Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Final rule.
EPA is approving State Implementation Plan (SIP) revisions
EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket ID Number EPA–R03–OAR–2007–0215. All documents in the docket are listed in the
Irene Shandruk, (215) 814–2166, or by e-mail at
Section 110(a)(1) of the Clean Air Act (CAA) requires, in part, that states submit to EPA plans to maintain any NAAQS promulgated by EPA. EPA interprets this provision to require that areas that were maintenance areas for the 1-hour ozone NAAQS, but attainment for the 8-hour ozone NAAQS submit a plan to demonstrate the continued maintenance of the 8-hour ozone NAAQS. EPA established June 15, 2007, three years after the effective date of the initial 8-hour ozone designations, as the deadline for submission of plans for these areas.
On May 20, 2005, EPA issued guidance that applies, in part, to areas that are designated attainment/unclassifiable for the 8-hour ozone standard and that had an approved 1-hour ozone maintenance plan. The purpose of the guidance, referred to as section 110(a)(1) guidance, is to assist the states in the development of a SIP which addresses the maintenance requirements found in section 110(a)(1) of the CAA. There are five components of the section 110(a)(1) maintenance plan which are: (1) An attainment inventory, which is based on actual typical summer day emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and oxides of nitrogen (NO
On November 7, 2007 (72 FR 62809), EPA published a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPR) for the State of West Virginia. The NPR proposed approval of the 8-hour ozone maintenance plan for Greenbrier County, as well as concurrent approval of two amendments to its existing 1-hour ozone maintenance plan, which include (a) removal of the obligation to submit a maintenance plan for the 1-hour NAAQS eight years after approval of the initial 1-hour maintenance plan, and (b) removal of the State's obligation to implement contingency measures upon a violation of the 1-hour NAAQS. The formal SIP revision was submitted by West Virginia on November 29, 2006.
The WVDEP 8-hour ozone maintenance plan addresses the components of the section 110(a)(1) 8-hour ozone maintenance plan as outlined in EPA's May 20, 2005 guidance. West Virginia requested approval of their 8-hour ozone maintenance plan for Greenbrier County, as well as concurrent approval of two amendments to its existing 1-hour ozone maintenance plan.
It is important to note that the formation of ozone is dependent on a number of variables which cannot be estimated through emissions growth and reduction calculations. A few of these variables include weather and the transport of ozone precursors from outside the maintenance area. In the section 110(a)(1) maintenance plan, WVDEP had indicated that the state will track the progress of the maintenance plan by updating the emissions inventory for Greenbrier County approximately every three years. The emissions inventory update will include point, area, and mobile emissions. Information from these future updates will be compared with the projected growth estimates for the 2002 base inventory data to track maintenance of the standard.
Approval of two amendments to West Virginia's existing 1-hour maintenance plan has also been requested by WVDEP. Section 175A(b) requires that maintenance plans be updated. The 1-hour maintenance plan for Greenbrier County extends to 2005, but no update has been developed. West Virginia identifies the most important reason for this being that available resources are being devoted to attainment and maintenance of the 8-hour standard since the 8-hour standard is considered by the State to be more protective than the former 1-hour standard upon which the current maintenance plan is based. As such, West Virginia is amending this existing maintenance plan, which is codified at 40 CFR 52.2520(e), for the Greenbrier County 1-hour maintenance area by removing the State's obligation to submit a maintenance plan for the 1-hour NAAQS eight years after approval of the initial 1-hour maintenance plan, and is requesting approval of these amendments.
EPA is approving the SIP revisions submitted by WVDEP pertaining to their section 110(a)(1) 8-hour ozone maintenance plan for Greenbrier County, West Virginia. This plan demonstrates how the State intends to maintain the 8-hour NAAQS for ozone. Additionally, EPA is concurrently approving two amendments to the existing 1-hour ozone maintenance plan: (1) Removal of the obligation to submit a maintenance plan for the 1-hour NAAQS 8 years after approval of the initial 1-hour maintenance plan; and (2) removal of the State's obligation to implement contingency measures upon a violation of the 1-hour NAAQS.
Under Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993), this action is not a “significant regulatory action” and therefore is not subject to review by the Office of Management and Budget. For this reason, this action is also not subject to Executive Order 13211, “Actions Concerning Regulations That Significantly Affect Energy Supply, Distribution, or Use” (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001). This action merely approves state law as meeting Federal requirements and imposes no additional requirements beyond those imposed by state law. Accordingly, the Administrator certifies that this rule will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601
In reviewing SIP submissions, EPA's role is to approve state choices, provided that they meet the criteria of the CAA. In this context, in the absence of a prior existing requirement for the State to use voluntary consensus standards (VCS), EPA has no authority to disapprove a SIP submission for failure to use VCS. It would thus be inconsistent with applicable law for EPA, when it reviews a SIP submission, to use VCS in place of a SIP submission that otherwise satisfies the provisions of the CAA. Thus, the requirements of section 12(d) of the National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272 note) do not apply. This rule does not impose an information collection burden under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501
The Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 801
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 March 10, 2008. Filing a petition for reconsideration by the Administrator of this final rule does not affect the finality of this rule 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 approving the section 110(a)(1) 8-hour Ozone Maintenance Plan for Greenbrier County, West Virginia, and concurrent approval of two amendments to the existing 1-hour ozone maintenance plan may not be challenged later in proceedings to enforce its requirements. (See section 307(b)(2).)
Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Incorporation by reference, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Volatile organic compounds.
42 U.S.C. 7401
The amendments read as follows:
(e) * * *