[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 127 (Tuesday, July 5, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-16219]
[[Page Unknown]]
[Federal Register: July 5, 1994]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 52
[OAQPS #CA21-6-6291; FRL-5007-1]
Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans; California
State Implementation Plan Revision; Ventura County Air Pollution
Control District
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).
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SUMMARY: EPA is proposing to approve revisions to the California State
Implementation Plan (SIP) for ozone. The revisions concern the control
of oxides of nitrogen (NOx) from electric utilities and stack
monitoring requirements for making compliance determinations in Ventura
County. The intended effect of proposing approval of these rules is to
regulate emissions of NOx 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 rulemaking will incorporate these
rules into the federally approved SIP. EPA has evaluated each of these
rules and is proposing to approve them under provisions of the CAA
regarding EPA actions on SIP submittals, SIPs for national primary and
secondary ambient air quality standards, and plan requirements for
nonattainment areas.
COMMENTS: Comments on this proposed action must be received in writing
on or before August 4, 1994.
ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to: Daniel A. Meer, Chief, Stationary
Source Rulemaking (A-5-3), Air and Toxics Division, U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA
94105.
Copies of the rule revision and EPA's evaluation report of each
rule are available for public inspection at EPA's Region IX office
during normal business hours. Copies of the submitted rule revisions
are also available for inspection at the following locations:
Stationary Source Rulemaking Section (A-5-3), Air and Toxics Division,
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street,
San Francisco, CA 94105.
California Air Resources Board, Stationary Source Division, Rule
Evaluation Section, 2020 ``L'' Street, Sacramento, CA 95812.
Ventura County Air Pollution Control District, Rule Development
Section, 702 County Square Drive, Ventura, CA 93003.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Wendy Colombo, Stationary Source
Rulemaking, (A-5-3), Air and Toxics Division, U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA
94105 Telephone: (415) 744-1202.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background:
On November 15, 1990, the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 (CAA)
were enacted. Pub. L. 101-549, 104 Stat. 2399, codified at 42 U.S.C.
7401-7671q. The air quality planning requirements for the reduction of
NOX emissions through reasonably available control technology
(RACT) are set out in section 182(f) of the CAA. On November 25, 1992,
EPA published a notice of proposed rulemaking entitled ``State
Implementation Plans; Nitrogen Oxides Supplement to the General
Preamble; Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 Implementation of Title I;
Proposed Rule,'' (the NOX Supplement) which describes the
requirements of section 182(f). The November 25, 1992, notice should be
referred to for further information on the NOX requirements and is
incorporated into this document by reference.
Section 182(f) of the Clean Air Act requires States to apply the
same requirements to major stationary sources of NOX (``major'' as
defined in section 302 and sections 182(c), (d), and (e)) as are
applied to major stationary sources of volatile organic compounds
(VOCs), in moderate or above ozone nonattainment areas. Ventura County
is classified as a severe nonattainment area for ozone,1 therefore
subject to the RACT requirements of section 182(b)(2), cited above.
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\1\Ventura County was designated nonattainment and 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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Section 182(b)(2) requires submittal of RACT rules for major
stationary sources of VOC emissions (not covered by a pre-enactment
control technologies guidelines (CTG) document or a post-enactment CTG
document) by November 15, 1992. There were no NOX CTGs issued
before enactment and EPA has not issued a CTG document for any NOX
sources since enactment of the CAA. The RACT rules covering NOX
sources and submitted as SIP revisions are expected to require final
installation of the actual NOX controls by May 31, 1995 for those
sources where installation by that date is practicable.
This document addresses EPA's proposed action for Ventura County
Air Pollution Control District (VCAPCD), Rule 59, Electrical Power
Generating Equipment--Oxides of Nitrogen Emissions and Rule 103, Stack
Monitoring. Rule 59 and Rule 103 were respectively adopted by VCAPCD on
September 15, 1992 and June 4, 1991. The California Air Resources Board
(CARB) submitted these revisions to EPA on November 18, 1993 and
October 25, 1991, respectively. The submissions were found to be
complete on December 23, 1993 (Rule 59) and December 18, 1991 (Rule
103), pursuant to EPA's completeness criteria that are set forth in 40
CFR Part 51 Appendix V,2 and are being proposed for approval into
the SIP.
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\2\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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NOX emissions contribute to the production of ground level
ozone and smog. Rule 59 limits nitrogen oxide emissions from utility
boilers in Ventura County, while Rule 103 specifies stack monitoring
requirements. The rules were adopted as part of Ventura County's
efforts to achieve the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS)
for ozone and in response to the CAA requirements cited above. The
following is EPA's evaluation and proposed action for these rules.
EPA Evaluation and Proposed Action
In determining the approvability of a NOX 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 interpretations of these requirements,
which form the basis for this action, appear in the NOX Supplement
and various other EPA policy guidance documents.3 Among these
provisions is the requirement that a NOX rule must, at a minimum,
provide for the implementation of RACT for stationary sources of
NOX emissions.
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\3\ 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).
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For the purposes of assisting state and local agencies in
developing NOX RACT rules, EPA prepared the NOX Supplement to
the General Preamble, cited above (57 FR 55620). In the NOX
Supplement, EPA provides guidance on how RACT should be determined for
major stationary sources of NOX emissions. While most of the
guidance issued by EPA on what constitutes RACT for stationary sources
has been directed towards application for VOC sources, much of the
guidance is also applicable to RACT for stationary sources of NOX
(see section 4.5 of the NOX Supplement). In addition, pursuant to
section 183(c), EPA is issuing alternative control techniques documents
(ACTs), that identify alternative controls for all categories of
stationary sources of NOX. The ACT documents will provide
information on control technology for stationary sources that emit or
have the potential to emit 25 tons per year or more of NOX.
However, the ACTs will not establish a presumptive norm for what is
considered RACT for stationary sources of NOX. In general, the
guidance documents cited above, as well as other relevant and
applicable guidance documents, have been issued by EPA to ensure that
submitted NOX RACT rules are fully enforceable and strengthen or
maintain the SIP.
The current SIP-approved version of Rule 59, Electrical Power
Generating Equipment--Oxides of Nitrogen Emissions, has four parts:
``A'' regarding emission limits; ``B'' regarding applicability; ``D''
regarding definitions (approved on June 6, 1980); and ``C'' regarding
exceedance provisions (approved into the SIP on April 11, 1983). The
significant changes in the September 15, 1992 version involve more
stringent emission limits, fuel oil provisions, natural gas curtailment
issues, 24-hour rolling average compliance determinations, start-up
exemptions, and increments of progress provisions. In addition, new
recordkeeping requirements, test methods, and definitions have been
included.
Specifically, the rule limits NOX emissions from boilers rated
less than 2150 million British Thermal Units (MMBtu) to 0.20 pounds per
megawatt-hour (lb/MW-hr) produced, and limits NOX emissions from
units greater than or equal to 2150 MMBtu to 0.10lb/MW-hr. Final
compliance with these limits is required by June 4, 1996 and June 4,
1994, respectively. Interim NOX limits are required for units
burning natural gas as well as fuel oil. However, operation on any
amount of fuel oil as of April 1, 1993 is prohibited except during
system tests or a force majeure natural gas curtailment. Compliance
with the hourly emission limits is determined using a 24-hour rolling
average in which the 24 hourly measurements immediately preceding the
current hour are used to calculate the average for that hour. Emissions
and power production are required to be continuously monitored pursuant
to Rule 103. For implementation by 1995, all the limits specified in
Rule 59 are more stringent than RACT except for the pre-1996 limits
established for units less than 2150MMBtu/hr. The pre-1996 limits for
these units, however, meet RACT. Although all limits post-1996 are more
stringent than the NOX RACT limits for utility boilers specified
in the NOX Supplement, all additional reductions obtained beyond
those attributable to RACT are assumed necessary for VCAPCD's
attainment planning purposes.
A more detailed discussion of the sources controlled, the controls
required, and the analysis of how these controls meet RACT can be found
in the Technical Support Document (TSD) for Rule 59 and Rule 103, dated
June 1994.
Rule 103, Stack Monitoring was originally adopted by VCAPCD on
November 22, 1977. A revised version was approved into the SIP on
October 16, 1985. The rule adopted on June 4, 1991 requires all large
boilers, regardless of their use rate, to be monitored.
EPA has evaluated the submitted rules and has determined that they
are consistent with the CAA, EPA regulations and EPA policy. Therefore,
both VCAPCD Rule 59, Electrical Power Generating Equipment--Oxides of
Nitrogen Emissions and VCAPCD Rule 103, Stack Monitoring 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 sections 603 and
604. Alternatively, EPA may certify that the rule will not have a
significant economic 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 section 110 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 affected small entities. 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. section 7410
(a)(2).
This action has been classified as a Table 2 action by the Regional
Administrator under the procedures published in the Federal Register on
January 19, 1989 (54 FR 2214-2225), as revised by an October 4, 1993
memorandum from Michael H. Shapiro, Acting Assistant Administrator for
Air and Radiation.
OMB has exempted this action from E.O. 12866 review.
List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52
Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Hydrocarbons,
Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements, Volatile organic compounds.
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401-7671q.
Dated: June 20, 1994.
John Wise,
Acting Regional Administrator.
[FR Doc. 94-16219 Filed 7-1-94; 8:45 am]
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