Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans and Designation of Areas for Air Quality Planning Purposes; Alabama; Redesignation of Birmingham Ozone Nonattainment Area to Attainment for Ozone

Note: EPA no longer updates this information, but it may be useful as a reference or resource.

[Federal Register: March 12, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 49)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 11798-11801]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr12mr04-8]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Parts 52 and 81
[AL-63-200412; FRL-7634-9]

Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans and Designation
of Areas for Air Quality Planning Purposes; Alabama; Redesignation of
Birmingham Ozone Nonattainment Area to Attainment for Ozone

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: EPA is finalizing approval of the redesignation of the 1-hour
ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) nonattainment area
of Birmingham, Alabama, to attainment, and finalizing approval of
Alabama's State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision containing a 10-year
maintenance plan for the 1-hour ozone NAAQS for the Birmingham area.
Additionally, through this action, EPA is providing notification of its
determination that the motor vehicle emission budgets (MVEBs) for the
year 2015 contained in the 10-year maintenance plan SIP revision for
the 1-hour ozone standard for the Birmingham area (submitted on January
30, 2004, by the Alabama Department of Environmental Management
(ADEM)), are adequate for transportation conformity purposes. Because
EPA is approving these 2015 MVEBs as part of its approval of Alabama's
10-year maintenance plan SIP revision for the Birmingham area, the 2015
MVEBs contained in the Birmingham area's 10-year maintenance plan for
the 1-hour ozone standard, can be used for future conformity
determinations on the date of publication of this Final rule.

DATES: This final rule is effective on April 12, 2004.

ADDRESSES: Copies of documents relative to this action are available at
the following address for inspection during normal business hours:
Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, Air Planning Branch, 61
Forsyth Street, SW., Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960.
The interested persons wanting to examine these documents should
make an appointment at least 24 hours before the visiting day.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kelly Sheckler, Air Quality Modeling
and Transportation Section, Air Planning Branch, Air, Pesticides and
Toxics Management Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,
Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street, SW., Atlanta, Georgia 30303-8960. The
telephone number is (404) 562-9042. Ms. Sheckler can also be reached
via electronic mail at sheckler.kelly@epa.gov.
Sean Lakeman, Regulatory Development Section, Air Planning Branch,
Air, Pesticides and Toxics Management Division, U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street, SW., Atlanta, Georgia
30303-8960. The telephone number is (404) 562-9043. Mr. Lakeman can
also be reached via electronic mail at lakeman.sean@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

On November 19, 2003, the State of Alabama, through ADEM, submitted
(1) a request to redesignate the 1-hour ozone NAAQS nonattainment area
of Birmingham, Alabama, to attainment, and (2) a request for parallel
processing of a draft Alabama SIP revision containing a 10-year
maintenance plan for the 1-hour ozone standard for the Birmingham area.
ADEM held a public meeting on January 9, 2004, to receive comments on
these requested actions. Alabama's comment period for these actions
closed January 13, 2004. With the exception of a positive comment
concerning the redesignation ADEM did not receive any adverse comments.
On January 30, 2004, ADEM submitted to EPA the final Maintenance Plan
SIP revision request for final review and approval. The final
Maintenance Plan submittal did not contain any changes from the Draft
Maintenance Plan submitted to EPA on November 19, 2003.
On January 6, 2004, (69 FR 558) EPA published a notice of proposed
rulemaking (NPR) proposing to approve the redesignation of the 1-hour
ozone NAAQS nonattainment area of Birmingham, Alabama, to attainment,
and proposing to approve the SIP revision containing a 10-year
maintenance plan for the 1-hour ozone standard for the Birmingham area.
In the January 6, 2004 NPR, EPA also provided the public with an
opportunity to review and comment on the adequacy of new volatile
organic compounds (VOC) and nitrogen oxides (NO_X) MVEBs for
the year 2015 for purposes of determining transportation conformity.
The January 6, 2004 NPR provides a detailed description of each of
these matters and the rationale for each of EPA's proposed actions,
together with a discussion of the opportunity to comment on the
adequacy of the 2015 MVEBs. The public comment period for

[[Page 11799]]

these actions ended on February 5, 2004. No comments, adverse or
otherwise, were received on EPA's proposed actions or on the adequacy
of the 2015 MVEBs for transportation conformity purposes.

II. Today's Action

Section 107(d)(3)(D) allows a Governor to initiate the
redesignation process for an area to apply for attainment status. On
January 30, 2004, Alabama requested redesignation of the 1-hour ozone
attainment status for the Birmingham area. Today, EPA is approving the
1-hour ozone redesignation request and the 10-year maintenance plan SIP
revision. EPA's approval of the 1-hour ozone redesignation request is
based on its determination that the Birmingham, Alabama, area has met
the five criteria for redesignation to attainment specified in the
Clean Air Act, including a demonstration that the area has attained the
1-hour ozone NAAQS. The 1990 Amendments revised section 107(d)(3)(E) to
provide five specific requirements that an area must meet in order to
be redesignated from nonattainment to attainment: (1) The area has
attained the applicable NAAQS; (2) the area has met all applicable
requirements under section 110 and part D of the CAA; (3) the area has
a fully approved SIP under section 110(k) of the CAA; (4) the air
quality improvement is due to permanent and enforceable reductions in
emissions resulting from implementation of the SIP and applicable
Federal air pollution control regulations and other permanent and
enforceable reductions, and (5) the area has a fully approved
maintenance plan pursuant to section 175A of the CAA. EPA's analysis of
the five criteria as applied to Alabama's redesignation request are
discussed in detail in the January 6, 2004 NPR.
The State of Alabama's request is based on an analysis of quality-
assured ozone air quality data which is relevant to the redesignation
request and reflects attainment of the 1-hour ozone standard. The data
used to support the redesignation request come from the State and Local
Air Monitoring Station network. The request is based on ambient air
ozone monitoring data collected for 3 consecutive years from 2001
through 2003.
In a letter dated December 3, 2003, ADEM certified that the Shelby
County 2003 data is accurate and in a letter dated December 3, 2003,
Jefferson County Department of Health certified that the Jefferson
County 2003 data is accurate. The ozone monitoring data for the April
through October ozone season from 2001 to 2003 has been quality assured
and is recorded in AIRS. During the 2001 to 2003 time period, the
design value is 0.113 ppm. The average annual number of expected
exceedances is 1.0 for that same time period.
The data satisfies the CAA requirements of no more than one
exceedance per annual monitoring period. Under the CAA, nonattainment
areas may be redesignated to attainment if sufficient data is available
to warrant the redesignation and the area meets the other four CAA
redesignation requirements. As noted above, and as discussed in detail
in the January 6, 2004 NPR, EPA has determined that sufficient data is
available to warrant redesignation and that the other four
redesignation criteria have been met in the Birmingham area for the 1-
hour ozone national ambient air quality standard.
Today, EPA is also approving Alabama's SIP revision to provide for
the maintenance of the 1-hour ozone NAAQS in the Birmingham area for at
least 10 years after redesignation. The underlying strategy of the
maintenance plan is to show compliance and maintenance of the 1-hour
ozone standard by assuring that current and future emissions of VOC and
NO_X remain at or below attainment year (2003) emissions
levels. Under section 175A of the CAA, the plan must demonstrate
continued attainment of the applicable NAAQS for at least 10 years
after the Administrator approves a redesignation to attainment. Eight
years after the redesignation, the State must submit a revised
maintenance plan which demonstrates that attainment will continue to be
maintained for the ten years following the initial ten-year period. To
provide for the possibility of future NAAQS violations, the maintenance
plan must contain contingency measures, with a schedule for
implementation, adequate to assure prompt correction of any future 1-
hour ozone violations.
As discussed in detail in the January 6, 2004 NPR, EPA has
determined that the 10-year maintenance plan meets the elements for
maintenance plans set out in section 175A of the Clean Air Act. Because
the 1-hour ozone 10-year maintenance plan for the Birmingham area meets
the requirements of section 175A of the CAA, EPA is approving the
maintenance plan and the 2015 MVEBs for VOC and NO_X that are
contained within the 10-year maintenance plan. Because EPA is approving
the 2015 MVEBs for VOC and NO_X as part of its approval of
Alabama's 10-year maintenance plan for the 1-hour ozone standard, the
2015 MVEBs for VOC and NO_X can be used for future conformity
determinations on the date of publication of this Final rule. The
specific 2015 MVEBs to be used on the date of publication of this Final
rule are: 23 tons per day of VOCs and 41 tons per day of
NO_X.
Finally, through this rulemaking, EPA is providing notice that it
has determined that the 2015 MVEBs for VOC and NO_X, as
contained in the 10-year maintenance plan discussed above, meet the
substantive criteria for ``adequacy'' as set out in 40 CFR
93.118(e)(4), and are adequate for purposes of transportation
conformity. EPA Region 4 sent a letter to ADEM on March 3, 2004,
stating that the MVEB in the Birmingham 1-Hour Ozone Maintenance SIP
revision submitted on January 30, 2004, are adequate. These 2015 MVEBs,
as they relate to adequacy determinations for transportation conformity
purposes, are discussed in detail in the January 6, 2004 NPR, which
provided public notice and requested comment on the adequacy of the
2015 MVEBs. EPA received no comments on the ``adequacy'' determination
for the 2015 MVEBs.
EPA's adequacy determination for the 2015 MVEBs contained in the 1-
hour ozone 10-year maintenance plan has also been announced on EPA's
conformity Web site: BM_1_http://www.epa.gov/otaq/transp.htm, (once
there, click on the ``Transportation Conformity'' text icon, then look
for ``Adequacy Review of State Implementation Plan (SIP) Submissions
for Conformity''). As noted above, because EPA is approving the 2015
MVEBs for VOC and NO_X as part of its approval of Alabama's
10-year maintenance plan for the 1-hour ozone standard for the
Birmingham area, the 2015 MVEBs can be used for future conformity
determinations on the date of publication of this Final rule. The
specific 2015 MVEBs to be used on the date of publication of this Final
rule are: 23 tons per day of VOCs and 41 tons per day of
NO_X.

III. Final Action

EPA is approving the redesignation of the 1-hour ozone NAAQS
nonattainment area of Birmingham, Alabama, to attainment, and approving
Alabama's SIP revision containing a 10-year maintenance plan for the 1-
hour ozone standard for the Birmingham area because the redesignation
and the maintenance plan meet the requirements of sections 107(d) and
175A of the Clean Air Act, respectively. EPA is also providing notice
that it has determined the 2015 VOC and NO_X MVEBs, as
contained in the 10-year

[[Page 11800]]

maintenance plan for the 1-hour ozone standard for the Birmingham area,
to be adequate under the requirements of 40 CFR 93.118(e)(4).

IV. 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 approves state law as meeting Federal requirements and imposes
no additional requirements beyond those imposed by state law.
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.). Because
this rule approves pre-existing requirements under state law and does
not impose any additional enforceable duty beyond that required by
state law, it 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).
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). This action also does not have Federalism
implications because it does not have substantial direct effects on the
States, on the relationship between the national government and the
States, or on the distribution of power and responsibilities among the
various levels of government, as specified in Executive Order 13132
(64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999). This action merely approves a state rule
implementing a Federal standard, and does not alter the relationship or
the distribution of power and responsibilities established in the Clean
Air Act. This rule also is not subject to Executive Order 13045
``Protection of Children from Environmental Health Risks and Safety
Risks'' (62 FR 19885, April 23, 1997), because it is not economically
significant.
In reviewing SIP submissions, EPA's role is to approve state
choices, provided that they meet the criteria of the Clean Air Act. In
this context, in the absence of a prior existing requirement for the
State to use voluntary consensus standards (VCS), EPA has no authority
to disapprove a SIP submission for failure to use VCS. It would thus be
inconsistent with applicable law for EPA, when it reviews a SIP
submission, to use VCS in place of a SIP submission that otherwise
satisfies the provisions of the Clean Air Act. Thus, the requirements
of section 12(d) of the National Technology Transfer and Advancement
Act of 1995 (15 U.S.C. 272 note) do not apply. This rule does not
impose an information collection burden under the provisions of the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 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 May 11, 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

40 CFR Part 52

Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Intergovernmental
relations, Nitrogen dioxide, Ozone, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements, Volatile organic compounds.

40 CFR Part 81

Environmental protection, Air pollution control, National parks,
Wilderness areas.

Dated: March 1, 2004.
A. Stanley Meiburg,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4.

Parts 52 and 81, chapter I, title 40, Code of Federal Regulations, are
amended as follows:

PART 52--[AMENDED]

? 1. The authority citation for part 52 continues to read as follows:

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

Subpart B--Alabama

? 2. Section 52.50(e) is amended by adding a new entry for ``Maintenance
plan for the Birmingham area''.

Sec. 52.50 Identification of plan.

* * * * *
(e) * * *

EPA Approved Alabama Non-regulatory Provisions
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State
Name of nonregulatory SIP provision Applicable geographic or submittal date/ EPA approval Explanation
nonattainment area effective date date
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* * * * * * *
Maintenance plan for the Birmingham Jefferson County and 01/30/2004 03/12/2004 ..............
area. Shelby County.
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[[Page 11801]]

PART 81--[AMENDED]

? 1. The authority citation for part 81 continues to read as follows:

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

? 2. In Sec. 81.301, the table entitled ``Alabama-Ozone (1-Hour
Standard)'' is amended by revising the entries for ``Jefferson County''
and ``Shelby County'' to read as follows:

Sec. 81.301 Alabama.

* * * * *

Alabama-Ozone (1-Hour Standard)
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Designation Classification
Designated area -------------------------------------------------------
Date 1 Type Date 1 Type
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Birmingham Area:
Jefferson County.......... 4/12/04 Attainment........
Shelby County............. 4/12/04 Attainment........

* * * * * * *
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1 This date is October 18, 2000, unless otherwise noted.

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[FR Doc. 04-5508 Filed 3-11-04; 8:45 am]
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Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans and Designation of Areas for Air Quality Planning Purposes; Alabama; Redesignation of Birmingham Ozone Nonattainment Area to Attainment for Ozone

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