Document ID: EPA-R01-OAR-2021-0790-0001
Agency: epa
Document Type: Proposed Rule
Title: Outer Continental Shelf Air Regulations: Consistency Update for Massachusetts
Posted Date: 2021-11-23T05:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 223 (Tuesday, November 23, 2021)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 66509-66512]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-25004]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 55

[EPA-R01-OAR-2021-0790; FRL-9265-01-R1]

Outer Continental Shelf Air Regulations; Consistency Update for 
Massachusetts

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Proposed rule; consistency update.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to 
update a portion of the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Air Regulations. 
Requirements applying to OCS sources located within 25 miles of states' 
seaward boundaries must be updated periodically to remain consistent 
with the requirements of the corresponding onshore area (COA). The 
portion of the OCS air regulations that is being updated pertains to 
the requirements for OCS sources for which Massachusetts is the 
designated COA. The intended effect of approving requirements of the 
Massachusetts

[[Page 66510]]

Department of Environmental Protection is to regulate emissions from 
OCS sources in accordance with the requirements for onshore sources. 
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts' requirements discussed in this 
document are proposed to be incorporated by reference into the Code of 
Federal Regulations and listed in the appendix to the OCS air 
regulations.

DATES: Written comments must be received on or before December 23, 
2021.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R01-
OAR-2021-0790 at https://www.regulations.gov, or via email to 
[email protected]. For comments submitted at Regulations.gov, follow 
the online instructions for submitting comments. Once submitted, 
comments cannot be edited or removed from Regulations.gov. For either 
manner of submission, the 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. The 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, please contact the person 
identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section. For the full 
EPA public comment policy, information about CBI or multimedia 
submissions, and general guidance on making effective comments, please 
visit https://www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets. Publicly 
available docket materials are available at https://www.regulations.gov 
or at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA Region 1 Regional 
Office, Air & Radiation Division, 5 Post Office Square-Suite 100, 
Boston, MA. EPA requests that if at all possible, you contact the 
contact 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 
legal holidays and facility closures due to COVID-19.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Eric Wortman, Air and Radiation 
Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA New England 
Regional Office, 5 Post Office Square (Mail Code 05-2), Boston, MA 
02109, (617) 918-1624, [email protected].

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

Table of Contents

I. Background and Purpose
II. EPA's Evaluation
III. Proposed Action
IV. Incorporation by Reference
V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. Background and Purpose

    On September 4, 1992, the EPA promulgated 40 CFR part 55,\1\ which 
established requirements to control air pollution from OCS sources in 
order to attain and maintain federal and state ambient air quality 
standards and to comply with the provisions of part C of title I of the 
Clean Air Act (CAA). The regulations at 40 CFR part 55 apply to all OCS 
sources offshore of the states except those located in the Gulf of 
Mexico west of 87.5 degrees longitude. Section 328 of the CAA requires 
that for such sources located within 25 miles of a state's seaward 
boundary, the requirements shall be the same as would be applicable if 
the sources were located in the COA. Because the OCS requirements are 
based on onshore requirements, and onshore requirements may change, 
section 328(a)(1) requires that the EPA update the OCS requirements as 
necessary to maintain consistency with onshore requirements.
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    \1\ The reader may refer to the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, 
December 5, 1991 (56 FR 63774), and the preamble to the final rule 
promulgated September 4, 1992 (57 FR 40792) for further background 
and information on the OCS regulations.
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    Pursuant to 40 CFR 55.12, consistency reviews will occur (1) at 
least annually; (2) upon receipt of a Notice of Intent (NOI) under 40 
CFR 55.4; or (3) when a state or local agency submits a rule to the EPA 
to be considered for incorporation by reference in 40 CFR part 55. This 
proposed action is being taken in response to the submittal of a NOI on 
September 9, 2021 by Sunrise Wind, LLC. Public comments received in 
writing within 30 days of publication of this document will be 
considered by the EPA before publishing a final rule.
    Section 328(a) of the CAA requires that the EPA establish 
requirements to control air pollution from OCS sources located within 
25 miles of States' seaward boundaries that are the same as onshore 
requirements. To comply with this statutory mandate, the EPA must 
incorporate applicable onshore rules into 40 CFR part 55 as they exist 
onshore. This limits the EPA's flexibility in deciding which 
requirements will be incorporated into 40 CFR part 55 and prevents the 
EPA from making substantive changes to the requirements it 
incorporates. As a result, the EPA may be incorporating rules into 40 
CFR part 55 that do not conform to all of the EPA's state 
implementation plan (SIP) guidance or certain requirements of the CAA. 
Consistency updates may result in the inclusion of state or local rules 
or regulations into 40 CFR part 55, even though the same rules may 
ultimately be disapproved for inclusion as part of the SIP. Inclusion 
in the OCS rule does not imply that a rule meets the requirements of 
the CAA for SIP approval, nor does it imply that the rule will be 
approved by the EPA for inclusion in the SIP.

II. EPA's Evaluation

    In updating 40 CFR part 55, the EPA reviewed the rules for 
inclusion in 40 CFR part 55 to ensure that they are rationally related 
to the attainment or maintenance of federal or state ambient air 
quality standards and compliance with part C of title I of the CAA, 
that they are not designed expressly to prevent exploration and 
development of the OCS, and that they are potentially applicable to OCS 
sources. See 40 CFR 55.1. The EPA has also evaluated the rules to 
ensure they are not arbitrary or capricious. See 40 CFR 55.12(e). In 
addition, the EPA has excluded administrative or procedural rules,\2\ 
and requirements that regulate toxics which are not related to the 
attainment and maintenance of federal and state ambient air quality 
standards.
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    \2\ Each COA which has been delegated the authority to implement 
and enforce part 55 will use its administrative and procedural rules 
as onshore. However, in those instances where the EPA has not 
delegated authority to implement and enforce part 55, the EPA will 
use its own administrative and procedural requirements to implement 
the substantive requirements. See 40 CFR 55.14(c)(4).
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    The EPA is soliciting public comments on the issues discussed in 
this document or on other relevant matters. These comments will be 
considered before taking final action. Interested parties may 
participate in the Federal rulemaking procedure by submitting written 
comments to the EPA New England Region Office listed in the ADDRESSES 
section of this Federal Register.

III. Proposed Action

    EPA last completed a consistency update for Massachusetts on 
November 13, 2018 (83 FR 56259). In that action, EPA incorporated by 
reference into 40 CFR 55 all Massachusetts regulations that EPA 
believed were relevant to the

[[Page 66511]]

OCS requirements. For this action, EPA has reviewed changes that 
Massachusetts has made to its underlying regulatory programs since the 
last consistency update for Massachusetts. This action will have no 
effect on the provisions of 310 CMR 8.00 that were not subject to 
changes by Massachusetts and were also previously incorporated by 
reference into part 55 through EPA's November 13, 2018 rulemaking.
    The EPA is proposing to incorporate the rules potentially 
applicable to sources for which the Commonwealth of Massachusetts will 
be the COA. The rules that the EPA proposes to incorporate are 
applicable provisions of (1) 310 Code of Massachusetts Regulations 
(CMR) 4.00: Timely Action Schedule and Fee Provisions; (2) 310 CMR 
6.00: Ambient Air Quality Standards for the Commonwealth of 
Massachusetts; and (3) 310 CMR 7.00: Air Pollution Control as amended 
through March 5, 2021. The rules that EPA proposes to incorporate in 
this action will replace the provisions of 310 CMR 4.00, 310 CMR 6.00, 
and 310 CMR 7.00 that were previously incorporated into 40 CFR part 55 
for Massachusetts. See 83 FR 56259; November 13, 2018.
    With respect to the Air Pollution Control regulations at 310 CMR 
7.00, Massachusetts is divided into six regions known as air pollution 
control districts, three of which (Merrimack Valley, Metropolitan 
Boston, and Southeastern Massachusetts) are coastal.\3\ Many of the 
specific provisions of the Air Pollution Control regulations are 
limited to certain air pollution control districts, or apply 
differently in different air pollution control districts.
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    \3\ These districts are not associated with separate air 
pollution control agencies; they are purely conceptual.
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    In interpreting such provisions as they are incorporated into 40 
CFR part 55, the EPA proposes to treat any existing or proposed OCS 
source as if it were located in the specific air pollution control 
district that is geographically closest to the source. The EPA is 
relying on this interpretation for purposes of this action. If the EPA 
does not receive comments to the contrary from any party during the 
public comment period, the interpretation stated above will represent 
the EPA's formal interpretations of the provisions incorporated into 40 
CFR part 55 for the purposes of federal law.
    The interpretation discussed above is consistent with the 
interpretation of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts regulations in 
prior Agency actions for the purpose of consistency updates under 40 
CFR part 55. See 83 FR 5971 (February 12, 2018) and 73 FR 10406 
(February 27, 2008).

IV. Incorporation by Reference

    In this rule, the EPA is proposing to include in a final EPA rule 
regulatory text that includes incorporation by reference. In accordance 
with the requirements of 1 CFR 51.5, the EPA is proposing to 
incorporate by reference the Code of Massachusetts Regulations rules 
set forth below. The EPA has made, and will continue to make, these 
materials available through www.regulations.gov and at the EPA Region 1 
Regional Office (please contact the person identified in the FOR 
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this preamble for more 
information).

V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    Under the Clean Air Act, the Administrator is required to establish 
requirements to control air pollution from OCS sources located within 
25 miles of states' seaward boundaries that are the same as onshore air 
pollution control requirements. To comply with this statutory mandate, 
the EPA must incorporate applicable onshore rules into 40 CFR part 55 
as they exist onshore. See 42 U.S.C. 7627(a)(1); 40 CFR 55.12. Thus, in 
promulgating OCS consistency updates, the EPA's role is to maintain 
consistency between OCS regulations and the regulations of onshore 
areas, provided that they meet the criteria of the CAA. Accordingly, 
this action simply updates the existing OCS requirements to make them 
consistent with requirements onshore, without the exercise of any 
policy direction by the EPA. 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 13563 (76 FR 3821, January 21, 2011);
     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 Clean Air Act; and
     Does not provide the 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).
    In addition, this rule does have tribal implications as specified 
by Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000), because it 
does 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, nor does it impose substantial 
direct compliance costs on tribal governments or preempt tribal law.
    This action does not impose any new information collection burden 
under the Paperwork Reduction Act. See 44 U.S.C 3501. The Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) has previously approved the information 
collection activities contained in the existing regulation at 40 CFR 
part 55 and, by extension, this update to part 55, and has assigned OMB 
control number 2060-0249.\4\ This action does not impose a new 
information burden under the Paperwork Reduction Act because this 
action only updates the state rules that are incorporated by reference 
into 40 CFR part 55, Appendix A.
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    \4\ OMB's approval of the ICR can be viewed at www.reginfo.gov.
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List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 55

    Environmental protection, Administrative practice and procedure, 
Air pollution control, Carbon monoxide, Incorporation by reference, 
Intergovernmental relations, Lead, Nitrogen dioxide, Outer continental 
shelf, Ozone, Particulate matter, Permits, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements, Sulfur oxides, Volatile organic compounds.

[[Page 66512]]

    Dated: November 10, 2021.
Deborah Szaro,
Acting Regional Administrator, EPA Region 1.
    Therefore, for the reasons stated in the preamble, EPA proposes to 
amend 40 CFR chapter as follows:

PART 55--OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF AIR REGULATIONS

0
1. The authority citation for part 55 continues to read as follows:

    Authority:  Section 328 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7401 et 
seq.) as amended by Public Law 101-549.

0
2. Section 55.14 is amended by revising paragraph (e)(11)(i)(A) to read 
as follows:

Sec.  55.14   Requirements that apply to OCS sources located within 25 
miles of States' seaward boundaries, by State.

* * * * *
    (e) * * *
    (11) * * *
    (i) * * *

(A) Commonwealth of Massachusetts Requirements Applicable to OCS 
Sources, March 5, 2021.

* * * * *
0
3. Appendix A to part 55 is amended by revising paragraph (a)(1) under 
the heading ``Massachusetts'' to read as follows:

Appendix A to Part 55--Listing of State and Local Requirements 
Incorporated by Reference Into Part 55, by State

* * * * *

Massachusetts

    (a) * * *
    (1) The following Commonwealth of Massachusetts requirements are 
applicable to OCS Sources, March 5, 2021, Commonwealth of 
Massachusetts--Department of Environmental Protection.
    The following sections of 310 CMR 4.00, 310 CMR 6.00, 310 CMR 
7.00 and 310 CMR 8.00:

310 CMR 4.00: Timely Action Schedule and Fee Provisions

Section 4.01: Purpose, Authority and General Provisions (Effective 
5/1/2020)
Section 4.02: Definitions (Effective 5/1/2020)
Section 4.03: Annual Compliance Assurance Fee (Effective 5/1/2020)
Section 4.04: Permit Application Schedules and Fee (Effective 5/1/
2020)
Section 4.10: Appendix: Schedules for Timely Action and Permit 
Application Fees (Effective 5/1/2020)

310 CMR 6.00: Ambient Air Quality Standards for the Commonwealth of 
Massachusetts

Section 6.01: Definitions (Effective 6/14/2019)
Section 6.02: Scope (Effective 6/14/2019)
Section 6.03: Reference Conditions (Effective 6/14/2019)
Section 6.04: Standards (Effective 6/14/2019)

310 CMR 7.00: Air Pollution Control

Section 7.00: Statutory Authority; Legend; Preamble; Definitions 
(Effective 3/5/2021)
Section 7.01: General Regulations to Prevent Air Pollution 
(Effective 3/5/2021)
Section 7.02: U Plan Approval and Emission Limitations (Effective 3/
5/2021)
Section 7.03: U Plan Approval Exemptions: Construction Requirements 
(Effective 3/5/2021)
Section 7.04: U Fossil Fuel Utilization Facilities (Effective 3/5/
2021)
Section 7.05: U Fuels All Districts (Effective 3/5/2021)
Section 7.06: U Visible Emissions (Effective 3/5/2021)
Section 7.07: U Open Burning (Effective 3/5/2021)
Section 7.08: U Incinerators (Effective 3/5/2021)
Section 7.09: U Dust, Odor, Construction and Demolition (Effective 
3/5/2021)
Section 7.11: U Transportation Media (Effective 3/5/2021)
Section 7.12: U Source Registration (Effective 3/5/2021)
Section 7.13: U Stack Testing (Effective 3/5/2021)
Section 7.14: U Monitoring Devices and Reports (Effective 3/5/2021)
Section 7.18: U Volatile and Halogenated Organic Compounds 
(Effective 3/5/2021)
Section 7.19: U Reasonably Available Control Technology (RACT) for 
Sources of Oxides of Nitrogen (NOX) (Effective 3/5/2021)
Section 7.24: U Organic Material Storage and Distribution (Effective 
3/9/2018)
Section 7.25: U Best Available Controls for Consumer and Commercial 
Products (Effective 3/5/2021)
Section 7.26: Industry Performance Standards (Effective 3/5/2021)
Section 7.60: U Severability (Effective 3/5/2021)
7.70: Massachusetts CO Budget Trading Program (Effective 3/5/2021)
7.71: Reporting of Greenhouse Gas Emissions (Effective 3/5/2021)
7.72: Reducing Sulfur Hexafluoride Emissions from Gas-insulated 
Switchgear (Effective 3/5/2021)
Section 7.00: Appendix A (Effective 3/5/2021)
Section 7.00: Appendix B (Effective 3/5/2021)
Section 7.00: Appendix C (Effective 3/5/2021)

310 CMR 8.00: The Prevention and/or Abatement of Air Pollution Episode 
and Air Pollution Incident Emergencies

Section 8.01: Introduction (Effective 3/9/2018)
Section 8.02: Definitions (Effective 3/9/2018)
Section 8.03: Air Pollution Episode Criteria (Effective 3/9/2018)
Section 8.04: Air Pollution Episode Potential Advisories (Effective 
3/9/2018)
Section 8.05: Declaration of Air Pollution Episodes and Incidents 
(Effective 3/9/2018)
Section 8.06: Termination of Air Pollution Episodes and Incident 
Emergencies (Effective 3/9/2018)
Section 8.07: Emission Reductions Strategies (Effective 3/9/2018)
Section 8.08: Emission Reduction Plans (Effective 3/9/2018)
Section 8.15: Air Pollution Incident Emergency (Effective 3/9/2018)
Section 8.30: Severability (Effective 3/9/2018)
    (2) [Reserved]
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2021-25004 Filed 11-22-21; 8:45 am]
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