Approval and Promulgation of State Air Quality Plans for Designated Facilities and Pollutants; Texas; Control of Emissions From Existing Other Solid Waste Incineration Units
| Citation | 86 FR 46639 |
| Published date | 19 August 2021 |
| Record Number | 2021-17763 |
| Court | Environmental Protection Agency |
46639
Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 158 / Thursday, August 19, 2021 / Proposed Rules
1
These ACI subject to the OSWI EG at 40 CFR
part 60, subpart FFFF are those ACI that do not fit
the definition of an ‘‘OSWI’’ as they burn certain
types of wastes. See 40 CFR 60.2994(b) and 40 CFR
60.3078.
2
The court ordered deadline to promulgate the
final OSWI review is May 31, 2021. Sierra Club v.
Wheeler, 330 F. Supp. 3d 407. (D.D.C. 2018).
3
The Texas OSWI plan submitted by TCEQ does
not cover sources located in Indian country.
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
40 CFR Part 62
[EPA–R06–OAR–2021–0517; FRL–8798–01–
R6]
Approval and Promulgation of State
Air Quality Plans for Designated
Facilities and Pollutants; Texas;
Control of Emissions From Existing
Other Solid Waste Incineration Units
AGENCY
: Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA).
ACTION
: Proposed rule.
SUMMARY
: Pursuant to the Federal Clean
Air Act (CAA or the Act), the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
is proposing to approve the CAA section
111(d)/129 state plan submitted by the
State of Texas for sources subject to the
Other Solid Waste Incineration Units
(OSWI) Emission Guidelines (EG). The
Texas OSWI plan was submitted to
fulfill state obligations under CAA
section 111(d)/129 to implement and
enforce the requirements under the
OSWI EG. The EPA is proposing to
approve the state plan in part and
amend the agency regulations in
accordance with the requirements of the
CAA.
DATES
: Written comments must be
received on or before September 20,
2021.
ADDRESSES
: Submit your comments,
identified by Docket No. EPA–R06–
OAR–2021–0517, at https://
www.regulations.gov or via email to
ruan-lei.karolina@epa.gov. Follow the
online instructions for submitting
comments. Once submitted, comments
cannot be edited or removed from
Regulations.gov. The EPA may publish
any comment received to its public
docket. Do not submit electronically any
information you consider to be
Confidential Business Information (CBI)
or other information whose disclosure is
restricted by statute. Multimedia
submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be
accompanied by a written comment.
The written comment is considered the
official comment and should include
discussion of all points you wish to
make. The EPA will generally not
consider comments or comment
contents located outside of the primary
submission (i.e., on the web, cloud, or
other file sharing system). For
additional submission methods, please
contact Karolina Ruan Lei, (214) 665–
7346, ruan-lei.karolina@epa.gov. For the
full EPA public comment policy,
information about CBI or multimedia
submissions, and general guidance on
making effective comments, please visit
https://www.epa.gov/dockets/
commenting-epa-dockets.
Docket: The index to the docket for
this action is available electronically at
www.regulations.gov. While all
documents in the docket are listed in
the index, some information may not be
publicly available due to docket file size
restrictions or content (e.g., CBI).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
:
Karolina Ruan Lei, EPA Region 6 Office,
Air and Radiation Division—State
Planning and Implementation Branch,
(214) 665–7346, ruan-lei.karolina@
epa.gov. Out of an abundance of caution
for members of the public and our staff,
the EPA Region 6 office will be closed
to the public to reduce the risk of
transmitting COVID–19. We encourage
the public to submit comments via
https://www.regulations.gov, as there
will be a delay in processing mail and
no courier or hand deliveries will be
accepted. Please call or email the
contact listed above if you need
alternative access to material indexed
but not provided in the docket.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
:
Throughout this document wherever
‘‘we,’’ ‘‘us,’’ or ‘‘our’’ is used, we mean
the EPA.
I. Background
Sections 111(d) and 129 of the CAA
require states to submit plans to control
certain pollutants (designated
pollutants) at existing solid waste
combustor facilities (designated
facilities) whenever standards of
performance have been established
under CAA section 111(b) for new
sources of the same type, and the EPA
has established emission guidelines for
such existing sources. CAA section 129
directs the EPA to establish standards of
performance for new sources (NSPS)
and emissions guidelines (EG) for
existing sources for each category of
solid waste incinerator specified in CAA
section 129. Under CAA section 129,
NSPS and EG must contain numerical
emissions limitations for particulate
matter, opacity (as appropriate), sulfur
dioxide, hydrogen chloride, oxides of
nitrogen, carbon monoxide, lead,
cadmium, mercury, and dioxins and
dibenzofurans. While NSPS are directly
applicable to new sources (affected
facilities), EG for existing sources
(designated facilities) are intended for
states to use to develop a state plan to
submit to the EPA. Once approved by
the EPA, the state plan becomes
federally enforceable. If a state does not
submit an approvable state plan to the
EPA, the EPA is responsible for
developing, implementing, and
enforcing a federal plan.
The regulations at 40 CFR part 60,
subpart B, contain general provisions
applicable to the adoption and submittal
of state plans for controlling designated
pollutants from designated facilities.
Additionally, 40 CFR part 62, subpart A,
provides the procedural framework by
which the EPA will approve or
disapprove such plans submitted by a
state. When designated facilities are
located in a state, the state must then
develop and submit a plan for the
control of the designated pollutant(s).
EPA promulgated the OSWI NSPS
and EG on December 16, 2005, codified
at 40 CFR part 60, subparts EEEE and
FFFF, respectively (70 FR 74870, as
amended at 71 FR 67806, November 24,
2006). Thus, states were required to
submit plans for incinerators subject to
the OSWI EG pursuant to sections
111(d) and 129 of the Act and 40 CFR
part 60, subpart B. OSWI means very
small municipal waste combustion unit
or an institutional waste incineration
unit (IWI) as defined under 40 CFR
60.3078. The designated facilities to
which the current OSWI EG apply are
OSWI and certain air curtain
incinerators (ACI)
1
that commenced
construction on or before December 9,
2004, and were not modified or
reconstructed on or after June 16, 2006,
as specified in 40 CFR 60.2991 and
60.2992, with limited exceptions as
provided under 40 CFR 60.2993. The
EPA proposed revisions to the OSWI EG
and NSPS on August 31, 2020 (85 FR
54178). When the EPA finalizes the
revisions to the OSWI EG,
2
each state
(and air quality control jurisdiction) will
need to submit a negative declaration or
plan, as applicable, for those sources
subject to the requirements of the final
revised OSWI EG.
In order to fulfill obligations under
CAA sections 111(d) and 129, the Texas
Commission on Environmental Quality
(TCEQ) submitted a state plan for the
control of emissions from sources
subject to the OSWI EG for the State of
Texas on May 18, 2009.
3
The Texas
OSWI plan implements and enforces the
applicable provisions under the OSWI
EG at 40 CFR part 60, subpart FFFF, and
additionally meets the relevant
requirements of the CAA section 111(d)
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46640
Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 158 / Thursday, August 19, 2021 / Proposed Rules
4
The May 18, 2009, Texas submittal also includes
the CAA section 111(d)/129 plans addressing
requirements for incinerators subject to the Small
Municipal Waste Combustion units (SMWC)
Emission Guidelines at 40 CFR part 60, subpart
BBBB, and the Commercial and Industrial Solid
Waste Incineration units (CISWI) Emission
Guidelines at 40 CFR part 60, subpart DDDD. We
are only addressing the Texas OSWI plan portion
in this rulemaking.
implementing regulations at 40 CFR part
60, subpart B. It was subsequently
discovered that 30 TAC § 113.2313(3)(B)
is inconsistent with the delegation of
authority provisions of Title 40 CFR
60.2990(6) and 60.3020(c)(2). As
discussed in more detail in the next
section, on June 11, 2021, TCEQ
submitted a commitment letter to the
EPA to address a discrepancy in the
Texas OSWI plan. A copy of the Texas
submittal and the commitment letter is
included in the docket for this
rulemaking (Docket No. EPA–R06–
OAR–2021–0517).
4
II. Evaluation
The EPA has evaluated the Texas
OSWI plan to determine whether the
plan meets applicable requirements
from the OSWI EG at 40 CFR part 60,
subpart FFFF, and the CAA section
111(d) implementing regulations at 40
CFR part 60, subpart B. The EPA’s
detailed rationale and discussion on the
Texas OSWI plan can be found in the
Technical Support Document (TSD),
located in the docket for this
rulemaking.
Section 60.2983 of the OSWI EG
addresses what must be included in
state plan submittals. These
requirements include:
(1) Inventory of affected incineration
units, including those that have ceased
operation but have not been dismantled.
(2) Inventory of emissions from
affected incineration units in the State.
(3) Compliance schedules for each
affected incineration unit.
(4) For each affected incineration unit,
emission limitations, operator training
and qualification requirements, a waste
management plan, and operating
parameter requirements that are at least
as protective as the emission guidelines
contained in this subpart.
(5) Stack testing, recordkeeping, and
reporting requirements.
(6) Transcript of the public hearing on
the State plan.
(7) Provision for State progress reports
to EPA.
(8) Identification of enforceable State
mechanisms that the State selected for
implementing the emission guidelines
of this subpart.
(9) Demonstration of the state’s legal
authority to carry out the sections
111(d) and 129 in the state plan.
Section 60.2983 of the OSWI EG also
requires the state plan to demonstrate
that it is at least as protective as the
OSWI EG if it deviates from the format
and content of the EG in 40 CFR part 60,
subpart FFFF. The state plan must also
follow the requirements of 40 CFR part
60, subpart B. The TSD goes into detail
as to how the Texas OSWI plan meets
these requirements. In evaluating the
state’s OSWI plan, the EPA considered
the commitment letter submitted by the
State. The letter addressed the
component of the state plan that is
inconsistent with the withheld authority
provisions of the OSWI EG, specifically,
the review of qualified operator
accessibility status reports under 30
TAC § 113.2313(3)(B), which
corresponds to 40 CFR 60.3020(c)(2). In
order to address the discrepancy, the
TCEQ committed to forward any
notification, report, or request it
receives pursuant to 30 TAC
§ 113.2313(3) to the EPA without taking
any other action, including approving or
disapproving any request.
III. Proposed Action
The EPA is proposing to partially
approve the Texas OSWI plan submitted
by TCEQ and amend 40 CFR part 62 in
accordance with the requirements under
sections 111(d) and 129 of the CAA. The
EPA is proposing to find that the Texas
OSWI plan, with the exception of 30
TAC § 113.2313(3), is at least as
protective as the Federal requirements
provided under the OSWI EG, codified
at 40 CFR part 60, subpart FFFF. Once
approved by the EPA, the Texas OSWI
plan will become federally enforceable.
IV. Statutory and Executive Order
Reviews
Under the CAA, the Administrator is
required to approve a CAA section
111(d)/129 submission that complies
with the provisions of the Act and
applicable Federal regulations. 42
U.S.C. 7411(d); 42 U.S.C. 7429; 40 CFR
part 60, subparts B and FFFF; and 40
CFR part 62, subpart A. Thus, in
reviewing CAA section 111(d)/129 state
plan submissions, EPA’s role is to
approve state choices, provided that
they meet the criteria of the Act and
implementing regulations. Accordingly,
this action merely proposes to approve
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);
•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 CAA; and
•Does not provide the 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).
This rule also does not have Tribal
implications because it will not have a
substantial direct effect on one or more
Indian Tribes, on the relationship
between the Federal Government and
Indian Tribes, or on the distribution of
power and responsibilities between the
Federal Government and Indian Tribes,
as specified by Executive Order 13175
(65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000).
List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 62
Environmental protection,
Administrative practice and procedure,
Air pollution control, Intergovernmental
relations, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements, Waste treatment and
disposal.
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Dated: August 13, 2021.
David Gray,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 6.
[FR Doc. 2021–17763 Filed 8–18–21; 8:45 am]
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