Document ID: EPA-R04-OAR-2020-0716-0001
Agency: epa
Document Type: Proposed Rule
Title: Air Quality State Implementation Plans; Approvals and Promulgations: North Carolina; Monitoring; Recordkeeping; Reporting
Posted Date: 2021-05-20T04:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 96 (Thursday, May 20, 2021)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 27349-27350]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-10563]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R04-OAR-2020-0716; FRL-10023-92-Region 4]

Air Plan Approval; North Carolina; Monitoring: Recordkeeping: 
Reporting

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to 
approve changes to the North Carolina State Implementation Plan (SIP) 
submitted through the North Carolina Division of Air Quality (NCDAQ) on 
October 9, 2020. The SIP revision seeks to modify the State's 
monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting regulations by adding one 
definition, adding references to approved testing methods, updating the 
reference format, and making minor changes to general formatting and 
language use for clarity purposes. EPA is proposing to approve these 
changes pursuant to the Clean Air Act (CAA or Act).

DATES: Comments must be received on or before June 21, 2021.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R04-
OAR-2020-0716 at www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions 
for submitting comments. Once submitted, comments cannot be edited or 
removed from Regulations.gov. 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. 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, the full EPA public comment 
policy, information about CBI or multimedia submissions, and general 
guidance on making effective comments, please visit www2.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sarah LaRocca, Air Regulatory 
Management Section, Air Planning and Implementation Branch, Air and 
Radiation Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 
Forsyth Street SW, Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. The telephone number is 
(404) 562-8994. Ms. LaRocca can also be reached via electronic mail at 
larocca.sarah@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    On October 9, 2020, North Carolina submitted changes to the North 
Carolina SIP for EPA approval. EPA is proposing to approve changes to 
the following SIP-approved regulations under 15A North Carolina 
Administrative Code Subchapter 02D,\1\ Section .0600, Monitoring: 
Recordkeeping: Reporting: Rule .0601, Purpose and Scope; Rule .0602, 
Definitions; Rule .0604, Exceptions to Monitoring and Reporting 
Requirements; Rule .0605, General Recordkeeping and Reporting 
Requirements; and Rule .0606, Sources Covered by Appendix P of 40 CFR 
part 51.\2\
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    \1\ In the table of North Carolina regulations federally 
approved into the SIP at 40 CFR 52.1770(c), 15A NCAC 02D is referred 
to as ``Subchapter 2D Air Pollution Control Requirements.''
    \2\ The State submitted the SIP revisions following the 
readoption of several air regulations, including .0601, .0602, 
.0604, .0605, and .0606, pursuant to North Carolina's 10-year 
regulatory readoption process at North Carolina General Statute 
150B-21.3A.
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II. EPA's Analysis of North Carolina's Submittal

    The changes that are the subject of this proposed rulemaking make 
revisions to monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting regulations under 
Subchapter 2D of the North Carolina SIP. Specifically, they revise the 
SIP by adding one definition, adding references to approved testing 
methods, updating the reference format, and making minor changes to 
general formatting and language use for clarity purposes. EPA is 
proposing to find that the changes do not interfere with any applicable 
requirement concerning attainment and reasonable further progress, or 
any other applicable CAA requirement. Detailed descriptions of the 
changes are below:
    1. Rule .0601, Purpose and Scope is revised to make clarifying 
edits to the rule text in the form of minor wording changes and an 
update to the format of references.
    2. Rule .0602, Definitions is revised to reformat the definition of 
``Emission standard'' and clarify that the term relates to State rules 
or federal regulations, to add a definition for the term ``Good 
operation and maintenance,'' \3\ to make minor wording, spelling, and 
grammatical updates to the rule text, and to update the format of 
references.
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    \3\ This term is defined as follows: ``Good operation and 
maintenance means minimizing air pollutant emissions from air 
pollution control equipment, reducing equipment malfunctions, and 
ensuring continued compliance with State rules, federal regulations, 
and permit requirements.''
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    3. Rule .0604, Exceptions to Monitoring and Reporting Requirements 
is revised to make clarifying edits to the rule text regarding 
monitoring requirements during system malfunctions and to clarify that 
operation and maintenance practices for monitoring systems may be 
specified by the manufacturer, federal regulation, rule, or a permit 
condition. In addition, the revisions include a minor word change and 
other changes to update the format of references.
    4. Rule .0605, General Recordkeeping and Reporting Requirements is 
revised to make minor updates and minor wording changes to the rule 
text and to update the format of references.
    5. Rule .0606, Sources Covered by Appendix P of 40 CFR part 51 is 
revised to make minor changes to punctuation and rule text, update the 
format of references, and clarify how compliance with the sulfur 
dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions standards is determined. 
Specifically, the language is revised to clarify that average hourly 
values shall be calculated based on a minimum of four data points, with 
one data point in each of the 15-minute quadrants of the hour, and to 
clarify that this data requirement does not apply to opacity 
monitoring, which is based upon six-minute time periods, as stipulated 
at paragraph .0606(c). In addition, paragraph .0606(f) is revised to 
clarify that the owner or operator of the source shall conduct a daily 
zero and span check of a continuous emissions monitoring system.
    Lastly, Method 6C and Method 7E of 40 CFR part 60, Appendix A, are 
being added to paragraphs .0606(i) and (j), respectively, as approved 
testing methods for determining compliance with the emissions standards 
for sulfur

[[Page 27350]]

dioxide and nitrogen oxide, respectively. Additionally, the rule is 
revised to allow other test methods approved into the SIP at 15A NCAC 
02D .2600 via cross-references. The new cross-reference to approved 
testing methods for sources of sulfur dioxide, which are regulated by 
Appendix P to Part 51, is to 15A NCAC 02D .2611. The new cross-
reference to approved testing methods for sources of nitrogen oxide, 
which are regulated by Appendix A to Part 60, is to 15A NCAC 02D .2612. 
As these test methods have previously been approved in 15 NCAC 02D 
.2600 as valid procedures to determine emissions from stationary 
sources, EPA has determined the cross-references are appropriate.
    EPA has preliminarily determined that the changes to the 
regulations above provide clarity and appropriate updates to 
monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements. These changes 
are minor and do not relax the regulations. The changes to the SIP do 
not interfere with any requirement concerning attainment or any other 
applicable requirement of the Act, and therefore, satisfy CAA section 
110(l). For these reasons, EPA is proposing approval of the changes to 
these regulations.

III. Incorporation by Reference

    In this document, 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, EPA is proposing to incorporate by 
reference the following rules in 15A NCAC Subchapter 2D with a state-
effective date of November 1, 2019: Rule .0601, Purpose and Scope; Rule 
.0602, Definitions; Rule .0604, Exceptions to Monitoring and Reporting 
Requirements; Rule .0605, General Recordkeeping and Reporting 
Requirements; and Rule .0606, Sources Covered by Appendix P of 40 CFR 
part 51. The proposed changes add one definition, add references to 
approved testing methods, update the reference format, and make minor 
changes to general formatting and language to provide clarity to the 
monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements. EPA has made, 
and will continue to make, these materials generally available through 
www.regulations.gov and at the EPA Region 4 office (please contact the 
person identified in the For Further Information Contact section of 
this preamble for more information).

IV. Proposed Action

    EPA is proposing to approve North Carolina's October 9, 2020, SIP 
revisions, which contain changes to the following regulations under 15A 
NCAC Subchapter 02D: Rule .0601, Purpose and Scope; Rule .0602, 
Definitions; Rule .0604, Exceptions to Monitoring and Reporting 
Requirements; Rule .0605, General Recordkeeping and Reporting 
Requirements; and Rule .0606, Sources Covered by Appendix P of 40 CFR 
part 51. The proposed changes are consistent with the CAA.

V. 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. See 42 U.S.C. 7410(k); 40 CFR 52.02(a). Thus, in 
reviewing SIP submissions, EPA's role is to approve state choices, 
provided that they meet the criteria of the CAA. This 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 13563 (76 FR 3821, January 21, 2011);
     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 an economically significant regulatory action based 
on health or safety risks subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 
19885, April 23, 1997);
     Is not a significant regulatory action subject to 
Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001);
     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; and
     Does not provide EPA with the discretionary authority to 
address, as appropriate, disproportionate human health or environmental 
effects, using practicable and legally permissible methods, under 
Executive Order 12898 (59 FR 7629, February 16, 1994).
    The SIP is not approved to apply on any Indian reservation land or 
in any other area where 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 as specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 
FR 67249, November 9, 2000), nor will it impose substantial direct 
costs on tribal governments or preempt tribal law.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

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

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

    Dated: May 11, 2021.
John B. Blevins,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4.
[FR Doc. 2021-10563 Filed 5-19-21; 8:45 am]
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