[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 75 (Wednesday, April 19, 1995)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 19554-19555]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-9707]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[CA 144-4-6973a; FL-5194-5]
Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans; California
State Implementation Plan Revision, South Coast Air Quality Management
District and Ventura County Air Pollution Control District
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.
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SUMMARY: EPA is proposing to approve revisions to the California State
Implementation Plan (SIP) which concern the control of volatile organic
compound (VOC) emissions from bakery ovens and the coating of metal
parts and products.
The intended effect of proposing approval of these rules is to
regulate emissions of VOCs in accordance with the requirements of the
Clean Air Act, as amended in 1990 (CAA or the Act). EPA's final action
on this notice of proposed (NPRM) will incorporate these rules into the
federally approved SIP. In addition, final action on one of these rules
(South Coast Air Quality Management District's Rule 1153) will serve as
a final determination that a deficiency in the rule has been corrected
and that any sanctions or Federal Implementation Plan (FIP) obligations
are permanently stopped. An Interim Final Determination published in
today's Federal Register will defer the imposition of sanctions until
EPA takes final rulemaking action on this rule. EPA has evaluated each
of these rules and is proposing to approve them under provisions of the
CAA regarding EPA action on SIP submittals, SIPs for national primary
and secondary ambient air quality standards and plan requirements for
nonattainment areas.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before May 19, 1995.
ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to: Daniel A. Meer, Rulemaking
Section [A-5-3], Air and Toxics Division, U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105-3901.
Copies of the rules and EPA's evaluation report of each rule are
available for public inspection at EPA's Region 9 office during normal
business hours. Copies of the submitted rules are also available for
inspection at the following locations:
California Air Resources Board, Stationary Source Division, Rule
Evaluation Section, 2020 ``L'' Street, Sacramento, CA 95814.
South Coast Air Quality Management District, 21865 E. Copley Drive,
Diamond Bar, CA 91765-4182.
Ventura County Air Pollution Control District, 669 County Square Drive,
Second Floor, Ventura, CA 93003.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Christine Vineyard, Rulemaking Section
[A-5-3], Air and Toxics Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,
Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105-3901, (415)
744-1197.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Applicability
The rules being proposed for approval into the California SIP
include: South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) Rule
1153, Commercial Bakery Ovens; and Ventura County Air Pollution Control
District (VCAPCD) Rule 74.12, Surface Coatings of Metal Parts and
Products. These rules were submitted by the California Air Resources
Board to EPA on February 24, 1995.
Background
On March 3, 1978, EPA promulgated a list of ozone nonattainment
areas under the provisions of the Clean Air Act, as amended in 1977
(1977 CAA or pre-amended Act), that included the Los Angeles-South
Coast Air Basin (LA Basin) and the Ventura County Area. 43 FR 8964; 40
CFR 81.305. Because these areas were unable to meet the statutory
attainment date of December 31, 1982, California requested under
section 172(a)(2), and EPA approved, an extension of the attainment
date to December 31, 1987. 40 CFR 52.222. On May 26, 1988, EPA notified
the Governor of California, pursuant to section 110(a)(2)(H) of the
pre-amended Act, that the above districts' portions of the California
SIP were inadequate to attain and maintain the ozone standard and
requested that deficiencies in the existing SIP be corrected (EPA's
SIP-Call). On November 15, 1990, the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990
were enacted. Pub. L. 101-549, 104 Stat. 2399, codified at 42 U.S.C.
7401-7671q. In amended section 182(a)(2)(A) of the CAA, Congress
statutorily adopted the requirement that nonattainment areas fix their
deficient reasonably available control technology (RACT) rules for
ozone and established a deadline of May 15, 1991 for states to submit
corrections of those deficiencies.
Section 182(a)(2)(A) applies to areas designated as nonattainment
prior to enactment of the amendments and classified as marginal or
above as of the date of enactment. It requires such areas to adopt and
correct RACT rules pursuant to pre-amended section 172(b) as
interpreted in pre-amendment guidance.1 EPA's SIP-Call used that
guidance to indicate the necessary corrections for specific
nonattainment areas. The LA Basin is classified as extreme and the
Ventura County Area is classified as severe;2 therefore, these
areas were subject to the RACT fix-up [[Page 19555]] requirement and
the May 15, 1991 deadline.
\1\ Among other things, the pre-amendment guidance consists of
those portions of the proposed post-1987 ozone and carbon monoxide
policy that concern RACT, 52 FR 45044 (November 24, 1987); ``Issues
Relating to VOC Regulation Cutpoints, Deficiencies, and Deviations,
Clarification to Appendix D of November 24, 1987 Federal Register
Notice'' (Blue Book) (notice of availability was published in the
Federal Register on May 25, 1988); and the existing control
technique guidelines (CTGs).
\2\The LA Basin and the Ventura County Area retained their
designations of nonattainment and were classified by operation of
law pursuant to sections 107(d) and 181(a) upon the date of
enactment of the CAA. See 55 FR 56694 (November 6, 1991).
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The State of California submitted many revised RACT rules for
incorporation into its SIP on February 24, 1995, including the rules
being acted on in this document. This document addresses EPA's proposed
action for SCAQMD Rule 1153, Commercial Bakery Ovens; and VCAPCD Rule
74.12, Surface Coating of Metal Parts and Products. The SCAQMD adopted
Rule 1153 on January 13, 1995 and the VCAPCD adopted Rule 74.12 on
January 10, 1995. These submitted rules were found to be complete on
March 10, 1995 pursuant to EPA's completeness criteria that are set
forth in 40 CFR part 51, appendix V3 and are being proposed for
approval into the SIP.
\3\EPA adopted the completeness criteria on February 16, 1990
(55 FR 5830) and, pursuant to section 110(k)(1)(A) of the CAA,
revised the criteria on August 26, 1991 (56 FR 42216).
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SCAQMD Rule 1153 controls VOC emissions from commercial bakery
ovens; and VCAPCD Rule 74.12 controls VOC emissions from facilities
that apply coatings to metal parts or products. VOCs contribute to the
production of ground-level ozone and smog. SCAQMD Rule 1153 and VCAPCD
Rule 74.12 were adopted as part of each district's efforts to achieve
the National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) for ozone and in
response to EPA's SIP-Call and the section 182(a)(2)(A) CAA
requirement. The following is EPA's evaluation and proposed action for
these rules.
EPA Evaluation and Proposed Action
In determining the approvability of a VOC rule, EPA must evaluate
the rule for consistency with the requirements of the CAA and EPA
regulations, as found in section 110 and part D of the CAA and 40 CFR
part 51 (Requirements for Preparation, Adoption, and Submittal of
Implementation Plans). The EPA interpretation of these requirements,
which forms the basis for today's action, appears in the various EPA
policy guidance documents listed in footnote 1. Among those provisions
is the requirement that a VOC rule must, at a minimum, provide for the
implementation of RACT for stationary sources of VOC emissions. This
requirement was carried forth from the pre-amended Act.
For the purpose of assisting state and local agencies in developing
RACT rules, EPA prepared a series of Control Technique Guideline (CTG)
documents. The CTGs are based on the underlying requirements of the Act
and specify the presumptive norms for what is RACT for specific source
categories. Under the CAA, Congress ratified EPA's use of these
documents, as well as other Agency policy, for requiring States to
``fix-up'' their RACT rules. See section 182(a)(2)(A). The CTG
applicable to VCAPCD Rule 74.12 is entitled, ``Control of Volatile
Organic Emissions from Existing Stationary Sources--Surface Coating of
Miscellaneous Metal Parts and Products'', EPA-450/2-78-0-015, June
1978. For some source categories, such as commercial bakery ovens
(SCAQMD Rule 1153), EPA did not publish a CTG. In these cases, the
district may determine what controls are required by reviewing the
operation of facilities subject to the regulation and evaluating
regulations for similar sources in other areas. EPA did publish an
Alternative Control Technology Document (ACT) entitled, ``Alternative
Control Technology Document for Bakery Oven Emissions'', EPA 453/R-92-
017, December 1972 as guidance for states when developing rules
controlling VOC emissions from bakeries. Further interpretations of EPA
policy are found in the Blue Book, referred to in footnote 1. In
general, these guidance documents have been set forth to ensure that
VOC rules are fully enforceable and strengthen or maintain the SIP.
SCAQMD's submitted Rule 1153, Commercial Bakery Ovens, includes the
following significant changes from the current SIP:
Executive Officer discretion in specifying test methods
was eliminated.
The ``exempt compounds'' definition was updated.
VCAPCD submitted Rule 74.12, Surface Coating of Metal Parts and
Products is a new rule and includes:
Limits for the ROC content of metal surface coatings and
solvents used to clean coating application equipment and metal surfaces
prior to coating.
The use of add-on equipment to control emissions of ROCs
if noncompliant coatings are used.
Requirements for monthly records of complying coatings and
daily records of noncompliant coating applied.
Test methods are included to determine compliance.
EPA has evaluated the submitted rules and has determined that they
are consistent with the CAA, EPA regulations, and EPA policy.
Therefore, SCAQMD Rule 1153, Commercial Bakery Ovens; and VCAPCD Rule
74.12, Surface Coating of Metal Parts and Products are being proposed
for approval under section 110(k)(3) of the CAA as meeting the
requirements of section 110(a) and Part D.
Nothing in this action should be construed as permitting or
allowing or establishing a precedent for any future request for
revision to any state implementation plan. Each request for revision to
the state implementation plan shall be considered separately in light
of specific technical, economic, and environmental factors and in
relation to relevant statutory and regulatory requirements.
Regulatory Process
Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 600 et seq., EPA
must prepare a regulatory flexibility analysis assessing the impact of
any proposed or final rule on small entities. 5 U.S.C. 603 and 604.
Alternatively, EPA may certify that the rule will not have a
significant impact on a substantial number of small entities. Small
entities include small businesses, small not-for-profit enterprises and
government entities with jurisdiction over populations of less than
50,000.
SIP approvals under sections 110 and 301 and subchapter I, part D
of the CAA do not create any new requirements, but simply approve
requirements that the State is already imposing. Therefore, because the
Federal SIP-approval does not impose any new requirements, it does not
have a significant impact on any small entities affected. Moreover, due
to the nature of the Federal-state relationship under the CAA,
preparation of a regulatory flexibility analysis would constitute
Federal inquiry into the economic reasonableness of state action. The
CAA forbids EPA to base its actions concerning SIPs on such grounds.
Union Electric Co. v. U.S. E.P.A., 427 U.S. 246, 256-66 (S.Ct. 1976);
42 U.S.C. 7410(a)(2).
The OMB has exempted this action from review under Executive Order
12866.
List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52
Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Hydrocarbons,
Intergovernmental relations, Ozone, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements, Volatile organic compound.
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401-7671q.
Dated: April 12, 1995.
John C. Wise,
Acting Regional Administrator.
[FR Doc. 95-9707 Filed 4-18-95; 8:45 am]
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