2017-07160. Approval of California Air Plan Revisions, Butte County Air Quality Management District

AGENCY:

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION:

Proposed rule.

SUMMARY:

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve a revision to the Butte County Air Quality Management District (BCAQMD) portion of the California State Implementation Plan (SIP). This revision concerns the necessary procedures to create emission reduction credits (ERCs) from the reduction of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), oxides of nitrogen, oxides of sulfur, particulate matter and carbon monoxide emissions due to the permanent curtailment of burning rice straw. We are proposing to approve a local rule that provides administrative procedures for creating ERCs consistent with Clean Air Act (CAA or the Act) requirements.

DATES:

Any comments must arrive by May 11, 2017.

ADDRESSES:

Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R09-OAR-2016-0466 at http://www.regulations.gov,, or via email to Andrew Steckel, Rulemaking Office Chief at [e-mail]. For comments submitted at Regulations.gov, follow the online instructions for submitting comments. Once submitted, comments cannot be removed or edited from Regulations.gov. For either manner of submission, the 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. The 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, please contact the person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section. For the full EPA public comment policy, information about CBI or multimedia submissions, and general guidance on making effective comments, please visit http://www2.epa.gov/​dockets/​commenting-epa-dockets.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Nancy Levin, EPA Region IX, [phone], [e-mail].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Throughout this document, “we,” “us” and “our” refer to the EPA. This proposal addresses the following local rule: BCAQMD Rule 433 “Rice Straw Emission Reduction Credits.” In the Rules and Regulations section of this Federal Register, we are approving this local rule in a direct final action without prior proposal because we believe this SIP revision is not controversial. If we receive adverse comments, however, we will publish a timely withdrawal of the direct final rule and address the comments in subsequent action based on this proposed rule.

We do not plan to open a second comment period, so anyone interested in commenting should do so at this time. If we do not receive adverse comments, no further activity is planned. For further information, please see the direct final action.

Dated: December 9, 2016.

Alexis Strauss

Acting Regional Administrator, Region IX.

Editorial note:

This document was received at the Office of the Federal Register on April 5, 2017.