Air Plan Approval; Illinois; Indiana; Revised Designation of Illinois and Indiana 2012 PM2.5 Unclassifiable Areas

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 81

[EPA-R05-OAR-2018-0368; EPA-R05-OAR-2018-0556; FRL-9988-38-Region 5]

Air Plan Approval; Illinois; Indiana; Revised Designation of Illinois and Indiana 2012 PM

2.5

Unclassifiable Areas

AGENCY:

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION:

Final rule.

SUMMARY:

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving Illinois' May 8, 2018 request to revise the designation for the entire State of Illinois from unclassifiable to unclassifiable/attainment and Indiana's July 3, 2018 request to revise the designation for the Indiana portions of the Chicago IL-IN and Louisville KY-IN areas from unclassifiable to unclassifiable/attainment for the 2012 primary and secondary annual fine particulate matter (PM

2.5

) National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). EPA is approving these requests because valid, quality-assured, and certified ambient air monitoring data show that the PM

2.5

monitors in the areas are meeting the 2012 primary and secondary annual PM

2.5

NAAQS.

DATES:

This final rule is effective on January 28, 2019.

ADDRESSES:

EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket ID No. EPA-R05-OAR-2018-0368 (Illinois) or EPA-R05-OAR-2018-0556 (Indiana). 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. We recommend that you telephone Michelle Becker, Life Scientist, at (312) 886-3901 before visiting the Region 5 office.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Michelle Becker, Life Scientist, at (312) 886-3901, Attainment Planning and Maintenance Section, Air Programs Branch (AR-18J), Environmental Protection Agency, Region 5, 77 West Jackson Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 60604, (312) 886-3901,

becker.michelle@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Throughout this document whenever “we,” “us,” or “our” is used, we mean EPA. This supplementary information section is arranged as follows:

I. Background

II. What action is EPA taking?

III. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. Background

On December 14, 2012, EPA revised the primary annual NAAQS for PM

2.5

to a level of 12 micrograms per cubic meter (µg/m

3

), based on a 3-year average of annual mean PM

2.5

concentrations. See 78 FR 3085 (January 15, 2013). EPA established the standard based on significant evidence and numerous health studies demonstrating that serious health effects are associated with exposures to particulate matter.

The process for designating areas following promulgation of a new or revised NAAQS is contained in section 107(d)(1) of the Clean Air Act (CAA). On January 15, 2015 (80 FR 2206) and April 7, 2015 (80 FR 18535), EPA designated areas across the country as nonattainment, unclassifiable, or unclassifiable/attainment for the PM

2.5

NAAQS based upon air quality monitoring data from monitors for calendar years 2011-2013 or 2012-2014.

In the first action, EPA designated the entire State of Illinois, including the multi-State areas of Chicago, IL-IN and St. Louis, MO-IL as unclassifiable because the ambient air quality monitoring sites lacked complete data for the relevant periods, which were from 2011-2013. Therefore, EPA could not determine, based on available information, whether those areas were meeting the 2012 PM

2.5

NAAQS. EPA also designated the Louisville, KY-IN area as nonattainment, based on monitoring data for Indiana counties Clark and Floyd for 2011-2013 showing that a monitor in Clark County had a design value above the standard.

However, in the April 7, 2015 (80 FR 18535) action, EPA changed the designation for Louisville, KY-IN area from nonattainment to unclassifiable due to invalid monitoring data for Jefferson County, Kentucky.

On May 8, 2018, Illinois submitted a request to revise the designation for the entire State of Illinois from unclassifiable to unclassifiable/attainment and on July 3, 2018 Indiana submitted a request to revise the designation for the Indiana portions of the Chicago IL-IN and Louisville KY-IN areas from unclassifiable to unclassifiable/attainment for the 2012 annual PM

2.5

NAAQS.

In a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) published on October 9, 2018 (83 FR 50556), EPA proposed to approve Illinois' request to revise the entire State of Illinois from unclassifiable to unclassifiable/attainment, and Indiana's request to similarly revise the designation for the Indiana portions of the Chicago IL-IN and Louisville KY-IN, for the 2012 annual PM

2.5

NAAQS. The details of Illinois' and Indiana's submittals and the rationale for EPA's actions are further explained in the NPRM. EPA did not receive any adverse comments on the proposed action.

II. What action is EPA taking?

EPA is approving Illinois' May 8, 2018 request to revise the designation of the entire State from unclassifiable to unclassifiable/attainment as well as Indiana's July 3, 2018 request to similarly revise the designation of the Indiana portions of the Louisville and Chicago areas for the 2012 annual PM

2.5

NAAQS. The revised designations change the legal designation, found at 40 CFR part 81, for the Illinois and Indiana counties of Lake, Porter, Clark, and Floyd from unclassifiable to unclassifiable/attainment for the 2012 annual PM

2.5

NAAQS.

III. 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 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 Clean Air Act; 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).

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).

The Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 801

et seq.,

as added by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, generally provides that before a rule may take effect, the agency promulgating the rule must submit a rule report, which includes a copy of the rule, to each House of the Congress and to the Comptroller General of the United States. EPA will submit a report containing this action and other required information to the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House of Representatives, and the Comptroller General of the United States prior to publication of the rule in the

Federal Register

. A major rule cannot take effect until 60 days after it is published in the

Federal Register

. 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 February 25, 2019. 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 81

Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Particulate matter.

Dated: December 12, 2018.

Cathy Stepp,

Regional Administrator, Region 5.

40 CFR part 81 is amended as follows:

PART 81—DESIGNATION OF AREAS FOR AIR QUALITY PLANNING PURPOSES

1. The authority citation for part 81 continues to read as follows:

Authority:

42 U.S.C. 7401,

et seq.

2. Section 81.314 is amended by removing the table entitled “Illinois—2012 24-Hour PM

2.5

NAAQS” and adding the table entitled “Illinois—2012 Annual PM

2.5

NAAQS” in its place to read as follows:

§ 81.314

Illinois.

Illinois—2012 Annual PM

2.5

NAAQS

[Primary]

Designated area

1

Designation

Date

2

Type

Classification

Date

2

Type

Chicago, IL-IN:

Cook County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

DuPage County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Grundy County (part)

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Goose Lake and Aux Sable Townships

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Kane County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Kendall County (part)

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Oswego Township

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Lake County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

McHenry County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Will County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IL:

Rock Island County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Henry County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Mercer County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

St. Louis, MO-IL:

Madison County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Monroe County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Randolph County (part)

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Baldwin Village

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

St. Clair County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Rest of State:

Adams County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Alexander County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Bond County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Boone County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Brown County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Bureau County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Calhoun County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Carroll County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Cass County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Champaign County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Christian County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Clark County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Clay County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Clinton County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Coles County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Crawford County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Cumberland County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

DeKalb County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

De Witt County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Douglas County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Edgar County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Edwards County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Effingham County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Fayette County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Ford County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Franklin County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Fulton County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Gallatin County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Greene County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Grundy County (remainder)

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Hamilton County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Hancock County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Hardin County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Henderson County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Iroquois County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Jackson County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Jasper County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Jefferson County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Jersey County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Jo Daviess County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Johnson County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Kankakee County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Kendall County (remainder)

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Knox County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

La Salle County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Lawrence County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Lee County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Livingston County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Logan County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

McDonough County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

McLean County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Macon County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Macoupin County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Marion County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Marshall County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Mason County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Massac County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Menard County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Montgomery County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Morgan County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Moultrie County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Ogle County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Peoria County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Perry County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Piatt County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Pike County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Pope County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Pulaski County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Putnam County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Randolph County (remainder)

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Richland County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Saline County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Sangamon County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Schuyler County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Scott County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Shelby County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Stark County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Stephenson County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Tazewell County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Union County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Vermilion County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Wabash County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Warren County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Washington County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Wayne County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

White County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Whiteside County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Williamson County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Winnebago County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Woodford County

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

1

Includes Indian Country located in each county or area, except as otherwise specified.

2

This date is January 28, 2019, unless otherwise noted.

3. Section 81.315 is amended by revising the entries “Louisville, KY-IN:” and “Chicago Area, IL-IN:” in the table entitled “Indiana—2012 Annual PM

2.5

NAAQS” to read as follows:

§ 81.315

Indiana.

Indiana—2012 Annual PM

2.5

NAAQS

[Primary]

Designated area

1

Designation

Date

2

Type

Classification

Date

2

Type

Louisville, KY-IN:

Clark County

1/28/2018

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Floyd County

1/28/2018

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Chicago Area, IL-IN:

Lake County

1/28/2018

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

Porter County

1/28/2018

Unclassifiable/Attainment.

*         *         *         *         *         *         *

1

Includes areas of Indian country located in each county or area, except as otherwise specified.

2

This date is April 15, 2015, unless otherwise noted.

[FR Doc. 2018-27903 Filed 12-26-18; 8:45 am]

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