[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 166 (Tuesday, August 29, 2017)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 40953-40957]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-18213]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Parts 52 and 81
[EPA-R04-OAR-2017-0085; FRL-9966-92-Region 4]
Air Plan Approval and Air Quality Designation; TN; Redesignation
of the Knoxville 1997 Annual PM2.5 Nonattainment Area to
Attainment
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: On December 20, 2016, Tennessee, through the Tennessee
Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC), submitted a request
for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to redesignate the
Knoxville, Tennessee fine particulate matter (PM2.5)
nonattainment area (hereinafter referred to as the ``Knoxville Area''
or ``Area'') to attainment for the 1997 Annual PM2.5
national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) and to approve a state
implementation plan (SIP) revision containing a maintenance plan, a
reasonably available control measures (RACM) determination, and source-
specific requirements for the Area. EPA is approving Tennessee's RACM
determination for the Knoxville Area and incorporating it into the SIP;
incorporating source-specific requirements for two sources in the Area
into the SIP; determining that the Knoxville Area is attaining the 1997
Annual PM2.5 NAAQS based on 2013-2015 data; approving
Tennessee's plan for maintaining the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS
for the Knoxville Area (maintenance plan), including the associated
motor vehicle emission budgets (MVEBs) for nitrogen oxides
(NOX) and direct PM2.5 for the years 2014 and
2028, and incorporating it into the SIP; and redesignating the
Knoxville Area to attainment for the 1997 Annual PM2.5
NAAQS.
DATES: This rule will be effective August 29, 2017.
ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket
Identification No. EPA-R04-OAR-2017-0085. All documents in the docket
are listed on the www.regulations.gov Web site. Although listed in the
index, some information may not be publicly available, i.e.,
Confidential Business Information or other information 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 through www.regulations.gov or in hard
copy at the Air Regulatory Management Section, Air Planning and
Implementation 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 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.,
excluding federal holidays.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sean Lakeman of the Air Regulatory
Management Section, in the Air Planning and Implementation Branch, Air,
Pesticides and Toxics Management Division, U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street SW., Atlanta, Georgia
30303-8960. Sean Lakeman may be reached by phone at (404) 562-9043, or
via electronic mail at [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
On July 18, 1997, EPA promulgated the first air quality standards
for PM2.5. EPA promulgated an annual standard at a level of
15.0 micrograms per cubic meter ([mu]g/m\3\), based on a 3-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 3-year
average of the 98th percentile of 24-hour concentrations. On October
17, 2006 (71 FR 61144), EPA retained the annual average NAAQS at 15.0
[mu]g/m\3\ but revised the 24-hour NAAQS to 35 [mu]g/m\3\, based again
on the 3-year average of the 98th percentile of 24-hour concentrations.
On January 5, 2005, at 70 FR 944, and supplemented on April 14,
2005, at 70 FR 19844, EPA designated the Knoxville Area as
nonattainment for the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS. All 1997
PM2.5 NAAQS areas were designated under title I, part D,
subpart 1 (hereinafter ``Subpart 1''). 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 (72 FR 20586), EPA promulgated its Clean Air Fine
Particle Implementation Rule, codified at 40
[[Page 40954]]
CFR part 51, subpart Z, in which the Agency provided guidance for state
and tribal plans to implement the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS. The
United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
(D.C. Circuit) remanded the Clean Air Fine Particle Implementation Rule
and the final rule entitled ``Implementation of the New Source Review
(NSR) Program for Particulate Matter Less than 2.5 Micrometers
(PM2.5)'' (73 FR 28321, May 16, 2008) (collectively, ``1997
PM2.5 Implementation Rules'') to EPA on January 4, 2013, in
Natural Resources Defense Council v. EPA, 706 F.3d 428 (D.C. Cir.
2013). The Court found that EPA erred in implementing the 1997
PM2.5 NAAQS pursuant to the general implementation
provisions of Subpart 1, rather than the particulate matter-specific
provisions of title I, part D, subpart 4 (hereinafter ``Subpart 4'').
On June 2, 2014, EPA published a rule entitled ``Identification of
Nonattainment Classification and Deadlines for Submission of State
Implementation Plan (SIP) Provisions for the 1997 Fine Particle
(PM2.5) National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) and
2006 PM2.5 NAAQS''. See 79 FR 31566. In that rule, the
Agency responded to the D.C. Circuit's January 2013 decision by
identifying all PM2.5 nonattainment areas for the 1997 and
2006 PM2.5 NAAQS as ``moderate'' nonattainment areas under
Subpart 4, and by establishing a new SIP submission date of December
31, 2014, for moderate area attainment plans and for any additional
attainment-related or nonattainment new source review plans necessary
for areas to comply with the requirements applicable under Subpart 4.
Id. at 31567-70.
Based on its moderate nonattainment area classification, Tennessee
was required to submit a SIP revision addressing RACM pursuant to CAA
section 172(c)(1) and section 189(a)(1)(C) for the Area. Although EPA
does not believe that section 172(c)(1) and section 189(a)(1)(C) RACM
must be approved into a SIP prior to redesignation of an area to
attainment once that area is attaining the NAAQS, EPA is approving
Tennessee's RACM determination and incorporating it into its SIP
pursuant to a recent decision by the United States Court of Appeals for
the Sixth Circuit in Sierra Club v. EPA, 793 F.3d 656 (6th Cir. 2015).
In a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) published on May 30, 2017
(82 FR 24636), EPA proposed to: (1) Approve Tennessee's RACM
determination for the Knoxville Area pursuant to CAA sections 172(c)(1)
and 189(a)(1)(C) and incorporate it into the SIP; (2) determine that
the Knoxville Area is attaining the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS
based on 2013-2015 air quality data; (3) approve Tennessee's
maintenance plan for the Knoxville Area, including the 2014 and 2028
MVEBs for PM2.5 and NOX, and incorporate it into
the SIP; (4) incorporate source-specific requirements for two sources
located in the Area--the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Bull Run
Fossil Plant and TVA Kingston Fossil Plant--into the SIP; and (5)
redesignate the Knoxville Area to attainment for the 1997 Annual
PM2.5 NAAQS.\1\ The details of Tennessee's submittal and the
rationale for EPA's actions are further explained in the NPRM. EPA did
not receive any adverse comments on the proposed action.
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\1\ In a notice published in the Federal Register on March 10,
2017, EPA announced that it had found the MVEBs for the Knoxville
Area for the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS adequate for
transportation conformity purposes. See 82 FR 13337.
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II. What are the effects of these actions?
EPA's approval changes the legal designation of Anderson, Blount,
Knox, and Loudon Counties and a portion of Roane County for the 1997
Annual PM2.5 NAAQS, found at 40 CFR part 81, from
nonattainment to attainment. Approval of Tennessee's associated SIP
revision also incorporates a plan for maintaining the 1997 Annual
PM2.5 NAAQS in the Area through 2028, Tennessee's RACM
determination, and source-specific requirements for two sources in the
Area into the Tennessee SIP. The maintenance plan includes contingency
measures to remedy any future violations of the 1997 Annual
PM2.5 NAAQS and procedures for evaluation of potential
violations. The maintenance plan also includes NOX and
PM2.5 MVEBs for 2014 and 2028 for the Knoxville Area. The
2014 and 2028 PM2.5 MVEBs are 444.78 tons per year (tpy) and
245.00 tpy, respectively. The 2014 and 2028 NOX MVEBs are
15,597.73 tpy and 7,171.14 tpy, respectively.
In the Fine Particulate Matter National Ambient Air Quality
Standards: State Implementation Plan Requirements final rule
(PM2.5 SIP Requirements Rule), EPA revoked the 1997 primary
Annual PM2.5 NAAQS in areas that had always been attainment
for that NAAQS, and in areas that had been designated as nonattainment
but that were redesignated to attainment before October 24, 2016, the
rule's effective date. See 81 FR 58010 (August 24, 2016). EPA also
finalized a provision that revokes the 1997 primary Annual
PM2.5 NAAQS in areas that are redesignated to attainment for
that NAAQS after October 24, 2016, effective on the effective date of
the redesignation of the area to attainment for that NAAQS. See 40 CFR
50.13(d).
EPA is finalizing the redesignation of the Knoxville Area to
attainment for the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS and finalizing
the approval of the CAA section 175A maintenance plan for the 1997
primary Annual PM2.5 NAAQS.\2\ Therefore, the 1997 primary
Annual PM2.5 NAAQS will be revoked in the Knoxville Area on
the effective date of this redesignation, August 29, 2017. Beginning on
that date, the Area will no longer be subject to transportation or
general conformity requirements for the 1997 Annual PM2.5
NAAQS due to the revocation of the primary NAAQS. See 81 FR 58125
(August 24, 2016). The Area is required to implement the CAA section
175A maintenance plan for the 1997 primary Annual PM2.5
NAAQS that is being approved in this action and the prevention of
significant deterioration program for the 1997 Annual PM2.5
NAAQS. The approved maintenance plan can only be revised if the
revision meets the requirements of CAA section 110(l) and, if
applicable, CAA section 193. The Area is not required to submit a
second 10-year maintenance plan for the 1997 primary Annual
PM2.5 NAAQS. See 81 FR 58144 (August 24, 2016).
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\2\ CAA section 175A(a) establishes the maintenance plan
requirements that must be fulfilled by nonattainment areas in order
to be redesignated to attainment. That section only requires that
nonattainment areas for the primary standard submit a plan
addressing maintenance of the primary NAAQS in order to be
redesignated to attainment; it does not require nonattainment areas
for secondary NAAQS to submit maintenance plans in order to be
redesignated to attainment. See 42 U.S.C. 7505a(a).
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III. Incorporation by Reference
In this rule, EPA is finalizing regulatory text that includes
incorporation by reference. In accordance with requirements of 1 CFR
51.5, EPA is finalizing the incorporation by reference of the following
Title V permit limits and conditions in Appendix L of Tennessee's
December 20, 2016 SIP revision, state effective on December 20, 2016:
Permit conditions E3-4(a), (d), and (e), E3-15, and E3-16 for the TVA
Kingston Fossil Plant, and permit conditions E3-4(a), (d), and (e), E3-
15, and E3-16 for the TVA Bull Run Fossil Plant. Therefore, these
materials have been approved by EPA for inclusion in the State
implementation plan, have been incorporated by reference by EPA into
that plan, are fully federally enforceable under sections 110 and 113
of the CAA as of
[[Page 40955]]
the effective date of the final rulemaking of EPA's approval, and will
be incorporated by reference by the Director of the Federal Register in
the next update to the SIP compilation.\3\ EPA has made, and will
continue to make, these materials generally available through
www.regulations.gov and/or at the EPA Region 4 Office (please contact
the person identified in the For Further Information Contact section of
this preamble for more information).
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\3\ 62 FR 27968 (May 22, 1997).
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IV. Final Actions
EPA is taking the following final actions: (1) Approving
Tennessee's RACM determination for the Knoxville Area pursuant to CAA
sections 172(c)(1) and 189(a)(1)(C) and incorporating it into the SIP;
(2) determining that the Area is attaining the 1997 Annual
PM2.5 NAAQS based on 2013-2015 data; (3) approving
Tennessee's plan for maintaining the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS
(maintenance plan), including the associated 2014 and 2028 MVEBs for
the Knoxville Area, and incorporating it into the Tennessee SIP; (4)
incorporating source-specific requirements for two sources in the Area
into the SIP; and (5) redesignating the Knoxville Area to attainment
for the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS.
Approval of the redesignation request changes the official
designation of Anderson, Blount, Knox, and Loudon Counties and a
portion of Roane County for the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS,
found at 40 CFR part 81 from nonattainment to attainment.
As mentioned above, the PM2.5 SIP Requirements Rule
provides that the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS will be revoked for any
area that is redesignated for the NAAQS upon the effective date of the
redesignation. Therefore, the 1997 primary Annual PM2.5
NAAQS is revoked for the Knoxville Area on the effective date of this
redesignation.
EPA has determined that these actions are effective immediately
upon publication under the authority of 5 U.S.C. 553(d). The purpose of
the 30-day waiting period prescribed in section 553(d) is to give
affected parties a reasonable time to adjust their behavior and prepare
before the final rule takes effect. Section 553(d)(3) allows an
effective date less than 30 days after publication ``as otherwise
provided by the agency for good cause found and published with the
rule.'' EPA finds good cause to make these actions effective
immediately pursuant to section 553(d)(3) because they do not create
any new regulatory requirements such that affected parties would need
time to prepare before the actions take effect. The RACM determination
does not create any new regulatory requirements because it concludes
that no additional measures are necessary to meet the State's
obligations to have fully adopted RACM; incorporating the
aforementioned Title V permit terms and conditions for the TVA Bull Run
Fossil Plant and the TVA Kingston Fossil Plant into the SIP does not
create any new regulatory requirements because these sources were
subject, and remain subject, to these terms and conditions through
their Title V permits; and redesignating the Area to attainment,
including the associated determination of attainment and maintenance
plan approval, relieves the Area from certain CAA requirements that
would otherwise apply to it. Because the redesignation relieves the
Area from requirements, its immediate effective date is also authorized
under section 553(d)(1) which allows an effective date less than 30
days after publication if a substantive rule ``relieves a
restriction.''
V. 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. See 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 actions merely approve state law as meeting federal
requirements and do not impose additional requirements beyond those
imposed by state law. For that reason, these actions:
Are not significant regulatory actions subject to review
by the Office of Management and Budget under Executive Order 12866 (58
FR 51735, October 4, 1993) and 13563 (76 FR 3821, January, 21, 2011);
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 economically significant regulatory actions based
on health or safety risks subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR
19885, April 23, 1997);
Are not significant regulatory actions 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
Will not have disproportionate human health or
environmental effects 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 as specified by
Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000), nor will it
impose substantial direct costs of tribal governments or preempt tribal
law.
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 CAA, petitions for judicial review
of this action must be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for
the appropriate circuit by October 30, 2017. Filing a
[[Page 40956]]
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
40 CFR Part 52
Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Incorporation by
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen oxides, Particulate
matter, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Sulfur oxides,
Volatile organic compounds.
40 CFR Part 81
Environmental protection, Air pollution control.
Dated: August 16, 2017.
V. Anne Heard,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4.
40 CFR parts 52 and 81 are amended as follows:
PART 52--APPROVAL AND PROMULGATION OF IMPLEMENTATION PLANS
0
1. The authority citation for part 52 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Subpart RR--Tennessee
0
2. In Sec. 52.2220:
0
a. The table in paragraph (d) is amended by adding the entries ``TVA
Bull Run Fossil Plant'' and ``TVA Kingston Fossil Plant'' at the end of
the table.
0
b. The table in paragraph (e) is amended by adding the entries ``1997
Annual PM2.5 Maintenance Plan for the Knoxville Area'' and
``RACM determination for the Knoxville Area for the 1997 Annual
PM2.5 NAAQS'' at the end of the table.
The additions read as follows:
Sec. 52.2220 Identification of plan.
* * * * *
(d) * * *
EPA-Approved Tennessee Source-Specific Requirements
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State
Name of source Permit No. effective date EPA approval date Explanation
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* * * * * * *
TVA Bull Run Fossil Plant........ n/a................ 12/20/2016 8/29/2017, [insert Title V permit
Federal Register limits and
citation]. conditions E3-
4(a), (d), and
(e), E3-15, and E3-
16 in Appendix L
of Tennessee's
December 20, 2016
SIP revision.
TVA Kingston Fossil Plant........ n/a................ 12/20/2016 8/29/2017, [insert Title V permit
Federal Register limits and
citation]. conditions E3-
4(a), (d), and
(e), E3-15, and E3-
16 in Appendix L
of Tennessee's
December 20, 2016
SIP revision.
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(e) * * *
EPA-Approved Tennessee Non-Regulatory Provisions
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Applicable
Name of non-regulatory SIP geographic or State EPA approval date Explanation
provision nonattainment area effective date
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* * * * * * *
1997 Annual PM2.5 Maintenance Anderson, Blount, 12/20/2016 8/29/2017, [insert
Plan for the Knoxville Area. Knox, and Loudon Federal Register
Counties and a citation].
portion of Roane
County (the area
described by U.S.
Census 2000 block
group identifier
47-145-0307-2.).
RACM determination for the Anderson, Blount, 12/20/2016 8/29/2017, [insert
Knoxville Area for the 1997 Knox, and Loudon Federal Register
Annual PM2.5 NAAQS. Counties and a citation].
portion of Roane
County (the area
described by U.S.
Census 2000 block
group identifier
47-145-0307-2.).
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[[Page 40957]]
PART 81--DESIGNATION OF AREAS FOR AIR QUALITY PLANNING PURPOSES
0
3. The authority citation for part 81 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
0
4. In Sec. 81.343, the table entitled ``Tennessee--1997 Annual
PM2.5 NAAQS [Primary and secondary]'' is amended by revising
the entry ``Knoxville, TN:'' to read as follows:
Sec. 81.343 Tennessee.
* * * * *
Tennessee--1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS
[Primary and secondary]
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Designation \a\ Classification
Designated area ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Date \1\ Type Date \2\ Type
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* * * * * * *
Knoxville, TN....................... 8/29/2017 Attainment................
Anderson County................. .............. Attainment................
Blount County................... .............. Attainment................
Knox County..................... .............. Attainment................
Loudon County................... .............. Attainment................
Roane County (part)............. .............. Attainment................
The area described by U.S. Census
2000 block group identifier 47-145-
0307-2.
* * * * * * *
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\a\ Includes Indian Country located in each county or area, except as otherwise specified.
\1\ This date is 90 days after January 5, 2005, unless otherwise noted.
\2\ This date is July 2, 2014, unless otherwise noted.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2017-18213 Filed 8-28-17; 8:45 am]
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