[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 110 (Monday, June 9, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32948-32953]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-13425]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[EPA-HQ-OAR-2014-0410; FRL-9911-98-OAR]
Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program: Publication of Aggregated
Greenhouse Gas Data
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) intends to publish
aggregated versions of certain data collected under the Greenhouse Gas
Reporting Program, including totals, averages, and other aggregated
versions of data submitted by individual reporters. The data that we
intend to aggregate were determined in previous rulemakings to be
confidential business information in their original, non-aggregated
form. This notice describes the criteria we plan to use to determine
whether confidential data are sufficiently aggregated such that
publishing them would provide useful information while protecting the
data that are entitled to confidentiality. In a memorandum to the
docket for this notice, we also provide a list of data elements that we
have identified for possible future publication in aggregated form if
they meet the final version of these criteria.
DATES: Comments. Comments must be received on or before July 9, 2014.
Public Hearing. The EPA does not plan to conduct a public hearing
unless requested. To request a hearing, please contact the person
listed in the following FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section by June
16, 2014. If requested, the hearing will be conducted on June 24, 2014
in the Washington, DC area. The EPA will provide further information
about the hearing on the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule Web site, http://www.epa.gov/ghgreporting/index.html if a hearing is requested.
ADDRESSES: You may submit your comments, identified by docket ID No.
EPA-HQ-OAR-2014-0410, by any of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.
Email: [email protected]. Include docket ID No. EPA-
HQ-OAR-2014-0410 [and/or RIN number] in the subject line of the
message.
Fax: (202) 566-9744.
Mail: Environmental Protection Agency, EPA Docket Center
(EPA/DC), Mailcode 28221T, Attention Docket ID No. OAR-2014-0410, 1200
Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20460.
Hand/Courier Delivery: EPA Docket Center, Room 3334, EPA
WJC West Building, 1301 Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20004.
Such deliveries are accepted only 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-HQ-OAR-
2014-0410. The 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 information
that you consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through http://www.regulations.gov or email. The http://www.regulations.gov Web site
is an ``anonymous access'' system, which means the 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 the EPA
without going through http://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, the 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 the EPA cannot read your comment
due to technical difficulties and cannot contact you for clarification,
the 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 docket are listed in the http://www.regulations.gov index. Although listed in the index, some
information is not publicly available (e.g., CBI or other information
whose disclosure is restricted by statute). Certain other material,
such as copyrighted material, will be publicly available only in hard
copy. Publicly available docket materials are available either
electronically in http://www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the Air
Docket, EPA/DC, Room 3334, EPA WJC West Building, 1301 Constitution
Ave. NW., Washington, DC.
This Docket Facility is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday
through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the
Public Reading Room is (202) 566-1744, and the telephone number for the
Air Docket is (202) 566-1742.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Carole Cook, Climate Change Division,
Office of Atmospheric Programs (MC-6207J), Environmental Protection
Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone
number: (202) 343-9263; fax number: (202) 343-2342; email address:
[email protected]. For technical information, please go to the
Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule Program Web site http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/emissions/ghgrulemaking.html. To submit a question,
select Rule Help Center, followed by ``Contact Us.''
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Worldwide Web (WWW). In addition to being
available in the docket, an electronic copy of today's notice will also
be available through the WWW. Following the Director's signature, a
copy of this action will be posted on EPA's greenhouse gas reporting
rule Web site at http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/emissions/ghgrulemaking.html.
Organization of This Document. The following outline is provided to
aid in locating information in this preamble.
I. General Information
A. Does this notice apply to me?
B. How can I get copies of this document and other related
information?
C. What should I consider as I prepare my comments to the EPA?
II. Background and Purpose of Notice
III. Description of Rationale and Criteria for
[[Page 32949]]
Data Aggregation
A. Rationale for CBI Data Aggregation
B. Criteria for Data Aggregation and Publication
C. Data Elements Proposed for Aggregation and Publication
D. Data Publication Process and Availability
E. Request for Comments
I. General Information
A. Does this notice apply to me?
This notice is directed to the general public. However, this action
may be of particular interest to parties subject to the requirements of
40 CFR part 98. If you have further questions regarding the
applicability of this action to a particular party, please contact the
person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section.
B. How can I get copies of this document and other related information?
1. Electronically
The EPA has included a public docket for this Federal Register
notice under Docket EPA-HQ-OAR-2014-0410. All documents in the docket
are identified in the docket index available at http://www.regulations.gov. Although listed in the index, some information is
not publicly available, such as CBI or other information for which
disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain materials, such as
copyrighted material, will be available only in hard copy at the EPA
Docket Center.
2. EPA Docket Center
Materials listed under Docket EPA-HQ-OAR-2014-0410 will be
available for public viewing at http://www.regulations.gov and at the
EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), Room 3334, EPA WJC West Building, 1301
Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20004. The EPA Docket Center
Public Reading Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through
Friday, excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the Reading
Room is (202) 566-1744, and the telephone number for the Air Docket is
(202) 566-1742.
C. What should I consider as I prepare my comments to the EPA?
1. Submitting CBI in Response to This Notice
Clearly mark the part or all of the comments that you claim to be
CBI submitted in response to this notice. For CBI information in a disk
or CD ROM that you mail to the EPA, mark the outside of the disk or CD
ROM as CBI and then identify electronically within the disk or CD ROM
the specific information that is claimed as CBI. In addition to one
complete version of the comment that includes information claimed as
CBI, submit a copy of the comment that does not contain the information
claimed as CBI for inclusion in the public docket. Information marked
as CBI will not be disclosed except in accordance with procedures set
forth in 40 CFR part 2.
Do not submit information that you consider to be CBI or otherwise
protected through http://www.regulations.gov or email. Send or deliver
information identified as CBI to only the mail or hand/courier delivery
address listed above, attention: Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2014-0410.
If you have any questions about CBI or the procedures for claiming
CBI, please consult the person identified in the FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT section.
2. Tips for Preparing Your Comments
Follow directions. The EPA may ask you to respond to specific
questions or organize comments by referencing a CFR part or section
number. Explain why you agree or disagree and suggest alternatives for
your requested changes. Describe any assumptions and provide any
technical information and or data that you used. Provide specific
examples to illustrate your concerns and suggest alternatives. Explain
your views as clearly as possible, avoiding the use of profanity or
personal threats.
Make sure to submit your information and comments by the comment
period deadline identified in the preceding section titled DATES. To
ensure proper receipt by the EPA, be sure to identify this notice by
the docket ID number assigned to this action in the subject line on the
first page of your response. You may also provide the name, date, and
Federal Register citation.
II. Background and Purpose of Notice
Background. The EPA's Office of Atmospheric Programs (OAP) has
responsibility for protecting public health and the environment by
addressing climate change, protecting the ozone layer, and improving
regional air quality. In response to the FY2008 Consolidated
Appropriations Act (H.R. 2764; Pub. L. 110-161), the EPA created the
Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP), 40 CFR part 98 (Part 98),
which requires reporting of greenhouse gas (GHG) data and other
relevant information from large sources and suppliers in the United
States. The purpose of Part 98 is to collect accurate and timely GHG
data to inform future policy decisions.
Through a series of rulemaking actions, the EPA determined which
categories of data elements meet the statutory and regulatory criteria
for protection as CBI. For information on the history of
confidentiality determinations for Part 98 data elements, see the
following notices:
75 FR 39094, July 7, 2010. Described the EPA's intent to
make categorical CBI determinations for Part 98 data and proposed data
categories for the Part 98 data elements.
76 FR 30782, May 26, 2011. Assigned data elements to data
categories and published the final CBI determinations for the data
elements to be reported under 34 Part 98 subparts, except for those
data elements that were assigned to the ``Inputs to Emission
Equations'' data category. Finalized amendments to 40 CFR part 2
governing CBI obtained under Part 98 that allow the EPA to release or
withhold data elements according to final categorical confidentiality
determinations.
77 FR 48072, August 13, 2012. Finalized confidentiality
determinations for data elements to be reported under nine subparts,
except for those data elements that were assigned to the ``Inputs to
Emission Equations'' data category, and finalized confidentiality
determinations for new data elements recently added to two subparts.
77 FR 51477, August 24, 2012. Finalized confidentiality
determinations for new data elements added to subpart L.
78 FR 68162, November 13, 2013. Finalized confidentiality
determinations for new or substantially revised data elements in this
rule for subpart I.
78 FR 71904, November 29, 2013. Finalized confidentiality
determinations for new or substantially revised data elements in this
rule for 15 subparts.
Data elements determined to be CBI are handled in accordance with
the EPA's regulations in 40 CFR part 2, subpart B, and with EPA
procedures that are consistent with those regulations.
Purpose. The EPA seeks to publish aggregated versions of data that
were previously determined by regulation to be CBI when reported by
individual facilities and suppliers, as described in the Background
section above. The EPA plans to use the aggregated data in developing
the Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks (Inventory)
that the EPA compiles annually as well as for other purposes. The
purpose of this notice is twofold: 1) to describe and seek comment on
the overarching criteria that EPA plans to use to evaluate whether data
that have been determined to be CBI when
[[Page 32950]]
reported by individual facilities and suppliers are sufficiently
aggregated so as not to disclose any underlying confidential data; and
2) to identify (in a memorandum in the docket for this notice) and seek
comment on a specific list of data elements that EPA is presently
considering for publication in aggregated form. (A memorandum titled
``Publication of Certain Aggregated Greenhouse Gas Data,'' associated
with this Federal Register notice and placed in the docket for this
notice, contains this list of data elements.) Although the EPA's CBI
regulations do not require us to publish a Federal Register notice or
take public comment in advance of publishing aggregated data, we are
publishing this notice and requesting comment because we anticipate a
high level of stakeholder interest. Section III.A of this notice
describes the rationale for publishing these data elements in
aggregated form, and Section III.B of this notice describes the
criteria we plan to apply to each aggregated value to determine whether
it can be published without disclosing any underlying confidential
facility-level or supplier-level data. Section III.C describes the data
elements that the EPA presently seeks to aggregate. Section III.D
describes the process that the EPA will follow for publication of
aggregated values, and Section III.E describes the aspects of this
notice for which we are seeking comment.
III. Description of Rationale and Criteria for Data Aggregation
A. Rationale for CBI Data Aggregation
The EPA's primary purpose in aggregating GHGRP data is for use in
the Inventory. As a party to the United Nations Framework Convention on
Climate Change (UNFCCC), the United States participates in ongoing
negotiations with the international community to promote global
cooperation on climate change. The UNFCCC treaty, ratified by the
United States in 1992, sets an overall framework for intergovernmental
efforts to address the challenges posed by climate change.\1\ As part
of its commitment to the UNFCCC, the United States submits the
Inventory to the Secretariat of the UNFCCC as an annual reporting
requirement.\2\ The Inventory is a comprehensive assessment of U.S. GHG
emissions based on national-level data; it is prepared by the EPA's
Office of Air and Radiation in coordination with other federal agencies
and with consideration of public input.
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\1\ See: United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change,
1992. Available at: http://unfccc.int/resource/docs/convkp/conveng.pdf. For more information about the UNFCCC, please refer to:
http://www.unfccc.int.
\2\ See: Articles 4 and 12 of the Convention on Climate Change.
Parties to the Convention, by ratifying, ``shall develop,
periodically update, publish and make available . . . national
inventories of anthropogenic emissions by sources and removals by
sinks of all greenhouse gases not controlled by the Montreal
Protocol, using comparable methodologies . . ..''
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As described in the preamble of the proposed GHG Reporting Rule (74
FR 16448, April 10, 2009), the GHGRP is intended to supplement and
complement existing U.S. government programs related to climate policy
and research, including the Inventory. The GHGRP provides data to
develop and inform inventories and other U.S. climate programs by
advancing the understanding of emission processes from individual
facilities and suppliers above certain thresholds. Collected facility-,
unit-, and process-level GHG data from the GHGRP provide or help
improve the national statistics and emission estimates presented in the
Inventory. Aggregation of the GHGRP data described in this notice will
support the development and quality assurance/quality control of the
Inventory.
As also noted in the preamble of the proposed GHG Reporting Rule
(74 FR 16448), the GHGRP was developed, in large part, to collect
comprehensive and accurate data to inform future climate policy
development and support a range of possible policies and regulations.
The EPA described the importance of transparency in informing the
public, building public confidence in the data, and ensuring data
quality, which support the development of potential future climate
policies or programs. The EPA believes that publication of aggregated
GHGRP data helps to accomplish all of these goals.
Accordingly, the EPA plans to publish certain data, which
previously were determined to be CBI in the non-aggregated form in
which they are initially reported, in an aggregated format that we
believe no longer qualifies as CBI. As we have noted in other
rulemakings (e.g., 75 FR 39094, 77 FR 51477), it is possible to
aggregate facility- or supplier-level data in ways that do not disclose
any of the underlying CBI data. For example, national production totals
can often provide useful and important information to the public
without the risk of revealing confidential data about a specific
facility or supplier.
The EPA is guided in this process by EPA regulations, federal
policies, and executive orders. The EPA's regulations concerning
protection of CBI suggest that aggregating this information can shield
the underlying confidential information and may be sufficient to
protect the reporters of that information from suffering substantial
competitive harm.\3\
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\3\ ``In taking actions under this subpart, EPA offices should
consider whether it is possible to obtain the affected business's
consent to disclosure of useful portions of records while protecting
the information which is or may be entitled to confidentiality
(e.g., by withholding such portions of a record as would identify a
business, or by disclosing data in the form of industry-wide
aggregates, multi-year averages or totals, or some similar form).''
40 CFR 2.202(f). Available at: http://www.epa.gov/epafoia1/2202.htm.
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Government agencies and industry organizations routinely publish
data in an aggregated format as a means of providing important
information to the public while maintaining the confidentiality of
individual companies. For example, the U.S. Energy Information
Administration (EIA) publishes natural gas liquid production data by
region or Petroleum Administration for Defense District (PADD) to mask
data reported by individual companies.\4\ The Department of Labor's
Bureau of Labor Statistics aggregates employment and wage data by
county and industry in the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages,\5\
while suppressing data that would reveal information about individual
companies. The Census Bureau requests data from individual respondents
in the American Community Survey, which is aggregated to limit the
disclosure of information about individual respondents.\6\ The U.S.
Geological Survey (USGS) collects minerals data from thousands of
mineral industry companies; USGS is required by law to protect
proprietary information from unauthorized disclosure but publishes
aggregated versions of many of these data sets.\7\
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\4\ See: U.S. Energy Information Administration. ``Monthly
Natural Gas Gross Production Report.'' (Mar. 31, 2014). Available
at: http://www.eia.gov/oil_gas/natural_gas/data_publications/eia914/eia914.html.
\5\ See: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics.
``Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages.'' (Mar. 20, 2014)
Available at: http://www.bls.gov/cew/.
\6\ See: U.S. Census Bureau. ``American Community Survey: Data
Suppression.'' (Nov. 15, 2013). Available at: http://www.census.gov/acs/www/Downloads/data_documentation/data_suppression/ACSO_Data_Suppression.pdf.
\7\ See: U.S. Geological Survey. ``Proprietary Data: How They
Are Protected at the U.S. Geological Survey.''
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Many industry organizations use this approach as well. For example,
the American Petroleum Institute, in coordination with several other
industry organizations, collects natural gas liquid production and
sales data from its members and publishes the data
[[Page 32951]]
aggregated to the state and PADD levels.\8\ Additionally, the Air-
Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute, a trade association
of equipment, chemical, and component manufacturers, publishes monthly
and annual reports of U.S. manufactured shipments of central air
conditioning and air-source heat pump systems, among other types of
products, aggregated across all of its members.\9\
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\8\ See: American Petroleum Institute. ``2012 Sales of Natural
Gas Liquids and Liquid Refinery Gases.'' (Dec. 2013).
\9\ See: Air-Conditioning, Heating & Refrigeration Institute.
``Monthly Shipments.'' (2013). Available at: http://www.ahrinet.org/monthly+shipments.aspx.
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Consistent with this approach, the EPA plans to publish select
aggregated Part 98 data at levels that ensure confidentiality of
underlying facility- or supplier-level CBI data. To guide us in making
these determinations, we have developed the criteria outlined in
Section III.B of this preamble for reviewing aggregated values prior to
publication.
B. Criteria for Data Aggregation and Publication
The EPA recognizes that careful consideration and review of
aggregated values are necessary to ensure that underlying CBI is
sufficiently masked. This requires ensuring that the aggregated data do
not disclose underlying CBI data or allow the CBI to be computed, back-
calculated, or otherwise discerned using other Part 98 data or
additional data. To assist with this analysis, the GHGRP has developed
a set of criteria to evaluate whether a given aggregation sufficiently
masks underlying CBI.
In developing these criteria, the GHGRP reviewed existing,
effective criteria, methods, and principles used by other EPA offices
and federal agencies that publish aggregated versions of individual
companies' confidential or proprietary data, including the USGS's
National Minerals Information Center, the Energy Information
Administration, and the EPA's Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution
Prevention. The criteria that the EPA has developed for publishing
aggregated GHGRP data are comparable in their rigor to the criteria or
principles used by these programs.
Consistent with these goals, we have considered methods for the EPA
to publish aggregated versions of GHGRP data elements that are not
likely to cause substantial competitive harm and that do not disclose
the underlying facility- or supplier-level CBI.
1. Criteria for Aggregating Data at the National or Regional Level
The GHGRP has established overarching criteria that we plan to use
to determine under what circumstances it is appropriate to publish
aggregated data. The EPA plans to apply these criteria to the specific
list of data elements included in the memorandum titled ``Publication
of Certain Aggregated Greenhouse Gas Data'' associated with this
Federal Register notice and to future data aggregation efforts. Over
time, the EPA may identify additional data that would be useful to
publish, and plans to use these criteria as a basis for this
aggregation.
To determine whether a particular data element aggregated at the
national or regional level may be published without risk of disclosing
any facility- or supplier-level CBI, the EPA intends to assess the data
aggregation according to the following criteria. In line with the other
programs and offices described above, the EPA has determined that if
the data element aggregated at the national or regional level meets all
four criteria, then the data may be published without disclosing
underlying CBI.
1a. The data used to calculate the aggregated value must be
reported by at least three separate facilities or suppliers that have
no common ownership or operator.
2a. No single owner or operator can contribute more than x percent
to a particular aggregated value. (The EPA will not disclose the value
of x.)
3a. No two owners or operators can contribute more than y percent
of a particular aggregated value. (The EPA will not disclose the value
of y.)
4a. No underlying facility- or supplier-level CBI can be back-
calculated or otherwise determined using the aggregated value in
combination with other publicly available data, including any facility-
, supplier-, regional-, or national-level data published by the GHGRP
or any other data likely to be available to owners or operators.
The EPA will publish only aggregated values that meet all four
criteria. Combined, the criteria ensure that publishing aggregated
values that meet the criteria would not inadvertently disclose
facility- or supplier-level CBI. For example, if five facilities
reported a particular data element and one company has part or total
ownership of four of the five facilities, criterion 1a would not be met
and the EPA would not release the aggregated value. Similarly, if the
data reported by one or two companies comprise the vast majority
(greater than the value of x or y described above, respectively) of the
aggregated value reported, then criteria 2a and 3a would not be met and
the EPA would not release the aggregated data. Finally, if other public
data could be used in combination with the aggregated value to
calculate or otherwise estimate CBI reported by a facility or supplier,
criterion 4a would not be met. For example, if a data element is
aggregated by region and all but one regional aggregation meet the
criteria, publishing the values from all of the other regions would
allow the data for the final region to be back-calculated if the
national total is also published. In this case, the EPA would withhold
data from at least one other region.
The values selected for x and y in criteria 2a and 3a above will be
sufficient to ensure protection for the CBI reported by individual
facilities and suppliers. As stated in the above criteria, we do not
plan to make public the values of x and y. The EPA has determined that
releasing these values could in certain circumstances provide a
reporting company with insight into the CBI reported by competitors.
For example, the data reported by one company that is dominant in its
market may be slightly above the percentage threshold for criterion 2a
(the x value) in a certain reporting year but below the threshold in a
subsequent reporting year. In such situations, the EPA would not
publish the aggregated value for the first reporting year, but may
choose to publish the aggregated value in subsequent reporting years
(provided all other criteria are met). If the EPA disclosed the value
of x, competitors would know that the dominant company's share of that
data element decreased and the dominant company's approximate portion
of the aggregated total.
2. Criteria for Aggregating Supplier Data at the Corporate Level in
Subparts OO, PP, and QQ
Some individual suppliers that report data under Part 98 subparts
OO (Suppliers of Industrial Greenhouse Gases), PP (Suppliers of Carbon
Dioxide), and QQ (Importers and Exporters of Fluorinated Greenhouse
Gases Contained in Pre-Charged Equipment or Closed-Cell Foams) report
data about multiple industrial gases. The EPA intends to aggregate
these data, in units of carbon dioxide equivalent, across products or
product types at the corporate level to increase transparency by
providing the general public with the total potential GHG emissions
associated with industrial gases supplied into the economy by each
[[Page 32952]]
reporting corporation and to provide the ability to track how this
quantity changes over time.
The memorandum titled ``Publication of Certain Aggregated
Greenhouse Gas Data'' lists certain subpart OO, PP, and QQ data
elements that the EPA may aggregate and publish across multiple
products or product types from a single company. As above, the EPA will
only aggregate and publish this CBI if the following criteria are met.
1b. The aggregated value includes information from two or more
products supplied by the reporter.
2b. No single product can contribute more than z percent of the
corporate-level total to a particular aggregated value. (The EPA will
not disclose the value of z.)
3b. Publication of the data does not allow for values (from another
owner) that do not themselves meet criteria 1b and 2b to be back-
calculated from national- or regional-level data aggregations.
4b. If a company reports data on only a single product type (e.g.,
under subpart QQ), the products within that product type contain
different GHGs, different amounts of that GHG per product, or both.
As above, the value selected for z in criterion 2b above will be
sufficient to ensure protection for the CBI reported by individual
suppliers, and the EPA does not intend to make that value public. For
supplier data aggregated at the corporate level, if the data element
includes information from only one product supplied by the reporter,
then criterion 1b would not be met and the value would not be
published. Similarly, if one product supplied comprises more than z
percent of the corporate-level total of the aggregated value, then
criterion 2b would not be met and the EPA would not publish the
aggregated value. If publishing corporate-level data from Owners A and
B would allow for the back-calculation of data from Owner C, which
would otherwise have been protected because it did not meet criteria 1b
and 2b, then criterion 3b would not be met and the EPA would not
publish the aggregated value from Owners A and/or B.
C. Data Elements Proposed for Aggregation and Publication
The EPA reviewed the Part 98 data categorized as CBI and has
identified a selection of data elements that, in aggregated form, would
be used to improve or check the Inventory or otherwise inform policy-
makers and the public. To determine whether these data aggregations
could be published without disclosing the underlying facility- or
supplier-level CBI, we will apply the final version of the criteria
described above to each aggregated value. The memorandum titled
``Publication of Certain Aggregated Greenhouse Gas Data'' associated
with this Federal Register notice contains a list of data elements that
the EPA is presently considering for aggregation if they meet the final
criteria for publication that the EPA adopts after considering comment
on this notice. The aggregated values would likely be published on an
annual basis, as long as they continue to meet the final criteria.
Additional information regarding the publication of data in future
years is provided in Section III.D of this notice.
D. Data Publication Process and Availability
The EPA will publish only aggregated versions of data that were
previously determined to be CBI in non-aggregated form in accordance
with the EPA's CBI regulations at 40 CFR part 2, subpart B. With regard
to the overarching criteria described in this notice, the EPA will
consider comments received and anticipates publishing the final
aggregation criteria. With regard to the specific list of data elements
listed in the memorandum titled ``Publication of Certain Aggregated
Greenhouse Gas Data,'' the EPA will consider comments on this notice
and evaluate the possible aggregations against the final criteria to
determine which of the data elements may be published in aggregated
form. The EPA will then individually notify each affected reporter (in
writing and in a manner providing confirmation of receipt, as specified
under the EPA's CBI regulations at 40 CFR 2.204(e)(1)) about which of
that reporter's data elements the EPA intends to aggregate and the
intended level of aggregation. The EPA will then give the reporter at
least 10 days to file for judicial review, as required under 40 CFR
2.205(f)(2), before we publicly release any aggregated values.
The data elements listed in the memorandum titled ``Publication of
Certain Aggregated Greenhouse Gas Data'' are the data elements that the
EPA is presently considering publishing in aggregated form, provided
they meet the final aggregation criteria that the EPA adopts. For
aggregated values to be published in any future year, the final
criteria must be met for the relevant data element(s) for that
particular year. In the future, we may find that publication of
additional aggregated values would be useful to Inventory compilation,
policy-makers, or the public. In that case, we would evaluate the
aggregations to determine whether they meet the relevant final
criteria, individually notify each affected reporter and wait at least
10 days before releasing the aggregated values, as described above. We
would not necessarily publish additional Federal Register notices
concerning publication of additional aggregated values.
The EPA plans to make the aggregated Part 98 data available in
various formats and sources as appropriate to the data element,
including the Inventory, the EPA's Facility Level Information on
GreenHouse gases Tool (FLIGHT), the EPA's Envirofacts Web site, and EPA
downloadable data files available on the EPA Web site. The published
data will not include non-aggregated facility or supplier data that
have been categorized as CBI or aggregated values that would reveal
underlying facility- or supplier-level CBI.
E. Request for Comments
We are soliciting comment on the rationale and criteria we plan to
use to determine which data elements can be aggregated and published
without disclosing underlying facility- or supplier-level CBI. If you
believe that one or more of the criteria are either too stringent or
not stringent enough, provide a detailed explanation of (1) why you
believe this to be true and (2) what changes to the proposed criteria
should be made or what alternative criteria should be adopted.
Providing specific scenarios to illustrate either the effectiveness or
ineffectiveness of the criteria would be particularly useful. We are
soliciting comments on appropriate values for x, y, and z in criteria
2a, 3a and 2b (including whether these values must be consistent across
subparts) and on our intent not to make those values publicly
available.
We are also soliciting comments on whether aggregation and
publication of the specific data elements identified in the memorandum
titled ``Publication of Certain Aggregated Greenhouse Gas Data'' would
disclose underlying CBI or otherwise would likely result in substantial
competitive harm to a particular company. Please identify the specific
data element and level of aggregation and explain how the public
release of that particular value would or would not be likely to result
in disclosure of underlying facility- or supplier-level CBI or
otherwise cause substantial competitive harm. If you believe that the
publication of any of the aggregated data identified in the memorandum
associated with this Federal Register notice would be likely to
disclose CBI or otherwise cause substantial competitive harm, explain
the mechanism by which this would
[[Page 32953]]
occur. If your concern is that the release of aggregated value for a
particular data element would allow competitors to derive the value for
an individual facility or supplier, specifically describe the pathway
by which this could occur. Describe any unique process or aspect of a
facility or supplier that would be revealed if the aggregated value for
a specific data element were made publicly available.
If the aggregated value would disclose underlying CBI only when
used in combination with other publicly available data, then identify
the information you believe could be revealed, describe how it would be
calculated or otherwise discerned, explain why you consider the
information to be sensitive, describe the competitive harm that its
disclosure would be likely to cause, and identify the source of the
other data. If the data are physically published, such as in a book,
industry trade publication, or federal agency publication, provide the
title, volume number (if applicable), author(s), publisher, publication
date, frequency of publication, and International Standard Book Number
(ISBN), or other identifier. For data published on a Web site, provide
the address of the Web site and the date you last visited the Web site
and identify the Web site publisher and content author.
We are also interested in comments identifying any publicly
available sources of information containing the specific data
aggregation in question. Discuss how these aggregated values may be
different from or similar to data that are already publicly available.
In your comments, please identify the manner and location in which the
aggregated value for each specific data element you identify is
available, including a citation. If the data are physically published,
such as in a book, industry trade publication, or federal agency
publication, provide the title, volume number (if applicable),
author(s), publisher, publication date, frequency of publication, and
ISBN, or other identifier. For data published on a Web site, provide
the address of the Web site and the date you last visited the Web site
and identify the Web site publisher and content author.
Avoid conclusory and unsubstantiated statements or general
assertions regarding potential harm. Please be as specific as possible
in your comments and include all information necessary for the EPA to
evaluate your comments.
Parties who wish further information about this Federal Register
notice or about OAP's aggregation of information designated or claimed
as CBI may contact the person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT section.
Dated: June 2, 2014.
Paul Gunning,
Acting Director, Office of Atmospheric Programs.
[FR Doc. 2014-13425 Filed 6-6-14; 8:45 am]
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