# "J"ln ( o1 ,1

.Nto "tn.u" 

## s-

# fl ";e 

# äYj UNITED STATES ENVIRON ME NTAL PROTECTION AGE NCY RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, 

### NC 27711

|\4AR

## 14 2007



### Mr. James S. Pew Esq. Earthjustice 1625 Massachusetts Avenue 

### NW, Suite 702 Washington, 

### DC 20036
Dear 

### Mr. Pew:
On Februâry 

### 20,2007, the Environmental Protection 

### Agency (EPA) received the 

### petition that you 

### filed on behalf 

### of Sierra 

### Club, requesting reconsideration 

### of pdrtions

### of the 

### National Emissions Standards 

### for Hazardous

### Air Pollutants 

### from the Portland Cement 

### Manufacturing Industry published 

### in the Federal Register on December 

### 20,2006. This 

### letter contains 

### EPA's preliminary response regarding yöur 

### petition. Specifically, you request that we reconsider the 

### existing source standards 

### fbr mercury andtotal hydrocarbons, the determination under Clean

### Air Act section 112 (d) 

### (4) that no 

### further control 

### of cement 

### kiln emissions 

### of hydrogen 

### chloride is required, the decision 

### notto set

### beyond-the-floor standards 

### for mercury, and the decision not 

### to set 

### beyond-the-floor standards 

### for total 

### hydrocarbons. Generally, you 

### claim that these

### final regulations were promulgated 

### without sufficient notice, andthat they do not meet the requirements set out 

### in theClean

### Air Act (CAA).
Without prejudging the relevance and 

### implications of any 

### information thatwe receive 

### during the reconsideration process, we havedecidedto grant 

### your petition and 

### initiate a reconsideration process. Note that our 

### preliminary review 

### of your 

### petition has not persuaded us that our 

### final decisions were erroneous 

### or inappropriate, andwe are not necessarily reconsidering every 

### provision inthefrnal amendments. The 

### particular issues 

### EPA

### will reconsider and thespecifics 

### of the reconsideration process 

### will be set out 

### in the Federal Register notice proposing our response to the 

### reconsideration. V/e

### will,

### of course, consider 

### objectively all information generated 

### during the reconsideration process. 

### Our 

### initiation of the reconsideration process, however, should not be taken asan 

### indication thatwe agree

### with any

### of your claims.


### As

### you are aware, 

### EPA is gathering 

### infonnation on 

### mercury emissions 

### from cement 

### kilns equipped 

### with wet scrubbers and is reconsidering certain 

### of the 

### mercury new source standards 

### in 

### light of that 

### information. (71 FR

### at76554.) EPA plans

### to issue a Federal Register notice describing that datawhen 

### it is 

### in 

### hand. 

### Id. EPA expects that

### it 

### will indicate 

### inthat same Federal Register notice what action 

### it proposes 

### totake on the issues clescribed 

### in your 

### petition. EPA intendsto complete reconsideration 

### in responseto 

### yourpetition by December

### 20,2007.

lntemet Address (UBL) o http;//www.epa.gov Recycled/Recyclable .Printed with Vegelable Oil Based lnks on Recycled Paper (Minimum 25% Postconsumer) OFFICE OF AIR QUALITY PLANNING AND STANDARDS2

We appreciate

### your interest 

### in the

### final 

### sectionll2 Portland Cement 

### Mærimum Achievable Conhol 

### Technologyrule amendments. 

### EPA looks 

### forward to any comments 

### you may supply 

### during the reconsideration process. 

# ffiI'u

Director Offrceof

### Air QualityPlanning and Standards