Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 180 / Tuesday, September 16, 2008 / Rules and Regulations 53373 

discussed above, within one year from 

this conditional approval becoming 

final and effective, EPA will publish a 

subsequent notice in the Federal 

Register to acknowledge that Michigan 

has met the criteria of the conditional 

approval and to inform the public about 

the conversion of the conditional 

approval to a full approval. 

[FR Doc. E8–21209 Filed 9–15–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 52 

[EPA–R06–OAR–2007–0603; FRL–8713–6] 

Approval and Promulgation of Air 

Quality Implementation Plans; 

Louisiana; Approval of Section 

110(a)(1) Maintenance Plan for the 

1997 8-Hour Ozone Standard for the 

New Orleans Ozone Maintenance Area 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Direct final rule. 

SUMMARY: EPA is approving this 

revision to the Louisiana State 

Implementation Plan (SIP) concerning 

the maintenance plan addressing the 

1997 8-hour ozone standard for the New 

Orleans Ozone Maintenance Area. On 

June 29, 2007, the State of Louisiana 

submitted a maintenance plan for the 

New Orleans Ozone Maintenance Area, 

which includes the parishes of Jefferson, 

Orleans, St. Bernard and St. Charles, 

which ensures continued attainment of 

the 1997 8-hour ozone National 

Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) 

through the year 2014. This 

maintenance plan meets the statutory 

and regulatory requirements, and is 

consistent with EPA’s guidance. EPA is 

approving the revision pursuant to 

section 110 of the Federal Clean Air Act 

(CAA). On March 12, 2008, EPA issued 

a revised ozone standard. Today’s 

action, however, is being taken to 

address requirements under the 1997 

ozone standard. Requirements for the 

New Orleans area under the 2008 

standard will be addressed in future 

actions. 

DATES: This rule is effective on 

November 17, 2008 without further 

notice, unless EPA receives relevant 

adverse comment by October 16, 2008. 

If EPA receives such comment, EPA will 

publish a timely withdrawal in the 

Federal Register informing the public 

that this rule will not take effect. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by Docket No. EPA–R06– 

OAR–2007–0603, by one of the 

following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the on-line 

instructions for submitting comments. 

• EPA Region 6 ‘‘Contact Us’’ Web 

site: http://epa.gov/region6/ 

r6coment.htm. Please click on ‘‘6PD’’ 

(Multimedia) and select ‘‘Air’’ before 

submitting comments. 

• E-mail: Mr. Guy Donaldson at 

donaldson.guy@epa.gov. Please also 

send a copy by e-mail to the person 

listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT section below. 

• Fax: Mr. Guy Donaldson, Chief, Air 

Planning Section (6PD–L), at fax 

number 214–665–7263. 

• Mail: Mr. Guy Donaldson, Chief, 

Air Planning Section (6PD–L), 

Environmental Protection Agency, 1445 

Ross Avenue, Suite 1200, Dallas, Texas 

75202–2733. 

• Hand or Courier Delivery: Mr. Guy 

Donaldson, Chief, Air Planning Section 

(6PD–L), Environmental Protection 

Agency, 1445 Ross Avenue, Suite 1200, 

Dallas, Texas 75202–2733. 

Such deliveries are accepted only 

between the hours of 8 am and 4 pm 

weekdays except for legal holidays. 

Special arrangements should be made 

for deliveries of boxed information. 

Instructions: Direct your comments to 

Docket ID No. EPA–R06–OAR–2007– 

0603. EPA’s policy is that all comments 

received will be included in the public 

docket without change and may be 

made available online at 

www.regulations.gov, including any 

personal information provided, unless 

the comment includes information 

claimed to be Confidential Business 

Information (CBI) or other information 

whose disclosure is restricted by statute. 

Do not submit information that you 

consider to be CBI or otherwise 

protected through www.regulations.gov 

or e-mail. The www.regulations.gov Web 

site is an ‘‘anonymous access’’ system, 

which means EPA will not know your 

identity or contact information unless 

you provide it in the body of your 

comment. If you send an e-mail 

comment directly to EPA without going 

through www.regulations.gov your email address will be automatically 

captured and included as part of the 

comment that is placed in the public 

docket and made available on the 

Internet. If you submit an electronic 

comment, EPA recommends that you 

include your name and other contact 

information in the body of your 

comment and with any disk or CD–ROM 

you submit. If EPA cannot read your 

comment due to technical difficulties 

and cannot contact you for clarification, 

EPA may not be able to consider your 

comment. Electronic files should avoid 

the use of special characters, any form 

of encryption, and be free of any defects 

or viruses. 

Docket: All documents in the docket 

are listed in the www.regulations.gov 

index. Although listed in the index, 

some information is not publicly 

available, e.g., CBI or other information 

whose disclosure is restricted by statute. 

Certain other material, such as 

copyrighted material, will be publicly 

available only in hard copy. Publicly 

available docket materials are available 

either electronically in 

www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at 

the Air Planning Section (6PD–L), 

Environmental Protection Agency, 1445 

Ross Avenue, Suite 700, Dallas, Texas 

75202–2733. The file will be made 

available by appointment for public 

inspection in the Region 6 FOIA Review 

Room between the hours of 8:30 am and 

4:30 pm weekdays except for legal 

holidays. Contact the person listed in 

the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT

paragraph below or Mr. Bill Deese at 

214–665–7253 to make an appointment. 

If possible, please make the 

appointment at least two working days 

in advance of your visit. There will be 

a 15 cent per page fee for making 

photocopies of documents. On the day 

of the visit, please check in at the EPA 

Region 6 reception area at 1445 Ross 

Avenue, Suite 700, Dallas, Texas. 

The State submittal is also available 

for public inspection at the State Air 

Agency listed below during official 

business hours by appointment: 

Louisiana Department of 

Environmental Quality, Public Records 

Center, Room 127, 602 N. Fifth Street, 

Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70821. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Ellen Belk, Air Planning Section (6PD– 

L), Environmental Protection Agency, 

Region 6, 1445 Ross Avenue, Suite 700, 

Dallas, Texas 75202–2733, telephone 

(214) 665–2164, fax number 214–665– 

7263; e-mail address 

belk.ellen@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Throughout this document, whenever 

‘‘we’’ ‘‘us’’ or ‘‘our’’ is used, we mean 

the EPA. 

Outline 

I. Background 

II. Analysis of the State’s Submittal 

III. Final Action 

IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews 

I. Background 

Under section 107 of the 1977 CAA, 

Louisiana’s New Orleans Ozone 

Maintenance Area, which includes the 


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parishes of Jefferson, Orleans, St. 

Bernard and St. Charles, was designated 

as a nonattainment area because it did 

not meet the National Ambient Air 

Quality Standards (NAAQS) for 1-hour 

ozone (40 CFR 81.319). As required by 

section 110 of the CAA, the state of 

Louisiana submitted a SIP to EPA on 

December 10, 1979. EPA approved this 

SIP on October 29, 1981 (46 FR 53412). 

Under the 1990 CAA Amendments, the 

New Orleans Ozone Maintenance Area 

was classified as a ‘‘transitional’’ ozone 

nonattainment area, and the 

nonattainment designation for the 1- 

hour ozone NAAQS continued by 

operation of law since Louisiana had 

not yet collected the required three 

years of data necessary to petition for 

redesignation to attainment. 

On October 15, 1994, Louisiana 

submitted a request to redesignate the 

New Orleans Ozone Maintenance Area 

to attainment for the 1-hour ozone 

standard. At the same time, the State 

submitted the required ozone 

monitoring data and maintenance plan 

for the New Orleans Ozone Maintenance 

Area to ensure the area would remain in 

attainment for 1-hour ozone for a period 

of 10 years. At the time of the 1994 

maintenance plan submission, the New 

Orleans Consolidated Metropolitan 

Statistical Area was comprised of six 

parishes including Jefferson, Orleans, 

St. Bernard, St. Charles, St. John the 

Baptist and St. Tammany. Maintenance 

and contingency plans were not 

included in the action for the parishes 

St. John the Baptist and St. Tammany as 

St. John the Baptist Parish was 

previously redesignated to attainment 

and St. Tammany Parish was never 

designated as nonattainment. 

Under the CAA, nonattainment areas 

may be redesignated to attainment if 

sufficient data are available to warrant 

the redesignation and the area meets the 

other CAA redesignation requirements. 

The submission met the maintenance 

plan and redesignation requirements set 

forth in the CAA, and EPA approved 

Louisiana’s request to redesignate the 

New Orleans Ozone Maintenance Area 

to attainment for the 1-hour ozone 

standard and approved the New Orleans 

Ozone Maintenance Area maintenance 

plan on October 2, 1995 (60 FR 51354), 

with an effective date of December 1, 

1995. 

On April 30, 2004, EPA designated 

and classified areas for the new 1997 8- 

hour ozone NAAQS (69 FR 23858), and 

published the final Phase 1 rule for 

implementation of the 1997 8-hour 

ozone NAAQS (69 FR 23951). The New 

Orleans Ozone Maintenance Area was 

designated as unclassifiable/attainment 

for the 1997 ozone standard, effective 

June 15, 2004. This designation 

included the parishes of Jefferson, 

Orleans, St. Bernard and St. Charles. 

The attainment area was consequently 

required to submit a 10-year 

maintenance plan under section 

110(a)(1) of the CAA and the Phase 1 

rule. On May 20, 2005, EPA issued 

guidance providing information 

regarding how a state might fulfill the 

maintenance plan obligation established 

by the Act and the Rule (Memorandum 

from Lydia N. Wegman to Air Division 

Directors, Maintenance Plan Guidance 

Document for Certain 8-hour Ozone 

Areas Under Section 110(a)(1) of Clean 

Air Act, May 20, 2005). This SIP 

revision satisfies the section 110(a)(1) 

CAA requirements for a plan that 

provides for implementation, 

maintenance, and enforcement of the 

1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS in the New 

Orleans Ozone Maintenance Area. 

On December 22, 2006, the United 

States Court of Appeals for the District 

of Columbia Circuit issued an opinion 

that vacated EPA’s Phase 1 

Implementation Rule for the 1997 

Ozone Standard. (South Coast Air 

Quality Management District. v. EPA, 

472 F.3d 882 (DC Cir. 2006)). Petitions 

for rehearing were filed with the Court, 

and on June 8, 2007, the Court modified 

the scope of the vacatur of the Phase 1 

rule. The Court vacated those portions 

of the Rule that provide for regulation 

of the 1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS 

nonattainment areas under Subpart 1 in 

lieu of Subpart 2 and that allow 

backsliding with respect to new source 

review, penalties, milestones, 

contingency plans, and motor vehicle 

emission budgets. Consequently, the 

Court’s modified ruling does not alter 

any requirements under the Phase 1 8- 

hour ozone implementation rule for 

maintenance plans. 

II. Analysis of the State’s Submittal 

On June 29, 2007, the State of 

Louisiana submitted a SIP revision 

containing a 1997 8-hour ozone 

maintenance plan for the New Orleans 

Ozone Maintenance Area, including the 

parishes of Jefferson, Orleans, St. 

Bernard and St. Charles. This June 

revision provides the maintenance plan 

for the 1997 8-hour ozone NAAQS for 

the maintenance area named above as 

required by section 110(a)(1) of the CAA 

and the provisions of EPA’s Phase 1 

Implementation Rule (see 40 CFR 

51.905(a)(4)). The purpose of this plan 

is to ensure continued attainment and 

maintenance of the 1997 8-hour ozone 

NAAQS in the New Orleans Ozone 

Maintenance Area, which includes the 

parishes of Jefferson, Orleans, St. 

Bernard and St. Charles. 

In this action, EPA is approving the 

State’s maintenance plan for the 1997 8- 

hour ozone NAAQS for the New Orleans 

Ozone Maintenance Area because EPA 

finds that the LDEQ submittal meets the 

requirements of section 110(a)(1) of the 

CAA, EPA’s rule, and is consistent with 

EPA’s guidance. As required, this plan 

provides for continued attainment and 

maintenance of the 1997 8-hour ozone 

NAAQS in this area for 10 years from 

the effective date of the area’s 

designation as unclassifiable/attainment 

for the 1997 ozone NAAQS, includes 

components illustrating how the New 

Orleans Ozone Maintenance Area will 

continue in attainment of the 1997 8- 

hour ozone NAAQS and provides 

contingency measures. Each of the 

section 110(a)(1) plan components is 

discussed below. 

(a) Attainment Inventory. The LDEQ 

developed comprehensive inventories of 

volatile organic compound (VOC) and 

nitrogen oxide (NOX) emissions from 

area, stationary, and mobile sources 

using 2002 as the base year to 

demonstrate maintenance of the 1997 

ozone NAAQS for the New Orleans 

Ozone Maintenance Area. The year 2002 

is an appropriate year for the LDEQ to 

base attainment level emissions because 

States may select any one of the three 

years on which the 8-hour attainment 

designation for the 1997 ozone NAAQS 

was based (2001, 2002, and 2003). The 

State’s submittal contains the detailed 

inventory data and summaries by source 

category. The 2002 base year inventory 

is a good choice. Using the 2002 

inventory as a base year reflects one of 

the years used for calculating the air 

quality design values on which the 8- 

hour ozone designation for the 1997 

ozone NAAQS were based. It also is one 

of the years in the 2002–2004 period 

used to establish baseline visibility 

levels for the regional haze program. 

A practical reason for selecting 2002 

as the base year emission inventory is 

that Section 110(a)(2)(B) of the CAA and 

the Consolidated Emissions Reporting 

Rule (67 FR 39602, June 10, 2002) 

require States to submit emissions 

inventories for all criteria pollutants and 

their precursors every three years, on a 

schedule that includes the emissions 

year 2002. The due date for the 2002 

emissions inventory was established in 

the rule as June 2004. In accordance 

with these requirements, the State of 

Louisiana compiles a statewide 

emissions inventory for point sources 

on an annual basis. For stationary point 

sources in the New Orleans Ozone 

Maintenance Area, the LDEQ provided 

estimates for each commercial or 

industrial operation that emits 100 tons 

or more per year of VOC or 100 tons or 


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more per year of NOX in Appendix A.1 

of the maintenance plan. Stationary 

non-point source data was provided by 

E.H. Pechan & Associates, Inc., through 

the Central Regional Air Planning 

Association (CENRAP) using the 

methodology in ‘‘Consolidation of 

Emissions Inventories’’, section C, page 

26. On-road mobile emissions of VOC 

and NOX were estimated using EPA’s 

MOBILE6.2 motor vehicle emissions 

factor computer model. Non-road 

mobile emissions data were derived 

from the ‘‘Emission Inventory 

Development For Mobile Sources and 

Agricultural Dust Sources for the 

Central States’’ produced by Sonoma 

Technology, Inc. for CENRAP in 

October 2004 using EPA’s NONROAD 

2004 non-road mobile emissions 

computer model. EPA finds that the 

LDEQ prepared the 2002 base year 

emissions inventories for the New 

Orleans Ozone Maintenance Area 

consistent with EPA’s long-established 

guidance memoranda. 

In projecting data for the attainment 

year 2014 inventory, LDEQ used several 

methods to project data from the base 

year 2002 to the years 2008, 2011, and 

2014. These projected inventories were 

developed using EPA-approved 

technologies and methodologies. Point 

source and non-point source projections 

were derived from the Emissions 

Growth Analysis System version 4.0 

(EGAS 4.0). Non-road mobile 

projections were derived from EGAS 

4.0, as well as from the National Mobile 

Inventory Model. 

The following table provides VOC and 

NOX emissions data for the 2002 base 

attainment year inventory, as well as 

projected VOC and NOX emission 

inventory data for the years 2008, 2011, 

and 2014 for the New Orleans Ozone 

Maintenance Area. Please see the 

Technical Support Document (TSD) for 

additional emissions inventory data 

including projections by source 

category. 

NEW ORLEANS OZONE MAINTENANCE AREA VOC AND NOX EMISSIONS INVENTORY BASELINE (2002) AND PROJECTIONS

(2008, 2011, AND 2014) 

Emissions 2002 tons 

per day 

2008 tons 

per day 

2011 tons 

per day 

2014 tons 

per day 

Total VOC ........................................................................................................................ 161.83 140.44 133.08 129.71 

Total NOX ........................................................................................................................ 384.83 377.43 381.43 388.83 

As shown in the table above, total 

VOC emissions are projected to decrease 

and total NOX emissions are projected to 

increase slightly for the New Orleans 

Ozone Maintenance Area over the 10- 

year period of the maintenance plan. 

Emission projections for future years in 

the New Orleans Ozone Maintenance 

Area indicate a downward trend in VOC 

emissions through 2014 as VOC 

emissions are projected to decrease by 

32.12 tpd, or approximately 20% (from 

161.83 tpd to 129.71 tpd). NOX emission 

projections through 2014 initially show 

a downward trend in emissions, but 

then reflect an increase of 4 tons per day 

by the year 2014, or approximately 1% 

(from 384.83 tpd to 388.83 tpd). This 

projected increase (1%) is relatively 

small considering that it occurs over a 

period of approximately twelve years (as 

from the 2002 baseline). The slight 

upward trend in NOX emissions results 

from projected increases for the point 

and non-point source emission 

categories. Emissions from non-road 

mobile and on-road mobile sources are 

projected to decrease. 

Please see the TSD for more 

information on EPA’s analysis and 

review of the State’s methodologies, 

modeling data and performance, etc. for 

developing the base and attainment year 

inventories. As shown in the table 

above, the State has demonstrated that 

the future year 8-hour ozone emissions 

will be less than the 2002 base 

attainment year’s emissions. The 

projected 20% reduction (32.12 tpd) in 

VOC emissions is expected to 

sufficiently offset the projected 1% 

increase (4 tpd) in NOX emissions, 

enabling the area to continue to 

maintain the 1997 ozone standard. The 

attainment inventory submitted by the 

LDEQ for the New Orleans Ozone 

Maintenance Area is consistent with the 

criteria discussed in the EPA 

Maintenance Plan Guidance memo 

dated May 20, 2005. EPA finds that the 

future emissions levels in 2008, 2011 

and 2014 are expected to be similar to 

or less than the emissions levels in 

2002. 

In the event that a future 8-hour ozone 

monitoring reading in the New Orleans 

Ozone Maintenance Area is found to 

violate the 1997 ozone NAAQS, the 

Contingency Plan section of Louisiana’s 

maintenance plan includes contingency 

measures that will be promptly 

implemented to ensure that the area 

returns to maintenance of the 1997 

ozone standard. Please see section (d) 

Contingency Plan, below, for additional 

information related to contingency 

measures. 

(b) Maintenance Demonstration. The 

primary purpose of a maintenance plan 

is to demonstrate how an area will 

continue to remain in compliance with 

the 1997 ozone NAAQS for the 10-year 

period following the effective date of 

designation as unclassifiable/ 

attainment. The end projection year is 

10 years from the effective date of the 

attainment designation for the 1997 

ozone NAAQS, which for the New 

Orleans Ozone Maintenance Area was 

June 15, 2004. Therefore, the plan must 

demonstrate attainment through 2014. 

As discussed in section (a) Attainment 

Inventory above, Louisiana has 

identified the level of ozone-forming 

emissions in the New Orleans Ozone 

Maintenance Area; Louisiana has 

projected VOC and NOX emissions for 

the years 2008, 2011, and 2014 in the 

New Orleans Ozone Maintenance Area; 

and EPA finds that the future emissions 

levels in those years are expected to be 

similar to or below the emissions levels 

in 2002. Please see the TSD for more 

information on EPA’s review and 

evaluation of the State’s 2008, 2011, and 

2014 projected emissions inventories. 

Louisiana relies on several air quality 

measures that will provide for 

additional 8-hour ozone emissions 

reductions in the New Orleans Ozone 

Maintenance Area. These measures 

include the following, among others: (1) 

Implementation of EPA’s National Rule 

for VOC Emission Standards for 

Automobile Refinish Coatings (63 FR 

48806), Consumer Products (63 FR 

48819), and Architectural Coatings (63 

FR 48848), (2) enacting of specific 

requirements from EPA’s Tier 2 Motor 

Vehicle Emission Standards (65 FR 

6697), EPA’s Heavy-Duty Engine and 

Vehicle Standards (66 FR 5002), as well 

as EPA’s gasoline and highway diesel 

fuel sulfur control requirements (66 FR 

5002), and (3) EPA’s required control of 

emissions from non-road diesel engines 

and fuels (69 FR 38958). The purpose of 

these control measures is to reduce 

levels of 8-hour ozone, including the 

New Orleans Ozone Maintenance Area. 

(c) Ambient Air Quality Monitoring. 

The State of Louisiana has committed in 

its maintenance plan for the New 


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Orleans Ozone Maintenance Area to 

continue operation of an appropriate 

ozone monitoring network and to work 

with EPA in compliance with 40 CFR 

Part 58 with regard to the continued 

adequacy of the network, if additional 

monitoring is needed, and when 

monitoring can be discontinued. There 

are four (4) monitoring sites in the New 

Orleans Ozone Maintenance Area that 

have operated in accordance with the 

requirements of 40 CFR Part 58 and the 

EPA-approved Quality Assurance 

Program Plan. Based on the June 2007 

maintenance plan submission, each of 

the four (4) monitoring sites have 

recently monitored attainment with the 

1997 ozone standard. The 1997 ozone 

NAAQS is 0.08 parts per million (ppm) 

based on the three-year average of the 

fourth-highest daily maximum 8-hour 

average ozone concentration measured 

at each monitor within an area. The 

1997 ozone standard is considered to be 

attained at 84 parts per billion (ppb). 

As identified in the June 2007 

maintenance plan submission, the 

Jefferson Parish ozone monitor has 

monitored attainment with the 1997 

ozone standard for the latest three 

complete three-year periods. The three 

most recent 8-hour ozone design values 

for the Jefferson Parish monitor, as 

reported in the June 2007 maintenance 

plan submission, are 82 ppb for 2003, 82 

ppb for 2004 and 84 ppb for 2005. Based 

upon the most recent data available in 

EPA’s Air Quality System (AQS) for the 

Jefferson Parish monitoring site, the 

design value for 2006 was 82 ppb, and 

the design value for 2007 was 83 ppb. 

As identified in the June 2007 

maintenance plan submission, the 

Orleans Parish ozone monitor has 

monitored attainment with the 1997 

ozone standard for the latest six 

complete three-year periods. The three 

most recent 8-hour ozone design values 

for the Orleans Parish monitor, as 

reported in the June 2007 maintenance 

plan submission, are 69 ppb for 2003, 69 

ppb for 2004 and 70 ppb for 2005. 

Hurricane Katrina disabled the Orleans 

Parish monitoring site in August 2005; 

this monitoring site went back into 

operation in January, 2008, at the same 

location. As a result, no additional 

monitoring data is available at the 

Orleans Parish monitor site between 

August 2005 and January 2008. The 

Orleans Parish monitor is back in 

operation for the 2008 ozone season at 

the same location. Since the 8-hour 

ozone design value is based on a threeyear average of the fourth-highest daily 

maximum 8-hour average ozone 

concentration, the next available design 

value for this monitoring location will 

be when three ozone monitoring seasons 

(2008, 2009 and 2010) have been 

completed. 

As identified in the June 2007 

maintenance plan submission, the St. 

Bernard Parish ozone monitor has also 

monitored attainment with the 1997 

ozone monitor for the latest six 

complete three-year periods. The three 

most recent 8-hour ozone design values 

for the St. Bernard Parish monitor, as 

reported in the June 2007 maintenance 

plan submission, are 78 ppb for 2003, 77 

ppb for 2004 and 78 ppb for 2005. As 

with the Orleans Parish monitor, this 

monitoring site was also disabled by 

Hurricane Katrina in August 2005. A 

new St. Bernard Parish ozone monitor 

began operation at a new location in 

early 2007, and the summer of 2007 was 

the first full summer of data at the new 

location since Hurricane Katrina. Since 

the 8-hour ozone design value is based 

on a three-year average of the fourthhighest daily maximum 8-hour average 

ozone concentration, the first available 

design value for the new monitoring 

location will be available once three 

ozone monitoring seasons (2007, 2008 

and 2009) have been completed. 

As identified in the June 2007 

maintenance plan submission, the St. 

Charles Parish ozone monitor has 

monitored attainment with the 1997 

ozone standard for the latest four 

complete three-year periods. The three 

most recent 8-hour ozone design values 

for the St. Charles Parish monitor, as 

reported in the June 2007 maintenance 

plan submission, are 78 ppb for 2003, 77 

ppb for 2004 and 78 ppb for 2005. Based 

upon the most recent data available in 

EPA’s AQS for the St. Charles Parish 

monitoring site, the design value for 

2006 was 77 ppb, and the design value 

for 2007 was also 77 ppb. 

Based on the NAAQS discussed 

above, each of the available design 

values identified is considered to be in 

attainment of the 1997 ozone NAAQS 

and demonstrates that the New Orleans 

Ozone Maintenance Area is expected to 

continue attainment of the 1997 ozone 

NAAQS. However, in the event that a 

design value at one of the New Orleans 

Ozone Maintenance Area monitoring 

sites exceed the 1997 ozone standard of 

84 ppb, the Contingency Plan included 

in Louisiana’s maintenance plan 

submittal includes contingency 

measures which will be promptly 

implemented to ensure that the area 

returns to maintenance of the 1997 

ozone standard. Additional information 

regarding contingency measures is 

included in section (d) Contingency 

Plan, below. 

(d) Contingency Plan. The section 

110(a)(1) maintenance plan includes 

contingency provisions to promptly 

correct any violation of the 1997 ozone 

NAAQS that occurs. The contingency 

indicator for the New Orleans Ozone 

Maintenance Area maintenance plan is 

based upon monitoring. The triggering 

mechanism for activation of 

contingency measures is a monitoring 

violation of the 1997 ozone standard 

and analysis of data to determine the 

cause of the violation. In this 

maintenance plan, if contingency 

measures are triggered, LDEQ is 

committing to implement the measures 

as expeditiously as practicable, but no 

longer than 24 months following the 

trigger. 

The following contingency measures 

are identified for implementation: (1) 

Lowering VOC RACT applicability 

thresholds for Stage 1 gasoline controls, 

(2) NOX controls on major sources (100 

tpy and greater), (3) Emission offsets for 

permits (1.10 ratio for VOC and NOX), 

and (4) Other measures deemed 

appropriate at the time as a result of 

advances in control technologies. These 

contingency measures and schedules for 

implementation satisfy EPA’s longstanding guidance on the requirements 

of section 110(a)(1) for continued 

attainment. Continued attainment of the 

1997 ozone NAAQS in the New Orleans 

Ozone Maintenance Area will depend, 

in part, on the air quality measures 

discussed previously (see II. (b) above). 

The State will continue to operate 

appropriate ambient ozone monitoring 

sites in the New Orleans Ozone 

Maintenance Area to verify continued 

attainment of the 1997 ozone NAAQS. 

The air monitoring results will reveal 

changes in the ambient air quality as 

well as assist the State in determining 

whether or not implementation of any 

contingency measures is necessary. The 

state will continue to work with the 

EPA through the air monitoring network 

review process, as required by 40 CFR 

Part 58, to determine: (1) The adequacy 

of the ozone monitoring network; (2) if 

additional monitoring is needed; and (3) 

when monitoring can be discontinued. 

Air monitoring data will continue to be 

quality assured according to federal 

requirements. 

III. Final Action 

Pursuant to section 110 of the Act, 

EPA is approving the maintenance plan 

addressing the 1997 8-hour ozone 

standard for the New Orleans Ozone 

Maintenance Area including the 

parishes of Jefferson, Orleans, St. 

Bernard and St. Charles, which was 

submitted by LDEQ on June 29, 2007, 

which ensures continued attainment of 

the 1997 ozone NAAQS through the 

year 2014. We have evaluated the State’s 

submittal and have determined that it 


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meets the applicable requirements of the 

Clean Air Act and EPA regulations, and 

is consistent with EPA policy. 

EPA is publishing this rule without 

prior proposal because we view this as 

a non-controversial amendment and 

anticipate no adverse comments. 

However, in the proposed rules section 

of this Federal Register publication, we 

are publishing a separate document that 

will serve as the proposal to approve the 

SIP revision if relevant adverse 

comments are received. This rule will 

be effective on November 17, 2008 

without further notice unless we receive 

adverse comment by October 16, 2008. 

If we receive adverse comments, we will 

publish a timely withdrawal in the 

Federal Register informing the public 

that the rule will not take effect. We will 

address all public comments in a 

subsequent final rule based on the 

proposed rule. We will not institute a 

second comment period on this action. 

Any parties interested in commenting 

must do so now. Please note that if we 

receive adverse comment on an 

amendment, paragraph, or section of 

this rule and if that provision may be 

severed from the remainder of the rule, 

we may adopt as final those provisions 

of the rule that are not the subject of an 

adverse comment. 

IV. Statutory and Executive Order 

Reviews 

Under Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 

51735, October 4, 1993), this action is 

not a ‘‘significant regulatory action’’ and 

therefore is not subject to review by the 

Office of Management and Budget. For 

this reason, this action is also not 

subject to Executive Order 13211, 

‘‘Actions Concerning Regulations That 

Significantly Affect Energy Supply, 

Distribution, or Use’’ (66 FR 28355, May 

22, 2001). This action merely approves 

state law as meeting Federal 

requirements and imposes no additional 

requirements beyond those imposed by 

state law. Accordingly, the 

Administrator certifies that this rule 

will not have a significant economic 

impact on a substantial number of small 

entities under the Regulatory Flexibility 

Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.). Because this 

rule approves pre-existing requirements 

under state law and does not impose 

any additional enforceable duty beyond 

that required by state law, it 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). 

This rule also does not have tribal 

implications because it will not have a 

substantial direct effect on one or more 

Indian tribes, on the relationship 

between the Federal Government and 

Indian tribes, or on the distribution of 

power and responsibilities between the 

Federal Government and Indian tribes, 

as specified by Executive Order 13175 

(65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000). This 

action also does not have Federalism 

implications because it does 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, as specified in 

Executive Order 13132 (64 FR 43255, 

August 10, 1999). This action merely 

approves a state rule implementing a 

Federal standard, and does not alter the 

relationship or the distribution of power 

and responsibilities established in the 

CAA. This rule also is not subject to 

Executive Order 13045 ‘‘Protection of 

Children from Environmental Health 

Risks and Safety Risks’’ (62 FR 19885, 

April 23, 1997), because it is not 

economically significant. 

In reviewing SIP submissions, EPA’s 

role is to approve state choices, 

provided that they meet the criteria of 

the Clean Air Act. In this context, in the 

absence of a prior existing requirement 

for the State to use voluntary consensus 

standards (VCS), EPA has no authority 

to disapprove a SIP submission for 

failure to use VCS. It would thus be 

inconsistent with applicable law for 

EPA, when it reviews a SIP submission, 

to use VCS in place of a SIP submission 

that otherwise satisfies the provisions of 

the CAA. Thus, the requirements of 

section 12(d) of the National 

Technology Transfer and Advancement 

Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272) do not 

apply. This rule does not impose an 

information collection burden under the 

provisions of the Paperwork Reduction 

Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). 

The Congressional Review Act, 5 

U.S.C. section 801 et seq., as added by 

the Small Business Regulatory 

Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, 

generally provides that before a rule 

may take effect, the agency 

promulgating the rule must submit a 

rule report, which includes a copy of 

the rule, to each House of the Congress 

and to the Comptroller General of the 

United States. EPA will submit a report 

containing this rule and other required 

information to the U.S. Senate, the U.S. 

House of Representatives, and the 

Comptroller General of the United 

States prior to publication of the rule in 

the Federal Register. A major rule 

cannot take effect until 60 days after it 

is published in the Federal Register. 

This action is not a ‘‘major rule’’ as 

defined by 5 U.S.C. section 804(2). 

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 November 17, 2008. Filing a 

petition for reconsideration by the 

Administrator of this final rule does not 

affect the finality of this rule 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 section 

307(b)(2).) 

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52 

Environmental protection, Air 

pollution control, Incorporation by 

reference, Intergovernmental relations, 

Nitrogen dioxides, Ozone, Reporting 

and recordkeeping requirements, 

Volatile organic compounds. 

Dated: August 29, 2008. 

Richard E. Greene, 

Regional Administrator, Region 6. 

■ 40 CFR part 52 is amended as follows: 

PART 52—[AMENDED] 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 52 

continues to read as follows: 

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

Subpart T—Louisiana 

■ 2. In section § 52.970, the table in 

paragraph (e) entitled, ‘‘EPA 

APPROVED LOUISIANA 

NONREGULATORY PROVISIONS AND 

QUASI-REGULATORY MEASURES’’, is 

amended by adding the new entry to the 

end of the table as follows: 

§ 52.970 Identification of plan. 

* * * * * 

(e) * * * 


ebenthall on PROD1PC60 with RULES
53378 Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 180 / Tuesday, September 16, 2008 / Rules and Regulations 

EPA-APPROVED LOUISIANA NONREGULATORY PROVISIONS AND QUASI-REGULATORY MEASURES

Name of SIP provision Applicable geographic or 

nonattainment area 

State submittal 

date/effective 

date 

EPA approval date Explanation 

* * * * * * * 

1997 8-Hour Ozone Section 110 

Maintenance Plan.

New Orleans Ozone Maintenance Area (including Jefferson, Orleans, St. Bernard and 

St. Charles Parishes), LA.

6/29/07 9/16/08. 

[Insert FR page number 

where document begins].

3. Section § 52.975, entitled, 

‘‘Redesignations and maintenance 

plans; ozone’’, is amended by adding a 

new paragraph (k) as follows: 

§ 52.975 Redesignations and maintenance 

plans; ozone. 

* * * * * 

(k) Approval. The LDEQ submitted a 

maintenance plan addressing the 1997 

8-hour ozone standard for the New 

Orleans Ozone Maintenance Area on 

June 29, 2007. This area is designated 

unclassifiable/attainment for the 1997 

ozone standard. EPA determined this 

request for the New Orleans Ozone 

Maintenance Area was complete on 

August 8, 2007. This maintenance plan 

meets the requirements of section 

110(a)(1) of the CAA, and is consistent 

with EPA’s maintenance plan guidance 

document dated May 20, 2005. The EPA 

therefore approved the 1997 8-hour 

ozone NAAQS maintenance plan for the 

New Orleans Ozone Maintenance Area 

including the parishes of Jefferson, 

Orleans, St. Bernard and St. Charles on 

September 16, 2008. 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. E8–21196 Filed 9–15–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Part 52 

[EPA–R04–OAR–2007–0836–200739(a); 

FRL–8714–8] 

Approval and Promulgation of 

Implementation Plans; Florida; 

Removal of Gasoline Vapor Recovery 

From Southeast Florida Areas 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Direct final rule. 

SUMMARY: EPA is approving the State 

Implementation Plan (SIP) revision 

submitted by the State of Florida 

(Florida) on May 31, 2007, for the 

purpose of removing Stage II vapor 

control requirements for new and 

upgraded gasoline dispensing facilities 

in Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach 

Counties (hereafter refer to as the 

‘‘Southeast Florida Area’’), and to phase 

out Stage II requirements for existing 

facilities in those counties. In addition, 

EPA is approving this SIP revision 

which requires new and upgraded 

gasoline dispensing facilities and new 

bulk gasoline plants statewide to 

employ Stage I vapor control systems, 

and phases in Stage I vapor control 

requirements statewide for existing 

gasoline dispensing facilities. 

DATES: This direct final rule is effective 

November 17, 2008 without further 

notice, unless EPA receives adverse 

comment by October 16, 2008. If EPA 

receives such comments, it will publish 

a timely withdrawal of the direct final 

rule in the Federal Register and inform 

the public that the rule will not take 

effect. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

identified by Docket ID No. EPA–R04– 

OAR–2007–0836, by one of the 

following methods: 

1. www.regulations.gov: Follow the 

on-line instructions for submitting 

comments. 

2. E-mail: lesane.heidi@epa.gov. 

3. Fax: (404) 562–9019. 

4. Mail: ‘‘EPA–R04–OAR–2007– 

0836,’’ Regulatory Development Section, 

Air Planning Branch, Air, Pesticides and 

Toxics Management Division, U.S. 

Environmental Protection Agency, 

Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street, SW., 

Atlanta, Georgia 30303–8960. 

5. Hand Delivery or Courier: Heidi 

LeSane, Regulatory Development 

Section, Air Planning Branch, Air, 

Pesticides and Toxics Management 

Division, U.S. Environmental Protection 

Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street, 

SW., Atlanta, Georgia 30303–8960. Such 

deliveries are only accepted during the 

Regional Office’s normal hours of 

operation. The Regional Office’s official 

hours of business are Monday through 

Friday, 8:30 to 4:30, excluding federal 

holidays. 

Instructions: Direct your comments to 

Docket ID No. EPA–R04–OAR–2007– 

0836. EPA’s policy is that all comments 

received will be included in the public 

docket without change and may be 

made available online at 

www.regulations.gov, including any 

personal information provided, unless 

the comment includes information 

claimed to be Confidential Business 

Information (CBI) or other information 

whose disclosure is restricted by statute. 

Do not submit through 

www.regulations.gov or e-mail, 

information that you consider to be CBI 

or otherwise protected. The 

www.regulations.gov Web site is an 

‘‘anonymous access’’ system, which 

means EPA will not know your identity 

or contact information unless you 

provide it in the body of your comment. 

If you send an e-mail comment directly 

to EPA without going through 

www.regulations.gov, your e-mail 

address will be automatically captured 

and included as part of the comment 

that is placed in the public docket and 

made available on the Internet. If you 

submit an electronic comment, EPA 

recommends that you include your 

name and other contact information in 

the body of your comment and with any 

disk or CD–ROM you submit. If EPA 

cannot read your comment due to 

technical difficulties and cannot contact 

you for clarification, EPA may not be 

able to consider your comment. 

Electronic files should avoid the use of 

special characters, any form of 

encryption, and be free of any defects or 

viruses. For additional information 

about EPA’s public docket visit the EPA 

Docket Center home page at http:// 

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

Docket: All documents in the 

electronic docket are listed in the 

www.regulations.gov index. Although 

listed in the index, some information is 

not publicly available, i.e., CBI or other 

information whose disclosure is 

restricted by statute. Certain other 

material, such as copyrighted material, 

is not placed on the Internet and will be 

publicly available only in hard copy 

form. Publicly available docket 

materials are available either 

electronically in www.regulations.gov or 

in hard copy at the Regulatory 

Development Section, Air Planning 


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