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[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 213 (Wednesday, November 4, 2015)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 68253-68257]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-28009]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Parts 52 and 81

[EPA-R04-OAR-2014-0904; FRL-9936-55-Region 4]

Air Plan Approval and Air Quality Designation; TN; Reasonably 
Available Control Measures and Redesignation for the TN Portion of the 
Chattanooga 1997 Annual PM2.5 Nonattainment Area

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving the 
portion of a State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision submitted by the 
State of Tennessee, through the Tennessee Department of Environment and 
Conservation (TDEC), on October 15, 2009, that addresses reasonably 
available control measures (RACM), including reasonably available 
control technology (RACT), for the Tennessee portion of the 
Chattanooga, TN-GA-AL nonattainment area for the 1997 fine particulate 
matter (PM2.5) national ambient air quality standards 
(NAAQS) (hereinafter referred to as the ``Chattanooga TN-GA-AL Area'' 
or

[[Page 68254]]

``Area''). Additionally, EPA is taking three separate final actions 
related to Tennessee's November 13, 2014 request to redesignate the 
Tennessee portion of the Area to attainment for the 1997 
PM2.5 NAAQS and associated SIP revision containing a plan 
for maintaining attainment of the standard in the Chattanooga TN-GA-AL 
Area. In these three actions, EPA is determining that the Area is 
continuing to attain the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS; approving and 
incorporating the State's plan for maintaining attainment of 
the standard in the Area, including the 2025 motor vehicle 
emission budgets (MVEBs) for nitrogen oxides (NOX) and 
PM2.5 for the Tennessee portion of this Area, into the SIP; 
and redesignating the Tennessee portion of the Area to attainment for 
the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS. In addition to the four final actions 
described above, EPA is also finding the 2025 MVEBs for the Tennessee 
portion of the Area adequate for the purposes of transportation 
conformity.

DATES: This rule will be effective November 4, 2015.

ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket 
Identification No. EPA-R04-OAR-2014-0904. All documents in the docket 
are listed on the www.regulations.gov Web site. Although listed in the 
index, some information may not be publicly available, i.e., 
Confidential Business Information 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 through www.regulations.gov or in hard 
copy at the Air Regulatory Management Section, Air Planning and 
Implementation 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 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., 
excluding Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joel Huey, Air Planning and 
Implementation Branch, Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management Division, 
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street SW., 
Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. Mr. Huey may be reached by phone at (404) 
562-9104 or via electronic mail at huey.joel@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background for Final Actions

    On July 18, 1997, EPA promulgated the first air quality standards 
for PM2.5. EPA promulgated an annual standard at a level of 
15 micrograms per cubic meter ([mu]g/m\3\) (based on a 3-year average 
of annual mean PM2.5 concentrations) and a 24-hour standard 
of 65 [mu]g/m\3\ (based on a 3-year average of the 98th percentile of 
24-hour concentrations). See 62 FR 36852. On January 5, 2005, and 
supplemented on April 14, 2005, EPA designated Hamilton County in 
Tennessee, in association with counties in Alabama and Georgia in the 
Chattanooga TN-GA-AL Area, as nonattainment for the 1997 Annual 
PM2.5 NAAQS.\1\ See 70 FR 944 and 70 FR 19844, respectively. 
The Chattanooga TN-GA-AL Area consists of Hamilton County, Tennessee; a 
portion of Jackson County, Alabama; and Catoosa and Walker Counties in 
Georgia.
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    \1\ On April 23, 2013, and September 14, 2012, Alabama and 
Georgia (respectively) submitted requests and related SIP revisions 
for EPA to redesignate the Alabama and Georgia portions of the 
Chattanooga TN-GA-AL Area to attainment for the 1997 
PM2.5 NAAQS. EPA has since redesignated the Alabama and 
Georgia portions of the Area. See 79 FR 76235 (December 22, 2014) 
and 79 FR 75748 (December 19, 2014), respectively.
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    On November 13, 2014, TDEC requested that EPA redesignate the 
Tennessee portion of the Area to attainment for the 1997 
PM2.5 NAAQS and submitted a SIP revision containing the 
State's plan for maintaining attainment of the 1997 PM2.5 
standard in the Area, including the 2025 MVEBs for NOX and 
PM2.5 for the Tennessee portion of the Area. In a notice of 
proposed rulemaking (NPR) published on March 27, 2015, EPA proposed to 
determine that the Chattanooga TN-GA-AL Area is continuing to attain 
the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS; \2\ to approve and incorporate into 
the Tennessee SIP the State's plan for maintaining attainment of the 
1997 PM2.5 standard in the Area, including the 2025 MVEBs 
for NOX and PM2.5 for the Tennessee portion of 
the Area; and to redesignate the Tennessee portion of the Area to 
attainment for the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS. See 80 FR 16331. EPA 
proposed to approve the redesignation request and the related SIP 
revision based, in part, on the Agency's longstanding interpretation 
that the nonattainment planning requirements in subpart 1 of title I, 
part D, of the Act (hereinafter ``Subpart 1''), including RACM, are not 
``applicable'' for purposes of CAA section 107(d)(3)(E)(ii) once an 
area is attaining the NAAQS and, therefore, need not be approved into 
the SIP before EPA can redesignate the area. See 80 FR 16331 (March 27, 
2015). In the NPR, EPA also notified the public of the status of the 
Agency's adequacy determination for the NOX and 
PM2.5 MVEBs for the Tennessee portion of the Area.
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    \2\ On May 31, 2011 (76 FR 31239), EPA published a final 
determination that the Chattanooga TN-GA-AL Area had attained the 
1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS based upon quality-assured and 
certified ambient air monitoring data for the 2007-2009 time period. 
EPA has reviewed the most recent ambient monitoring data for the 
Area, which indicate that the Chattanooga TN-GA-AL Area continues to 
attain the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS beyond the submitted 
3-year attainment period of 2007-2009. As stated in EPA's March 27, 
2015, proposal notice, the 3-year design value of 12.9 [mu]g/m\3\ 
for the Area for 2007-2009 meets the NAAQS of 15.0 [mu]g/m\3\. 
Quality assured and certified data in EPA's Air Quality System (AQS) 
database provide a 3-year design value of 10.3 [mu]g/m\3\ for the 
Area for 2012-2014. Furthermore, preliminary monitoring data in the 
AQS database for 2015 indicate that the Area is continuing to attain 
the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS. The AQS database is 
available at: http://www3.epa.gov/airdata/index.html.
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    On March 18, 2015, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth 
Circuit (Sixth Circuit) issued an opinion in Sierra Club v. EPA, 781 
F.3d 299 (6th Cir. 2015), that is inconsistent with EPA's longstanding 
interpretation regarding section 107(d)(3)(E)(ii) of the Clean Air Act 
(CAA or Act). In its decision, the Court vacated EPA's redesignation of 
the Indiana and Ohio portions of the Cincinnati-Hamilton nonattainment 
area to attainment for the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS because EPA had 
not yet approved RACM under Subpart 1 for the Cincinnati Area into the 
Indiana and Ohio SIPs.\3\ The Court concluded that ``a State seeking 
redesignation `shall provide for the implementation' of RACM/RACT, even 
if those measures are not strictly necessary to demonstrate attainment 
with the PM2.5 NAAQS . . . . If a State has not done so, EPA 
cannot `fully approve[]' the area's SIP, and redesignation to 
attainment status is improper.'' Sierra Club, 781 F.3d at 313.
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    \3\ The Court issued an amended decision on July 14, 2015, 
revising some of the legal aspects of the Court's analysis of the 
relevant statutory provisions (section 107(d)(3)(E)(ii) and section 
172(c)(1)) but maintaining its prior holding that section 172(c)(1) 
``unambiguously requires implementation of RACM/RACT prior to 
redesignation . . . even if those measures are not strictly 
necessary to demonstrate attainment with the PM2.5 
NAAQS.'' See Sierra Club v. EPA, Nos. 12-3169, 12-3182, 12-3420 (6th 
Cir. July 14, 2015).
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    EPA is bound by the Sixth Circuit's decision in Sierra Club v. EPA 
within the Court's jurisdiction unless it is overturned.\4\ Although 
EPA continues to believe that Subpart 1 RACM is not an

[[Page 68255]]

applicable requirement under section 107(d)(3)(E) for an area that has 
already attained the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS, on September 
18, 2015, EPA proposed two separate but related actions regarding the 
Tennessee portion of the Chattanooga TN-GA-AL Area in response to the 
Court's decision.5 6 First, EPA proposed to approve the 
portion of the State's October 15, 2009, attainment plan SIP revision 
that addresses RACM under Subpart 1 for the Tennessee portion of the 
Area. Second, EPA proposed to supplement the Agency's proposed approval 
of Tennessee's November 13, 2014, redesignation request for the Area by 
proposing that approval of the RACM portion of the aforementioned SIP 
revision satisfies the Subpart 1 RACM requirement in accordance with 
section 107(d)(3)(E) of the CAA. See 80 FR 56418.
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    \4\ The states of Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee are 
located within the Sixth Circuit's jurisdiction.
    \5\ Pursuant to 40 CFR 56.5(b), the EPA Region 4 Regional 
Administrator signed a memorandum on July 20, 2015, seeking 
concurrence from the Director of EPA's Air Quality Policy Division 
(AQPD) in the Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards to act 
inconsistent with EPA's interpretation of CAA sections 107(d)(3)(E) 
and 172(c)(1) when taking action on pending and future redesignation 
requests in Kentucky and Tennessee because the Region is bound by 
the Sixth Circuit's decision in Sierra Club v. EPA. The AQPD 
Director issued her concurrence on July 22, 2015. The July 20, 2015, 
memorandum with AQPD concurrence is located in the docket for 
today's actions.
    \6\ On September 3, 2015, the Sixth Circuit denied the petitions 
for rehearing en banc of this portion of its opinion that were filed 
by EPA, the state of Ohio, and industry groups from Ohio. Sierra 
Club v. EPA, Nos. 12-3169, 12-3182, 12-3420, Doc. 136-1 (6th Cir. 
Sept. 3, 2015).
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    The detailed rationale for EPA's findings and actions is set forth 
in the March 27, 2015, proposed rulemaking and in the September 18, 
2015, supplemental proposed rulemaking. See 80 FR 16331 and 80 FR 
56418, respectively. The comment periods associated with these two 
proposed rulemakings have closed and no adverse comments were received.

II. What are the effects of these actions?

    Approval of the RACM portion of Tennessee's October 15, 2009, 
attainment plan SIP revision satisfies the Subpart 1 RACM requirement 
in accordance with the Sixth Circuit's decision in Sierra Club v. EPA. 
Approval of Tennessee's redesignation request changes the legal 
designation of Hamilton County in the Tennessee portion of the 
Chattanooga TN-GA-AL Area, found at 40 CFR 81.343, from nonattainment 
to attainment for the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS. Approval of 
Tennessee's associated SIP revision also incorporates a plan for 
maintaining the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS in the Area through 2025, 
including contingency measures to remedy any future violations of the 
NAAQS and procedures for evaluation of potential violations, into the 
SIP. The maintenance plan also establishes NOX and 
PM2.5 MVEBs of 3,200 tons per year (tpy) and 100 tpy, 
respectively, for the year 2025 for the Tennessee portion of the Area. 
Within 24 months from this final rule, these budgets must be used for 
future conformity determinations.

III. Final Actions

    EPA is approving the RACM portion of a SIP revision submitted by 
TDEC on October 15, 2009, for the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS in 
the Tennessee portion of the Chattanooga TN-GA-AL Area.
    Additionally, EPA is taking three separate final actions regarding 
Tennessee's November 13, 2014 request to redesignate the Tennessee 
portion of the Area to attainment for the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS 
and related SIP revision. First, EPA is determining that the 
Chattanooga, TN-GA-AL Area is continuing to attain the 1997 
PM2.5 NAAQS.
    Second, EPA is approving and incorporating the maintenance plan for 
the Tennessee portion of the Area, including NOX and 
PM2.5 MVEBs for the year 2025, into the Tennessee SIP. The 
maintenance plan demonstrates that the Area will continue to maintain 
the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS, and the budgets meet all of the 
adequacy criteria contained in 40 CFR 93.118(e)(4) and (5).
    Third, EPA is determining that Tennessee has met the criteria under 
CAA section 107(d)(3)(E) for the Tennessee portion of the Area for 
redesignation from nonattainment to attainment for the 1997 
PM2.5 NAAQS. On this basis, EPA is approving Tennessee's 
redesignation request for the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS for the 
Tennessee portion of the Area. As mentioned above, approval of the 
redesignation request changes the official designation of Hamilton 
County in the Tennessee portion of the Chattanooga, TN-GA-AL Area for 
the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS from nonattainment to attainment, as 
found at 40 CFR part 81.
    EPA is also notifying the public that it finds the newly-
established NOX and PM2.5 MVEBs for the Tennessee 
portion of the Area adequate for the purpose of transportation 
conformity. Within 24 months from this final rule, the transportation 
partners must demonstrate conformity to the new NOX and 
PM2.5 MVEBs pursuant to 40 CFR 93.104(e).
    EPA has determined that these actions are effective immediately 
upon publication under the authority of 5 U.S.C. 553(d). The purpose of 
the 30-day waiting period prescribed in section 553(d) is to give 
affected parties a reasonable time to adjust their behavior and prepare 
before the final rule takes effect. Section 553(d)(1) allows an 
effective date less than 30 days after publication if a substantive 
rule ``relieves a restriction.'' These actions qualify for the 
exception under section 553(d)(1) because they relieve the State of 
various requirements for the Tennessee portion of the Chattanooga TN-
GA-AL Area. Furthermore, section 553(d)(3) allows an effective date 
less than 30 days after publication ``as otherwise provided by the 
agency for good cause found and published with the rule.'' EPA finds 
good cause to make these actions effective immediately pursuant to 
section 553(d)(3) because they do not create any new regulatory 
requirements such that affected parties would need time to prepare 
before the actions take effect.

IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    Under the CAA, redesignation of an area to attainment and the 
accompanying approval of the maintenance plan under CAA section 
107(d)(3)(E) are actions that affect the status of geographical area 
and do not impose any additional regulatory requirements on sources 
beyond those required by state law. A redesignation to attainment does 
not in and of itself impose any new requirements, but rather results in 
the application of requirements contained in the CAA for areas that 
have been redesignated to attainment. Moreover, the Administrator is 
required to approve a SIP submission that complies with the provisions 
of the Act and applicable Federal regulations. See 42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 
40 CFR 52.02(a). Thus, in reviewing SIP submissions, EPA's role is to 
approve state choices, provided that they meet the criteria of the CAA. 
Accordingly, these actions merely approve state law as meeting Federal 
requirements and do not impose additional requirements beyond those 
imposed by state or Federal law. For these reasons, these actions:
     Are not a significant regulatory actions subject to review 
by the Office of Management and Budget under Executive Orders 12866 (58 
FR 51735, October 4, 1993) and 13563 (76 FR 3821, January 21, 2011);
     do not impose an information collection burden under the 
provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.);
     are certified as not having a significant economic impact 
on a substantial number of small entities under the Regulatory 
Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.);

[[Page 68256]]

     do 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);
     do not have Federalism implications as specified in 
Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999);
     are not economically significant regulatory actions based 
on health or safety risks subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 
19885, April 23, 1997);
     are not a significant regulatory action subject to 
Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001);
     are not subject to requirements of Section 12(d) of the 
National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272 
note) because application of those requirements would be inconsistent 
with the CAA; and
     will not have disproportionate human health or 
environmental effects under Executive Order 12898 (59 FR 7629, February 
16, 1994).
    The SIP is not approved to apply on any Indian reservation land or 
in any other area where EPA or an Indian tribe has demonstrated that a 
tribe has jurisdiction. In those areas of Indian country, the rule does 
not have tribal implications as specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 
FR 67249, November 9, 2000), nor will it impose substantial direct 
costs on tribal governments or preempt 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 agency promulgating 
the rule must submit a rule report, which includes a copy of the rule, 
to each House of the Congress and to the Comptroller General of the 
United States. EPA will submit a report containing this action and 
other required information to the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House of 
Representatives, and the Comptroller General of the United States prior 
to publication of the 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 ``major rule'' as defined by 5 U.S.C. 
804(2).
    Under section 307(b)(1) of the CAA, petitions for judicial review 
of this action must be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for 
the appropriate circuit by January 4, 2016. Filing a petition for 
reconsideration by the Administrator of this final rule does not affect 
the finality of this action for the purposes of judicial review nor 
does it extend the time within which a petition for judicial review may 
be filed, and shall not postpone the effectiveness of such rule or 
action. This action may not be challenged later in proceedings to 
enforce its requirements. See section 307(b)(2).

List of Subjects

40 CFR Part 52

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Incorporation by 
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements, and Particulate matter.

40 CFR Part 81

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, National parks.

    Dated: October 20, 2015.
Heather McTeer Toney,
Regional Administrator, Region 4.

    40 CFR parts 52 and 81 are amended as follows:

PART 52--APPROVAL AND PROMULGATION OF IMPLEMENTATION PLANS

0
1. The authority citation for part 52 continues to read as follows:

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

Subpart RR--Tennessee

0
2. Section 52.2220(e) is amended by adding new entries ``RACM analysis 
for the Tennessee portion of the Chattanooga Area for the 1997 
PM2.5 NAAQS'' and ``1997 Annual PM2.5 Maintenance 
Plan for the Tennessee portion of Chattanooga TN-GA-AL Area'' at the 
end of the table to read as follows:

Sec.  52.2220  Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (e) * * *

                                EPA--Approved Tennessee Non-Regulatory Provisions
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                                    Applicable
  Name of non-regulatory SIP      geographic or         State        EPA approval
           provision              nonattainment    effective date        date                Explanation
                                       area
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                                                  * * * * * * *
RACM analysis for the           Hamilton County..      10/15/2009  11/4/2015         ...........................
 Tennessee portion of the                                           [Insert
 Chattanooga Area for the 1997                                      citation of
 PM2.5 NAAQS.                                                       publication].
1997 Annual PM2.5 Maintenance   Hamilton County..      11/13/2014  11/4/2015         ...........................
 Plan for the Tennessee                                             [Insert
 portion of the Chattanooga TN-                                     citation of
 GA-AL Area.                                                        publication].
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PART 81--DESIGNATION OF AREAS FOR AIR QUALITY PLANNING PURPOSES

0
3. The authority citation for part 81 continues to read as follows:

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

0
4. In Sec.  81.343, the table entitled ``Tennessee--1997 Annual 
PM2.5 NAAQS (Primary and Secondary)'' is amended under 
``Chattanooga, TN-GA-AL:'' by revising the entry for ``Hamilton 
County'' to read as follows:

Sec.  81.343  Tennessee.

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[[Page 68257]]

                                       Tennessee--1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS
                                             [Primary and Secondary]
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                                           Designation \a\                          Classification
        Designated area        ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                   Date \1\             Type                Date \2\                Type
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Chattanooga, TN-GA-AL:
    Hamilton County...........       11/4/2015  Attainment..........  ....................  ....................
 
                                                  * * * * * * *
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\a\ Includes Indian Country located in each county or area, except as otherwise specified.
\1\ This date is 90 days after January 5, 2005, unless otherwise noted.
\2\ This date is July 2, 2014, unless otherwise noted.

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[FR Doc. 2015-28009 Filed 11-3-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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