E7-21245. Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans Kentucky: Approval of Revisions to the State Implementation Plan

AGENCY:

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION:

Proposed rule.

SUMMARY:

EPA is proposing to approve a request submitted on May 25, 2007, by the Commonwealth of Kentucky (Kentucky), through the Kentucky Division for Air Quality (KDAQ), to remove the “Potentially hazardous matter or toxic substances” rule from the EPA-approved Kentucky State Implementation Plan (SIP). KDAQ requested that EPA remove this rule from the Kentucky SIP, because the rule is not related to the attainment and maintenance of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). EPA is proposing to approve this request and correct the Kentucky SIP by removing this rule from the SIP pursuant to section 110(k)(6) of the Clean Air Act (CAA).

DATES:

Written comments must be received on or before November 28, 2007.

ADDRESSES:

Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R04-OAR-2007-0500, by one of the following methods:

1. http://www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line instructions for submitting comments.

2. E-mail: [e-mail].

3. Fax: [phone].

4. Mail: “EPA-R04-OAR-2007-0500,” Regulatory Development Section, Air Planning Branch, Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street, SW., Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960.

5. Hand Delivery or Courier: Sean Lakeman, Regulatory Development Section, Air Planning Branch, Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street, SW., Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. Such deliveries are only accepted during the Regional Office's normal hours of operation. The Regional Office's official hours of business are Monday through Friday, 8:30 to 4:30, excluding federal holidays.

Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. “EPA-R04-OAR-2007-0500.” EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included in the public docket without change and may be made available online at www.regulations.gov, including any personal information provided, unless the comment includes information claimed to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit through www.regulations.gov or e-mail, information that you consider to be CBI or otherwise protected. The www.regulations.gov Web site is an “anonymous access” system, which means EPA will not know your identity or contact information unless you provide it in the body of your comment. If you send an e-mail comment directly to EPA without going through www.regulations.gov, your e-mail address will be automatically captured and included as part of the comment that is placed in the public docket and made available on the Internet. If you submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you include your name and other contact information in the body of your comment and with any disk or CD-ROM you submit. 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. Electronic files should avoid the use of special characters, any form of encryption, and be free of any defects or viruses. For additional information about EPA's public docket visit the EPA Docket Center homepage at http://www.epa.gov/​epahome/​dockets.htm.

Docket: All documents in the electronic docket are listed in the www.regulations.gov index. Although listed in the index, some information is not publicly available, i.e., CBI or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such as copyrighted material, is not placed on the Internet and will be publicly available only in hard copy form. Publicly available docket materials are available either electronically in www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the Regulatory Development Section, Air Planning Branch, Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street, SW., Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. EPA requests that if at all possible, you contact the person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section to schedule your inspection. The Regional Office's official hours of business are Monday through Friday, 8:30 to 4:30, excluding Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Sean Lakeman, Regulatory Development Section, Air Planning 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]. Mr. Lakeman can also be reached via electronic mail at [e-mail].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The CAA requires EPA to set NAAQS for commonly occurring air pollutants that pose public health and welfare threats. These pollutants are known as criteria pollutants. Currently, NAAQS exist for six criteria pollutants—ozone (ground level), particulate matter, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead and nitrogen dioxide. On July 12, 1982 (47 FR 30059), EPA erroneously approved Kentucky's “Potentially hazardous matter or toxic substances” rule (401 KAR 63:020) into the SIP. This rule is not related to the attainment and maintenance of the NAAQS. Pursuant to section 110 of the CAA, provisions approved by EPA as part of States' SIPs should generally be related to attainment and maintenance of these NAAQS.

The Kentucky “Potentially hazardous matter or toxic substances” rule applies to antimony, arsenic, bismuth, lead, silica, tin and compounds of such materials. EPA is, therefore, proposing to correct this error by removing the provision from the approved SIP under the authority of section 110(k)(6) of the CAA. Section 110(k)(6) provides: “Whenever the Administrator determines that the Administrator's action approving, disapproving, or promulgating any plan or plan revision (or part thereof), area designation, redesignation, classification, or reclassification was in error, the Administrator may in the same manner as the approval, disapproval, or promulgation revise such action as appropriate without requiring any further submission from the State. Such determination and the basis thereof shall be provided to the State and public.”

Proposed Action

Since Kentucky's “Potentially hazardous matter or toxic substances” rule (401 KAR 63:020) is not directed at the attainment and maintenance of the NAAQS, EPA has found that its prior approval of this particular rule into the Kentucky SIP was in error. Consequently, in order to correct this error, EPA is proposing to remove Kentucky rule 401 KAR 63:020 from the approved Kentucky SIP pursuant to section 110(k)(6) of the CAA. EPA will codify this deletion by revising the appropriate paragraph under 40 CFR part 52, subpart S, section 52.920 (Identification of Plan).

Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

Under Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993), this proposed action is not a “significant regulatory action” and therefore is not subject to review by the Office of Management and Budget. For this reason, this action is also not subject to Executive Order 13211, “Actions Concerning Regulations That Significantly Affect Energy Supply, Distribution, or Use” (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001). This proposed action merely proposes to remove an erroneously approved State rule from the SIP and imposes no additional requirements beyond those imposed by state law. Accordingly, the Administrator certifies that this proposed rule will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.). Because this rule proposes to remove an erroneously approved State rule from the SIP and does not impose any additional enforceable duty beyond that required by State law, it 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).

This proposed rule also does not have tribal implications because it will not have a substantial direct effect on one or more Indian tribes, on the relationship between the Federal Government and Indian tribes, or on the distribution of power and responsibilities between the Federal Government and Indian tribes, as specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000). This action also does not have Federalism implications because it does not have substantial direct effects on the states, on the relationship between the national government and the states, or on the distribution of power and responsibilities among the various levels of government, as specified in Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999). This action merely proposes to remove an erroneously approved State rule from the SIP, and does not alter the relationship or the distribution of power and responsibilities established in the CAA. This proposed rule also is not subject to Executive Order 13045 “Protection of Children from Environmental Health Risks and Safety Risks” (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997), because it is not economically significant. This proposed rule does not impose an information collection burden under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

• Environmental protection
• Air pollution control
• Carbon monoxide
• Lead
• Nitrogen dioxide
• Ozone
• Particulate matter
• Sulfur oxides
• Volatile organic compounds

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

Dated: October 19, 2007.

Russell L. Wright, Jr.,

Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4.