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[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 133 (Monday, July 13, 2015)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 39970-39973]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-17055]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Parts 52 and 81

[EPA-R04-OAR-2014-0870; FRL-9930-49-Region 4]

Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans and Designation 
of Areas for Air Quality Planning Purposes; Tennessee; Redesignation of 
the Knoxville 2008 8-Hour Ozone Nonattainment Area to Attainment

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking four 
separate final actions related to a state implementation plan (SIP) 
revision submitted by the State of Tennessee, through the Tennessee 
Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC), Division of Air 
Pollution Control, on November 14, 2014, for the Knoxville, Tennessee 
8-hour ozone nonattainment area (hereinafter referred to as the 
``Knoxville Area'' or ``Area''). The Knoxville Area includes a portion 
of Anderson County as well as Blount and Knox Counties in their 
entireties. EPA is approving the base year emissions inventory for the 
2008 8-hour ozone national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) for 
the Knoxville Area; determining that the Knoxville Area is attaining 
the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS; approving into the SIP the State's plan 
for maintaining attainment of the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS in the Area, 
including the 2011 and 2026 motor vehicle emission budgets (MVEBs) for 
nitrogen oxides (NOX) and volatile organic compounds (VOC); 
and redesignating the Area to attainment for the 2008 8-hour ozone 
NAAQS. EPA is also finding the 2011 and 2026 MVEBs for NOX 
and VOC for the Knoxville Area adequate for the purposes of 
transportation conformity.

DATES: This rule is effective August 12, 2015.

ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket 
Identification No. EPA-R04-OAR-2014-0870. 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 (formerly the Regulatory 
Development Section), Air Planning and Implementation Branch (formerly 
the Air Planning Branch), Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management 
Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth 
Street SW., Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. EPA requests that if at all 
possible, you contact the person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT section to schedule your inspection. The Regional Office's 
official hours of business are Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 
p.m., excluding Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jane Spann or Tiereny Bell of the Air 
Regulatory Management Section, in the 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. Ms. Spann may be reached by phone at (404) 
562-9029 or via electronic mail at spann.jane@epa.gov. Ms. Bell may be 
reached by phone at (404) 562-9088 or via electronic mail at 
bell.tiereny@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background for Final Actions

    On May 21, 2012, EPA designated areas as unclassifiable/attainment 
or nonattainment for the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS that was promulgated 
on March 27, 2008. See 77 FR 30088. The Knoxville Area was designated 
as nonattainment for the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS and classified as a 
marginal nonattainment area. On November 14, 2014, TDEC requested that 
EPA redesignate the Area to attainment for the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS 
and submitted a SIP revision containing a base year emissions inventory 
for the Area to address the requirements of Clean Air Act (CAA or Act) 
section 182(a)(1) and the State's plan for maintaining attainment of 
the 2008 8-hour ozone standard in the Area, including the 2011 and 2026 
MVEBs for NOX and VOC. In a notice of proposed rulemaking 
(NPR) published on May 21, 2015, EPA proposed to approve the base year 
emissions inventory for the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS for the Knoxville 
Area; to determine that the Knoxville Area is attaining the 2008 8-hour 
ozone NAAQS; to approve into the SIP the

[[Page 39971]]

State's plan for maintaining attainment of the 2008 8-hour ozone 
standard in the Area, including the 2011 and 2026 MVEBs for 
NOX and VOC; and to redesignate the Area to attainment for 
the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS. See 80 FR 29237. In that notice, EPA also 
notified the public of the status of the Agency's adequacy 
determination for the Knoxville Area NOX and VOC MVEBs.\1\ 
The details of Tennessee's submittal and the rationale for EPA's 
actions are explained in the NPR. EPA received one comment on the May 
21, 2015, NPR. This comment is provided in the docket for today's final 
actions and supports those actions. EPA's response to the comment is 
provided below.
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    \1\ Tennessee's November 14, 2015, SIP submission, including the 
Knoxville Area NOX and VOC MVEBs, was open for public 
comment on EPA's adequacy Web site on December 4, 2014, found at: 
http://www.epa.gov/otaq/stateresources/transconf/currsips.htm#knx-tn. The EPA public comment period on adequacy for the MVEBs for 2011 
and 2026 for the Knoxville Area closed on January 5, 2015. No 
comments, adverse or otherwise, were received during EPA's adequacy 
process for the MVEBs associated with Tennessee's maintenance plan.
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II. EPA's Response to Comment

    The Commenter ``support[s] this docket as written'' and states that 
``it is clear the metro area [Knoxville] is in attainment of the 2008 
8-hour ozone standard.'' Although supportive of the actions, the 
Commenter is ``somewhat suspicious of the large projected decreases in 
NOX from [on] road sources, given that vehicle traffic will 
almost certainly be increasing throughout the modeled time period.'' 
The Commenter believes that it ``seems likely that smaller. . 
.reductions in NOX from [on] road sources. . . will still 
result in continued attainment of the ozone standard given that current 
NOX emissions are resulting in ozone attainment.''
    EPA does not view this comment as adverse. Regarding the magnitude 
of the projected on-road mobile source NOX emissions 
reductions given increased vehicle traffic, EPA notes that Tennessee 
used the interagency consultation process required by 40 CFR part 93 
(known as the Transportation Conformity Rule) which requires EPA, the 
United States Department of Transportation, metropolitan planning 
organizations (MPOs), state departments of transportation, and State 
and local air quality agencies to work together to develop applicable 
implementation plans. The planning assumptions used to develop on-road 
NOX emissions estimates for the Knoxville Area maintenance 
plan applied emissions factors developed from the latest EPA-approved 
mobile emissions model (known as the Motor Vehicle Emissions Simulator 
or MOVES2014) and did consider increased vehicle traffic by 
incorporating the increased vehicle miles travelled from the MPO's 
travel demand model. MOVES2014 is the state-of-the-science emissions 
model that incorporates the newest emissions control regulatory 
programs.

III. What are the effects of these actions?

    Approval of Tennessee's redesignation request changes the legal 
designation of Blount and Knox Counties and the portion of Anderson 
County included in the Knoxville Area, found at 40 CFR 81.343, from 
nonattainment to attainment for the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS. Approval 
of Tennessee's associated SIP revision also incorporates a plan for 
maintaining the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS in the Knoxville Area through 
2026 and a section 182(a)(1) base year emissions inventory into the 
Tennessee SIP. The maintenance plan establishes NOX and VOC 
MVEBs for 2011 and 2026 for the Knoxville Area and includes contingency 
measures to remedy any future violations of the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS 
and procedures for evaluation of potential violations. The 
NOX MVEBs for 2011 and 2026 are 41.62 tons per day (tpd) and 
17.69 tpd, respectively. The VOC MVEBs for 2011 and 2026 are 19.71 tpd 
and 10.49 tpd, respectively. Additionally, EPA is finding the newly-
established NOX and VOC MVEBs for the Knoxville Area 
adequate for the purpose of transportation conformity. Within 24 months 
from this final rule, the transportation partners will need to 
demonstrate conformity to the new NOX and VOC MVEBs pursuant 
to 40 CFR 93.104(e).

IV. Final Actions

    EPA is taking four separate but related actions regarding the 
Knoxville Area's redesignation to attainment and maintenance of the 
2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS. First, EPA is approving Tennessee's section 
182(a)(1) base year emissions inventory for the 2008 8-hour ozone 
standard for the Knoxville Area into the SIP. Approval of the base year 
inventory is a prerequisite for EPA to redesignate the Area from 
nonattainment to attainment.
    Second, EPA is determining that the Knoxville Area is attaining the 
2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS based on complete, quality-assured and 
certified monitoring data for the 2011-2013 monitoring period. The 
2012-2014 data in the Air Quality System indicates that the Area is 
continuing to attain the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS.
    Third, EPA is approving the maintenance plan for the Knoxville 
Area, including the NOX and VOC MVEBs for 2011 and 2026, 
into the Tennessee SIP (under CAA section 175A). The maintenance plan 
demonstrates that the Area will continue to maintain the 2008 8-hour 
ozone NAAQS, and the budgets meet all of the adequacy criteria 
contained in 40 CFR 93.118(e)(4) and (5).
    Fourth, EPA is determining that Tennessee has met the criteria 
under CAA section 107(d)(3)(E) for the Knoxville Area for redesignation 
from nonattainment to attainment for the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS. On 
this basis, EPA is approving Tennessee's redesignation request for the 
2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS for the Knoxville Area. As mentioned above, 
approval of the redesignation request changes the official designation 
of Blount and Knox Counties and the portion of Anderson County in the 
Knoxville Area for the 2008 8-hour ozone NAAQS from nonattainment to 
attainment, as found at 40 CFR part 81.
    EPA is also finding the newly-established NOX and VOC 
MVEBs for the Knoxville Area adequate for the purpose of transportation 
conformity. Within 24 months from this final rule, the transportation 
partners will need to demonstrate conformity to the new NOX 
and VOC MVEBs pursuant to 40 CFR 93.104(e).

V. 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

[[Page 39972]]

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.);
     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
     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).
    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 September 11, 2015. 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, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, 
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Volatile organic compounds.

40 CFR Part 81

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control.

    Dated: July 6, 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 two new entries for ``2008 
8-hour Ozone Maintenance Plan for the Knoxville Area'' and ``2008 8-
hour Ozone Emissions Inventory for the Knoxville 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                  Explanation
                                     area            date
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                                                  * * * * * * *
2008 8-hour Ozone Maintenance  Blount County,       11/14/14  7/13/15 [Insert  .................................
 Plan for the Knoxville Area.   Knox County,                   citation of
                                and a portion                  publication].
                                of Anderson
                                County.
2008 8-hour Ozone Emissions    Blount County,       11/14/14  ...............  .................................
 Inventory for the Knoxville    Knox County,
 Area.                          and a portion
                                of Anderson
                                County.
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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-2008 8-Hour Ozone 
NAAQS (Primary and secondary)'' is amended by revising the entries for 
``Knoxville, TN,'' ``Anderson County (part),'' ``Blount County,'' and 
``Knox County'' to read as follows:

Sec.  81.343  Tennessee.

* * * * *

[[Page 39973]]

                                        Tennessee-2008 8-Hour Ozone NAAQS
                                             [Primary and secondary]
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                                            Designation                        Category/Classification
        Designated area        ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                    Date \1\            Type               Date \1\                 Type
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Knoxville, TN \2\.............  This action is    Attainment......  .....................  .....................
                                 effective 7/13/
                                 15.
Anderson County (part):
    2000 Census tracts: 202,    ................  ................  .....................  .....................
     213.02.
Blount County.................  ................  ................  .....................  .....................
Knox County...................  ................  ................  .....................  .....................
 
                                                  * * * * * * *
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\1\ This date is July 20, 2012, unless otherwise noted.
\2\ Excludes Indian country located in each area, unless otherwise noted.
\3\ Includes any Indian country in each county or area, unless otherwise specified.

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[FR Doc. 2015-17055 Filed 7-10-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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