Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 57 / Wednesday, March 25, 2015 / Proposed Rules 15709 

(4) All waters of Lake Pontchartrain 

extending 350 feet in all directions from 

a fireworks barge located offshore of 

Mandeville, LA. This location will be 

used for the Mandeville Lakefront 

Fireworks event. 

(b) Effective Dates and Enforcement 

Periods. This rule is effective during five 

individual events occurring on four 

separate dates from April 27, 2015 

through July 4, 2015. The temporary 

safety zones will be enforced during the 

following dates and times: 

(1) April 27, 2015, in the evening for 

one hour or less in the location noted in 

section a.1. 

(2) April 28, 2015, in the evening for 

one hour or less in the location noted in 

section a.1. 

(3) July 4, 2015, in the evening for one 

hour or less in the location noted in 

section a.2. 

(4) July 4, 2015, in the evening for one 

hour or less the locations noted in 

section a.3 and a.4. 

(c) Regulations. 

(1) In accordance with the general 

regulations in § 165.23 of this part, entry 

into these zones is prohibited unless 

specifically authorized by the Captain of 

the Port (COTP) New Orleans or 

designated personnel. Designated 

personnel include commissioned, 

warrant and petty officers of the U.S. 

Coast Guard assigned to units under the 

operational control of Sector New 

Orleans. 

(2) Persons and vessels requiring 

deviation from this rule must request 

permission from the COTP New Orleans 

or a COTP New Orleans designated 

representative. They may be contacted 

on VHF–FM Channel 16 or 67, or 

through Coast Guard Sector New 

Orleans at 504–365–2200. 

(3) Persons and vessels permitted to 

deviate from this rule must transit at the 

slowest safe speed and comply with all 

lawful directions issued by the COTP 

New Orleans or designated 

representative. 

(d) Information Broadcasts. The COTP 

New Orleans or a COTP New Orleans 

designated representative will inform 

the public through broadcast notices to 

mariners of the enforcement period for 

the safety zones as well as any changes 

in the planned schedule. 

Dated: March 4, 2015. 

P.C. Schifflin, 

Captain, U.S. Coast Guard Captain of the 

Port New Orleans. 

[FR Doc. 2015–06846 Filed 3–24–15; 8:45 a.m.] 

BILLING CODE 9110–04–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 52 

[EPA–R03–OAR–2015–0089; FRL–9925–15– 

Region 3] 

Approval and Promulgation of Air 

Quality Implementation Plans; 

Maryland; Biomass Fuel-Burning 

Equipment Standards 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve a 

State Implementation Plan (SIP) 

revision submitted by the State of 

Maryland. This revision pertains to a 

new regulation for biomass fuel-burning 

equipment and related amendments to 

existing regulations. This action is being 

taken under the Clean Air Act (CAA). 

DATES: Written comments must be 

received on or before April 24, 2015. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by Docket ID Number EPA– 

R03–OAR–2015–0089 by one of the 

following methods: 

A. www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

on-line instructions for submitting 

comments. 

B. Email: powers.marilyn@epa.gov. 

C. Mail: EPA–R03–OAR–2015–0089, 

Marilyn Powers, Acting Associate 

Director, Office of Air Program 

Planning, Mailcode 3AP30, U.S. 

Environmental Protection Agency, 

Region III, 1650 Arch Street, 

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103. 

D. Hand Delivery: At the previouslylisted EPA Region III address. Such 

deliveries are only accepted during the 

Docket’s normal hours of operation, and 

special arrangements should be made 

for deliveries of boxed information. 

Instructions: Direct your comments to 

Docket ID No. EPA–R03–OAR–2015– 

0089. EPA’s policy is that all comments 

received will be included in the public 

docket without change, and may be 

made available online at 

www.regulations.gov, including any 

personal information provided, unless 

the comment includes information 

claimed to be Confidential Business 

Information (CBI) or other information 

whose disclosure is restricted by statute. 

Do not submit information that you 

consider to be CBI or otherwise 

protected through www.regulations.gov 

or email. The www.regulations.gov Web 

site is an ‘‘anonymous access’’ system, 

which means EPA will not know your 

identity or contact information unless 

you provide it in the body of your 

comment. If you send an email 

comment directly to EPA without going 

through www.regulations.gov, your 

email address will be automatically 

captured and included as part of the 

comment that is placed in the public 

docket and made available on the 

Internet. If you submit an electronic 

comment, EPA recommends that you 

include your name and other contact 

information in the body of your 

comment and with any disk or CD–ROM 

you submit. If EPA cannot read your 

comment due to technical difficulties 

and cannot contact you for clarification, 

EPA may not be able to consider your 

comment. Electronic files should avoid 

the use of special characters, any form 

of encryption, and be free of any defects 

or viruses. 

Docket: All documents in the 

electronic docket are listed in the 

www.regulations.gov index. 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 in www.regulations.gov or 

in hard copy during normal business 

hours at the Air Protection Division, 

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 

Region III, 1650 Arch Street, 

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103. 

Copies of the State submittal are 

available at the Maryland Department of 

the Environment, 1800 Washington 

Boulevard, Suite 705, Baltimore, 

Maryland 21230. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Irene Shandruk, (215) 814–2166, or by 

email at shandruk.irene@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

Biomass materials, which include 

wood residue and wood products, 

animal manure (including litter and 

other bedding materials), vegetative 

agricultural materials as well as 

silvicultural materials, can be used as 

fuel burned to provide heat and power. 

New technologies and environmental 

initiatives have recently increased the 

use of biomass material for combustion 

in the State of Maryland. Therefore, the 

Maryland Department of the 

Environment (MDE) has established 

emission standards for the combustion 

of biomass fuel by developing a new 

Code of Maryland (COMAR) regulation, 

COMAR 26.11.09.12—‘‘Standards for 

Biomass Fuel-Burning Equipment 

Greater Than 350,000 British Thermal 

Units (Btu)/Hour (hr) Heat Input.’’ The 

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15710 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 57 / Wednesday, March 25, 2015 / Proposed Rules 

typical type of equipment that is 

regulated under this new regulation is a 

boiler; however, it also applies to 

process heaters and other applications. 

II. Summary of SIP Revision 

On January 12, 2015, MDE submitted 

to EPA a SIP revision concerning new 

regulation COMAR 26.11.09.12 

(Standards for Biomass Fuel-Burning 

Equipment Equal to or Greater Than 

350,000 Btu/hr) and related 

amendments to regulations .01, .04, .06, 

.07, .09, and .10 under COMAR 

26.11.09—Control of Fuel-Burning 

Equipment, Stationary Internal 

Combustion Engines, and Certain FuelBurning Installations. The new 

regulation, COMAR 26.11.09.12, 

Standards for Biomass Fuel-Burning 

Equipment Equal to or Greater Than 

350,000 Btu/hr, establishes particulate 

matter (PM) and nitrogen oxide (NOX) 

emission limits (see Table 1) and 

additional requirements (such as 

compliance and record keeping and 

reporting) for biomass fuel-burning 

equipment. According to MDE, small 

biomass boilers will need to install PM 

emission controls; however, MDE 

asserts the NOX emission rates for 

biomass fuel-burning equipment can be 

achieved through efficient system 

design and do not require add-on 

pollution controls. MDE also asserted in 

the SIP submittal that new biomass fuelburning equipment would still be 

subject to standards based on federal 

maximum achievable control 

technology (MACT), generally available 

control technology (GACT), and best 

available control technology (BACT) 

analysis. Further EPA analysis and 

information on the MDE regulations for 

this SIP submittal are provided in the 

Technical Support Document (TSD) 

with Docket ID No. EPA–R03–OAR– 

2015–0089. 

TABLE 1—EMISSION STANDARDS FOR BIOMASS FUEL-BURNING EQUIPMENT

Heat input capacity 

(mmBtu/hr) 

PM 

(pounds/mmBtu) 

NOX

(pounds/mmBtu) 

≥10 ................................................................................................................................................................... 0.03–0.07 0.25–0.30 

>1.5 and <10 ................................................................................................................................................... 0.1–0.23 0.30 

>0.35 and ≤1.5 ................................................................................................................................................ 0.1–0.35 0.30 

MDE has submitted the new biomass 

fuel-burning provisions in COMAR 

26.11.09.12 and revised provisions in 

COMAR 26.11.09.10 for inclusion in the 

Maryland SIP. The SIP submittal also 

includes revisions to COMAR 

26.11.09.01 (February 22, 2011, 76 FR 

9650), .04 (November 3, 1992, 57 FR 

49651), .06 (July 6, 2005, 70 FR 38774), 

.07 (November 3, 1992, 57 FR 49651), 

and .09 (May 1, 2003, 68 FR 23206), 

which were previously included in the 

Maryland SIP. 

III. Proposed Action 

EPA’s review of this material 

indicates that MDE’s regulation 

provides emission limits on smaller 

biomass fuel-burning equipment 

providing PM and NOX emission 

reductions which will strengthen the 

Maryland SIP. The reductions in PM 

and NOX will help Maryland attain and 

maintain the National Ambient Air 

Quality Standards (NAAQS) for ozone 

and PM. EPA is proposing to approve 

Maryland’s January 12, 2015 SIP 

revision for biomass fuel-burning 

equipment. EPA is soliciting public 

comments on the issues discussed in 

this document. These comments will be 

considered before taking final action. 

IV. Incorporation by Reference 

In this rulemaking, the EPA is 

proposing to include in a final EPA rule 

regulatory text that includes 

incorporation by reference. In 

accordance with requirements of 1 CFR 

51.5, the EPA is proposing to 

incorporate by reference the Maryland 

rules regarding the definitions and 

requirements for biomass fuel-burning 

equipment in COMAR 26.11.09.01, .04, 

.06, .07, .09, .10, and .12. The EPA has 

made, and will continue to make, these 

documents generally available 

electronically through 

www.regulations.gov and/or in hard 

copy at the EPA Region III office (see the 

ADDRESSES section of this preamble for 

more information). 

V. 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 proposed action: 

• Is not a ‘‘significant regulatory 

action’’ subject to review by the Office 

of Management and Budget under 

Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 51735, 

October 4, 1993); 

• 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); 

• 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, this proposed rule 

pertaining to Maryland’s biomass fuelburning equipment standards does 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. 

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Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 57 / Wednesday, March 25, 2015 / Proposed Rules 15711 

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52 

Environmental protection, Air 

pollution control, Incorporation by 

reference, Intergovernmental relations, 

Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, Particulate 

matter, Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements. 

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

Dated: March 10, 2015. 

William C. Early, 

Acting Regional Administrator, Region III. 

[FR Doc. 2015–06856 Filed 3–24–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 52 

[EPA–R03–OAR–2014–0883; FRL–9924–96– 

Region–3] 

Approval and Promulgation of Air 

Quality Implementation Plans; 

Maryland; Determination of Attainment 

of the 1997 8-Hour Ozone National 

Ambient Air Quality Standard for the 

Baltimore, Maryland Serious 

Nonattainment Area 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) is proposing to make a 

determination that the Baltimore, 

Maryland Serious Nonattainment Area 

(Baltimore Area) has attained the 1997 

8-hour ozone National Ambient Air 

Quality Standard (NAAQS). This 

proposed determination is based upon 

complete, quality-assured, and certified 

ambient air monitoring data that shows 

the Area has monitored attainment of 

the 1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS for the 

2012–2014 monitoring period. If this 

proposal becomes final, the requirement 

for this Area to submit an attainment 

demonstration, reasonably available 

control measures (RACM), a reasonable 

further progress (RFP) plan, and 

contingency measures related to 

attainment of the 1997 8-hour ozone 

NAAQS shall be suspended for so long 

as the Area continues to attain the 1997 

8-hour ozone NAAQS. This action does 

not constitute a redesignation to 

attainment. The Baltimore Area will 

remain nonattainment for the 1997 8- 

hour ozone NAAQS until such time as 

EPA determines that the Baltimore Area 

meets the Clean Air Act (CAA) 

requirements for redesignation to 

attainment, including an approved 

maintenance plan. This action is being 

taken under the CAA. 

DATES: Written comments must be 

received on or before April 24, 2015. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by Docket ID Number EPA– 

R03–OAR–2014–0883 by one of the 

following methods: 

A. www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

on-line instructions for submitting 

comments. 

B. Email: fernandez.cristina@epa.gov. 

C. Mail: EPA–R03–OAR–2014–0883, 

Cristina Fernandez, Associate Director, 

Office of Air Program Planning, 

Mailcode 3AP30, U.S. Environmental 

Protection Agency, Region III, 1650 

Arch Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 

19103. 

D. Hand Delivery: At the previouslylisted EPA Region III address. Such 

deliveries are only accepted during the 

Docket’s normal hours of operation, and 

special arrangements should be made 

for deliveries of boxed information. 

Instructions: Direct your comments to 

Docket ID No. EPA–R03–OAR–2014– 

0883. EPA’s policy is that all comments 

received will be included in the public 

docket without change, and may be 

made available online at 

www.regulations.gov, including any 

personal information provided, unless 

the comment includes information 

claimed to be Confidential Business 

Information (CBI) or other information 

whose disclosure is restricted by statute. 

Do not submit information that you 

consider to be CBI or otherwise 

protected through www.regulations.gov 

or email. The www.regulations.gov Web 

site is an ‘‘anonymous access’’ system, 

which means EPA will not know your 

identity or contact information unless 

you provide it in the body of your 

comment. If you send an email 

comment directly to EPA without going 

through www.regulations.gov, your 

email address will be automatically 

captured and included as part of the 

comment that is placed in the public 

docket and made available on the 

Internet. If you submit an electronic 

comment, EPA recommends that you 

include your name and other contact 

information in the body of your 

comment and with any disk or CD–ROM 

you submit. If EPA cannot read your 

comment due to technical difficulties 

and cannot contact you for clarification, 

EPA may not be able to consider your 

comment. Electronic files should avoid 

the use of special characters, any form 

of encryption, and be free of any defects 

or viruses. 

Docket: All documents in the 

electronic docket are listed in the 

www.regulations.gov index. 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 in www.regulations.gov or 

in hard copy during normal business 

hours at the Air Protection Division, 

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 

Region III, 1650 Arch Street, 

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Irene Shandruk, (215) 814–2166, or by 

email at shandruk.irene@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

On July 18, 1997, EPA revised the 

health-based NAAQS for ozone based 

on 8-hour average concentrations. 62 FR 

38856. The 8-hour averaging period 

replaced the previous 1-hour averaging 

period, and the level of the NAAQS was 

changed from 0.12 parts per million 

(ppm) to 0.08 ppm. Id. On April 30, 

2004 (69 FR 23858), EPA finalized its 

attainment/nonattainment designations 

for areas across the country for the 1997 

8-hour ozone NAAQS. These actions 

became effective on June 15, 2004. 

Among those nonattainment areas was 

the Baltimore Area (specifically, Anne 

Arundel County, Baltimore City, 

Baltimore County, Carroll County, 

Harford County, and Howard County), 

which was designated as a moderate 

ozone nonattainment area. Id. Later, the 

Baltimore Area was reclassified as a 

serious nonattainment area for the 1997 

ozone NAAQS. 77 FR 4901 (February 1, 

2012). See 40 CFR 81.321. Air quality 

monitoring data from the 2012–2014 

monitoring period indicate that the 

Baltimore Area is now attaining the 

1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS. 

Under the provisions of EPA’s ozone 

implementation rule (40 CFR 51.918), if 

EPA issues a determination that an area 

is attaining the relevant standard 

(through a rulemaking that includes 

public notice and comment), it will 

suspend the area’s obligations to submit 

an attainment demonstration, RACM, 

RFP, contingency measures and other 

planning requirements related to 

attainment of the 1997 8-hour ozone 

NAAQS for as long as the area continues 

to attain the standard. This suspension 

remains in effect until such time, if ever, 

that EPA (i) redesignates the area to 

attainment at which time those 

requirements no longer apply, or (ii) 

subsequently determines that the area 

has violated the 1997 8-hour ozone 

NAAQS. Although these requirements 

are suspended, EPA is not precluded 

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