Document ID: EPA-R04-OAR-2017-0454-0006
Agency: epa
Document Type: Proposed Rule
Title: Air Quality State Implementation Plans; Approvals and Promulgations: North Carolina; Permitting Revisions
Posted Date: 2019-02-14T05:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 31 (Thursday, February 14, 2019)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 4019-4021]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-02216]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R04-OAR-2017-0454; FRL-9989-39-Region 4]

Air Plan Approval; NC; Permitting Revisions

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to 
approve a portion of a revision to the North Carolina State 
Implementation Plan (SIP) submitted by the State of North Carolina 
through the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality 
(formerly the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural 
Resources (NCDENR)), Division of Air Quality, through a letter dated 
March 24, 2006. The revision includes changes to permitting 
regulations. The revision is part of North Carolina's strategy to meet 
and maintain the national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS). This 
action is being taken pursuant to the Clean Air Act (CAA or Act) and 
its implementing regulations.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before March 18, 2019.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R04-
OAR-2017-0454 at http://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 http://www2.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nacosta C. Ward, Air Regulatory 
Management Section, Air Planning and

[[Page 4020]]

Implementation Branch, Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management Division, 
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street SW, 
Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. Ms. Ward can be reached via telephone at 
(404) 562-9140, or via electronic mail at ward.nacosta@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background

    Through a letter dated March 24, 2006, the State of North Carolina, 
through NCDENR, submitted several changes to the North Carolina SIP for 
EPA approval. EPA is proposing to approve changes to the following 
regulations: 15A North Carolina Administrative Code (NCAC) 02Q Sections 
.0101, Required Air Quality Permits, and .0301, 
Applicability.1 2 EPA has taken, will take, or will not take 
separate action on all other changes submitted on March 24, 2006.\3\
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    \1\ EPA received this SIP submittal on April 4, 2006.
    \2\ 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.''
    \3\ On July 18, 2017, EPA took direct final action on changes to 
15A NCAC 02D Sections .0101, .0103, .0810, .1902, .1903, and 15A 
NCAC 2Q Sections .0103, .0105, .0304, .0305, .0808 and .0810. See 82 
FR 32767. EPA will be taking separate action on changes to 15A NCAC 
02D Sections .1904 and .2001. EPA did not take action on changes to 
15A NCAC 2D Section .1201. because this rule pertains to 
incinerators and addresses emission guidelines under CAA sections 
111(d) and 129 and 40 CFR part 60 and is not a part of the 
federally-approved SIP. A change to Regulation 15A NCAC 02D Section 
.1401 was withdrawn by NCDEQ on June 5, 2017. Changes to two 
regulations, 15A NCAC 02Q Sections .0508 and 0523, were not acted on 
because these rules are part of North Carolina's title V permitting 
program and are not a part of the SIP.
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II. Analysis of the State Submittal

    The revision that is the subject of this proposed rulemaking 
pertains to changes to air quality permitting regulations related to 
minor source construction activities under Subchapter 2Q, Air Quality 
Permit Procedures. Detailed descriptions of the changes are below:
    2Q Sections .0101, Required Air Quality Permits, and .0301, 
Applicability, have been amended to reflect the changes to the North 
Carolina General Statutes regarding construction to allow additional 
preconstruction activities for minor sources. With respect to 
requirements regarding stationary source permits, in both 2Q Sections 
.0101 and .0301, an exception has been added to allow certain 
preconstruction activities prior to obtaining a final minor 
construction permit. Those activities are clearing and grading; 
construction of access roads, driveways, and parking lots; construction 
and installation of underground pipe work, including water, sewer, 
electric, and telecommunications utilities; and construction of 
ancillary structures, including fences and office buildings that are 
not a necessary component of an air contaminant source, equipment, or 
associated air cleaning device. 2Q Section .0101 has been revised to 
remove a prohibition on entering into irrevocable contracts for the 
construction, operation, or modification of air cleaning devices. EPA 
has preliminarily determined that allowing the foregoing 
preconstruction activities is consistent with the requirements of CAA 
sections 110(a)(2)(C) and 110(l) and federal regulations at 40 CFR 
51.160-51.164.
    Section 110(a)(2)(C) of the CAA requires that SIPs include a 
program for regulating the construction and modification of stationary 
sources as necessary to ensure that the NAAQS are maintained. The basic 
purpose of new source review (NSR) permitting is set forth in 40 CFR 
51.160(a), requiring NSR SIPs to set forth legally enforceable 
procedures that enable the State or local agency to determine whether 
the construction or modification of a stationary source would result in 
a violation of applicable portions of the control strategy, or would 
interfere with attainment or maintenance of a NAAQS. Under 40 CFR 
51.160, states have discretion in conducting the minor sources 
permitting programs to exempt certain small or de minimis sources. 
Congress directed the states to exercise the primary responsibility 
under the CAA to tailor air quality control measures, including minor 
source permitting programs, to the state's needs. See Train v. NRDC, 
421 U.S. 60, 79 (1975) (States make the primary decisions over how to 
achieve CAA requirements); Union Electric Co. v. EPA, 427 U.S. 246 
(1976); Greenbaum v. EPA, 370 F.3d 527 (6th Cir. 2006).
    Federal regulations limit the types of allowed preconstruction 
activities for new and modified major sources, see 40 CFR 
51.165(a)(1)(xv) and 51.166(b)(11), and North Carolina has adopted 
these regulations into its SIP. But Federal regulations do not impose a 
corresponding limitation on preconstruction activities for minor 
sources. The exception for certain preconstruction activities found in 
both 2Q Sections .0101 and .0301 explicitly applies to facilities 
subject to 2Q Section .0300 (i.e., minor sources), whereas, as stated 
in both 2Q Sections .0101(b) and .0301(a), title V facilities (i.e., 
major sources) are subject to the title V procedures under 2Q Section 
.0500. Furthermore, the North Carolina statutory provision to which the 
regulatory exception for certain preconstruction activities refers in 
both 2Q Sections .0101 and .0301 explicitly provides that the exception 
``does not relieve any person from any preconstruction or construction 
prohibition imposed by any federal requirement, federal delegation, 
federally approved requirement in any State Implementation Plan, or 
federally approved requirement under the title V permitting program'' 
and ``does not apply to any construction, alteration, or expansion that 
is subject to requirements for prevention of significant deterioration 
or federal nonattainment new source review. . . . '' N.C.G.S. 143-
215.108A.
    With these proposed changes, North Carolina's SIP would continue to 
prohibit the construction of emission units prior to issuance of 
construction permits. Therefore, there are no stationary-source 
emissions increases associated with any of the preconstruction 
activities allowed at 2Q Sections .0101 and .0301. Additionally, North 
Carolina has legally enforceable procedures to prevent construction or 
modification of a source if it would violate SIP control strategies or 
interfere with attainment or maintenance of the NAAQS, as required by 
40 CFR 51.160(b).
    The changes to North Carolina's minor source permitting 
requirements, as contained in Subchapter 2Q of the North Carolina SIP, 
are not inconsistent with the requirements of the CAA and EPA's 
regulations, and are thus approvable as part of the SIP. EPA is 
therefore proposing action to approve the aforementioned changes 
pursuant to the CAA and 40 CFR 51.160-164.

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 regulations under Subchapter 2Q, Air Quality Permits, 
Sections .0101, Required Air Quality Permits, and .0301, Applicability, 
which have a state effective date of November 11, 2005. 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).

[[Page 4021]]

IV. Proposed Action

    EPA is proposing to approve the aforementioned revisions to the 
North Carolina SIP submitted by the State of North Carolina on March 
24, 2006, pursuant to section 110 because these changes are not 
inconsistent with the CAA and EPA's regulations. Changes to the other 
sections in these submissions have been or will be processed in a 
separate action, as appropriate, for approval into the North Carolina 
SIP.

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);
     Is not an Executive Order 13771 (82 FR 9339, February 2, 
2017) regulatory action because SIP approvals are exempted under 
Executive Order 12866;
     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: December 21, 2018.
Mary S. Walker,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4.
[FR Doc. 2019-02216 Filed 2-13-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P