Document ID: EPA-R05-OAR-2020-0699-0013
Agency: epa
Document Type: Rule
Title: Final approval of the Indiana ArcelorMittal and NIPSCO SO2 Emission Limit Revisions
Posted Date: 2023-09-28T04:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 187 (Thursday, September 28, 2023)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 66687-66690]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-20743]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R05-OAR-2020-0699; FRL-10754-02-R5]

Air Plan Approval; Indiana; ArcelorMittal and NIPSCO Sulfur 
Dioxide Revisions

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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[[Page 66688]]

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving, under 
the Clean Air Act (CAA), revisions to the sulfur dioxide 
(SO2) portion of the Indiana State Implementation Plan 
(SIP). The state of Indiana is requesting revisions to emission limits 
at the Northern Indiana Public Service Company Bailly Station (NIPSCO) 
facility reflecting permanently shut down units. Indiana is also 
requesting SIP revisions for two facilities formerly owned by 
ArcelorMittal USA LLC and currently owned by Cleveland-Cliffs LLC (the 
Indiana Harbor East and Indiana Harbor West facilities). The Indiana 
Harbor East facility is required to demonstrate continuous compliance 
with final SO2 emission limits as a daily (24-hour) average. 
These revisions will result in decreases in allowable SO2 
emissions at all three facilities, maintaining SO2 
attainment/unclassifiable designations for the 2010 1-hour 
SO2 national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS). EPA 
proposed to approve this action on June 26, 2023, and received no 
adverse comments.

DATES: This final rule is effective on October 30, 2023.

ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket ID 
No. EPA-R05-OAR-2020-0699. All documents in the docket are listed on 
the www.regulations.gov website. Although listed in the index, 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 
through www.regulations.gov or at the Environmental Protection Agency, 
Region 5, Air and Radiation Division, 77 West Jackson Boulevard, 
Chicago, Illinois 60604. This facility is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 
p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding Federal holidays and facility 
closures due to COVID-19. We recommend that you telephone Cecilia 
Magos, at (312) 886-7336 before visiting the Region 5 office.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cecilia Magos, Attainment Planning and 
Maintenance Section, Air Programs Branch (AR-18J), Environmental 
Protection Agency, Region 5, 77 West Jackson Boulevard, Chicago, 
Illinois 60604, (312) 886-7336, [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document whenever ``we,'' 
``us,'' or ``our'' is used, we mean EPA.

I. Background Information

    On June 26, 2023, EPA proposed to approve the Indiana Department of 
Environmental Management (IDEM) site-specific SO2 SIP 
revisions to Indiana's sulfur dioxide rules contained in 326 Indiana 
Administrative Code (IAC) 7-4-14(2), 326 IAC 7-4.1-10 and 326 IAC 7-
4.1-11. See 88 FR 41341. The revisions for the NIPSCO facility in 
Porter County and ArcelorMittal LLC (Indiana Harbor West) in Lake 
County, are administrative clean-up revisions removing limits that 
apply to permanently shut down units. The revisions for ArcelorMittal 
LLC (Indiana Harbor East) also located in Lake County, remove limits 
that apply to permanently shut down units and include a demonstration 
of continuous compliance with SO2 emission limits as a daily 
(24-hour) average SO2 pounds per hour (lbs/hr) emission 
limit. An explanation of the CAA requirements, a detailed analysis of 
the revisions, and EPA's reasons for proposing approval were provided 
in the notice of proposed rulemaking (88 FR 41341), and will not be 
restated here.
    The public comment period for this proposed rule ended on July 26, 
2023. During the comment period, EPA received one supportive comment 
that covered the improved environmental conditions and the potential 
health benefits from reduced exposure to SO2 emissions in an 
area. The comment received is included in the docket for this action. 
Because the comment is supportive and does not recommend a different 
action on the SIP submission from what EPA proposed, we are finalizing 
our action as proposed.

II. Final Action

    EPA is approving revisions to Indiana's SO2 rules 
submitted on March 31, 2022. Specifically, EPA is approving Indiana's 
SO2 rules for NIPSCO (326 IAC 7-4-14(2)), ArcelorMittal USA 
LLC (Indiana Harbor West) (326 IAC 7-4.1-10), and ArcelorMittal USA LLC 
(Indiana Harbor East) (326 IAC 7-4.1-11), effective March 31, 2021. 
This will strengthen the Indiana SO2 SIP by lowering 
SO2 emission limits overall and update monitoring compliance 
requirements to the Indiana Harbor East facility.

III. Incorporation by Reference

    In this rule, EPA is finalizing regulatory text that includes 
incorporation by reference. In accordance with requirements of 1 CFR 
51.5, EPA is finalizing the incorporation by reference of the Indiana 
Regulations described in section II of this preamble and set forth in 
the amendments to 40 CFR part 52 below. EPA has made, and will continue 
to make, these documents generally available through 
www.regulations.gov, and at the EPA Region 5 Office (please contact the 
person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of 
this preamble for more information). Therefore, these materials have 
been approved by EPA for inclusion in the SIP, have been incorporated 
by reference by EPA into that plan, are fully federally enforceable 
under sections 110 and 113 of the CAA as of the effective date of the 
final rulemaking of EPA's approval, and will be incorporated by 
reference in the next update to the SIP compilation.\1\
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    \1\ 62 FR 27968 (May 22, 1997).
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IV. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    Under the CAA, the Administrator is required to approve a SIP 
submission that complies with the provisions of the CAA and applicable 
Federal regulations. 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. Accordingly, this 
action merely approves state law as meeting Federal requirements and 
does not impose additional requirements beyond those imposed by state 
law. For that reason, this 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 14094 (88 FR 21879, April 11, 2023);
     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 subject to Executive Order 13045 (62 FR 19885, 
April 23, 1997) because it approves a state program;

[[Page 66689]]

     Is not a significant regulatory action subject to 
Executive Order 13211 (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001); and
     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.
    In addition, 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 and will not impose 
substantial direct costs on tribal governments or preempt tribal law as 
specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000).
    Executive Order 12898 (Federal Actions To Address Environmental 
Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations, 59 FR 7629, 
February 16, 1994) directs Federal agencies to identify and address 
``disproportionately high and adverse human health or environmental 
effects'' of their actions on minority populations and low-income 
populations to the greatest extent practicable and permitted by law. 
EPA defines environmental justice (EJ) as ``the fair treatment and 
meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, 
national origin, or income with respect to the development, 
implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and 
policies.'' EPA further defines the term fair treatment to mean that 
``no group of people should bear a disproportionate burden of 
environmental harms and risks, including those resulting from the 
negative environmental consequences of industrial, governmental, and 
commercial operations or programs and policies.''
    IDEM did not evaluate environmental justice considerations as part 
of its SIP submittal; the CAA and applicable implementing regulations 
neither prohibit nor require such an evaluation. EPA performed an 
environmental justice analysis, as is described in the section titled, 
``Environmental Justice Considerations'' in the notice of proposed 
rulemaking. See 88 FR 41343. The analysis was done for the purpose of 
providing additional context and information about this rulemaking to 
the public, not as a basis of the action. Due to the nature of the 
action being taken here, this action is expected to have a neutral to 
positive impact on the air quality of the affected area. In addition, 
there is no information in the record upon which this decision is based 
inconsistent with the stated goal of E.O. 12898 of achieving 
environmental justice for people of color, low-income populations, and 
Indigenous peoples.
    This action is subject to the Congressional Review Act, and EPA 
will submit a rule report to each House of the Congress and to the 
Comptroller General of the United States. This action is not a ``major 
rule'' as defined by 5 U.S.C. 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 27, 2023. Filing a petition for 
reconsideration by the Administrator of this final rule does not affect 
the finality of this action 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, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements, Sulfur oxides.

    Dated: September 19, 2023.
Debra Shore,
Regional Administrator, Region 5.

    For the reasons stated in the preamble, title 40 CFR part 52 is 
amended as follows:

PART 52--APPROVAL AND PROMULGATION OF IMPLEMENTATION PLANS

0
1. The authority citation for part 52 continues to read as follows:

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

0
2. In Sec.  52.770, amend the table in paragraph (c), under ``Article 
7. Sulfur Dioxide Rules'':
0
a. Under ``Rule 4. Emission Limitations and Requirements by County'':
0
i. By revising the entry for ``7-4-14'', and
0
ii. By adding a second entry for ``7-4-14'' immediately following the 
first entry.
0
b. Under ``Rule 4.1. Lake County Sulfur Dioxide Emission Limitations'' 
by revising the entries for ``7-4.1-10'' and ``7-4.1-11''.
    The revised and added entries read as follows:

Sec.  52.770  Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (c) * * *

                                        EPA-Approved Indiana Regulations
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                                                    Indiana
   Indiana citation              Subject           effective       EPA approval date              Notes
                                                      date
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                                                  * * * * * * *
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                                         Article 7. Sulfur Dioxide Rules
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                                                  * * * * * * *
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                             Rule 4. Emission Limitations and Requirements by County
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                                                  * * * * * * *
7-4-14................  Porter County sulfur       10/23/1988  1/19/1989, 54 FR 2112...  Only Sec. 14. (1).
                         dioxide emission
                         limitations.
7-4-14................  Porter County sulfur        3/31/2021  9/28/2023, [Insert        Except Sec. 14. (1).
                         dioxide emission                       Federal Register
                         limitations.                           Citation].
 

[[Page 66690]]

 
                                                  * * * * * * *
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                            Rule 4.1. Lake County Sulfur Dioxide Emission Limitations
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                                                  * * * * * * *
7-4.1-10..............  ArcelorMittal USA LLC       3/31/2021  9/28/2023, [Insert
                         (Indiana Harbor West)                  Federal Register
                         sulfur dioxide emission                Citation].
                         limitations.
7-4.1-11..............  ArcelorMittal USA LLC       3/31/2021  9/28/2023, [Insert
                         (Indiana Harbor East)                  Federal Register
                         sulfur dioxide emission                Citation].
                         limitations.
 
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[FR Doc. 2023-20743 Filed 9-27-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P