Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans Alabama: Approval of Revisions to Alabama State Regulations

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[AL15-1-6050; FRL-4829-4]

Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans Alabama:

Approval of Revisions to Alabama State Regulations

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: EPA is approving revisions to the particulate emission

regulations of the Alabama State Implementation Plan (SIP) submitted by

the State of Alabama through the Alabama Department of Environmental

Management on September 23, 1985. The revisions include specific

regulations for coke ovens for Gulf States Steel Corporation, formerly

Gadsden Steel Company, formerly Republic Steel Corporation. These

regulations were revised to ensure that the National Ambient Air

Quality Standards (NAAQS) for particulate matter will continue to be

maintained in Etowah County, Alabama.

EFFECTIVE DATE: This action will be effective April 5, 1994, unless

notice is received by March 7, 1994, that someone wishes to submit

adverse or critical comments. If the effective date is delayed, timely

notice will be published in the Federal Register.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the State submittal are available for public

review at the following locations:

EPA, Attn: Jerry Kurtzweg, ANR 443, Environmental Protection Agency,

401 M Street SW., Washington DC 20460;

Joey LeVasseur, Regulatory Planning and Development Section, Air

Programs Branch, United States Environmental Protection Agency, Region

IV, 345 Courtland Street NE., Atlanta, Georgia, 30365.

Alabama Department of Environmental Management, 1751 Congressman W. L.

Dickinson Drive, Montgomery, Alabama, 36109.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joey LeVasseur, Regulatory Planning

and Development Section, Air Programs Branch, United States

Environmental Protection Agency, Region IV, 345 Courtland Street NE.,

Atlanta, Georgia, 30365, (404) 347-2864.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On September 23, 1985, the State of Alabama

through the Alabama Department of Environmental Management submitted

revisions to the Alabama SIP to address air emissions from steel mills

located in Etowah County. The air quality with regard to particulate

matter in Etowah County, Alabama, is predominantly influenced by the

operation of Gulf States Steel Corporation. Therefore, mitigation

measures concentrate on those processes peculiar to the making of

steel. The following is a detailed summary of the revisions to the

Alabama SIP which EPA is approving in this action.

The State's original implementation plan for the control of

particulate emissions from steel mills contained two broadly applicable

regulations. Visible emissions were regulated by section 335-3-4-.01

(formerly 4.1) and the amount of particulate mass emitted was regulated

by the general process weight provisions of section 335-3-4-.04

(formerly 4.4). In general, those regulations adequately addressed

particulate emissions from stacks, but could not be effectively applied

to control process fugitive emissions. These regulations were difficult

to enforce because there was no easy or accurate way to measure actual

emissions.

In order to remedy the problems associated with these original

regulations, the State adopted source-specific regulations governing

the distinctive emission processes associated with coke making. The

coke oven regulations were adopted by the Alabama Air Pollution Control

Commission on June 12, 1974. The regulations were submitted to EPA for

approval as a revision to the Alabama SIP on June 20, 1974. EPA

approved the regulations on August 28, 1975 (40 FR 39503). A summary of

these coke oven emission regulations is provided in this notice in

order to provide an understanding of the control strategy pertinent to

this notice. Many of these regulations remain an integral part of the

strategy. The regulations were originally codified under section 4.9

but have been recodified as follows.

Section 335-3-4-.09(2)--This section requires that all reasonable

measures be applied to prevent emissions from the unloading and

transfer of coal and coke.

Section 335-3-4-.09(3), Charging--This section limits charging

emissions to less than 20 percent except for 3 minutes in any hour for

batteries with less than 70 ovens.

Section 335-3-4-.09(4), Pushing--This section forbids any visible

emissions greater that 40 percent during the pushing cycle except for

one push per hour (EPA approved this regulation April 4, 1979 (44 FR

20079)).

Section 335-3-4-.09(5)--This section limits visible emissions to 10

percent at the offtake piping and no more than 5 percent at the

charging lids.

Section 335-3-4-.09(6), Coke Oven Doors--This section provides that

there shall be no visible emissions from more than 15 percent of the

doors of the battery.

Section 335-3-4-.09(7)--This section describes the general

maintenance requirements for coke ovens.

Section 335-3-4-.09(8), Combustion Stacks--This section provides

that there shall be no visible emissions of an opacity greater than 20

percent from any stack except for 3 minutes in any consecutive 60

minutes.

Section 335-3-4-.09(9), Quenching--This section requires that

quench towers be provided with properly operating baffles and provides

for water quality guidelines.

EPA's analysis of emission reductions needed to achieve attainment

of the particulate matter NAAQS resulted in a finding that the proposed

pushing regulation (335-3-4-.09(4)) was inadequate. EPA, therefore,

took no official action on that regulation on August 28, 1975, when the

other regulations were approved, pending the conclusion of additional

studies. Consequently, the State's process weight and general opacity

regulations remained the only federally approved regulation for coke

oven pushing emissions. On April 4, 1979, EPA approved coke oven plan

revisions submitted on July 14, 1978, to attain the national standards

for particulate matter. These regulations were later relaxed to the

1975 version.

Neither of the two regulatory approaches heretofore described

contained specific regulations to limit fugitive particulate emissions

from road dust, parking lots, storage piles, etc. However, these

nontraditional fugitive emissions are now subject to limitations by

permit condition and by the terms of today's final rule.

On March 3, 1978, in accordance with section 107(d) of the CAA, EPA

designated the area surrounding the Gulf States Steel Corporation

facility in Etowah County, Alabama, as nonattainment for total

suspended particulates (TSP). Gulf States Steel Corporation remained

the dominant major point source contributing to the particulate

nonattainment problem in Etowah County.

Section 172 of the Clean Air Act (CAA) requires that plan revisions

assuring the attainment of the NAAQS for particulate matter are to

provide for the implementation of reasonably available control

technology (RACT) as expeditiously as practicable. In response to the

section 107(d) nonattainment designation and call for a particulate SIP

revision for Etowah and Jefferson Counties, Alabama revised its coke

oven pushing and charging regulations to require a RACT level of

control. These regulations were directed specifically to Jefferson and

Etowah Counties and were federally approved on April 4, 1979. These

regulations, however, were never implemented due to legal challenges to

the section 107 redesignation process. On procedural grounds, Republic

Steel and U.S. Steel challenged the validity of EPA's March 3, 1978,

designation of portions of Jefferson and Etowah Counties as

nonattainment areas for TSP.

On May 3, 1979, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals (now the Eleventh

Circuit Court of Appeals) in Republic Steel vs. EPA and U.S. Steel vs.

EPA found that EPA had not adequately complied with the requirements of

the Administrative Procedure Act in its nonattainment designation

action, and directed EPA to initiate the designation process again. On

June 10, 1980, EPA again designated Etowah County as primary

nonattainment for TSP and directed the State to submit a SIP revision.

U.S. Steel and Republic Steel did not appeal this designation of

nonattainment by EPA.

In an order issued July 2, 1979, the Eleventh Circuit Court of

Appeals stayed the effective date of EPA's approval of the 1978 coke

pushing and charging regulations until the nonattainment designation

challenge was resolved. In a second order issued October 23, 1979,

further proceedings in the case were stayed pending EPA's final action

on any new SIP revision that might be required after finalization of

the nonattainment boundaries in Etowah and Jefferson Counties. As part

of the basis of the second stay, EPA agreed not to enforce the 1978

coke pushing regulations pending finalization of the nonattainment

boundaries and EPA's final action on any new SIP revision that may be

required. Thus, neither EPA nor the State enforced the 1978 coke oven

pushing and charging regulations.

In November 1984, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals notified

the Department of Justice and counsel for U.S. Steel and Gadsden Steel

that the Court would not carry this case on its docket indefinitely and

directed counsel to confer and dispose of the case. U.S. Steel and

Gadsden Steel Company (formerly Republic Steel) requested that EPA's

action in adopting 1978 coke oven regulations be vacated or,

alternatively, that the July 1979 stay of enforcement of these

regulations be continued. EPA and the Justice Department disagreed with

the two steel companies, pointing out that the petition for review

lacked ``good cause'' in light of EPA's second (and unchallenged)

designation of parts of Jefferson and Etowah Counties as nonattainment

areas for total suspended particulate matter (TSP). EPA and the Justice

Department reasoned that the 1978 Alabama-submitted coke oven

regulations (which represented Reasonably Available Control Technology)

were needed due to the affected area's nonattainment status. The

parties failed to reach an agreement and filed legal briefs and

memoranda with the court.

On May 14, 1985, the Eleventh Circuit Court dismissed the steel

companies' petitions for review without prejudice. The dismissal of the

case dissolved the July 1979 agreement by EPA to stay enforcement of

the 1978 Alabama coke oven regulations. However, because of the

imminent approval status of this SIP revision, EPA has continued to

refrain from enforcement of the 1978 regulations. Regulations in this

SIP revision will supersede the 1978 coke oven regulations in Etowah

County.

A reduction in particulate emission levels has occurred at the Gulf

States Steel facility due to the enforcement of regulations applying to

steel mills adopted in 1974, along with a fugitive emissions control

program more recently implemented by Gulf States Steel Corporation. To

insure that the reductions associated with the fugitive emissions

control program will continue in the future, ADEM adopted regulations

requiring Gulf States Steel Corporation to continue efforts to reduce

fugitive emissions.

ADEM submitted SIP revisions on June 19, 1985, September 3, 1985,

and September 15, 1985, modifying the particulate control strategy for

Etowah County. The State requested that Etowah County be redesignated

to attainment for TSP. EPA has more recently adopted a particulate

matter standard based on particles with an aerodynamic diameter of less

than 10 microns (PM10). Under the 1990 Amendments, Etowah County does

not have to redesignate to attainment for TSP, and therefore, the EPA

is not acting on the request to redesignate.

The following is a list of the revisions made to Chapter 4 to

control particulate emissions. These revisions are being approved in

today's action.

335-3-4-.17(1) Visible Emissions from roof monitors or other

openings in the basic oxygen furnace (BOF) building, other than water

mist or vapor, shall not exceed a shade or density greater than twenty

percent (20%) opacity as determined on a three (3) minute rolling

average. Compliance shall be determined by using the procedures

specified at 40 CFR part 60, appendix A, Method 9 excluding section

2.5.

335-3-4-.17(2) All paved roads shall be vacuum swept or flushed of

surface material every third consecutive day. The vacuum sweeper shall

have a minimum blower capacity of 12,000 cfm and the flushing machine

shall dispense water at the rate of 0.32 gal/yd.\2\

335-3-4-.17(3) Paved parking areas shall be vacuum swept or

flushed of surface material every calendar quarter. The vacuum sweeper

shall have a minimum blower capacity of 12,000 cfm and the flushing

machine shall dispense water at the rate of 0.32 gal/yd.\2\

335-3-4-.17(4) Paved road or area flushing specified in sections

335-3-4-.17(2) and 335-3-4-.17(3) is not required when the temperature

is below 32 deg.F. Paved road or area cleaning is not required when

precipitation during the previous 24-hour period has exceeded 0.01

inches.

335-3-4-.17(5) Unpaved roads, traffic areas in the slag storage

area, and traffic areas in other material storage areas shall be

treated with petroleum resin, asphalt emulsion, or equivalent dust

suppressant on a quarterly or more frequent basis as determined by the

Director.

335-3-4-.17(6) Unpaved parking lots shall be treated with

petroleum, resin, asphalt emulsion, or equivalent dust suppressant on a

semi-annual basis.

335-3-4-.17(7) The petroleum resin or asphalt emulsion dust

suppressant required in sections 335-3-4-.17(5) and 335-3-4-.17(6)

shall be applied at a dilution ratio of 20% for the initial three

applications and 12% for subsequent applications. The suppressant shall

be applied at the rate of 0.75 gal/yd\2\ of diluted solution. Other

dust suppressants must be applied at an equivalent dilution ratio and

application rate as determined by the Director.

335-3-4-.17(8) The source shall maintain at its plant premises,

and make available for inspection, records documenting each occasion on

which paved areas are cleaned in accordance with sections 335-3-4-

.17(2) and 335-3-4-.17(3), and any occasion on which such paved areas

are not cleaned according to the required schedule, including any

justification for failure to meet the required schedule, such as

equipment breakdown or inclement weather conditions. The company shall

also maintain, and make available for inspection, records documenting

the frequency and amount of applications required by sections 335-3-4-

.17(5) and 335-3-4-.17(6). These records shall be maintained for a

minimum of two years following the date of the recorded information.

335-3-4-.17(9) The source shall, within 30 days of approval of

this section, notify the Department of a designated reclaim area on the

plant property and a designated paved road at its premises to be used

to transport molten slag from the basic oxygen furnace shop to the

reclaim area. These designations shall not be changed without the

written approval of the Director.

These regulations have resulted in an estimated particulate

emission reduction of 1400 tons/year and have allowed Etowah County to

demonstrate measured attainment of the NAAQS for PM10. EPA has

concluded that the revisions are sufficient to allow the area to

continue to attain and maintain the NAAQS for PM10. The approval of

these regulations is accompanied by the caveat that the levels of

control specified for blast furnace casthouses and coke batteries do

not, in the Agency's opinion, represent RACT and would not necessarily

be sufficient for nonattainment areas to achieve compliance with the

NAAQS. It should be noted that there are no sources affected by this

action which receive stack height credits above Good Engineering

Practice (GEP) or any other dispersion technique.

Final Action

EPA is approving the aforementioned revisions to the Alabama SIP.

These revisions are consistent with EPA policy and guidance. This

action is being taken without prior proposal because the changes are

noncontroversial and EPA anticipates no significant comments on them.

The public should be advised that this action will be effective April

5, 1994. However, if notice is received by March 7, 1994 that someone

wishes to submit adverse or critical comments, this action will be

withdrawn and two subsequent notices will be published before the

effective date. One notice will withdraw the final action and another

will begin a new rulemaking by announcing a proposal of the action and

establishing a comment period.

The Agency has reviewed this request for revision of the federally-

approved SIP for conformance with the provisions of the 1990 Amendments

enacted on November 15, 1990. The Agency has determined that this

action conforms with those requirements irrespective of the fact that

the submittal preceded the date of enactment.

Under section 307(b)(1) of the CAA, 42 U.S.C. 7607 (b)(1),

petitions for judicial review of this action must be filed in the

United States Court of Appeals for the appropriate circuit by April 5,

1994. Filing a petition for reconsideration by the Administrator of

this final rule does not affect the finality of this rule for 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) of the CAA, 42 U.S.C. 7607 (b)(2).)

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). On January 6, 1989, the Office of

Management and Budget (OMB) waived tables 2 and 3 SIP revisions (54 FR

2222) from the requirements of section 3 of Executive Order 12291 for

two years. EPA has submitted a request for a permanent waiver for table

2 and table 3 SIP revisions. 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.

Nothing in this action shall be construed as permitting or allowing

or establishing a precedent for any future request for a revision to

any SIP. Each request for 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.

Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 600 et seq., EPA

must prepare a regulatory flexibility analysis assessing the impact of

any proposed or final rule on small entities. (5 U.S.C. 603 and 604)

Alternatively, EPA may certify that the rule will not have a

significant impact on a substantial number of small entities. Small

entities include small businesses, small not-for-profit enterprises,

and government entities with jurisdiction over populations of less than

50,000.

SIP approvals under section 110 and subchapter I, part D of the CAA

do not create any new requirements, but simply approve requirements

that the State is already imposing. Therefore, because the federal SIP-

approval does not impose any new requirements, I certify that it does

not have a significant impact on any small entities affected. Moreover,

due to the nature of the federal-state relationship under the CAA,

preparation of a regulatory flexibility analysis would constitute

federal inquiry into the economic reasonableness of state action. The

CAA forbids EPA to base its actions concerning SIPs on such grounds.

Union Electric Co. v. U.S. E.P.A., 427 U.S. 246, 256-66 (S.Ct. 1976);

42 U.S.C. 7410(a)(2).

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Incorporation by

reference, Intergovernmental relations, Particulate matter, Reporting

and recordkeeping requirements.

Dated: December 17, 1993.

Patrick M. Tobin,

Acting Regional Administrator.

Part 52 of chapter I, title 40, 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 B--Alabama

2. Section 52.50 is amended by adding paragraph (c)(63) to read as

follows:

Sec. 52.50 Identification of plan.

* * * * *

(c) * * *

(63) Provisions for coke ovens were submitted by the Alabama

Department of Environmental Management on September 25, 1985.

(i) Incorporation by reference

(A) Alabama Department of Environmental Management Administrative

Code, Chapter 335-3-4-.17, Steel Mills Located in Etowah County,

adopted September 18, 1985.

(ii) Other material.

(A) None.

* * * * *

[FR Doc. 94-2520 Filed 2-3-94; 8:45 am]

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