties in their
entireties. On November 13, 2009, at 74 FR 58688, EPA promulgated
designations for the 24-hour standard established in 2006, designating
the Greensboro Area as attaining this NAAQS. That action clarified that
the Greensboro Area was also attaining the 24-hour NAAQS promulgated in
1997. EPA did not promulgate designations for the annual average NAAQS
promulgated in 2006 since the NAAQS was essentially identical to the
annual NAAQS promulgated in 1997. Therefore, the Greensboro Area is
designated nonattainment only for the annual PM2.5 NAAQS
promulgated in 1997, and today's action only addresses this
designation.
All 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS areas were designated under subpart
1 of title I, part D, of the CAA. Subpart 1 contains the general
requirements for nonattainment areas for any pollutant governed by a
NAAQS and is less prescriptive than the other subparts of title I, part
D. On April 25, 2007, at 72 FR 20664, EPA promulgated its
PM2.5 Implementation Rule, codified at 40 CFR part 51,
subpart Z, in which the Agency provided guidance for state and tribal
plans to implement the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS. This rule, at 40
CFR 51.1004(c), specifies some of the regulatory consequences of
attaining the NAAQS, as discussed below.
On May 12, 2005, EPA published the Clean Air Interstate Rule
(CAIR), which addressed the interstate transport requirements of the
CAA and required states to significantly reduce SO2 and
NOX emissions from power plants (70 FR 25162). The
associated Federal Implementation Plans (FIPs) were published on April
28, 2006 (71 FR 25328). However, on July 11, 2008, the D.C. Circuit
issued its decision to vacate and remand both CAIR and the associated
CAIR FIPs in their entirety. North Carolina v. EPA, 531 F.3d 836 (D.C.
Cir., 2008). EPA petitioned for rehearing, and the Court issued an
order remanding CAIR to EPA without vacating either CAIR or the CAIR
FIPs. North Carolina v. EPA, 550 F.3d 1176 (D.C. Cir., 2008). The Court
left CAIR in place to ``temporarily preserve the environmental values
covered by CAIR'' until EPA replaces it with a rule consistent with the
Court's opinion. Id. at 1178. The Court directed EPA to ``remedy CAIR's
flaws'' consistent with its July 11, 2008, opinion but declined to
impose a schedule on EPA for completing that action. Id. As a result of
these court rulings, the power plant emission reductions that resulted
solely from the development, promulgation, and implementation of CAIR,
and the associated contribution to air quality improvement that
occurred solely as a result of CAIR in the Greensboro Area could not be
considered to be permanent.
On August 8, 2011, EPA published the Cross State Air Pollution Rule
(CSAPR) in the Federal Register under the title, ``Federal
Implementation Plans to Reduce Interstate Transport of Fine Particulate
Matter and Ozone in 27 States; Correction of SIP Approvals for 22
States'' (the ``Cross-State Air Pollution Rule'' (CSAPR)) (76 FR 48208,
August 8, 2011) to address interstate transport of emissions and
resulting secondary air pollutants and to replace CAIR. The CAIR
emission reduction requirements limit emissions in North Carolina and
states upwind of North Carolina through 2011 and the CSAPR requires
similar or greater reductions in the relevant areas in 2012 and beyond.
The emission reductions that the CSAPR mandates may be considered to be
permanent and enforceable. In turn, the air quality improvement in the
Greensboro Area that has resulted from EGU emission reductions
associated with CAIR (as well as the substantial further air quality
improvement that would be expected to result from full implementation
of the CSAPR) may also be considered to be permanent and enforceable.
EPA proposes that the requirement in section 107(d)(3)(E)(iii) has now
been met because the emission reduction requirements of CAIR address
emissions through 2011 and EPA has now promulgated CSAPR which requires
similar or greater reductions in the relevant areas in 2012 and beyond.
Because the emission reduction requirements of CAIR are enforceable
through the 2011 control period, and because CSAPR has now been
promulgated to address the requirements previously addressed by CAIR
and gets similar or greater reductions in the relevant areas in 2012
and beyond, EPA is proposing to determine that the emission reductions
that led to attainment in the Greensboro nonattainment area can now be
considered permanent and enforceable. Therefore, EPA proposes to find
that the transport requirement of CAA section 107(d)(3)(E)(iii) has
been met for the Greensboro Area.
The 3-year ambient air quality data for 2006-2008 indicated no
violations of the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS for the Greensboro Area.
As a result, on December 18, 2009, and as supplemented on December 22,
2010, North Carolina requested redesignation of the Greensboro Area to
attainment for the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS. The
redesignation request included three years of complete, quality-assured
ambient air quality data for the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS for
2006-2008, indicating that the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS had
been achieved for the Greensboro Area. Under the CAA, nonattainment
areas may be redesignated to attainment if sufficient, complete,
quality-assured data is available for the Administrator to determine
that the area has attained the standard and the area meets the other
CAA redesignation requirements in section 107(d)(3)(E). From 2005
through the present, the monitored annual average PM2.5
values for the Greensboro Area have declined such that the Area is
attaining the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS. On January 4, 2010,
EPA determined that the Greensboro Area had attained the 1997 Annual
PM2.5 NAAQS (75 FR 54). While annual PM2.5
concentrations are dependent on a variety of conditions, the overall
downtrend in annual PM2.5 concentrations in the Greensboro
Area can be attributed to the reduction of SO2 emissions, as
will be discussed in more detail in section VI of this proposed
rulemaking. EPA is now proposing to find that the Greensboro Area
continues to attain the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS.
III. What are the criteria for redesignation?
The CAA provides the requirements for redesignating a nonattainment
area to attainment. Specifically, section 107(d)(3)(E) of the CAA
allows for redesignation provided the following criteria are met: (1)
The Administrator determines that the area has attained the applicable
NAAQS; (2) the Administrator has fully approved the applicable
implementation plan for the area under section 110(k); (3) the
Administrator determines that the improvement in air quality is due to
permanent and enforceable reductions in emissions resulting from
implementation of the applicable SIP and applicable Federal air
pollutant control regulations and other permanent and enforceable
reductions; (4) the Administrator has fully approved a maintenance plan
for the area as meeting the requirements of section 175A; and (5) the
state containing such area has met all requirements applicable to the
area under section 110 and part D of title I of the CAA.
EPA has provided guidance on redesignation in the General Preamble
for the Implementation of title I of the CAA Amendments of 1990 (April
16, 1992, 57 FR 13498, and supplemented
[[Page 59348]]
on April 28, 1992, 57 FR 18070) and has provided further guidance on
processing redesignation requests in the following documents:
1. ``Procedures for Processing Requests to Redesignate Areas to
Attainment,'' Memorandum from John Calcagni, Director, Air Quality
Management Division, September 4, 1992 (hereafter referred to as the
``Calcagni Memorandum'')
2. ``State Implementation Plan (SIP) Actions Submitted in Response
to Clean Air Act (CAA) Deadlines,'' Memorandum from John Calcagni,
Director, Air Quality Management Division, October 28, 1992; and
3. ``Part D New Source Review (Part D NSR) Requirements for Areas
Requesting Redesignation to Attainment,'' Memorandum from Mary D.
Nichols, Assistant Administrator for Air and Radiation, October 14,
1994.
IV. Why is EPA proposing these actions?
On December 18, 2009, and as supplemented on December 22, 2010, the
State of North Carolina, through DAQ, requested redesignation of the
Greensboro Area to attainment for the 1997 Annual PM2.5
NAAQS. EPA's evaluation indicates that the Greensboro Area has attained
the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS. If EPA finalizes approval of
the emissions inventory and the NCCSA rulemaking, the Area will meet
the requirements for redesignation set forth in section 107(d)(3)(E),
including the maintenance plan requirements under section 175A of the
CAA. As a result, EPA is proposing to take the first three related
actions previously summarized. The fourth action, to determine that the
Area has attained the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS by its
attainment date, is being proposed in accordance with section 179(c)(1)
of the CAA based upon EPA's review of the data for 2007-2009. Section
179(c)(1) reads as follows: ``As expeditiously as practicable after the
applicable attainment date for any nonattainment area, but not later
than 6 months after such date, the Administrator shall determine, based
on the area's air quality as of the attainment date, whether the area
attained the standard by that date.'' EPA proposes to determine that
the Area attained the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS by its
applicable attainment date of April 5, 2010.
V. What is the effect of EPA's proposed actions?
EPA's proposed actions establish the basis upon which EPA may take
final action on the North Carolina submittal being proposed for
approval today. Approval of North Carolina's redesignation request
would change the legal designation of Davidson and Guilford Counties in
North Carolina for the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS, found at 40
CFR part 81, from nonattainment to attainment. Approval of North
Carolina's request would also incorporate into the North Carolina SIP a
plan for maintaining the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS in the
Greensboro Area through 2021. The maintenance plan includes, among
other components, contingency measures to remedy potential future
violations of the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS. Approval of North
Carolina's maintenance plan would also result in approval of the
NOX MVEBs. The PM2.5 MVEBs for the Greensboro
Area are 153,313 kilograms/year (kg/yr) for both 2011 and 2021. The
NOX MVEBs for 2011 and 2021 for Davidson County are
4,086,413 kg/yr and 2,148,938 kg/yr, respectively. The PM2.5
MVEBs for Guilford County are 421,841 kg/yr for both 2011 and 2021. The
NOX MVEBs for 2011 and 2021 for Guilford County are
11,133,605 kg/yr and 6,309,650 kg/yr, respectively. Final action would
also approve the Area's emissions inventory under section 172(c)(3).
Additionally, EPA is notifying the public of the status of its adequacy
determination for the PM2.5 and NOX MVEBs for
2011 and 2021.
VI. What is EPA's analysis of the request?
As stated above, in accordance with the CAA, EPA proposes in
today's action to: (1) Redesignate the Greensboro Area to attainment
for the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS; (2) approve the Greensboro
Area emissions inventory submitted with the maintenance plan; (3)
approve into the North Carolina SIP Greensboro's 1997 Annual
PM2.5 NAAQS maintenance plan, including the associated
MVEBs; and (4) determine that the Greensboro Area attained the 1997
PM2.5 NAAQS by its attainment date of April 5, 2010. The
first three of these actions are based upon EPA's determination that
the Greensboro Area continues to attain the 1997 Annual
PM2.5 NAAQS and that all other redesignation criteria have
been met for the Greensboro Area, provided EPA approves the emissions
inventory submitted with the maintenance plan and the NCCSA rulemaking.
The five redesignation criteria provided under CAA section 107(d)(3)(E)
are discussed in greater detail for the Area in the following
paragraphs of this section. The fourth action, EPA's proposed
determination that the Greensboro Area attained the 1997
PM2.5 NAAQS by its attainment date of April 5, 2010, is
discussed in section XI.
Criteria (1)--The Greensboro Area has Attained the 1997 Annual PM2.5
NAAQS
For redesignating a nonattainment area to attainment, the CAA
requires EPA to determine that the area has attained the applicable
NAAQS (CAA section 107(d)(3)(E)(i)). EPA is proposing to determine that
the Greensboro Area continues to attain the 1997 Annual
PM2.5 NAAQS. For PM2.5, an area may be considered
to be attaining the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS if it meets the
1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS, as determined in accordance with 40
CFR 50.7 and Appendix N of part 50, based on three complete,
consecutive calendar years of quality-assured air quality monitoring
data. To attain these NAAQS, the 3-year average of the annual
arithmetic mean concentration, as determined in accordance with 40 CFR
part 50, Appendix N, is less than or equal to 15.0 [micro]g/m\3\ at all
relevant monitoring sites in the subject area over a 3-year period. The
relevant data must be collected and quality-assured in accordance with
40 CFR part 58 and recorded in the EPA Air Quality System (AQS). The
monitors generally should have remained at the same location for the
duration of the monitoring period required for demonstrating
attainment.
On January 4, 2010, at 75 FR 54, EPA determined that the Greensboro
Area was attaining the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS. EPA reviewed
PM2.5 monitoring data from monitoring sites in the
Greensboro Area for the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS for 2006-
2009. These data have been quality-assured and are recorded in AQS. The
annual arithmetic mean PM2.5 concentrations for 2006-2009
and the 3-year averages of these values (i.e., design values) are
summarized in Table 1.\2\ EPA has reviewed more recent data which
indicate that the Greensboro Area continues to attain the 1997
PM2.5 NAAQS. The design values for 2007-2009 and 2008-2010
are also included in Table 1 and demonstrate that the Greensboro Area
continues to meet the PM2.5 NAAQS and that the ambient
[[Page 59349]]
concentrations of PM2.5 are continuing to decrease in the
Area.
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\2\ The values in Table 1 represent the most current quality
assured, quality controlled and certified ambient air monitoring
data available in the EPA AQS database and, therefore differ
slightly from the values submitted in the North Carolina
redesignation request. The Colfax monitor was added in 2007 and thus
does not have the three years of data required for calculating a
design value.
Table 1--Design Value Concentrations for the Greensboro 1997 Annual PM2.5 Nonattainment Area ([mu]g/m\3\)
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Annual average PM2.5 concentrations ([mu]g/m\3\)
County Site name Monitor ID ----------------------------------------------------------------
2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 \3\
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Davidson................................. Lexington................... 37-057-0002 15.13 14.64 13.61 10.61 12.1
Guilford................................. Mendenhall.................. 37-081-0013 14.5 13.14 11.41 9.31 10.4
Guilford................................. Colfax...................... 37-035-0014 N/A N/A 12.32 9.63 10.5
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Three-year PM2.5 design values ([mu]g/m\3\)
-----------------------------------------------
2006-2008 2007-2009 2008-2010 \3\
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Davidson...................... Lexington....... 37-057-0002 14.5 13.0 12.1
Guilford...................... Mendenhall...... 37-081-0013 13.0 11.3 10.4
Guilford...................... Colfax.......... 37-035-0014 N/A N/A 10.8
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The 3-year design value (2006-2008) submitted by North Carolina for
redesignation of the Greensboro Area is 14.5 [mu]g/m\3\, which meets
the NAAQS as described above. Preliminary 2010 air quality data that
are available in AQS, but not yet certified, indicate that the Area
continues to attain the PM2.5 NAAQS. As mentioned above, on
January 4, 2010, (75 FR 54) EPA published a clean data determination
for the Greensboro Area for the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS. In today's
action, EPA is proposing to determine that the Area is continuing to
attain the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS. EPA will not go forward with
the redesignation if the Area does not continue to attain until the
time that EPA finalizes the redesignation. As discussed in more detail
below, the State of North Carolina has committed to continue monitoring
in the Area in accordance with 40 CFR part 58.
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\3\ The preliminary PM2.5 ambient air quality data
for 2010 for the Greensboro Area indicates that the Area is
attaining the NAAQS with 2008-2010 design values. This preliminary
data includes complete data from all quarters of 2010 but has not
yet been certified and is thus subject to change.
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Criteria (5)--North Carolina Has Met All Applicable Requirements Under
Section 110 and Part D of Title I of the CAA; and Criteria (2)--North
Carolina Has a Fully Approved SIP Under Section 110(k) for the
Greensboro Area
For redesignating a nonattainment area to attainment, the CAA
requires EPA to determine that the state has met all applicable
requirements under Section 110 and part D of title I of the CAA (CAA
section 107(d)(3)(E)(v)) and that the state has a fully approved SIP
under section 110(k) for the area (CAA section 107(d)(3)(E)(ii)). EPA
proposes to find that North Carolina has met all applicable SIP
requirements for the Greensboro Area under section 110 of the CAA
(general SIP requirements) for purposes of redesignation. EPA also
proposes to find that the North Carolina SIP satisfies the criterion
that it meet applicable SIP requirements for purposes of redesignation
under part D of title I of the CAA (requirements specific to 1997
Annual PM2.5 nonattainment areas). Further, EPA proposes to
determine that the SIP is fully approved with respect to all
requirements applicable under section 110(k). In making these
determinations, EPA ascertained which requirements are applicable to
the Area and, if applicable, that they are fully approved under the
CAA. For the purposes of review of the State's redesignation request,
the SIP needs only to be fully approved with respect to requirements
that were applicable prior to submittal of the complete redesignation
request.
a. Greensboro Area Has Met All Applicable Requirements Under Section
110 and Part D of Title I of the CAA
General SIP requirements. Section 110(a)(2) of title I of the CAA
delineates the general requirements for a SIP, which include
enforceable emissions limitations and other control measures, means, or
techniques; provisions for the establishment and operation of
appropriate devices necessary to collect data on ambient air quality;
and programs to enforce the limitations. General SIP elements and
requirements are delineated in section 110(a)(2) of title I, part A of
the CAA. These requirements include, but are not limited to, the
following: Submittal of a SIP that has been adopted by the state after
reasonable public notice and hearing; provisions for establishment and
operation of appropriate procedures needed to monitor ambient air
quality; implementation of a source permit program; provisions for the
implementation of part C requirements (Prevention of Significant
Deterioration (PSD)) and provisions for the implementation of part D
requirements (New Source Review (NSR) permit programs); provisions for
air pollution modeling; and provisions for public and local agency
participation in planning and emission control rule development.
Section 110(a)(2)(D) requires that SIPs contain certain measures to
prevent sources in a state from significantly contributing to air
quality problems in another state. To implement this provision, EPA has
required certain states to establish programs to address the interstate
transport of air pollutants (e.g., NOX SIP Call,\4\ CAIR,\5\
and the CSAPR). The section 110(a)(2)(D) requirements for a state are
not linked with a particular nonattainment area's designation and
classification in that state. EPA believes that the
[[Page 59350]]
requirements linked with a particular nonattainment area's designation
and classifications are the relevant measures to evaluate in reviewing
a redesignation request. The transport SIP submittal requirements,
where applicable, continue to apply to a state regardless of the
designation of any one particular area in the state. Thus, EPA does not
believe that the CAA's interstate transport requirements should be
construed to be applicable requirements for purposes of redesignation.
However, as discussed later in this notice, addressing pollutant
transport from other states is an important part of an area's
maintenance demonstration.
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\4\ On October 27, 1998 (63 FR 57356), EPA issued a
NOX SIP Call requiring the District of Columbia and 22
states to reduce emissions of NOX in order to reduce the
transport of ozone and ozone precursors. In compliance with EPA's
NOX SIP Call, North Carolina developed rules governing
the control of NOX emissions from Electric Generating
Units (EGUs), major non-EGU industrial boilers, major cement kilns,
and internal combustion engines. On December 27, 2002, EPA approved
North Carolina's rules as fulfilling Phase I (67 FR 78987).
\5\ On May 12, 2005 (70 FR 25162), EPA promulgated CAIR which
required 28 upwind States and the District of Columbia to revise
their SIPs to include control measures that would reduce emissions
of SO2 and NOX. Various aspects of CAIR rule
were petitioned in court and on December 23, 2008, the U.S. Court of
Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit remanded CAIR to EPA
(see North Carolina v. EPA, 550 F.3d 1176 (D.C. Cir., December 23,
2008)) which left CAIR in place to ``temporarily preserve the
environmental values covered by CAIR'' until EPA replaces it with a
rule consistent with the Court's ruling. The Court directed EPA to
remedy various areas of the rule that were petitioned consistent
with its July 11, 2008 (see North Carolina v. EPA, 531 F.3d 836
(D.C. Cir., July 11, 2008)), opinion, but declined to impose a
schedule on EPA for completing that action. Id. Therefore, CAIR is
currently in effect in North Carolina.
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In addition, EPA believes other section 110 elements that are
neither connected with nonattainment plan submissions nor linked with
an area's attainment status are not applicable requirements for
purposes of redesignation. The area will still be subject to these
requirements after the area is redesignated. The section 110 and part D
requirements that are linked with a particular area's designation and
classification are the relevant measures to evaluate in reviewing a
redesignation request. This approach is consistent with EPA's existing
policy on applicability (i.e., for redesignations) of conformity and
oxygenated fuels requirements, as well as with section 184 ozone
transport requirements. See Reading, Pennsylvania, proposed and final
rulemakings (61 FR 53174-53176, October 10, 1996), (62 FR 24826, May 7,
1997); Cleveland-Akron-Loraine, Ohio, final rulemaking (61 FR 20458,
May 7, 1996); and Tampa, Florida, final rulemaking at (60 FR 62748,
December 7, 1995). See also the discussion on this issue in the
Cincinnati, Ohio, redesignation (65 FR 37890, June 19, 2000), and in
the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, redesignation (66 FR 50399, October 19,
2001).
EPA has not yet completed rulemaking on a submittal from North
Carolina dated April 1, 2008, addressing ``infrastructure SIP''
elements required under CAA section 110(a)(2). However, these are
statewide requirements that are not a consequence of the nonattainment
status of the Greensboro Area. As stated above, EPA believes that
section 110 elements not linked to an area's nonattainment status are
not applicable for purposes of redesignation. Therefore,
notwithstanding the fact that EPA has not yet completed rulemaking on
North Carolina's submittal for the PM2.5 infrastructure SIP
elements of section 110(a)(2), EPA believes it has approved all SIP
elements under section 110 that must be approved as a prerequisite for
redesignating the Greensboro Area to attainment.
Title I, Part D requirements. EPA proposes that with approval of
North Carolina's base year emissions inventory, which is part of the
maintenance plan submittal, the North Carolina SIP will meet applicable
SIP requirements under part D of title I of the CAA. As discussed in
greater detail below, EPA believes the emissions inventory is
approvable because the 2008 direct PM2.5, SO2,
and NOX emissions for North Carolina were developed
consistent with EPA guidance for emissions inventories and represent a
comprehensive, accurate and current inventory as required by section
172(c)(3).
Part D, subpart 1 applicable SIP requirements. EPA has determined
that if the approval of the base year emissions inventories, discussed
in section IX of this rulemaking, is finalized, the North Carolina SIP
will meet the applicable SIP requirements for the Greensboro Area for
purposes of redesignation under title I, part D of the CAA. Subpart 1
of part D sets forth the basic nonattainment requirements applicable to
all nonattainment areas. All areas that were designated nonattainment
for the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS were designated under this
subpart of the CAA and the requirements applicable to them are
contained in sections 172 and 176.
For purposes of evaluating this redesignation request, the
applicable part D, subpart 1 SIP requirements for all nonattainment
areas are contained in sections 172(c)(1)-(9) and in section 176. A
thorough discussion of the requirements contained in section 172 can be
found in the General Preamble for Implementation of title I (57 FR
13498, April 16, 1992).
Subpart 1 Section 172 Requirements. Section 172(c)(1) requires the
plans for all nonattainment areas to provide for the implementation of
all Reasonably Available Control Measures (RACM) as expeditiously as
practicable and to provide for attainment of the national primary
ambient air quality standards. EPA interprets this requirement to
impose a duty on all nonattainment areas to consider all available
control measures and to adopt and implement such measures as are
reasonably available for implementation in each area as components of
the area's attainment demonstration. Under section 172, states with
nonattainment areas must submit plans providing for timely attainment
and meeting a variety of other requirements. However, pursuant to 40
CFR 51.1004(c), EPA's January 4, 2010, determination that the
Greensboro Area was attaining the PM2.5 standard suspended
North Carolina's obligation to submit most of the attainment planning
requirements that would otherwise apply. Specifically, the
determination of attainment suspended North Carolina's obligation to
submit an attainment demonstration and planning SIPs to provide for
reasonable further progress (RFP), reasonable available control
measures, and contingency measures under section 172(c)(9).
The General Preamble for Implementation of Title I (57 FR 13498,
April 16, 1992) also discusses the evaluation of these requirements in
the context of EPA's consideration of a redesignation request. The
General Preamble sets forth EPA's view of applicable requirements for
purposes of evaluating redesignation requests when an area is attaining
a standard (General Preamble for Implementation of Title I (57 FR
13498, April 16, 1992)).
Because attainment has been reached in the Greensboro Area, no
additional measures are needed to provide for attainment, and section
172(c)(1) requirements for an attainment demonstration and RACM are no
longer considered to be applicable for purposes of redesignation as
long as the Area continues to attain the standard until redesignation.
See also 40 CFR 51.1004(c).
The RFP plan requirement under section 172(c)(2) is defined as
progress that must be made toward attainment. This requirement is not
relevant for purposes of redesignation because EPA has determined that
the Greensboro Area has monitored attainment of the 1997 Annual
PM2.5 NAAQS. See General Preamble, 57 FR 13564. See also 40
CFR 51.1004(c). In addition, because the Greensboro Area has attained
the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS and is no longer subject to a
RFP requirement, the requirement to submit the section 172(c)(9)
contingency measures is not applicable for purposes of redesignation.
Id.
Section 172(c)(3) requires submission and approval of a
comprehensive, accurate, and current inventory of actual emissions. As
part of North Carolina's redesignation request for the Greensboro Area,
North Carolina submitted a 2008 base year emissions inventory. As
discussed below in section IX, EPA is proposing to approve the 2008
base year inventory submitted with the redesignation request as meeting
the section 172(c)(3) emissions inventory requirement.
Section 172(c)(4) requires the identification and quantification of
allowable emissions for major new and modified stationary sources to be
[[Page 59351]]
allowed in an area, and section 172(c)(5) requires source permits for
the construction and operation of new and modified major stationary
sources anywhere in the nonattainment area. EPA has determined that,
since PSD requirements will apply after redesignation, areas being
redesignated need not comply with the requirement that a NSR program be
approved prior to redesignation, provided that the area demonstrates
maintenance of the NAAQS without part D NSR. A more detailed rationale
for this view is described in a memorandum from Mary Nichols, Assistant
Administrator for Air and Radiation, dated October 14, 1994, entitled,
``Part D New Source Review Requirements for Areas Requesting
Redesignation to Attainment.'' North Carolina has demonstrated that the
Greensboro Area will be able to maintain the NAAQS without part D NSR
in effect, and therefore North Carolina need not have fully approved
part D NSR programs prior to approval of the redesignation request.
Nonetheless, North Carolina currently has a fully-approved part D NSR
program in place. North Carolina's PSD program will become effective in
the Greensboro Area upon redesignation to attainment. Section 172(c)(6)
requires the SIP to contain control measures necessary to provide for
attainment of the NAAQS. Because attainment has been reached, no
additional measures are needed to provide for attainment.
Section 172(c)(7) requires the SIP to meet the applicable
provisions of section 110(a)(2). As noted above, EPA believes the North
Carolina SIP meets the requirements of section 110(a)(2) applicable for
purposes of redesignation.
Section 176 Conformity Requirements. Section 176(c) of the CAA
requires states to establish criteria and procedures to ensure that
federally supported or funded projects conform to the air quality
planning goals in the applicable SIP. The requirement to determine
conformity applies to transportation plans, programs and projects that
are developed, funded or approved under title 23 of the United States
Code (U.S.C.) and the Federal Transit Act (transportation conformity)
as well as to all other federally supported or funded projects (general
conformity). State transportation conformity SIP revisions must be
consistent with Federal conformity regulations relating to
consultation, enforcement and enforceability that EPA promulgated
pursuant to its authority under the CAA.
EPA interprets the conformity SIP requirements \6\ as not applying
for purposes of evaluating a redesignation request under section 107(d)
because state conformity rules are still required after redesignation
and Federal conformity rules apply where state rules have not been
approved. See Wall v. EPA, 265 F.3d 426 (6th Cir. 2001) (upholding this
interpretation); see also 60 FR 62748 (December 7, 1995) (resignation
of Tampa, Florida). Thus, the Greensboro Area has satisfied all
applicable requirements for purposes of redesignation under section 110
and part D of title I of the CAA.
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\6\ CAA Section 176(c)(4)(E) requires states to submit revisions
to their SIPs to reflect certain Federal criteria and procedures for
determining transportation conformity. Transportation conformity
SIPs are different from the MVEBs that are established in control
strategy SIPs and maintenance plans.
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b. The Greensboro Area Has a Fully Approved Applicable SIP Under
Section 110(k) of the CAA
If EPA issues a final approval of the base year emissions
inventories, EPA will have fully approved the applicable North Carolina
SIP for the Greensboro Area under section 110(k) of the CAA for all
requirements applicable for purposes of redesignation for the 1997
Annual PM2.5 NAAQS. EPA may rely on prior SIP approvals in
approving a redesignation request (see Calcagni Memorandum at p. 3;
Southwestern Pennsylvania Growth Alliance v. Browner, 144 F.3d 984,
989-90 (6th Cir. 1998); Wall, 265 F.3d 426; plus any additional
measures it may approve in conjunction with a redesignation action (see
68 FR 25426 (May 12, 2003) and citations therein). Following passage of
the CAA of 1970, North Carolina has adopted and submitted, and EPA has
fully approved at various times, provisions addressing the various 1997
Annual PM2.5 NAAQS SIP elements applicable in the Greensboro
Area (45 FR 26038, April 17, 1980; 46 FR 43137, August 27, 1981; 50 FR
41501, October 11, 1985; 51 FR 41786, November 19, 1986; and 51 FR
45468, December 19, 1986).
As indicated above, EPA believes that the section 110 elements that
are neither connected with nonattainment plan submissions nor linked to
an area's nonattainment status are not applicable requirements for
purposes of redesignation. In addition, EPA believes that since the
part D subpart 1 requirements did not become due prior to submission of
the redesignation request, they are also not applicable requirements
for purposes of redesignation. Sierra Club v. EPA, 375 F.3d 537 (7th
Cir. 2004); 68 FR 25424, 25427 (May 12, 2003) (redesignation of the St.
Louis-East St. Louis Area to attainment of the 1-hour ozone NAAQS).
With the approval of the emissions inventory, EPA will have approved
all Part D subpart 1 requirements applicable for purposes of this
redesignation.
Criteria (3)--The Air Quality Improvement in the Greensboro Area 1997
Annual PM2.5 NAAQS Nonattainment Area Is Due to Permanent
and Enforceable Reductions in Emissions Resulting From Implementation
of the SIP and Applicable Federal Air Pollution Control Regulations and
Other Permanent and Enforceable Reductions
For redesignating a nonattainment area to attainment, the CAA
requires EPA to determine that the air quality improvement in the area
is due to permanent and enforceable reductions in emissions resulting
from implementation of the SIP and applicable Federal air pollution
control regulations and other permanent and enforceable reductions (CAA
section 107(d)(3)(E)(iii)). EPA believes North Carolina has
demonstrated that the observed air quality improvement in the
Greensboro Area is due to permanent and enforceable reductions
resulting from implementation of the SIP, Federal measures, and other
state adopted measures.
Fine particulate matter, or PM2.5, refers to airborne
particles less than or equal to 2.5 micrometers in diameter. Although
treated as a single pollutant, fine particles come from many different
sources and are composed of many different compounds. One of the
largest components of PM2.5 in the southeastern United
States is sulfate, which is formed through various chemical reactions
from the precursor SO2. The other major component of
PM2.5 is organic carbon, which originates predominantly from
biogenic emission sources. Nitrate, which is formed from the precursor
NOX, is also a component of PM2.5. Crustal
materials from windblown dust and elemental carbon from combustion
sources are less significant contributors to total PM2.5.
State and Federal measures enacted in recent years have resulted in
permanent emission reductions. Most of these emission reductions are
enforceable through regulations. A few non-regulatory measures also
result in emission reductions.
The Federal measures that have been implemented include:
Tier 2 vehicle standards. In addition to requiring NOX
controls, the Tier 2
[[Page 59352]]
rule reduced the allowable sulfur content of gasoline to 30 parts per
million (ppm) starting in January of 2006. Most gasoline sold in North
Carolina prior to this had a sulfur content of approximately 300 ppm.
Heavy-duty gasoline and diesel highway vehicle standards. The
second phase of the standards and testing procedures, which began in
2007, reduces particulate matter (PM) and NOX from heavy-
duty highway engines and also reduces highway diesel fuel sulfur
content to 15 ppm. The total program is expected to achieve a 90 and 95
percent reduction in PM and NOX emissions from heavy-duty
highway engines, respectively.
Nonroad spark-ignition engines and recreational engines standards.
Tier 1 of this standard, implemented in 2004, and Tier 2, implemented
in 2007, have reduced and will continue to reduce PM emissions.
Large nonroad diesel engine standards. Promulgated in 2004, this
rule is being phased in between 2008 and 2014. This rule will reduce
sulfur content in nonroad diesel fuel and, when fully implemented, will
reduce NOX and direct PM2.5 emissions by over 90
percent from these engines.
CAIR and the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR). As previously
discussed, the remanded CAIR, originally promulgated to reduce
transported pollution, was left in place to ``temporarily preserve the
environmental values covered by CAIR'' until EPA replaced it with a
rule consistent with the Court's opinion. To remedy CAIR's flaws, EPA
promulgated the final CSAPR on August 8, 2011. CSAPR addresses the
interstate transport requirements of the CAA with respect to the 1997
ozone, 1997 PM2.5 and 2006 PM2.5 NAAQS. As noted
previously, the requirements of CAIR address emissions through the 2011
control period and CSAPR requires similar or greater emission
reductions in the relevant areas in 2012 and beyond.
The state measures that have been implemented to date and relied
upon by North Carolina to demonstrate attainment and/or maintenance
include:
NCCSA. The primary state-adopted measure is the NCCSA, enacted in
June 2002. The NCCSA includes a schedule of system-wide caps on
emissions of NOX and SO2, the first of which
became effective in 2007, and has no provision for the trading of
pollution credits from one utility to another. According to North
Carolina, this rule requires coal-fired power plants in the State to
reduce annual NOX emissions from 245,000 tons in 1998 to
56,000 tons by 2009 (a 77 percent reduction) and to reduce annual
SO2 emissions from 489,000 tons in 1998 to 250,000 tons by
2009 (a 49 percent reduction), and further SO2 reductions to
130,000 tons in 2013 (a 73 percent reduction). Although there are no
power plants located within the Greensboro Area, there are power plants
located around the Area. On August 21, 2009, North Carolina submitted a
SIP revision to incorporate specific provisions of the NCCSA into the
federally approved SIP. On June 22, 2011, EPA proposed approval of the
NCCSA rules as a revision to the SIP and expects to take final action
on it in a rulemaking separate from today's proposed action but prior
to any final action on this redesignation.
Another significant rulemaking which has led to permanent and
enforceable reductions is the NOX SIP Call rule. This rule
was predicted to reduce summertime NOX emissions from power
plants and other industries by over 60 percent in North Carolina by
2006. See Table III-5 of NOX SIP Call, 63 FR 57356, 57434
(October 27, 1998). These emission reductions are state and federally
enforceable.
Table 2 presents the annual emissions from North Carolina sources
as recorded in EPA's acid rain database. Since 2002, when the
NOX controls started coming on-line to meet the
NOX SIP Call, and later to meet the NCCSA, the annual
NOX emissions from subject sources have decreased
dramatically from 145,706 tons per year (tpy) in 2002 to 61,669 tpy in
2008. In 2009 the emissions decreased to 44,506 tpy--down more than 69
percent from 2002. Between 2005 and 2008, the annual SO2
emissions from the utilities in North Carolina decreased by more than
half from 500,936 tpy to 227,030 tpy, or nearly 274,000 tons reduced.
In 2009, the emissions were again halved, down 76 percent from 2002.
The decline in SO2 emissions has coincided with a decline in
annual PM2.5 concentrations across North Carolina.
Table 2--Annual Emissions From All NC Sources in the EPA Clean Air
Markets Database
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Annual SO2 Annual NOX
Year emissions (tons) emissions (tons)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2002.............................. 462,993 145,706
2003.............................. 462,041 135,879
2004.............................. 472,320 124,079
2005.............................. 500,936 114,300
2006.............................. 462,143 108,584
2007.............................. 370,827 64,770
2008.............................. 227,030 61,669
2009.............................. 110,948 44,506
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Other state measures have been implemented that are state
enforceable but not a part of the federally-enforceable SIP. Such
measures contribute to reductions in pollutant emissions, although to a
lesser extent than the ones identified above, and include the
following:
Clean Air Bill. This state legislation expanded the inspection and
maintenance program from 9 counties to 48 counties and was phased in
for the Greensboro Area from July 1, 2002 through July 1, 2003. This
program reduces NOX, VOC, and carbon monoxide (CO)
emissions.
Open burning. This regulation, originally approved in 1997,
prohibits the open burning of man-made materials throughout the State.
Additionally, this regulation prohibits open burning of yard waste in
areas for which the DAQ forecasts an air quality action day. The open
burning regulation will reduce PM2.5 emissions, as well as
NOX, VOC and CO emissions.
Diesel Retrofits. As part of the North Carolina Mobile Source
Emission Reduction Grants program, a number of cities, counties and
school districts have installed diesel oxidation catalysts or diesel
particulate filters on their diesel equipment. The vehicles that have
been retrofitted include school buses and county fleet trucks used for
solid waste pickup. These types of filters are
[[Page 59353]]
designed to reduce PM engine emissions, and when used with ultra low
sulfur diesel fuel, NOX and VOC emissions are also reduced.
Even though these emission reductions are voluntary and not
enforceable, they are still considered permanent reductions.
Diesel Emissions Reduction Act (DERA). DERA provides new diesel
emissions reduction grant authority for EPA. This funding is used to
achieve significant reductions in diesel emissions that improve air
quality and protect public health. The DERA funds that the DAQ has
received have been used to retrofit, repower, or replace existing
diesel engines from on-road and nonroad mobile source vehicles and
equipment. This program will reduce PM, NOX, and VOC
emissions. Even though these emission reductions are voluntary, they
are still considered permanent reductions once a retrofit is completed.
To date, North Carolina has retrofitted over 6,000 diesel school buses.
In addition to impacting local emissions in the nonattainment area,
most of these measures impact emissions statewide.
EPA agrees with North Carolina's assessment that, although
PM2.5 and PM2.5 precursor reductions within the
nonattainment area have contributed to improved air quality, the
majority of the improvement in ambient PM2.5 concentrations
has resulted from reductions in SO2 emissions from in-state
coal-fired power plants due to the NCCSA . The annual emissions from
these facilities have significantly decreased since 2005, with over
250,000 tons of SO2 emission reductions in 2008 compared to
2005. EPA's analysis of emissions data available in from the Clean Air
Markets Division Web site (http://www.epa.gov/airmarkets/) shows that
the statewide reductions in SO2 emissions are much greater
than any decreases in emissions that can be attributed to decreases in
demand associated with reductions in operating hours or heat inputs at
North Carolina power plants. While coal-fired electric power generation
in North Carolina decreased 4.8 percent from 2005 to 2008,\7\
SO2 emissions from coal-fired electric power plants declined
46.0 percent during the same period.
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\7\ Electric Power Annual 2009, DOE/EIA-0348(2009), North
Carolina Electricity Profile, Tables 5 and 7. April 2011.
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The NCCSA reductions took place beginning in 2006, the first year
of the 3-year attainment period submitted by North Carolina for
redesignation of the Greensboro Area. Since the final compliance date
for the NCCSA SO2 emissions caps is 2013, future design
values are expected to continue to decline below the 2006-2008
attaining design values. The significant statewide reductions in
utility SO2 emissions will be permanent and enforceable upon
EPA's approval of the NCCSA rules into the North Carolina SIP. Further,
EPA does not have any information to suggest that the decrease in
ambient PM2.5 concentrations in the Greensboro Area is due
to unusually favorable meteorological conditions. Additionally, the
emission reductions resulting from the NCCSA discussed above are of a
greater magnitude than any influence that could be expected from
meteorology. The 250,000 tons of SO2 emission reductions
since 2005 represents a greater than 41 percent reduction of statewide
SO2 emissions. It is reasonable to expect that such
significant reductions have reduced ambient PM2.5 levels
throughout the State--including in the Greensboro Area. Indeed, every
PM2.5 monitor in the State has shown a consistent downward
trend during the period from 2006-2009.\8\
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\8\ http://www.epa.gov/airtrends/values.html.
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Criteria (4)--The Greensboro Area has a Fully Approved Maintenance Plan
Pursuant to Section 175A of the CAA
For redesignating a nonattainment area to attainment, the CAA
requires EPA to determine that the area has a fully approved
maintenance plan pursuant to section 175A of the CAA (CAA section
107(d)(3)(E)(iv)). In conjunction with its request to redesignate the
Greensboro Area to attainment for the 1997 Annual PM2.5
NAAQS, DAQ submitted a SIP revision to provide for the maintenance of
the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS for at least 10 years after the
effective date of redesignation to attainment. EPA believes this
maintenance plan meets the requirements for approval under section 175A
of the CAA.
a. What is required in a maintenance plan?
Section 175A of the CAA sets forth the elements of a maintenance
plan for areas seeking redesignation from nonattainment to attainment.
Under section 175A, the plan must demonstrate continued attainment of
the applicable NAAQS for at least 10 years after the Administrator
approves a redesignation to attainment. Eight years after the
redesignation, the State must submit a revised maintenance plan which
demonstrates that attainment will continue to be maintained for the 10
years following the initial 10-year period. To address the possibility
of future NAAQS violations, the maintenance plan must contain
contingency measures as EPA deems necessary to assure prompt correction
of any future 1997 Annual PM2.5 violations. The Calcagni
Memorandum provides further guidance on the content of a maintenance
plan, explaining that a maintenance plan should address five
requirements: The attainment emissions inventory, maintenance
demonstration, monitoring, verification of continued attainment, and a
contingency plan. As is discussed more fully below, EPA finds that
North Carolina's maintenance plan includes all the necessary components
and is thus proposing to approve it as a revision to the North Carolina
SIP, provided that EPA takes final action to approve the NCCSA rules.
b. Attainment Emissions Inventory
The Greensboro Area first attained the 1997 Annual PM2.5
NAAQS based on monitoring data for the 3-year period 2006-2008. North
Carolina selected 2008 as the attainment emissions inventory year in
part because it was already in the process of developing some emissions
inventory data for this year. The attainment inventory identifies a
level of emissions in the Area that is sufficient to attain the 1997
Annual PM2.5 NAAQS. North Carolina began development of the
attainment inventory by first generating a baseline emissions inventory
for the Greensboro Area. As noted above, the year 2008 was chosen as
the base year for developing a comprehensive emissions inventory for
primary PM2.5, SO2, and NOX, for which
projected emissions could be developed for 2011, 2014, 2017, and 2021.
In addition to comparing the final year of the plan, 2021, to the base
year, 2008, North Carolina compared interim years to the 2008 baseline
to demonstrate that these years are also expected to show continued
maintenance of the annual PM2.5 standard.
The emissions inventories are composed of four major types of
sources: Point, area, on-road mobile and non-road mobile. The future
year emissions inventories have been estimated using projected rates of
growth in population, traffic, economic activity, expected control
programs, and other parameters. Non-road mobile emissions estimates
were based on the EPA's NONROAD2008, a non-road mobile model, with the
exception of railroad locomotive and aircraft engine emissions. The
railroad locomotive and aircraft engine emissions were estimated by
taking activity data, such as landings
[[Page 59354]]
and takeoffs, and multiplying by an emission factor. On-road mobile
source emissions were calculated using EPA's MOVES mobile emission
factors model. The 2008 SO2, NOX and
PM2.5 emissions for the Greensboro Area, as well as the
emissions for other years, were developed consistent with EPA guidance
and are summarized in Tables 3 through 5 of the following subsection
discussing the maintenance demonstration.
c. Maintenance Demonstration
The December 18, 2009, final submittal and December 22, 2010,
supplement included a maintenance plan for the Greensboro Area. This
demonstration:
(i) Shows compliance with and maintenance of the annual
PM2.5 standard by providing information to support the
demonstration that current and future emissions of SO2,
NOX and PM2.5 remain at or below 2008
SO2, NOX and PM2.5 emissions levels.
(ii) Uses 2008 as the attainment year and includes future emission
inventory projections for 2011, 2014, 2017, and 2021 as shown in Tables
3-6 below.
(iii) Identifies an ``out year'' at least 10 years (and beyond)
after the time necessary for EPA to review and approve the maintenance
plan. Per 40 CFR part 93, PM2.5 and NOX MVEBs
were established for the last year (2021) of the maintenance plan.
Additionally, North Carolina chose, through interagency consultation,
to establish PM2.5 and NOX MVEBs for 2011 (see
section VII below).
(iv) Provides, as shown in Table 6 below, the actual and projected
emissions inventories, in tpy, for the Greensboro Area.
Table 3--Actual and Projected NOX Emissions From All Source Categories in the Greensboro Area (tpy)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
County 2008 2011 2014 2017 2021
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Point
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Davidson....................................... 841 865 892 920 961
Guilford....................................... 231 231 232 233 237
----------------------------------------------------------------
Total...................................... 1072 1096 1124 1153 1198
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Area
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Davidson....................................... 583 551 516 486 438
Guilford....................................... 1243 1210 1177 1146 1099
----------------------------------------------------------------
Total...................................... 1826 1761 1693 1632 1537
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On-road Mobile
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Davidson....................................... 5267 4095 3227 2536 1974
Guilford....................................... 14499 11157 8882 7143 5796
----------------------------------------------------------------
Total...................................... 19766 15252 12109 9679 7770
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Non-road Mobile
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Davidson....................................... 1831 1632 1467 1275 1115
Guilford....................................... 3864 3371 2816 2350 1980
----------------------------------------------------------------
Total...................................... 5695 5003 4283 3625 3095
----------------------------------------------------------------
Total for all sectors.................. 28359 23112 19209 16089 13600
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Table 4--Actual and Projected SO2 Emissions From All Source Categories in the Greensboro Area (tpy)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
County 2008 2011 2014 2017 2021
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Point
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Davidson....................................... 286 289 292 295 299
Guilford....................................... 449 451 453 455 458
----------------------------------------------------------------
Total...................................... 735 740 745 750 757
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Area
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Davidson....................................... 983 838 692 548 353
Guilford....................................... 4129 3905 3683 3460 3164
----------------------------------------------------------------
Total...................................... 5112 4743 4375 4008 3517
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On-road Mobile
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Davidson....................................... 36 19 17 18 18
Guilford....................................... 111 62 55 59 63
----------------------------------------------------------------
[[Page 59355]]
Total...................................... 147 81 72 77 81
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Non-road Mobile
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Davidson....................................... 25 17 2 2 2
Guilford....................................... 96 51 42 42 43
----------------------------------------------------------------
Total...................................... 121 68 44 44 45
----------------------------------------------------------------
Total for all sectors.................. 6115 5632 5236 4879 4400
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Table 5--Actual and Projected Direct PM2.5 Emissions From All Source Categories in the Greensboro Area (tpy)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
County 2008 2011 2014 2017 2021
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Point
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Davidson....................................... 179 178 177 176 175
Guilford....................................... 62 62 62 63 63
----------------------------------------------------------------
Total...................................... 241 240 239 239 238
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Area
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Davidson....................................... 1071 1028 979 937 857
Guilford....................................... 697 663 623 590 524
----------------------------------------------------------------
Total...................................... 1768 1691 1602 1527 1381
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On-road Mobile
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Davidson....................................... 169 121 97 77 60
Guilford....................................... 465 330 272 221 183
----------------------------------------------------------------
Total...................................... 634 451 369 298 243
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Non-road Mobile
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Davidson....................................... 71 67 58 46 40
Guilford....................................... 264 252 220 186 157
----------------------------------------------------------------
Total...................................... 335 319 278 232 197
----------------------------------------------------------------
Total for all sectors.................. 2978 2701 2488 2296 2059
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Table 6--Emissions and Maintenance Summary for the Greensboro PM2.5 Nonattainment Area
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Year NOX (tpy) SO2 (tpy) PM2.5 (tpy)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2008............................................................ 28,359 6,115 2,978
2011............................................................ 23,112 5,632 2,701
2014............................................................ 19,209 5,236 2,488
2017............................................................ 16,089 4,879 2,296
2021............................................................ 13,600 4,400 2,059
Difference from 2008 to 2021.................................... -14,759 -1,715 -919
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tables 3 through 6 summarize the 2008 and future projected
emissions of direct PM2.5 and precursors from the counties
in the Greensboro Area. In situations where local emissions are the
primary contributor to nonattainment, the ambient air quality standard
should not be violated in the future as long as emissions from within
the nonattainment area remain at or below the baseline with which
attainment was achieved. In the Greensboro Area, however, the
preponderance of the nonattainment problem is due to SO2
emissions from power plants outside the nonattainment area, but within
North Carolina. As shown by the speciation data in the State's
submittal,\9\ sulfates are one of the largest contributors to ambient
PM2.5 in the Greensboro Area and in the State as a whole,
contributing about 30 percent of the total PM2.5 mass.
Sulfates are formed through various SO2 reactions in the
atmosphere. According
[[Page 59356]]
to EPA's National Emissions Inventory for 2005 and Clean Air Markets
Division acid rain database, over 90 percent of SO2
emissions in North Carolina were from stationary point sources, greater
than 80 percent of which were from power plants reporting to the acid
rain program.\10\ Organic carbon, which also contributes about 30
percent of the total PM2.5 mass in the Greensboro Area, is
predominately attributed to biogenic emission sources. The next largest
contributor in the Greensboro Area is an ``other'' group that is
attributed to water, sea salts, and other trace materials and which
accounts for about 17 percent of the mass.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\9\ SIP submittal figures 2-2 and 4-1.
\10\ EPA's National Emissions Inventory data is available on the
Web site: http://www.epa.gov/ttn/chief/eiinformation.html. The acid
rain database can be accessed on EPA's Clean Air Markets Division
Web site: http://www.epa.gov/airmarkets/.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Because the most significant sources contributing to ambient
PM2.5 levels in the Greensboro Area are utilities located
outside the nonattainment area, but within North Carolina, reductions
in emissions from these point sources provide the greatest potential
for reductions in ambient PM2.5 concentrations. For this
reason, the State presented information in its submittal (as discussed
above in the section on permanent and enforceable reductions), showing
that the NCCSA requires these sources to reduce their emissions by
substantial amounts that are more than sufficient for the Greensboro
Area to demonstrate attainment and maintenance of the PM2.5
NAAQS at issue here. EPA has proposed rulemaking action to approve
specific provisions of the NCCSA into the North Carolina SIP, and final
approval would assure that power plants within North Carolina will
remain sufficiently regulated to provide for continued maintenance as
required by CAA section 175A.
With regard to emissions generated outside North Carolina which
have the potential to impact the Greensboro Area, EPA notes several
recent emissions reductions that have occurred or will occur in nearby
states. First, On April 14, 2011, EPA announced a settlement with the
Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) to resolve alleged Clean Air Act
violations at 11 of its coal-fired plants in Alabama, Kentucky, and
Tennessee.\11\ The settlement will require TVA to invest a TVA
estimated $3 billion to $5 billion on new and upgraded state-of-the-art
pollution controls. When fully implemented, the pollution controls and
other required actions will address 92 percent of TVA's coal-fired
power plant capacity, reducing emissions of NOX by 69
percent and SO2 by 67 percent from TVA's 2008 emission
levels. The settlement will also significantly reduce particulate
matter and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. The consent
decree also requires that operation of 18 coal-fired units at the
Johnsonville, John Sevier, and Widows Creek plants be phased out by
2017.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\11\ Alabama et al. v. TVA, No. 3:11-CV-00170, (E.D. TN 2011)
(Consent Decree), available at http://www.epa.gov/compliance/resources/decrees/civil/caa/tvacoal-fired-cd.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Second, the State of Georgia has recently passed a multi-pollutant
rule to reduce NOX and SO2 emissions from many of
its coal-fired EGUs.\12\ Third, the consent decrees for Dominion
Power\13\ and American Electric Power (AEP)\14\ in the Commonwealth of
Virginia require further controls of NOX and SO2
emissions at those power plants. On April 21, 2003, the Department of
Justice and EPA announced a settlement against Virginia Electric and
Power Company (VEPCO a subsidiary of Dominion Resources, Inc.). This
settlement requires VEPCO, one of the nation's largest coal-fired
electric utilities, to install new pollution control equipment and to
upgrade existing controls on several units in its system, thus
resulting in substantial air pollution reductions. The settlement
covers eight VEPCO plants, six in Virginia and two in West Virginia,
comprising twenty electricity-generating units. These eight plants
emitted over 350,000 tons of SO2 and NOX in 2000.
The settlement will reduce these emissions to approximately 86,500 tpy
SO2 and 26,000 tpy NOX. On October 9, 2007, the
United States, along with eight individual states and thirteen citizen
groups, announced a settlement agreement with AEP that that mandates
emissions reductions at sixteen of AEP's coal-fired power plants (46
units) located in Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Virginia, and West Virginia.
NOX emissions from subject plants will be reduced by greater
than 68 percent by 2016 as compared to 2006 levels. Likewise, by 2018
SO2 emissions will decrease by greater than 78 percent as
compared to 2006 levels.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\12\ Georgia Rule 391-3-1-.02(2)(uuu), ``SO2
Emissions from Electric Utility Steam Generating Units,'' was first
adopted by the Georgia Board of Natural Resources January 28, 2009,
with an amendment adopted June 24, 2009.
\13\ U.S. et al v. Va. Elec. & Power Co., No. 1:03-cv-00517-LMB
(E.D. Va. 2003) (Consent Decree), available at http://www.epa.gov/compliance/resources/decrees/civil/caa/vepcocd.pdf.
\14\ U.S. et al v. American Elec. Power Serv. Corp., No C2-99-
1250 (E.D. Ohio 2007) (Consent Decree), available at http://www.epa.gov/compliance/resources/decrees/civil/caa/americanelectricpower-cd.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Finally, EPA has recently finalized the CSAPR to regulate
interstate transport of power plant emissions. EPA's modeling for the
final rule indicates that the Greensboro Area would maintain the NAAQS
into the future in the absence of the rule. The 2012 base case run,
which simulates air quality without CAIR and without a transport rule,
assumes a 4 million ton increase in SO2 regionally. A 2014
base case run also assumes no CAIR, but does include additional
enforceable controls that are required to occur between 2012 and 2014.
Based on these modeling assessments, PM2.5 concentrations in
the Greensboro Area are still projected to decrease to 13.5 [micro]g/
m\3\ in 2012 and 13.1 [micro]g/m\3\ in 2014. Though not necessary for
demonstrating attainment and maintenance in the Greensboro Area, the
final CSAPR will result in additional reductions of NOX and
SO2 emissions that cross state lines. EPA estimates that by
2014, power plants in the covered states will reduce annual emissions
of SO2 by about 2.2 million tons beyond what would have been
achieved at that time under CAIR. By 2014, we estimate that
NOX emissions in covered states will be about 500,000 tons
lower than emissions would have been under CAIR.
Based on the analysis described above, EPA has concluded that
impacts on air quality from emissions transported across State lines
have been adequately addressed for the Greensboro Area and that the
Greensboro Area will maintain the annual PM2.5 standard
through 2021. Furthermore, the final CSAPR mandates even greater
reductions than have already occurred and, more importantly, any
reductions in PM2.5 in the Greensboro Area from the final
CSAPR will be in excess of those needed to maintain the Annual
PM2.5 NAAQS.
A maintenance plan requires the State to show that projected future
year emissions will not exceed the level of emissions which led the
Area to attain the NAAQS. North Carolina has projected emissions as
described previously and determined that emissions in the Greensboro
Area will remain below those in the attainment year inventory until
2021.
As discussed further in section VII of this proposed rulemaking, a
safety margin is the difference between the attainment level of
emissions (from all sources) and the projected level of emissions (from
all sources) in the maintenance plan. The attainment level of emissions
is the level of emissions during one of the years in which the
[[Page 59357]]
Area met the NAAQS. North Carolina has decided to allocate a portion of
the available safety margin to the Area's PM2.5 and
NOX MVEBs for 2011 and 2021 for the Greensboro Area and has
calculated the safety margin in its submittal. Specifically, a total of
1,383,638 kg/year (1,525 tpy) \15\ and 1,409,764 kg/year (1,554 tpy) of
the available NOX safety margins are allocated to the 2011
and 2021 MVEB, respectively. For PM2.5, a total of 166,014
kg/year (183 tpy) and 354,708 kg/year (391 tpy) of the 2011 and 2010
safety margins were added to the Greensboro MVEBs. The remaining safety
margins for NOX are 3,722 tpy and 13,205 tpy for 2011 and
2021, respectively. The remaining safety margins for PM2.5
are 94 tpy and 528 tpy for 2011 and 2021, respectively. This allocation
and the resulting available safety margin for the Greensboro Area are
discussed further in section VII of this proposed rulemaking.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\15\ Conversion factor from grams to tons = 907,185 grams per
ton.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
d. Monitoring Network
There are currently three monitors measuring PM2.5 in
the Greensboro Area. The State of North Carolina, through DAQ, has
committed to continue operation of the monitors in the Greensboro Area
in compliance with 40 CFR part 58 and have thus addressed the
requirement for monitoring. EPA approved North Carolina's 2010
monitoring plan on September 22, 2010.
e. Verification of Continued Attainment
The State of North Carolina, through DAQ, has the legal authority
to enforce and implement the requirements of the Greensboro Area 1997
Annual PM2.5 Maintenance plan. This includes the authority
to adopt, implement and enforce any subsequent emissions control
contingency measures determined to be necessary to correct future
PM2.5 attainment problems.
DAQ will track the progress of the maintenance plan by performing
future reviews of triennial emission inventories for the Greensboro
Area using the latest emissions factors, models and methodologies. For
these periodic inventories, DAQ will review the assumptions made for
the purpose of the maintenance demonstration concerning projected
growth of activity levels. If any of these assumptions appear to have
changed substantially, the DAQ will re-project emissions for the
Greensboro Area.
f. Contingency Measures in the Maintenance Plan
The contingency measures are designed to promptly correct a
violation of the NAAQS that occurs after redesignation. Section 175A of
the CAA requires that a maintenance plan include such contingency
measures as EPA deems necessary to assure that the State will promptly
correct a violation of the NAAQS that occurs after redesignation. The
maintenance plan should identify the contingency measures to be
adopted, a schedule and procedure for adoption and implementation, and
a time limit for action by the State. A State should also identify
specific indicators to be used to determine when the contingency
measures need to be implemented. The maintenance plan must include a
requirement that a State will implement all measures with respect to
control of the pollutant that were contained in the SIP before
redesignation of the area to attainment in accordance with section
175A(d).
In the December 18, 2009, submittal, North Carolina affirms that
all programs instituted by the State and EPA for PM control will remain
enforceable and that sources are prohibited from reducing emissions
controls following the redesignation of the Area. The contingency plan
included in the December 18, 2009, submittal includes a 3-step
triggering mechanism to determine when contingency measures are needed
and a process of developing and implementing appropriate control
measures. The secondary and tertiary triggers are pre-violation
triggers and thus activation does not necessarily mean a violation of
the actual annual PM2.5 NAAQS has occurred or will occur.
The pre-violation triggers allow the State to begin evaluating the
causes of increased ambient PM2.5 concentrations and take
corrective action to prevent a future violation. In the contingency
plan, North Carolina has committed to taking action on the activation
of a primary or secondary trigger. These triggers and the actions
resulting from them are discussed more fully below.
The primary trigger will occur when the certified 3-year average of
the average annual ambient concentration is greater than 15.0 [micro]g/
m\3\ at any monitor in the maintenance area. The resulting trigger date
will be 60 days after the date that the State observes an annual
average concentration that, when averaged with the previous two annual
average PM2.5 concentrations, would result in a 3-year
design value greater than 15.0 [micro]g/m\3\. North Carolina has
identified a secondary warning trigger to occur when the State finds
that the rolling twelve-quarter average monitored PM2.5
levels exceed the PM2.5 NAAQS in the Greensboro Area (non-
calendar year basis). The trigger date will be 60 days from the date
that the State observes that the rolling 12-quarter average is greater
than 15.0 [micro]g/m\3\. A tertiary (third type of) trigger will be
activated when a monitor in the Greensboro Area has an annual average
greater than 15.0 [micro]g/m\3\. In addition to the triggers indicated
above, North Carolina will track regional emissions submitted annually
for large sources or every three years for other sources through the
Consolidated Emissions Reporting Rule and Air Emissions Reporting Rule
and compare them to the projected inventories and attainment year
inventory. North Carolina commits to review theses emissions
inventories and evaluate assumptions made to project emissions in the
maintenance plan to determine if unexpected growth in NOX,
SO2 or PM2.5 in the Area will jeopardize
maintenance of the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS.
Once a primary or secondary trigger is activated, DAQ will commence
analysis, including trajectory analysis, and emissions inventory
assessment to determine emission control measures that will be required
to attain or maintain the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS.
PM2.5 speciation data from the speciation trends network
monitors will also be reviewed to help determine which control measures
would be most effective. If it is determined that the violation or
exceedance of the PM2.5 NAAQS is due to sources outside of
North Carolina, then DAQ will consult with EPA on its findings and
determinations on what contingency measures will be implemented to
reduce emissions. If EPA and DAQ agree that the violation or exceedance
was due to sources outside of North Carolina, DAQ will consult with
regulatory authorities from contributing up-wind sources to determine
additional actions to be implemented.\16\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\16\ In a letter dated May 20, 2011, North Carolina provided
additional clarification on the timing and content of their
contingency plan. In the letter, North Carolina clarified that it is
there intent to take corrective measures to address a violation of
the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS within 18-24 months of the
violation. This letter is available in the docket EPA-R04-OAR-2009-
1011 on the http://www.regulations.gov Web site.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
If DAQ determines that a violation or exceedance occurred due to
sources within North Carolina, then by November 1 of the year following
the year which caused the primary or secondary trigger activation, the
State
[[Page 59358]]
will complete sufficient analysis to begin adoption of necessary rules
for ensuring attainment and maintenance of the annual PM2.5
NAAQS. If the rules are still needed, they would become State effective
within 7 months after the November 1 analysis (by the following July
1), unless legislative review is required. Each adopted rule will
include a schedule that will require compliance with the rule no later
than 2 years after adoption of the rule.
At least one of the following contingency measures will be adopted
and implemented upon a primary or secondary triggering event:
Continued implementation of previously adopted controls
(NCCSA and diesel retrofits) which have not yet been realized but are
sufficient to address the violation (and in excess of emissions
reductions considered for maintenance);
Reasonably Available Control Technology on stationary
sources in the Greensboro Area;
Diesel inspection and maintenance program; \17\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\17\ At this time, there is not an approved method for
determining emission reductions from a Diesel Inspection and
Maintenance program. Therefore, there is no technical basis to award
emission credits for a heavy duty diesel inspection and maintenance
program in the SIP. However, we do not want to preclude future
technical changes that may make awarding such emission credits
possible. If it is necessary to implement contingency measures for
this area, North Carolina, in coordination with EPA, will evaluate
the feasibility of this program as a contingency measure at that
time. If a technical basis for emission credits is not available,
other contingency measures will need to be implemented.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Implementation of diesel retrofit programs, including
incentives for performing retrofits;
Additional controls in upwind areas within North Carolina.
When a tertiary trigger is activated, DAQ will commence analyses
including meteorological evaluation, trajectory analyses, and emissions
inventory assessment to understand why an annual exceedance of the
standard has occurred. DAQ will work with the local air awareness
program and develop an outreach plan to identify any additional
voluntary measures that can be implemented and implement the plan
during the following summer.
As designed, a tertiary trigger will always occur before a primary
trigger because it is based on an annual average, whereas the primary
trigger is based on an average of three consecutive annual averages.
This means DAQ will commence analyzing the cause of higher ambient
PM2.5 levels in the Area well before an actual NAAQS
violation occurs. Further, a secondary trigger is likely to occur
before a primary trigger because it is determined at the end of each
calendar quarter based on a rolling 12-quarter average. This means that
if the Area were to experience a NAAQS violation, DAQ will have likely
already commenced the process for adoption of control measures as
described above. EPA is now making the preliminary determination that
the contingency measures outlined above in North Carolina's contingency
plan are adequate and ensure that the State will promptly correct any
future violation of the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS in the
Greensboro Area.
EPA has concluded that the maintenance plan adequately addresses
the five basic components of a maintenance plan: Attainment inventory,
maintenance demonstration, monitoring network, verification of
continued attainment, and a contingency plan. Provided that EPA takes
final rulemaking to approve the NCCSA, the maintenance plan SIP
revision submitted by the State of North Carolina for the Greensboro
Area meets the requirements of section 175A of the CAA and is
approvable.
VII. What is EPA's analysis of North Carolina's proposed
PM2.5 and NOX MVEBs for the Greensboro area?
Under section 176(c) of the CAA, new transportation plans,
programs, and projects, such as the construction of new highways, must
``conform'' to (i.e., be consistent with) the part of the state's air
quality plan that addresses pollution from cars and trucks. Conformity
to the SIP means that transportation activities will not cause new air
quality violations, worsen existing violations, or delay timely
attainment of the NAAQS or any interim milestones. If a transportation
plan does not conform, most new projects that would expand the capacity
of roadways cannot go forward. Regulations at 40 CFR part 93 set forth
EPA policy, criteria, and procedures for demonstrating and assuring
conformity of such transportation activities to a SIP. The regional
emissions analysis is one, but not the only, requirement for
implementing transportation conformity. Transportation conformity is a
requirement for nonattainment and maintenance areas. Maintenance areas
are areas that were previously nonattainment for a particular NAAQS but
have since been redesignated to attainment with an approved maintenance
plan for that NAAQS.
Under the CAA, states are required to submit, at various times,
control strategy SIPs and maintenance plans for nonattainment areas.
These control strategy SIPs (including RFP and attainment
demonstration) and maintenance plans create MVEBs for criteria
pollutants and/or their precursors to address pollution from cars and
trucks. Per 40 CFR part 93, a MVEB must be established for the last
year of the maintenance plan. A state may adopt MVEBs for other years
as well. The MVEB is the portion of the total allowable emissions in
the maintenance demonstration that is allocated to highway and transit
vehicle use and emissions. See 40 CFR 93.101. The MVEB serves as a
ceiling on emissions from an area's planned transportation system. The
MVEB concept is further explained in the preamble to the November 24,
1993, Transportation Conformity Rule (58 FR 62188). The preamble also
describes how to establish the MVEB in the SIP and how to revise the
MVEB.
After interagency consultation with the transportation partners for
the Greensboro Area, North Carolina has elected to develop separate
MVEBs for PM2.5 and NOX for each of the two
counties in the Greensboro Area. North Carolina developed these MVEBs,
as required, for the last year of its maintenance plan--2021.
Additionally, the State of North Carolina has elected to develop MVEBs
for the year 2011. The MVEBs reflect the total on-road emissions for
2011 and 2021, plus a safety margin that is based on an allocation from
the available PM2.5 and NOX safety margin. Under
40 CFR 93.101, the safety margin is the difference between the
emissions level needed for attainment (from all sources) and the
projected level of emissions (from all sources) in the maintenance
plan. The safety margin can be allocated to the transportation sector,
however, the total emissions must remain below the attainment level.
These MVEBs and allocation from the safety margin were developed in
consultation with the transportation partners and were calculated to
account for uncertainties in population growth, changes in modeled
vehicle miles traveled and new emission factor models. The
PM2.5 and NOX MVEBs for both Davison and Guilford
Counties in the Greensboro Area are defined in Tables 7 and 8 below.
Table 7--Davidson County MVEBs (kg/year)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2011 2021
------------------------------------------------------------------------
NOX Emissions (kg/year)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
On-road Mobile Emissions...................... 3,714,921 1,790,782
[[Page 59359]]
Safety Margin Allocated to MVEB............... 371,492 358,156
NX Conformity MVEB............................ 4,086,413 2,148,938
------------------------------------------------------------------------
PM2.5 Emissions (kg/year)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
On-road Mobile Emissions...................... 109,769 54,431
Safety Margin Allocated to MVEB............... 43,544 98,882
PM2.5 Conformity MVEB......................... 153,313 153,313
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Table 8--Guilford County MVEBs (kg/year)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2011 2021
------------------------------------------------------------------------
NOX Emissions (kg/year)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
On-road Mobile Emissions...................... 10,121,459 5,258,042
Safety Margin Allocated to MVEB............... 1,012,146 1,051,608
NOX Conformity MVEB........................... 11,133,605 6,309,650
------------------------------------------------------------------------
PM2.5 Emissions (kg/year)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
On-road Mobile Emissions...................... 299,371 166,015
Safety Margin Allocated to MVEB............... 122,470 255,826
PM2.5 Conformity MVEB......................... 421,841 421,841
------------------------------------------------------------------------
As mentioned above, the Greensboro Area has chosen to allocate a
portion of the available safety margin to the PM2.5 and
NOX MVEBs for the years 2011 and 2021. A total of 1,383,638
kg/year (1,525 tpy) and 1,409,764 kg/year (1,554 tpy) of the available
NOX safety margins are allocated to the 2011 and 2021 MVEB,
respectively. For PM2.5, a total of 166,014 kg/year (183
tpy) and 354,708 kg/year (391 tpy) of the 2011 and 2021 safety margins
are added to the Greensboro MVEBs. Thus, the remaining safety margins
in 2011 and 2021 for PM2.5 are 94 tpy and 528 tpy,
respectively. For NOX, the remaining 2011 and 2021 safety
margins are 3,722 tpy and 13,205 tpy, respectively.
Through this rulemaking, EPA is proposing to approve the MVEBs for
PM2.5 and NOX for 2011 and 2021, including the
allocation from the PM2.5 and NOX safety margins,
for the Greensboro Area because EPA has made the preliminary
determination that the Area maintains the 1997 Annual PM2.5
NAAQS with the emissions at the levels of the budgets. Once the MVEBs
for Davidson and Guilford Counties in the Greensboro Area are approved
or found adequate (whichever is completed first), they must be used for
future conformity determinations and the metropolitan planning
organizations must use the MOVES model in future PM2.5
conformity determinations for their long-range transportation plans and
transportation improvement programs. After thorough review, EPA has
determined that the budgets meet the adequacy criteria, as outlined in
40 CFR 93.118(e)(4), and is proposing to approve the budgets because
they are consistent with maintenance of the Annual PM2.5
NAAQS through 2021.
VIII. What is the status of EPA's adequacy determination for the
proposed PM2.5 and NOX MVEBs for 2011 and 2021
for the Greensboro area?
When reviewing submitted ``control strategy'' SIPs or maintenance
plans containing MVEBs, EPA may affirmatively find the MVEB contained
therein adequate for use in determining transportation conformity. Once
EPA affirmatively finds the submitted MVEB is adequate for
transportation conformity purposes, that MVEB must be used by state and
Federal agencies in determining whether proposed transportation
projects conform to the SIP as required by section 176(c) of the CAA.
EPA's substantive criteria for determining adequacy of a MVEB are
set out in 40 CFR 93.118(e)(4). The process for determining adequacy
consists of three basic steps: Public notification of a SIP submission,
a public comment period, and EPA's adequacy determination. This process
for determining the adequacy of submitted MVEBs for transportation
conformity purposes was initially outlined in EPA's May 14, 1999,
guidance, ``Conformity Guidance on Implementation of March 2, 1999,
Conformity Court Decision.'' EPA adopted regulations to codify the
adequacy process in the Transportation Conformity Rule Amendments for
the ``New 8-Hour Ozone and PM2.5 National Ambient Air
Quality Standards and Miscellaneous Revisions for Existing Areas;
Transportation Conformity Rule Amendments--Response to Court Decision
and Additional Rule Change,'' on July 1, 2004 (69 FR 40004). Additional
information on the adequacy process for transportation conformity
purposes is available in the proposed rule entitled, ``Transportation
Conformity Rule Amendments: Response to Court Decision and Additional
Rule Changes,'' 68 FR 38974, 38984 (June 30, 2003).
As discussed earlier, North Carolina's maintenance plan submission
includes PM2.5 and NOX MVEBs for both counties
that comprise the Greensboro Area for the years 2011 and 2021. EPA
reviewed both the PM2.5 and NOX MVEBs through the
adequacy process. The North Carolina SIP submission, including the
Greensboro Area PM2.5 and NOX MVEBs, was open for
public comment on EPA's adequacy Web site on November 23, 2010, found
at: http://www.epa.gov/otaq/stateresources/transconf/currsips.htm. The
EPA public comment period on adequacy of the PM2.5 and
NOX MVEBs for 2011 and 2021 for Greensboro Area closed on
December 23, 2010. EPA did not receive any comments on the adequacy of
the MVEBs, nor did EPA receive any requests for the SIP submittal.
In a letter sent on February 2, 2011, EPA notified North Carolina
DAQ that the MOVES based sub-area 2011 and 2021 MVEBs for the
Greensboro Area were determined to be adequate for transportation
conformity purposes. On May 2, 2011, EPA published its adequacy notice
in the Federal Register (76 FR 24472). When EPA finds the 2011 and 2021
MVEBs adequate or approves them, the new MVEBs for PM2.5 and
NOX must be used for future transportation conformity
determinations. For required regional emissions analysis years prior to
2011, the applicable budgets are the 2009 MVEBs from the attainment
demonstration, which have already been found adequate through another
action. (75 FR 9204 and 75 FR 26751). For required regional emissions
analysis years that involve 2011-2020, the applicable budgets will be
the new 2011 MVEBs. For required regional emissions analysis years that
involve 2021 or beyond, the applicable budgets will be the new 2021
MVEBs. The 2011 and 2021 MVEBs are defined in section VII of this
proposed rulemaking.
IX. What is EPA's analysis of the proposed 2008 base year emissions
inventory for the Greensboro area?
As discussed in section VI above, section 172(c)(3) of the CAA
requires areas to submit a comprehensive, accurate and current
emissions inventory. As part of North Carolina's request to redesignate
the Greensboro Area, the State submitted a 2008 base year emissions
inventory to meet this requirement. Emissions contained in the
submittal cover the general source categories of point sources, area
sources, on-road mobile sources, and non-road mobile sources. All
emission summaries
[[Page 59360]]
were accompanied by source-specific descriptions of emission
calculation procedures and sources of input data. On December 22, 2010,
DAQ provided EPA with a supplemental SIP revision to update the on-road
mobile emissions by replacing the on-road mobile emissions that were
prepared with MOBILE6.2 with on-road emissions that were prepared using
the new MOVES emissions model. North Carolina's submittal documents
2008 emissions in the Greensboro Area in units of tpy. Table 9 below
provides a summary of the 2008 emissions of direct PM2.5,
NOX, and SO2 for the Greensboro Area. For
emissions in other years, refer to Tables 3 through 5.
Table 9--Greensboro Area 2008 Emissions for PM2.5, NOX, and SO2 (tpy [percent total])
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source PM2.5 NOX SO2
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Point Source Total.............................................. 241 [8.1] 1,072 [3.8] 735 [12.0]
Area Source Total............................................... 1,768 [59.4] 1,826 [6.4] 5,112 [83.6]
On-Road Mobile Source Total..................................... 634 [21.3] 19,766 [69.7] 147 [2.4]
Non-Road Mobile Source Total.................................... 335 [11.2] 5,695 [20.1] 121 [2.0]
-----------------------------------------------
Total for all Sources....................................... 2,978 28,359 6,115
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In today's notice, EPA is proposing to approve this 2008 base year
inventory as meeting the section 172(c)(3) emissions inventory
requirement.
X. Proposed Actions on the Redesignation Request and Maintenance Plan
SIP Revisions Including Approval of the PM2.5 and
NOX MVEBs for 2011 and 2021 for the Greensboro Area
EPA previously determined that the Greensboro Area was attaining
the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS on January 4, 2010, at 75 FR 54. EPA is
now taking four separate but related actions regarding the Area's
redesignation and maintenance of the 1997 Annual PM2.5
NAAQS. Three of the actions are discussed in this section and the
fourth is discussed in the next section.
First, EPA is proposing to determine, based on complete, quality-
assured and certified monitoring data for the 2007-2009 monitoring
period, and after review of preliminary data in AQS for 2008-2010, that
the Greensboro Area continues to attain the 1997 Annual
PM2.5 NAAQS. Provided that EPA takes final action to approve
the NCSSA and, under section 172(c)(3), the 2008 base emissions
inventory, EPA is proposing to determine that the Greensboro Area has
met the criteria under CAA section 107(d)(3)(E) for redesignation from
nonattainment to attainment for the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS.
On this basis, EPA is proposing to approve North Carolina's
redesignation request for the Greensboro Area.
Second, EPA is proposing to approve North Carolina's 2008 emissions
inventory for the Greensboro Area (under section CAA 172(c)(3)). North
Carolina selected 2008 as the attainment emissions inventory year for
the Greensboro Area. This attainment inventory identifies a level of
emissions in the Area that is sufficient to attain the 1997 Annual
PM2.5 NAAQS and also is a current, comprehensive inventory
that meets the requirements of section 172(c)(3).
Third, subject to final approval of the NCCSA rules, EPA is
proposing to approve the maintenance plan for the Greensboro Area,
including the PM2.5 and NOX MVEBs for 2011 and
2021 submitted by North Carolina for the Greensboro Area, as meeting
the requirements of section 175A of the CAA. The maintenance plan
demonstrates that the Area will continue to maintain the 1997 Annual
PM2.5 NAAQS, and the budgets meet all of the adequacy
criteria contained in 40 CFR 93.118(e)(4) and (5). Further, as part of
today's action, EPA is describing the status of its adequacy
determination for the PM2.5 and NOX MVEBs for
2011 and 2021 in accordance with 40 CFR 93.118(f)(1). On May 2, 2011,
EPA published its adequacy notice in the Federal Register (76 FR
24472). Within 24 months from the effective date of EPA's adequacy
determination, the transportation partners will need to demonstrate
conformity to the new PM2.5 and NOX MVEBs
pursuant to 40 CFR 93.104(e).
If finalized, approval of the redesignation request would change
the official designations of Davidson and Guilford Counties in the
Greensboro Area for the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS, found at 40
CFR part 81, from nonattainment to attainment. EPA is also proposing to
approve into the North Carolina SIP the maintenance plan for the
Greensboro Area, the emissions inventory submitted with the maintenance
plan, and the 2011 and 2021 MVEBs. EPA is proposing to take these
actions if and when EPA finalizes, after notice and comment rulemaking,
its approval of the NCSSA rules as a revision to the North Carolina
SIP.
XI. Proposed Action on the Determination That the Greensboro Area Has
Attained the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS by Its Applicable Attainment
Date
The fourth action EPA is proposing today is to determine, based on
quality-assured and certified monitoring data for the 2007-2009
monitoring period, that the Greensboro Area attained the 1997 Annual
PM2.5 NAAQS by its applicable attainment date of April 5,
2010. This determination is being proposed in accordance with section
179(c)(1) of the CAA and EPA regulations.
XII. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
Under the CAA, redesignation of an area to attainment and the
accompanying approval of a maintenance plan under section 107(d)(3)(E)
are actions that affect the status of a geographical area and do not
impose any additional regulatory requirements on sources beyond those
imposed by state law. A redesignation to attainment does not in and of
itself create any new requirements, but rather results in the
applicability of requirements contained in the CAA for areas that have
been redesignated to attainment. Moreover, 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, these proposed actions merely approve state law as meeting
Federal requirements and do not impose additional requirements beyond
those imposed by state law. For this reason, these proposed actions:
Are not ``significant regulatory action[s]'' subject to
review by the Office of Management and Budget under
[[Page 59361]]
Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993);
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 action
based on health or safety risks subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR
19885, April 23, 1997);
Are not a significant regulatory action 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).
In addition, this proposed rule does not have tribal implications
as specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000),
because the SIP is not approved to apply in Indian country located in
the state, and EPA notes that it will not impose substantial direct
costs on tribal governments or preempt tribal law.
List of Subjects
40 CFR Part 52
Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Intergovernmental
relations, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, and Particulate
matter.
40 CFR Part 81
Environmental protection, Air pollution control.
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Dated: September 2, 2011.
A. Stanley Meiburg,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4.
[FR Doc. 2011-24644 Filed 9-23-11; 8:45 am]
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