[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 59 (Tuesday, March 28, 1995)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 15891-15893]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-7472]



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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[CA-144-2-6918a; FRL-5179-3]


Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans; California 
State Implementation Plan Revision, San Diego County Air Pollution 
Control District and San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution Control 
District

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).

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SUMMARY: EPA is proposing to approve revisions to the California State 
Implementation Plan (SIP) which concern the control of volatile organic 
compound (VOC) emissions from fixed and floating roof tanks at bulk 
plants and terminals; and fugitives at light crude oil production, gas 
production, and natural gas processing facilities.
    The intended effect of proposing approval of these rules is to 
regulate emissions of VOCs in accordance with the requirements of the 
Clean Air Act, as amended in 1990 (CAA or the Act). EPA's final action 
on this NPRM will incorporate these rules into the federally approved 
SIP. In addition, final action on these rules will serve as a final 
determination that deficiencies in each rule identified by EPA in a 
limited approval/limited disapproval action on August 30, 1993 have 
been corrected and that any sanctions or Federal Implementation Plan 
(FIP) obligations are permanently stopped. An Interim Final 
Determination published in today's Federal Register will defer the 
imposition of sanctions until EPA takes final rulemaking action. EPA 
has evaluated each of these rules and is proposing to approve them 
under provisions of the CAA regarding EPA action on SIP submittals, 
SIPs for national primary and secondary ambient air quality standards 
and plan requirements for nonattainment areas.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before April 27, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to: Daniel A. Meer, Rulemaking 
Section [A-5-3], Air and Toxics Division, U.S. Environmental Protection 
Agency, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105-3901.
    Copies of the rules and EPA's evaluation report of each rule are 
available for public inspection at EPA's Region 9 office during normal 
business hours. Copies of the submitted rules are also available for 
inspection at the following locations:

California Air Resources Board, Stationary Source Division, Rule 
Evaluation Section, 2020 ``L'' Street, Sacramento, CA 95814.
San Diego County Air Pollution Control District, 9150 Chesapeake Drive, 
San Diego, CA 92123.
San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution Control District 1999 Tuolumne 
Street, Fresno, CA 93721.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mae Wang, Rulemaking Section [A-5-3], 
Air and Toxics Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 
IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105-3901, (415) 744-1200.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Applicability

    The rules being proposed for approval into the California SIP 
include: San Diego County Air Pollution Control District (SDCAPCD) Rule 
61.1, Receiving and Storing Volatile Organic Compounds at Bulk Plants 
and Bulk Terminals; and San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution 
Control District (SJVUAPCD) Rule 4403, Components Serving Light Crude 
Oil or Gases at [[Page 15892]] Light Crude Oil and Gas Production 
Facilities and Components at Natural Gas Processing Facilities. These 
rules were submitted by the California Air Resources Board to EPA on 
January 24, 1995 and February 24, 1995 respectively.

Background

    On March 3, 1978, EPA promulgated a list of ozone nonattainment 
areas under the provisions of the Clean Air Act, as amended in 1977 
(1977 CAA or pre-amended Act), that included the San Diego County Area 
and San Joaquin Valley Area which includes the following eight air 
pollution control districts (APCDs): Fresno County APCD, Kern County 
APCD,<SUP>1 Kings County APCD, Madera County APCD, Merced County APCD, 
San Joaquin County APCD, Stanislaus County APCD, and Tulare County 
APCD.<SUP>2 43 FR 8964; 40 CFR 81.305. Because these areas were unable 
to meet the statutory attainment date of December 31, 1982, California 
requested under section 172(a)(2), and EPA approved, an extension of 
the attainment date to December 31, 1987.<SUP>3 40 CFR 52.222. On May 
26, 1988, EPA notified the Governor of California, pursuant to section 
110(a)(2)(H) of the pre-amended Act, that the above districts' portions 
of the California SIP were inadequate to attain and maintain the ozone 
standard and requested that deficiencies in the existing SIP be 
corrected (EPA's SIP-Call). On November 15, 1990, the Clean Air Act 
Amendments of 1990 were enacted. Public Law 101-549, 104 Stat. 2399, 
codified at 42 U.S.C. 7401-7671q. In amended section 182(a)(2)(A) of 
the CAA, Congress statutorily adopted the requirement that 
nonattainment areas fix their deficient reasonably available control 
technology (RACT) rules for ozone and established a deadline of May 15, 
1991 for states to submit corrections of those deficiencies.

    \1\At that time, Kern County included portions of two air 
basins: the San Joaquin Valley Air Basin and the Southeast Desert 
Air Basin. The San Joaquin Valley Air Basin portion of Kern County 
was designated as nonattainment, and the Southeast Desert Air Basin 
portion of Kern County was designated as unclassified. See 40 CFR 
81.305 (1991).
    \2\On March 20, 1991, the San Joaquin Valley Unified Air 
Pollution Control District (SJVUAPCD) was formed. The SJVUAPCD has 
authority over the San Joaquin Valley Air Basin which includes all 
the above eight counties except the Southeast Desert Air Basin 
portion of Kern County.
    \3\This extension was not requested for the following counties: 
Kern, Kings, Madera, Merced and Tulare. Thus, the attainment date 
for these counties remained December 31, 1982.
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    Section 182(a)(2)(A) applies to areas designated as nonattainment 
prior to enactment of the amendments and classified as marginal or 
above as of the date of enactment. It requires such areas to adopt and 
correct RACT rules pursuant to pre-amended section 172(b) as 
interpreted in pre-amendment guidance.<SUP>4 EPA's SIP-Call used that 
guidance to indicate the necessary corrections for specific 
nonattainment areas. Both the San Diego County Area and the San Joaquin 
Valley Area are classified as serious;<SUP>5 therefore, these areas 
were subject to the RACT fix-up requirement and the May 15, 1991 
deadline.

    \4\Among other things, the pre-amendment guidance consists of 
those portions of the proposed post-1987 ozone and carbon monoxide 
policy that concern RACT, 52 FR 45044 (November 24, 1987); ``Issues 
Relating to VOC Regulation Cutpoints, Deficiencies, and Deviations, 
Clarification to Appendix D of November 24, 1987 Federal Register 
Notice'' (Blue Book) (notice of availability was published in the 
Federal Register on May 25, 1988); and the existing control 
technique guidelines (CTGs).
    \5\The San Diego County and the San Joaquin Valley Areas were 
redesignated nonattainment and classified by operation of law 
pursuant to sections 107(d) and 181(a) upon the date of enactment of 
the CAA. See 55 FR 56694 (November 6, 1991).
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    The State of California submitted many revised RACT rules for 
incorporation into its SIP on January 24, 1995 and February 24, 1994, 
including the rules being acted on in this document. This document 
addresses EPA's proposed action for SDCAPCD Rule 61.1, Receiving and 
Storing Volatile Organic Compounds at Bulk Plants and Bulk Terminals; 
and SJVUAPCD Rule 4403, Components Serving Light Crude Oil or Gases at 
Light Crude Oil and Gas Production Facilities and Components at Natural 
Gas Processing Facilities. SDCAPCD adopted Rule 61.1 on January 10, 
1995 and SJVUAPCD adopted Rule 4403 on February 16, 1995. These 
submitted rules were found to be complete on February 24, 1995 and 
March 10, 1995 pursuant to EPA's completeness criteria that are set 
forth in 40 CFR Part 51 Appendix V<SUP>6 and are being proposed for 
approval into the SIP.

    \6\EPA adopted the completeness criteria on February 16, 1990 
(55 FR 5830) and, pursuant to section 110(k)(1)(A) of the CAA, 
revised the criteria on August 26, 1991 (56 FR 42216).
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    SDCAPCD Rule 61.1 controls VOC emissions from fixed and floating 
roof tanks at bulk plants and terminals. SJVUAPCD Rule 4403 controls 
VOC fugitive emissions from oil and gas production and processing 
facilities. VOCs contribute to the production of ground-level ozone and 
smog. The rules were adopted as part of each district's efforts to 
achieve the National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) for ozone and 
in response to EPA's SIP-Call and the section 182(a)(2)(A) CAA 
requirement. The following is EPA's evaluation and proposed action for 
these rules.

EPA Evaluation and Proposed Action

    In determining the approvability of a VOC rule, EPA must evaluate 
the rule for consistency with the requirements of the CAA and EPA 
regulations, as found in section 110 and Part D of the CAA and 40 CFR 
Part 51 (Requirements for Preparation, Adoption, and Submittal of 
Implementation Plans). The EPA interpretation of these requirements, 
which forms the basis for today's action, appears in the various EPA 
policy guidance documents listed in footnote 4. Among those provisions 
is the requirement that a VOC rule must, at a minimum, provide for the 
implementation of RACT for stationary sources of VOC emissions. This 
requirement was carried forth from the pre-amended Act.
    For the purpose of assisting state and local agencies in developing 
RACT rules, EPA prepared a series of Control Technique Guideline (CTG) 
documents. The CTGs are based on the underlying requirements of the Act 
and specify the presumptive norms for what is RACT for specific source 
categories. Under the CAA, Congress ratified EPA's use of these 
documents, as well as other Agency policy, for requiring States to 
``fix-up'' their RACT rules. See section 182(a)(2)(A). The CTGs 
applicable to these rules are entitled, ``Control of Volatile Organic 
Emissions from Petroleum Liquid Storage in External Floating Roof 
Tanks,'' EPA 450/2-78-047; ``Control of Volatile Organic Emissions from 
Petroleum Liquid Storage in Fixed Roof Tanks,'' EPA 450/2-77-036; and 
``Control of Volatile Organic Compound Equipment Leaks from Natural 
Gas/Gasoline Processing Plants,'' EPA-450/3-83-007. Further 
interpretations of EPA policy are found in the Blue Book, referred to 
in footnote 4. In general, these guidance documents have been set forth 
to ensure that VOC rules are fully enforceable and strengthen or 
maintain the SIP.
    SDCAPCD Rule 61.1, Receiving and Storing Volatile Organic Compounds 
at Bulk Plants and Bulk Terminals includes the following significant 
changes from the current SIP:
    <bullet> The exemption section was revised to delete the reference 
to rule 11.
    <bullet> A recordkeeping requirement was added to demonstrate 
exemption eligibility.
    <bullet> Test methods were added for determination of true vapor 
pressure and control efficiency of vapor control systems. (A detailed 
summary of rule changes is provided in the Technical 
[[Page 15893]] Support Document (TSD) dated March 7, 1995).
    <bullet> SJVUAPCD Rule 4403, Components Serving Light Crude Oil or 
Gases and Light Crude Oil and Gas Production Facilities and Components 
at Natural Gas Processing Facilities includes the following significant 
changes from the current SIP:
    <bullet> Definitions have been added for rule clarification.
    <bullet> The exemption section was amended to exclude components 
from being exempt from leak minimization or recordkeeping requirements.
    <bullet> Violation language was added so that any leaks in excess 
of the leak thresholds will constitute a violation of the rule.
    <bullet> The variance provision has been removed.
    <bullet> Repair procedures for essential components have been 
added.
    <bullet> Various recordkeeping requirements were added.
    <bullet> The test method section was amended to reference methods 
for determining true vapor pressure. (A detailed summary of rule 
changes is provided in the TSD dated March 7, 1995).
    EPA has evaluated the submitted rules and has determined that they 
are consistent with the CAA, EPA regulations, and EPA policy. 
Therefore, SDCAPCD Rule 61.1, Receiving and Storing Volatile Organic 
Compounds at Bulk Plants and Bulk Terminals; and SJVUAPCD Rule 4403, 
Components Serving Light Crude Oil and Gas Production Facilities and 
Components at Natural Gas Processing Facilities, are being proposed for 
approval under section 110(k)(3) of the CAA as meeting the requirements 
of section 110(a) and Part D.
    Nothing in this action should be construed as permitting or 
allowing or establishing a precedent for any future request for 
revision to any state implementation plan. Each request for revision to 
the state implementation plan shall be considered separately in light 
of specific technical, economic, and environmental factors and in 
relation to relevant statutory and regulatory requirements.

Regulatory Process

    Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. Section 600 et seq., 
EPA must prepare a regulatory flexibility analysis assessing the impact 
of any proposed or final rule on small entities. 5 U.S.C. Secs. 603 and 
604. Alternatively, EPA may certify that the rule will not have a 
significant impact on a substantial number of small entities. Small 
entities include small businesses, small not-for-profit enterprises and 
government entities with jurisdiction over populations of less than 
50,000.
    SIP approvals under sections 110 and 301 and subchapter I, part D 
of the CAA do not create any new requirements, but simply approve 
requirements that the State is already imposing. Therefore, because the 
Federal SIP-approval does not impose any new requirements, it does not 
have a significant impact on any small entities affected. Moreover, due 
to the nature of the Federal-state relationship under the CAA, 
preparation of a regulatory flexibility analysis would constitute 
Federal inquiry into the economic reasonableness of state action. The 
CAA forbids EPA to base its actions concerning SIPs on such grounds. 
Union Electric Co. v. U.S. E.P.A., 427 U.S. 246, 256-66 (S.Ct. 1976); 
42 U.S.C. 7410(a)(2).
    The OMB has exempted this action from review under Executive Order 
12866.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Hydrocarbons, 
Intergovernmental relations, Ozone, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements, Volatile organic compound.

    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401-7671q.

    Date Signed: March 16, 1995.
Felicia Marcus,
Regional Administrator
[FR Doc. 95-7472 Filed 3-27-95; 8:45 am]
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