03-30265. National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Chemical Recovery Combustion Sources at Kraft, Soda, Sulfite, and Stand-Alone Semichemical Pulp Mills

AGENCY:

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION:

Final rule; technical corrections.

SUMMARY:

On July 18, 2003, the EPA promulgated amendments to the national emission standards for hazardous air pollutants (NESHAP) for chemical recovery combustion sources at kraft, soda, sulfite, and stand-alone semichemical pulp mills. The technical corrections in this action restore provisions which were inadvertently deleted by the July 18, 2003, amendments and restore a provision which was inadvertently omitted from the January 12, 2001, final rule.

EFFECTIVE DATE:

December 5, 2003.

ADDRESSES:

Docket numbers OAR-2002-0045 and A-94-67, containing supporting information used in the development of this notice, are available for public viewing at the EPA Docket Center (Air Docket), EPA West, Room B-102, 1301 Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Mr. Jeff Telander, Minerals and Inorganic Chemicals Group, Emission Standards Division (C504-05), Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards, U.S. EPA, Research Triangle Park, NC 27711, telephone number [phone], facsimile number [phone], electronic mail address [e-mail].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Docket. The EPA has established an official public docket for this action including both Docket ID No. OAR-2002-0045 and Docket ID No. A-94-67. The official public docket consists of the documents specifically referenced in this action, any public comments received, and other information related to this action. All items may not be listed under both docket numbers, so interested parties should inspect both docket numbers to ensure that they have received all materials relevant to the final rule. Although a part of the official docket, the public docket does not include Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. The official public docket is available for public viewing at the Air Docket in the EPA Docket Center, EPA West, Room B-102, 1301 Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460. 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 Public Reading Room is [phone], and the telephone number for the Air Docket is [phone].

Electronic Access. You may access this Federal Register document electronically through the EPA Internet under the Federal Register listings at http://www.epa.gov/​fedrgstr/​. You may also access a copy of the final rule incorporating the provisions of this Federal Register notice through the Technology Transfer Network (TTN) at http://www.epa.gov/​ttn/​atw/​pulp/​pulppg.html.

An electronic version of the public docket is available through EPA's electronic public docket and comment system, EPA Dockets. You may use EPA Dockets at http://www.epa.gov.edocket/​ to view public comments, access the index listing of the contents of the official public docket, and to access those documents in the public docket that are available electronically. Although not all docket materials may be available electronically, you may still access any of the publicly available docket materials through the docket facility identified above. Once in the system, select search, then key in the appropriate docket identification number.

Background: On February 18, 2003, we published a direct final rule (68 FR 7706) and parallel proposal (68 FR 7735) amending the NESHAP for chemical recovery combustion sources at kraft, soda, sulfite, and stand-alone semichemical pulp mills (40 CFR part 63, subpart MM). The amendments clarified and consolidated the monitoring and testing requirements and added a site-specific alternative standard for one pulp mill. The consolidation of the monitoring and testing requirements resulted in significant text shifts within and between the monitoring and testing sections of the final rule.

On July 18, 2003 (68 FR 42603), we published amendments to the final rule that deleted portions of subpart MM added by the direct final rule (68 FR 7706), the provisions of which were the subject of adverse comment. The amendments also made two technical corrections to inadvertent errors in rule language. The EPA indicated in that notice that if we took further action, we would do so by acting on the pending proposed rule (68 FR 7735) and would not submit that proposal to another round of public comment.

However, the amendments inadvertently failed to restore some of the underlying rule language from the original rule. We are restoring those provisions here. The technical corrections in this action restore the following provisions inadvertently deleted by the July 18, 2003, amendments:

• Reference in § 63.864(d) to the procedures in §§ 63.6(h) and 63.8 for installing, calibrating, maintaining, and operating a continuous opacity monitoring system;
• Requirement in § 63.864(e)(10) to determine and record the pressure drop across the scrubber and the scrubbing liquid flow rate at least once every successive 15-minute period;
• Requirement in § 63.864(e)(11) to determine and record the operating temperature of the regenerative thermal oxidizer at least once every successive 15-minute period; and,
• “Eq. 1” label for the equation in § 63.865(a)(1).

The technical corrections in this action also restore the particulate matter (PM) emission limit in English units in § 63.862(b)(1) for new kraft and soda recovery furnaces, which was inadvertently omitted from the January 12, 2001, final rule. This addition to the rule text does not alter the standard. It merely expresses it in English units, to go along with the metric units already in the rule.

The EPA is issuing today's technical corrections in final form because we are acting on the pending proposal on which there has been notice and opportunity for public comment. In addition, we gave actual notice of this action to the commenters to that proposed rule, alerted them to the possibility of this action, and considered their comments.

Section 553(d) of 5 U.S.C. allows an agency, upon a finding of good cause, to make a rule effective immediately. Because today's technical corrections restore regulatory language which was inadvertently deleted by previous amendments, do not add any requirements necessitating additional time for compliance, and otherwise do not substantively change the requirements of the final rule, we find good cause to make the technical corrections effective immediately.

Statutory and Executive Order Review

Under Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 51736, October 4, 1993), this action is not a “significant regulatory action” and is, therefore, not subject to review by the Office of Management and Budget. Because EPA has made a “good cause” finding that this action is not subject to notice and comment requirements under the Administrative Procedure Act or any other statute, it is not subject to the regulatory flexibility provisions of the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.), or to sections 202 and 205 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA) (Public Law 104-4). In addition, this action does not significantly or uniquely affect small governments or impose a significant intergovernmental mandate, as described in sections 203 and 204 of the UMRA. This action also does not significantly or uniquely affect the communities of tribal governments, as specified by Executive Order 13084 (63 FR 27655, May 10, 1998). This action will not have substantial direct effects on the States, on the relationship between the national government and the States, or on the distribution of power and responsibilities among the various levels of government, as specified in Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999). This action also is not subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997) because it is not economically significant.

Section 12(d) of the National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (NTTAA) of 1995 (Public Law 104-113; 15 U.S.C. 272 note) directs EPA to use voluntary consensus standards in its regulatory and procurement activities unless to do so would be inconsistent with applicable law or otherwise impractical. The EPA is not proposing/adopting any voluntary consensus standards in this action.

This action does not involve special consideration of environmental justice related issues as required by Executive Order 12898 (59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994). In issuing these technical corrections, EPA has taken the necessary steps to eliminate drafting errors and ambiguity, minimize potential litigation, and provide a clear legal standard for affected conduct, as required by section 3 of Executive Order 12988 (61 FR 4729, February 7, 1996). The EPA has complied with Executive Order 12630 (53 FR 8859, March 15, 1988) by examining the takings implications of these technical corrections in accordance with the “Attorney General's Supplemental Guidelines for the Evaluation of Risk and Avoidance of Unanticipated Takings” issued under the executive order. These technical corrections do not impose an information collection burden under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

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. Section 808 allows the issuing agency to make a rule effective sooner than otherwise provided by the Congressional Review Act if the agency makes a good cause finding that notice and public procedure is impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary to the public interest. This determination must be supported by a brief statement (5 U.S.C. 808(2)). As stated previously, EPA has made such a good cause finding, including the reasons therefor, and established an effective date of December 5, 2003. The EPA will submit a report containing the rule 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. This action is not a “major rule” as defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2).

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 63

• Environmental protection
• Administrative practice and procedure
• Air pollution control
• Hazardous substances
• Reporting and recordkeeping requirements

Dated: November 10, 2003.

Robert Brenner,

Acting Assistant Administrator for Air and Radiation.

For the reasons set out in the preamble, title 40, chapter I, part 63 of the Code of Federal Regulations is amended as follows:

PART 63—[AMENDED]

1. The authority citation for part 63 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.

Subpart MM—National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Chemical Recovery Combustion Sources at Kraft, Soda, Sulfite, and Stand-Alone Semichemical Pulp Mills

2. Section 63.862 is amended by revising paragraph (b)(1) to read as follows:

§ 63.862

Standards.

* * * * *

(b) Standards for HAP metals: new sources. (1) The owner or operator of any new kraft or soda recovery furnace must ensure that the concentration of PM in the exhaust gases discharged to the atmosphere is less than or equal to 0.034 g/dscm (0.015 gr/dscf) corrected to 8 percent oxygen.

* * * * *

3. Section 63.864 is amended by:

a. Revising paragraph (d) introductory paragraph;

b. Revising paragraph (e)(10)introductory text; and

c. Revising paragraph (e)(11).

The revisions read as follows:

§ 63.864

Monitoring requirements.

* * * * *

(d) Continuous opacity monitoring system (COMS). The owner or operator of each affected kraft or soda recovery furnace or lime kiln equipped with an ESP must install, calibrate, maintain, and operate a COMS according to the provisions in §§ 63.6(h) and 63.8 and paragraphs (d)(1) through (4) of this section.

* * * * *

(e) * * *

(10) The owner or operator of each affected kraft or soda recovery furnace, kraft or soda lime kiln, sulfite combustion unit, or kraft or soda smelt dissolving tank equipped with a wet scrubber must install, calibrate, maintain, and operate a CPMS that can be used to determine and record the pressure drop across the scrubber and the scrubbing liquid flow rate at least once every successive 15-minute period using the procedures in § 63.8(c), as well as the procedures in paragraphs (e)(10)(i) and (ii) of this section:

* * * * *

(11) The owner or operator of each affected semichemical combustion unit equipped with an RTO must install, calibrate, maintain, and operate a CPMS that can be used to determine and record the operating temperature of the RTO at least once every successive 15-minute period using the procedures in § 63.8(c). The monitor must compute and record the operating temperature at the point of incineration of effluent gases that are emitted using a temperature monitor accurate to within ±1 percent of the temperature being measured.

* * * * *

4. Section 63.865 is amended by revising paragraph (a)(1) to read as follows:

§ 63.865

Performance test requirements and test methods.

* * * * *

(a) * * *

(1) Determine the overall PM emission limit for the chemical recovery system at the mill using Equation 1 of this section as follows:

Where:

EL_PM = overall PM emission limit for all existing process units in the chemical recovery system at the kraft or soda pulp mill, kg/Mg (lb/ton) of black liquor solids fired.

C_{ref, RF} = reference concentration of 0.10 g/dscm (0.044 gr/dscf) corrected to 8 percent oxygen for existing kraft or soda recovery furnaces.

Q_RFtot = sum of the average volumetric gas flow rates measured during the performance test and corrected to 8 percent oxygen for all existing recovery furnaces in the chemical recovery system at the kraft or soda pulp mill, dry standard cubic meters per minute (dscm/min) (dry standard cubic feet per minute (dscf/min)).

C_ref,LK = reference concentration of 0.15 g/dscm (0.064 gr/dscf) corrected to 10 percent oxygen for existing kraft or soda lime kilns.

Q_LKtot = sum of the average volumetric gas flow rates measured during the performance test and corrected to 10 percent oxygen for all existing lime kilns in the chemical recovery system at the kraft or soda pulp mill, dscm/min (dscf/min).

F1 = conversion factor, 1.44 minutes·kilogram/day·gram (min·kg/d·g) (0.206 minutes·pound/day·grain (min·b/d·gr)).

BLS_tot = sum of the average black liquor solids firing rates of all existing recovery furnaces in the chemical recovery system at the kraft or soda pulp mill measured during the performance test, megagrams per day (Mg/d) (tons per day (ton/d)) of black liquor solids fired.

ER1_{ref, SDT} = reference emission rate of 0.10 kg/Mg (0.20 lb/ton) of black liquor solids fired for existing kraft or soda smelt dissolving tanks.

* * * * *