E8-2252. Proposed Settlement Agreement, Clean Air Act Citizen Suit

AGENCY:

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION:

Notice of Proposed Settlement Agreement; Request for Public Comment.

SUMMARY:

In accordance with section 113(g) of the Clean Air Act, as amended (“Act”), 42 U.S.C. 7413(g), notice is hereby given of a proposed settlement agreement, to address a lawsuit filed by the Battery Council International (“BCI”) in the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit: Battery Council International v. EPA, No. 07-1364 (D.C. Cir.). On September 13, 2007, BCI filed a petition for review challenging regulations promulgated by EPA in a final rule entitled “National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Area Sources: Acrylic and Modacrylic Fibers Production, Carbon Black Production, Chemical Manufacturing: Chromium Compounds, Flexible Polyurethane Foam Production and Fabrication, Lead Acid Battery Manufacturing, and Wood Preserving” published at 72 FR 38864 (July 16, 2007) (the “Battery NESHAP”). Specifically, BCI is challenging the Lead Acid Battery Manufacturing NESHAP regarding the scope of the performance test requirement in Subpart PPPPPP, 40 CFR 63.11423(c)(1). Under the terms of the proposed settlement agreement, EPA shall sign a notice of proposed rulemaking and/or direct final rulemaking that contains a technical amendment to the Battery NESHAP that is substantially the same in substance as set forth in Attachment A of the proposed settlement agreement.

DATES:

Written comments on the proposed settlement agreement must be received by March 10, 2008.

ADDRESSES:

Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID number EPA-HQ-OGC-2008-0076, online at www.regulations.gov (EPA's preferred method); by e-mail to [e-mail]; mailed to EPA Docket Center, Environmental Protection Agency, Mailcode: 2822T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001; or by hand delivery or courier to EPA Docket Center, EPA West, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC, between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. Comments on a disk or CD-ROM should be formatted in Word or ASCII file, avoiding the use of special characters and any form of encryption, and may be mailed to the mailing address above.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Paul Versace, Air and Radiation Law Office (2344A), Office of General Counsel, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone: [phone]; fax number [phone]; e-mail address: [e-mail].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Additional Information About the Proposed Settlement

Battery Council International (BCI) filed a petition for review of the rules applicable to Lead Acid Battery Manufacturing on September 13, 2007. BCI raised issues regarding the scope of the performance test requirement in Subpart PPPPPP, 40 CFR 63.11423(c)(1) of the Battery NESHAP.

The settlement agreement provides that within three days after the agreement is executed BCI and EPA will jointly notify the Court of this settlement agreement and request that the case continue to be held in abeyance. The settlement agreement states that EPA shall sign a notice of proposed rulemaking and/or direct final rulemaking that contains a technical amendment to the Battery NESHAP that is substantially the same in substance as set forth in Attachment A. If EPA signs and thereafter publishes in the Federal Register a final rule that contains a technical amendment to the Battery NESHAP that is substantially the same in substance as set forth in Attachment A to the settlement agreement, BCI and EPA will file the appropriate pleading for the dismissal of the petition for review with prejudice in accordance with Rule 42(b) of the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedures, with each party to bear its own costs and attorneys' fees.

For a period of thirty (30) days following the date of publication of this notice, the Agency will receive written comments relating to the proposed settlement agreement. EPA or the Department of Justice may withdraw or withhold consent to the proposed settlement agreement if the comments disclose facts or considerations that indicate that such consent is inappropriate, improper, inadequate, or inconsistent with the requirements of the Act. Unless EPA or the Department of Justice determines, based on any comment which may be submitted, that consent to the settlement agreement should be withdrawn, the terms of the agreement will be affirmed.

II. Additional Information About Commenting on the Proposed Settlement Agreement

A. How Can I Get a Copy of the Settlement Agreement?

Direct your comments to the official public docket for this action under Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OGC-2008-0076, which contains a copy of the settlement agreement. The official public docket is available for public viewing at the Office of Environmental Information (OEI) Docket in the EPA Docket Center, EPA West, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. 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 OEI Docket is [phone].

An electronic version of the public docket is available through www.regulations.gov. You may use the www.regulations.gov Web site to submit or view public comments, access the index listing of the contents of the official public docket, and access those documents in the public docket that are available electronically. Once in the system, select “search,” then key in the appropriate docket identification number.

It is important to note that EPA's policy is that public comments, whether submitted electronically or in paper, will be made available for public viewing online at www.regulations.gov without change, unless the comment contains copyrighted material, CBI, or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Information claimed as CBI and other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute is not included in the official public docket or in the electronic public docket. EPA's policy is that copyrighted material, including copyrighted material contained in a public comment, will not be placed in EPA's electronic public docket but will be available only in printed, paper form in the official public docket. Although not all docket materials may be available electronically, you may still access any of the publicly available docket materials through the EPA Docket Center.

B. How and To Whom Do I Submit Comments?

You may submit comments as provided in the ADDRESSES section. Please ensure that your comments are submitted within the specified comment period. Comments received after the close of the comment period will be marked “late.” EPA is not required to consider these late comments.

If you submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you include your name, mailing address, and an e-mail address or other contact information in the body of your comment and with any disk or CD ROM you submit. This ensures that you can be identified as the submitter of the comment and allows EPA to contact you in case EPA cannot read your comment due to technical difficulties or needs further information on the substance of your comment. Any identifying or contact information provided in the body of a comment will be included as part of the comment that is placed in the official public docket, and made available in EPA's electronic public docket. If EPA cannot read your comment due to technical difficulties and cannot contact you for clarification, EPA may not be able to consider your comment.

Use of the www.regulations.gov Web site to submit comments to EPA electronically is EPA's preferred method for receiving comments. The electronic public docket system is an “anonymous access” system, which means EPA will not know your identity, e-mail address, or other contact information unless you provide it in the body of your comment. In contrast to EPA's electronic public docket, EPA's electronic mail (e-mail) system is not an “anonymous access” system. If you send an e-mail comment directly to the Docket without going through www.regulations.gov, your e-mail address is automatically captured and included as part of the comment that is placed in the official public docket, and made available in EPA's electronic public docket.

Dated: January 30, 2008.

Richard B. Ossias,

Associate General Counsel.