Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans; California State Implementation Plan Revision, Bay Area Air Quality Management District

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[OAQPS CA 102-4-6757; FRL-5152-3]

Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans; California

State Implementation Plan Revision, Bay Area Air Quality Management

District

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).

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SUMMARY: EPA is proposing to approve revisions to the California State

Implementation Plan (SIP) which concern the control of volatile organic

compound (VOC) emissions from light [[Page 7932]] and medium duty motor

vehicle assembly plants, from the surface coating of large appliances

and metal furniture, from wood coating operations, and from air

stripping and soil vapor extraction operations.

The intended effect of proposing approval of these rules is to

regulate emissions of VOCs in accordance with the requirements of the

Clean Air Act, as amended in 1990 (CAA or the Act). EPA's final action

on this notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) will incorporate these

rules into the federally approved SIP. EPA has evaluated each of these

rules and is proposing to approve them under provisions of the CAA

regarding EPA action on SIP submittals, SIPs for national primary and

secondary ambient air quality standards and plan requirements for

nonattainment areas.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before March 13, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed to: Daniel A. Meer, Rulemaking

Section (A-5-3), Air and Toxics Division, U.S. Environmental Protection

Agency, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105-3901.

Copies of the rules and EPA's evaluation report of each rule are

available for public inspection at EPA's Region 9 office during normal

business hours. Copies of the submitted rules are also available for

inspection at the following locations:

California Air Resources Board, Stationary Source Division, Rule

Evaluation Section, 2020 ``L'' Street, Sacramento, CA 95814

Bay Area Air Quality Management District, 939 Ellis Street, San

Francisco, CA 94109

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nikole Reaksecker, Rulemaking Section

(A-5-3), Air and Toxics Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,

Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105-3901. (415)

744-1187.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Applicability

The rules being proposed for approval into the California SIP

include: Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD), Regulation

8, Rule 13 (Rule 8-13), Light and Medium Duty Motor Vehicle Assembly

Plants; Regulation 8, Rule 14 (Rule 8-14), Surface Coating of Large

Appliances and Metal Furniture; Regulation 8, Rule 23 (Rule 8-23),

Coating of Flat Wood Paneling and Wood Flat Stock; and Regulation 8,

Rule 47 (Rule 8-47), Air Stripping and Soil Vapor Extraction

Operations. These rules were submitted by the California Air Resources

Board (CARB) to EPA on September 28, 1994.

Background

On March 3, 1978, EPA promulgated a list of ozone nonattainment

areas under the provisions of the Clean Air Act, as amended in 1977

(1977 CAA or pre-amended Act), that included the San Francisco Bay

Area. 43 FR 8964; 40 CFR 81.305. Because this area was unable to meet

the statutory attainment date of December 31, 1982, California

requested under section 172(a)(2), and EPA approved, an extension of

the attainment date to December 31, 1987. (40 CFR 52.222) On May 26,

1988, EPA notified the Governor of California, pursuant to section

110(a)(2)(H) of the pre-amended Act, that the above district's portion

of the California SIP was inadequate to attain and maintain the ozone

standard and requested that deficiencies in the existing SIP be

corrected (EPA's SIP-Call). On November 15, 1990, the Clean Air Act

Amendments of 1990 were enacted. Public Law 101-549, 104 Stat. 2399,

codified at 42 U.S.C. 7401-7671q. In amended section 182(a)(2)(A) of

the CAA, Congress statutorily adopted the requirement that

nonattainment areas fix their deficient reasonably available control

technology (RACT) rules for ozone and established a deadline of May 15,

1991 for states to submit corrections of those deficiencies.

Section 182(a)(2)(A) applies to areas designated as nonattainment

prior to enactment of the amendments and classified as marginal or

above as of the date of enactment. It requires such areas to adopt and

correct RACT rules pursuant to pre-amended section 172(b) as

interpreted in pre-amendment guidance.1 EPA's SIP-Call used that

guidance to indicate the necessary corrections for specific

nonattainment areas. The San Francisco Bay Area is classified as

moderate;2 therefore, this area was subject to the RACT fix-up

requirement and the May 15, 1991 deadline.

\1\Among other things, the pre-amendment guidance consists of

those portions of the proposed Post-1987 ozone and carbon monoxide

policy that concern RACT, 52 FR 45044 (November 24, 1987); ``Issues

Relating to VOC Regulation Cutpoints, Deficiencies, and Deviations,

Clarification to Appendix D of November 24, 1987 Federal Register

Notice'' (Blue Book) (notice of availability was published in the

Federal Register on May 25, 1988); and the existing control

technique guidelines (CTGs).

\2\The San Francisco Bay Area retained its designation of

nonattainment and was classified by operation of law pursuant to

sections 107(d) and 181(a) upon the date of enactment of the CAA.

See 55 FR 56694 (November 6, 1991).

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The State of California submitted many revised RACT rules for

incorporation into its SIP on September 28, 1994, including the rules

being acted on in this document. This document addresses EPA's proposed

action for BAAQMD's Rules 8-13, 8-14, 8-23, and 8-47. BAAQMD adopted

Rule 8-14 on June 1, 1994, and adopted Rules 8-13, 8-23 and 8-47 on

June 15, 1994. These submitted rules were found to be complete on

November 22, 1994 pursuant to EPA's completeness criteria that are set

forth in 40 CFR part 51, appendix V3 and are being proposed for

approval into the SIP.

\3\EPA adopted the completeness criteria on February 16, 1990

(55 FR 5830) and, pursuant to section 110(k)(1)(A) of the CAA,

revised the criteria on August 26, 1991 (56 FR 42216).

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Rule 8-13 controls VOC emissions from light and medium duty motor

vehicle assembly plants. Rule 8-14 controls VOC emissions from the

surface coating of large appliances and metal furniture. Rule 8-23

controls VOC emissions from the coating of flat wood paneling and wood

flat stock. Rule 8-47 limits VOC emissions from new and modified air

stripping and soil vapor extraction equipment used for the treatment of

contaminated groundwater and soil. VOCs contribute to the production of

ground level ozone and smog. The rules were adopted as part of the

District's efforts to achieve the National Ambient Air Quality Standard

(NAAQS) for ozone and in response to EPA's SIP-Call and the section

182(a)(2)(A) CAA requirement. The following is EPA's evaluation and

proposed action for these rules.

EPA Evaluation and Proposed Action

In determining the approvability of a VOC rule, EPA must evaluate

the rule for consistency with the requirements of the CAA and EPA

regulations, as found in section 110 and part D of the CAA and 40 CFR

part 51 (Requirements for Preparation, Adoption, and Submittal of

Implementation Plans). The EPA interpretation of these requirements,

which forms the basis for today's action, appears in the various EPA

policy guidance documents listed in footnote 1. Among those provisions

is the requirement that a VOC rule must, at a minimum, provide for the

implementation of RACT for stationary sources of VOC emissions. This

requirement was carried forth from the pre-amended Act.

For the purpose of assisting state and local agencies in developing

RACT rules, EPA prepared a series of Control Technique Guideline (CTG)

documents. The CTGs are based on the underlying requirements of the Act

and specify the presumptive norms for what is RACT [[Page 7933]] for

specific source categories. Under the CAA, Congress ratified EPA's use

of these documents, as well as other Agency policy, for requiring

States to ``fix-up'' their RACT rules. See section 182(a)(2)(A). The

CTG applicable to BAAQMD's Rule 8-13 is entitled ``Control of Volatile

Organic Emissions from Stationary Sources--Volume II: Surface Coating

of Cans, Coils, Paper, Fabrics, Automobiles, and Light-Duty Trucks'',

EPA-450/2-77-008. The CTGs applicable to BAAQMD's Rule 8-14 are

entitled ``Control of Volatile Organic Emissions from Existing

Stationary Sources--Volume V: Surface Coating of Large Appliances'',

EPA-450/2-77-034, and ``Control of Volatile Organic Emissions from

Existing Stationary Sources--Volume III: Surface Coating of Metal

Furniture'', EPA-450/2-77-032. The CTG applicable to BAAQMD's Rule 8-23

is entitled ``Control of Volatile Organic Emissions from Existing

Stationary Sources--Volume VII: Factory Surface Coating of Flat Wood

Paneling'', EPA-450/2-78-032. Rule 8-47 controls emissions from a

source category for which EPA has not developed a CTG. Consequently,

Rule 8-47 was evaluated against the general RACT requirements of the

Clean Air Act (section 110 and part D), 40 CFR part 51, and other EPA

policy including the EPA Region IX/CARB document entitled, Guidance

Document for Correcting VOC Rule Deficiencies, April 1991. Further

interpretations of EPA policy are found in the Blue Book, referred to

in footnote 1. In general, these guidance documents have been set forth

to ensure that VOC rules are fully enforceable and strengthen or

maintain the SIP.

BAAQMD's submitted Rule 8-13 includes the following significant

changes from the current SIP:

deletes exemptions for miscellaneous coatings and

constrained coating lines,

incorporates applicable coating limits from two other

BAAQMD rules (Rules 8-19 and 8-31) into Rule 8-13,

establishes VOC limits on a ``solids-applied basis'',

adds and changes several definitions,

develops a new compliance schedule,

revises recordkeeping section to require monthly records

instead of annual records,

adds recordkeeping requirements for air pollution

abatement equipment,

includes EPA Test Methods 24 and 24A as test methods that

can be used to determine compliance.

BAAQMD's submitted Rule 8-14 includes the following significant

changes from the current SIP:

reduces low usage coating exemption amount to 55 gallons,

adds a definition for key system operating parameter,

adds recordkeeping requirements for air pollution

abatement equipment,

includes EPA suggested language referencing EPA Test

Methods 25 and 25A as test methods that can be used to determine

compliance.

BAAQMD's submitted Rule 8-23 includes the following significant

changes from the current SIP:

mandates that air pollution abatement equipment have an

abatement device efficiency of at least 90% and meet the requirements

of Regulation 2, Rule 1,

requires persons operating air pollution abatement

equipment to record key system operating parameters on a daily basis,

includes EPA suggested language referencing EPA Test

Methods 25 and 25A as test methods that can be used to determine

compliance.

BAAQMD's Rule 8-47 is a new rule which was adopted to limit the VOC

emissions from air stripping and soil vapor extraction equipment used

for the treatment of contaminated groundwater and soil. The rule

strengthens the SIP by:

regulating a previously unregulated source,

requiring any air stripping and soil vapor extraction

operations which emit benzene, vinyl chloride, perchloroethylene,

methylene chloride and/or trichloroethylene to be vented to a control

device which reduces emissions to the atmosphere by at least 90% by

weight,

mandating that any air stripping and soil vapor extraction

operations with a total organic compound emission greater than 15

pounds per day be vented to a control device which reduces emissions to

the atmosphere by at least 90% by weight,

requiring sources to apply for permits and/or to provide

written notification of intention to operate and to maintain records of

water analysis and vapor monitoring results,

providing test methods for air stripper water samples,

organic compound concentration in the water, and the determination of

emissions,

exempting small operations, air stripping and soil vapor

extraction operations with total emissions of less than one pound per

day, sewage treatment facilities, and industrial wastewater treatment

facilities.

EPA has evaluated the submitted rules and has determined that they

are consistent with the CAA, EPA regulations, and EPA policy.

Therefore, BAAQMD's Rule 8-13, Light and Medium Duty Motor Vehicle

Assembly Plants, Rule 8-14, Surface Coating of Large Appliances and

Metal Furniture, Rule 8-23, Coating of Flat Wood Paneling and Wood Flat

Stock, and Rule 8-47, Air Stripping and Soil Vapor Extraction

Operations, are being proposed for approval under section 110(k)(3) of

the CAA as meeting the requirements of section 110(a) and part D.

Nothing in this action should be construed as permitting or

allowing or establishing a precedent for any future request for

revision to any state implementation plan. Each request for revision to

the state implementation plan shall be considered separately in light

of specific technical, economic, and environmental factors and in

relation to relevant statutory and regulatory requirements.

Regulatory Process

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 sections 110 and 301 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, 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).

The OMB has exempted this action from review under Executive Order

12866.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Hydrocarbons,

Intergovernmental relations, Ozone, Reporting and recordkeeping

requirements, Volatile organic compound.

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

[[Page 7934]] Dated: February 1, 1995.

John Wise,

Acting Regional Administrator.

[FR Doc. 95-3376 Filed 2-9-95; 8:45 am]

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