104944 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 247 / Thursday, December 26, 2024 / Proposed Rules 

29, 2024, at 89 FR 94633, and corrected 

on December 11, 2024 (89 FR 99790), is 

extended. Comments must be received 

on or before January 29, 2025. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by Docket ID No. EPA–R09– 

OAR–2024–0417 at https://

www.regulations.gov. For comments 

submitted at Regulations.gov, follow the 

online instructions for submitting 

comments. Once submitted, comments 

cannot be edited or removed from 

Regulations.gov. The EPA may publish 

any comment received to its public 

docket. Do not submit electronically any 

information you consider to be 

Confidential Business Information (CBI) 

or other information whose disclosure is 

restricted by statute. Multimedia 

submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be 

accompanied by a written comment. 

The written comment is considered the 

official comment and should include 

discussion of all points you wish to 

make. The EPA will generally not 

consider comments or comment 

contents located outside of the primary 

submission (i.e., on the web, cloud, or 

other file sharing system). For 

additional submission methods, please 

contact the person identified in the FOR

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section. 

For the full EPA public comment policy, 

information about CBI or multimedia 

submissions, and general guidance on 

making effective comments, please visit 

https://www.epa.gov/dockets/ 

commenting-epa-dockets. 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: 

Allison Kawasaki, EPA Region IX, 75 

Hawthorne St., San Francisco, CA 

94105; phone: (415) 972–3922; email: 

kawasaki.allison@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On 

November 29, 2024 (89 FR 94633), the 

EPA published the proposed rule ‘‘Air 

Plan Conditional Approval; California; 

Bay Area Air Quality Management 

District’’ in the Federal Register. The 

comment period end date for the 

proposed rule, as published, was 

December 30, 2025, which established a 

395-day comment period. A correction 

was published on December 11, 2024 

(89 FR 99790), that corrected the 

comment period end date in the 

proposed rule to December 30, 2024, 

which corresponds to a 30-day public 

comment period from the original 

publication date of November 29, 2024. 

In response to commenter request, the 

EPA is now extending the comment 

period for the proposed rule to January 

29, 2025. Comments must be received 

on or before January 29, 2025. 

Dated: December 16, 2024. 

Matthew Lakin, 

Director, Air and Radiation Division, Region 

IX. 

[FR Doc. 2024–30464 Filed 12–23–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 52 

[EPA–R09–OAR–2024–0563; FRL–12442– 

01–R9] 

Air Plan Approval; California; Mojave 

Desert Air Quality Management 

District; Oxides of Nitrogen 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve a 

revision to the Mojave Desert Air 

Quality Management District 

(MDAQMD) portion of the California 

State Implementation Plan (SIP). This 

revision concerns emissions of oxides of 

nitrogen (NOX) from industrial, 

institutional, and commercial boilers, 

steam generators, and process heaters. 

We are proposing to approve a local rule 

to regulate these emission sources under 

the Clean Air Act (CAA or the Act). We 

are taking comments on this proposal 

and plan to follow with a final action. 

DATES: Comments must be received on 

or before January 27, 2025. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by Docket ID No. EPA–R09– 

OAR–2024–0563 at https://

www.regulations.gov. For comments 

submitted at Regulations.gov, follow the 

online instructions for submitting 

comments. Once submitted, comments 

cannot be edited or removed from 

Regulations.gov. The EPA may publish 

any comment received to its public 

docket. Do not submit electronically any 

information you consider to be 

Confidential Business Information (CBI) 

or other information whose disclosure is 

restricted by statute. Multimedia 

submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be 

accompanied by a written comment. 

The written comment is considered the 

official comment and should include 

discussion of all points you wish to 

make. The EPA will generally not 

consider comments or comment 

contents located outside of the primary 

submission (i.e., on the web, cloud, or 

other file sharing system). For 

additional submission methods, please 

contact the person identified in the FOR

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section. 

For the full EPA public comment policy, 

information about CBI or multimedia 

submissions, and general guidance on 

making effective comments, please visit 

https://www.epa.gov/dockets/ 

commenting-epa-dockets. 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: La 

Kenya Evans-Hopper, EPA Region IX, 75 

Hawthorne St., San Francisco, CA 

94105; phone: (415) 972–3245; email: 

evanshopper.lakenya@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

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

and ‘‘our’’ refer to the EPA. 

Table of Contents 

I. The State’s Submittal 

A. What rule did the State submit? 

B. Are there other versions of this rule? 

C. What is the purpose of the submitted 

rule revision? 

II. The EPA’s Evaluation and Action 

A. How is the EPA evaluating the rule? 

B. Does the rule meet the evaluation 

criteria? 

C. Proposed Action and Public Comment 

III. Incorporation by Reference 

IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews 

I. The State’s Submittal 

A. What rule did the State submit? 

Table 1 lists the rule addressed by this 

proposal with the dates that it was 

adopted by the local air agency and 

submitted by the California Air 

Resources Control Board (CARB). 

TABLE 1—SUBMITTED RULE

Local Agency Rule No. Rule title Amended Submitted 

MDAQMD ............................... 1157 Boilers and Process Heaters .................................................. 09/25/23 01/10/24 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with PROPOSALS1
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 247 / Thursday, December 26, 2024 / Proposed Rules 104945 

1 40 CFR 52.31. 

On July 10, 2024, the submittal for 

MDAQMD Rule 1157 was deemed by 

operation of law to meet the 

completeness criteria in 40 CFR part 51 

appendix V. 

B. Are there other versions of this rule? 

On June 16, 2023, (88 FR 39366), we 

finalized a limited approval and limited 

disapproval of Rule 1157 as adopted on 

January 22, 2018. The MDAQMD 

adopted revisions to the SIP-approved 

version on September 25, 2023, and 

CARB submitted them to us on January 

10, 2024. If we take final action to 

approve the September 25, 2023 version 

of Rule 1157, this version will replace 

the previously approved version of this 

rule in the SIP. 

C. What is the purpose of the submitted 

rule revision? 

Emissions of NOX contribute to the 

production of ground-level ozone, smog, 

and particulate matter (PM), which 

harm human health and the 

environment. Section 110(a) of the CAA 

requires States to submit plans that 

provide for implementation, 

maintenance, and enforcement of the 

national ambient air quality standards 

(NAAQS). In addition, CAA section 

182(b)(2) requires that SIPs for ozone 

nonattainment areas classified as 

‘‘Moderate’’ or higher implement RACT 

for sources covered by a control 

techniques guidelines (CTG) document. 

The MDAQMD relies on Rule 1157 to 

establish RACT level controls for 

covered sources within the MDAQMD 

portion of the West Mojave Desert ozone 

nonattainment area. 

Revised Rule 1157 establishes 

emission limits of NOX and carbon 

monoxide (CO) for boilers, steam 

generators, and process heaters (units) 

with rated heat inputs of greater than or 

equal to 5 million Btu per hour 

(MMBtu/hr). Rule 1157 is applicable to 

new and existing boilers, steam 

generators, and process heaters within 

the Mojave Desert portion of the West 

Mojave Desert ozone nonattainment 

area. The updated rule removed section 

(E)(1)(b)(iii), allowing the rule to be 

consistent with EPA’s startup, 

shutdown, and malfunction (SSM) 

policy and the Credible Evidence Rule. 

The rule revisions also made several 

clarifying and enforceability-enhancing 

edits. The updated rule added a 

definition for ‘‘Gas Curtailment’’ to 

clarify that the rule exempts times of 

unexpected gaseous fuel delivery 

prevention and does not include 

increases in the market prices of gaseous 

fuel. The rule also corrected the sample 

calculation in section (C)(3)(a)(iv) to 

reflect the current rule’s emission limits 

that would be used to calculate a 

weighted average. Finally, Rule 1157 

was revised to update test methods for 

the determination of the higher heating 

value to the most recent EPA-approved 

methods. 

The EPA’s technical support 

document (TSD) has more information 

about this rule. 

II. The EPA’s Evaluation and Action 

A. How is the EPA evaluating the rule? 

Rules in the SIP must be enforceable 

(see CAA section 110(a)(2)), must not 

interfere with applicable requirements 

concerning attainment and reasonable 

further progress or other CAA 

requirements (see CAA section 110(l)). 

Generally, SIP rules must require 

reasonably available control technology 

(RACT) for each major source of NOX in 

ozone nonattainment areas classified as 

‘‘Moderate’’ or above (see CAA section 

182(b)(2) and (f)). The MDAQMD 

regulates ozone nonattainment areas 

classified as Severe for the 1979 1-hour 

ozone standard (the Southeast Desert 

Modified Air Quality Management Area) 

as well as for the 1997, 2008, and 2015 

8-hour ozone NAAQS (the Western 

Mojave Desert ozone nonattainment 

area) (see 40 CFR 81.305). Therefore, 

this rule must implement RACT. 

In our June 16, 2023 action, we found 

that Rule 1157 was largely consistent 

with the relevant CAA requirements, 

including RACT. However, in that 

rulemaking we identified certain 

deficiencies that prevented full approval 

of Rule 1157. As a result, in this 

rulemaking, we focus our analysis 

primarily on the revisions that have 

recently been made to Rule 1157. 

Guidance and policy documents that 

we used to evaluate enforceability, 

revision/relaxation, and rule stringency 

requirements for the applicable criteria 

pollutants include the following: 

1. ‘‘Issues Relating to VOC [volatile 

organic compound] Regulation 

Cutpoints, Deficiencies, and 

Deviations,’’ EPA, May 25, 1988 (the 

Bluebook, revised January 11, 1990). 

2. ‘‘Guidance Document for Correcting 

Common VOC & Other Rule 

Deficiencies,’’ EPA Region 9, August 21, 

2001 (the Little Bluebook). 

3. ‘‘NOX Emissions from Industrial/ 

Commercial/Institutional (ICI) Boilers,’’ 

EPA 453/R–94–022, March 1994. 

4. ‘‘Withdrawal of the October 9, 

2020, Memorandum Addressing 

Startup, Shutdown, and Malfunctions in 

State Implementation Plans and 

Implementation of the Prior Policy,’’ 

EPA, September 30, 2021. 

5. ‘‘State Implementation Plans: 

Response to Petition for Rulemaking; 

Restatement and Update of EPA’s SSM 

Policy Applicable to SIPs; Findings of 

Substantial Inadequacy; and SIP Calls to 

Amend Provisions Applying to Excess 

Emissions During Periods of Startup, 

Shutdown and Malfunction,’’ EPA, June 

12, 2015, 80 FR 33839. 

6. ‘‘Inclusion of Provisions Governing 

Periods of Startup, Shutdown, and 

Malfunctions in State Implementation 

Plans,’’ EPA October 9, 2020. 

7. ‘‘Determination of Reasonably 

Available Control Technology and Best 

Available Retrofit Control Technology 

for Industrial, Institutional, and 

Commercial Boilers, Steam Generators, 

and Process Heaters,’’ CARB, July 18, 

1991. 

B. Does the rule meet the evaluation 

criteria? 

In our 2023 action, we determined 

that section (E)(1)(b)(iii) of Rule 1157, 

which provided that ‘‘[n]o compliance 

determination shall be established based 

on data obtained from compliance 

testing, including integrated sampling 

methods, during a start-up period or 

shut-down period,’’ was not consistent 

with the EPA’s SSM policy and Credible 

Evidence Rule because it forbids the use 

of credible evidence (compliance testing 

data generated during startup and 

shutdown periods) in establishing 

violations of the applicable emissions 

limit. In addition, the rule revision 

removed the definitions of ‘‘start-up 

period’’ and ‘‘shut-down period,’’ 

making the scope of this provision 

unclear. The District has corrected this 

deficiency by removing section 

(E)(1)(b)(iii) from Rule 1157. In addition, 

the District made other improvements to 

Rule 1157 based on EPA’s prior 

recommendations. The TSD has more 

information on our evaluation. 

Considering the most recent revisions 

to Rule 1157, we propose to fully 

approve Rule 1157 because it meets all 

applicable CAA requirements and is 

consistent with relevant guidance 

regarding enforceability, RACT, and SIP 

revisions. If we finalize this rulemaking 

as proposed, MDAQMD will have 

corrected the deficiencies identified in 

our prior action, and all sanction and 

Federal implementation plan clocks 

started by our June 16, 2023 action 

would be permanently stopped. We are 

concurrently making an interim final 

determination to defer CAA section 179 

sanctions associated with our June 16, 

2023 rulemaking finalizing a limited 

approval and limited disapproval of 

Rule 1157. Consistent with our order of 

sanction regulations,1 this 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with PROPOSALS1
104946 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 247 / Thursday, December 26, 2024 / Proposed Rules 

determination is based on this proposal 

to approve SIP revisions from the 

District that resolve the deficiencies that 

were the basis of our prior disapproval 

that triggered sanctions under section 

179 of the CAA. 

C. Proposed Action and Public 

Comment 

As authorized in section 110(k)(3) of 

the Act, the EPA proposes to approve 

the submitted rule because it fulfills all 

relevant requirements. We will accept 

comments from the public on this 

proposal until January 27, 2025. If we 

take final action to approve the 

submitted rule, our final action will 

incorporate this rule into the federally 

enforceable SIP. In addition, it will 

permanently stop the sanctions and 

Federal implementation plan (FIP) 

clocks started by our June 16, 2023 final 

action. 

III. Incorporation by Reference 

In this rule, the EPA is proposing to 

include in a final EPA rule regulatory 

text that includes incorporation by 

reference. In accordance with 

requirements of 1 CFR 51.5, the EPA is 

proposing to incorporate by reference 

the MDAQMD Rule 1157, ‘‘Boilers and 

Process Heaters,’’ amended on 

September 25, 2023, which regulates 

NOX and CO emissions from industrial, 

institutional, and commercial boilers, 

steam generators, and process heaters, 

as described in section I of this 

document. The EPA has made, and will 

continue to make, these materials 

available through https://

www.regulations.gov and at the EPA 

Region IX Office (please contact the 

person identified in the FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT section of this 

preamble for more information). 

IV. Statutory and Executive Order 

Reviews 

Under the CAA, the Administrator is 

required to approve a SIP submission 

that complies with the provisions of the 

Act and applicable Federal regulations. 

42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a). 

Thus, in reviewing SIP submissions, the 

EPA’s role is to approve State choices, 

provided that they meet the criteria of 

the Act. Accordingly, this proposed 

action merely proposes to approve State 

law as meeting Federal requirements 

and does not impose additional 

requirements beyond those imposed by 

State law. For that reason, this proposed 

action: 

• Is not a significant regulatory action 

subject to review by the Office of 

Management and Budget under 

Executive Orders 12866 (58 FR 51735, 

October 4, 1993) and 14094 (88 FR 

21879, April 11, 2023); 

• 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 subject to Executive Order 

13045 (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997) 

because it proposes to approve a State 

program; 

• 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 CAA. 

In addition, the SIP is not approved 

to apply on any Indian reservation land 

or in any other area where the EPA or 

an Indian Tribe has demonstrated that a 

Tribe has jurisdiction. In those areas of 

Indian country, 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). 

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. Executive Order 

14096 (Revitalizing Our Nation’s 

Commitment to Environmental Justice 

for All, 88 FR 25251, April 26, 2023) 

builds on and supplements Executive 

Order 12898 and defines EJ as, among 

other things, ‘‘the just treatment and 

meaningful involvement of all people, 

regardless of income, race, color, 

national origin, Tribal affiliation, or 

disability, in agency decision-making 

and other Federal activities that affect 

human health and the environment.’’ 

The State did not evaluate EJ 

considerations as part of its SIP 

submittal; the CAA and applicable 

implementing regulations neither 

prohibit nor require such an evaluation. 

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 Executive Orders 

12898 and 14096 of achieving EJ for 

communities with EJ concerns. 

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52 

Environmental protection, Air 

pollution control, Carbon monoxide, 

Incorporation by reference, 

Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen 

oxides, Ozone, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements. 

Dated: December 13, 2024. 

Martha Guzman Aceves, 

Regional Administrator, Region IX. 

[FR Doc. 2024–30413 Filed 12–23–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 52 

[EPA–R02–OAR–2023–0242; FRL 12441–01– 

R2] 

Approval of Source-Specific Air 

Quality Implementation Plan; New 

York; Lehigh Cement Company LLC 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency. 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) is proposing to approve a 

revision to the State of New York’s State 

Implementation Plan (SIP) for the ozone 

National Ambient Air Quality Standard 

(NAAQS) related to a Source-specific 

SIP (SSSIP) revision for Lehigh Cement 

Company LLC, located at 313 Warren 

Street, Glens Falls, New York (the 

Facility). The EPA is proposing to find 

that the control options in this SSSIP 

revision implement Reasonably 

Available Control Technology (RACT) 

with respect to nitrogen oxide (NOX) 

emissions from the relevant Facility 

source, which is identified as one 

Portland cement kiln (the Kiln). This 

SSSIP revision is intended to implement 

NOX RACT for the relevant Facility 

source in accordance with the 

requirements for implementation of the 

2008 and 2015 ozone NAAQS. This 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with PROPOSALS1