66200 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 246 / Wednesday, December 26, 2018 / Proposed Rules 

tribe has jurisdiction. In those areas of 

Indian country, the rule does not have 

tribal implications and will not impose 

substantial direct costs on tribal 

governments or preempt tribal law as 

specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 

FR 67249, November 9, 2000). 

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52 

Environmental protection, Air 

pollution control, Carbon monoxide, 

Incorporation by reference, 

Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen 

dioxide, Particulate matter, Reporting 

and recordkeeping requirements, Sulfur 

oxides, Volatile organic compounds. 

Dated: December 6, 2018. 

Cathy Stepp, 

Regional Administrator, Region 5. 

[FR Doc. 2018–27777 Filed 12–21–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Parts 52 and 81 

[EPA–R05–OAR–2018–0572; FRL–9988–22– 

Region 5] 

Air Plan Approval; Ohio; 

Redesignation of the Cleveland Area to 

Attainment of the 2012 Annual 

Standard for Fine Particulate Matter 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: On July 24, 2018, the Ohio 

Environmental Protection Agency 

(Ohio) submitted a request for the 

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 

to redesignate the Cleveland area to 

attainment of the 2012 annual national 

ambient air quality standards (NAAQS 

or standards) for fine particulate matter 

(PM2.5) under the Clean Air Act (CAA). 

EPA is proposing to grant Ohio’s 

request. EPA is proposing to determine 

that the Cleveland area has attained the 

2012 annual PM2.5 standard, based on 

the most recent three years of certified 

air quality data. EPA is proposing to 

approve a revision to the Ohio state 

implementation plan (SIP) that the 

Cleveland area meets the requirements 

for redesignation under the CAA and for 

the state’s maintenance plan for the 

2012 annual PM2.5 NAAQS through 

2030. Ohio’s maintenance plan 

submission includes motor vehicle 

emission budgets (MVEBs) for the 

mobile source contribution of PM2.5 and 

nitrogen oxides (NOX) to the Cleveland 

area for transportation conformity 

purposes; EPA is proposing to approve 

the MVEBs for 2022 and 2030 into the 

Ohio SIP. EPA is taking these actions in 

accordance with the CAA and EPA’s 

implementation regulations regarding 

the 2012 annual PM2.5 NAAQS. 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before January 25, 2019. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by Docket ID No. EPA–R05– 

OAR–2018–0572 at http://

www.regulations.gov, or via email to 

blakley.pamela@epa.gov. For comments 

submitted at Regulations.gov, follow the 

online instructions for submitting 

comments. Once submitted, comments 

cannot be edited or removed from 

Regulations.gov. For either manner of 

submission, EPA may publish any 

comment received to its public docket. 

Do not submit electronically any 

information you consider to be 

Confidential Business Information (CBI) 

or other information whose disclosure is 

restricted by statute. Multimedia 

submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be 

accompanied by a written comment. 

The written comment is considered the 

official comment and should include 

discussion of all points you wish to 

make. EPA will generally not consider 

comments or comment contents located 

outside of the primary submission (i.e., 

on the web, cloud, or other file sharing 

system). For additional submission 

methods, please contact the person 

identified in the ‘‘For Further 

Information Contact’’ section. For the 

full EPA public comment policy, 

information about CBI or multimedia 

submissions, and general guidance on 

making effective comments, please visit 

http://www2.epa.gov/dockets/ 

commenting-epa-dockets. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Michael Leslie, Environmental 

Engineer, Control Strategies Section, Air 

Programs Branch (AR–18J), 

Environmental Protection Agency, 

Region 5, 77 West Jackson Boulevard, 

Chicago, Illinois 60604, (312) 353–6680, 

leslie.michael@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Throughout this document whenever 

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

EPA. This supplementary information 

section is arranged as follows: 

I. What actions are EPA taking? 

II. What is the background for these actions? 

III. What are the criteria for redesignation to 

attainment? 

IV. What is EPA’s analysis of the state’s 

request? 

1. Attainment Determination (Section 

107(d)(3)(E)(i)) 

2. Section 110 and Part D Requirements, 

and Approval SIP under Section 110(k) 

(Section 107(d)(3)(E)(ii) and (v)) 

3. Permanent and Enforceable Reductions 

in Emissions (Section 107(d)(3)(E)(iii)) 

4. Maintenance Plan Pursuant to Section 

175A of the CAA (Section 

107(d)(3)(E)(iv)) 

5. Motor Vehicle Emissions Budget 

(MVEBs) for PM2.5 and NOX, and Safety 

Margin for the Cleveland Area 

V. What are the effects of EPA’s actions? 

VI. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews 

I. What actions are EPA taking? 

EPA is taking several actions related 

to the redesignation of the Cleveland 

area to attainment of the 2012 annual 

PM2.5 NAAQS. EPA is proposing that 

the Cleveland moderate nonattainment 

area is attaining the 2012 annual PM2.5

NAAQS. EPA is proposing to approve 

Ohio’s 2012 annual PM2.5 maintenance 

plan for the Cleveland area as a revision 

to the Ohio SIP. 

EPA is proposing to find that Ohio 

meets the requirements for 

redesignation of the Cleveland area to 

attainment of the 2012 annual PM2.5

NAAQS under section 107(d)(3)(E) of 

the CAA. EPA is thus proposing to grant 

Ohio’s request to change the designation 

of the Cleveland area from 

nonattainment to attainment of the 2012 

annual PM2.5 NAAQS. EPA’s analysis of 

these actions are discussed in Section IV 

of today’s rulemaking. 

II. What is the background for these 

actions? 

On December 14, 2012, EPA 

promulgated a revised primary annual 

PM2.5 NAAQS to provide increased 

protection of public health from fine 

particle pollution (78 FR 3086; January 

15, 2013). In that action, EPA 

strengthened the primary annual PM2.5

standard from 15.0 micrograms per 

cubic meter (mg/m3) to 12.0 mg/m3, 

which is attained when the 3-year 

average of the annual arithmetic means 

does not exceed 12.0 mg/m3. On 

December 18, 2014, the EPA 

Administrator signed a final action 

promulgating initial designations for the 

2012 primary PM2.5 NAAQS based on 

2011–2013 air quality monitoring data 

for the majority of the United States. 

The Cleveland nonattainment area is in 

northeastern Ohio and includes 

Cuyahoga and Lorain counties. Ohio’s 

main PM2.5 components are primary 

particles (organic particles, crustal 

material, and elemental carbon) and 

NOX, which were included in the 

attainment demonstration analysis. 

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs), 

sulfur dioxide (SO2) and ammonia (NH3) 

were determined to be insignificant for 

attainment and New Source Review 

(NSR) purposes (83 FR 45193), based on 

a concentration-based contribution 

analysis and a sensitivity-based analysis 

conducted in accordance with the 


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August 26, 2016 Implementation Rule 

(81 FR 58010). 

III. What are the criteria for 

redesignation to attainment? 

The CAA sets forth criteria for 

redesignating a nonattainment area to 

attainment. Specifically, section 

107(d)(3)(E) of the CAA allows for 

redesignation provided that: (1) The 

Administrator determines that the area 

has attained the applicable NAAQS 

based on current air quality data; (2) the 

Administrator has fully approved an 

applicable SIP for the area under section 

110(k) of the CAA; (3) the Administrator 

determines that the improvement in air 

quality is due to permanent and 

enforceable emission reductions 

resulting from implementation of the 

applicable SIP, Federal air pollution 

control regulations, or other permanent 

and enforceable emission reductions; (4) 

the Administrator has fully approved a 

maintenance plan for the area meeting 

the requirements of section 175A of the 

CAA; and (5) the state containing the 

area has met all requirements applicable 

to the area for purposes of redesignation 

under section 110 and part D of the 

CAA. 

IV. What is EPA’s analysis of the state’s 

request? 

EPA is proposing to redesignate the 

Cleveland area to attainment of the 2012 

annual PM2.5 NAAQS and to approve 

Ohio’s maintenance plan. The basis for 

EPA’s action are as follows: 

1. Attainment Determination (Section 

107(d)(3)(E)(i)) 

To redesignate an area from 

nonattainment to attainment, the CAA 

requires EPA to determine that the area 

has attained the applicable NAAQS 

(CAA section 107(d)(3)(E)(i)). For PM2.5, 

an area is attaining the 2012 annual 

PM2.5 NAAQS if it meets the standard, 

as determined in accordance with 40 

CFR 50.13 and appendix N of part 50, 

based on three complete, consecutive 

calendar years of quality-assured air 

quality monitoring data. To attain the 

2012 annual PM2.5 NAAQS, the 3-year 

average of the annual arithmetic mean 

concentration, as determined in 

accordance with 40 CFR part 50, 

appendix N, must be less than or equal 

to 12.0 mg/m3 at all relevant monitoring 

sites in the subject area over a 3-year 

period. The relevant data must be 

collected and quality-assured in 

accordance with 40 CFR part 58 and 

recorded in the EPA Air Quality System 

(AQS) database. The monitors generally 

should have remained at the same 

location for the duration of the 

monitoring period required for 

demonstrating attainment. 

EPA reviewed the certified, quality 

assured/quality controlled PM2.5

monitoring data from the Cleveland area 

for the 2012 annual PM2.5 NAAQS from 

2015–2017 and determined that the 

design value for the area is less than the 

standard of 12.0 mg/m3 for that period. 

The PM2.5 design values for monitors 

with complete data are summarized in 

Table 1: 

TABLE 1—MONITORING DATA FOR THE CLEVELAND AREA FOR 2015–2017 

[2012 annual PM2.5 standard (μg/m3)] 

Year Average 

Site County 2015 2016 2017 2015–2017 

39–035–0034 .................................... Cuyahoga ......................................... 9.2 7.8 7.8 8.2 

39–035–0038 .................................... ........................................................... 11.8 10.0 9.9 10.6 

39–035–0045 .................................... ........................................................... 11.0 9.4 9.7 10.1 

39–035–0060 .................................... ........................................................... * 11.7 9.6 9.7 10.0 

39–035–0065 .................................... ........................................................... 13.3 10.7 11.2 11.7 

39–035–0073 .................................... ........................................................... (**) (**) 7.3 

39–035–1002 .................................... ........................................................... 9.1 7.8 8.1 8.3 

39–093–3002 .................................... Lorain ............................................... 8.2 7.0 7.6 7.6 

* Data completeness requirements met by substituting data from a secondary monitor resulting in a valid design value. 

** New monitor started April 1, 2017. 

EPA is proposing to determine that 

the Cleveland area is attaining the 2012 

annual PM2.5 NAAQS. This proposed 

determination is based upon complete, 

quality-assured, and certified ambient 

air monitoring data for the 2015–2017 

monitoring period that show the area 

has monitored attainment of 2012 

annual PM2.5 NAAQS. 

Pursuant to section 179(c) of the CAA, 

EPA is also proposing to determine that, 

based on air quality monitoring data for 

2015–2017, the Cleveland area is 

attaining the 2012 annual PM2.5

NAAQS. EPA assessed whether the 

Cleveland area has attained the 2012 

annual PM2.5 NAAQS, based on the 

most recent three years of complete, 

certified and quality-assured data, and 

whether the Cleveland area attained the 

2012 annual PM2.5 NAAQS by the 

applicable attainment date of December 

31, 2021, based on monitored data from 

2015–2017. Under EPA’s regulations at 

40 CFR 50.7, the annual primary and 

secondary PM2.5 standards are met when 

the annual arithmetic mean 

concentration, as determined in 

accordance with 40 CFR part 50, 

appendix N, is less than or equal to 12.0 

mg/m3 at all relevant monitoring sites in 

the area. 

EPA has reviewed the ambient air 

quality monitoring data in the Cleveland 

area, consistent with the requirements 

contained at 40 CFR part 50. EPA’s 

review focused on data recorded in the 

EPA AQS database, for the Cleveland 

area for PM2.5 nonattainment area from 

2015 to 2017. EPA also considered 

preliminary data for 2018, which have 

not been certified, but which are 

consistent with the area’s continued 

attainment. 

All monitors in the Cleveland area 

recorded complete data in accordance 

with criteria set forth by EPA in 40 CFR 

part 50, appendix N, where a complete 

year of air quality data comprises four 

calendar quarters, with each quarter 

containing data from at least 75 percent 

(%) capture of the scheduled sampling 

days. Available data are sufficient for 

comparison to the NAAQS if three 

consecutive complete years of data 

exist. 

2. Section 110 and Part D

Requirements, and Approval SIP Under 

Section 110(k) (Section 107(d)(3)(E)(ii) 

and (v)) 

EPA has determined that Ohio has 

met all currently applicable SIP 

requirements for purposes of 

redesignation for the Cleveland area 

under section 110 of the CAA (general 

SIP requirements), and Part D planning 

requirements. Ohio’s 2016 emissions 

inventory was approved as meeting the 


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section 172(c)(3) comprehensive 

emissions inventory requirement on 

September 6, 2018 (83 FR 45193). 

Ohio’s reasonably available control 

technology (RACT)/reasonable available 

control measure (RACM) analysis was 

submitted as part of the October 14, 

2016 attainment demonstration. In its 

RACT/RACM analysis, Ohio found that 

existing measures for PM2.5, and NOX

for area sources, mobile sources and 

stationary sources constitute RACT/ 

RACM, and Ohio found that no new 

additional measures or controls are 

economically or technically feasible. 

Ohio’s attainment demonstration also 

included a demonstration that the PM2.5

precursors VOC, SO2 and NH3 are 

insignificant for the purpose of 

attainment planning (including RACT/ 

RACM). Ohio’s RACT/RACM analysis 

was approved on September 6, 2018 (83 

FR 45193). 

The reasonable further progress (RFP) 

as required under section 172(c)(2) is 

defined as progress that must be made 

toward attainment. This requirement is 

not relevant for purposes of 

redesignation because the Cleveland 

area has monitored attainment of the 

2012 annual PM2.5 NAAQS. (‘‘General 

Preamble for the Interpretation of Title 

I of the CAA Amendments of 1990’’; (57 

FR 13498, 13564, April 16, 1992)). 

Thus, we are determining that the 

Ohio submittal meets all SIP 

requirements currently applicable for 

purposes of redesignation under part D 

of title I of the CAA, in accordance with 

sections 107(d)(3)(E)(ii) and 

107(d)(3)(E)(v). 

In making these determinations, we 

have ascertained which SIP 

requirements are applicable for the 

purposes of the redesignation, and 

concluded that the Ohio SIP includes 

measures meeting those requirements 

and that they are fully approved under 

section 110(k) of the CAA. 

a. Ohio Has Met All Applicable 

Requirements for Purposes of 

Redesignation of the Cleveland Area 

Under Section 110 and Part D of the 

CAA 

i. Section 110 General SIP 

Requirements 

Section 110(a) of title I of the CAA 

contains the general requirements for a 

SIP. Section 110(a)(2) provides that the 

implementation plan submitted by a 

state must have been adopted by the 

state after reasonable public notice and 

hearing, and, among other things, must 

include enforceable emission 

limitations and other control measures, 

means or techniques necessary to meet 

the requirements of the CAA; provide 

for establishment and operation of 

appropriate devices, methods, systems, 

and procedures necessary to monitor 

ambient air quality; provide for 

implementation of a source permit 

program to regulate the modification 

and construction of any stationary 

source within the areas covered by the 

plan; include provisions for the 

implementation of part C, Prevention of 

Significant Deterioration (PSD) and part 

D, New Source Review (NSR) permit 

programs; include criteria for stationary 

source emission control measures, 

monitoring, and reporting; include 

provisions for air quality modeling; and 

provide for public and local agency 

participation in planning and emission 

control rule development. Section 

110(a)(2)(D) of the CAA requires that 

SIPs contain measures to prevent 

sources in a state from significantly 

contributing to air quality problems in 

another state. 

EPA interprets the ‘‘applicable’’ 

requirements for an area’s redesignation 

to be those requirements linked with 

that area’s nonattainment designation. 

Therefore, we believe that the section 

110 elements described above that are 

not connected with nonattainment plan 

submissions and not linked with an 

area’s attainment status, such as the 

‘‘infrastructure SIP’’ elements of section 

110(a)(2), are not applicable 

requirements for purposes of the 

redesignation. A state remains subject to 

these requirements after an area is 

redesignated to attainment, and thus 

EPA does not interpret such 

requirements to be relevant applicable 

requirements to evaluate in a 

redesignation. For example, the 

requirement to submit state plans 

addressing interstate transport 

obligations under section 

110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I) continue to apply to a 

state regardless of the designation of any 

particular area in the state, and thus are 

not applicable requirements to be 

evaluated in the redesignation context. 

EPA has applied this interpretation 

consistently in many redesignations for 

decades. See e.g., 81 FR 44210 (July 7, 

2016) (final redesignation for the 

Sullivan County, Tennessee area); 79 FR 

43655 (July 28, 2014) (final 

redesignation for Bellefontaine, Ohio 

lead nonattainment area); 61 FR 53174– 

53176 (October 10, 1996) and 62 FR 

24826 (May 7, 1997) (proposed and final 

redesignation for Reading, Pennsylvania 

ozone nonattainment area); 61 FR 20458 

(May 7, 1996) (final redesignation for 

Cleveland-Akron-Lorain, Ohio ozone 

nonattainment area); and 60 FR 62748 

(December 7, 1995) (final redesignation 

of Tampa, Florida ozone nonattainment 

area). See also 65 FR 37879, 37890 (June 

19, 2000) (discussing this issue in final 

redesignation of Cincinnati, Ohio 1-hour 

ozone nonattainment area); and 66 FR 

50399 (October 19, 2001) (final 

redesignation of Pittsburgh, 

Pennsylvania 1-hour ozone 

nonattainment area). 

We have reviewed the Ohio SIP and 

determined that it meets the general SIP 

requirements under section 110 of the 

CAA to the extent they are applicable 

for purposes of redesignation. EPA has 

previously approved provisions of 

Ohio’s SIP addressing section 110 

requirements, at 40 CFR 52.1870. 

On December 4, 2015, Ohio made a 

submittal which addressed the 

‘‘infrastructure SIP’’ elements of the 

2012 annual PM2.5 NAAQS required 

under CAA section 110(a)(2). EPA 

approved the 2012 annual PM2.5

infrastructure SIPs on February 2, 2018 

(83 FR 4845), however, as noted above, 

the requirements of section 110(a)(2) are 

statewide requirements that are not 

linked to the PM2.5 nonattainment status 

of the Cleveland area. Therefore, these 

SIP elements are not applicable 

requirements for purposes of review of 

the state’s 2012 annual PM2.5

redesignation request. 

ii. Part D Requirements 

EPA has determined that with the 

approval of the base year emissions 

inventory and RACM provisions as 

discussed in rulemaking dated 

September 6, 2018, the Ohio SIP has 

met the requirements applicable for 

purposes of redesignation under part D 

of the CAA for the Cleveland 2012 

annual PM2.5 nonattainment area. 

Subpart 1 of part D sets forth the general 

nonattainment requirements applicable 

to all nonattainment areas. 

(1) Section 172 Requirements 

Section 172(c) sets out general 

nonattainment plan requirements. A 

thorough discussion of these 

requirements can be found in the 

General Preamble for Implementation of 

Title I (57 FR 13498, April 16, 1992) 

(‘‘General Preamble’’). EPA’s 

longstanding interpretation of the 

nonattainment planning requirements of 

section 172 is that once an area is 

attaining the NAAQS, those 

requirements are not ‘‘applicable’’ for 

purposes of CAA section 107(d)(3)(E)(ii) 

and therefore need not be approved into 

the SIP before EPA can redesignate the 

area. In the General Preamble, EPA set 

forth its interpretation of applicable 

requirements for purposes of evaluating 

redesignation requests when an area is 

attaining a standard. See 57 FR 13564. 

EPA noted that the requirements for 

reasonable further progress and other 


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1September 4, 1992 Memorandum from John 

Calcagni, Director, Air Quality Management 

Division (EPA), entitled, ‘‘Procedures for Processing 

Requests to Redesignate Areas to Attainment.’’ 

2Although the approach being implemented here 

is inconsistent with the Agency’s longstanding 

national policy, such deviation is required in order 

to act in accordance with a Circuit Court decision. 

Consistent with 40 CFR 56.5(b), the Region does not 

need to seek concurrence from EPA Headquarters 

for such deviation in these circumstances. See also 

81 FR 51102 (August 3, 2016). 

3A detailed rationale for this view is described 

in a memorandum from Mary Nichols, Assistant 

Administrator for Air and Radiation, dated October 

14, 1994, entitled, ‘‘Part D New Source Review 

Requirements for Areas Requesting Redesignation 

to Attainment.’’ 

measures designed to provide for an 

area’s attainment do not apply in 

evaluating redesignation requests 

because those nonattainment planning 

requirements ‘‘have no meaning’’ for an 

area that has already attained the 

standard. Id. This interpretation was 

also set forth in the Calcagni 

Memorandum.1

EPA’s long-standing interpretation 

regarding the applicability of section 

172(c)’s attainment planning 

requirements for an area that is attaining 

a NAAQS applies in this redesignation 

of the Cleveland 2012 annual PM2.5

nonattainment area as well, except for 

the applicability of the requirement to 

implement all RACM under section 

172(c)(1). On July 14, 2015, the United 

States Court of Appeals for the Sixth 

Circuit (6th Circuit) ruled that, to meet 

the requirement of section 

107(d)(3)(E)(ii), states are required to 

submit plans addressing RACM/RACT 

under section 172(c)(1) and EPA is 

required to approve those plans prior to 

redesignating the area, regardless of 

whether the area is attaining the 

standard. Sierra Club v. EPA, 793 F.3d 

656 (6th Cir. 2015). Because Ohio is 

within the jurisdiction of the 6th 

Circuit, EPA is acting in accordance 

with the Sierra Club decision in this 

redesignation action.2 However, in this 

case, this issue is moot because EPA has 

already concluded that Ohio has met 

RACT/RACM requirements for PM2.5 in 

action published September 6, 2018 (83 

FR 45193). 

Section 172(c)(1) requires the plans 

for all nonattainment areas to provide 

for the implementation of all RACM as 

expeditiously as practicable and to 

provide for attainment of the primary 

NAAQS. Under this requirement, a state 

must consider all available control 

measures, including reductions that are 

available from adopting RACT on 

existing sources, for a nonattainment 

area and adopt and implement such 

measures as are reasonably available in 

the area as components of the area’s 

attainment demonstration. As discussed 

above, EPA approved Ohio’s RACM 

submission on September 6, 2018 (83 

FR 45193). Therefore, Ohio has met its 

requirements under CAA section 

172(c)(1) and section 107(d)(3)(E)(v). 

As noted above, the remaining section 

172(c) ‘‘attainment planning’’ 

requirements are not applicable for 

purposes of evaluating the state’s 

redesignation request. Specifically, the 

RFP requirement under section 

172(c)(2), which is defined as progress 

that must be made toward attainment, 

the requirement to submit section 

172(c)(9) contingency measures, which 

are measures to be taken if the area fails 

to make reasonable further progress to 

attainment, and section 172(c)(6)’s 

requirement that the SIP contain control 

measures necessary to provide for 

attainment of the standard, are not 

applicable requirements that Ohio must 

meet here because the Cleveland area 

has monitored attainment of the 2012 

annual PM2.5 NAAQS. 

Section 172(c)(3) requires submission 

and approval of a comprehensive, 

accurate and current inventory of actual 

emissions. Ohio submitted a 2011 base 

year emissions inventory as part of their 

PM2.5 attainment Demonstration on 

October 14, 2016, and requested that the 

2011 inventories be used as the most 

accurate and current inventory. Ohio’s 

2011 emissions inventory was approved 

as meeting the section 172(c)(3) 

comprehensive emissions inventory 

requirement on September 6, 2018 (83 

FR 45193). Section 172(c)(4) requires 

the identification and quantification of 

allowable emissions for major new and 

modified stationary sources in an area, 

and section 172(c)(5) and 189(a)(1)(A) 

requires source permits for the 

construction and operation of new and 

modified major stationary sources 

anywhere in the nonattainment area. 

EPA approved Ohio’s current NSR 

program for PM2.5 on June 25, 2015 (80 

FR 36477). In addition, the state’s 

maintenance plan does not rely on 

nonattainment NSR, therefore having a 

fully approved NSR program is not an 

applicable requirement; nonetheless, we 

have approved the state’s program.3

Section 172(c)(7) requires the SIP to 

meet the applicable provisions of 

section 110(a)(2). As noted above, we 

find that the Ohio SIP meets the section 

110(a)(2) applicable requirements for 

purposes of redesignation. 

(2) Section 176 Conformity 

Requirements 

Section 176(c) of the CAA requires 

states to establish criteria and 

procedures to ensure that federallysupported or funded activities, 

including highway and transit projects, 

conform to the air quality planning 

goals in the applicable SIPs. The 

requirement to determine conformity 

applies to transportation plans, 

programs and projects developed, 

funded or approved under title 23 of the 

U.S. Code and the Federal Transit Act 

(transportation conformity) as well as to 

all other federally-supported or funded 

projects (general conformity). See 73 FR 

66964, 67043 n.120. EPA approved 

Ohio’s transportation conformity SIP on 

March 2, 2015 (80 FR 11133) and the 

general conformity SIP on May 26, 2015 

(80 FR 29968). 

b. Ohio Has a Fully Approved 

Applicable SIP Under Section 110(k) of 

the CAA 

EPA has fully approved the Ohio SIP 

for the Cleveland area under section 

110(k) of the CAA for all requirements 

applicable for purposes of 

redesignation, in accordance with 

section 107(d)(3)(E)(ii). EPA may rely on 

prior SIP approvals in approving a 

redesignation request. See Calcagni 

Memorandum at 3); Southwestern 

Pennsylvania Growth Alliance v. 

Browner, 144 F.3d 984, 989–990 (6th 

Cir. 1998); Wall v. EPA, 265 F.3d 426 

(6th Cir. 2001). EPA also relies on 

measures approved in conjunction with 

a redesignation action. See, e.g., 68 FR 

25413 (May 12, 2003) (approving I/M 

program for St. Louis) and 68 FR 25426 

(May 12, 2003) (approving redesignation 

relying in part on I/M program 

approval). As discussed in the prior 

section, Ohio has adopted and 

submitted (and EPA has fully approved) 

a number of required SIP provisions 

addressing the 2012 annual PM2.5

standards. 

EPA has approved Ohio’s 2011 

emissions inventories for the Cleveland 

area as meeting the requirement of 

section 172(c)(3) of the CAA, and 

approved RACM provisions meeting the 

requirement of 172(c)(1). No Cleveland 

area SIP provisions are currently 

disapproved, conditionally approved, or 

partially approved. Therefore, the 

Administrator has fully approved the 

applicable requirements for the 

Cleveland area under section 110(k) in 

accordance with section 107(d)(3)(E)(ii). 

3. Permanent and Enforceable 

Reductions in Emissions (Section 

107(d)(3)(E)(iii)) 

EPA finds that Ohio has demonstrated 

that the observed air quality 

improvement in the Cleveland area is 

due to permanent and enforceable 

reductions from Federal measures. In 

making this demonstration, Ohio has 

calculated the change in emissions 


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between 2011, one of the years the 

Cleveland area was monitoring 

nonattainment, and 2016, one of the 

years the Cleveland area monitored 

attainment. The reduction in emissions 

and the corresponding improvement in 

air quality over this period can be 

attributed to a number of regulatory 

control measures that the Cleveland and 

contributing areas have implemented in 

recent years. 

a. Permanent and Enforceable Controls 

Implemented 

The following is a discussion of 

permanent and enforceable measures 

that have been implemented in the area: 

i. Federal Emission Control Measures 

Reductions in directly emitted fine 

particles and fine particle precursor 

emissions have occurred statewide and 

in upwind areas because of Federal 

emission control measures, with 

additional emission reductions expected 

to occur in the future. Federal emission 

control measures include the following. 

Tier 2 Emission Standards for 

Vehicles and Gasoline Sulfur Standards. 

These emission control requirements 

result in lower NOX and SO2 emissions 

from new cars and light duty trucks, 

including sport utility vehicles. The 

Federal rules were phased in between 

2004 and 2009. EPA has estimated that, 

by the end of the phase-in period, new 

vehicles will emit less NOX with the 

following percentage decreases: 

Passenger cars (light duty vehicles)— 

77%; light duty trucks, minivans and 

sports utility vehicles—86%; and, larger 

sports utility vehicles, vans and heavier 

trucks—69% to 95%. EPA expects fleetwide average emissions to decline by 

similar percentages as new vehicles 

replace older vehicles. The Tier 2 

standards also reduced the sulfur 

content of gasoline to 30 parts per 

million (ppm) beginning in January 

2006, reducing both directly emitted 

sulfates and the precursor SO2. Most 

gasoline sold in Ohio prior to January 

2006 had a sulfur content of about 500 

ppm. 

Heavy-Duty Diesel Engine Rule. EPA 

issued this rule in July 2000. This rule 

includes standards limiting the sulfur 

content of diesel fuel, which went into 

effect in 2004. A second phase took 

effect in 2007 which reduced fine 

particle emissions from heavy-duty 

highway engines and further reduced 

the highway diesel fuel sulfur content to 

15 ppm. The total program is estimated 

to achieve a 90% reduction in direct 

PM2.5 emissions and a 95% reduction in 

NOX emissions for these new engines 

using low sulfur diesel, compared to 

existing engines using higher sulfur 

content diesel. The reduction in fuel 

sulfur content also yielded an 

immediate reduction in sulfate particle 

emissions from all diesel vehicles. 

Nonroad Diesel Rule. In May 2004, 

EPA promulgated a new rule for large 

nonroad diesel engines, such as those 

used in construction, agriculture and 

mining equipment, to be phased in 

between 2008 and 2014. The rule also 

reduces the sulfur content in nonroad 

diesel fuel by over 99%. Prior to 2006, 

nonroad diesel fuel averaged 

approximately 3,400 ppm sulfur. This 

rule limited nonroad diesel sulfur 

content to 500 ppm by 2006, with a 

further reduction to 15 ppm by 2010. 

The combined engine and fuel rules will 

reduce NOX and PM2.5 emissions from 

large nonroad diesel engines by over 

90%, compared to current nonroad 

engines using higher sulfur content 

diesel. It is estimated that compliance 

with this rule will cut NOX emissions 

from nonroad diesel engines by up to 

90%. This rule achieved some emission 

reductions by 2008, and was fully 

implemented by 2010. The reduction in 

fuel sulfur content also yielded an 

immediate reduction in sulfate particle 

emissions from all diesel vehicles. 

Nonroad Large Spark-Ignition Engine 

and Recreational Engine Standards. In 

November 2002, EPA promulgated 

emission standards for groups of 

previously unregulated nonroad 

engines. These engines include large 

spark-ignition engines such as those 

used in forklifts and airport groundservice equipment; recreational vehicles 

using spark-ignition engines such as offhighway motorcycles, all-terrain 

vehicles and snowmobiles; and 

recreational marine diesel engines. 

Emission standards from large sparkignition engines were implemented in 

two tiers, with Tier 1 starting in 2004 

and Tier 2 in 2007. Recreational vehicle 

emission standards are being phased in 

from 2006 through 2012. Marine diesel 

engine standards were phased in from 

2006 through 2009. With full 

implementation of the entire nonroad 

spark-ignition engine and recreational 

engine standards, an 80% reduction in 

NOX is expected by 2020. Most of these 

emission reductions occurred by the 

2015–2017 period used to demonstrate 

attainment, but additional emission 

reductions will occur during the 

maintenance period. 

ii. Control Measures in Contributing 

Areas 

NOX SIP Call. On October 27, 1998 

(63 FR 57356), EPA issued a NOX SIP 

Call requiring the District of Columbia 

and 22 states to reduce emissions of 

NOX. Affected states were required to 

comply with Phase I of the SIP Call 

beginning in 2004, and Phase II 

beginning in 2007. Emission reductions 

resulting from regulations developed in 

response to the NOX SIP Call are 

permanent and enforceable. 

Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR). On 

March 10, 2004, EPA promulgated the 

CAIR. The CAIR rule required Electric 

Generating Units (EGUs) in 28 eastern 

states and the District of Columbia to 

significantly reduce emissions of NOX

and SO2. On July 6, 2011, EPA finalized 

Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR) 

as a replacement for CAIR. CSAPR 

became effective on January 1, 2015, for 

SO2 and annual NOX, and May 1, 2015, 

for ozone season NOX. EPA estimated 

CSAPR will reduce EGU SO2 emissions 

by 73% and NOX emissions by 54% 

from 2005 levels in the CSAPR region, 

which includes Ohio. Between 2011 and 

2015, in Ohio alone, annual NOX EGU 

emissions decreased from 103,592 tons 

per year (TPY) to 67,059 TPY and SO2

EGU emissions decreased from 575,474 

TPY to 177,257 TPY. 

On September 7, 2016, EPA 

promulgated an update to CSAPR that 

will bring even greater reductions in 

NOX emissions. EPA estimated that the 

CSAPR update and other changes 

already underway in the power sector 

will cut ozone season NOX emissions 

from power plants in the eastern United 

States by 20%, resulting in a reduction 

of 80,000 tons in 2017 compared to 2015 

levels. 

Several facilities in the Cleveland 

have reduced PM2.5 and precursor 

emissions, and Ohio has made the 

reductions permanent and enforceable. 

Cleveland Electric Illuminating Co., 

Lake Shore Plant in Cuyahoga County, 

permanently shut down December 17, 

2015. The Medical Center in Cuyahoga 

County converted to natural gas by 

January 13, 2017, shuttering its two 

coal-fired boilers (B003 and B004) and 

replacing them with a natural gas boiler 

(B023) with a federally-enforceable SO2

limit of 1.18 TPY. Cleveland Thermal 

LLC in Cuyahoga County retired all 

coal-fired and oil-fired boilers by 

January 31, 2017, except two oil-fired 

boilers retained for auxiliary use. The 

Avon Lake Power Plant in Lorain 

County accepted a federally enforceable 

combined emissions limitation on all 

SO2 emitting sources at the facility at 

9,600 lbs/hr, effective beginning January 

13, 2017, to satisfy the 1-hour SO2

standard. Oberlin College in Lorain 

County shut down coal fired boilers on 

April 22, 2014. These emissions 

reductions are detailed in Table 2. 


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TABLE 2—2011 AND 2016 EMISSIONS TOTALS FOR THE CLEVELAND 2012 ANNUAL PM2.5 NAAQS 

[Tons/year] 

Pollutant 2011 2016 Difference 

PM2.5 ............................................................................................................................................ 5843.68 4989.39 ¥854.29 

NOX .............................................................................................................................................. 46892.19 35414.24 ¥11477.95 

SO2 .............................................................................................................................................. 39406.99 14724.02 ¥24682.97 

VOC ............................................................................................................................................. 33402.70 26968.63 ¥6434.07 

NH3 .............................................................................................................................................. 1606.26 1570.86 ¥35.4 

4. Maintenance Plan Pursuant to Section 

175A of the CAA (Section 

107(d)(3)(E)(iv)) 

In conjunction with Ohio’s request to 

redesignate the Cleveland 

nonattainment area to attainment status, 

Ohio has submitted a SIP revision to 

provide for maintenance of the 2012 

annual PM2.5 NAAQS in the area 

through 2030. 

a. What is required in a maintenance 

plan? 

Section 175A of the CAA sets forth 

the required elements of a maintenance 

plan for areas seeking redesignation 

from nonattainment to attainment. 

Under section 175A, the plan must 

demonstrate continued attainment of 

the applicable NAAQS for at least ten 

years after EPA approves a 

redesignation to attainment. Eight years 

after redesignation, the state must 

submit a revised maintenance plan 

which demonstrates that attainment will 

continue to be maintained for ten years 

following the initial 10-year 

maintenance period. To address the 

possibility of future NAAQS violations, 

the maintenance plan must contain 

contingency measures with a schedule 

for implementation as EPA deems 

necessary to assure prompt correction of 

any future PM2.5 NAAQS violations. 

The Calcagni memorandum provides 

additional guidance on the content of a 

maintenance plan. The memorandum 

states that a maintenance plan should 

address the following items: The 

attainment emissions inventory, a 

maintenance demonstration showing 

maintenance for the 10 years of the 

maintenance period, a commitment to 

maintain the existing monitoring 

network, factors and procedures to be 

used for verification of continued 

attainment of the NAAQS, and a 

contingency plan to prevent or correct 

future violations of the NAAQS. 

As discussed in detail in the section 

below, the state’s maintenance plan 

submission expressly documents that 

the area’s emissions inventory and 

modeling show that the area will remain 

below the attainment year inventories 

through 2030, more than ten years after 

redesignation. 

b. Attainment Inventory 

Ohio developed an emissions 

inventory for annual PM2.5 emissions for 

2016, one of the years in the period 

during which the Cleveland area 

monitored attainment of the 2012 

annual PM2.5 NAAQS. The attainment 

levels of emissions are summarized in 

Tables 3 through 7, along with future 

maintenance projections. 

c. Demonstration of Maintenance 

As discussed above, EPA has 

determined that the Cleveland area 

attained the 2012 annual PM2.5 NAAQS 

based on monitoring data for the 3-year 

period from 2015–2017. In its 

maintenance plan, Ohio selected 2016 

as the attainment emission inventory 

year. The attainment inventory 

identifies the level of emissions in the 

Cleveland area that is sufficient to attain 

the 2012 annual PM2.5 NAAQS. Ohio 

began development of the attainment 

inventory by first generating a baseline 

emissions inventory for the Cleveland 

area. The year 2011 was chosen as the 

base year for developing a 

comprehensive emissions inventory for 

direct PM2.5, NOX, SO2, VOC, and NH3. 

The projected inventory included with 

the maintenance plan estimates 

emissions forward to 2022 and 2030, 

which satisfies the 10-year interval 

required in section 175(A) of the CAA. 

The emissions inventories address 

four major types of sources: Point, area, 

on-road mobile, and non-road mobile. 

The future year emissions inventories 

have been estimated using projected 

rates of growth in population, traffic, 

economic activity, expected control 

programs, and other parameters. Nonroad mobile emissions estimates were 

based on EPA’s non-road mobile model, 

with the exception of the railroad 

locomotives, commercial marine, and 

aircraft. On-road mobile source 

emissions were calculated using EPA’s 

MOVES2014a on-road mobile emission 

model. The 2016 PM2.5, NOX, SO2, VOC, 

and NH3 emissions for Cleveland area, 

as well as the emissions for other years, 

were developed consistent with EPA 

guidance. 

Section 175A requires a state seeking 

redesignation to attainment to submit a 

SIP revision to provide for the 

maintenance of the NAAQS in the area 

‘‘for at least 10 years after the 

redesignation.’’ EPA has interpreted this 

as a showing of maintenance ‘‘for a 

period of ten years following 

redesignation.’’ Calcagni Memorandum, 

p. 9. Where the emissions inventory 

method of showing maintenance is 

used, the purpose is to show that 

emissions during the maintenance 

period will not increase over the 

attainment year inventory. Calcagni 

Memorandum, pp. 9–10. 

As discussed in detail below, Ohio’s 

maintenance plan submission expressly 

documents that the Cleveland area’s 

overall emissions inventories will 

remain well below the attainment year 

inventories through 2030. In addition, 

for the reasons set forth below, EPA 

believes that the Cleveland area will 

continue to maintain the 2012 annual 

PM2.5 NAAQS through 2030. Thus, if 

EPA finalizes its proposed approval of 

the redesignation request and 

maintenance plan, the approval will be 

based upon this showing, in accordance 

with section 175A, and EPA’s analysis 

described herein, that the Ohio’s 

maintenance plan provides for 

maintenance for at least 10 years after 

redesignation. 

The maintenance plan for the 

Cleveland 2012 annual PM2.5 area 

includes a maintenance demonstration 

that: 

(i) Shows compliance with and 

maintenance of the annual PM2.5

standard by providing information to 

support the demonstration that current 

and future emissions of PM2.5 and NOX, 

as well as other precursors, remain at or 

below 2016 emissions levels. 

(ii) Uses 2016 as the attainment year 

and includes future emission inventory 

projections for 2022 and 2030. 

(iii) Identifies an ‘‘out year’’ at least 10 

years after EPA review and potential 

approval of the maintenance plan. Per 

40 CFR part 93, PM2.5, and NOX MVEBs 

were established for the last year (2030) 

of the maintenance plan. 


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(iv) Provides, as shown in Tables 3 

through 7 below, the estimated and 

projected emissions inventories, in tons 

per year, for the Cleveland area, for 

PM2.5, NOX, SO2, VOC, and NH3. 

TABLE 3—CLEVELAND, OHIO PM2.5 EMISSION INVENTORIES

[Tons/year] 

Sector 2016 

Attainment 

2022 

Interim 

2030 

Maintenance 

Difference 

2016–2030 

EGU Point ........................................................................................................ 244.52 244.2 244.06 ¥0.46 

Non-EGU ......................................................................................................... 959.26 947.74 947.74 ¥11.52 

Non-road .......................................................................................................... 483.3 404.76 389.63 ¥93.67 

Area ................................................................................................................. 2618.69 2632.91 2612.65 ¥6.04 

MAR ................................................................................................................. 109.8 97.54 79.43 ¥30.37 

On-road ............................................................................................................ 573.82 353.73 235.28 ¥338.54 

Total .......................................................................................................... 4989.39 4680.88 4508.79 ¥480.6 

TABLE 4—CLEVELAND, OHIO NOX EMISSION INVENTORIES

[Tons/year] 

Sector 2016 

Attainment 

2022 

Interim 

2030 

Maintenance 

Difference 

2016–2030 

EGU Point ........................................................................................................ 2094.74 2130.53 2081.42 ¥13.32 

Non-EGU ......................................................................................................... 3019.4 2472.33 2472.33 ¥547.07 

Non-road .......................................................................................................... 5302.02 4259.67 3888.48 ¥1413.54 

Area ................................................................................................................. 5979.36 6033.34 6034.14 54.78 

MAR ................................................................................................................. 3693.28 3391.82 2847.09 ¥846.19 

On-road ............................................................................................................ 15325.44 8201.77 4267.43 ¥11058.01 

Total .......................................................................................................... 35414.24 26489.46 21590.89 ¥13823.35 

TABLE 5—CLEVELAND, OHIO SO2 EMISSION INVENTORIES

[Tons/year] 

Sector 2016 

Attainment 

2022 

Interim 

2030 

Maintenance 

Difference 

2016–2030 

EGU Point ........................................................................................................ 9022.75 9020.59 9020.59 ¥2.16 

Non-EGU ......................................................................................................... 5312.54 1411.93 1411.93 ¥3900.61 

Non-road .......................................................................................................... 9.39 12.63 13.89 4.5 

Area ................................................................................................................. 183.9 200.83 200.92 17.02 

MAR ................................................................................................................. 94.2 118.21 119.03 24.83 

On-road ............................................................................................................ 101.24 88.63 70.59 ¥30.65 

Total .......................................................................................................... 14724.02 10852.82 10836.95 ¥3887.07 

TABLE 6—CLEVELAND, OHIO VOC EMISSION INVENTORIES

[Tons/year] 

Sector 2016 

Attainment 

2022 

Interim 

2030 

Maintenance 

Difference 

2016–2030 

EGU Point ........................................................................................................ 15.74 16.76 15.45 ¥0.29 

Non-EGU ......................................................................................................... 1354.24 1202.43 1202.43 ¥151.81 

Non-road .......................................................................................................... 7687.75 6725.32 6625.2 ¥1062.55 

Area ................................................................................................................. 14994.33 14988.5 14913.02 ¥81.31 

MAR ................................................................................................................. 325.14 336.16 313.96 ¥11.18 

On-road ............................................................................................................ 2591.43 1095.4 470.43 ¥2121 

Total .......................................................................................................... 26968.63 24364.57 23540.49 ¥3428.14 

TABLE 7—CLEVELAND, OHIO NH3 EMISSION INVENTORIES

[Tons/year] 

Sector 2016 

Attainment 

2022 

Interim 

2030 

Maintenance 

Difference 

2016–2030 

EGU Point ........................................................................................................ 0.13 0.13 0.13 0 


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TABLE 7—CLEVELAND, OHIO NH3 EMISSION INVENTORIES—Continued 

[Tons/year] 

Sector 2016 

Attainment 

2022 

Interim 

2030 

Maintenance 

Difference 

2016–2030 

Non-EGU ......................................................................................................... 57.58 44.99 44.99 ¥12.59 

Non-road .......................................................................................................... 11.93 12.97 14.31 2.38 

Area ................................................................................................................. 1131.54 1134.31 1134.25 2.71 

MAR ................................................................................................................. 1.55 1.54 1.54 ¥0.01 

On-road ............................................................................................................ 368.13 322.31 313.39 ¥54.74 

Total .......................................................................................................... 1570.86 1516.25 1508.61 ¥62.25 

As discussed in the section below, the 

state’s maintenance plan submission 

expressly documents that the area’s 

emission levels will remain below the 

attainment year emission levels through 

2030. 

d. Monitoring Network 

Ohio operates eight PM2.5 monitors in 

the Cleveland, Ohio area. Ohio’s 

maintenance plan includes a 

commitment to continue to operate an 

adequate EPA-approved monitoring 

network to demonstrate ongoing 

compliance with the NAAQS. 

e. Verification of Continued Attainment 

Ohio remains obligated to continue to 

quality-assure monitoring data and enter 

all data into the Air Quality System in 

accordance with Federal guidelines. 

Ohio will use these data, supplemented 

with additional information as 

necessary, to assure that the area 

continues to attain the standard. Ohio 

will also continue to develop and 

submit periodic emission inventories as 

required by the Federal Consolidated 

Emissions Reporting Rule (67 FR 39602, 

June 10, 2002) to track future levels of 

emissions. Both of these actions will 

help to verify continued attainment in 

accordance with 40 CFR part 58. 

f. Contingency Plan 

The contingency plan provisions are 

designed to promptly correct or prevent 

a violation of the NAAQS that might 

occur after redesignation of an area to 

attainment. Section 175A of the CAA 

requires that a maintenance plan 

include such contingency measures as 

EPA deems necessary to assure that the 

state will promptly correct a violation of 

the NAAQS that occurs after 

redesignation. The maintenance plan 

should identify the contingency 

measures to be adopted, a schedule and 

procedure for adoption and 

implementation of the contingency 

measures, and a time limit for action by 

the state. The state should also identify 

specific indicators to be used to 

determine when the contingency 

measures need to be adopted and 

implemented. The maintenance plan 

must include a requirement that the 

state will implement all pollution 

control measures that were contained in 

the SIP before redesignation of the area 

to attainment. See section 175A(d) of 

the CAA. 

Ohio’s contingency plan defines a 

warning level and action level response. 

The warning level response will trigger 

when the PM2.5 average of the weighted 

annual mean of 12.5 mg/m3 or greater 

occurs in a single calendar year within 

the maintenance area. A warning level 

response will consist of a study to 

determine whether the PM2.5 value 

indicates a trend toward higher PM2.5

values or whether emissions appear to 

be increasing. The action level response 

will be prompted whenever a two-year 

average of the weighted annual means of 

greater than 12.0 mg/m3 occurs within 

the maintenance area. A violation of the 

standard (three-year average of the 

weighted annual means of greater than 

12.0 mg/m3) shall also prompt an action 

level response. If the action level is 

triggered and is not found to be due to 

an exceptional event, malfunction, or 

noncompliance with a permit condition 

or rule requirement, Ohio EPA, in 

conjunction with the metropolitan 

planning organization or regional 

council of governments, will determine 

additional control measures needed to 

assure future attainment of the NAAQS 

for annual PM2.5. Action level measures 

that can be implemented in a short time 

will be selected to be in place within 18 

months from the close of the calendar 

year that prompted the action level. 

Ohio EPA will also consider the timing 

of an action level trigger and determine 

if additional, significant new regulations 

not currently included as part of the 

maintenance provisions will be 

implemented in a timely manner and 

will constitute our response. 

Because it is not possible to determine 

what control measures will be 

appropriate at an unspecified time in 

the future, the list of contingency 

measures outlined below is not 

exhaustive. 

(1) Diesel reduction emission 

strategies. 

(2) Alternative fuel (e.g., liquid 

propane and compressed natural gas) 

and diesel retrofit programs for fleet 

vehicle operations. 

(3) Tighter PM2.5, SO2, and NOX

emissions offsets for new and modified 

major sources. 

(4) Impact crushers located at recycle 

scrap yards—upgrade wet suppression. 

(5) Concrete manufacturing—upgrade 

wet suppression. 

(6) Additional NOX RACT statewide. 

As required by section 175A(b) of the 

CAA, Ohio commits to submit to EPA 

an updated PM2.5 maintenance plan 

eight years after redesignation of the 

Cleveland area to cover an additional 

ten-year period beyond the initial 10 

year maintenance period. 

For the reasons set forth above, EPA 

is proposing to approve Ohio’s 2012 

annual PM2.5 maintenance plan for the 

Cleveland area as meeting the 

requirements of CAA section 175A. 

Ohio further commits to conduct 

ongoing review of its data, and if 

monitored concentrations or emissions 

are trending upward, Ohio commits to 

take appropriate steps to avoid a 

violation if possible. Ohio commits to 

continue implementing SIP 

requirements upon and after 

redesignation. 

EPA finds that Ohio’s approved 

contingency measures, as well as the 

commitment to continue implementing 

any SIP requirements, satisfy the 

pertinent requirements of section 175A. 

5. Motor Vehicle Emissions Budget 

(MVEBs) for PM2.5 and NOX, and Safety 

Margin for the Cleveland Area 

The maintenance plan submitted by 

Ohio for the Cleveland contain new 

primary PM2.5 and NOX MVEBs for the 

area for the years 2022 and 2030. 

MVEBs are the projected levels of 

controlled emissions from the 

transportation sector (mobile sources) 

that are estimated in the SIP to provide 


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for maintenance of the ozone standard. 

The MVEBs were calculated using 

MOVES2014a. Table 8 details Ohio’s 

2022 and 2030 MVEBs for the 

Cleveland. 

TABLE 8—MVEBS FOR THE CLEVELAND 2012 ANNUAL PM2.5 MAINTENANCE PLAN

[tons/year] 

Pollutant 2022 MVEB 2030 MVEB 

PM2.5 ........................................................................................................................................................................ 406.79 270.57 

NOX .......................................................................................................................................................................... 9,432.04 4,907.54 

Ohio included ‘‘safety margins’’ as 

provided for in 40 CFR 93.124(a). A 

‘‘safety margin’’, as defined in the 

transportation conformity rule (40 CFR 

part 93 subpart A), is the amount by 

which the total projected emissions 

from all sources of a given pollutant are 

less than the total emissions that would 

satisfy the applicable requirement for 

reasonable further progress, attainment, 

or maintenance. The attainment level of 

PM2.5 and NOX emissions for the 

Cleveland is shown in tables 3 and 4. 

Tables 9 and 10 show the remaining 

safety margin for the Cleveland area 

following the allocation to the PM2.5 and 

NOX MVEBs. 

TABLE 9—2022 SAFETY MARGIN FOR CLEVELAND 2012 ANNUAL PM2.5 MAINTENANCE PLAN

[tons/year] 

Pollutant 2022 Safety 

margin 

Safety margin 

allocated to 

2022 MVEB 

Safety margin 

remaining 

PM2.5 ............................................................................................................................................ 308.51 53.06 255.45 

NOX .............................................................................................................................................. 8924.78 1230.27 7694.51 

TABLE 10—2030 SAFETY MARGIN FOR CLEVELAND 2012 ANNUAL PM2.5 MAINTENANCE PLAN

[tons/year] 

Pollutant 2030 Safety 

margin 

Safety margin 

allocated to 

2030 MVEB 

Safety margin 

remaining 

PM2.5 ............................................................................................................................................ 480.6 35.29 445.31 

NOX .............................................................................................................................................. 13823.35 640.11 13183.24 

The 2022 and 2030 projected 

emissions, even with this allocation, 

will be below the 2016 attainment year 

emissions for both PM2.5 and NOX. For 

this reason, EPA finds that the 

allocation of the safety margin to the 

MVEBs for the Cleveland area meet the 

requirements of the transportation 

conformity regulations at 40 CFR part 

93, and are approvable. Once allocated 

to mobile sources, these portions of the 

safety margins will not be available for 

use by other sources. 

V. What are the effects of EPA’s 

actions? 

EPA is proposing to change the 

official designation of the Cleveland, 

Ohio area for the 2012 annual PM2.5

NAAQS, found at 40 CFR part 81, from 

nonattainment to attainment. EPA is 

proposing to determine that the 

Cleveland area has attained the 2012 

annual PM2.5 standard, based on the 

most recent three years of certified air 

quality data. This action also proposes 

to approve the maintenance plan for the 

2012 annual PM2.5 NAAQS as revisions 

to the Ohio SIP for the Cleveland area. 

Finally, EPA finds adequate and is 

proposing to approve 2022 and 2030 

primary PM2.5 and NOX MVEBs for the 

Cleveland area. These MVEBs will be 

used in future transportation conformity 

analyses for the area. 

VI. Statutory and Executive Order 

Reviews 

Under the CAA, the Administrator is 

required to approve a SIP submission 

that complies with the provisions of the 

CAA and applicable Federal regulations. 

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, this action 

merely approves state law as meeting 

Federal requirements and does not 

impose additional requirements beyond 

those imposed by state law. For that 

reason, this action: 

• Is not a significant regulatory action 

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); 

• Is not an Executive Order 13771 (82 

FR 9339, February 2, 2017) regulatory 

action because SIP approvals are 

exempted under Executive Order 12866; 

• Does not impose an information 

collection burden under the provisions 

of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 

U.S.C. 3501 et seq.); 

• Is 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.); 

• 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); 

• 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); 


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• Is not a significant regulatory action 

subject to Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 

28355, May 22, 2001); 

• Is 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 

• Does 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, 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 and will not impose 

substantial direct costs on tribal 

governments or preempt tribal law as 

specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 

FR 67249, November 9, 2000). 

List of Subjects 

40 CFR Part 52 

Environmental protection, Air 

pollution control, Incorporation by 

reference, Intergovernmental relations, 

Nitrogen dioxide, Particulate matter, 

Sulfur oxides. 

40 CFR Part 81 

Environmental protection, Air 

pollution control, National parks, 

Wilderness areas. 

Dated: December 6, 2018. 

Cathy Stepp, 

Regional Administrator, Region 5. 

[FR Doc. 2018–27746 Filed 12–21–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 62 

[EPA–R07–OAR–2018–0812; FRL–9988–10– 

Region 7] 

Approval of State Plans for Designated 

Facilities and Pollutants; Kansas; 

Sewage Sludge Incineration Units 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) is proposing to accept the 

negative declaration submitted by the 

State of Kansas, for Sewage Sludge 

Incineration (SSI) units. This negative 

declaration submitted by the Kansas 

Department of Health and Environment 

(KDHE) certifies that SSI units subject to 

sections 111(d) and 129 of the Clean Air 

Act (CAA) do not exist within the 

jurisdiction of the State of Kansas. The 

EPA is accepting the negative 

declaration in accordance with the 

requirements of the CAA. 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before January 25, 2019. 

ADDRESSES: You may send comments, 

identified by Docket ID No. EPA–R07– 

OAR–2018–0812, to https://

www.regulations.gov. Follow the online 

instructions for submitting comments. 

Instructions: All submissions received 

must include the Docket ID No. for this 

rulemaking. Comments received will be 

posted without change to https://

www.regulations.gov/, including any 

personal information provided. For 

detailed instructions on sending 

comments and additional information 

on the rulemaking process, see the 

‘‘Written Comments’’ heading of the 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of 

this document. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Larry Gonzalez, Environmental 

Protection Agency, Air Planning and 

Development Branch, 11201 Renner 

Boulevard, Lenexa, Kansas 66219; 

telephone number (913) 551–7041; 

email address gonzalez.larry@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Throughout this document ‘‘we,’’ ‘‘us,’’ 

or ‘‘our’’ refer to EPA. 

Table of Contents 

I. Written Comments 

II. Background 

III. What action is EPA taking? 

IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews 

I. Written Comments 

Submit your comments, identified by 

Docket ID No. EPA–R07–OAR–2018– 

0812, at https://www.regulations.gov. 

Once submitted, comments cannot be 

edited or removed from Regulations.gov. 

The EPA may publish any comment 

received to its public docket. Do not 

submit electronically any information 

you consider to be Confidential 

Business Information (CBI) or other 

information whose disclosure is 

restricted by statute. Multimedia 

submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be 

accompanied by a written comment. 

The written comment is considered the 

official comment and should include 

discussion of all points you wish to 

make. The EPA will generally not 

consider comments or comment 

contents located outside of the primary 

submission (i.e., on the web, cloud, or 

other file sharing system). For 

additional submission methods, the full 

EPA public comment policy, 

information about CBI or multimedia 

submissions, and general guidance on 

making effective comments, please visit 

https://www.epa.gov/dockets/ 

commenting-epa-dockets. 

II. Background 

The CAA requires that state regulatory 

agencies implement emission guidelines 

and associated compliance times using 

a state plan developed under sections 

111(d) and 129 of the CAA. 

The general provisions for the 

submittal and approval of state plans are 

codified in 40 Code of Federal 

Regulations (CFR) part 60, subpart B 

and 40 CFR part 62, subpart A. Section 

111(d) establishes general requirements 

and procedures on state plan submittals 

for the control of designated pollutants. 

Section 129 requires emission 

guidelines to be promulgated for all 

categories of solid waste incineration 

units, including SSI units. SSI units are 

defined at 40 CFR part 60.5250 as ‘‘an 

incineration unit combusting sewage 

sludge for the purpose of reducing the 

volume of the sewage sludge by 

removing combustible matter. Sewage 

sludge incineration unit designs include 

fluidized bed and multiple hearth. An 

SSI unit also includes, but is not limited 

to, the sewage sludge feed system, 

auxiliary fuel feed system, grate system, 

flue gas system, waste heat recovery 

equipment, if any, and bottom ash 

system. The SSI unit includes all ash 

handling systems connected to the 

bottom ash handling system. The 

combustion unit bottom ash system 

ends at the truck loading station or 

similar equipment that transfers the ash 

to final disposal. The SSI unit does not 

include air pollution control equipment 

or the stack.’’ 

Section 129 mandates that all plan 

requirements be at least as protective as 

the promulgated emission guidelines. 

This includes fixed final compliance 

dates, fixed compliance schedules, and 

Title V permitting requirements for all 

affected sources. Section 129 also 

requires that state plans be submitted to 

EPA within one year after EPA’s 

promulgation of the emission guidelines 

and compliance times. 

States have options other than 

submitting a state plan in order to fulfill 

their obligations under CAA sections 

111(d) and 129. If a state does not have 

any existing SSI units for the relevant 

emission guidelines, a letter can be 

submitted certifying that no such units 

exist within the state (i.e., negative 

declaration) in lieu of a state plan, in 

accordance with 40 CFR 60.5010. The 

negative declaration exempts the state 

from the requirements of subpart B that 


amozie on DSK3GDR082PROD with PROPOSALS1