Document ID: EPA-R04-OAR-2010-0604-0001
Agency: epa
Document Type: Rule
Title: Completeness Determinations: Stopping Sanctions Clock; Atlanta, GA
Posted Date: 2010-10-08T04:00Z

[Federal Register: October 8, 2010 (Volume 75, Number 195)]
[Rules and Regulations]               
[Page 62323]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr08oc10-3]                         

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R04-OAR-2010-0604-201046; FRL-9212-2]

 
Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; 
Atlanta, GA; Notice of Completeness Determination for the Purpose of 
Stopping Sanctions Clock

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of Letter to Governor Regarding Completeness and 
Stopping of Sanctions Clock.

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SUMMARY: EPA is now giving notice of an action that EPA has already 
taken to find a State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision complete and 
stop the sanctions clocks associated with the Atlanta, Georgia, 1997 
fine particulate matter (PM2.5) national ambient air quality 
standards (NAAQS) nonattainment area (hereafter referred to as the 
``Atlanta Area''). Pursuant to the Clean Air Act (CAA) and its 
implementing regulations, EPA has made an affirmative determination of 
completeness for the attainment demonstration, reasonably available 
control measures and reasonably available control technology, annual 
emissions reductions to ensure reasonable further progress, and 
contingency measures (hereafter referred to as ``nonattainment area 
submittals'') submitted by the State of Georgia for the Atlanta Area. 
On September 3, 2010, a letter announcing this determination was sent 
to the Governor of Georgia, effectively stopping the sanctions clocks 
started on November 27, 2009, by ``a finding of failure to submit'' the 
1997 PM2.5 nonattainment submittals for the Atlanta Area. 
Today's notice is simply an announcement of a determination that EPA 
has already made.

ADDRESSES: EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket 
Identification No. EPA-R04-OAR-2010-0604. All documents in the docket 
are listed on the www.regulations.gov Web site. Although listed in the 
index, some information is not publicly available, i.e., Confidential 
Business Information 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 at the Regulatory Development Section, Air Planning Branch, Air, 
Pesticides and Toxics Management Division, U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street, SW., Atlanta, Georgia 
30303-8960. EPA requests that if at all possible, you contact the 
person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section to 
schedule your inspection. The Regional Office's official hours of 
business are Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., excluding 
federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joel Huey or Sara Waterson, Regulatory 
Development Section, Air Planning Branch, Air, Pesticides and Toxics 
Management Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 
Forsyth Street, SW., Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. The telephone number 
is (404) 562-9104. Mr. Huey can also be reached via electronic mail at 
huey.joel@epa.gov. Ms. Waterson may be reached by phone at (404) 562-
9061 or via electronic mail at waterson.sara@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Effective April 5, 2005, the Atlanta Area 
was designated nonattainment for the 1997 PM2.5 NAAQS. The 
Atlanta Area is comprised of Barrow, Bartow, Carroll, Cherokee, 
Clayton, Cobb, Coweta, DeKalb, Douglas, Fayette, Forsyth, Fulton, 
Gwinnett, Hall, Henry, Newton, Paulding, Rockdale, Spalding, and Walton 
Counties and portions of Heard and Putnam Counties. For the 1997 
PM2.5 NAAQS, the State of Georgia was required to submit 
nonattainment area submittals by April 5, 2008. On November 27, 2009, 
EPA published a finding of failure to submit final rulemaking for the 
required SIPs (74 FR 62251).
    On July 6, 2010, Georgia submitted all components for the 
nonattainment area submittals for the Atlanta Area. EPA has done a 
completeness review, in accordance with Section 2.0 ``Criteria'' of 
Appendix V of 40 CFR part 51--Criteria for Determining the Completeness 
of Plan Submissions, to ensure that the State has submitted all of the 
required information for the SIP submission.
    As explained in the letter sent by EPA to the Governor of Georgia, 
on September 3, 2010, EPA has determined that the State has corrected 
the deficiency identified in EPA's promulgated finding of failure to 
submit the required nonattainment area SIP submittals for the Atlanta 
Area. Specifically, EPA has determined that Georgia has submitted 
complete SIP submittals for the Atlanta Area to meet the CAA 
requirement for a nonattainment area under the 1997 PM2.5 
NAAQS. EPA will make a determination on the approvability of the 
nonattainment area submittals for the Atlanta Area in a separate 
action. Today's announcement only relates to a completeness 
determination for the nonattainment area submittals for the Atlanta 
Area, and is separate from EPA's determination of approvability of 
these submittals. Today's action is simply a notice of a determination 
that EPA already made through correspondence with the Governor of 
Georgia.

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

    Dated: September 28, 2010.
Gwendolyn Keyes Fleming,
Regional Administrator, Region 4.
[FR Doc. 2010-25465 Filed 10-7-10; 8:45 am]
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