Document ID: EPA-HQ-OGC-2009-0848-0001
Agency: epa
Document Type: Notice
Title: Proposed Settlement Agreement, Clean Air Act Citizen Suit
Posted Date: 2009-11-16T05:00Z

[Federal Register: November 16, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 219)]
[Notices]               
[Page 58955-58957]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr16no09-36]                         

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-8981-1]

 
Proposed Settlement Agreement, Clean Air Act Citizen Suit

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of proposed settlement agreement; request for public 
comment.

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[[Page 58956]]

SUMMARY: In accordance with section 113(g) of the Clean Air Act, as 
amended (``Act''), 42 U.S.C. 7413(g), notice is hereby given of a 
proposed settlement agreement, to address a lawsuit filed by Mossville 
Environmental Action Now, Louisiana Environmental Action Network, and 
Sierra Club (collectively, ``Plaintiffs'') in the United States 
District Court for the District of Columbia: Mossville Environmental 
Action Now, et al. v. EPA, No. 1:08-cv-01803 (D.D.C.). On October 22, 
2008, Plaintiffs filed a complaint alleging that EPA failed to 
promulgate emission standards for major sources of hazardous air 
pollutant emissions from polyvinyl chloride and copolymers production 
facilities (``PVC Standards'') as required under section 112(e)(1)(E) 
of the CAA, 42 U.S.C. 7412(e)(1)(E). The proposed settlement agreement 
establishes deadlines by which the Administrator must sign the proposed 
and final rules for PVC Standards.

DATES: Written comments on the proposed settlement agreement must be 
received by December 16, 2009.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID number EPA-HQ-
OGC-2009-0848, online at http://www.regulations.gov (EPA's preferred 
method); by e-mail to oei.docket@epa.gov; by mail to EPA Docket Center, 
Environmental Protection Agency, Mailcode: 2822T, 1200 Pennsylvania 
Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001; or by hand delivery or courier to 
EPA Docket Center, EPA West, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., 
Washington, DC, between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, 
excluding legal holidays. Comments on a disk or CD-ROM should be 
formatted in Word or ASCII file, avoiding the use of special characters 
and any form of encryption, and may be mailed to the mailing address 
above.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mark Kataoka, Air and Radiation Law 
Office (2344A), Office of General Counsel, U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460; 
telephone: (202) 564-5584; fax number (202) 564-5603; e-mail address: 
kataoka.mark@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Additional Information About the Proposed Settlement

    The settlement agreement resolves a lawsuit alleging that EPA 
failed to promulgate emission standards for major sources of hazardous 
air pollutant emissions from polyvinyl chloride and copolymers 
production facilities (``PVC Standards'') as required under section 
112(e)(1)(E) of the CAA, 42 U.S.C. 7412(e)(1)(E).
    The settlement agreement provides that within 10 days after the 
agreement is executed both parties will jointly notify the Court of 
this settlement agreement and request that the case be held in 
abeyance. The settlement agreement states that EPA shall sign a 
proposed rule to establish PVC Standards no later than October 29, 
2010, and that EPA shall sign a final rule to establish PVC Standards 
no later than July 29, 2011. The settlement agreement further states if 
EPA fulfills its obligations under the agreement than Plaintiffs shall 
file a motion for voluntary dismissal of the complaint with prejudice. 
Furthermore, the agreement states that EPA shall reimburse Plaintiffs 
for their litigation costs and attorneys' fees.
    For a period of thirty (30) days following the date of publication 
of this notice, the Agency will receive written comments relating to 
the proposed settlement agreement. EPA or the Department of Justice may 
withdraw or withhold consent to the proposed settlement agreement if 
the comments disclose facts or considerations that indicate that such 
consent is inappropriate, improper, inadequate, or inconsistent with 
the requirements of the Act. Unless EPA or the Department of Justice 
determines, based on any comment which may be submitted, that consent 
to the settlement agreement should be withdrawn, the terms of the 
agreement will be affirmed.

II. Additional Information About Commenting on the Proposed Settlement 
Agreement

A. How Can I Get a Copy of the Settlement Agreement?

    Direct your comments to the official public docket for this action 
under Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OGC-2009-0848, which contains a copy of the 
settlement agreement. The official public docket is available for 
public viewing at the Office of Environmental Information (OEI) Docket 
in the EPA Docket Center, EPA West, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave., 
NW., Washington, DC. The EPA Docket Center Public Reading Room is open 
from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal 
holidays. The telephone number for the Public Reading Room is (202) 
566-1744, and the telephone number for the OEI Docket is (202) 566-
1752.
    An electronic version of the public docket is available through 
http://www.regulations.gov. You may use http://www.regulations.gov to 
submit or view public comments, access the index listing of the 
contents of the official public docket, and access those documents in 
the public docket that are available electronically. Once in the 
system, key in the appropriate docket identification number then select 
``search''.
    It is important to note that EPA's policy is that public comments, 
whether submitted electronically or on paper, will be made available 
for public viewing online at http://www.regulations.gov without change, 
unless the comment contains copyrighted material, CBI, or other 
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Information 
claimed as CBI and other information whose disclosure is restricted by 
statute is not included in the official public docket or in the 
electronic public docket. EPA's policy is that copyrighted material, 
including copyrighted material contained in a public comment, will not 
be placed in EPA's electronic public docket but will be available only 
in printed, paper form in the official public docket. Although not all 
docket materials may be available electronically, you may still access 
any of the publicly available docket materials through the EPA Docket 
Center.

B. How and to Whom Do I Submit Comments?

    You may submit comments as provided in the ADDRESSES section. 
Please ensure that your comments are submitted within the specified 
comment period. Comments received after the close of the comment period 
will be marked ``late.'' EPA is not required to consider these late 
comments.
    If you submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you 
include your name, mailing address, and an e-mail address or other 
contact information in the body of your comment and with any disk or 
CD-ROM you submit. This ensures that you can be identified as the 
submitter of the comment and allows EPA to contact you in case EPA 
cannot read your comment due to technical difficulties or needs further 
information on the substance of your comment. Any identifying or 
contact information provided in the body of a comment will be included 
as part of the comment that is placed in the official public docket, 
and made available in EPA's electronic public docket. 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.
    Use of the http://www.regulations.gov Web site to submit comments 
to EPA

[[Page 58957]]

electronically is EPA's preferred method for receiving comments. The 
electronic public docket system is an ``anonymous access'' system, 
which means EPA will not know your identity, e-mail address, or other 
contact information unless you provide it in the body of your comment. 
In contrast to EPA's electronic public docket, EPA's electronic mail 
(e-mail) system is not an ``anonymous access'' system. If you send an 
e-mail comment directly to the Docket without going through http://
www.regulations.gov, your e-mail address is automatically captured and 
included as part of the comment that is placed in the official public 
docket, and made available in EPA's electronic public docket.

    Dated: November 6, 2009.
Patricia A. Embrey,
Acting Associate General Counsel.
[FR Doc. E9-27418 Filed 11-13-09; 8:45 am]

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