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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 235 (Friday, December 6, 2024)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 96905-96906]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-27865]

[[Page 96905]]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R03-OAR-2024-0152; FRL-11858-02-R3]

Air Plan Approval; Maryland; Determination of Attainment by the 
Attainment Date for the 2010 1-Hour Primary Sulfur Dioxide National 
Ambient Air Quality Standard

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking final 
action to determine that the Anne Arundel and Baltimore County sulfur 
dioxide (SO2) nonattainment area attained the 2010 1-hour 
SO2 primary national ambient air quality standard (2010 
SO2 NAAQS) by the applicable attainment date of September 
12, 2021. This determination is based on certified ambient air quality 
data from the 2018-2020 monitoring period, relevant modeling analysis, 
and additional emissions inventory information. This action addresses 
the EPA's obligation under Clean Air Act (CAA) section 179(c) to 
determine whether the Anne Arundel and Baltimore County SO2 
nonattainment area (referred to hereafter as the Anne Arundel-Baltimore 
County Area, or simply the Area) attained the 2010 SO2 NAAQS 
by the September 12, 2021 attainment date.

DATES: This final rule is effective on January 6, 2025.

ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket ID 
Number EPA-R03-OAR-2024-0152. All documents in the docket are listed on 
the www.regulations.gov website. Although listed in the index, some 
information is not publicly available, e.g., confidential business 
information (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 through 
www.regulations.gov, or please contact the person identified in the FOR 
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section for additional availability 
information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Philip McGuire, Planning & 
Implementation Branch (3AD30), Air & Radiation Division, U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency, Region III, 1600 John F Kennedy 
Boulevard, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103. The telephone number is 
(215) 814-2251. Mr. McGuire can also be reached via electronic mail at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    On September 6, 2024 (89 FR 72770), the EPA published a notice of 
proposed rulemaking (NPRM) for the State of Maryland. In the NPRM, the 
EPA proposed to determine that the Anne Arundel-Baltimore County Area 
had attained the 2010 1-hour SO2 primary NAAQS by the 
applicable attainment date of September 12, 2021. During the comment 
period for the EPA's NPRM, open from September 6, 2024 to October 7, 
2024, the EPA received no comments.
    This action addresses the EPA's obligation under CAA section 179(c) 
to determine whether the Anne Arundel-Baltimore County Area attained 
the 2010 SO2 NAAQS by the September 12, 2021 attainment 
date. Notably, a determination of attainment by the attainment date 
does not constitute a redesignation of an area to attainment for the 
2010 SO2 NAAQS under section 107(d)(3) of the CAA. The area 
will remain designated nonattainment for the 2010 SO2 NAAQS 
until the state formally requests redesignation of the area to 
attainment, the EPA takes formal action to determine that the area 
meets CAA requirements for redesignation, and the EPA approves an 
accompanying state-submitted maintenance plan that ensures the area 
will continue to meet the NAAQS for the successive 10-year period.

II. Summary of Determination and EPA Analysis

    CAA section 179(c)(1) requires the EPA to ``determine, based on the 
area's air quality as of the attainment date, whether the area attained 
the standard by that date.'' As discussed in the NPRM, the EPA used an 
integrated analysis based on SO2 emissions data, ambient air 
quality monitoring data, and the EPA's 2022 clean data determination 
modeling analysis (based on 2019-2021 SO2 emissions) in 
making this determination of attainment by the attainment date for the 
Anne-Arundel Baltimore County Area.
    The EPA finds that the integrated analysis of multiple types of 
air-quality related information supports the determination and is 
consistent with CAA section 179(c)(1)'s direction to determine the 
area's air quality as of the attainment date. Specifically, reduced 
SO2 emissions within the Area from 2012 to 2020, no 
exceedances of the 2010 1-hour SO2 NAAQS at monitoring sites 
within the Area since 2012, and the EPA's modeling analysis (based on 
2019-2021 SO2 emissions) predicting a maximum design value 
within the Area that is well below the NAAQS all provide supporting 
bases for the EPA's determination of attainment by the attainment date. 
Further details on the EPA's analysis are available in the NPRM related 
to this action. The comment period for this NPRM ended on October 7, 
2024.

III. Final Action

    The EPA conducted an analysis, described in detail in the NPRM 
related to this action, to determine if the Anne Arundel-Baltimore 
County Area attained the 2010 1-hour SO2 NAAQS by the 
September 12, 2021 attainment date. Based on that analysis and the 
information presented in the NRPM, the EPA is determining that the Anne 
Arundel-Baltimore County Area attained the 2010 1-hour SO2 
NAAQS by the applicable attainment date of September 12, 2021, 
consistent with CAA section 179(c)(1).
    On September 6, 2024 (89 FR 72770), the EPA published an NPRM 
proposing to determine that the Anne Arundel-Baltimore County Area 
attained the NAAQS by the September 12, 2021 attainment date. The EPA 
sought public comment on the proposed determination and received no 
comments.
    This action does not constitute a redesignation of the Anne 
Arundel-Baltimore County Area to attainment for the 2010 1-hour 
SO2 NAAQS under CAA section 107(d)(3). The classification 
and designation status in 40 CFR part 81 will remain nonattainment 
until the state formally requests redesignation of the area to 
attainment, the EPA takes formal action to determine that the area 
meets CAA requirements for redesignation under section 107(d)(3)(E), 
and the EPA approves an accompanying state-submitted maintenance plan 
pursuant to section 175A that ensures the area will continue to meet 
the NAAQS for the successive 10-year period.

IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

A. General Requirements

    This action determines an area has attained the NAAQS by the 
relevant attainment date and does not impose additional or modify 
existing requirements. 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,

[[Page 96906]]

October 4, 1993) and 13563 (76 FR 3821, January 21, 2011);
     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); 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, this action does not have tribal implications as 
specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000), 
because it is not approved to apply in Indian country located in the 
State, and the EPA notes that it will not impose substantial direct 
costs on tribal governments or preempt tribal law. 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 minority populations and low-income populations to the 
greatest extent practicable and permitted by law. The EPA defines 
environmental justice (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.'' The 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.''
    The EPA did not perform an EJ analysis and did not consider EJ in 
this action. Due to the nature of the action being taken here, this 
action is expected to have a neutral to positive impact on the air 
quality of the affected area. Consideration of EJ is not required as 
part of this action, which finds that a nonattainment area attained the 
2010 SO2 NAAQS by the applicable attainment date, and there 
is no information in the record inconsistent with the stated goal of 
E.O. 12898 of achieving environmental justice for people of color, low-
income populations, and Indigenous peoples.

B. Submission to Congress and the Comptroller General

    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. The 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).

C. Petitions for Judicial Review

    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 February 4, 2025. 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, the determination of attainment by the attainment 
date for the Anne Arundel-Baltimore County SO2 nonattainment 
area, may not be challenged later in proceedings to enforce its 
requirements. (See section 307(b)(2).)

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Incorporation by 
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements, Sulfur oxides.

Adam Ortiz,
Regional Administrator, Region III.

    For the reasons stated in the preamble, the EPA amends 40 CFR part 
52 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 V--Maryland

0
2. Amend Sec.  52.1082 by adding paragraph (m) to read as follows:

Sec.  52.1082  Determinations of attainment.

* * * * *
    (m) The EPA has determined, as of January 6, 2025, that based on 
2018-2020 monitoring data, relevant modeling analysis, and additional 
emissions inventory information, the Anne Arundel and Baltimore County 
SO2 nonattainment area has attained the 2010 1-hour 
SO2 primary NAAQS by the applicable attainment date of 
September 12, 2021.

[FR Doc. 2024-27865 Filed 12-5-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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