This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER

contains notices to the public of the proposed

issuance of rules and regulations. The

purpose of these notices is to give interested

persons an opportunity to participate in the

rule making prior to the adoption of the final

rules.

Proposed Rules Federal Register

81036 

Vol. 89, No. 194 

Monday, October 7, 2024 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 52 

[EPA–R05–OAR–2023–0493; FRL–12089– 

01–R5] 

Air Plan Approval; Ohio; Volatile 

Organic Compounds 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve a 

September 28, 2023, State 

Implementation Plan (SIP) submittal 

from the Ohio Environmental Protection 

Agency (Ohio EPA). The SIP submittal 

consists of a source-specific limitation 

for a flexographic printing line cold 

cleaner at the Valgroup company’s 

plastic extrusion plant in Findlay, Ohio. 

The source-specific limitation reflects 

the technological differences between 

the facility’s new control unit and 

established cold cleaner requirements 

currently established in Ohio’s SIP. 

Ohio EPA has determined that the 

source-specific limit for the cold cleaner 

is more stringent than existing cold 

cleaner limits in the Ohio SIP. The 

limitation is established through the 

Ohio SIP for control of emissions of 

volatile organic compounds (VOCs) 

from stationary sources and is listed as 

an enforceable condition in the facility’s 

operating permit, issued by Ohio EPA 

on July 18, 2023. 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before November 6, 2024. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by Docket ID No. EPA–R05– 

OAR–2023–0493 at https://

www.regulations.gov, or via email to 

langman.michael@epa.gov. For 

comments submitted at Regulations.gov, 

follow the online instructions for 

submitting comments. Once submitted, 

comments cannot be edited or removed 

from the docket. EPA may publish any 

comment received to its public docket. 

Do not submit electronically any 

information you consider to be 

Confidential Business Information (CBI), 

Proprietary Business Information (PBI), 

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, PBI, or 

multimedia submissions, and general 

guidance on making effective 

comments, please visit https://

www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epadockets. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Anthony Maietta, Air and Radiation 

Division (AR18J), Environmental 

Protection Agency, Region 5, 77 West 

Jackson Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 

60604, (312) 353–8777, 

maietta.anthony@epa.gov. The EPA 

Region 5 office is open from 8:30 a.m. 

to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, 

excluding Federal holidays. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Throughout this document whenever 

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

EPA. 

I. What is the background for this

action?

The Ohio SIP contains VOC emissions 

control requirements for solvent metal 

cold cleaning (metal parts washing) at 

Title 3745, Chapter 21, Rule 09 of the 

Ohio Administrative Code (OAC 3745– 

21–09), more specifically at OAC 3745– 

21–09(O)(2). On December 27, 2022, 

Valgroup applied for a new cold 

cleaning unit at its Findlay facility to be 

added to its operating permit. 

Paragraphs OAC 3745–21–09(O)(2)(c)(i) 

and (ii) of the SIP require the 

installation of a freeboard that gives a 

freeboard ratio greater than or equal to 

0.7, and a water cover with usage of a 

solvent that is heavier than water. 

However, Valgroup’s new cold cleaner 

is not designed in such a way that these 

methods could apply to the equipment. 

In its December 27, 2022, request, 

Valgroup indicated that installation of 

either device as described in paragraphs 

OAC 3745–21–09(O)(2)(c)(i) and (ii) was 

technically infeasible. Valgroup 

requested approval of the installation of 

a regenerative thermal oxidizer (RTO) to 

control its new cold cleaner, as allowed 

under paragraph OAC 3745–21– 

09(O)(2)(c)(iii) which indicates that 

‘‘[o]ther systems of equivalent control 

. . . approved by the director’’ may be 

installed. 

In an April 17, 2023, Equivalent 

Control Determination letter to Ohio 

EPA, Valgroup demonstrated that 

installation of the requested RTO would 

provide a greater control efficiency than 

available through OAC 3745–21– 

09(O)(2)(c)(i) and (ii). Upon review of 

the Equivalent Control Determination, 

Ohio EPA agreed with Valgroup’s 

request. Ohio EPA made a draft permitto-install available for public comment, 

with the option for a commenter to 

request a public hearing on the permit. 

The public comment and hearing 

request period was held from June 17 to 

July 17, 2023. No comments were 

received and no hearing was requested. 

Ohio EPA issued the final permit-toinstall to Valgroup on July 18, 2023. The 

new permit, Ohio EPA permit number 

P0133504, establishes operating, 

recordkeeping, and reporting 

requirements for the new RTO 

emissions unit at the Findley plant 

(Ohio facility ID 0332010121). 

As required in the Ohio SIP for VOCs 

from stationary sources under OAC 

3745–21–09(B)(2), in order to approve a 

source-specific control option under 

OAC 3745–21–09(O)(2)(c)(iii), the 

revision must be submitted to EPA and 

approved as a revision to the Ohio SIP. 

On September 28, 2023, Ohio EPA 

submitted a request for EPA to approve 

the source-specific terms and conditions 

from Valgroup’s July 18, 2023, permitto-install into the Ohio SIP, which 

contains the RTO and its operating, 

recordkeeping, and reporting 

requirements. 

II. What is EPA’s analysis of the sourcespecific VOC limit?

The cold cleaning unit is part of a 

flexographic printing line that Valgroup 

submitted a permit application to install 

in December 2022. The cold cleaner 

utilizes a solvent greater than 0.6 

pounds per square inch absolute 

measured at one hundred degrees 


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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 194 / Monday, October 7, 2024 / Proposed Rules 81037 

Fahrenheit to clean parts of the 

flexographic printing line after use. The 

solvent vapor pressure requires 

Valgroup to comply with one of the 

three vapor control measures for cold 

cleaners outlined in Ohio’s SIP at OAC 

3745–21–09(O)(2)(c). 

Typically, cold cleaners resemble a 

large top hinged-lid tank containing the 

solvent that metal parts are dipped into 

to be cleaned. The distance of the tank’s 

side walls from the solvent surface to 

the top edge of the tank is called the 

freeboard. OAC 3749–21–09(O)(2)(c)(1) 

requires cold cleaners to have a 

‘freeboard ratio’, defined as the 

freeboard height divided by the width of 

the solvent area, greater than or equal to 

0.7. As indicated in EPA’s Office of Air 

Quality Planning and Standards 

Guidelines for Control of Volatile 

Organic Emissions from Solvent Metal 

Cleaning (solvent metal cleaning control 

techniques guidelines or CTG), 

utilization of this freeboard ratio will 

result in a 25%–30% VOC control 

efficiency from the cold cleaning 

process. See EPA–450/2–77–022, 

November 1977. 

The cold cleaner that Valgroup 

proposed to install is not designed as a 

top hinged-lid tank containing solvent. 

Instead, metal parts are loaded into the 

empty cleaner via a side door which is 

then closed. The solvent is held in a 

separate storage tank and pumped into 

the cleaner, washing the metal parts and 

draining back into the separate storage 

tank. Therefore, there is no volume of 

liquid solvent in the cold cleaner to 

form a freeboard ratio for Valgroup to 

comply with. 

The second compliance option listed 

at OAC 3745–21–09(O)(2)(c)(2) requires 

the source to utilize a solvent that is 

heavier than water and then keep a 

water cover on top of the solvent. As 

indicated in EPA’s Compilation of Air 

Pollutant Emissions Factors from 

Stationary Sources (AP–42), use of a 

water cover results in a 55%–69% VOC 

control efficiency. However, Valgroup’s 

cold cleaner does not maintain a 

constant level of solvent in the wash 

chamber. As described above, the 

solvent is instead drained back into a 

separate storage tank. Additionally, in 

its December 27, 2022, request, 

Valgroup indicated that the solvent 

utilized in the cold cleaner is less dense 

than water. Therefore, there is no 

technically-feasible way for Valgroup’s 

cold cleaner to comply with the water 

cover requirement at OAC 3745–21– 

09(O)(2)(c)(2). 

The third control device compliance 

option for Valgroup’s cold cleaner, at 

OAC 3745–21–09(O)(2)(c), is for ‘‘[o]ther 

systems of equivalent control . . . 

approved by the director’’. In Valgroup’s 

December 27, 2022, request, the 

company proposed an RTO that could 

meet an overall VOC destruction 

efficiency of 88%. The overall VOC 

destruction efficiency is based on 90% 

capture efficiency and 98% control 

efficiency between the inlet and outlet 

of the RTO. The 88% overall destruction 

efficiency exceeds the freeboard and 

water cover compliance options in OAC 

3745–21–09(O)(2)(c). So long as Ohio 

requires the Valgroup cold cleaner RTO 

to meet a control efficiency equivalent 

to or better than the freeboard and water 

cover compliance options, the RTO is 

approvable into the Ohio SIP. 

Ohio EPA reviewed the proposed 

RTO’s specifications as part of its 

examination of Valgroup’s December 27, 

2022, request and in its July 18, 2023, 

permit-to-install for Valgroup. Ohio EPA 

listed the 88% overall destruction 

efficiency, 90% capture efficiency, and 

98% control efficiency as terms and 

conditions for the unit in paragraphs 

C.2.b)(1), C.2.b)(1)d., C.2.b)(2), and 

C.2.b)(2)(d. of the permit-to-install. The 

limit is more stringent than the 

freeboard and water cover compliance 

options outlined in 3745–21–09(O)(2)(c) 

and therefore is approvable into the 

Ohio SIP. 

In addition to a VOC control 

requirement, the July 18, 2023, permitto-install also contains recordkeeping 

and reporting requirements for the RTO. 

Paragraphs C.2.d) and C.2.d)(1) of the 

permit-to-install require Valgroup to 

maintain a daily log of operating time 

for the RTO and monitoring equipment 

and record all 3-hour periods of 

operation when the average combustion 

temperature in the RTO was more than 

50 degrees Fahrenheit below the average 

combustion temperature measured 

during the unit’s most recent 

compliance test. Until the unit has been 

compliance tested, the RTO must be 

operated and maintained in accordance 

with the manufacturer’s instructions 

and operating manual. Paragraphs C.2.e) 

and C.2.e)(2) require Valgroup to submit 

quarterly summaries of the operating 

time and 3-hour average combustion 

temperatures of the RTO, on a set 

calendar date schedule. EPA has 

determined that the recordkeeping and 

reporting requirements for the RTO are 

appropriate compliance demonstration 

mechanisms to ensure that the VOC 

control requirements are being met, and 

that these compliance demonstration 

requirements are approvable into the 

Ohio SIP. 

III. What action is EPA taking? 

EPA is proposing to approve the 

addition of paragraphs C.2.b)(1), 

C.2.b)(1)d., C.2.b)(2), C.2.b)(2)d., C.2.d), 

C.2.d)(1), C.2.e), and C.2.e)(2) as listed 

in the July 18, 2023, permit-to-install for 

the Valgroup company into the Ohio 

SIP. 

IV. Incorporation by Reference 

In this rulemaking, 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, EPA is 

proposing to incorporate by reference 

certain provisions of the Ohio Division 

of Air Pollution Control Permit-toInstall for Valgroup’s Findlay, Ohio 

plastic extrusion plant, effective July 18, 

2023, as described in section III of this 

preamble. EPA has made, and will 

continue to make, these documents 

generally available through https://

www.regulations.gov and at the EPA 

Region 5 Office (please contact the 

person identified in the FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT section of this 

preamble for more information). 

V. Statutory and Executive Order 

Reviews 

Under the Clean Air Act, the 

Administrator is required to approve a 

SIP submission that complies with the 

provisions of the Clean Air Act 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 Clean Air Act. 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 14094 (88 FR 

21879, April 11, 2023); 

• 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); 


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81038 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 194 / Monday, October 7, 2024 / Proposed Rules 

• Is not subject to Executive Order 

13045 (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997) 

because it approves a State program; 

• Is not a significant regulatory action 

subject to Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 

28355, May 22, 2001); and 

• 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 Clean Air Act. 

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 rulemaking 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). 

Executive Order 12898 (Federal 

Actions To Address Environmental 

Justice in Minority Populations and 

Low-Income Populations, 59 FR 7629, 

February 16, 1994) directs Federal 

agencies to identify and address 

‘‘disproportionately high and adverse 

human health or environmental effects’’ 

of their actions on communities with 

environmental justice (EJ) concerns to 

the greatest extent practicable and 

permitted by law. EPA defines EJ as 

‘‘the fair treatment and meaningful 

involvement of all people regardless of 

race, color, national origin, or income 

with respect to the development, 

implementation, and enforcement of 

environmental laws, regulations, and 

policies.’’ EPA further defines the term 

fair treatment to mean that ‘‘no group of 

people should bear a disproportionate 

burden of environmental harms and 

risks, including those resulting from the 

negative environmental consequences of 

industrial, governmental, and 

commercial operations or programs and 

policies.’’ 

Ohio EPA did not evaluate EJ 

considerations as part of its SIP 

submittal; the CAA and applicable 

implementing regulations neither 

prohibit nor require such an evaluation. 

EPA did not perform an EJ analysis and 

did not consider EJ in this action. 

Consideration of EJ is not required as 

part of this action, and there is no 

information in the record inconsistent 

with the stated goal of E.O. 12898 of 

achieving EJ for communities with EJ 

concerns. 

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52 

Environmental protection, Air 

pollution control, Incorporation by 

reference, Intergovernmental relations, 

Ozone, Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements, Volatile organic 

compounds. 

Dated: October 2, 2024. 

Debra Shore, 

Regional Administrator, Region 5. 

[FR Doc. 2024–23140 Filed 10–4–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 


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