25362 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 83 / Monday, April 30, 2012 / Rules and Regulations 

Dated: April 9, 2012. 

C.W. Tenney, 

Commander, U.S. Coast Guard, Captain of 

the Port, Lake Michigan, Acting. 

[FR Doc. 2012–10316 Filed 4–27–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 9110–04–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 52 

[EPA–R01–OAR–2012–0008; A–1–FRL– 

9664–8] 

Approval and Promulgation of Air 

Quality Implementation Plans; 

Massachusetts; Determination of 

Attainment of the One-Hour Ozone 

Standard for the Springfield Area 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: The EPA is making two 

separate and independent 

determinations. First, EPA is 

determining that the Springfield 

(Western Massachusetts) serious onehour ozone nonattainment area did not 

meet the applicable deadline of 

December 31, 2003, for attaining the 

one-hour National Ambient Air Quality 

Standard (NAAQS) for ozone. This final 

determination is based upon complete, 

quality-assured, certified ambient air 

monitoring data that show the area had 

an expected ozone exceedance rate 

above the level of the now revoked onehour ozone NAAQS for the 2001–2003 

monitoring period. Second, EPA is 

determining that the Springfield 

(Western Massachusetts) serious onehour ozone nonattainment area 

currently attains the now revoked onehour NAAQS for ozone, based upon 

complete, quality-assured, certified 

ambient air monitoring data for 2009- 

2011. The area first attained the onehour NAAQS during the 2007–2009 

monitoring period, and continued in 

attainment during the 2008–2010, and 

2009–2011 monitoring periods. 

DATES: Effective Date: This rule is 

effective on May 30, 2012. 

ADDRESSES: EPA has established a 

docket for this action under Docket 

Identification No. EPA–R01–OAR– 

2012–0008. All documents in the docket 

are listed on the www.regulations.gov 

web site. 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 through 

www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at 

the Office of Ecosystem Protection, U.S. 

Environmental Protection Agency, EPA 

New England Regional Office, Office of 

Ecosystem Protection, Air Quality 

Planning Unit, 5 Post Office Square— 

Suite 100, Boston, MA. EPA requests 

that if at all possible, you contact the 

contact 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 legal holidays. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Richard P. Burkhart, Air Quality 

Planning Unit, U.S. Environmental 

Protection Agency, EPA New England 

Regional Office, 5 Post Office Square, 

Suite 100, Boston, MA 02109–3912, 

telephone number (617) 918–1664, fax 

number (617) 918–0664, email 

Burkhart.Richard@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Throughout this document whenever 

‘‘we,’’ ‘‘us,’’ or ‘‘our’’ is used, we mean 

EPA. 

Organization of this document. The 

following outline is provided to aid in 

locating information in this preamble. 

I. What actions is EPA taking? 

II. What is the effect of these actions? 

III. Final Actions 

IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews 

I. What Actions is EPA Taking? 

EPA is making two separate and 

independent final determinations for 

the Springfield (Western Massachusetts) 

one-hour ozone serious nonattainment 

area (hereafter, ‘‘the Western 

Massachusetts area’’). 

A. Determination of Failure To Attain 

by Applicable Attainment Date 

EPA is determining that the Western 

Massachusetts area did not attain the 

one-hour ozone National Ambient Air 

Quality Standard (NAAQS) by the 

applicable attainment date, December 

31, 2003. This determination is based 

upon complete, quality-assured and 

certified air quality monitoring data for 

the 2001 through 2003 ozone seasons. 

B. Determination of Current Attainment 

In addition, EPA is determining that 

the Western Massachusetts area is 

currently attaining the one-hour ozone 

NAAQS based upon complete, qualityassured and certified ambient air 

monitoring data for 2009–2011 showing 

the area has attained the one-hour ozone 

NAAQS, and that it has done so 

continuously since the 2007–2009 

monitoring period. 

Additional information related to 

these determinations and the rationale 

for them are set forth in the Notice of 

Proposed Rulemaking (NPR) published 

on January 24, 2012 (77 FR 3417) and 

will not be restated here. EPA received 

no comments on the NPR. 

II. What is the Effect of These Actions? 

After revocation of the one-hour 

ozone standard, EPA must continue to 

provide a mechanism to give effect to 

one-hour ozone anti-backsliding 

requirements. See SCAQMD v. EPA, 472 

F.3d 882, at 903 (DC Cir. 2006). In 

keeping with this responsibility, EPA 

has determined that the Western 

Massachusetts area failed to attain the 

one-hour ozone standard by its 

applicable attainment date. Consistent 

with 40 CFR 51.905(e)(2), and the South 

Coast decision, upon revocation of the 

one-hour ozone NAAQS for an area, 

EPA is no longer obligated to determine 

whether an area has attained the onehour NAAQS, except insofar as it relates 

to effectuating the anti-backsliding 

requirements that are specifically 

retained. EPA’s determination here is 

linked solely to required one-hour antibacksliding, contingency measures. A 

final determination of failure to attain 

will not result in reclassification of the 

area under the revoked one-hour 

standard, nor is EPA identifying or 

determining any new one-hour 

reclassification for the area. EPA is no 

longer required to reclassify an area to 

a higher classification for the one-hour 

ozone NAAQS based upon a 

determination that the area failed to 

attain that NAAQS by its attainment 

date. See 40 CFR 51.905(e)(2)(i)(B). 

Moreover, EPA has previously approved 

the one-hour ozone attainment 

demonstration and Reasonable Further 

Progress (ROP) plans for this area, and 

in doing so noted that although there 

were no state implementation plan 

contingency measure reductions 

applicable to the Western Massachusetts 

area for failure to attain, there were 

federal measures the state had not 

accounted for in its attainment 

demonstration that provided more 

reductions than necessary to serve the 

purpose of contingency measures for 

this area. See 66 FR 666, January 3, 

2001. In addition, EPA has also 

determined that the Western 

Massachusetts area attained the onehour ozone standard in 2009, and 

continues to attain this standard. In this 

context, EPA has also determined that 

there are not any additional obligations, 

including those relating to one-hour 

ozone contingency measures, for the 

Western Massachusetts area under the 

one-hour ozone standard. 


srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 83 / Monday, April 30, 2012 / Rules and Regulations 25363 

III. Final Actions 

EPA is determining that the Western 

Massachusetts one-hour ozone 

nonattainment area did not meet its 

applicable one-hour ozone attainment 

date of December 31, 2003, based on 

2001–2003 complete, quality-assured 

ozone monitoring data. Separate from 

and independent of this determination, 

EPA is also determining that the 

Western Massachusetts one-hour ozone 

nonattainment area is currently 

attaining the one-hour ozone standard, 

based on the most recent three years 

(2009–2011) of complete, qualityassured ozone monitoring data at all 

monitoring sites in the area. EPA’s 

review of the data shows that the area 

began attaining the one-hour ozone 

standard in the 2007–2009 period, and 

has continued to attain this standard 

through the 2008–2010 and 2009–2011 

monitoring periods. 

IV. Statutory and Executive Order 

Reviews 

These actions make determinations of 

attainment based on air quality, result in 

the suspension of certain Federal 

requirements, and/or would not impose 

additional requirements beyond those 

imposed by state law. For that reason, 

these actions: 

• Are not ‘‘significant regulatory 

actions’’ subject to review by the Office 

of Management and Budget under 

Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 51735, 

October 4, 1993); 

• 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.); 

• 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 significant regulatory 

actions 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 Clean Air Act; 

and 

• Do not provide EPA with the 

discretionary authority to address, as 

appropriate, disproportionate human 

health or environmental effects, using 

practicable and legally permissible 

methods, under Executive Order 12898 

(59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994). 

In addition, these actions do not have 

tribal implications as specified by 

Executive 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 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 these actions 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 Clean 

Air Act, petitions for judicial review of 

this action must be filed in the United 

States Court of Appeals for the 

appropriate circuit by June 29, 2012. 

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 in 40 CFR Part 52 

Environmental protection, Air 

pollution control, Incorporation by 

reference, Intergovernmental relations, 

Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements, Volatile 

organic compounds. 

Dated: April 17, 2012. 

H. Curtis Spalding, 

Regional Administrator, EPA New England. 

Part 52 of chapter I, title 40 of the 

Code of Federal Regulations is amended 

as follows: 

PART 52—APPROVAL AND 

PROMULGATION OF 

IMPLEMENTATION PLANS 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 52 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401. 

Subpart W—Massachusetts 

■ 2. Section 52.1129 is amended by 

adding paragraph (e) to read as follows: 

§ 52.1129 Control strategy: Ozone. 

* * * * * 

(e) Determination of Attainment for 

the One-Hour Ozone Standard. Effective 

May 30, 2012, EPA is determining that 

the Springfield (Western Massachusetts) 

one-hour ozone nonattainment area did 

not meet its applicable one-hour ozone 

attainment date of December 31, 2003, 

based on 2001–2003 complete, qualityassured ozone monitoring data. Separate 

from and independent of this 

determination, EPA is determining that 

the Springfield (Western Massachusetts) 

one-hour ozone nonattainment area met 

the one-hour ozone standard, based on 

2007–2009 complete, quality-assured 

ozone monitoring data at all monitoring 

sites in the area. EPA’s review of the 

ozone data shows that the area began 

attaining the one-hour ozone standard 

during the 2007–2009 monitoring 

period, and has continued attaining the 

one-hour standard through the 2008– 

2010 and 2009–2011 monitoring 

periods. 

[FR Doc. 2012–10198 Filed 4–27–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 52 

[EPA–R07–OAR–2012–0053; FRL–9666–2] 

Approval and Promulgation of 

Implementation Plans and 

Designations of Areas for Air Quality 

Planning Purposes; Missouri and 

Illinois; St. Louis; Determination of 

Attainment by Applicable Attainment 

Date for the 1997 Ozone National 

Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Final rule. 


srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with RULES