2018-21328. Air Plan Approval; North Carolina; Ozone NAAQS Update

AGENCY:

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION:

Proposed rule.

SUMMARY:

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve a State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision submitted by the State of North Carolina through the North Carolina Division of Air Quality (NCDAQ) with a letter dated March 21, 2018. The SIP submittal includes changes to the State's air quality rules for ozone to be consistent with the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). EPA is proposing to approve these provisions of the SIP revision because the State has demonstrated that these changes are consistent with the Clean Air Act (CAA or Act) and federal regulations.

DATES:

Comments must be received on or before October 31, 2018.

ADDRESSES:

Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R04-OAR-2018-0531 at https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting comments. Once submitted, comments cannot be edited or removed from Regulations.gov. EPA may publish any comment received to its public docket. Do not submit electronically any information you consider to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Multimedia submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be accompanied by a written comment. The written comment is considered the official comment and should include discussion of all points you wish to make. EPA will generally not consider comments or comment contents located outside of the primary submission (i.e. on the web, cloud, or other file sharing system). For additional submission methods, the full EPA public comment policy, information about CBI or multimedia submissions, and general guidance on making effective comments, please visit https://www2.epa.gov/​dockets/​commenting-epa-dockets.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Tiereny Bell, 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. The telephone number is [phone]. Ms. Bell can also be reached via electronic mail at [e-mail].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

Sections 108 and 109 of the CAA govern the establishment, review, and revision, as appropriate, of the NAAQS to protect public health and welfare. The CAA requires periodic review of the air quality criteria—the science upon which the standards are based—and the standards themselves. EPA's regulatory provisions that govern the NAAQS are found at 40 CFR 50—National Primary and Secondary Ambient Air Quality Standards. In this rule, EPA is proposing to approve revisions to the North Carolina air quality rules addressing Rule 15A NCAC 02D .0405, Ozone, in the North Carolina SIP. EPA notes that the cover letter was dated March 21, 2018.^[1] Rule 15A NCAC 02D.0405 is amended by updating air quality standards to reflect the most recent ozone NAAQS as well as making textual modifications in the following manner: Removing 0.075 parts per million (ppm) and replacing it with 0.070 ppm; deleting “8-hour” and replacing it with “eight-hour”; deleting the word “is” and replacing it with “shall be” and later “shall be deemed”; and deleting Appendix P, which referenced the 2008 Ozone Standard, and replacing it with Appendix U, which references the 2015 Ozone Standard. The SIP submission amending the North Carolina regulations to incorporate the most recent ozone NAAQS can be found in the docket for this rulemaking at www.regulations.gov and is summarized below.

II. EPA's Analysis of North Carolina's Submittal

On October 26, 2015, EPA promulgated revised 8-hour primary and secondary ozone NAAQS, strengthening both from 0.075 ppm to 0.070 ppm (the 2015 8-hour Ozone NAAQS). See 80 FR 65292. Accordingly, in the March 21, 2018, SIP submission, North Carolina revised Rule 15A NCAC 02D .0405, “Ozone,” by updating the State's air quality standard to be consistent with the 2015 8-hour Ozone NAAQS promulgated by EPA in 2015. EPA is proposing to approve this change because it is consistent with the CAA and Federal regulations.

III. Incorporation by Reference

In this rule, EPA is proposing to include in a final EPA rule regulatory text that includes incorporation by reference. In accordance with requirements of 1 CFR 51.5, EPA is proposing to incorporate by reference the NCDAQ Rule 15A NCAC 02D .0405 entitled “Ozone,” state effective January 1, 2018, which revises the ozone standard to be consistent with the 2015 ozone NAAQS. EPA has made, and will continue to make, these materials generally available through www.regulations.gov and at the EPA Region 4 office (please contact the person identified in the For Further Information Contact section of this preamble for more information).

IV. Proposed Action

EPA is proposing to approve the State of North Carolina's March 21, 2018, SIP submission identified in sections I and II above, because these changes are consistent with the CAA and federal regulations.

V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

Under the CAA, 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. This action merely proposes to approve state law as meeting Federal requirements and does not impose additional requirements beyond those imposed by state law. For that reason, this proposed 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.);
• 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 CAA; 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).

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 on tribal governments or preempt tribal law.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

• Environmental protection
• Air pollution control
• Incorporation by

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

Dated: September 19, 2018.

Onis “Trey” Glenn, III,

Regional Administrator, Region 4.

Footnotes

1.  The submittal date is the date of receipt by EPA, which was April 4, 2018.