2022-01178. Air Plan Approval; Washington; Update to the Yakima Regional Clean Air Agency Wood Heater and Burn Ban Regulations

AGENCY:

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION:

Final rule.

SUMMARY:

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving revisions to the Yakima Regional Clean Air Agency (YRCAA) regulations designed to control particulate matter from residential wood heaters, such as woodstoves and fireplaces. The updated YRCAA regulations set fine particulate matter trigger levels for impaired air quality burn bans, consistent with statutory changes enacted by the Washington State Legislature. The submission also contains updates to improve the clarity of the language and align with the statewide solid fuel burning device regulations already applicable in YRCAA's jurisdiction. We are approving these changes because they meet the requirements of the Clean Air Act (CAA) and strengthen the Washington State Implementation Plan (SIP).

DATES:

This final rule is effective February 23, 2022.

ADDRESSES:

The EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket ID No. EPA-R10-OAR-2021-0750. 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, e.g., Confidential Business Information or other information the disclosure of which 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 at https://www.regulations.gov,, or please contact the person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section for additional availability information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Jeff Hunt, EPA Region 10, 1200 Sixth Avenue—Suite 155, Seattle, WA 98101, at [phone], or [e-mail] .

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Throughout this document, wherever “we,” “us,” or “our” is used, it means the EPA.

I. Background

On November 18, 2021, we proposed to approve and incorporate by reference Regulation 1, sections 3.04 Wood Heaters and 3.05 Burn Bans, adopted by YRCAA effective November 9, 2020 (86 FR 64438). The reasons for our proposed approval were stated in the proposed rulemaking and will not be re-stated here. The public comment period for our proposed approval ended on December 20, 2021, and we received no comments. Therefore, we are finalizing our action as proposed.

II. Final Action

The EPA is approving and incorporating by reference Regulation 1, sections 3.04 Wood Heaters and 3.05 Burn Bans, adopted by YRCAA effective November 9, 2020. We are also removing from the SIP the outdated 1993 and 1995 Article IX provisions Woodstoves and Fireplaces, which are replaced by sections 3.04 and 3.05.

III. Incorporation by Reference

In this document, the EPA is finalizing regulatory text in an EPA final rule that includes incorporation by reference. In accordance with requirements of 1 CFR 51.5, the EPA is finalizing the incorporation by reference of the regulations described in section II of this preamble. The EPA has made, and will continue to make, these materials generally available through https://www.regulations.gov and at the EPA Region 10 Office (please contact the person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this preamble for more information).

Therefore, these materials have been approved by the EPA for inclusion in the SIP, have been incorporated by reference by the EPA into that plan, are fully federally enforceable under sections 110 and 113 of the CAA as of the effective date of the final rule of the EPA's approval, and will be incorporated by reference by the Director of the Federal Register in the next update to the SIP compilation.^[1]

IV. Statutory and Executive Order Review

Under the CAA, the Administrator is required to approve a SIP submission that complies with the provisions of the CAA and applicable Federal regulations. 42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a). Thus, in reviewing SIP submissions, the 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);

• 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. );

• 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 the 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).

The SIP is not approved to apply on any Indian reservation land in Washington except as specifically noted below and is also not approved to apply in any other area where the 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). Consistent with EPA policy, the EPA provided an opportunity to request consultation to the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation in a letter dated April 5, 2021.

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. The 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 March 25, 2022. 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
• Carbon monoxide
• Incorporation by reference
• Intergovernmental relations
• Lead
• Nitrogen dioxide
• Ozone
• Particulate matter
• Reporting and recordkeeping requirements
• Sulfur oxides
• Volatile organic compounds

Dated: January 18, 2022.

Michelle L. Pirzadeh,

Acting Regional Administrator, Region 10.

For the reasons set forth in the preamble, 40 CFR part 52 is amended as follows:

PART 52—APPROVAL AND PROMULGATION OF IMPLEMENTATION PLANS

1. The authority citation for part 52 continues to read as follows:

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

Subpart WW—Washington

2. In § 52.2470, Table 10 in paragraph (c) is amended by:

a. Adding a second entry for “3.04” and the entry “3.05” in numerical order under the heading “Article III—Violations—Orders and Hearings”; and

b. Removing the heading “Article IX—Woodstoves and Fireplaces” and the entries “9.01”, “9.02”, “9.03”, “9.04”, and “9.05”.

The additions read as follows:

§ 52.2470

Identification of plan.

* * * * *

(c) * * *

Table 10—Additional Regulations Approved for the Yakima Regional Clean Air Agency (YRCAA) Jurisdiction

[Applicable in Yakima County, excluding facilities subject to Energy Facilities Site Evaluation Council (EFSEC) jurisdiction, Indian reservations and any other area where the EPA or an Indian tribe has demonstrated that a tribe has jurisdiction, and facilities subject to the applicability sections of WAC 173-400-700, 173-405-012, 173-410-012, and 173-415-012]

State/local citation	Title/subject	State/local effective date	EPA approval date	Explanations
*         *         *         *         *         *         *
Article III—Violations—Orders and Hearings
*         *         *         *         *         *         *
3.04	Wood Heaters	11/9/20	1/24/22, [INSERT Federal Register CITATION]
3.05	Burn Bans	11/9/20	1/24/22, [INSERT Federal Register CITATION]
*         *         *         *         *         *         *

* * * * *

Footnotes

1.  62 FR 27968 (May 22, 1997).