ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTIONAGENCY 40 CFRPart 81 [Docket: EPA-RI0-0AR-2010-0432] Finding ofAttainment for PMlO for the Mendenhall Valley PMlO NonattainmentArea, Alaska AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Direct final rule.

SUMMARY: EPA finds that the Mendenhall Valley nonattainment area in Alaska attained the National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) for particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter ofless than orequal to a nominal ten micrometers (PMlO) as ofDecember 31, 1995.

DATES: This rule is effective on [Insert date 60days after date ofpublicationin the Federal Register], without further notice, unless EPAreceives adverse commentby [Insert date 30 days after date ofpublication in the Federal Register

### 1. IfEPAreceives adverse comment,
we will publish a timely withdrawal in the Federal Register informing the public that the rule will not take effect.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-RlO-OAR-201O-0432, by any ofthe following methods:2 • www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line instructions for submitting comments.
• Email: body.steve@epa.gov
• Mail: Steve Body, EPA Region 10, Office ofAir, Waste and Toxics (AWT-107), 1200 Sixth Avenue, Suite 900, Seattle WA, 98101
• Hand Delivery/ Courier: EPA Region 10, 1200 Sixth Avenue, Suite 900, Seattle WA, 98101. Attention: Steve Body, Office ofAir, Waste and Toxics, AWT
- 107. Such deliveries are only accepted during normal hours ofoperation, and special arrangements should be made for deliveries ofboxed information.

Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-RlO-0AR-201O-0432. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included in the public docket without change and maybe 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 information that you consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through www.regulations.gov ore-mail. The www.regulations.gov website is an "anonymous access" system, which means EPA will not know your identity or contact in:formation unless you provide it in the body ofyour 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 ofthe comment that is placed in the public docket and made available on the Internet. Ifyou submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you include your name and othercontact information in the body ofyour comment and with any disk or CD-ROM you submit. IfEPA cannot read your comment due to

### 3 technical difficulties and cannot contact you for clarification, EPA may not be able to consider your comment. Electronic files should avoid the use ofspecial characters, any form of encryption, and be free ofany defects or viruses.

Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the www.regulations.gov index. Although listed in the index, some information is not publicly available, e.g., CBI or otherinformation 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. Publicly available docket materials are available eitherelectronically in www.regulations.gov orin hard copy during normal business hours at the Office ofAir, Waste and Toxics, EPA Region 10, 1200 Sixth Avenue, Suite 900, SeattleWA, 98101.

FORFURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Steve Body at telephone number: (206) 553­ 0782, e-mail address: body.steve@epa.gov, orthe above EPA, Region 10 address.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document wherever "we", "us" or "our" are used, we mean EPA. Information is organized as follows:

Table ofContents

I. Background A. PMlO NAAQS4 B. Designation and Classification ofPM 10 Nonattainment Areas C. How Does EPA Make AttainmentDeterminations? D. What is the Attainment Date for the Mendenhall PMIO Nonattainment Area? E. WhatPMIO Planning has Occurred for the Mendenhall Valley PMlO Nonattainment Area? II. EPA's Analysis A. What Does the Air Quality Data Show as ofthe December 31, 1995 Attainment Date? B. Does More Recent Air QualityData Also Show Attainment? III. Statutory and Executive OrderReviews


### I. Background A. PMlONAAQS TheNAAQS are levels for certain ambient air pollutants set byEPA to protect public health and welfare. PMlO, orparticulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter less than orequal to a nominal 10 micrometers, is among the ambient air pollutants for which EPA has established health-based standards. On July 1, 1987 (52 FR 24634), EPApromulgated two primary standards for PMlO: a 24-hour standard of 150 micrograms percubic meter**(~g/m3)** and an annual PMlO standard of50**~g/m3.** EPA also promulgated secondary PMIO standards that were identical to the primary standards.

Effective December 18,2006, EPArevoked the annual PM IO standardbutretainedthe 24­ hourPMlO standard. 71 FR 61144 (October 17,2006). The 24-hour PM IO standard is attained

### 5 when the expected number ofdays per calendar year with a 24-hour concentration in excess of the standard, as determined in accordance with 40 CFRpart 50, appendix K, is equal to or less than one. 1 40 CFR 50.6 and 40 CFRpart 50, appendix K.

B. Designation and Classification of PMlO NonattainmentAreas

Areas meeting the requirements ofsection 107(d)(4)(B) ofthe Clean Air Act (CAA or the Act) were designated nonattainment for PMlO by operation oflaw and classified "moderate" upon enactment ofthe 1990 Clean AirAct Amendments. See generally 42 U.S.c. 7407(d)(4)(B). These areas included all former Group IPMlO planning areas identified on August 7, 1987 (52 FR 29383), as further clarified on October 31, 1990 (55 FR45799), and any other areas violating the NAAQS for PMlO priorto January 1, 1989. A FederalRegisternotice announcing the areas designated nonattainment for PMlO upon enactment ofthe 1990 Amendments, known as "initial" PMlO nonattainment areas, was published on March 15, 1991 (56 FR 11101) and a subsequent FederalRegisterdocument correcting the description ofsome ofthese areas was published on August 8, 1991 (56 FR 37654). The Mendenhall Valley PMIO nonattainment area was one ofthese initial moderate PMlO nonattainment areas.
All initial moderate PMlO nonattainment areas had the same applicable attainment date of

1 An exceedance is defined as a daily value that is above the level ofthe 24-hour standard (150 )lg/m3) after rounding to the nearest 10 )lg/m3 (i.e. values ending in 5 or greater are to be rounded up). Thus, a recorded value of 154 )lg/m 3 would not be an exceedance since it would be rounded to 150)lim 3 whereas a recorded value of 155 )lg/m3 would be an exceedance since it would be rounded to 160 )lim3

. See40CFRpart 50, appendix K, section 1.0.6 December 31, 1994. Section 188(d) provides the Administrator the authority to grant up to two one-year extensions to the attainment date provided certain requirements are met. States containing initial moderate PMIO nonattainment areas were required to develop and submit to EPAby November 15, 1991, a state implementationplan (SIP) revision providing implementation ofreasonably available control measures (RACM), including reasonably available control technology (RACT), and a demonstration ofwhether attainment ofthe PMIO NAAQS bythe December 31, 1994 attainment date was practicable. See section 189(a).

C. How Does EPA MakeAttainmentDeterminations?

All PMIO nonattainment areas are initially classified "moderate" by operation oflaw when they are designated nonattainment. See section 188(a). Pursuant to sections 179(c) and 188(b)(2) ofthe Act, we have the responsibility ofdetermining within six months ofthe applicable attainment date whether, based on air quality data, PMIO nonattainment areas attained the PMIO NAAQS by that date. Determinations under section 179(c)(1) ofthe Act are to be based upon the area's "airquality as ofthe attainment date." Section 188(b)(2) is consistent with this requirement.
Generally, we determine whether an area's air quality is meeting the PMIO NAAQS for purposes ofsection 179(c)(1) and 188(b)(2) basedupon data gathered at established state and local air monitoring stations (SLAMS) and national airmonitoring stations (NAMS) and recently renamed National Core (NCore) monitoring stations in the nonattainment areas and entered into7 the EPA's national data base, now called Air Quality System (AQS). Dataentered into the AQS has been determined to meet Federal monitoring requirenients (see 40 CFR 50.6, 40 CFRpart 50, appendix J, 40 CFR part 53, 40 CFR part 58, appendix A) and may be used to determine the attainment status ofareas. We will also consider air quality data from other air monitoring stations in the nonattainment area provided that the stations meet the Federal monitoring requirements for SLAMS. All data are reviewed to determine the area's air quality status in accordance with our guidance at 40 CFRpart 50, appendix K.

Attainment ofthe 24-hour standard is determined by calculating the expected number of days in a year with PMIO concentrations greaterthan 150 ug/m3. The 24-hour standard is attained when the expected number ofdays with levels above 150 ug/m3 (averaged over a three yearperiod) is less than orequal to one. Three consecutive years ofair quality data are generally required to show attainment ofthe 24-hour standards for PMIO• See 40 CFRpart 50 and appendix K.

D. What is theAttainmentDatefor the Mendenhall Valley PMIONonattainmentArea?

The original attainment date for the Mendenhall Valley PMlO nonattainment area was December 31,1994. On September 12, 1994, (60 FR47276) the attainment date was later extended to December 31, 1995, under the authority ofsection 188(d) ofthe Act.

E. What PMIO Planning has Occurredfor the Mendenhall Valley PMlONonattainmentArea?8 After the Mendenhall Valley PM]o nonattainment area was designated nonattainment for PM IO, the Alaska DepaJ.1ment ofEnvironmental Conservation (ADEC), began in the early 1990s to prepare the technical elements needed to bring the area into attainment and meet the planning requirements oftitle I ofthe CAA. Based on these technical products ADEC developed and implemented control measures on PM10 sources in the Mendenhall Valley PM10 nonattainment
area. The State submitted these control measures to EPA on June 22, 1993, as a moderate PM IO nonattainment SIP revision under section 189(a) ofthe Act. The control measures submitted by the State include a comprehensive residential wood combustion program and controls on fugitive road dust. EPA took final action to approve the State's moderate PM IO SIP on March 24, 1994, (59 FR 13885).


### II. EPA's Analysis A. What Does theAir QualityData Show as ofthe December 31,1995AttainmentDate?

Whether an area has attained the PM IO NAAQS is based exclusivelyupon measured air quality levels over the three calendar years See 40 CFR part 50 appendix K. For an area with a December 31, 1995, attainment date, datareported for calendar years 1993, 1994 and 1995 is considered. EPA also considered air quality data reported for the period subsequent to the attainment date to the present to demonstrate the area continued to attain the PMIO NAAQS. The State ofAlaska operated two PMIO SLAMS monitoring sites in the Mendenhall ValleyPMIO nonattainment area during 1992 through 1995: Floyd Dryden High School and Trio9 Street. Both sites meet Federal siting requirements and are appropriate for monitoring the area's compliance with the PMlO NAAQS. (See EPA's letters approving Alaska's annual network review.) The Trio Street site ceased operation in 1997. The Floyd Dryden Middle School site continued operation through 2009. Floyd Dryden Middle School Site: TheFloyd Dryden site recorded two values above the level ofthe 24 hourPM10 NAAQS (exceedances) in February 1992. These values were flagged by ADEC as exceptional events due to high winds, but AQS does not show that RIO concurred on these flags. Thus, these two daily values are included in the expected exceedance calculations. Outside ofthesetwo exceedances there have been no other exceedances ofthe daily PMlO standard at the Floyd Dryden Middle School site from February 1992 through December 31,2009. There were a number ofyears for which the number ofreported daily values did not meet the 75% data completeness criteriarequired for making attainment determinations: 1998, 2000, 2003,2008, and 2009. Therefore an affirmative attainment determination can only be made for a subset ofthese years; 1992-94, 1993-95, 1994-96, 1995-97,2004-06, and 2005-07. The 1993­ 1995 expected exceedance rate is 0.0 which likewise demonstrates attainment with the NAAQS by the attainment date.
Trio Street Site The Trio Street site recorded five PMlO exceedances in 1992 and three in 1993. Ofthese eight total exceedances, only the four recorded in the first quarter 1992 were flagged byADEC as high wind exceptional events. The AQS does not show that Region 10 concurred on these high10 wind events and therefore the data cannotbe excluded from expected exceedance calculations. There were no exceedances from 1994 through 1997 when the site ceased operation. For the time period ofJanuary 1, 1992 to June 30, 1997, the Trio Street site met the 75% quarterly data completeness requirement. Thus, there is sufficient data to make an attainment determination. The expected exceedance calculation for years 1993-95 was 1.0, which demonstrates attainment. An expected exceedance rate ofgreaterthan 1.0 would be a violation ofthe NAAQS.

B. DoesMore RecentAirQuality DataAlso ShowAttainment?
Although the attainment date for the Mendenhall Valley PMlO nonattainment area is December 31, 1995, and the air quality data used tojudge attainment by that date includes all data collected in calendaryears 1993, 1994, and 1995, EPAhas also reviewed the air quality data collected at the State monitoring sites from January 1996 through December 2009. As discussed above, there have been no exceedances recorded at the Floyd Dryden site since 1992 and no exceedances recorded at the Trio Street site from 1994 through 1997, when it ceased operation. Thus, the area continues to be in compliance with the 24 hour PMwNAAQS during this period.

III. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

Under the Clean AirAct, the Administrator is required to approve a SIP submission that complies with the provisions ofthe Act and applicable Federal regulations. 42 U.S.c. 741O(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a). Thus, in reviewing SIP submissions, EPA's role is to approve state choices,11 provided that they meet the criteria ofthe Clean Air Act. Accordingly, this action merely approves state law as meeting Federal requirements and does not impose additional requirements beyond those imposed by state law. Forthat reason, this action:
• is not a "significant regulatory action" subject to review by the Office ofManagement and Budget underExecutive Order 12866 (58 FR 51735, October4, 1993);
• does not impose an information collection burden underthe provisions ofthe Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.c. 3501 etseq.);
• is certified as not having a significant economic impact on a substantial number ofsmall entities under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 u.s.c. 601 etseq.);
• does not contain any unfunded mandate or significantly oruniquely affect small governments, as described in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (Public Law 104-4);
• does not have Federalism implications as specified in Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999);
• is not an economically significant regulatory action based on health or safety risks subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997);
• is not a significant regulatory action subject to Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22,2001);
• is not subject to requirements ofSection 12(d) ofthe National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 (15 U.S.c. 272 note) because application ofthose requirements would be inconsistent with the Clean Air Act; and12 • does not provide EPA with the discretionary authority to address, as appropriate, disproportionate human health orenvironmental effects, using practicable and legally permissible methods, underExecutive Order 12898 (59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994). In addition, this rule does not have tribal implications as specified byExecutive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9,2000), because the SIP is not approved to apply in Indian country located in the state, and EPA notes that it will not impose substantial direct costs on tribal governments orpreempt tribal law.
The Congressional Review Act, 5 U.s.c. 801 et seq., as added by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, generally provides that before a rule may take effect, the agencypromulgating the rule must submit a rule report, which includes a copy ofthe rule, to each House ofthe Congress and to the Comptroller General ofthe United States. EPA will submit a report containing this action and otherrequired information to the U.S. Senate, the u.S. House ofRepresentatives, and the Comptroller General ofthe United States prior to publication ofthe rule in the Federal Register. A major rule cannot take effect until 60 days after it is published in the Federal Register. This action is not a "majorrule" as defined by 5 u.s.c. 804(2).

Under section 307(b)(1) ofthe Clean Air Act, petitions forjudicial review ofthis action must be filed in the United States Court ofAppeals for the appropriate circuitby [FEDERAL REGISTER OFFICE: insert date 60 days from date ofpublication ofthis document in the13 Federal Register]. Filing a petition for reconsideration by the Administrator ofthis final rule does not affect the finality ofthis action for the purposes of judicial review nor does it extend the time within which a petition forjudicial review may be filed, and shall not postpone the effectiveness ofsuch rule or action. Parties with objections to this direct final rule are encouraged to file a comment in response to the parallel notice ofproposed rulemaking for this action published in the proposed rules section oftoday's Federal Register, ratherthan file an immediate petition forjudicialreview ofthis direct final rule, so that EPA can withdraw this direct final rule and address the comment in the proposed rulemaking. This action may not be challenged later in proceedings to enforce its requirements. (See section 307(b)(2).)

List ofSubjects in 40 CFR Part 81 Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Intergovernmental relations, Particulate matter, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

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