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Changing the Ozone Monitoring Season in Idaho From April Through October to May Through September
Note: EPA no longer updates this information, but it may be useful as a reference or resource.
[Federal Register: August 30, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 167)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 52836-52838]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr30au04-11]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 58
[Docket # ID-04-003a; FRL-7801-6]
Changing the Ozone Monitoring Season in Idaho From April Through
October to May Through September
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Direct final rule.
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SUMMARY: Currently the ozone monitoring season for Idaho is April
through October. Based on the ozone monitoring season in adjacent
states with similar climatology, and analysis of existing ozone
monitoring data collected in Boise, EPA is approving a change in the
ozone monitoring season for Idaho to the months of May through
September.
DATES: This direct final rule is effective October 29, 2004, unless EPA
receives adverse comments by September 29, 2004. If relevant adverse
comment is received, EPA will publish a timely withdrawal of the rule
in the Federal Register informing the public that the rule will not
take effect.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. ID-04-003,
by one of the following methods:
? Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the on-line instructions for submitting comments.
? E-mail: r10.aircom@epa.gov.
? Fax: (206) 553-0110.
? Mail: Keith A. Rose, Office of Air, Waste and Toxics,
Environmental Protection Agency Region 10, Mail code: OAQ-107, 1200
Sixth Ave., Seattle, Washington 98101.
[[Page 52837]]
? Hand Delivery: Environmental Protection Agency Region 10,
Attn: Keith A. Rose, 9th Floor, 1200 Sixth Ave., Seattle, Washington
98101. Such deliveries are only accepted during normal hours of
operation, and special arrangements should be made for deliveries of
boxed information.
Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. ID-04-003.
EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included in the
public docket without change, including any personal information
provided, unless the comment includes information claimed to be
Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose
disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit information that you
consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through regulations.gov, or
e-mail. The Federal regulations.gov Web site is an ``anonymous access''
system, which means EPA will not know your identity or contact
information unless you provide it in the body of your comment. If you
send an e-mail comment directly to EPA without going through
regulations.gov, your e-mail address will be automatically captured and
included as part of the comment that is placed in the public docket and
made available on the Internet. If you submit an electronic comment,
EPA recommends that you include your name and other contact information
in the body of your comment and with any disk or CD-ROM you submit. If
EPA cannot read your comment due to technical difficulties and cannot
contact you for clarification, EPA may not be able to consider your
comment. Electronic files should avoid the use of special characters,
any form of encryption, and be free of any defects or viruses.
Docket: Docket materials are publicly available in hard copy at the
Office of Air, Waste and Toxics, Environmental Protection Agency, Mail
code: OAQ-107, 1200 Sixth Ave., Seattle, Washington 98101, open from 8
a.m.-4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The
telephone number is (206) 553-1949.
Comments may be submitted either by mail or electronically. Written
comments should be mailed to Keith A. Rose, Office of Air, Waste and
Toxics (OAQ-107), EPA Region 10, 1200 Sixth Avenue, Seattle,
Washington, 98101. Electronic comments should be sent either to
r10.aircom@epa.gov or to http://www.regulations.gov, which
is an alternative method for submitting electronic comments to EPA. To
submit comments, please follow the detailed instructions described in the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section, part I, General Information. Copies
of the documents relevant to this action are available for public
inspection during normal business hours at the EPA, Region 10, Office
of Air Waste and Toxics, 1200 Sixth Avenue, Seattle, WA.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Keith A. Rose, State and Tribal
Programs Unit, Office of Air, Waste and Toxics, (OAQ-107), EPA Region
10, 1200 Sixth Avenue, Seattle WA. 98101, telephone number: (206) 553-
1949, or e-mail address at rose.keith@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, wherever ``we,''
``us,'' or ``our'' is used, we mean the EPA. Please note that if EPA
receives relevant adverse comment on an amendment, paragraph or section
of this rule and if that provision may be severed from the remainder of
the rule, EPA may adopt as final those provisions of the rule that are
not the subject of a relevant adverse comment.
I. General Information
A. What Should I Consider as I Prepare My Comments for EPA?
1. Submitting Confidential Business Information (CBI). Do not
submit this information to EPA through regulations.gov or e-mail.
Clearly mark the part or all of the information that you claim to be
CBI. For CBI information in a disk or CD-ROM that you mail to EPA, mark
the outside of the disk or CD-ROM as CBI and then identify
electronically within the disk or CD-ROM the specific information that
is claimed as CBI. In addition to one complete version of the comment
that includes information claimed as CBI, a copy of the comment that
does not contain the information claimed as CBI must be submitted for
inclusion in the public docket. Information so marked will not be
disclosed except in accordance with procedures set forth in 40 Code of
Federal Regulations (CFR) part 2.
2. Tips for Preparing Your Comments. When submitting comments,
remember to:
i. Identify the rulemaking by docket number and other identifying
information (subject heading, Federal Register date and page number).
ii. Follow directions--The Agency may ask you to respond to
specific questions or organize comments by referencing a CFR part or
section number.
iii. Explain why you agree or disagree; suggest alternatives and
substitute language for your requested changes.
iv. Describe any assumptions and provide any technical information
and/or data that you used.
v. If you estimate potential costs or burdens, explain how you
arrived at your estimate in sufficient detail to allow for it to be
reproduced.
vi. Provide specific examples to illustrate your concerns, and
suggest alternatives.
vii. Explain your views as clearly as possible, avoiding the use of
profanity or personal threats.
viii. Make sure to submit your comments by the comment period
deadline identified.
II. Purpose of This Action
The purpose of this action is to change the ozone monitoring season
in Idaho from April through October to May through September.
III. Justification for This Action
Currently the ozone monitoring season for Idaho, as identified in
40 CFR 58, Appendix D, section 2.5, is April through October. The EPA
guidance titled, ``Guideline for Selecting and Modifying the Ozone
Monitoring Season Based on an 8-Hour Ozone Standard'' states that the
ozone season should extend for months for which the maximum 8-hour
ozone reading reaches the 8-hour standard (0.08 ppm). The guideline
also states that the most recent six years of data should be used to
prepare a histogram of maximum ozone concentrations by month to compare
to the 8-hour standard. However, if a state which has not collected
ozone data, and changes in the ozone monitoring season have been
observed for States with similar climatology, then those changes in the
ozone monitoring season should also be implemented for the State that
does not collect adequate ozone data.
States adjacent to Idaho with similar climatology include Montana,
Oregon, Utah, and Washington. According to 40 CFR 58, Appendix D,
section 2.5, the ozone monitoring seasons identified for these states
are shown in Table 1:
Table 1.--Ozone Monitoring Seasons by State
------------------------------------------------------------------------
State Monitoring season
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Montana............................... June-September.
Utah.................................. May-September.
Oregon................................ May-September.
Washington............................ May-September.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The longest ozone monitoring season for these states is May through
September. This shows that the monitoring season for Idaho should be
changed to May through September to be consistent with those states
with similar climatology.
Although Idaho itself has not gathered sufficient ozone data to
support a
[[Page 52838]]
change in monitoring seasons, EPA has evaluated the data which has been
gathered in the state to ensure any changes in the ozone monitoring
season based on the guidance will be consistent with information that
has been collected.The only ozone monitoring site in Idaho where six
years of ozone data exists is in the Craters of the Moon Monument,
which is a Class 1 area. The purpose of the Craters of the Moon ozone
site is to measure ozone trends and to track degradation of air quality
in a Class 1 area. This monitor has not measured any exceedances of the
ozone standard since monitoring began at this site in 1992. However,
the Craters of the Moon site is not representative of ozone
concentrations which occur in highly populated areas of Idaho, such as
in the Treasure Valley, where the state capital of Boise is located.
Ozone monitoring was initiated in the Treasure Valley in May 2000 by
the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality (IDEQ). As an indication
of how the Treasure Valley ozone concentrations compare to the 8-hour
ozone standard (0.08 ppm), IDEQ compared the maximum 8-hour ozone
concentration for each month during 2001, 2002, and 2003 to the ozone
standard. The results of this comparison demonstrate that the ozone
concentrations exceed 80% of the standard, but do not exceed the
standard, only during the months of May through September. Based on
this analysis, which conservatively compares the monitoring data to 80%
of the standard, it is evident that ozone concentrations are only
likely to exceed the 8-hour standard in the Treasure Valley during the
months of May through September.
IV. Final Action
In this action, EPA is approving a change in the ozone monitoring
season in Idaho. The reference to the ozone monitoring season for Idaho
found in 40 CFR part 58, Appendix D, section 2.5, will be changed from
April through October to May through September.
V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
Under Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993), this
action is not a ``significant regulatory action'' and therefore is not
subject to review by the Office of Management and Budget. For this
reason, this action is also not subject to Executive Order 13211,
``Actions Concerning Regulations That Significantly Affect Energy
Supply, Distribution, or Use'' (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001). This action
merely changes the ozone monitoring season for Idaho which appears in
40 CFR Part 58, Appendix D, section 2.5. Accordingly, the Administrator
certifies that this rule will not have a significant economic impact on
a substantial number of small entities under the Regulatory Flexibility
Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.).
The Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 801 et seq., as added by the
Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, generally
provides that before a rule may take effect, the agency promulgating
the rule must submit a rule report, which includes a copy of the rule,
to each House of the Congress and to the Comptroller General of the
United States. EPA will submit a report containing this rule and other
required information to the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House of
Representatives, and the Comptroller General of the United States prior
to publication of the rule in the Federal Register. A major rule cannot
take effect until 60 days after it is published in the Federal
Register. This action is not a ``major rule'' as defined by 5 U.S.C.
804(2).
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 October 29, 2004. 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 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).)
List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 58
Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Intergovernmental
relations, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
Dated: July 15, 2004.
Mike Gearheard,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 10.
? Part 58, chapter I, title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations is
amended as follows:
PART 58--[AMENDED]
? 1. The authority citation for part 58 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7410, 7601(a), 7613, and 7619.
? 2. In Appendix D section 2.5 the table entitled ``Ozone Monitoring
Season by State'' is amended by revising the entry for ``Idaho'' to
read as follows:
Appendix D to Part 58--Network Design for State and Local Air
Monitoring Stations (SLAMS), National Air Monitoring Stations (NAMS),
and Photochemical Assessment Monitoring Stations (PAMS).
* * * * *
2.5 * * *
Ozone Monitoring Season by State
------------------------------------------------------------------------
State Begin month End month
------------------------------------------------------------------------
* * * * *
Idaho...................... May September.
* * * * *
------------------------------------------------------------------------
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 04-19728 Filed 8-27-04; 8:45 am]
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