Source: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2001/05/16/01-12039/approval-of-section-112l-authority-for-hazardous-air-pollutants-equivalency-by-permit-provisions
Timestamp: 2018-03-22 06:35:31
Document Index: 224627193

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 63', 'art 63', '§\u200963', 'art 63', '§\u200963', '§\u200963', '§\u200912']

Federal Register :: Approval of Section 112(l) Authority for Hazardous Air Pollutants; Equivalency by Permit Provisions; National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants From the Pulp and Paper Industry; State of New Hampshire
Approval of Section 112(l) Authority for Hazardous Air Pollutants; Equivalency by Permit Provisions; National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants From the Pulp and Paper Industry; State of New Hampshire
This rule is effective on July 16, 2001 without further notice, unless EPA receives adverse comments by June 15, 2001. If EPA receives such comment, then it will publish a timely withdrawal in the Federal Register informing the public that this rule will not take effect.
66 FR 27032
FRL-6978-8
01-12039
https://www.federalregister.gov/d/01-12039 https://www.federalregister.gov/d/01-12039
Pursuant to section 112(l) of the Clean Air Act (CAA), New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (NH DES) requested approval to implement and enforce State permit terms and conditions that substitute for the National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants from the Pulp and Paper Industry and the National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Chemical Recovery Combustion Sources at Kraft, Soda, Sulfite and Stand-Alone Semi-chemical Pulp Mills. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has reviewed this request and has found that it satisfies all of the requirements necessary to qualify for approval. Thus, EPA is hereby granting NH DES the authority to implement and enforce alternative requirements in the form of title V permit terms and conditions after EPA has approved the state's alternative requirements.
Written comments must be submitted to Steven Rapp, Manager, Air Permits Program Unit, Office of Ecosystem Protection (mail code CAP) at the EPA New England office listed below. Copies of NH DES's request for approval are available for public inspection at the following locations:
Susan Lancey, Office of Ecosystem Protection, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA-New England, One Congress Street, Suite 1100, Boston, MA 02114-2023, Telephone: (617) 918-1656.
On April 15, 1998, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) promulgated the National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants from the Pulp and Paper Industry (see 63 FR 18617), which has been codified in 40 CFR part 63, subpart S, “National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants from the Pulp and Paper Industry” (Pulp and Paper MACT I). Subsequently, on January 12, 2001, EPA promulgated the National Emission Standard for Hazardous Air Pollutants from the Pulp and Paper Industry (see 66 FR 3180) which has been codified in 40 CFR part 63, subpart MM, “National Emission Standards for Chemical Recovery Combustion Sources at Kraft, Soda, Sulfite and Stand-Alone Semichemical Pulp Mills' (Pulp and Paper MACT II). The only sources currently subject to subpart S and subpart MM in New Hampshire are Groveton Paper Board Inc. of Groveton, NH (Groveton) and Pulp & Paper of America, LLC of Berlin, NH (Pulp & Paper of America).
On January 23, 2001, New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (NH DES) requested delegation of subpart S and subpart MM under § 63.94 for both Groveton and Pulp & Paper of America. EPA received the request on January 30, 2001. NH DES requested to implement and enforce approved alternative title V permit terms and conditions in place of the otherwise applicable requirements of subpart S and subpart MM under the process outlined in 40 CFR 63.94. As part of its request to implement and enforce approved alternative title V permit terms and conditions in place of the otherwise applicable Federal section 112 standards, NH DES also requested approval of its demonstration that NH DES has adequate authorities and resources to implement and enforce all Clean Air Act (CAA) section 112 programs and rules. The purpose of this demonstration is to streamline the approval process for future CAA section 112(l) applications.
Under CAA section 112(l), EPA may approve state or local rules or programs to be implemented and enforced in place of certain otherwise applicable CAA section 112 Federal rules, emission standards, or requirements. The Federal regulations governing EPA's approval of state and local rules or programs under section 112(l) are located at 40 CFR part 63, subpart E (see 65 FR 55810, dated September 14, 2000). Under these regulations, a local air pollution control agency has the option to request EPA's approval to substitute alternative Start Printed Page 27033requirements and authorities that take the form of permit terms and conditions instead of source category-specific regulations. This option is referred to as the equivalency by permit (EBP) option. To receive EPA approval using this option, the requirements of 40 CFR 63.91 and 63.94 must be met.
The EBP process comprises three steps. The first step (see 40 CFR 63.94(a) and (b)) is the “up-front approval” of the state EBP program. The second step (see 40 CFR 63.94(c) and (d)) is EPA review and approval of the state alternative section 112 requirements in the form of pre-draft permit terms and conditions. The third step (see 40 CFR 63.94(e)) is incorporation of the approved pre-draft permit terms and conditions into specific title V permit and the title V permit issuance process itself. The final approval of the state alternative requirements that substitute for the Federal standard does not occur for purposes of the Act, section 112(l)(5), until the completion of step three.
The purpose of step one, the “up-front approval” of the EBP program, is three fold: (1) It ensures that NH DES meets the 63.91(b) criteria for up-front approval common to all approval options; (2) it provides a legal foundation for NH DES to replace the otherwise applicable Federal section 112 requirements with alternative, federally enforceable requirements that will be reflected in final title V permit terms and conditions; and (3) it delineates the specific sources and Federal emission standards for which NH DES will be accepting delegation under the EBP option.
Under § 63.94(b) and § 63.91, NH's request for approval is required to include the identification of the sources and the source categories for which the state is seeking authority to implement and enforce alternative requirements, as well as a one time demonstration that the State has an approved title V operating permit program that permits the affected sources. After reviewing the request for approval of NH DES's EBP program for subpart S and subpart MM, EPA has determined that this request meets all the requirements necessary to qualify for approval under CAA section 112(l) and 40 CFR 63.91 and 63.94. Accordingly, EPA approves NH DES's request to implement and enforce alternative requirements in the form of title V permit terms and conditions for Groveton and Pulp & Paper of America for subpart S and subpart MM. The requirement applicable to the sources and the “applicable requirement” for title V purposes remains the Federal section 112 requirement until EPA has approved the alternative permit terms and conditions and the final title V permit is issued.
This final rule does not have tribal implications. It will not have substantial direct effects on tribal governments, 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 in Executive Order 13175. This Federal action allows the state of New Hampshire to implement equivalent alternative permit requirements to replace pre-existing requirements under Federal law and does not have tribal implications. Thus, Executive Order 13175 does not apply to this rule.
This final rule does not have federalism implications. It will 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. This action simply allows New Hampshire to implement equivalent alternative requirements to replace a Federal standard, and does not alter the relationship or the distribution of power and responsibilities established in the Clean Air Act. Thus, Executive Order 13132 does not apply to this rule.
The Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), as amended by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996 (SBREFA), 5 U.S.C 601 et seq. generally requires an agency to prepare a regulatory flexibility analysis of any rule subject to notice and comment rulemaking requirements under the Administrative Procedure Act or any other statute unless the agency certifies that the rule will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. Small entities include small businesses, small not-for-profit enterprises, and small governmental entities with jurisdiction over populations of less than 50,000. This final rule will not have a significant impact on a substantial number of small entities because approvals under 40 CFR 63.94 do not create any new requirements but simply allows the state to implement and enforce permit terms in place of federal requirements that the EPA is already imposing. Therefore, because this approval does not create any new requirements, I certify that this action will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.
Under section 202 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (“Unfunded Mandates Act”), signed into law on March 22, 1995, EPA must prepare a budgetary impact statement to accompany any proposed or final rule that includes a Federal mandate that may result in estimated annual costs to state, local, or tribal governments in the aggregate, or to private sector, of $100 million or more. Under section 205, EPA must select the most cost-effective and least burdensome alternative that achieves the objectives of the rule and Start Printed Page 27034is consistent with statutory requirements. Section 203 requires EPA to establish a plan for informing and advising any small governments that may be significantly or uniquely impacted by the rule.
EPA has determined that the approval action promulgated does not include a Federal mandate that may result in estimated annual costs of $100 million or more to either state, local, or tribal governments in the aggregate, or to the private sector. This Federal action allows New Hampshire to implement equivalent alternative requirements to replace pre-existing requirements under Federal law, and imposes no new requirements. Accordingly, no additional costs to state, local, or tribal governments, or to the private sector, result from this action.
Section 12(d) of the National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 (“NTTAA”), Public Law No. 104-113, § 12(d) (15 U.S.C. 272 note) directs EPA to use voluntary consensus standards in its regulatory activities unless to do so would be inconsistent with applicable law or otherwise impractical. Voluntary consensus standards are technical standards (e.g., materials specifications, test methods, sampling procedures, and business practices) that are developed or adopted by voluntary consensus standards bodies. The NTTAA directs EPA to provide Congress, through OMB, explanations when the Agency decides not to use available and applicable voluntary consensus standards. This action does not involve technical standards. Therefore, EPA did not consider the use of any voluntary consensus standards.
Under section 307(b)(1) of the Clean Air Act, petitions for judicial review of this action must be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for the appropriate circuit by July 16, 2001. 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 may not be challenged later in proceedings to enforce its requirements (see section 307(b)(2)).
2. Section 63.99 is amended by adding paragraphs (a)(29)(i)and (a)(29)(ii) to read as follows:
(ii) New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (NH DES) may implement and enforce alternative requirements in the form of title V permit terms and conditions for Groveton Paper Board Inc. of Groveton, NH and Pulp & Paper of America, LLC of Berlin, NH for subpart S—National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants from the Pulp and Paper Industry and subpart MM—National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Chemical Recovery Combustion Sources at Kraft, Soda, Sulfite and Stand-Alone Semi-chemical Pulp Mills. This action is contingent upon NH DES including, in title V permits, terms and conditions that are no less stringent than the Federal standard and have been approved by EPA. In addition, the requirement applicable to the source remains the Federal section 112 requirement until EPA has approved the alternative permit terms and conditions and the final title V permit is issued.
[FR Doc. 01-12039 Filed 5-15-01; 8:45 am]