76894 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 238 / Friday, December 11, 2015 / Proposed Rules 

accepted during the Regional Office 

normal hours of operation, and special 

arrangements should be made for 

deliveries of boxed information. The 

Regional Office official hours of 

business are Monday through Friday, 

8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., excluding 

Federal holidays. 

Please see the direct final rule which 

is located in the Rules section of this 

Federal Register for detailed 

instructions on how to submit 

comments. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Michael Leslie, Environmental 

Engineer, Control Strategies Section, Air 

Programs Branch (AR–18J), 

Environmental Protection Agency, 

Region 5, 77 West Jackson Boulevard, 

Chicago, Illinois 60604, (312) 353–6680, 

leslie.michael@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In the 

Rules section of this Federal Register, 

EPA is approving Minnesota’s state 

implementation plan submittal as a 

direct final rule without prior proposal 

because the Agency views this as a 

noncontroversial submittal and 

anticipates no adverse comments. A 

detailed rationale for the approval is set 

forth in the direct final rule. If no 

adverse comments are received in 

response to this rule, no further activity 

is contemplated. If EPA receives adverse 

comments, the direct final rule will be 

withdrawn and all public comments 

received will be addressed in a 

subsequent final rule based on this 

proposed rule. EPA will not institute a 

second comment period. Any parties 

interested in commenting on this action 

should do so at this time. Please note 

that if EPA receives adverse comment 

on an amendment, paragraph, or section 

of this rule and if that provision may be 

severed from the remainder of the rule, 

EPA may adopt as final those provisions 

of the rule that are not the subject of an 

adverse comment. For additional 

information, see the direct final rule 

which is located in the Rules section of 

this Federal Register. 

Dated: November 23, 2015. 

Susan Hedman, 

Regional Administrator, Region 5. 

[FR Doc. 2015–31063 Filed 12–10–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 62 

[EPA–R02–OAR–2015–0755, FRL–9940–00– 

Region 2] 

Approval and Promulgation of State 

Plans for Designated Facilities; 

Commonwealth of Puerto Rico 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve 

the State plan submitted by the 

Commonwealth of Puerto Rico to 

implement and enforce the Emission 

Guidelines (EG) for existing sewage 

sludge incineration (SSI) units. Puerto 

Rico’s plan is consistent with the EG 

promulgated by the EPA on March 21, 

2011. Puerto Rico’s plan establishes 

emission limits and other requirements 

for the purpose of reducing toxic air 

emissions and other air pollutants from 

existing SSI units throughout the 

Commonwealth. At the request of 

Puerto Rico, the EPA is proposing not to 

take action on a provision of its SSI plan 

allowing for affirmative defenses of 

Clean Air Act violations in the case of 

malfunctions. Puerto Rico submitted its 

plan to fulfill the requirements of 

sections 111(d) and 129 of the Clean Air 

Act. 

DATES: Written comments must be 

received on or before January 11, 2016. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by Docket ID Number EPA– 

R02–OAR–2015–0755 by one of the 

following methods: 

• www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

on-line instructions for submitting 

comments. 

• Email: Ruvo.Richard@epa.gov. 

• Mail: EPA–R02–OAR–2015–0755, 

Richard Ruvo, Chief, Air Programs 

Branch, Environmental Protection 

Agency, Region 2 Office, 290 Broadway, 

25th Floor, New York, New York 

10007–1866. 

• Hand Delivery: Richard Ruvo, 

Chief, Air Programs Branch, 

Environmental Protection Agency, 

Region 2 Office, 290 Broadway, 25th 

Floor, New York, New York 10007– 

1866. Such deliveries are only accepted 

during the Regional Office’s normal 

hours of operation. The Regional 

Office’s official hours of business are 

Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 

4:00 p.m. excluding federal holidays. 

Instructions: Direct your comments to 

Docket ID No. EPA–R02–OAR–2015– 

0755. The 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 the 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, the 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 the EPA 

cannot read your comment due to 

technical difficulties and cannot contact 

you for clarification, the 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. For additional information 

about the EPA’s public docket visit the 

EPA Docket Center homepage at http:// 

www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm. 

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, 

will be publicly available only in hard 

copy form. Publicly available docket 

materials are available at 

www.regulations.gov or at the 

Environmental Protection Agency, 

Region 2 Office, Air Programs Branch, 

290 Broadway, 25th Floor, New York, 

New York 10007–1866. The EPA 

requests, if at all possible, that you 

contact the individual listed in the FOR

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section to 

view the hard copy of the docket. The 

Regional Office’s official hours of 

business are Monday through Friday, 

8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., excluding federal 

holidays. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Anthony (Ted) Gardella 

(Gardella.anthony@epa.gov), 

Environmental Protection Agency, 

Region 2 Office, Air Programs Branch, 


jstallworth on DSK7TPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 238 / Friday, December 11, 2015 / Proposed Rules 76895 

1EPA has proposed a Federal SSI plan which 

would apply to SSI units that are not covered by 

an approved and effective state plan. The proposed 

federal plan does not include an affirmative defense 

to violations that result from malfunctions. 80 FR 

23402, 23407 (Apr. 27, 2015). 

2Section 302(d) of the CAA includes the 

Commonwealth of Puerto Rico in the definition of 

the term ‘‘State.’’ 

290 Broadway, 25th Floor, New York, 

New York 10007–1866, (212) 637–3892. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

following table of contents describes the 

format for the SUPPLEMENTARY

INFORMATION section: 

I. EPA Action 

A. What action is the EPA proposing 

today? 

B. Which provision of the Puerto Rico State 

sewage sludge incineration (SSI) plan is 

the EPA not taking action on? 

C. What is the background for Puerto Rico’s 

request that EPA not take action on the 

affirmative defense provision? 

D. Why is the EPA taking this action? 

E. Who is affected by Puerto Rico’s State 

SSI plan? 

II. Background 

A. What is a State plan? 

B. What is a State SSI plan? 

C. Why is the EPA requiring Puerto Rico 

to submit a State SSI plan? 

D. What are the requirements for a State 

SSI plan? 

III. Puerto Rico’s State SSI Plan 

A. What is contained in the Puerto Rico 

State SSI plan? 

B. What approval criteria did the EPA use 

to evaluate Puerto Rico’s State SSI plan? 

IV. What is the EPA’s conclusion? 

V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews 

I. EPA Action 

A. What action is the EPA proposing 

today? 

The EPA is proposing to approve 

Puerto Rico’s State plan, submitted on 

July 30, 2014, for the control of air 

emissions from existing SSI units 

throughout the Commonwealth. Puerto 

Rico submitted its SSI plan to fulfill the 

requirements of sections 111(d) and 129 

of the Clean Air Act (CAA). The Puerto 

Rico State SSI plan adopts and 

implements the Emission Guidelines 

(EG) applicable to existing SSI units, 

and establishes emission limits and 

other requirements for SSI units 

constructed on or before October 14, 

2010. 

As explained below, Puerto Rico 

requested in its July 30, 2014 submittal, 

that the EPA not take any action on a 

provision of the Puerto Rico State SSI 

plan allowing for affirmative defenses of 

CAA violations in the case of 

malfunctions. Therefore, the EPA is not 

taking any proposed action on the 

affirmative defense provision portion of 

Puerto Rico’s State SSI plan. 

B. Which provision of the Puerto Rico 

State sewage sludge incineration (SSI) 

plan is the EPA not taking action on? 

Puerto Rico is requesting that the EPA 

not take any action on a provision in 

Puerto Rico’s State SSI plan that allows 

for an affirmative defense by an owner/ 

operator of an SSI unit for violations of 

air emissions or other requirements of 

Puerto Rico’s plan in the event of 

malfunction(s) of a covered SSI unit. 

With the exception of the affirmative 

defense provision in Puerto Rico’s State 

SSI plan, the EPA’s proposed approval, 

once finalized and effective, will make 

Puerto Rico’s rules included in Puerto 

Rico’s State SSI plan federally 

enforceable. 

C. What is the background for Puerto 

Rico’s request that EPA not take action 

on the affirmative defense provision? 

In an April 18, 2014 opinion, the U.S. 

Court of Appeals for the District of 

Columbia Circuit (D.C. Circuit Court) 

vacated an affirmative defense in one of 

the EPA’s Section 112 regulations. 

Natural Resources Defense Council v. 

Environmental Protection Agency, 749 

F.3d 1055 (D.C. Cir., 2014) (vacating 

affirmative defense provisions in 

Section 112 rule establishing emission 

standards for Portland cement kilns). 

The court found that the EPA lacked 

authority to establish an affirmative 

defense for private civil suits and held 

that under the CAA, the authority to 

determine civil penalty amounts in such 

cases lies exclusively with the courts, 

not the EPA. The Office of General 

Counsel determined that EPA policy 

should reflect the court’s decision. The 

vacated affirmative defense provision in 

the EPA’s Portland cement MACT rule 

is identical to the affirmative defense 

provision in the EPA’s SSI EG, 

promulgated on March 21, 2011, under 

sections 111(d) and 129 of the CAA, at 

§ 60.5181 (‘‘How do I establish an 

affirmative defense for exceedance of an 

emission limit or standard during a 

malfunction?’’). Puerto Rico’s State SSI 

plan adopted all the applicable 

requirements of the EPA’s SSI EG, 

including the affirmative defense 

provisions at § 60.5181, into its State 

plan at Rule 405(d) of the Regulation for 

the Control of Atmospheric Pollution 

(RCAP). Specifically, Puerto Rico 

requests that the EPA not include the 

following affirmative defense provisions 

in Puerto Rico’s Rule 405(d): (d)(2)(E), 

(d)(2)(E)(i) and (d)(2)(E)(ii) in Puerto 

Rico’s State plan. 

Because of the April 2014 D.C. Circuit 

Court’s vacatur referred to above, Puerto 

Rico, in its July 30, 2014 submittal letter 

to the EPA, requested that the EPA not 

take action on the affirmative defense 

provision included in Puerto Rico’s 

State SSI plan submitted to the EPA for 

approval on July 30, 2014.1

Consequently, the EPA is proposing to 

not take any action on that particular 

provisions of Puerto Rico’s State SSI 

plan as discussed herein. 

D. Why is the EPA taking this action? 

EPA has evaluated Puerto Rico’s State 

SSI plan for consistency with the CAA, 

EPA guidelines and policy. The EPA has 

determined that Puerto Rico’s State SSI 

plan meets all applicable requirements 

and therefore, the EPA is proposing to 

approve Puerto Rico’s State plan to 

implement and enforce the EG 

applicable to existing SSI units, except 

that, as requested by Puerto Rico, the 

EPA is proposing not to take action on 

the affirmative defense provisions of 

Puerto Rico’s SSI State plan for the 

reasons discussed above. 

E. Who is affected by Puerto Rico’s State 

SSI plan? 

Puerto Rico’s State plan regulates all 

the units designated by the EG for 

existing SSI units which commenced 

construction on or before October 14, 

2010 and which are located at a 

wastewater treatment facility designed 

to treat domestic sewage sludge. If the 

owner or operator of an SSI unit made 

changes after September 21, 2011, that 

meet the definition of modification (see 

Title 40, Code of Federal Regulations, 

section 60.5250 (40 CFR 60.5250)), the 

SSI unit becomes subject to subpart 

LLLL (New Source Performance 

Standards for New Sewage Sludge 

Incineration Units) of 40 CFR part 60, 

and the State plan no longer applies to 

that unit. 

II. Background 

A. What is a State plan? 

Section 111 of the CAA, ‘‘Standards of 

Performance for New Stationary 

Sources,’’ authorizes EPA to set air 

emissions standards for certain 

categories of sources. These standards 

are called New Source Performance 

Standards (NSPS). When a NSPS is 

promulgated for new sources, section 

111(d) also requires that EPA publish an 

EG applicable to control the same 

pollutants from existing (or designated) 

facilities. States 2 with designated 

facilities must then develop a State plan 

to adopt the EG into the State’s body of 

regulations. States must also include in 

their State plan other requirements, 

such as inventories, legal authority, 

reporting and recordkeeping, and public 

participation documentation, to 


jstallworth on DSK7TPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS
76896 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 238 / Friday, December 11, 2015 / Proposed Rules 

3 In emails dated 6/04/2015, 8/10/2015 and 11/

10/2015, Puerto Rico responded to EPA’s requests 

to provide clarifying information concerning Puerto 

Rico’s State SSI plan. This clarifying information 

also is available in EPA’s docket at 

www.regulations.gov. 

4 In an email dated 11/10/2015, Puerto Rico 

provided additional emissions inventory data for 

the one known SSI unit in the Commonwealth. This 

information is available in the EPA’s docket at 

www.regulations.gov. 

demonstrate their ability to enforce the 

State plans. 

Section 129 of the CAA requires EPA 

to establish performance standards and 

emission guidelines for various types of 

new and existing solid waste 

incineration units. Section 129(b)(2) 

requires States to submit to EPA for 

approval section 111(d)/129 plans that 

implement and enforce the promulgated 

EG. Section 129(b)(3) requires EPA to 

promulgate a Federal plan (FP) within 

two years from the date on which the 

EG, or when revision to the EG, is 

promulgated. The FP is applicable to 

affected facilities when the state has 

failed to receive EPA approval of the 

section 111(d)/129 plan. The FP remains 

in effect until the state submits and 

receives EPA approval of its section 

111(d)/129 plan. 

State plan submittals under CAA 

sections 111(d) and 129 must be 

consistent with the relevant EG, in this 

instance 40 CFR part 60, subpart 

MMMM, and the requirements of 40 

CFR part 60, subpart B and part 62, 

subpart A. Section 129 of the CAA 

regulates air pollutants that include 

organics (dioxins/furans), carbon 

monoxide, metals (cadmium, lead, and 

mercury), acid gases (hydrogen chloride, 

sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen oxides), 

particulate matter, and opacity (as 

appropriate). 

B. What is a State SSI plan? 

A State SSI plan is a State plan, as 

described above, that controls air 

pollutant emissions from existing 

sewage sludge incinerators located at a 

wastewater treatment facility designed 

to treat domestic sewage sludge and that 

commenced construction on or before 

October 14, 2010. The applicable types 

of SSI units include fluidized bed and 

multiple hearth incinerators. 

C. Why is the EPA requiring Puerto Rico 

to submit a State SSI plan? 

When the EPA developed the NSPS 

for SSI units, we simultaneously 

developed the EG to control air 

emissions from existing SSI units (see 

76 FR 15371, March 21, 2011). Under 

section 129 of the CAA, the EG is not 

federally enforceable; therefore, section 

129 of the CAA also requires states to 

submit to EPA for approval State plans 

that implement and enforce the EG. 

Under section 129 of the CAA, these 

State plans must be at least as protective 

as the EG, and they become federally 

enforceable upon approval by EPA. 

The procedures for adopting and 

submitting State plans are located in 40 

CFR part 60, subpart B. If a state fails 

to have an approvable plan in place by 

March 21, 2013, the EPA is required to 

promulgate a federal plan to establish 

requirements for those sources not 

under an EPA-approved State plan. The 

procedures for EPA’s approval and 

disapproval of State plans are located in 

40 CFR part 62, subpart A. The EPA is 

proposing to approve Puerto Rico’s State 

SSI plan, except, as discussed above, for 

the affirmative defense provisions, since 

its SSI plan is deemed at least as 

protective as the standards set in the EG. 

Puerto Rico has developed and 

submitted a State plan, as required by 

sections 111(d)/129 of the CAA, to gain 

federal approval to implement and 

enforce the EG for existing SSI units. 

D. What are the requirements for a State 

SSI plan? 

A section 111(d) State plan submittal 

must meet the requirements of 40 CFR 

part 60, subpart B, sections 60.23 

through 60.26, and the EG found at 40 

CFR part 60, subpart MMMM (see 76 FR 

15371, March 21, 2011). Subpart B 

contains the procedures for the adoption 

and submittal of State plans. This 

subpart addresses public participation, 

legal authority, emission standards and 

other emission limitations, compliance 

schedules, emission inventories, source 

surveillance, and compliance assurance 

and enforcement requirements. 

EPA promulgated the EG at 40 CFR 

part 60, subpart MMMM on March 21, 

2011. Subpart MMMM contains 

guidelines to the states for submittal of 

plans that address existing SSI units. In 

addition, subpart MMMM contains the 

technical requirements for existing SSI 

units located at a wastewater treatment 

plant designed to treat domestic sewage 

sludge and applies to SSI units that 

commenced construction on or before 

October 14, 2010. A state can address 

the SSI technical requirements by 

adopting its own regulation that 

includes all the applicable requirements 

of subpart MMMM or by adopting by 

reference subpart MMMM. The section 

111(d) State plan is required to be 

submitted within one year of the EG 

promulgation date, i.e., by March 21, 

2012. Prior to submittal to EPA, the 

State must make available to the public 

the State plan and provide opportunity 

for public comment, including a public 

hearing. 

III. Puerto Rico’s State SSI Plan 

A. What is contained in the Puerto Rico 

State SSI plan? 

On July 30, 2014 3, the Puerto Rico 

Environmental Quality Board submitted 

its section 111(d) State plan for 

implementing EPA’s EG for existing SSI 

units located in the Commonwealth of 

Puerto Rico. 

Puerto Rico amended Rule 102, 

entitled ‘‘Definitions of the Regulation 

for the Control of Atmospheric Pollution 

(RCAP),’’ and incorporated Rule 405(d), 

entitled ‘‘Emission Guidelines and 

Compliance Times for Existing Sewage 

Sludge Incineration Units (SSI),’’ to 

include the requirements for 

implementing the SSI EG covered under 

Sections 111(d) and 129 of the CAA, 

and codified in 40 CFR part 60, subpart 

MMMM. Revisions to Puerto Rico’s 

Rules became effective on July 13, 2014. 

Section 60.5015 of the EG describes 

all of the required elements that must be 

included in a state’s plan for SSI units. 

Puerto Rico’s State SSI plan includes all 

of the required elements described in 

section 60.5015 of the EG, as 

summarized herein: 

(1) A demonstration by the Attorney 

General of the Puerto Rico Department 

of Justice of the Commonwealth’s legal 

authority to implement the sections 

111(d) and 129 State SSI plan; 

(2) State Rules 102 and 405(d) 

adopted into RCAP as the mechanism 

for implementing and enforcing the 

State SSI plan; 

(3) An inventory of one known SSI 

facility, including one SSI unit, along 

with an inventory of estimated air 

pollutant emissions (see sections VI of 

Puerto Rico’s State plan as well as the 

clarifying information submitted by 

Puerto Rico 4). The affected SSI unit is 

a fluidized bed combustor, identified in 

the inventory as ‘Sludge Incinerator,’ 

and is located at the Puerto Rico 

Aqueduct and Sewer Authority 

(PRASA) facility in Puerto Nuevo; 

(4) Emission limits, emission 

standards, operator training and 

qualification requirements, and 

operating limits that are as protective as 

the EG; 

(5) Enforceable compliance schedules 

incorporated into Rule 405(d), as 

follows: if an owner of an affected SSI 

unit plans to achieve compliance more 

than one year following the effective 

date of state plan approval the owner 

must (1) submit a final control plan to 

Puerto Rico by September 21, 2014, and 

(2) achieve final compliance by March 

21, 2016 (see section (d)(7) of Puerto 

Rico’s State plan); 


jstallworth on DSK7TPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 238 / Friday, December 11, 2015 / Proposed Rules 76897 

(6) Testing, monitoring, reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements for the 

designated facilities; 

(7) Records of the public hearing on 

the State SSI plan; and, 

(8) Provisions for annual state 

progress reports to EPA on 

implementation of the State plan. 

The EPA proposes to determine that 

Puerto Rico’s State SSI plan for existing 

SSI units includes all the required State 

plan elements described in section 

60.5015 of the EG. 

B. What approval criteria did the EPA 

use to evaluate Puerto Rico’s State SSI 

plan? 

The EPA reviewed Puerto Rico’s State 

SSI plan for approval against the 

following criteria: 40 CFR 60.23 through 

60.26, ‘‘Subpart B—Adoption and 

Submittal of State Plans for Designated 

Facilities;’’ and 40 CFR 60.5000 through 

60.5250, ‘‘Subpart MMMM—Emission 

Guidelines and Compliance Times for 

Existing Sewage Sludge Incineration 

Units;’’ and 40 CFR 62, subpart A, 

‘‘General Provisions’’ for ‘‘Approval and 

Promulgation of State Plans for 

Designated Facilities and Pollutants.’’ 

IV. What is the EPA’s Conclusion? 

The EPA has determined that Puerto 

Rico’s State SSI plan meets all the 

applicable approval criteria as discussed 

above and, therefore, the EPA is 

proposing to approve Puerto Rico’s 

sections 111(d) and 129 State plan for 

existing sewage sludge incineration 

units. As explained above, at the request 

of Puerto Rico, the EPA is proposing to 

not take any action on the affirmative 

defense provisions in Puerto Rico’s 

State SSI plan. 

V. Statutory and Executive Order 

Reviews 

Under the CAA, the Administrator is 

required to approve a 111(d)/129 plan 

submission that complies with the 

provisions of the Act and applicable 

Federal regulations. 40 CFR 62.04. Thus, 

in reviewing 111(d)/129 plan 

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 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 Clean Air Act; 

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). 

The 111(d)/129 plan 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 Nation Land, the rule 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). 

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 62 

Environmental protection, 

Administrative practice and procedure, 

Air pollution control, Aluminum, 

Fertilizers, Fluoride, Intergovernmental 

relations, Paper and paper products 

industry, Phosphate, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements, Sulfur 

oxides, Sulfur acid plants, waste 

treatment and disposal. 

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

Dated: November 30, 2015. 

Judith A. Enck, 

Regional Administrator, Region 2. 

[FR Doc. 2015–31182 Filed 12–10–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 141 

[EPA–HQ–OW–2015–0218; FRL–9935–74– 

OW] 

RIN 2040–AF10 

Revisions to the Unregulated 

Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR 

4) for Public Water Systems and 

Announcement of a Public Meeting 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Proposed rule and notice of 

public meeting. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Environmental 

Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing a 

Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) rule 

that requires public water systems to 

collect occurrence data for contaminants 

that may be present in tap water but are 

not yet subject to EPA’s drinking water 

standards set under SDWA. This rule, 

revised every five years as required by 

SDWA, benefits public health by 

providing EPA and other interested 

parties with scientifically valid data on 

the national occurrence of selected 

contaminants in drinking water, such as 

cyanotoxins associated with harmful 

algal blooms. This data set is one of the 

primary sources of information on 

occurrence, levels of exposure and 

population exposure the Agency uses to 

develop regulatory decisions for 

emerging contaminants in the public 

drinking water supply. This proposal 

identifies eleven analytical methods to 

support water system monitoring for a 

total of 30 chemical contaminants/

groups, consisting of ten cyanotoxins/

groups; two metals; eight pesticides plus 

one pesticide manufacturing byproduct 

(hereinafter collectively referred to as 

‘‘pesticides’’); three brominated 

haloacetic acid groups of disinfection 

byproducts; three alcohols; and three 

semivolatile organic chemicals. EPA is 

also announcing a public webinar to 

discuss this proposal of the fourth 

Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring 

Rule. 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before February 9, 2016. Under the 

Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA), 

comments on the information collection 

provisions are best assured of 

consideration if the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) 

receives a copy of your comments on or 

before January 11, 2016. The public 

webinar will be held on January 13, 

2016, from 1:00 p.m.. to 4:30 p.m., 

eastern time. Persons wishing to 

participate in the webinar must register 


jstallworth on DSK7TPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS