Clean Air Act Approval and Promulgation of PM-10 Implementation Plan for Colorado

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[CO32-1-6417; FRL-4894-5]

Clean Air Act Approval and Promulgation of PM-10 Implementation

Plan for Colorado

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: In this action, the EPA is approving the State implementation

plan (SIP) submitted by the State of Colorado for the purposes of

bringing about the attainment of the National ambient air quality

standards (NAAQS) for particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter

less than or equal to a nominal 10 micrometers (PM-10). The SIP was

submitted by the State on May 27, 1993 to satisfy certain Federal

requirements for an approvable nonattainment area PM-10 plan for Lamar,

Colorado.

EFFECTIVE DATE: This rule will become effective on July 11, 1994.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the State's submittal and other information are

available for inspection during normal business hours at the following

locations: Air Programs Branch, Environmental Protection Agency, Region

VIII, 999 18th Street, suite 500, Denver, Colorado 80202-2466; and Air

Pollution Control Division, Colorado Department of Health, 4300 Cherry

Creek Drive South, Denver, Colorado 80222-1530.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Vicki Stamper, 8ART-AP, Environmental

Protection Agency, Region VIII, 999 18th Street, suite 500, Denver,

Colorado 80202-2466, (303) 293-1765.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Lamar, Colorado was designated nonattainment for PM-10 and

classified as moderate under sections 107(d)(4)(B) and 188(a) of the

Clean Air Act (Act) upon enactment of the Clean Air Act Amendments of

1990.1 (See 56 FR 56694, November 6, 1991; 40 CFR 81.306

(specifying nonattainment designation for Lamar.)) The air quality

planning requirements for moderate PM-10 nonattainment areas are set

out in subparts 1 and 4 of part D of title I of the Act. The EPA has

issued a ``General Preamble'' describing EPA's preliminary views on how

EPA intends to review SIPs and SIP revisions submitted under title I of

the Act, including those State submittals containing moderate PM-10

nonattainment area SIP requirements (see generally 57 FR 13498 (April

16, 1992) and 57 FR 18070 (April 28, 1992)). Because EPA is describing

its interpretations here only in broad terms, the reader should refer

to the General Preamble for a more detailed discussion of the

interpretations of title I advanced in this final action and the

supporting rationale.

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\1\The 1990 Amendments to the Clean Air Act made significant

changes to the Act. See Public Law No. 101-549, 104 Stat. 2399.

References herein are to the Clean Air Act, as amended (``the

Act''). The Clean Air Act is codified, as amended, in the U.S. Code

at 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.

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Those states containing initial moderate PM-10 nonattainment areas

(i.e., those areas designated nonattainment for PM-10 under section

107(d)(4)(B) of the Act) were required to submit, among other things,

the following provisions by November 15, 1991:

1. Provisions to assure that reasonably available control measures

(RACM) (including such reductions in emissions from existing sources in

the area as may be obtained through the adoption, at a minimum, of

reasonably available control technology-RACT) shall be implemented no

later than December 10, 1993;

2. Either a demonstration (including air quality modeling) that the

plan will provide for attainment as expeditiously as practicable but no

later than December 31, 1994, or a demonstration that attainment by

that date is impracticable;

3. Quantitative milestones which are to be achieved every 3 years

and which demonstrate reasonable further progress (RFP) toward

attainment by December 31, 1994; and

4. Provisions to assure that the control requirements applicable to

major stationary sources of PM-10 also apply to major stationary

sources of PM-10 precursors except where the Administrator determines

that such sources do not contribute significantly to PM-10 levels which

exceed the NAAQS in the area. See sections 172(c), 188, and 189 of the

Act.

Some provisions were due at a later date. States with initial

moderate PM-10 nonattainment areas were required to submit a permit

program for the construction and operation of new and modified major

stationary sources of PM-10 by June 30, 1992 (see section 189(a)).

Revisions to satisfy these requirements were submitted by the State on

January 14, 1993, and EPA will be taking action on these requirements

in a separate Federal Register document. Such States were also required

to submit contingency measures by November 15, 1993 which become

effective without further action by the State or EPA, upon a

determination by EPA that the area has failed to achieve RFP or to

attain the PM-10 NAAQS by the applicable statutory deadline. (See

section 172(c)(9) of the Act and 57 FR 13543-13544.) The State

submitted PM-10 contingency measures for the Lamar PM-10 nonattainment

area on December 9, 1993. EPA will take action on these contingency

measures in a separate Federal Register document.

On April 6, 1994, EPA announced its proposed approval of the Lamar,

Colorado PM-10 nonattainment area SIP as meeting those moderate PM-10

nonattainment area requirements due on November 15, 1991 (see 59 FR

16158-16162). In that proposed rulemaking action and related Technical

Support Document (TSD), EPA described in detail its interpretations of

title I and its rationale for proposing to approve the Lamar moderate

nonattainment area PM-10 SIP, taking into consideration the specific

factual issues presented. EPA requested public comments on all aspects

of the proposed rulemaking pertaining to Lamar (see 59 FR 16162). No

comments were received on the proposed rulemaking.

This Action

Section 110(k) of the Act sets out provisions governing EPA's

review of SIP submittals (see 57 FR 13565-13566). On May 27, 1993, the

Governor of Colorado submitted revisions to the SIP which were intended

to satisfy those moderate PM-10 nonattainment area SIP requirements due

for Lamar on November 15, 1991. As described in EPA's notice of

proposed approval of this SIP submittal, the Lamar moderate PM-10

nonattainment area plan includes, among other things: (1) A

comprehensive and accurate emissions inventory; (2) reliance on

existing Federal control measures that satisfy the RACM requirement;

(3) a demonstration (including air quality modeling) that attainment of

the PM-10 NAAQS will be achieved in Lamar by December 31, 1994 and

maintained through December 31, 1997; (4) an explanation that the

implementation of available control measures are not reasonably

required for attainment and maintenance of the PM-10 NAAQS in Lamar,

thus satisfying the November 15, 1994 quantitative milestone and RFP

requirements; and (5) enforceability documentation. In that document,

EPA also proposed to determine that major sources of precursors of PM-

10 do not contribute significantly to PM-10 levels in excess of the

NAAQS in Lamar. Please refer to EPA's April 6, 1994 notice of proposed

rulemaking (59 FR 16158-16162) and the TSD for that action for a more

detailed discussion of these elements of the Lamar plan.

EPA finds that the State of Colorado's PM-10 SIP for the Lamar

moderate PM-10 nonattainment area meets the RACM, including RACT,

requirement. Wind erosion from agricultural lands was identified as the

principal contributor to the PM-10 nonattainment problem in Lamar and,

therefore, was targeted for control in the SIP. The State chose to rely

on the soil conservation measures of the Federal Food Security Act

(FSA) to control emissions from agricultural land wind erosion. While

the State is relying on these provisions to reduce PM-10 emissions from

wind erosion in the Lamar area, the State did not adopt these measures

into the SIP because these measures are federally-mandated and will be

implemented by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Further, no credit

was taken for these measures because of the difficulty in estimating

the effectiveness of these measures and because no credit was needed to

demonstrate attainment or maintenance of the PM-10 NAAQS in Lamar.

Nevertheless, EPA does believe that the provisions of the FSA will have

a significant impact on the emissions from wind erosion from

agricultural land in the Lamar area. It does not appear that applying

further control measures to these or other sources would expedite

attainment. Thus, EPA believes the Lamar PM-10 moderate nonattainment

area plan has adequately satisfied the RACM (including RACT)

requirement.

A more detailed discussion of the individual source contributions,

their associated control measures (including available control

technology) and an explanation of why certain available control

measures were not implemented, can be found in the TSD accompanying

EPA's proposed approval of the Lamar moderate PM-10 nonattainment area

SIP.

The Lamar PM-10 nonattainment area plan adequately demonstrates

that the Lamar area will attain the PM-10 NAAQS by December 31, 1994

and maintain the PM-10 NAAQS through December 31. 1997. Thus, EPA

believes the State has met all of the moderate PM-10 nonattainment area

requirements for the Lamar moderate PM-10 nonattainment area which were

due to EPA on November 15, 1991 and submitted by the State on May 27,

1993. By this action, EPA is approving the Lamar PM-10 moderate

nonattainment area plan.

In this document, EPA is also announcing its determination that

major stationary sources of precursors of PM-10 do not contribute

significantly to PM-10 levels in excess of the NAAQS in Lamar.2

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\2\The consequences of this finding are to exclude these sources

from the applicability of PM-10 nonattainment area control

requirements. Note that EPA's finding is based on the current

character of the area including, for example, the existing mix of

sources in the area. It is possible, therefore, that future growth

could change the significance of precursors in the area.

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Nothing in this action should be construed as permitting or

allowing or establishing a precedent for any future request for a

revision to any SIP. Each request for a revision to the SIP shall be

considered separately in light of specific technical, economic, and

environmental factors, and in relation to relevant statutory and

regulatory requirements.

Final Action

This document makes final the action proposed on April 6, 1994 (59

FR 16158). As noted elsewhere in this final action, EPA received no

public comments on the proposed action. As a direct result, the

Regional Administrator has reclassified this action from Table 2 to

Table 3 under the processing procedures established at 54 FR 2214,

January 19, 1989.

This action has been classified as a Table 3 action by the Regional

Administrator under the procedures published in the Federal Register on

January 19, 1989 (54 FR 2214-2225), as revised by an October 4, 1993

memorandum from Michael H. Shapiro, Acting Assistant Administrator for

Air and Radiation. A future document will inform the general public of

these tables. On January 6, 1989, the Office of Management and Budget

(OMB) waived Table 2 and Table 3 SIP revisions (54 FR 2222) from the

requirements of Section 3 of Executive Order 12291 for 2 years. The EPA

has submitted a request for a permanent waiver for Table 2 and Table 3

SIP revisions. The OMB has agreed to continue the waiver until such

time as it rules on EPA's request. This request continues in effect

under Executive Order 12866 which superseded Executive Order 12291 on

September 30, 1993. The OMB has exempted this regulatory action from

Executive Order 12866 review.

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 August 8, 1994. 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 file, 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, Hydrocarbons,

Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen dioxide, Particulate matter,

Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Sulfur dioxide, Volatile

organic compounds.

Dated: June 1, 1994.

Nola Y. Cooke,

Acting Regional Administrator.

Part 52, chapter I, title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations is

amended as follows:

PART 52--[AMENDED]

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

Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401-7671q.

Subpart G--Colorado

2. Section 52.332 is amended by adding paragraph (c) to read as

follows:

Sec. 52.332 Moderate PM-10 nonattainment area plans.

* * * * *

(c) On May 27, 1993, the Governor of Colorado submitted the

moderate PM-10 nonattainment area plan for the Lamar area. The

submittal was made to satisfy those moderate PM-10 nonattainment area

SIP requirements which were due for Lamar on November 15, 1991.

[FR Doc. 94-14015 Filed 6-8-94; 8:45 am]

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