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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 242 (Tuesday, December 17, 2024)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 101910-101913]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-29229]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 81

[EPA-R03-OAR-2023-0419; FRL-11736-02-R3]

Redesignation of Portions of Westmoreland and Cambria Counties, 
Pennsylvania for the 2010 Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) National Ambient Air 
Quality Standards (NAAQS)

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (the EPA or the Agency) is 
finalizing the redesignation of portions of Cambria County and 
Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, to ``nonattainment'' for the 2010 1-
hour primary sulfur dioxide (SO2) national ambient air 
quality standard (NAAQS or standard). Westmoreland County was 
previously designated ``attainment/ unclassifiable,'' and Cambria 
County was designated ``unclassifiable.'' The EPA notified the 
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania of its intended redesignation of portions 
of Cambria and Westmoreland counties on February 17, 2023, and 
published a Notice of Availability (NOA) for this action on February 
12, 2024. The EPA's redesignation of portions of these counties is 
based on modeled violations of the 2010 1-hour primary SO2 
NAAQS.

DATES: This final rule is effective on January 16, 2025.

ADDRESSES: The EPA has established a docket for this redesignation 
under Docket ID Number EPA-R03-OAR-2023-0419. 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.
    The EPA has established a website for the designations for the 2010 
SO2 NAAQS at www.epa.gov/sulfur-dioxide-designations/sulfurdioxide-designations-regulatory-actions. This final redesignation 
action, associated technical support documents, and other related 
information will be added to this website.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ellen Schmitt, 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) 814-5787. Ms. Schmitt can also be reached via electronic mail at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background and Purpose of the EPA's Final Action

    The EPA is required by Clean Air Act (CAA) section 107(d) to 
designate all areas throughout the nation as attaining or not attaining 
the NAAQS within two years of the promulgation of any new or revised 
NAAQS. Pursuant to CAA section 107(d), the EPA must designate as 
``nonattainment'' those areas that violate the NAAQS and those nearby 
areas that contribute to violations. Once an area has been designated, 
the EPA Administrator, under CAA section 107(d)(3), may at any time 
notify a state that a designation should be revised.
    Under section 109 of the CAA, the EPA has established primary and 
secondary NAAQS for certain pervasive air 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, the attainment and maintenance 
of which the EPA has determined, including a margin of safety, are 
requisite to protect the public health. The secondary NAAQS represent 
ambient air quality standards, the attainment and maintenance of which 
the EPA has determined are requisite to protect the public welfare from 
any known or anticipated adverse effects associated with the presence 
of such air pollutant in the ambient air.
    On June 22, 2010 (75 FR 35520), the EPA finalized the revision of 
the 1-hour primary SO2 NAAQS, codified at 40 Code of Federal 
Regulations (CFR) 50.17, which became effective on August 23, 2010 
(hereafter referred to as the 2010 SO2 NAAQS). The 2010 
SO2 NAAQS is met at an ambient air quality

[[Page 101911]]

monitoring site (or in the case of dispersion modeling, at an ambient 
air quality receptor location) when the 3-year average of the annual 
99th percentile of daily maximum 1-hour average concentrations is less 
than or equal to 75 parts per billion (ppb), as determined in 
accordance with appendix T of 40 CFR part 50. 40 CFR 50.17(a) and (b).
    The EPA was required to designate areas throughout the country for 
the 2010 SO2 NAAQS by June 3, 2012. The EPA invoked a 1-year 
extension of the deadline to designate areas for the 2010 
SO2 NAAQS, as provided for under CAA section 107, after 
which the Agency completed an initial round of SO2 
designations for certain areas of the country on August 5, 2013 
(referred to as ``Round 1'').\1\ In Round 1, the EPA designated Indiana 
County, Pennsylvania and a portion of Armstrong County, Pennsylvania as 
nonattainment (hereafter referred collectively as the ``Indiana 
Area''). On January 9, 2018,\2\ in a subsequent round of designations 
for the 2010 SO2 NAAQS, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania 
was designated as attainment/unclassifiable, and Cambria County, 
Pennsylvania was designated as unclassifiable.
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    \1\ 78 FR 47191. Effective date October 4, 2013.
    \2\ 83 FR 1098. Effective date April 9, 2018.
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    In 2018, during the public comment period for the proposed approval 
of the SO2 attainment SIP for the Indiana Area (83 FR 32606, 
July 13, 2018), the Sierra Club submitted a modeling analysis which 
claimed to also show violations of the SO2 NAAQS within 
portions of Westmoreland and Cambria counties due to SO2 
emissions from sources located within the Indiana Area.\3\ In 2022, 
during the public comment period for the proposed partial disapproval 
and partial approval of the Indiana Area's attainment SIP (87 FR 15166, 
March 17, 2022), the EPA received additional dispersion modeling from 
the Sierra Club, and from Keystone-Conemaugh Projects, LLC (KEY-
CON),\4\ focused on the Westmoreland and Cambria areas. The EPA also 
conducted its own modeling of those areas. Based on review of all 
modeling analyses, the EPA made the determination that there are 
modeled SO2 NAAQS violations outside of the existing Indiana 
Area, in portions of Westmoreland and Cambria counties, and accordingly 
notified the Governor of Pennsylvania in a letter dated February 17, 
2023, of our intent to redesignate portions of Westmoreland and Cambria 
counties as nonattainment for the 2010 1-hour primary SO2 
NAAQS, consistent with CAA section 107(d)(3)(A).\5\ On June 22, 2023, 
Acting Secretary for the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental 
Protection (PA DEP), Richard Negrin, responded to the EPA's letter but 
did not specify whether the Commonwealth agreed or disagreed with the 
EPA's determination to redesignate portions of Westmoreland and Cambria 
counties as nonattainment for the 2010 1-hour primary SO2 
NAAQS. Instead, Pennsylvania's response included several comments 
questioning certain aspects of the Technical Support Document (TSD) 
that the EPA had developed and submitted to PA DEP with the February 
17, 2023 redesignation letter. The EPA responded to the Commonwealth's 
comments in a January 2024 response to comments (RTC) document, which 
is in the docket associated with this action.\6\
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    \3\ Explained further in the NOA associated with this 
redesignation. See 89 FR 9817 (February 12, 2024).
    \4\ KEY-CON, licensee for the Keystone Generating Station 
located in Armstrong County and the Conemaugh Generating station 
located in Indiana County, provided modeling to support its comments 
rebutting modeling and views presented by the Sierra Club and the 
EPA.
    \5\ Located in the public docket for this redesignation at 
www.regulations.gov under Docket ID No. EPA-R03-OAR-2023-0419.
    \6\ A copy of PA DEP's comments on the EPA's intended 
redesignation TSD and also the EPA's RTC replying to these comments, 
can be found in Docket No. EPA-R03-OAR-2023-0419 via 
www.regulations.gov.
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    The EPA is not required under CAA section 107(d)(3) to seek public 
comment during the redesignations process, but we elected to do so for 
this area to provide the public with an opportunity to give input for 
the EPA's consideration before promulgating any final redesignation. 
The EPA published a NOA for this action in the Federal Register on 
February 12, 2024 (89 FR 9815). Upon publication of the NOA in the 
Federal Register, a 45-day public comment period began. This comment 
period closed on March 28, 2024, and yielded comments from seven 
commenters. A copy of the EPA's responses to the comments received from 
the public is also located in the docket for this action.

II. EPA's Redesignation Decision and Supporting Air Quality Information

A. SO2 Monitoring and Modeling Considerations

    The 1-hour primary SO2 standard is violated at an 
ambient air quality monitoring site (or in the case of dispersion 
modeling, at an ambient air quality receptor location) when the 3-year 
average of the annual 99th percentile of the daily maximum 1-hour 
average concentrations exceeds 75 ppb, as determined in accordance with 
appendix T of 40 CFR part 50. The EPA also believes that in certain 
cases, including when SO2 monitors are lacking, air 
dispersion modeling is an appropriate tool to determine whether an area 
is in attainment, as discussed in the EPA's document titled, 
``SO2 NAAQS Designations Modeling Technical Assistance 
Document'' (Modeling TAD).\7\ The Modeling TAD provides nonbinding 
recommendations on how to appropriately and sufficiently model ambient 
air in proximity to an SO2 emission source to establish air 
quality data for comparison to the 2010 primary SO2 NAAQS 
for the purposes of designations. For a short-term 1-hour standard, 
dispersion modeling of stationary sources can be the most technically 
appropriate, efficient, and effective because it accounts for fairly 
infrequent combinations of meteorological and source operating 
conditions that can contribute to peak ground-level concentrations of 
SO2. The EPA's Guideline on Air Quality Models, found at 
appendix W to 40 CFR part 51, provides recommendations on modeling 
techniques and guidance for estimating pollutant concentrations to 
assess control strategies and determine emission limits.
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    \7\ A copy is located in the docket via www.regulations.gov, 
Docket ID No. EPA-R03-OAR-2023-0419.
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B. The Basis of Redesignating Portions of Cambria and Westmoreland 
Counties, Pennsylvania to Nonattainment for the 2010 SO2 NAAQS

    Information and data providing the basis for this action are 
provided in a designations TSD included in the docket for this action 
\8\ and can also be found online at www.epa.gov/sulfur-dioxide-designations/sulfur-dioxide-designations-regulatory-actions. 
Additionally, other relevant documents and files regarding this 
SO2 redesignation, including PA DEP's comments on the EPA's 
TSD, the EPA's RTC replying to these comments, and public comments are 
available for review in the public docket for this action. The 
information can also be reviewed online at www.epa.gov/sulfur-dioxide-designations/sulfur-dioxide-designations-regulatory-actions.
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    \8\ Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2023-0419 at www.regulations.gov.
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C. Factors Considered in Determining Nonattainment Area Boundary

    The EPA has issued multiple guidance documents for performing 
SO2 designations, the most recent of which is a September 5, 
2019 guidance from Peter Tsirigotis, Director, U.S. EPA,

[[Page 101912]]

Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards, to Regional Air Division 
Directors, U.S. EPA Regions 1-10.\9\ This memorandum supplements, where 
necessary, prior designations guidance documents on area designations 
for the 2010 1-hour primary SO2 NAAQS issued on March 24, 
2011, March 20, 2015, and July 22, 2016. The September 2019 memorandum 
identifies evaluation factors in determining whether areas are in 
violation of the 2010 SO2 NAAQS and factors that the EPA 
intends to assess in determining the boundaries for such areas. These 
factors include: (1) air quality characterization via ambient 
monitoring or dispersion modeling results; (2) emissions-related data; 
(3) meteorology; (4) geography and topography; and (5) jurisdictional 
boundaries.
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    \9\ ``Area Designations for the 2010 Primary Sulfur Dioxide 
National Ambient Air Quality Standard--Round 4,'' memorandum to 
Regional Air Division Directors, Regions 1-10, from Peter 
Tsirigotis, dated September 5, 2019, available at: www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2019-09/documents/round_4_so2_designations_memo_09-05-2019_final.pdf.
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    The EPA's modeling indicates that portions of Westmoreland and 
Cambria counties are violating the 2010 1-hour SO2 NAAQS, 
and the Agency's detailed evaluation of the modeled violations, 
contributing sources, and intended area boundaries based on the weight 
of evidence of the previously identified factors are included in the 
TSD, which is located in the docket for this action. The EPA's 
boundaries of the relevant area encompass Lower Yoder Township in 
Cambria County, Pennsylvania and St. Clair Township, Seward Borough, 
and New Florence Borough in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania.\10\ A 
map showing these boundaries is included in the final TSD.\11\
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    \10\ The remaining portions of Cambria County and Westmoreland 
County will retain the current designations.
    \11\ The final boundaries are the same as the EPA's initial 
intended boundaries.
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    The purpose of this final action is to announce and promulgate 
EPA's area redesignation of a portion of Westmoreland County, 
Pennsylvania from attainment/unclassifiable to nonattainment and a 
portion of Cambria County, Pennsylvania from unclassifiable to 
nonattainment for the 2010 1-hour primary SO2 NAAQS, 
creating a new area called the ``Cambria-Westmoreland Area.''
    The issuance of this final redesignation will require the 
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to undertake certain planning requirements 
to reduce SO2 concentrations within this newly redesignated 
nonattainment area, including, but not limited to, the requirement to 
submit within 18 months of redesignation, a revision to the 
Pennsylvania SIP that provides for attainment of the 2010 1-hour 
primary SO2 NAAQS as expeditiously as practicable, but no 
later than five years after the effective date of redesignation to 
nonattainment.

III. Environmental Justice Concerns

    When the EPA establishes a new or revised NAAQS, the CAA requires 
the EPA to designate all areas of the U.S. as either nonattainment, 
attainment, or unclassifiable. This action addresses designation 
determinations for certain areas for the 2010 SO2 NAAQS. 
Area designations address environmental justice concerns by ensuring 
that the public is properly informed about the air quality in an area. 
In locations where air quality does not meet the NAAQS, the CAA 
requires relevant state authorities to initiate appropriate air quality 
management actions to ensure that all those residing, working, 
attending school, or otherwise present in those areas are protected, 
regardless of minority and economic status.

IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

A. Executive Order 12866: Regulatory Planning and Review and Executive 
Order 13563: Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review

    Under Executive Orders 12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993) and 
13563 (76 FR 3821, January 21, 2011), this action is exempt and, 
therefore, is not subject to review by the Office of Management and 
Budget.

B. Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA)

    This action does not impose an information collection burden under 
the PRA. This action is a redesignation of portions of two counties to 
nonattainment and does not contain any information collection 
activities.

C. Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA)

    This action is not subject to the RFA. The RFA applies only to 
rules subject to notice and comment rulemaking requirements under the 
Administrative Procedure Act (APA), 5 U.S.C. 553, or any other statute. 
Section 107(d)(2)(B) of the CAA explicitly provides that designations 
are exempt from the notice-and-comment provisions of the APA. In 
addition, designations under CAA section 107(d) are not among the list 
of actions that are subject to the notice-and-comment rulemaking 
requirements of CAA section 307(d).

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 also 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

    This action does not have tribal implications. It will neither 
impose substantial direct compliance costs on Federally recognized 
tribal governments, nor preempt tribal law. 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 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 Concerning Regulations That 
Significantly Affect Energy Supply, Distribution, or Use

    This action is not subject to Executive Order 13211 because it is 
not a significant regulatory action under Executive Order 12866.

I. National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (NTTAA)

    This rule does not involve technical standards.

[[Page 101913]]

J. Executive Order 12898: Federal Actions To Address Environmental 
Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations

    Executive Order 12898 (59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994) directs 
Federal agencies, to the greatest extent practicable and permitted by 
law, to make environmental justice part of their mission by identifying 
and addressing, as appropriate, disproportionately high and adverse 
human health or environmental effects of their programs, policies, and 
activities on minority populations (people of color and/or Indigenous 
peoples) and low-income populations. The EPA believes that this action 
does not have disproportionately high and adverse human health or 
environmental effects on minority populations, low income populations 
and/or indigenous peoples, as specified in Executive Order 12898 (59 FR 
7629, February 16, 1994). This action, on which the EPA offered public 
notice and comment, changes the air quality designation of an area and 
triggers an obligation on the part of the Commonwealth to develop an 
implementation plan to improve air quality in the area so that it meets 
the 2010 SO2 NAAQS. A forthcoming implementation plan by the 
Commonwealth will also be available for public notice and comment.

K. Congressional Review Act (CRA)

    This action is subject to the CRA, and the EPA will submit a rule 
report to each House of the Congress and to the Comptroller General of 
the United States. This action is not a ``major rule'' as defined by 5 
U.S.C. 804(2).

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 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 may not be challenged later in proceedings to 
enforce its requirements. See CAA section 307(b)(2).

V. Statutory Authority

    The statutory authority for this action is provided by 42 U.S.C. 
7401, et seq.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 81

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Carbon monoxide, 
Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, Particulate 
matter, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Sulfur oxides, 
Volatile organic compounds.

Michael S. Regan,
Administrator.

    For the reasons stated in the preamble the Environmental Protection 
Agency amends title 40 CFR part 81 as follows:

PART 81--DESIGNATION OF AREAS FOR AIR QUALITY PLANNING PURPOSES

0
1. The authority citation for part 81 continues to read as follows:

    Authority:  42 U.S.C. 7401, et. seq.
    Subpart C--Section 107 Attainment Status Designations

0
2. Amend Sec.  81.339, in the table titled ``Pennsylvania-2010 Sulfur 
Dioxide NAAQS [Primary]'' by:
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a. Removing the entry ``Cambria County'' and adding in its place the 
entry ``Cambria (part)'';
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b. Adding the entry ``Cambria-Westmoreland Area Lower Yoder Township in 
Cambria County and St. Clair Township, Seward Borough, and New Florence 
Borough in Westmoreland County'' immediately before the entry 
``Indiana, PA.''; and
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c. Revising the entry ``Westmoreland County;''.
    The revisions and additions read as follows:
* * * * *

                 Pennsylvania--2010 Sulfur Dioxide NAAQS
                                [Primary]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                Designation
         Designated area          --------------------------------------
                                          Date               Type
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                              * * * * * * *
Cambria (part)...................          1/16/2025  Unclassifiable.
 
                              * * * * * * *
Cambria-Westmoreland Area........          1/16/2025  Nonattainment.
Lower Yoder Township in Cambria
 County and St. Clair Township,
 Seward Borough, and New Florence
 Borough in Westmoreland County.
 
                              * * * * * * *
Westmoreland County (part).......          1/16/2025  Attainment/
                                                       Unclassifiable
 
                              * * * * * * *
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[FR Doc. 2024-29229 Filed 12-16-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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