National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Source Categories: Early Reductions Program High-Risk List Amendment

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 63

[AD-FRL-5094-7]

RIN 2060-AF07

National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for

Source Categories: Early Reductions Program High-Risk List Amendment

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: On December 29, 1992, the EPA promulgated final regulations

implementing the Early Reductions Program under section 112(i)(5) of

the Clean Air Act, as amended (CAA). As part of that rulemaking, EPA

designated a list of high-risk hazardous air pollutants and limited the

use of offsetting reductions in other hazardous air pollutants as

counting towards the required reductions in high-risk pollutants. An

amendment to the high-risk list which would delete acrylic acid because

of EPA's analysis of new toxicological data was proposed in the Federal

Register on June 22, 1994. This final action promulgates this amendment

and deletes acrylic acid from the list of high-risk pollutants as

designated by the Early Reductions Program.

This final action also removes methylene diphenyl diisocyanate

(MDI) (CAS No. 101688) from the list of high-risk pollutants. The EPA's

listing of MDI as a high-risk pollutant was vacated by the United

States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on July

19, 1994.

DATES: Effective Date. October 21, 1994.

Judicial Review. Under section 307(b)(1) of the CAA, judicial

review of the actions taken by this final rule is available only by the

filing of a petition for review in the U.S. District Court of Appeals

for the District of Columbia Circuit within 60 days of publication of

this rule. Under section 307(b)(2) of the CAA, the requirements that

are the subject of this action may not be challenged later in civil or

criminal proceedings brought by the EPA to enforce these requirements.

ADDRESSES: Docket. Docket No. A-94-29, containing supporting

information used in developing the promulgated standards, is available

for public inspection and copying between 8:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m.,

Monday through Friday, at EPA's Air Docket Section, Waterside Mall,

room 1500, 1st floor, 401 M Street, SW., Washington, DC 20460. A

reasonable fee may be charged for copying.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Martha H. Keating, Emission

Standards Division (MD-13), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,

Research Triangle Park, North Carolina 27711, (919) 541-5340.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The information presented in this preamble

is organized as follows:

I. Significant Comments and Summary of the Final Rule

II. Removal of MDI From the High-Risk List

III. Administrative Requirements

I. Significant Comments and Summary of the Final Rule

Based on comments received during the comment period, the EPA is

deleting acrylic acid (CAS. No. 79107) from the list of high-risk

pollutants, as proposed. Three commenters submitted letters supporting

EPA's proposal, with all commenters agreeing that acrylic acid does not

meet the EPA's criteria for listing acrylic acid as a high-risk

pollutant under the Early Reductions Program. As the commenters

appropriately pointed out, the EPA did not propose to revise the

criteria for including a pollutant on the high-risk list. Therefore,

the recent revision of the inhalation reference concentration (RfC) for

acrylic acid (April 1, 1994) is sufficient grounds to delete acrylic

acid from the list.

One commenter addressed issues pertinent to EPA's use of the

Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS). With respect to acrylic

acid, the commenter commended the EPA for considering additional data

that was not previously available when the RfC for acrylic acid was

first included in the IRIS data base. The commenter's specific comments

however, dealt with the EPA's use of IRIS values for cresol isomers in

the context of two other proposed rulemakings. Because this issue is

not pertinent to this action, these comments are not addressed here.

The commenter has also submitted them to EPA in response to a request

for public comment on two other proposed rulemakings that deal with

cresol isomers and the EPA will consider and respond to them at the

time those proposals are finalized.

II. Removal of MDI From the High-Risk List

On July 19, 1994, the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C.

Circuit vacated EPA's designation of MDI as a high-risk pollutant for

purposes of the Early Reductions Program [Chemical Manufacturers

Association (CMA) v. EPA, No. 93-1178 (D.C. Cir.)]. The court found

that EPA was arbitrary and capricious in not adequately addressing

CMA's contentions that MDI was substantially different than the

characteristics of the model pollutant used in the generic modeling

exercise to screen the 189 hazardous air pollutants for inclusion on

the high-risk list. In addition, the court found that it was arbitrary

for EPA to include MDI on the list of high risk pollutants without

identifying any serious health effect with which it had ever been

associated.

Therefore, this final rule deletes MDI from the list of high-risk

pollutants for the purposes of the Early Reductions Program in

accordance with the court's decision.

III. Administrative Requirements

A. Docket

The docket is an organized and complete file of all the information

submitted to or otherwise considered by EPA in the development of this

rulemaking. The principal purposes of the docket are: (1) To allow

interested parties to readily identify and locate documents so they can

intelligently and effectively participate in the rulemaking process;

and (2) to serve as the record in case of judicial review (except for

interagency review materials [section 307(d)(7)(A)]).

B. Paperwork Reduction Act

There are no information collection requirements associated with

this proposed rule. Therefore, an Information Collection Request

document has not been prepared.

C. Executive Order 12866 Review

Under Executive Order 12866 (FR 51735 (October 4, 1993)), EPA must

determine whether a regulation is ``significant'' and therefore subject

to review by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and the

requirements of the Executive Order. The order defines ``significant

regulatory action'' as one that is likely to result in a rule that may:

(1) Have an annual affect on the economy of $100 million or more or

adversely affect in a material way the economy, a sector of the

economy, productivity, competition, jobs, the environment, public

health or safety, or State, local, or tribal governments or

communities;

(2) Create a serious inconsistency or otherwise interfere with an

action taken or planned by another agency;

(3) Materially alter the budgetary impact of entitlement, grants,

user fees, or loan programs, or the rights and obligations of

recipients thereof; or

(4) Raise novel legal or policy issues arising out of legal

mandates, the President's priorities, or the principles set forth in

the Executive Order. Pursuant to the terms of Executive Order 12866, it

has been determined that this rule is a ``non significant regulatory

action''. Accordingly, a regulatory impact analysis has not been

prepared and EPA has not submitted the action to OMB for review.

D. Compliance With Regulatory Flexibility Act

Under section 605 of the Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980, 5

U.S.C. 601 et seq., federal agencies are required to assess the

economic impact of federal regulations on small entities. Pursuant to

the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 605(b), I hereby certify that this rule will

not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small

business entities because the impact of this rule is not significant.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 63

Air pollution control, Early emission reductions, Hazardous air

pollutants, Compliance extensions, Sources.

Dated: October 13, 1994.

Carol M. Browner,

Administrator.

For the reasons set out in the preamble, 40 CFR part 63 is amended

as follows:

PART 63--[AMENDED]

1. The authority citation for part 63 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.

Sec. 63.74 [Amended]

2. In Sec. 63.74 Table 1 entitled ``List of High Risk Pollutants'',

the entry for ``acrylic acid'' (CAS No. 79107) is removed.

3. In Sec. 63.74 Table 1 entitled ``List of High Risk Pollutants'',

the entry for ``methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI)'' (CAS No.

101688) is removed.

[FR Doc. 94-26196 Filed 10-20-94; 8:45 am]

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