[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 56 (Thursday, March 22, 2018)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 12491-12493]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-05537]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[EPA-R07-OAR-2017-0208; FRL-9975-69--Region 7]
Approval of Implementation Plans; State of Iowa; Elements of the
Infrastructure SIP Requirements for the 2010 Nitrogen Dioxide National
Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS)
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Final rule.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking final
action to approve certain elements of Iowa's 2013 State Implementation
Plan (SIP) submission, and a 2017 amendment to that submission, for the
2010 Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) National Ambient Air Quality
Standard (NAAQS). States are required to have a SIP that provides for
the implementation, maintenance, and enforcement of the NAAQS. Whenever
EPA promulgates a new or revised NAAQS, states are required to make a
SIP submission establishing that the existing approved SIP has
provisions necessary to address various requirements to address the new
or revised NAAQS or to add such provisions. These SIPs are commonly
referred to as ``infrastructure'' SIPs. The infrastructure requirements
are designed to ensure that the structural components of each state's
air quality management program are adequate to meet the state's
responsibilities under the CAA.
DATES: This final rule is effective on April 23, 2018.
ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket ID
No. EPA-R07-OAR-2017-0208. All documents in the docket are listed on
the https://www.regulations.gov website. Although listed in the index,
some information is not publicly available, 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 through https://www.regulations.gov or please contact the person identified in the FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section for additional information.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Heather Hamilton, Environmental
Protection Agency, Air Planning and Development Branch, 11201 Renner
Boulevard, Lenexa, Kansas 66219 at (913) 551-7039, or by email at
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document ``we,'' ``us,'' and
``our'' refer to EPA. This section provides additional information by
addressing the following:
I. Background
II. What is being addressed in this document?
III. Have the requirements for approval of the SIP revisions been
met?
IV. EPA's response to comments
V. What action is EPA taking?
VI. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
I. Background
EPA received Iowa's initial 2010 NO2 NAAQS
infrastructure SIP submission on July 29, 2013. On March 9, 2017, EPA
received a revised submission addressing the requirements of section
110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I). On September 20, 2017, EPA proposed to approve
elements of the 2010 NO2 NAAQS infrastructure SIP submission
from the State of Iowa. See 82 FR 43925. In conjunction with the
September 20, 2017, notice of proposed rulemaking (NPR), EPA issued a
direct final rule (DFR) approving the same elements of the 2010
NO2 NAAQS infrastructure SIP. See 82 FR 43836. However, in
the DFR, EPA stated that if EPA received adverse comments by October
20, 2017, the action would be withdrawn and not take effect. EPA
received three comments prior to the close of the comment period; one
in favor of the rulemaking, and two adverse. EPA withdrew the DFR on
November-17,2017. See 82 FR 54299. This action is a final rule based on
the NPR. A detailed discussion of Iowa's SIP revision and EPA's
rationale for approving the SIP revision were provided in the DFR and
the associated Technical Support Document in the docket and will not be
restated here, except to the extent relevant to our response to the
public comment we received.
[[Page 12492]]
II. What is being addressed in this document?
EPA is approving certain elements of the 2010 NO2 NAAQS
infrastructure SIP submission from the State of Iowa received on July
29, 2013, and an amended SIP submission received on March 9, 2017.
Specifically, EPA is approving Iowa's submissions with regard to the
following elements of section 110(a)(2): (A), (B), (C), (D)(i)(I)--
significant contribution to nonattainment (prong 1), interfering with
maintenance of the NAAQS (prong 2) and (D)(i)(II)--prevent of
significant deterioration of air quality (prong 3), (D)(ii), (E)
through (H), and (J) through (M).
EPA is not acting at this time on section 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(II)--
protection of visibility (prong 4), which Iowa addressed in the
infrastructure SIP submission for the 2010 NO2 NAAQS.
III. Have the requirements for approval of the SIP revisions been met?
The state met the public notice requirements for SIP submissions in
accordance with 40 CFR 51.102. The state initiated public comment from
April 6, 2013, to May 8, 2013. One comment was received and adequately
addressed in the final SIP submission. The amended submission was
placed on public comment January 12, 2017, to February 15, 2017. No
comments were received. These submissions also satisfied the
completeness criteria of 40 CFR part 51, appendix V. In addition, as
explained above and in more detail in the technical support document
which is part of the docket for this rulemaking, the submissions met
the applicable substantive SIP requirements of the CAA, including
section 110 and implementing regulations.
IV. EPA's Response to Comments
The public comment period on EPA's proposed rule opened September
20, 2017, the date of its publication in the Federal Register, and
closed on October 20, 2017. During this period, EPA received three
public comments on the proposal to approve certain elements of Iowa's
2010 NO2 infrastructure SIP submission, one of which is
addressed below. The second comment was supportive of EPA's proposed
approval and the third was not specific to this action, which is
concerned with evaluating whether Iowa has the required elements in
place to implement, maintain, and enforce the NAAQS, and thus no
further response is required.
Comment: The commenter stated that EPA must act on the visibility
portion of the state's submission (110(a)(2)(D)(II)--prong 4, and that
EPA does not have the discretionary authority to not act on a state's
submission. The commenter indicated that if EPA does not believe the
Regional Haze program is approvable, then EPA should disapprove the
state's plan.
EPA's response: EPA disagrees with this comment. We are not
required to act on the prong 4 element of Iowa's 2010 NO2
infrastructure SIP submission in this particular rulemaking. Although
EPA agrees with the commenter that it has an obligation to take action
under section 110(k) on SIP submissions, we disagree with the argument
that the Agency cannot elect to act on individual parts or elements of
a state's infrastructure SIP submission in separate rulemakings, as it
deems appropriate. Section 110(k) of the CAA authorizes EPA to approve
a SIP submission in full, disapprove it in full, or approve it in part
and disapprove it in part, or conditionally approve it in full or in
part, depending on the extent to which such plan meets the requirements
of the CAA. This authority to approve state SIP submissions in
separable parts was included in the 1990 Amendments to the CAA to
overrule a decision in the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
holding that EPA could not approve individual measures in a SIP
submission without either approving or disapproving the plan as a
whole. See S. Rep. No. 101-228, at 22, 1990 U.S.C.C.A.N. 3385, 3408
(discussing the express overruling of Abramowitz v. EPA, 832 F.2d 1071
(9th Cir. 1987)).
EPA interprets its authority under section 110(k) of the CAA as
affording the Agency the discretion to approve, disapprove, or
conditionally approve, individual elements of Iowa's infrastructure SIP
submission for the 2010 NO2 NAAQS. EPA views discrete
infrastructure SIP requirements, such as the requirements of
110(a)(2)(D)(i)(II), as severable from other infrastructure SIP
elements and interprets section 110(k) as allowing it to act on
individual severable elements or requirements in a SIP submission. In
short, EPA has the discretion under section 110(k) of the CAA to act
upon the various individual elements of a state's infrastructure SIP
submission, separately or together, as appropriate. EPA will address
the remaining element of Iowa's 2010 NO2 infrastructure SIP
submission in a separate rulemaking action or actions.
With respect to Iowa's regional haze program, although EPA's
evaluation of prong 4 can be related to the status of such a
program,\1\ it is not relevant here because EPA is not taking action on
prong 4 in this rulemaking.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ EPA's 2013 Guidance of Infrastructure State Implementation
Plan (SIP) Elements under Clean Air Act Sections 110(a)(1) and
110(a)(2) provides that ``[o]ne way in which prong 4 may be
satisfied for any relevant NAAQS is through an air agency's
confirmation in its infrastructure SIP submission that it has an
approved regional haze SIP. . .'' 2013 Guidance at 33, https://www3.epa.gov/airquality/urbanair/sipstatus/docs/Guidance_on_Infrastructure_SIP_Elements_Multipollutant_FINAL_Sept_2013.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
V. What action is EPA taking?
EPA is taking final action to approve the following elements of
section 110(a)(2) contained in Iowa's 2013 and 2017 SIP submissions:
(A), (B), (C), (D)(i)(I)--significant contribution to nonattainment
(prong 1), interfering with maintenance of the NAAQS (prong 2) and
(D)(i)(II)--prevent significant deterioration of air quality (prong 3),
(D)(ii), (E) through (H), and (J) through (M). The March 1, 2017, SIP
amendment revised 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I).
EPA is not taking action on section 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(II), prong 4.
The agency will act on this element of the SIP submission in a separate
rulemaking action.
VI. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
Under the Clean Air Act, the Administrator is required to approve a
SIP submission that complies with the provisions of the Act and
applicable Federal regulations. 42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a).
Thus, in reviewing SIP submissions, EPA's role is to approve state
choices, provided that they meet the criteria of the CAA. Accordingly,
this action merely approves state law as meeting Federal requirements
and does not impose additional requirements beyond those imposed by
state law. For that reason, this action:
Is not a significant regulatory action subject to review
by the Office of Management and Budget under Executive Orders 12866 (58
FR 51735, October 4, 1993) and 13563 (76 FR 3821, January 21, 2011);
Is not an Executive Order 13771 (82 FR 9339, February 2,
2017) regulatory action because SIP approvals are exempted under
Executive Order 12866.
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.);
[[Page 12493]]
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 Clean Air Act; 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, the SIP is not approved to apply on any Indian
reservation land or in any other area where EPA or an Indian tribe has
demonstrated that a tribe has jurisdiction. In those areas of Indian
country, the rule does not have tribal implications and will not impose
substantial direct costs on tribal governments or preempt tribal law as
specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000).
The Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 801 et seq., as added by the
Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, generally
provides that before a rule may take effect, the agency promulgating
the rule must submit a rule report, which includes a copy of the rule,
to each House of the Congress and to the Comptroller General of the
United States. EPA will submit a report containing this action and
other required information to the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House of
Representatives, and the Comptroller General of the United States prior
to publication of the rule in the Federal Register. A major rule cannot
take effect until 60 days after it is published in the Federal
Register. This action is not a ``major rule'' as defined by 5 U.S.C.
804(2).
Under section 307(b)(1) of the Clean Air Act, petitions for
judicial review of this action must be filed in the United States Court
of Appeals for the appropriate circuit by May 21, 2018. Filing a
petition for reconsideration by the Administrator of this final rule
does not affect the finality of this action for the purposes of
judicial review nor does it extend the time within which a petition for
judicial review may be filed, and shall not postpone the effectiveness
of such rule or action. This action may not be challenged later in
proceedings to enforce its requirements. (See section 307(b)(2).)
List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52
Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Incorporation by
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen Dioxide, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements.
Dated: March 7, 2018.
James B. Gulliford,
Regional Administrator, Region 7.
For the reasons stated in the preamble, EPA amends 40 CFR part 52
as set forth below:
PART 52--APPROVAL AND PROMULGATION OF IMPLEMENTATION PLANS
0
1. The authority citation for part 52 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Subpart Q--Iowa
0
2. Section 52.820 is amended by adding paragraph (e)(48) to read as
follows:
Sec. 52.820 Identification of plan.
* * * * *
(e) * * *
EPA-Approved Iowa Nonregulatory SIP Provisions
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Applicable
Name of nonregulatory SIP geographic or State submittal
revision nonattainment date EPA approval date Explanation
area
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* * * * * * *
(48) Sections 110(a)(1) and (2) Statewide........ 7/23/2013, 3/1/ 3/22/2018, This action addresses
Infrastructure Requirements 2017. [Insert Federal the following CAA
2010 Nitrogen Dioxide NAAQS. Register elements:
citation]. 110(a)(2)(A), (B),
(C), (D)(i)(I) prongs
1 and 2, D(i)(II)
prong 3 only, D(ii),
(E), (F), (G), (H),
(J), (K), (L), and
(M). [EPA-R07-OAR-
2017-0208; FRL-9975-
69--Region 7].
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[FR Doc. 2018-05537 Filed 3-21-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P