[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 140 (Friday, July 20, 2012)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 42686-42688]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-17770]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA-R03-OAR-2010-0140; FRL-9702-1]
Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans;
Maryland; the 2002 Base Year Inventory
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Proposed rule.
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SUMMARY: EPA is proposing to approve the fine particulate matter
(PM2.5) 2002 base year emissions inventory portion of the
Maryland State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision submitted by the
State of Maryland, through the Maryland Department of the Environment
(MDE), on April 3, 2008. The emissions inventory is part of the
Maryland April 3, 2008 SIP revision that was submitted to meet
nonattainment requirements related to Maryland's portion of the
Washington DC-MD-VA nonattainment area (hereafter referred to as
Maryland Area or Area) for the 1997 PM2.5 National Ambient
Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) SIP. EPA is proposing to approve the 2002
base year PM2.5 emissions inventory in accordance with the
requirements of the Clean Air Act (CAA).
DATES: Written comments must be received on or before August 20, 2012.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID Number EPA-
R03-OAR-2010-0140 by one of the following methods:
A. www.regulations.gov. Follow the on-line instructions for
submitting comments.
B. Email: [email protected].
C. Mail: EPA-R03-OAR-2010-0140, Donna Mastro, Acting Associate
Director, Office of Air Program Planning, Mailcode 3AP30, U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency, Region III, 1650 Arch Street,
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103.
D. Hand Delivery: At the previously-listed EPA Region III address.
Such deliveries are only accepted during the Docket's normal hours of
operation, and special arrangements should be made for deliveries of
boxed information.
Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-R03-OAR-
2010-0140. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included
in the public docket without change, and may be made available online
at 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 information that you consider to
be CBI or otherwise protected through www.regulations.gov or email. The
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 email comment
directly to EPA without going through www.regulations.gov, your email
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.
Docket: All documents in the electronic docket are listed in the
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 www.regulations.gov or
in hard copy during normal business hours at the Air Protection
Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region III, 1650 Arch
Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103. Copies of the State submittal
are available at the Maryland Department of the Environment, 1800
Washington Boulevard, Suite 705, Baltimore, Maryland 21230.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Asrah Khadr, (215) 814-2071, or by
email at [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
II. Summary of SIP Revision
III. Proposed Action
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
I. Background
Throughout this document, whenever ``we,'' ``us,'' or ``our'' is
used, we mean EPA. On July 18, 1997 (62 FR 38652), EPA established the
1997 PM2.5 NAAQS, including an annual standard of 15.0
[micro]g/m\3\ based on a 3-year average of annual mean PM2.5
concentrations, and a 24-hour (or daily) standard of 65 [micro]g/m\3\
based on a 3-year average of the 98th percentile of 24-hour
concentrations. EPA established the standards based on significant
evidence and numerous health studies demonstrating that serious health
effects are associated with exposures to PM2.5.
Following promulgation of a new or revised NAAQS, EPA is required
by the CAA to designate areas throughout the United States as attaining
or not attaining the NAAQS; this designation process is described in
section 107(d)(1) of the CAA. In 1999, EPA and state air-quality
agencies initiated the monitoring process for the 1997 PM2.5
NAAQS and, by January 2001, established a complete set of air-quality
monitors. On January 5, 2005, EPA promulgated initial air-quality
designations for the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS (70 FR 944), which
became effective on April 5, 2005, based on air-quality monitoring data
for calendar years 2001-03.
On April 14, 2005, EPA promulgated a supplemental rule amending the
agency's initial designations (70 FR 19844), with the same effective
date (April 5, 2005) at 70 FR 944. As a result of this supplemental
rule, PM2.5 nonattainment designations are in effect for 39
areas, comprising 208 counties within 20 states (and the District of
Columbia) nationwide, with a combined population of approximately 88
million. The Maryland Area which is the subject of this rulemaking was
included in the list of areas not attaining the 1997 PM2.5
NAAQS. The Maryland Area consists of the following counties in
Maryland: Charles, Frederick, Montgomery and Prince Georges.
On January 12, 2009 (74 FR 1146), EPA determined that Maryland had
attained the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS in the Maryland Area. That
determination was based upon quality assured, quality controlled and
certified ambient air monitoring data that showed the Area had
monitored attainment of the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS for the 2004-
2006 monitoring period and that continued to show attainment of the
1997 PM2.5 NAAQS based on 2005-2007 data. The
[[Page 42687]]
January 12, 2009 determination suspended the requirements for Maryland
to submit an attainment demonstration, associated reasonably available
control measures, a reasonable further progress plan, contingency
measures, and other planning SIP revisions related to attainment of the
standard for so long as the nonattainment area continues to meet the
1997 PM2.5 NAAQS. On March 5, 2012, MDE submitted a request
for withdrawal of the Maryland 1997 PM2.5 SIP revisions
including the withdrawal of the attainment plan, analysis of reasonably
available control measures, attainment demonstration, contingency plans
and mobile source budgets. To meet the requirements of CAA section
172(c)(3), Maryland did not request the withdrawal of the 2002 base
year emission inventory portion of the 1997 PM2.5 SIP
revisions. Section 172(c)(3) of the CAA requires submission and
approval of a comprehensive, accurate, and current inventory of actual
emissions.
II. Summary of SIP Revision
The 2002 base year emission inventory submitted by MDE on April 3,
2008 includes emissions estimates that cover the general source
categories of point sources, non-road mobile sources, area sources, on-
road mobile sources, and biogenic sources. The pollutants that comprise
the inventory are nitrogen oxides (NOX), volatile organic
compounds (VOCs), PM2.5, coarse particles (PM10),
ammonia (NH3) and sulfur dioxide (SO2). EPA has
reviewed the results, procedures and methodologies for the base year
emissions inventory submitted by MDE. The year 2002 was selected by MDE
as the base year for the emissions inventory per 40 CFR 51.1008(b). A
discussion of the emissions inventory development as well as the
emissions inventory can be found in Appendix B of the April 3, 2008 SIP
submittal.
Table 1, below, provides a summary of the annual 2002 emissions of
NOX, VOCs, PM2.5, PM10, NH3
and SO2 which were included in the Maryland submittal.
Table 1--Emissions of Pollutants in Tons per Year (TPY)
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Pollutant NOX VOCs PM2.5 PM10 NH3 SO2
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Emissions (TPY)................................... 109,041.17 98,626.04 12,825.42 30,826.06 5,174.36 169,788.65
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The CAA section 172(c)(3) emissions inventory is developed by the
incorporation of data from multiple sources. States were required to
develop and submit to EPA a triennial emissions inventory according to
the Consolidated Emissions Reporting Rule (CERR) for all source
categories (i.e., point, area, nonroad mobile and on-road mobile). The
2002 emissions inventory was based on data developed by the MDE Air and
Radiation Management Administration (MDE-ARMA), the Maryland Department
of Transportation (MDOT), the Metropolitan Washington Council of
Government (MWCOG), and EPA for biogenic sources. The data were
developed according to current EPA emissions inventory guidance
``Emissions Inventory Guidance for Implementation of Ozone and
Particulate Matter NAAQS and Regional Haze Regulations,'' August 2005.
EPA preliminarily agrees that the process used to develop this
inventory and the emissions inventory is adequate to meet the
requirements of CAA section 172(c)(3), the implementing regulations,
and EPA guidance for emission inventories. More information regarding
the review of the base year inventory can be found in the technical
support document (TSD) titled ``2002 SIP Base Year Inventory'' that is
located in this docket.
III. Proposed Action
EPA is proposing to approve the 2002 base year emissions inventory
portion of the SIP revision submitted by the State of Maryland through
MDE on April 3, 2008. We have made the preliminary determination that
this action is consistent with section 110 of the CAA. EPA is
soliciting public comments on the issues discussed in this document.
These comments will be considered before taking final action.
IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
Under the CAA, the Administrator is required to approve a SIP
submission that complies with the provisions of the CAA and applicable
Federal regulations. 42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a). Thus, in
reviewing SIP submissions, EPA's role is to approve state choices,
provided that they meet the criteria of the CAA. Accordingly, this
action merely proposes to approve state law as meeting Federal
requirements and does not impose additional requirements beyond those
imposed by state law. For that reason, this proposed action:
Is not a ``significant regulatory action'' subject to
review by the Office of Management and Budget under Executive Order
12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993);
Does not impose an information collection burden under the
provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.);
Is certified as not having a significant economic impact
on a substantial number of small entities under the Regulatory
Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.);
Does not contain any unfunded mandate or significantly or
uniquely affect small governments, as described in the Unfunded
Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-4);
Does not have Federalism implications as specified in
Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999);
Is not an economically significant regulatory action based
on health or safety risks subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR
19885, April 23, 1997);
Is not a significant regulatory action subject to
Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001);
Is not subject to requirements of Section 12(d) of the
National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272
note) because application of those requirements would be inconsistent
with the CAA; and
Does not provide EPA with the discretionary authority to
address, as appropriate, disproportionate human health or environmental
effects, using practicable and legally permissible methods, under
Executive Order 12898 (59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994).
In addition, this proposed rule, pertaining to the PM2.5
2002 base year emissions inventory portion of the Maryland SIP, 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 in 40 CFR Part 52
Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Nitrogen dioxide,
Particulate matter, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Sulfur
oxides, Volatile organic compounds.
[[Page 42688]]
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Dated: July 10, 2012.
W.C. Early,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region III.
[FR Doc. 2012-17770 Filed 7-19-12; 8:45 am]
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