Document ID: EPA-R03-OAR-2007-0215-0007
Agency: epa
Document Type: Supporting & Related Material
Title: 
Posted Date: 2008-01-08T05:00Z

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

	40 CFR Part 52

	[EPA-R03-OAR-2007-0215; FRL-        ]

	Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; West
Virginia; Section 110(a)(1) 8-Hour Ozone Maintenance Plan and Amendments
to the 1-Hour Ozone Maintenance Plan

AGENCY:  Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION:  Final rule.

SUMMARY:  EPA is approving State Implementation Plan (SIP) revisions
submitted by West Virginia. These revisions pertain to: 1) the
maintenance plan prepared by West Virginia to maintain the 8-hour
national ambient air quality standard (NAAQS) for ozone in Greenbrier
County, which is designated attainment for the ozone NAAQS; and 2) two
amendments to the existing 1-hour ozone maintenance plan, which include
(a) removal of the obligation to submit a maintenance plan for the
1-hour NAAQS eight years after approval of the initial 1-hour
maintenance plan, and (b) removal of the State’s obligation to
implement contingency measures upon a violation of the 1-hour NAAQS. 
The purpose of this approval is to ensure Federal enforceability of the
state air program plan and to maintain consistency between the
State-adopted plan and the approved SIP.  This action is being taken
under the Clean Air Act (CAA).

EFFECTIVE DATE:  This final rule is effective on [insert date 30 days
from date of publication].

ADDRESSES:  EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket ID
Number EPA-R03-OAR-2007-0215.  All documents in the docket are listed in
the www.regulations.gov 

website.   Although listed in the electronic docket, some information is
not publicly available, i.e., confidential business information (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
through www.regulations.gov or in hard copy for public inspection during
normal business hours at the Air Protection Division, U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, Region III, 1650 Arch Street, Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania 19103. Copies of the State submittal are available at the
West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection, Division of Air
Quality, 601 57th Street SE, Charleston, WV 25304.

 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  Irene Shandruk, (215) 814-2166, or by
e-mail at   HYPERLINK "mailto:shandruk.irene@epa.gov" 
shandruk.irene@epa.gov . 

  

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

 

I.  Background

Section 110(a)(1) of the Clean Air Act (CAA) requires, in part, that
states submit to EPA plans to maintain any NAAQS promulgated by EPA. 
EPA interprets this provision to require that areas that were
maintenance areas for the 1-hour ozone NAAQS, but attainment for the
8-hour ozone NAAQS submit a plan to demonstrate the continued
maintenance of the 8-hour ozone NAAQS.  EPA established June 15, 2007,
three years after the effective date of the initial 8-hour ozone
designations, as the deadline for submission of plans for these areas.  

On May 20, 2005, EPA issued guidance that applies, in part, to areas
that are designated attainment/unclassifiable for the 8-hour ozone
standard and that had an approved 1-hour ozone maintenance plan.  The
purpose of the guidance, referred to as section 110(a)(1) guidance, is
to assist the states in the development of a SIP which addresses the
maintenance requirements found in section 110(a)(1) of the CAA.  There
are five components of the section 110(a)(1) maintenance plan which are:
(1) An attainment inventory, which is based on actual typical summer day
emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and oxides of nitrogen
(NOx) for a ten-year period from a base year as chosen by the state; (2)
a maintenance demonstration which shows how the area will remain in
compliance with the 8-hour ozone standard for 10 years after the
effective date of designations (June 15, 2004); (3) a commitment to
continue to operate air quality monitors; (4) a contingency plan that
will ensure that a violation of the 8-hour ozone NAAQS is promptly
addressed; and (5) an explanation of how the State will track the
progress of the maintenance plan.

	

On November 7, 2007 (72 FR 62809), EPA published a notice of proposed
rulemaking (NPR) for the State of West Virginia.  The NPR proposed
approval of the 8-hour ozone maintenance plan for Greenbrier County, as
well as concurrent approval of two amendments to its existing 1-hour
ozone maintenance plan, which include (a) removal of the obligation to
submit a maintenance plan for the 1-hour NAAQS eight years after
approval of the initial 1-hour maintenance plan, and (b) removal of the
State’s obligation to implement contingency measures upon a violation
of the 1-hour NAAQS.  The formal SIP revision was submitted by West
Virginia on November 29, 2006.  

II.  Summary of SIP Revision

The WVDEP 8-hour ozone maintenance plan addresses the components of the
section 110(a)(1) 8-hour ozone maintenance plan as outlined in EPA’s
May 20, 2005 guidance.  West Virginia requested approval of their 8-hour
ozone maintenance plan for Greenbrier County, as well as concurrent
approval of two amendments to its existing 1-hour ozone maintenance
plan.

Emissions Inventory:  An emissions inventory is an itemized list of
emission estimates for sources of air pollution in a given area for a
specified time period.  WVDEP has provided a comprehensive and current
emissions inventory for NOx and VOCs.  WVDEP has chosen to use 2002 as
the base year from which it will project emissions.  The maintenance
plan also includes an explanation of the methodology used for
determining the anthropogenic (area and mobile sources) emissions. 
There are no Title V point sources located in Greenbrier County, so a
2002 point source inventory was not compiled.  The inventory is based on
emissions from a typical ozone season day.  The term “typical”
refers to emissions being emitted during a typical weekday during the
months where ozone concentrations are typically the highest. 

Maintenance Demonstration and Tracking Progress:  With regard to
demonstrating continued maintenance of the 8-hour ozone standard, West
Virginia projects that the total emissions from Greenbrier County will
decrease during the ten-year maintenance period.  WVDEP has projected
emissions for 10 years from the effective date of initial designations,
or 2014.  In 2002, the total anthropogenic emissions in Greenbrier
County were 7.7 tons/ozone season day for VOCs and 7.4 tons/ozone season
day for NOx.  The projected 2014 anthropogenic emissions from Greenbrier
County are 7.0 tons/ozone season day for VOCs and 4.9 tons/ozone season
day for NOx.  As such, the plan demonstrates that, from an emissions
projections standpoint, emissions are projected to decrease.

It is important to note that the formation of ozone is dependent on a
number of variables which cannot be estimated through emissions growth
and reduction calculations.  A few of these variables include weather
and the transport of ozone precursors from outside the maintenance area.
 In the section 110(a)(1) maintenance plan, WVDEP had indicated that the
state will track the progress of the maintenance plan by updating the
emissions inventory for Greenbrier County approximately every three
years. The emissions inventory update will include point, area, and
mobile emissions.  Information from these future updates will be
compared with the projected growth estimates for the 2002 base inventory
data to track maintenance of the standard.

Ambient Monitoring:  With regard to the ambient air monitoring component
of the maintenance plan, West Virginia commits to continue operating air
quality monitoring stations in accordance with 40 CFR Part 58 throughout
the maintenance period to verify maintenance of the 8-hour ozone
standard, and will submit quality-assured ozone data to EPA through the
AIRS system.

Contingency Measures:   EPA interprets section 110(a)(1) of the CAA to
require that the state develop a contingency plan that will ensure that
any violation of a NAAQS is promptly corrected.  The purposes of the
contingency measures, as outlined in West Virginia’s maintenance plan,
is to accordingly select and adopt one or more measures outlined in the
maintenance plan so as to assure continued attainment in the event that
a violation of the ozone NAAQS is measured.  Violation of the 8-hour
ozone standard would trigger one or more of the control measures
outlined in the plan.

Approval of two amendments to West Virginia’s existing 1-hour
maintenance plan has also been requested by WVDEP.  Section 175A(b)
requires that maintenance plans be updated.  The 1-hour maintenance plan
for Greenbrier County extends to 2005, but no update has been developed.
West Virginia identifies the most important reason for this being that
available resources are being devoted to attainment and maintenance of
the 8-hour standard since the 8-hour standard is considered by the State
to be more protective than the former 1-hour standard upon which the
current maintenance plan is based.  As such, West Virginia is amending
this existing maintenance plan, which is codified at 40 CFR 52.2520(e),
for the Greenbrier County 1-hour maintenance area by removing the
State’s obligation to submit a maintenance plan for the 1-hour NAAQS
eight years after approval of the initial 1-hour maintenance plan, and
is requesting approval of these amendments.

III.  Final Action

EPA is approving the SIP revisions submitted by WVDEP pertaining to
their section 110(a)(1) 8-hour ozone maintenance plan for Greenbrier
County, West Virginia.  This plan demonstrates how the State intends to
maintain the 8-hour NAAQS for ozone.  Additionally, EPA is concurrently
approving two amendments to the existing 1-hour ozone maintenance plan:
(1) removal of the obligation to submit a maintenance plan for the
1-hour NAAQS 8 years after approval of the initial 1-hour maintenance
plan; and (2) removal of the State’s obligation to implement
contingency measures upon a violation of the 1-hour NAAQS.  

IV.  Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

A.  General Requirements 

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
(Public Law 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 requirement,
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
approves a state rule implementing a Federal standard.

In reviewing SIP submissions, EPA(s role is to approve state choices,
provided that they meet the criteria of the CAA.  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 note) 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.).

B.   Submission to Congress and the Comptroller General

The Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 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.  This rule is not a
(major rule( as defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2).

C.  Petitions for Judicial Review

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 [insert date 60 days from date of publication of
this document in the Federal Register].  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 approving the section 110(a)(1) 8-hour Ozone Maintenance
Plan for Greenbrier County, West Virginia, and concurrent approval of
two amendments to the existing 1-hour ozone maintenance plan 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, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements, Volatile organic compounds.

__December 19, 2007_________    			_________/s/_________________

Dated:                            				Donald S. Welsh,                  
              								Regional Administrator,

                                  					Region III.

40 CFR part 52 is amended as follows: 

PART 52 - [AMENDED] 

1.  The authority citation for 40 CFR part 52 continues to read as
follows: 

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

Subpart XX ( West Virginia

2.  In ( 52.2520, the table in paragraph (e) is amended by: 

	a. Revising the existing entry for Ozone Maintenance Plan & contingency
measures (Greenbrier County).

	b. Adding an entry for the 8-hour Ozone Maintenance plan for Greenbrier
County, WV at the end of the table.

 The amendments read as follows:

( 52.2520  	Identification of plan.

*	*	*	*	*	

(e)* * *

Name of non-regulatory SIP revision 	

Applicable geographic area	

State submittal date 	

EPA approval date	

Additional explanation

*     *     *     *     *     *     *

Ozone Maintenance Plan & contingency measures

	Greenbrier County

	9/9/94	8/4/95

60 FR 39857	52.2565(c)(36)

11/29/06	[Insert Federal Register publication date]

[Insert page number where the document begins]	Action includes (a)
removal of the obligation to submit a maintenance plan eight years after
initial approval, and (b) removal of the obligation to implement
contingency measures upon a violation of the NAAQS.

*     *     *     *     *     *     *

8-Hour Ozone

Maintenance Plan 

for Greenbrier County, WV	

Greenbrier County	

11/29/06	

[Insert Federal Register publication date]

[Insert page number where the document begins]	

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