Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 244 / Thursday, December 19, 2024 / Notices 103819 

purposes. Project operation is 

coordinated with Project No. 1988, 

whose releases from Lake Wishon 

largely control inflow to Black Rock 

Reservoir; however, spill fluctuations at 

the project are possible at times when 

inflow exceeds powerhouse capacity 

and during powerhouse outages. 

The current license requires PG&E to 

maintain the following continuous 

minimum flows in the North Kings 

River: (1) during normal water years: (a) 

from June 1 through November 31, 5 cfs 

from Black Rock Reservoir, 15 cfs from 

Balch Afterbay, and 30 cfs of total river 

flow; and (b) from December 1 through 

May 31, 2.5 cfs from Black Rock 

Reservoir, 10 cfs from Balch Afterbay, 

and 30 cfs of total river flow; (2) during 

dry water years, as defined by the 

California Department of Water 

Resources, year-round flows of 2.5 cfs 

from Black Rock Reservoir, 10 cfs from 

Balch Afterbay, and 20 cfs of total river 

flow. 

PG&E proposes to continue operating 

the project in a manner that is 

consistent with current operation, with 

the exception of the following new 

proposed measures: (1) minimum flows 

and water year types, (2) a recreation 

plan, (3) a biological resources 

management plan, (4) a historic 

properties management plan, (5) lowlevel operations, (6) flood period 

operations, (7) a hazardous substance 

plan, (8) a gaging plan, (9) visual 

resources management, (10) a fire 

management and response plan, and 

(11) a transportation system 

management plan. 

m. A copy of the application can be 

viewed on the Commission’s website at 

https://www.ferc.gov using the 

‘‘eLibrary’’ link. Enter the docket 

number excluding the last three digits in 

the docket number field to access the 

document (P–175). For assistance, 

please contact FERC Online Support 

(see item j above). 

You may also register at https://

ferconline.ferc.gov/FERCOnline.aspx to 

be notified via email of new filings and 

issuances related to this or other 

pending projects. For assistance, please 

contact FERC Online Support (see item 

j above). 

n. The Commission’s Office of Public 

Participation (OPP) supports meaningful 

public engagement and participation in 

Commission proceedings. OPP can help 

members of the public, including 

landowners, environmental justice 

communities, Tribal members and 

others, access publicly available 

information and navigate Commission 

processes. For public inquiries and 

assistance with making filings such as 

interventions, comments, or requests for 

rehearing, the public is encouraged to 

contact OPP at (202) 502–6595 or OPP@

ferc.gov. 

o. Scoping Process: Pursuant to the 

National Environmental Policy Act 

(NEPA), Commission staff intends to 

prepare either an environmental 

assessment (EA) or an environmental 

impact statement (EIS) (collectively 

referred to as the ‘‘NEPA document’’) 

that describes and evaluates the 

probable effects, including an 

assessment of the site-specific and 

cumulative effects, if any, of the 

proposed action and alternatives. The 

Commission’s scoping process will help 

determine the required level of analysis 

and satisfy the NEPA scoping 

requirements, irrespective of whether 

the Commission issues an EA or an EIS. 

At this time, we do not anticipate 

holding an on-site scoping meeting. 

Instead, we are soliciting written 

comments and suggestions on the 

preliminary list of issues and 

alternatives to be addressed in the 

NEPA document, as described in 

scoping document 1 (SD1), issued 

December 13, 2024. 

Copies of SD1, which outlines the 

subject areas to be addressed in the 

NEPA document, were distributed to the 

parties on the Commission’s mailing list 

and the applicant’s distribution list. 

Copies of SD1 may be viewed on the 

web at https://www.ferc.gov using the 

‘‘eLibrary’’ link. Follow the directions 

for accessing information in paragraph 

m. 

Dated: December 13, 2024. 

Debbie-Anne A. Reese, 

Secretary. 

[FR Doc. 2024–30277 Filed 12–18–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6717–01–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

[EPA–R09–OAR–2024–0510; FRL–12382– 

01–R9] 

Finding of Failure To Attain by the 

Attainment Date for the 2010 1-Hour 

Primary Sulfur Dioxide National 

Ambient Air Quality Standard; Guam; 

Piti-Cabras Nonattainment Area 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Determination of 

nonattainment. 

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) is determining that the 

Piti-Cabras, Guam, sulfur dioxide (SO2) 

nonattainment area (NAA) failed to 

attain the 2010 1-hour SO2 primary 

national ambient air quality standard 

(NAAQS, ‘‘standard,’’ or ‘‘2010 SO2

NAAQS’’) by the applicable statutory 

attainment date of April 9, 2023. This 

determination is based on an analysis of 

available modeling, emissions data, and 

information concerning control strategy 

implementation. This action addresses 

the EPA’s obligation under Clean Air 

Act (CAA) section 179(c) to determine 

whether the Piti-Cabras SO2 NAA (‘‘PitiCabras area’’) attained the 2010 SO2

NAAQS by the April 9, 2023 attainment 

date. 

ADDRESSES: The EPA has established a 

docket for this action under Docket ID 

No. EPA–R09–OAR–2024–0510. All 

documents in the docket are listed on 

the https://www.regulations.gov 

website. Although listed in the index, 

some information is not publicly 

available, e.g., Confidential Business 

Information 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 https://

www.regulations.gov, or please contact 

the person identified in the FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT section for 

additional availability information. If 

you need assistance in a language other 

than English or if you are a person with 

a disability who needs a reasonable 

accommodation at no cost to you, please 

contact the person identified in the FOR

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Andrew Ledezma, Air Planning Office 

(ARD–2), EPA Region IX, 75 Hawthorne 

Street, San Francisco, CA 94105, (415) 

972–3985, or by email at 

Ledezma.Andrew@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Throughout this document, ‘‘we,’’ ‘‘us,’’ 

and ‘‘our’’ refer to the EPA. 


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1 36 FR 8186 (April 30, 1971). 

2 75 FR 35520, codified at 40 CFR 50.17. 

3 75 FR at 35592, codified at 40 CFR 50.4(e). 

4 83 FR 1098 (January 9, 2018). 

5For designations technical discussions, see 

EPA’s Technical Support Document, Chapter 11, 

Section 3, 6–26, at https://www.epa.gov/sites/ 

default/files/2017-08/documents/11_guam_so2_

rd3-final.pdf, available in the docket for this action. 

6 85 FR 69504 (November 3, 2020). 

7 Guidance for 1-Hour SO2 Nonattainment Area 

SIP Submissions; EPA, April 23, 2014, can be found 

at https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2016-06/ 

documents/20140423guidance_nonattainment_

sip.pdf. 

Table of Contents 

I. Background 

A. The 2010 1-Hour Primary SO4 NAAQS 

B. Designations, Classifications, and 

Attainment Dates for the 2010 SO2

NAAQS 

C. Determinations of Attainment by the 

Attainment Date 

II. The EPA’s Evaluation and Determination 

A. Area Characterization 

B. Evaluation of SO2 Modeling, Emissions 

Data, and Control Strategy 

Implementation Information 

C. Conclusion 

III. The EPA’s Action 

IV. Statutory and Executive Order Review 

I. Background 

A. The 2010 1-Hour Primary SO2

NAAQS 

Under section 109 of the CAA, the 

EPA has established primary and 

secondary NAAQS for certain pervasive 

air pollutants (referred to as ‘‘criteria 

pollutants’’) and conducts periodic 

reviews of the NAAQS to determine 

whether they should be revised or 

whether new NAAQS should be 

established. The primary NAAQS 

represent ambient air quality standards 

that the EPA has determined are 

requisite to protect public health with 

an adequate margin of safety, while the 

secondary NAAQS represent ambient 

air quality standards that the EPA has 

determined are requisite to protect 

public welfare from any known or 

anticipated adverse effects associated 

with the presence of the air pollutant in 

the ambient air. 

Under the CAA, the EPA must 

establish a NAAQS for SO2, which is 

primarily released to the atmosphere 

through the burning of fossil fuels by 

power plants and other industrial 

facilities. SO2 is also emitted from 

industrial processes, including metal 

extraction from ore and heavy 

equipment that burn fuel with a high 

sulfur content. Short term exposure to 

SO2 can damage the human respiratory 

system and increase breathing 

difficulties. Small children and people 

with respiratory conditions, such as 

asthma, are more sensitive to the effects 

of SO2. Sulfur oxides at high 

concentrations in ambient air can also 

react with compounds to form small 

particulates (fine particulate matter, or 

‘‘PM2.5’’) that can penetrate deeply into 

the lungs and cause acute health 

problems and/or chronic diseases. The 

EPA first established primary SO2

standards in 1971 at 140 parts per 

billion (ppb) over a 24-hour averaging 

period and at 30 ppb over an annual 

averaging period.1

On June 22, 2010, the EPA published 

in the Federal Register a strengthened, 

primary 1-hour SO2 NAAQS, 

establishing a new standard at a level of 

75 ppb, based on the 3-year average of 

the annual 99th percentile of daily 

maximum 1-hour average 

concentrations of SO2.2 The revised SO2

NAAQS provides increased protection 

of public health. Along with revision of 

the SO2 NAAQS, the EPA revoked the 

1971 primary annual and 24-hour SO2

standards for most areas of the country 

following area designations under the 

new NAAQS.3

B. Designations, Classifications, and 

Attainment Dates for the 2010 SO2

NAAQS 

Following promulgation of a new or 

revised NAAQS, the EPA is required to 

designate all areas of the country as 

either ‘‘attainment,’’ ‘‘nonattainment,’’ 

or ‘‘unclassifiable,’’ pursuant to CAA 

section 107(d)(1). 

On December 21, 2017, the EPA 

designated as nonattainment six areas in 

three states and two territories in the 

third round of SO2 designations.4 With 

that action, the EPA designated as 

nonattainment the portion of Guam 

within a 6.074-km radius centered on 

universal transverse mercator (UTM) 

easting 249,601.60 meters and UTM 

northing 1,489,602 meters (UTM zone 

55N).5 Pursuant to section 192(a) of the 

CAA, the statutory attainment date for 

the Piti-Cabras area was established as 

no later than five years after the 

effective date of the initial designation, 

i.e., April 9, 2023. 

CAA section 191(a) requires states 

that contain an area designated 

nonattainment for the 2010 1-hour 

primary SO2 NAAQS to develop and 

submit an NAA state implementation 

plan (SIP) to the EPA within 18 months 

of the effective date of an area’s 

designation as nonattainment. For SO2, 

a NAA SIP submission (also referred to 

as an attainment plan) must meet the 

requirements of sections 110, 172(c), 

191, and 192 of the CAA, and provide 

for attainment of the NAAQS by the 

applicable statutory attainment date, 

i.e., no later than five years from the 

effective date of the area’s 

nonattainment designation. The 

effective date of the Piti-Cabras area 

nonattainment designation is April 9, 

2018, so the attainment plan for the area 

was due on October 9, 2019. On 

November 3, 2020, the EPA issued a 

finding that Guam failed to submit a SIP 

revision for the Piti-Cabras area; this 

finding became effective on December 4, 

2020.6 Guam has not submitted a SIP 

revision for the Piti-Cabras area. 

C. Determinations of Attainment by the 

Attainment Date 

Section 179(c)(1) of the CAA requires 

the EPA to determine whether a NAA 

attained an applicable standard by the 

applicable statutory attainment date 

based on the area’s air quality as of the 

attainment date within six months of 

the attainment date. Thus, the EPA had 

a mandatory duty under CAA section 

179(c) to determine by October 9, 2023, 

whether the Piti-Cabras SO2 NAA 

attained the 2010 SO2 NAAQS by the 

statutory attainment date of April 9, 

2023. 

A determination of whether an area’s 

air quality meets applicable standards is 

generally based upon the most recent 

three years of complete, quality-assured 

data gathered at established state and 

local air monitoring stations (SLAMS) in 

the NAA and other available 

information. The EPA’s April 23, 2014 

memorandum, ‘‘Guidance for 1-Hour 

SO2 Nonattainment Area SIP 

Submissions,’’ states, ‘‘[t]he EPA will 

determine whether or not an SO2

nonattainment area has attained the 

NAAQS based on air quality monitoring 

data (when available) and air quality 

dispersion modeling information for the 

affected area, and/or a demonstration 

that the control strategy has been fully 

implemented.’’ 7


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8For designations technical discussions, see 

EPA’s Technical Support Document, Chapter 11, 

Section 3, 6–26, at https://www.epa.gov/sites/ 

default/files/2017-08/documents/11_guam_so2_

rd3-final.pdf, available in the docket for this action. 

9 Id. 

10SO2 NAAQS Designations Modeling Technical 

Assistance Document, EPA, August 2016, available 

at https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2016-04/ 

documents/so2modelingtad.pdf and available in the 

docket for this action. 11See two emails dated September 24, 2024 from 

Roland T. Gutierrez, Environmental Manager, GPA, 

to Gale Hoffnagle, Senior Vice President and 

Technical Director, TRC Corporation, Subject: ‘‘SIP 

Modeling Files,’’ and from Gale Hoffnagle to 

Andrew Ledezma, EPA, Subject: ‘‘RE: SIP Modeling 

Files.msg,’’ included in the docket for this action. 

In the case of the Piti-Cabras area, the 

relevant three years preceding the 

statutory attainment date are 2020– 

2022. There are no available SO2

monitoring data from the Piti-Cabras 

SO2 NAA in this period, and the only 

modeling results submitted by the Guam 

Environmental Protection Agency 

(Guam EPA) were the results from the 

time of designation, which showed 

violations of the NAAQS.8 The 

modeling analysis included the largest 

sources of SO2 emissions in the area and 

relied upon actual hourly emissions 

rates from 2011–2013. In addition, as 

noted above, Guam has not submitted a 

modeled attainment demonstration or 

control strategy (via SIP revision) for the 

NAA. 

In the absence of monitoring data and 

updated modeling analyses, the EPA is 

evaluating whether the Piti-Cabras area 

attained the 2010 1-hour primary SO2

NAAQS by the applicable statutory 

attainment date of April 9, 2023, based 

on available modeling, emissions data, 

and information concerning control 

strategy implementation. 

II. The EPA’s Evaluation and 

Determination 

A. Area Characterization 

The Piti-Cabras area is located on the 

western side of the island of Guam, 

centered on the Piti and Cabras power 

plants. The Piti facility (also referred to 

as ‘‘MEC’’ by Guam), consists of Units 

8 and 9, and the Cabras facility consists 

of four units (two of which, Cabras 3 

and 4, have ceased operation). These 

two facilities are the primary sources of 

SO2 in the area. Nearby, the ‘‘TEMES’’ 

power plant, commercial marine vessel 

ports, and the United States Navy 

(‘‘Navy’’) marine vessel port are also 

significant sources of SO2. 

B. Evaluation of SO2 Modeling, 

Emissions Data, and Control Strategy 

Implementation Information 

First, to determine whether the PitiCabras area attained the NAAQS, the 

EPA considered the modeling that was 

conducted for the designation of the 

Piti-Cabras area as nonattainment. As 

noted earlier, the EPA based the 

nonattainment designation for the PitiCabras area on modeling submitted by 

Guam EPA. In our review of that 

modeling, as documented in the EPA’s 

Technical Support Document (TSD) 9

accompanying the designation, we 

concluded that the source 

characterization, modeling parameters, 

and techniques submitted by Guam EPA 

for this designation conformed with the 

EPA’s August 2016 guidance document, 

‘‘SO2 NAAQS Designations Modeling 

Technical Assistance Document.’’ 10

The EPA’s designation of the PitiCabras area relied on the modeled SO2

emissions for the years 2011–2013. The 

Piti, Cabras, and TEMES stationary 

sources, along with marine sources from 

the commercial and Navy ports, were 

modeled as the largest sources of SO2

emissions in the Piti-Cabras area. For 

the stationary sources, SO2 emissions 

are generated by combusting diesel fuel 

for electricity generation. Guam Power 

Authority (GPA), the owner and 

operator of the Piti, Cabras, and TEMES 

facilities, compiled the data needed to 

calculate hourly emissions rates for 

2011–2013 based on AP–42 emissions 

factors and hourly production data for 

each unit included in the modeling. For 

maritime sources, SO2 emissions are 

generated by fuel combustion from 

docking and hoteling at the commercial 

and Navy ports. Guam EPA used reports 

of vessels docking and hoteling at the 

ports and AP–42 emissions factors to 

calculate hourly emissions rates to 

include in the modeling. 

The peak modeled receptor design 

value (DV) from the EPA’s designations 

TSD is summarized in Table 1. The 

modeling analysis showed that the area 

was violating the 2010 1-hour primary 

SO2 NAAQS based on source emissions 

from 2011–2013, with a modeled DV of 

585 mg/m3, nearly three times the value 

of the 2010 1-hour primary SO2 NAAQS 

level of 196.4 mg/m3 (equivalent to 75 

ppb). 

TABLE 1—SUMMARY OF 2011–2013 PEAK MODELED RECEPTOR 1-HOUR SO2 DESIGN VALUE FOR THE PITI-CABRAS

AREA a

Averaging period Data period 

99th percentile daily maximum 1-hour SO2

concentration (μg/m3) 

Modeled concentration 

(including background) NAAQS level 

99th Percentile 1-hour average ........................................................................... 2011–2013 585 b 196.4 

a Retrieved from EPA’s Technical Support Document, Chapter 11, Section 3, 6–26, at https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2017-08/documents/11_guam_so2_rd3-final.pdf, available in the docket for this action. bEquivalent to the 2010 SO2 NAAQS of 75 ppb using 2.619 μg/m3 conversion factor. 

We note that, on September 24, 2024, 

GPA sent the EPA draft modeling files 

intended to support a modeled 

attainment demonstration for the PitiCabras area.11 The EPA is reviewing 

these files and related information and 

has not yet determined whether they 

meet the requirements for such a 

demonstration. However, we note that, 

even if the modeling is found to be 

technically sound, the emissions limits 

relied upon in that modeling did not 

take effect under Guam law until after 

the attainment date, as explained later 

in Section II.B of this document. 

Therefore, the results of this modeling 

cannot be relied upon to determine 

whether the area attained the NAAQS 

by the attainment date. 

Second, to determine whether the 

Piti-Cabras area attained the NAAQS, 

the EPA considered annual SO2

emissions trends for the most significant 

SO2 sources in the area using emissions 

inventory information provided by 

Guam EPA. Table 2 lists the average 

reported actual SO2 emissions for 2011– 

2013, which were the emissions used in 

the air quality modeling underlying the 

EPA’s designation of the area as 

nonattainment, as well as SO2 emissions 

for 2020. While the relevant three-year 

DV period for the April 9, 2023 


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12 D. Guam, Case 1:20–cv–00007, Document 5, 

Filed 04/20/20. 

13 D. Guam, Case 1:20–cv–00007, Document 7, 

Filed 01/14/22. 

attainment date was from 2020–2022, 

we have only received complete actual 

emissions data for 2020. Therefore, we 

are considering those emissions because 

this is the most recent, complete 

emissions inventory available based on 

actual emissions from the 2020–2022 

DV time period. 

TABLE 2—ANNUAL EMISSIONS FROM SO2 SOURCES IN THE PITI-CABRAS AREA FOR 2011–2013 AVERAGE ACTUAL

EMISSIONS AND 2020 ACTUAL EMISSIONS

Facility name 

Actual SO2 emissions 

(tons per year, tpy) 

2011–2013 

(average) a 2020 b

Cabras ......................................................................................................................................................... 8,891 6,816 

Piti (MEC) .................................................................................................................................................... 4,828 2,297 

TEMES ......................................................................................................................................................... 2 0.11 

Marine Vessels ............................................................................................................................................ 76 84 

Total c .................................................................................................................................................... 13,797 9,197 

aActual SO2 emissions retrieved from EPA’s Technical Support Document, Chapter 11, Section 3, 6–26, at https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/ 

files/2017-08/documents/11_guam_so2_rd3-final.pdf, available in the docket for this action. bActual SO2 emissions retrieved from Guam EPA’s April 2024 draft SIP, Appendix A, available in the docket for this action. cTotals may not be a precise addition of all rows due to rounding. 

These data show that some reductions 

in SO2 emissions did occur prior to the 

attainment date, as annual emissions 

from 2020 were 9,197 tpy, 

approximately 33 percent lower than 

the 2011–2013 average emissions of 

13,797 tpy. However, there is no 

evidence that we are aware of to suggest 

that this level of emissions reductions 

was sufficient to attain the NAAQS 

given that the modeled 2011–2013 

design value was 585 mg/m3, nearly 

three times the NAAQS level of 196.4 

mg/m3. Although the reduction of 4,600 

tpy of emissions over this time period 

likely lowered the design value in 2020– 

2022, as compared with 2011–2013, 

additional information would be needed 

to determine whether such reductions 

were sufficient to provide for attainment 

of the NAAQS. 

Third, to determine whether the PitiCabras area attained the NAAQS, the 

EPA considered the available 

information about control strategy 

implementation. On June 30, 2023, the 

Guam Legislature adopted Substitute 

Bill No. 101–37 (COR), ‘‘An Act to 

Repeal and Reenact § 1310 of Article 1, 

Chapter 1, Title 22 Guam 

Administrative Rules and Regulations, 

Relative to Adopting Updated Emission 

Standards For Sulfur Oxides From Fuel 

Combustion to Ensure the Island of 

Guam Meets the National Ambient Air 

Quality Standards For Sulfur Dioxide 

Transmitted by the Guam 

Environmental Protection Agency.’’ 

Revised Title 22, Section 1310 of the 

Guam Administrative Rules and 

Regulations (‘‘Rule 1310’’) sets fuel 

sulfur content limits of 0.2 percent for 

Cabras Units 1 and 2, and 0.0015 

percent for all other sources except 

ocean-going vessels. The revised rule 

took effect on July 12, 2023. Rule 1310 

was designed as the control strategy for 

attainment of the 2010 SO2 NAAQS in 

the Piti-Cabras area but was not adopted 

and implemented until after the 

applicable attainment date of April 9, 

2023, indicating that the control strategy 

that Guam EPA believes is needed to 

attain the NAAQS was not fully 

implemented by that date. Furthermore, 

we note that, while some of the 

emissions reductions that Guam EPA 

believes are needed for attainment were 

required to occur earlier under a 

consent decree between the United 

States and GPA,12 following a 

modification to the consent decree,13

the compliance dates for several of the 

controls were revised to July 1, 2022 (for 

Piti Units 8 and 9) and December 31, 

2022 (for Cabras Units 1 and 2). Given 

that these dates were near to or at the 

end of the 2020–2022 DV period, there 

is no evidence that the original modeled 

violations were remedied in time to 

achieve an attaining design value in the 

three-year 2020–2022 period. 

C. Conclusion 

We find that the Piti-Cabras area 

failed to attain the 2010 1-hour primary 

SO2 NAAQS by the statutory attainment 

date of April 9, 2023, based on available 

modeling, emissions data, and 

information concerning control strategy 

implementation. 

Under CAA section 179(d), if the EPA 

determines that an area did not attain 

the NAAQS by the applicable deadline, 

the responsible air agency is required, 

within one year from the publication 

date of the finding, to submit a revised 

plan for the area demonstrating 

attainment and containing any 

additional measures that the EPA may 

reasonably prescribe that can be feasibly 

implemented in the area in light of 

technological achievability, costs, and 

any non-air quality and other air 

quality-related health and 

environmental impacts as required. 

Under CAA section 179(d)(3), such a 

revised SIP submission is required to 

achieve attainment of the 2010 SO2

NAAQS as expeditiously as practicable, 

but no later than five years from the date 

of notice of the area’s failure to attain 

(i.e., five years after the EPA publishes 

a determination in the Federal Register 

that the area failed to attain the 2010 

SO2 NAAQS). 

The EPA anticipates that Guam’s 

submission of a complete SO2

attainment plan for the new attainment 

date in response to this finding of 

failure to attain would also address the 

Territory’s existing obligations to submit 

an attainment plan for the 2010 SO2

NAAQS. 

III. The EPA’s Action 

Based on the EPA’s review of 

available evidence described in this 

document, the EPA finds that the PitiCabras area failed to attain the 2010 1- 

hour primary SO2 NAAQS by the 

statutory attainment date of April 9, 

2023. This determination triggers the 

requirements of CAA section 179(d) for 

the Territory of Guam to submit a 

revision to the Guam SIP for the PitiCabras nonattainment area to the EPA 

within one year after publication of this 

determination in the Federal Register. 

The SIP revision must, among other 

elements, provide for attainment of the 

1-hour primary SO2 NAAQS in the PitiVerDate Sep<11>2014 18:08 Dec 18, 2024 Jkt 265001 PO 00000 Frm 00059 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 E:\FR\FM\19DEN1.SGM 19DEN1

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Cabras nonattainment area as 

expeditiously as practicable but no later 

than five years after publication of this 

determination in the Federal Register. 

This action will not affect the 

designation status of the area, and the 

Piti-Cabras area will remain designated 

nonattainment for the 2010 SO2 NAAQS 

until the area meets the requirements of 

the CAA for redesignation and the EPA 

takes action to redesignate the area. This 

action addresses the EPA’s obligation 

under CAA section 179(c) to determine 

if the Piti-Cabras area attained the 2010 

1-hour SO2 NAAQS by the April 9, 2023 

attainment date. 

IV. Statutory and Executive Order 

Reviews 

A. Executive Order 12866: Regulatory 

Planning and Review, and Executive 

Order 14094: Modernizing Regulatory 

Review 

This action is not a ‘‘significant 

regulatory action’’ under the terms of 

Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 51735, 

October 4, 1993) and is therefore not 

subject to review under Executive Order 

14094 (88 FR 21879, April 11, 2023). 

B. Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) 

This action does not impose an 

information collection burden under the 

provisions of the PRA of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 

3501 et seq.). This action does not 

contain any information collection 

activities and serves only to make a 

determination that the Piti-Cabras 

nonattainment area failed to attain the 

2010 SO2 primary standard by the April 

9, 2023 attainment date. 

C. Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) 

I certify that this action will not have 

a significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities 

under the RFA (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.). 

This action will not impose any 

requirements on small entities. The 

determination of failure to attain the 

2010 1-hour primary SO2 NAAQS, does 

not create any new requirements beyond 

what is mandated by the CAA. 

D. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 

(UMRA) 

This action does not contain any 

unfunded mandate as described in 

UMRA, 2 U.S.C. 1531–1538 and does 

not significantly or uniquely affect small 

governments. The action imposes no 

enforceable duty on any state, local or 

tribal governments or the private sector. 

E. Executive Order 13132: Federalism 

This action does not have federalism 

implications. It will not have substantial 

direct effects on the states, on the 

relationship between the national 

government and the states, or on the 

distribution of power and 

responsibilities among the various 

levels of government. The division of 

responsibility between the Federal 

government and the states for purposes 

of implementing the NAAQS is 

established under the CAA. 

F. Executive Order 13175: Consultation 

and Coordination With Indian Tribal 

Governments 

Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, 

November 9, 2000), requires the EPA to 

develop an accountable process to 

ensure ‘‘meaningful and timely input by 

Tribal officials in the development of 

regulatory policies that have Tribal 

implications.’’ This action does not have 

Tribal implications as specified in 

Executive Order 13175. This action does 

not apply on any Indian reservation 

land, any other area where EPA or an 

Indian tribe has demonstrated that a 

Tribe has jurisdiction, or nonreservation areas of Indian country. 

Thus, Executive Order 13175 does not 

apply to this action. 

G. Executive Order 13045: Protection of 

Children From Environmental Health 

and Safety Risks 

The EPA interprets Executive Order 

13045 (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997) as 

applying to those regulatory actions that 

concern environmental health or safety 

risks that the EPA has reason to believe 

may disproportionately affect children, 

per the definition of ‘‘covered regulatory 

action’’ in section 2–202 of the 

Executive Order. This action is not 

subject to Executive Order 13045 

because it does not establish an 

environmental standard intended to 

mitigate health or safety risks. 

H. Executive Order 13211: Actions That 

Significantly Affect Energy Supply, 

Distribution, or Use 

This action is not subject to Executive 

Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 

2001) because it is not a significant 

regulatory action under Executive Order 

12866. 

I. National Technology Transfer and 

Advancement Act (NTTAA) 

This action does not involve technical 

standards. Therefore, the EPA is not 

considering the use of any voluntary 

consensus standards. 

J. Executive Order 12898: Federal 

Actions To Address Environmental 

Justice in Minority Populations and 

Low-Income Populations 

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. The 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.’’ 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, and there is no 

information in the record inconsistent 

with the stated goal of E.O. 12898 of 

achieving environmental justice for 

communities with EJ concerns. 

K. Congressional Review Act 

This action is not a rule and is 

therefore not subject to the CRA. The 

action is an informal adjudication 

dealing with the application of specific 

facts to preestablished discernible 

criteria. 

L. 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 18, 2025. Filing a 

petition for reconsideration by the 

Administrator of this action 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 

this action. This action may not be 

challenged later in proceedings to 

enforce its requirements. (See section 

307(b)(2).) 

Dated: December 10, 2024. 

Martha Guzman Aceves, 

Regional Administrator, Region IX. 

[FR Doc. 2024–29507 Filed 12–18–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 


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