[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 86 (Thursday, May 5, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-9963]
[[Page Unknown]]
[Federal Register: May 5, 1994]
_______________________________________________________________________
Part II
Environmental Protection Agency
_______________________________________________________________________
40 CFR Parts 52 and 81
Approval and Promulgation of State and Federal Implementation Plans;
Proposed Rule
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Parts 52 and 81
[FRL-4848-4]
Approval and Promulgation of State and Federal Implementation
Plans; California--Sacramento and Ventura Ozone; South Coast Ozone and
Carbon Monoxide; Sacramento Ozone Area Reclassification
AGENCY: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM).
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SUMMARY: Under the authority of section 110(c)(1) of the Clean Air Act
(CAA or ``the Act''), EPA today proposes federal implementation plans
(FIPs) to attain, by the applicable statutory deadlines, the national
ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) for ozone in the Sacramento and
Ventura nonattainment areas, and to attain the NAAQS for ozone and
carbon monoxide in the South Coast nonattainment area. EPA's final FIPs
must be signed by the EPA Administrator no later than February 1995.
EPA requests comment on these proposed FIPs.
EPA expects the California Low Emitting Vehicle (LEV) program will
substantially reduce emissions from cars and light trucks, compared to
the federal standard. In addition, for motor vehicles, EPA requests
comment on an enhanced in-use compliance program to provide extra
emissions.
The FIP proposes a federal enhanced motor vehicle inspection and
maintenance (I/M) program. If California adopts an approvable enhanced
I/M program, EPA will either withdraw or refrain from promulgating this
federal program.
The FIP proposes stringent emission standards for heavy-duty
vehicles and provisions to limit usage of older and dirtier heavy-duty
trucks within the State and the FIP areas.
The FIP describes federal rulemakings in progress for both light
and heavy-duty categories of nonroad engines, and proposes additional
measures in the FIP areas.
The proposed FIP includes innovative control programs to reduce
emissions associated with airports and, particularly within the South
Coast, emissions from locomotives, ships, and ports.
EPA proposes rules, specific to each area, for industrial and
commercial sources, and proposes to implement on a statewide basis
federal rules for architectural coatings, consumer products, aerosol
spray paints, and pesticides. EPA also proposes an ``emissions cap''
program, which allows sources the flexibility to develop their own
compliance approach in order to achieve the needed annual emissions
reductions.
Finally, EPA proposes to approve in part and disapprove in part the
proposed South Coast CO State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision
designed to address CO requirements of the 1990 Amendments to the Act.
DATES: Written comments on the proposal will be accepted throughout the
public comment process. EPA expects to hold public hearings in early
July 1994, and expects that the deadline for written comments will be
approximately 30 days after the public hearings. EPA will give notice
in the Federal Register of the public hearings and public comment
deadline as soon as possible, but at least 30 days prior to the hearing
dates.
ADDRESSES: Written comments on the proposed FIP and SIP promulgations
must be received by EPA at the address below on or before the close of
the public comment period. Comments should be submitted (in duplicate,
if possible) to: EPA Air Docket Section, Attn: Docket No. A-94-09,
Environmental Protection Agency (Mail Code--6102), Waterside Mall, Room
M-1500, 401 M Street SW., Washington, DC 20460 (phone 202-260-7549).
Docket No. A-94-09, containing material relevant to this NPRM, is
located at the above address. The docket is available for public
inspection between 8:30 a.m. and 12 noon, and between 1:30 p.m. and
3:30 p.m. EPA may charge a reasonable fee for copying.
A copy of the docket is also available for review at: Regional
Administrator, Attention: Office of Federal Planning (A-1-2), Air and
Toxics Division, Environmental Protection Agency, Region IX, 75
Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105-3901. Interested persons may
make an appointment with Ms. Virginia Petersen at (415) 744-1265, to
inspect the docket at EPA's San Francisco office on weekdays between 9
a.m. and 4 p.m.
Copies of this NPRM, the technical support document, and the
regulatory impact analysis, are also available for review at the
addresses listed below:
California Air Resources Board, 2020 L Street, Sacramento,
California
Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District, 8411
Jackson Road, Sacramento, California
Sacramento Area Council of Governments, 3000 S Street, Suite 300,
Sacramento, California
El Dorado County Air Pollution Control District, 2850 Fair Lane
Court, Bldg. C, Placerville, California
Feather River Air Quality Management District, 463 Palora Avenue,
Yuba City, California
Placer County Air Pollution Control District, 11464 B Avenue,
Auburn, California
Yolo-Solano County Air Pollution Control District, 1947 Galileo
Court, Suite 103, Davis, California
South Coast Air Quality Management District, 21865 E. Copley Drive,
Diamond Bar, California
South Coast Air Quality Management District, Colton Office, 851 S.
Mt. Vernon Avenue, Colton, California
Southern California Association of Governments, 818 W. 7th Street,
Los Angeles, California
Southern California Association of Governments, Inland Empire
Office, 3600 Lime Street, Riverside, California
Ventura County Air Pollution Control District, 702 County Square
Drive, Ventura, California
Electronic Availability
This document is available May 5, 1994 as an electronic file on
EPA's Technology Transfer Network (TTN). For 1200 bps or 2400 bps
modems, use 919-541-5742; for 9600 bps use 919-541-1447. The FIP NPRM
will be under the Clean Air Act Amendments (CAAA) board, in a section
for ``Recently Signed Rules.'' Users should check the initial CAAA
announcement screen for updates on file availability. Because of its
size, the FIP NPRM will be divided into several pieces, and stored in
the compressed ``ZIP'' archive format. The file names will begin with
``FIP.'' If you need help in accessing the system, call the systems
operator by phone at (919) 541-5384 in Durham, North Carolina.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For stationary and area source issues
and general information on the FIPs, call EPA's FIP Hotline (415) 744-
1151 or Julia Barrow (415) 744-2434, at the Office of Federal Planning
(A-1-2), Air and Toxics Division, U.S. EPA, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne
Street, San Francisco, California 94105-3901.
For mobile source issues, call EPA's FIP Hotline (313) 668-4361 or
Jane Armstrong (313) 668-4471, at the Office of Mobile Sources, Motor
Vehicle and Fuels Emissions Laboratory, 2565 Plymouth Road, Ann Arbor,
Michigan 48105.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Table of Contents
I. Executive Summary
A. Introduction
B. EPA's Goals
1. Provide for the emissions reductions needed to meet EPA's
obligations
2. Develop the FIPs in a manner which encourages and assists the
implementation of air quality measures by State and local agencies
3. Minimize federal intrusion into state and local affairs
4. Minimize adverse socio-economic impacts
5. Ensure fairness with respect to impacts on population as a
whole and on individual air pollution sources
6. Ensure that the federal government does its part to
contribute to the solution
C. Summary of the FIP Contents
1. Required emission reductions
2. Selection of control strategies
3. Specific control measures
a. Stationary/area source measures
b. Mobile source measures
D. Role of State and Local Agencies
1. SIP responsibilities
2. State and local opportunities
E. Public Involvement
1. Public participation in the development of the FIPs
2. Public meetings prior to proposal
3. Process for post-proposal public involvement
4. Solicitation of comment
II. Background and Proposed SIP Actions
A. Description of Affected Areas
1. Sacramento
2. Ventura
3. South Coast
B. SIP Status
1. Introduction
2. Sacramento
3. Ventura
4. South Coast
5. State of California
C. Proposed Action on South Coast SIP Revisions
1. CO Plan
a. Statutory provision and General Preamble requirements
b. Procedural requirements
c. Emissions inventory
d. Reasonably available control measures
e. Attainment demonstration
f. Quantitative milestones and RFP
g. Adoption of mandatory measures
(1) Enhanced I/M
(2) Oxygenated fuels
(3) Clean-fuel vehicle fleet program
(4) Employee commute options program
h. VMT forecast and contingency measures
i. TCMs to offset growth in VMT
j. Fully adopted and enforceable control measures
k. Implications of EPA's proposed action
2. Ozone Rate of Progress Plan
a. Statutory provisions and General Preamble requirements
b. Description of plan
c. Conditional approval of commitments
d. Implications of EPA's proposed action
III. California FIP
A. Basis for the FIP Actions in Applicable law and EPA policies
1. FIP Obligation
a. Introduction
(1) Passage of the 1990 Amendments
(2) Applicable law
(3) New law applies
b. The FIPs must demonstrate attainment
(1) What attainment deadline governs?
(a) Background
(b) Current law
(2) These FIPs need not address new requirements other than the
requirements to demonstrate attainment
(a) Reasonable Further Progress
(b) Reasonably available control measures, including reasonably
available control technology
c. FIPs may use new provisions providing additional flexibility
d. Maintenance demonstration for South Coast
2. Other issues relating to EPA's authority
a. Comprehensive FIP authorities under the Clean Air Act
b. EPA authority to charge fees
c. Restrictions on EPA's authority regarding fees
d. Land use
e. Parking management
f. Authority to order the State to implement specific measures
requiring the State to legislate or expand money
B. Overview of Components of Each FIP
1. Introduction
a. Control approach
b. FIP enforcement
c. Application of FIP requirements to OCS sources
d. Application of FIP requirements to sources located in Indian
country
e. Proposed rules without regulatory text
2. Common elements
a. Mobile source regulations
b. Stationary and area source regulations
(1) Regulations for specific source categories
(2) Regulations imposed statewide
(3) Cap regulations
3. Sacramento Ozone
a. Reduction requirements for 1999 and 2005
b. SIP rules
c. FIP rules for 1999 and 2005
d. 1999 attainment option
(1) Onroad heavy duty trucks
(2) Nonroad growth cap
(3) No drive days
(4) Recreational boat fees or prohibitions
e. EPA's preferred option
(1) EPA authority to initiate bump-up
(2) Rationale for bump-up to ``Severe''
(3) 2005 attainment option
f. Summary of 1999 and 2005 attainment options
g. Attainment demonstrations
4. Ventura Ozone
a. Reduction requirements
b. SIP rules
c. FIP rules
d. Attainment demonstration
e. Alternative attainment date discussion
5. South Coast Ozone
a. Reduction requirements
b. SIP rules
c. FIP rules
d. Section 182(e)(5) provisions
(1) statutory provision and General Preamble requirements
(2) need for additional time to develop new technologies
(3) federal role in support of technological development
activities
(a) Scope of EPA's responsibilities
(b) Recent national initiatives
(1) Climate Change Action Plan
(2) Technology Innovation Strategy
(3) Clean Car Initiative
(c) SCAQMD Technology Advancement Office
(4) Demonstration that progress requirements for 1990-2000 are
met without need for Sec. 182(e)(5) measure reductions
e. Attainment demonstration
f. Alternative attainment date discussion
6. South Coast CO
a. Reduction requirements
b. Attainment demonstration
c. Alternative attainment date discussion
C. Stationary and Area Source Rules
1. Introduction
a. Source category description and significance
b. Selection of control strategies
(1) source-specific RACT rules
(2) traditional stationary source category rules
(3) cap regulations
(4) new technology measures under section 182(e)(5)
c. Future evolution of rules
2. Regulations for specific sources
a. Introduction and rationale for selection of sources
b. Formica Corporation (Placer)
c. Sierra Pine Limited (Placer)
d. Michigan California Lumber Company (El Dorado)
e. Reynolds Metals (Placer)
3. Regulations for specific source categories in the FIP areas
a. Introduction
(1) rationale for selection of rules and reduction rates
(2) relationship to existing and pending SIP provisions
(3) relationship to other applicable FIP provisions
(4) rule structure
b. Solvent cleaning operations (Sacramento, Ventura)
c. Wood products coatings (Sacramento, Ventura)
d. Auto refinishing operations(Sacramento)
e. Adhesives and sealants (Sacramento)
f. Can and coil coating (Sacramento)
g. Commercial bakeries (Sacramento)
h. Municipal waste landfills (Sacramento)
i. Livestock waste management (Sacramento, South Coast, Ventura)
j. Fugitive emissions (Sacramento, South Coast, Ventura)
(1) oil and gas production facilities and pipeline transfer
stations
(2) gas processing facilities, refineries, bulk plants, bulk
terminals, and chemical plants
k. Service stations (Sacramento, South Coast, Ventura)
l. Waste burning (Sacramento, South Coast, Ventura)
m. Residential water heaters (Sacramento)
n. Stationary internal combustion engines (Sacramento)
o. Industrial, commercial, and institutional boilers, steam
generators, and process heaters (Sacramento)
(1) biomass boilers
(2) gaseous/liquid fuel-fired boilers (equal to or greater than
5 mmBTU)
(3) gaseous/liquid fuel-fired boilers (greater than 1 but less
than 5 mmBTU)
p. Gas turbines (Sacramento)
4. Regulations imposed statewide
a. Introduction--rationale for statewide control
b. Architectural coatings
(1) relationship to national rule development
(2) relationship to local rules
(3) alternative reduction approaches
(a) fees
(b) corporate average VOC emissions (CAVE) limit
(c) manufacturers bubble
c. Consumer products
(1) FIP promulgation of existing CARB rules
(a) consumer products
(b) antiperspirants and deodorants
(2) aerosol paints
(3) alternative reduction approaches
(4) need for additional reductions
d. Pesticides
(1) Summary and applicability
(2) Specific provisions
(3) Reporting, recordkeeping and test methods
(4) Relationship to State rules
(5) Relationship to FIFRA
5. Cap regulations
a. Introduction
(1) rationale for approach
(2) reduction rate
(3) withdrawal of rules based on SIP progress
(4) relationship to other applicable FIP provisions
(5) implementation and enforcement issues
(a) compliance mechanisms
(b) EPA resources
(c) emission quantification mechanisms
b. Control approach
(1) rule structure
(2) applicability and exemptions
(3) determination of baseline emissions
(4) compliance plans
(5) reporting, recordkeeping, and compliance requirements
(6) penalties
c. Industrial and commercial solvents and coatings
d. VOC emissions associated with the manufacturing of products
e. Disposal of materials containing VOCs
f. Commercial food preparation and/or baking
g. Petroleum and natural gas extraction, processing, and storage
h. NOX emission sources
(1) Source category description
(2) Issues
i. Alternatives to the FIP cap program
(1) Trading of emissions
(2) Manufacturers bubble for industrial and commercial solvents
and coatings
(a) introduction
(b) withdrawal of rules based on SIP progress
(c) relationship with other FIP provisions
(d) implementation date
(e) applicability
(f) exemption limit
(g) conceptual design
(h) recordkeeping and reporting
(i) implementation and enforcement issues
(3) The use of other economic instruments to incentivize
emission reductions
D. Mobile Sources
1. Overview of mobile source issues and measures
a. Emissions credit for the California Motor Vehicle Control
Program
b. Summary of mobile source FIP measures
(1) Programs for light-duty vehicles
(2) Programs for medium-duty vehicles
(3) Programs for heavy-duty vehicles
(4) Programs for nonroad vehicles and engines
(a) nonroad heavy-duty engines
(b) small nonroad equipment
(5) Programs for national transportation sources and Federal
activities
(a) locomotives
(b) commercial aviation
(c) general aviation
(d) military installations
(6) Programs to reduce vehicle miles traveled
(a) employee commute options programs
(b) parking cash out
(7) Special issues for mobile sources
(a) inspection and maintenance
(b) retrofit programs for mobile sources
(c) adjustments based on local control of VMT growth
2. Program for onroad light-duty vehicles and engines
a. Overview
b. Air quality significance
c. Enhanced inspection and maintenance
(1) Introduction
(2) Enhanced I/M
(3) Background
(4) Summary of proposed Federal enhanced I/M program
(a) Applicability
(b) Enforcement
(c) Network type
(d) Test type and procedure
(e) Vehicle coverage and test frequency
(f) Waivers and special warranty protection
(g) Enforcement and oversight
(h) Convenience issues
(i) Onroad testing
(j) Program start date
d. Enhanced in-use compliance programs for light-duty vehicles
e. Onhighway motorcycles
f. Discussion of emission registration and fee systems for
light-duty vehicles
g. Parking cash-out
h. Importation of vehicles into California
3. Programs for onroad heavy-duty vehicles and engines
a. Overview
b. Air quality significance
c. Enhanced in-use compliance program for heavy-duty vehicles
4. Programs for nonroad vehicles and engines
a. Overview
(1) Statutory authority
(2) General nonroad background
(3) Sierra Club suit
(4) Rationale for implementing the federal programs in the FIP
areas
(5) California's Nonroad Program/Preemption
b. Federal Nonroad Requirements
(1) Federal Requirements for Compression Ignition Engines at or
above 37kw
(a) Applicability
(b) Standards
(c) Compliance Dates
(d) Certification and Test Procedures
(2) Federal Requirements for Spark Ignited Engines at or under
19kw
(a) Background
(b) Overview of Program to Control Emissions from SI Engines
under 19 kW
(c) Standards
(d) Regulatory Scheme
(3) Federal Requirements for Spark Ignited Marine Engines
(a) Overview of Requirements for Spark-Ignition Marine Engines
(b) Definition of Spark Ignited Marine Engine
(c) Applicability
(d) Emission Standards
(e) General Enforcement Provisions
(f) Compliance Dates for Certifications
(g) Averaging, Banking, and Trading
c. Special FIP Measures
(1) On-Highway Motorcycles and Nonroad Engines Used in
Recreational Vehicles and Nonroad Motorcycles
(a) Overview
(b) Definition of On-Highway and Nonroad Motorcycles
(c) Applicability
(d) Standards
(e) Certification and Test Procedures
(f) Authority
(2) Fees on Marine Pleasure Craft
(3) Nonroad Compression Ignition Engines under 37kw and Nonroad
Spark Ignited Engines over 19kw and less than 37kw
d. Enhanced In-Use Compliance Program for Nonroad Engines over
37 kW
e. National Transportation Sources
(1) Introduction
(2) Civil and Military Aviation
(a) General Description of Category
(1) Aircraft Operational Classes
(2) Related Mobile Sources
(3) Need for Control
(4) Level of Control
(b) Commercial Aircraft Operations
(1) Overview
(a) Airline Focus and Specific Sources Covered
(b) Geographic Scope
(c) Control Period
(2) Key Regulatory Elements
(a) Summary
(b) Pounds per PEU Scheme
(c) Fee System
(d) Averaging and Trading
(e) Reporting and Recordkeeping
(f) Exemptions
(3) Legal Authority and Regulatory Interactions
(4) Ground Access Vehicles Controlled by Other FIP Elements
(5) Issues for Comment
(6) Aviation Working Group Issues/Concerns
(c) Military Aviation
(1) Overview
(a) Military Air Base Operations
(b) Control Strategy
(c) Geographic Scope
(d) Control Period
(2) Key Regulatory Elements
(a) Summary
(b) Baseline Inventory and Emissions Cap
(c) Averaging and Trading
(d) Annual Compliance Determinations
(e) Reporting Recordkeeping
(f) Exemptions
(3) Legal Authority
(4) Issues for Specific Comment
(d) General Aviation
(1) Source Description
(2) Overall Control Strategy
(3) Key Regulatory Elements
(4) Issues for Specific Comment
(e) Public Aviation
(3) Locomotives
(a) Introduction
(b) Freshly Manufactured Locomotives
(c) Remanufactured Locomotives
(1) Option I--National Regulations
(2) Option II--California Only Requirements
(d) Additional Measures for the South Coast
(1) Fleet Average Standard Program
(2) Compliance Program
(3) Authority
(4) Emission Reductions
(5) Other Options
(4) Marine Vessels/Ports
(a) Background and Program Description
(b) Control Strategies--Fee System Based on Emission Levels
(1) Fee Categories
(2) Emission Reduction Technologies
(c) Control Strategies--Discount for Using Port Facilities while
Hotelling
(d) Control Strategies--Discount for Staying outside of the
Region
(5) Non-Aircraft Military Installations
5. Impact of Economic Incentive Program Rule on Fee Programs in
the FIP
a. Introduction
b. Requirements under the EIP
(1) Surplus
(2) Quantifiable
(3) Enforceable
(4) Consistent with SIP attainment and RFP demonstrations
(5) Permanent
(6) Uncertainty Provisions
(7) Auditing
(8) Reconciliation Procedures
(9) Implementation Schedule
(10) Administrative Procedures
E. Fuels Programs
1. Reformulated Fuels
a. Reformulated Gasoline
b. California Reformulated Gasoline (Phase II)
c. California Reformulated Diesel Fuel
F. Severe Area Requirements for Sacramento
1. Introduction
2. Employee commute options program
a. Introduction and statutory requirements
b. Program requirements and implementation approach
c. Employer and compliance plan requirements
d. ECO rule development issues.
3. RACT for 25 ton per year sources
a. Applicable requirements
4. New source review
a. Background
b. Overview of Rule Requirements
(1) BACT
(2) Offsets
(3) Statewide Compliance
(4) Alternative Siting Analysis
c. Existing NSR Rules
d. Changes from Original APCD Rules
(1) Changes to Address Severe Area Requirements
(2) Changes to Address Federal Approvability
(3) Changes to Address Federal Implementation
e. Dual Permit Application and Review
f. Operating Permits
g. Federal Implementation and Delegation to Local Agencies
5. TCMs to offset VMT increases
a. Applicable requirements
b. Demonstration that motor vehicle VOC emissions will not
increase from one ozone season to the next
6. Reformulated gasoline
a. Provision satisfied in FIP/SIP actions above
G. Sec. 182(e)(5) New Technology Measures for the South Coast
1. Introduction
2. Commitment to adopt measures and schedule of emission
reductions
a. Stationary/area sources
b. Mobile sources
3. Commitment to adopt contingency measures
H. Attainment Demonstrations
1. Introduction
2. Baseline inventories
a. Adjustments to State's emissions inventories
b. Basis for projected emissions inventories
c. Stationary sources
(1) Sacramento
(2) Ventura
(3) South Coast
d. Mobile sources
(1) Highway vehicle emission factors
(2) VMT estimates
(3) Nonroad vehicle and engine emission inventory
(i) Heavy duty engines greater than 50 hp
(ii) Spark ignition engines less than 25 hp
(iii) Recreational marine engines
(iv) Locomotives
(v) Aircraft and airports
(4) Mobile baseline inventory summary
3. Air quality data and modeling analyses
a. Sacramento Ozone
b. Ventura Ozone
c. South Coast Ozone
d. South Coast CO
4. State and local control measures
5. Attainment demonstrations
a. Sacramento Ozone
b. Ventura Ozone
c. South Coast Ozone
d. South Coast CO
I. Transportation Conformity
J. Delegation; FIP Implementation by State and Local Agencies
1. State and local obligation to incorporate FIP requirements in
operating permits
2. Full transfer of authority through delegation
3. Full transfer of authority through SIP approval
4. Partial transfer of authority through delegation
IV. Administrative Requirements
A. Executive Order 12866
B. Regulatory Flexibility Act
C. Paperwork Reduction Act
D. Federalism Implications
Appendix I
A. Enhanced In-Use Compliance Program for Light-Duty Vehicles and
Trucks
B. Enhanced In-Use Compliance Program for Heavy-Duty Vehicles
C. Enhanced In-Use Compliance Program for Nonroad Engines over 37 kW
Proposed Revisions to CFR
40 CFR 52 Subpart GGG
40 CFR 52.2950--General FIP Provisions and Delegation
40 CFR 52.2951--New Technology Commitments under Sec. 182(e)(5)
40 CFR 52.2952--Stationary and Area Source VOC Cap Rules
(Sacramento)
Industrial and Commercial Solvents and Coatings
VOC Emissions Associated with the Manufacturing of Products
Disposal of Materials Containing VOCs
Commercial Food Preparation and/or Baking
Petroleum and Natural Gas Extraction, Processing, and Storage
40 CFR 52.2953--Stationary and Area Source VOC Cap Rules (Ventura)
Industrial and Commercial Solvents and Coatings
VOC Emissions Associated with the Manufacturing of Products
Disposal of Materials Containing VOCs
Commercial Food Preparation and/or Baking
Petroleum and Natural Gas Extraction, Processing, and Storage
40 CFR 52.2954--Stationary and Area Source VOC Cap Rules (South
Coast)
Industrial and Commercial Solvents and Coatings
VOC Emissions Associated with the Manufacturing of Products
Disposal of Materials Containing VOCs
Commercial Food Preparation and/or Baking
Petroleum and Natural Gas Extraction, Processing, and Storage
40 CFR 52.2955--Stationary and Area Source NOX Cap Rules
(Ventura)
40 CFR 52.2956--Stationary and Area Source NOX Cap Rules (South
Coast) [Reserved]
40 CFR 52.2957--Consumer Product Rules
(a) Consumer products
(b) Antiperspirants and deodorants
40 CFR 52.2958--Aerosol Paint Rule
40 CFR 52.2959--Architectural Coating Rule
40 CFR 52.2960--Pesticides Rule
40 CFR 52.2961--Stationary and Area Source Rules
(a) Solvent cleaning operations (Sacramento, Ventura)
(b) Wood products coatings (Sacramento, Ventura)
(c) Auto refinishing operations (Sacramento)
(d) Adhesives and sealants (Sacramento)
(e) Can and coil coating (Sacramento)
(f) Commercial bakeries (Sacramento)
(g) Municipal waste landfills (Sacramento)
(h) Livestock waste (Sacramento, South Coast, Ventura)
(i) Fugitive emissions from gas processing facilities,
refineries, bulk plants, bulk terminals, and chemical plants
(Sacramento, South Coast, Ventura)
(j) Service stations (Sacramento, Ventura, South Coast)
(k) Waste burning (Sacramento, Ventura, South Coast)
(l) Residential water heaters (Sacramento)
(m) Stationary internal combustion engines (Sacramento)
(n) Biomass boilers and steam generators (Sacramento)
(o) Gas turbines (Sacramento)
(p) RACT rule--Formica Corporation (Sacramento)
(q) RACT rule--SierraPine Limited (Sacramento)
(r) RACT rule--Michigan-California Lumber Co. (Sacramento)
(s) RACT rule--Reynolds Metal (Sacramento)
(t) Fugitive emissions from oil and gas production facilities
and pipeline transfer stations (Sacramento, South Coast, Ventura)
(u) Large industrial, commercial, and institutional boilers,
steam generators, and process heaters (Sacramento)
(v) Small industrial, commercial, and institutional boilers,
steam generators, and process heaters (Sacramento)
40 CFR 52.2962--Enhanced In-Use Compliance Program for Motor
Vehicles
40 CFR 52.2963--Enhanced I/M Program
40 CFR 52.2964--Importation of Vehicles
40 CFR 52.2965--Requirements for Engines Past Their Useful Life
40 CFR 52.2966--Enhanced In-Use Compliance for Heavy Duty Engines
and Vehicles Program
40 CFR 52.2967--Nonroad Vehicles and Engines, On-Highway Motorcycles
40 CFR 52.2970--Civil Aircraft Operations
40 CFR 52.2971--Locomotives
40 CFR 52.2972--Military Aircraft Operations
40 CFR 52.2973--Ships and Ports
40 CFR 52.2975--Enhanced In-Use Compliance Program for Nonroad
Engines over 37 kW
40 CFR 52.2999--Employee Commute Options Program Rule (Sacramento)
40 CFR 52.3000--General Permit Requirements (Sacramento)
40 CFR 52.3001--New Source Review (Sacramento)
40 CFR 52.3002--Emissions Reduction Credit Authorization
(Sacramento)
Appendix to 40 CFR 52 Subpart GGG
40 CFR 81 Subpart C
40 CFR 81.305--Reclassification of Sacramento Ozone Nonattainment
Area
I. Executive Summary
A. Introduction
EPA issues this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking under court orders to
propose by February 1994, and promulgate by February 1995, federal
implementation plans (FIPs) to attain the ozone National Ambient Air
Quality Standard (NAAQS) in the Sacramento and Ventura areas,\1\ and to
attain both the ozone and carbon monoxide (CO) NAAQS in the South Coast
area. These obligations arise from provisions of the Clean Air Act
Amendments (CAAA) of 1977 and 1990, from successful citizen suits to
compel disapproval of 1982 attainment plans for the three areas, and
from district court orders requiring EPA to prepare federal plans
demonstrating attainment of the NAAQS.\2\
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\1\EPA is not currently under a district court schedule order
for the Ventura FIP. EPA and the plaintiffs have, however, recently
negotiated an agreement providing for a proposal and promulgation
schedule consistent with those for the South Coast and Sacramento.
The settlement agreement will be filed shortly with the court.
\2\In the case of Sacramento, the lawsuit was filed by the
Environmental Council of Sacramento and the Sierra Club; see ECOS v.
EPA, No. CIVS 87-0420, slip op. (E.D. Cal. Dec. 2, 1991). The
plaintiff in Ventura is Citizens to Preserve the Ojai; see CPO v.
EPA, No. CV 88 00982 HLH. For the South Coast, disapproval of the
1982 attainment plan followed litigation by a private citizen, Mark
Abramowitz; see Abramowitz v. EPA, 832 F.2d 1071 (9th Cir. 1987).
The South Coast FIP order resulted from a lawsuit brought by the
Coalition for Clean Air and the Sierra Club, Inc.; see Coalition for
Clean Air v. EPA (reported as Coalition for Clean Air v. Southern
Cal. Edison), 971 F.2d 219 (9th Cir. 1992), cert. denied, 113 S. Ct.
1361 (1993).
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Specifically, these proposals are the result of the historical
inability of each of the three areas to develop adequate state
implementation plans (SIPs) under the Clean Air Act of 1977. Because of
these failures, EPA was required by law to produce federal plans. The
courts have interpreted that this federal responsibility was continued
by the U.S. Congress even as it substantially amended the Clean Air Act
Amendments of 1990.
Although EPA is issuing this NPRM today because we are legally
required to do so, EPA intends to use this opportunity to assist
renewed state and local efforts to achieve clean, healthy air for the
citizens of California. Therefore, the agency has tried to keep one
central principle in mind as we fashioned our approach: EPA wants to do
this in conjunction with the ongoing efforts of the local communities,
not simply impose federal plans upon them. EPA believes that if these
combined efforts are to be successful, the FIP process must both
develop appropriate emissions reduction strategies, and support the
local-state-federal-public cooperation necessary to attain clean air.
These proposals therefore contain not only the specific control
strategies necessary to demonstrate attainment in each of the three
areas, but also plans to coordinate, to the extent feasible, an
expanded public participation process with that of each local air
board. This coordination is especially important because each local air
board is currently developing its own SIP under the Clean Air Act
Amendments of 1990. These SIPs must be adopted and submitted to EPA by
November 15, 1994. If they can be approved by EPA, then these local
plans can replace proposed federal controls. In light of these ongoing
efforts, EPA strongly believes that a coordinated, inclusive process is
the best way to address the regulatory, social and economic changes
which will be required to achieve clean air.
Looked at collectively, the plans proposed here will directly
affect more than 15 million people--almost half of California's
population--and virtually all businesses in the South Coast,
Sacramento, and Ventura areas. In each FIP area the proposed stationary
controls will require emission reductions from small commercial sources
such as bakeries and print shops to large industrial sources such as
petroleum refineries and large manufacturing operations. Most
commercial and industrial activities will be affected. Proposed area
source controls may result in cost increases and reformulation of
products as diverse as hair spray, deodorant, pesticides and house
paint. Mobile source emission reduction requirements for autos, trucks,
planes, trains, boats, ships, and off-road equipment may result in
higher costs to some and significant changes in the mode of
transportation for others.
These reductions are made even more difficult--and costly--because
they must come on top of years of significant efforts and reductions.
For example, the South Coast area has managed a reduction in peak ozone
levels of nearly 75% since its worst days of the mid-1950's. Yet it
remains the center of the worst air pollution in the country.
Sacramento and Ventura, though not facing the same extreme levels of
air pollution as the South Coast, have also made significant strides in
reducing ozone levels; but they, too, remain close to the bottom of any
urban area ranking of air quality levels.
Taken together, the cost associated with the proposed pollution
control strategies necessary to reach attainment in these three areas
ranges from $4 billion to $6 billion per year over the next 16 years.
While these are not new, additional costs (they were included in the
analysis done prior to the passage of the CAAA of 1990), clearly part
of developing these plans is coming to terms with the fact--regardless
of which governmental body assumes responsibility for the effort--that
most of the emission reductions that were easy or inexpensive were
achieved in these areas some time ago.
The obvious questions at this point are, ``What are the benefits of
clean air for these areas? Is it really worth the cost?'' Ultimately,
the second question will be answered by the citizens, and future
citizens, who live in these communities. In order to make this
judgement, citizens will need to know the answer to the first question.
While we have a firm understanding of the many health, economic, and
aesthetic benefits of clean air, quantifying these benefits has proved
difficult.
What we do know is that the reactivity of ozone causes health
problems because it damages lung tissue and sensitizes the lungs to
other irritants. Scientific evidence indicates that ambient levels of
ozone not only affect people with impaired respiratory systems, such as
asthmatics, but healthy adults and children as well. Regular exposure
to ozone for 6-7 hours at concentrations below the levels in the South
Coast, Ventura or Sacramento has been found to significantly reduce
lung function in normal, healthy people during periods of moderate
exercise. Animal studies have demonstrated that repeated exposure to
ozone for months or years can produce permanent structural damage in
the lungs and accelerate the rate of lung function loss and aging of
the lungs. It is also well accepted that ozone can cause significant
crop yield losses, extensive damage to forests, and deterioration of
buildings as well.
We also know that exposure to elevated carbon monoxide levels is
associated with impairment of visual perception, work capacity, manual
dexterity, and learning ability, and with illness and death for those
who already suffer from cardiovascular disease, particularly angina or
peripheral vascular disease.
What we don't know enough about yet is how to assign a direct
monetary value to protection from these air pollutants. Benefits such
as reduced health care costs, increased employee attendance and
productivity, increased crop yields, reduced materials damage, and a
healthier ecosystem clearly have value. The quality of life values
associated with more than 15 million people finally being able to
breathe air free of unhealthful levels of smog and carbon monoxide must
be added to the total as well. On balance, these values--when compared
against the costs--were strong enough to compel the U. S. Congress to
mandate that all Americans be provided with this public health
protection. That is what the Clean Air Act is all about. Ultimately,
these federal implementation plans, and the state and local efforts
which will coincide with them, are about finally bringing that
protection to the citizens of California.
B. EPA's Goals
As the above discussion suggests, we seek to meet several goals as
we engage in the development and promulgation of FIPs for these
California areas. These goals compel EPA to go beyond normal boundaries
of rule development and implementation. EPA views both the SIP and FIP
processes as an opportunity to make real progress towards clean air on
a variety of fronts. To do that, these FIPs must include more than
rules which reduce emissions; they must also involve a concerted effort
to make the process of bringing clean air to California work better.
This effort will require even better cooperation and coordination among
local, state and federal air pollution control agencies, better
coordination with the other governmental agencies which must contribute
to the solutions, and more public involvement and education. Success
demands that everyone work together on creative and innovative
solutions to the difficult air pollution problems these areas still
face.
1. Provide for the Emissions Reductions Needed To Meet EPA's
Obligations
First and foremost, EPA's goal is to meet its obligations under the
Clean Air Act and under court orders, to promulgate plans in
Sacramento, Ventura, and the South Coast which provide for attainment
of the health-based ozone and carbon monoxide standards. Due to
historical failures of these three nonattainment areas to develop
adequate plans themselves, the courts have determined that the Clean
Air Act, as amended in 1990, requires EPA to provide plans now.
Although EPA disagreed with the retention of the FIP obligations in the
wake of the 1990 amendments, EPA takes its obligations, and their
ultimate objective of clean air very seriously.\3\ In EPA's view, any
efforts to fulfill other goals stated below must complement this
ultimate objective of clean air.
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\3\EPA has previously published advance notices of proposed
rulemakings (ANPRs) and/or notices of proposed rulemaking (NPRs) for
FIPs in the three areas. For Sacramento, ANPRs were published on
April 5, 1990 (55 FR 12669) and May 27, 1992 (57 FR 22194). For the
South Coast, EPA published an ANPR on December 7, 1988 (53 FR 49494)
and an NPR on September 5, 1990 (55 FR 36458). EPA published an NPR
for Ventura on January 17, 1991 (56 FR 1754). While the approach of
these FIPs is quite different, the reader should consult these
notices for an account of the litigation, settlement agreements,
modifications to the agreements, regulatory history, and EPA's then-
current interpretations of its obligations. For an account of EPA's
views on timing and circumstances of these FIP obligations, see
especially the executive summary of the South Coast NPR. See also
Coalition for Clean Air, 971 F.2d 219 (9th Cir. 1992).
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2. Develop the FIPs in a Manner Which Encourages and Assists the
Implementation of Air Quality Measures by State and Local Agencies
It is most appropriate for state and local agencies to play the
lead roles in addressing their own air pollution problems. In fact,
that is how Congress, through the Clean Air Act, intended it to work.
Traditionally, this approach has placed EPA in the roles of technical
advisor, grant officer, and, as a last resort when local or state
responsibilities are not met, as a backstop. But the air quality
problems faced by these California areas are tremendous, and despite
their efforts the state and local governments have been as yet unable
to provide a plan for attaining the health standards. It has therefore
become necessary, both legally and practically, for EPA to play the
backstop role at this time.
As EPA pursues this role, we believe that we must do so in a manner
which both encourages and supports the efforts of the state and local
governments to meet their continuing air quality related
responsibilities, especially regarding the development of the November
15 SIP submittal. In short, this means moving beyond the mere
fulfillment of our legal responsibilities toward the establishment of a
full working partnership among all parties.
Obviously, the first real test of this new partnership begins now.
As has been previously discussed, these FIPs are being proposed at the
same time as state and local agencies are preparing to meet many of the
Act's most important requirements, including their own plans to address
the very same obligation as these FIPs: attainment of the ozone
NAAQS.\4\ EPA is concerned that issuance of comprehensive regulatory
FIPs within the FIP time frame has the potential to disrupt the SIP
planning process. State and local agencies will be in the process of
designing air quality measures for legislative or board consideration
at the same time the federal government is proposing to promulgate
measures to cover the very same emission sources. At the very least,
these parallel planning processes are likely to create confusion for
the public and the regulated community. EPA's goal is to develop the
FIPs in a manner that supports effective air quality planning by the
responsible state and local agencies.
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\4\For carbon monoxide, the South Coast is revising its CO SIP
which was submitted to EPA in 1992. The South Coast is currently
scheduled to submit this revised SIP to EPA in November 1994.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
3. Minimize Federal Intrusion Into State and Local Affairs
EPA will meet its obligations to prepare federal plans for clean
air in these three areas of California, and EPA must, and will if
necessary, implement the measures it promulgates. However, EPA firmly
believes that clean air is more likely to be achieved faster, and in
greater harmony with local economic and community goals, if its own
role is minimized by effective state and local actions.
EPA's current challenge to minimize federal intrusion is through
the proposal and promulgation of these federal plans--plans which EPA
hopes to see replaced by state and local regulations. Consequently, EPA
will withdraw or rescind any federal measure it proposes or promulgates
as soon as it can approve acceptable SIP measures submitted by the
state which provide for commensurate emissions reductions. In fact, EPA
hopes these FIPs will become obsolete as a regulatory matter. The
remaining value of these FIPs would then be the partnerships and
solutions which both minimize federal intrusion and enable the state
and local agencies to achieve the clean air goals as the law envisions.
To put this another way, while EPA's goal is to minimize federal
intrusion into state and local decision making and implementation
authority, only prompt action by California officials--within the
timetables of the CAAA and the court ordered deadlines--can
significantly diminish the FIPs' impact on the state. EPA intends to
assist the state and local agencies in their efforts to adopt and
submit ozone SIPs with the requisite emissions reductions and ozone
attainment demonstrations. As pointed out earlier in this discussion,
successful state and local action will allow EPA to withdraw the
regulatory pieces of the federal plan or reduce the scope and
stringency of its imposed or impending measures.
4. Minimize Adverse Socio-Economic Impacts
EPA has attempted to fashion these proposed FIPs to meet the
attainment obligations while trying hard to avoid unnecessarily severe
social and economic impacts, both through the choice of the particular
regulations and by the timing of their implementation. Despite these
mitigatory approaches, federal regulation sufficient to achieve the
NAAQS in these heavily polluted areas has the potential for significant
social and economic disruption. This is the inevitable result of the
extraordinary emission reductions required, the advanced level of
control that already exists, and the constraints on EPA's authority and
practical ability to enact and implement many of the most appropriate
control approaches for these areas.\5\ Current control strategies in
these areas, especially in the South Coast, already employ state of the
art technology and regulatory design for many pollution sources. To
achieve attainment in these areas, in effect, we must do even better.
To mitigate the severe impact of further near-term emission reduction
requirements, EPA has attempted to identify control options which
provide emission sources with flexibility and incentives for
technological development, product reformulation and pollution
prevention. We will look to the public comments on the proposals to
further identify such strategies.
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\5\The proposals in this rulemaking are designed to achieve the
substantial emission reductions required in these three areas and
are not necessarily appropriate for areas with lesser problems.
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We want to emphasize here again that state and local agencies are
in a far better position to tailor plans for the areas that minimize
adverse impacts of the attainment obligations. Through proximity they
have a better understanding of their emission sources and their local
communities. They can also achieve significant mobile source reductions
from transportation and land use measures that are beyond EPA's
resources and authority to implement directly.
For example, there is a growing body of evidence supporting the use
of market-based programs, sometimes incorporating fees, to encourage
emissions reductions and transitions to cleaner technologies and
processes. Such policies can be effectively designed and implemented at
the local level where a specific understanding of local conditions and
economies can be integrated into a flexible program and, regarding fee-
based programs, where revenues can be redistributed within the
community. A well designed program can effectively minimize the
disruptive impacts of major emissions reductions. Conversely, federal
measures for local implementation must be general enough to provide for
enforcement from a distance, and have severe legal restraints relative
to local revenue issues. The federal Miscellaneous Receipts Act, for
example, requires revenues from any such federal fee-based programs to
be deposited in the U.S. Treasury, thereby preventing their
redistribution within the local community. In short then, locally
designed and implemented plans become the best means of minimizing
socio-economic impacts.
5. Ensure Fairness with Respect to Impacts on the Population as a Whole
and on Individual Air Pollution Sources
The extent of the air quality problems in these three areas, as
well as principles of equity, demand that emission reductions must come
from every source of pollution--from cars to refineries to hand-held
spray paint. Fairness is an elusive goal--what seems fair to one may
not seem fair to another--but there are a few facts to bear in mind as
we formulate a plan for clean air: (1) Some emission sources have been
required to reduce more than others in the past; (2) Some emissions can
be reduced more cheaply than others; (3) Some individuals and sources
of emissions can more easily afford to comply with air pollution
regulations than others.
Myriad sources comprise the pieces of the air quality problem, and
each of these sources must be part of the solution. What part of the
solution each will contribute, and how to fashion those contributions
into a plan is where the challenge lies. EPA has and will continue to
consider the issue of fairness as it develops these FIP strategies. We
encourage the regulated community and the public to make sure that the
clean air strategies which ultimately get implemented are fair by: (1)
Constructively participating in the FIP public involvement processes;
and (2) supporting the development of appropriate SIP measures to
displace as much of each of the FIPs as possible.
6. Ensure That the Federal Government Does its Part to Contribute to
the Solution
The solution to these air quality problems will require the
participation of all sectors that can contribute. There are several
ways that these FIP proposals embody the federal government's
contribution to the solution. First, EPA is meeting its legal
obligations to provide plans for attainment in the FIP areas. EPA has
proposed plans which, building upon existing state emission control
strategies, will meet the ultimate goal of attainment. EPA hopes that
this federal effort will, by actually providing a complete plan,
leverage state and local efforts to complete their 1994 ozone
attainment SIPs.
Second, some of the federal rules proposed today would achieve
reductions from emission sources over which the federal government has
sole jurisdiction. Emissions from sources such as new locomotives, ship
engines, aircraft engines, and some farm and construction equipment
have not been previously included in state and local efforts to develop
comprehensive and complete attainment plans. While EPA believes that
these sources are appropriate for regulation, there remain unresolved
legal and policy issues regarding the extent to which, if at all, EPA
can or should continue to regulate them indefinitely. In other words,
should SIPs, such as those due in November 1994, be allowed to take
credit for federally-mandated reductions from these types of sources?
EPA is requesting comment on this issue.
Third, the FIPs proposed today include reductions from federal
facilities such as military bases. EPA intends to continue working with
other federal agencies to reduce emissions from their operations in
these FIP areas as well as other nonattainment areas.
Finally, as we have stated earlier, EPA views these FIPs as an
opportunity to contribute much more than a comprehensive set of
regulations. The ultimate goal of clean air requires public support and
education, development of new clean technologies, use of
environmentally sound modes of transportation, and a fundamental shift
to include pollution prevention into our everyday decision making both
at home and at work. Along with these proposed FIP rules, EPA as an
agency is pursuing a set of initiatives which will contribute to these
pieces of the clean air solution. These efforts include implementation
of the President's Climate Change Action Plan; an increasing emphasis
by the agency on public awareness of environmental issues and solutions
and implementation of the National Environmental Education Act;
participation in the development and funding of a government-wide
Environmental Technology Initiative; and a direct, agency-wide focus on
pollution prevention in every rulemaking we undertake. Over time, these
efforts will provide significant emissions reductions not only for
California, but across America as well.
C. Summary of the FIP Contents
Under the Clean Air Act, nonattainment areas are classified
according to the severity of their pollution problem. The attainment
deadlines that are then assigned reflect the classification. The
current classifications for the three FIP ozone nonattainment areas are
set forth below. Also depicted are the attainment deadlines, which are
as expeditious as practicable, but not later than the following dates:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Attainment
Area Classification date
------------------------------------------------------------------------
South Coast.................. Extreme...................... 2010
Ventura...................... Severe....................... 2005
Sacramento................... Serious...................... 1999
------------------------------------------------------------------------
For a number of reasons, EPA believes that the control strategies
available to the Agency to attain the ozone standard in the Sacramento
area by 1999 could result in unacceptable socioeconomic hardship. For
example, nitrogen oxides (NOX) emissions within the Sacramento
area are overwhelmingly from mobile sources. And, while significant
reductions of mobile source NOX emissions will result from the
scheduled phasing in of cleaner engines and fuels, this changeover to
cleaner engines and fuels will take some time (e.g. manufacturing
changes, replacement costs, infrastructure changes). This is especially
true since owners legitimately want to continue to receive the benefits
of a full useful life from their present vehicles and engines.
Therefore, in order to get the planned emissions reductions earlier,
i.e., before 1999, EPA must either restrict the use of current, dirtier
vehicles and engines, or somehow force turnover in the current vehicle
and engine fleet. That means considering options like no-drive days,
and/or dramatically increasing the costs associated with operating
vehicles and engines currently in use.
Moreover, in order to attain by 1999, stationary sources in the
Sacramento area would be required to reduce their volatile organic
compounds (VOC) emissions by 20% by 1999, which because of the
magnitude of reductions could lead to potential production cutbacks or
shutdowns. As a result of these negative socioeconomic impacts, EPA is
proposing, in addition to the 1999 attainment option, the option of
reclassifying the Sacramento area to severe. EPA's reclassification
proposal would move the attainment deadline to 2005, and would allow
the Sacramento area, for purposes of attainment, to benefit from
substantial emissions reductions without the use of more disruptive
emissions reduction options. Even with the additional requirements
associated with a severe designation (e.g. the Employee Commute Option
program, and more stringent New Source Review requirements) the Agency
believes that this 2005 deadline can result in attainment without the
onerous consequences associated with Sacramento's current
classification.
The South Coast is classified as a serious CO nonattainment area
and is required to attain the CO NAAQS as expeditiously as practicable,
but not later than 2000.
Given these attainment deadlines, the principal technical
objectives of the proposed FIPs are to: (1) Determine the pollutant
emission reductions needed to attain the NAAQS in each area; (2) select
the additional control strategies best suited to achieve these
reductions; and (3) develop specific measures for each strategy.
1. Required Emission Reductions
The first task depends on the collection and analysis of critical
data relating emissions to ambient concentrations. To the greatest
extent possible, EPA's proposed FIPs use data compiled by the
California Air Resources Board (CARB) and the responsible local
agencies (e.g. the local air pollution control districts and councils
of governments) regarding current and future sources and levels of
emissions in each area. In order to remain consistent with state and
local planning efforts, EPA has made adjustments to these data only
where absolutely necessary to correct errors, improve the precision and
currency of the data, or analyze more effectively the impact of control
measures.
Of necessity, the proposed FIPs rely on air quality measurements
and meteorological input from the extensive CARB and district
monitoring networks. Finally, in order to relate emissions levels to
ambient pollutant concentrations, EPA has chosen to rely on modeling
analyses developed cooperatively with the involved state and local
agencies and used in their ongoing SIP development activities.
These technical foundations of the FIPs are discussed in section
III.H., and further details may be found in the technical support
documents accompanying this proposal. The data and analyses will be
revised to reflect the final FIP strategies and to conform, to the
extent possible, with new information and assumptions used by the state
and local agencies in the 1994 ozone SIPs for each area.
The results of these complex technical assessments confirm the need
for massive further reductions in emissions of the ozone precursor
pollutants in each area.\6\ In the most challenging case, current
levels of VOC must be reduced by 90 percent and NOX emissions must
be reduced by 70 percent to reach attainment of the ozone NAAQS in the
South Coast by the target date of 2010. In Ventura, approximately a 40
percent reduction of both VOC and NOX appears to be necessary for
ozone attainment by 2005. The reduction requirements for the Sacramento
area are slightly lower, but still amount to roughly 40 percent for VOC
and 30 percent for NOX by 1999 or 2005. Finally, approximately a
45 percent reduction in CO emissions is needed in order to attain the
CO standard in the South Coast Air Basin by 2000.
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\6\Ground-level ozone, more commonly known as smog, is formed
when nitrogen oxides (NOX) and volatile organic compounds
(VOCs) react with high temperatures. Strategies for reducing smog
generally require reductions in both VOC and NOX emissions.
Ozone causes health problems by damaging lung tissue and sensitizing
the lungs to other irritants.
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2. Selection of Control Strategies
EPA's selection of control strategies for the FIP areas began with
a review of the existing emissions inventories to determine which
pollution source categories were present in each area and the extent to
which each category contributed ozone precursor (VOC and NOX)
pollutant emissions. All mobile source categories are present in each
FIP area with the exception of ocean-going vessels in Sacramento, but
the relative importance of individual mobile source categories varies
significantly among the three areas. While the South Coast area
includes most industrial and commercial source categories, the
emissions inventory for the Sacramento area includes very few of these
sources. The importance of agriculture in Ventura County is reflected
in the unusual proportion of that area's VOC inventory assigned to
pesticides use. More details on the inventory profile for each area may
be found in sections II.A and III.H.
For stationary sources, EPA next reviewed the extent to which each
category was currently controlled under either federal, state, or local
regulations. In those few cases where the existing level of control
failed to meet existing national requirements for application of
reasonably available control technology (RACT), EPA prepared remedial
regulations for specific industrial sources identified in section
III.C.2., below.
EPA then reviewed the potential for further reductions from each
stationary source category in each area, based on upgrading the level
of control to match that required by the best existing rules, by
further enhancements to existing rules to reflect available technology,
or by imposing requirements that could be met through technology
transfer from similar sources. From this exercise, EPA selected and
prepared most of the industrial and commercial source control measures
discussed in section III.C.3.
That brings us to the first decision point where the awkwardness of
having the federal government undertaking air quality planning for a
particular state or locality becomes obvious. How will the remaining
emission reductions be apportioned among mobile sources, factories, and
consumer products and services? The choice is best made with both a
consideration of the costs and benefits associated with particular
control measures and a knowledge of the local impacts that will occur
when a specific choice is made. In addition, each locality has a
different mix of industries in different states of economic health and
with differing capabilities to absorb the costs of emission control.
Lacking detailed, specific information about every emissions source
in each FIP area, the choice EPA has made in this proposal is to seek
further reductions in all categories of pollution sources generally in
the same proportion as their remaining contribution to the problem.
Given EPA's distant starting point in this area of regulation (i.e. EPA
is not the local air board) this approach is as fair as EPA can be.
This means that the FIPs' reductions are generally apportioned in an
``equal,'' across-the-board fashion even though individual pollution
sources or source categories may vary substantially in their starting
points (the extent to which they have already reduced their emissions)
and in their ability to achieve further emission reductions. Local air
boards have a greater capacity for developing the kind of detailed,
specific information about local emissions sources which can improve
and replace these policies. EPA encourages the local boards to do so
wherever possible.
As a result, significant further reductions must be achieved by
industrial sources, such as petroleum refineries, which may have
already invested hundreds of millions of dollars in control equipment.
EPA is proposing that these sources reduce their VOC and NOX
emissions still further, not only through conventional, technology-
based regulations (for example, the fugitive emissions regulation
presented in section III.C.3.j.), but also through market-based ``cap''
rules, which allow sources the flexibility to select their reduction
approach so long as overall emissions are reduced annually (see section
III.C.5.).
Area source emissions must also be dramatically reduced through
regulations that apply either to individuals or, in some cases, the
national manufacturers and distributors of materials whose application,
storage, or use contribute evaporative VOC emissions. The category of
area sources proposed for new (or further) regulation in the FIPs
includes such diverse substances or activities as clean-up solvents,
architectural coatings, waste burning, landfills, pesticides, consumer
products, livestock waste, and residential water heaters (see sections
III.C.3. and III.C.4.).
Certain of the area sources present special challenges both to the
regulated community and to the regulator. For example, today's NPRM
includes a proposal that manufacturers of pesticides not only continue
to comply with existing state and federal rules that address toxics
concerns but also reformulate their products sold in California to
diminish VOC emissions (section III.C.4.d.). Regulation of other area
sources, including most categories of consumer products, involves
complex considerations of the extent to which additional reductions can
be achieved without negatively affecting the products' quality or its
effectiveness.\7\
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\7\In the case of consumer products, CARB has already undertaken
these analyses and adopted regulations. These FIPs do not include
any new requirements for these consumer product categories, but
would make the existing state requirements federally enforceable.
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EPA began its selection process for mobile source control
strategies with those measures that were required in all states by the
Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990, and those measures being implemented
by the State of California and local agencies. EPA considered the
impact of these measures as well as the expected benefit of national
mobile source rules in process. For example, the California Low
Emissions Vehicle program (LEV) relies on advanced emission control
technologies, clean gasoline, and an on-board diagnostics system which
achieve substantial reductions beyond those which will result from
federal cars. As described above, EPA then developed mobile source
control strategies such that generally equal, proportional reductions
would be achieved in all stationary, area and mobile source categories.
EPA developed strategies which, if implemented, would result in cleaner
vehicles and engines via further improvements in technology or mobile
source users selecting alternatives with lower polluting
characteristics. EPA also developed strategies which rely on declining
emission limits for other remaining mobile source categories, both to
provide sufficient reductions for attainment and to assure that each
category of emission source was contributing to the solution.
In 1990, passenger cars, other highway vehicles, nonroad engines
and equipment, and the transportation facilities used in interstate
commerce produced from 53 to 63 percent of the total inventory of
volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and from 70 to 94 percent of the
total inventory of oxides of nitrogen (NOX) in the FIP areas
covered by this proposal. In order to demonstrate attainment of the
ozone standard in these areas, EPA is proposing regulations which
assure significant reductions in mobile source emissions--beyond those
already expected from the continued turnover to newer, cleaner vehicles
and engines. The mobile source category covers a very broad range of
sizes of equipment, types of fuels, uses and operating modes, and
extent of current pollution control. Therefore, there is no one measure
or even one uniform type of measure which is proposed across the
category to achieve the reductions needed for the attainment plans (see
section III.D.1.).
The ozone attainment responsibility also falls on mobile sources
that may operate on a national (or even an international) scale. Many
of these mobile sources have not previously been controlled and must
now undertake for the first time challenging pollution abatement
assignments. For example, EPA is proposing that locomotives and large
ships work to reduce NOX and VOC emissions from their respective
activities in the FIP areas (see sections III.D.4.e.(3). and (4).).
Airline operators, though to some extent previously regulated for air
quality purposes, will also be asked to make further emissions
reductions from aircraft and other airport activities (see section
III.D.4.e.(2).).
In addition, high quality inspection and maintenance (I/M) programs
for vehicles remain the single most cost effective and important
measure for achieving mobile source emissions reductions. In the FIPs,
EPA is proposing a program which follows closely the model for meeting
the performance standards for all I/M programs nationwide, and which
EPA could effectively implement. EPA and the State of California are
continuing to hold discussions on a different enhanced program design
which would meet the national enhanced I/M performance standard if
implemented by the state. If an agreement is reached, appropriate
legislation and regulations are adopted, and an approvable SIP revision
is submitted, EPA will withdraw or rescind the FIP I/M program (section
III.D.2.c).
One reason that vehicle emissions continue to be such a large
portion of total VOC and NOX emissions--despite increasingly
stringent emission standards for vehicles--is because of high growth in
vehicle miles traveled (VMT). This VMT increase reflects the simple
facts that more cars are on the road today than ever before, and more
people are driving more miles than ever before. In order to encourage a
reduction in VMT, and in the number of cars on the road, EPA is
proposing two programs designed to decrease growth in VMT by targeting
single occupant vehicle use. The proposed measures will require
increases in average occupancy in personal vehicles in Sacramento and
encourage shifts to carpooling and public modes of transportation in
all the FIP areas (sections III.F.2 and III.D.2.g). Various other
strategies could be used to achieve decreases in VMT. As discussed
below and elsewhere in today's NPRM, EPA resources, and statutory
authority have constrained our ability to propose these possibly more
effective strategies.
In designing these FIPs, EPA has attempted, wherever possible, to
structure the proposed FIP rules so that responsible state and local
agencies can adopt the rules as part of their SIPs or accept EPA
delegation to implement the federal rules (section III.J.). For
example, the proposed New Source Review (NSR) regulations for the
Sacramento FIP area tracks the existing rule format and terminology
shared by the 5 Sacramento area air pollution control districts, rather
than following the design of EPA's existing federal NSR regulations
(section III.F.4.).
While the emission reduction targets in Sacramento and Ventura are
formidable, the overwhelming reductions needed for ozone attainment in
the South Coast appear to require that each individual pollution source
within the FIP area eventually abate its emissions almost completely.
For practically every controllable source category, this ultimate
degree of control is beyond a level now foreseeable with existing
technology and control techniques.
Congress recognized that this unique South Coast attainment
challenge required sustained commitment to seek and apply new
technological solutions. EPA's proposed FIP employs the special
provision in the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments, which allows for
commitments (rather than fully adopted regulations) as part of the
South Coast ozone attainment demonstration. The South Coast FIP
includes these commitments and outlines some of the federal activities
currently underway to support the development and commercialization of
new control technologies or pollution prevention techniques (see
section III.B.5.d.).
The state has already submitted a SIP for the South Coast
demonstrating attainment of the CO NAAQS by the year 2000. This
demonstration relies primarily on existing state programs for clean
fuels and vehicles, supplemented by an enhanced motor vehicle
inspection and maintenance (I/M) program. Since the state has not yet
developed and submitted legislation and regulations to implement an
enhanced I/M program, EPA is proposing to complete the state's
attainment demonstration with a single federal measure: the contractor-
run I/M program discussed in section III.D.2.c. As discussed above, EPA
believes that an I/M program is a necessary part of the ozone FIPs as
well.\8\
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\8\See earlier discussion on I/M.
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3. Specific Control Measures
a. Stationary/area source measures. With few exceptions, industrial
and commercial sources in the FIP areas are already subject to air
pollution controls that match or exceed the stringency of rules applied
elsewhere in the country. In the Sacramento FIP area, however, EPA was
able to identify four major industrial facilities (Michigan-California
Lumber Company; Formica Corporation; SierraPine Limited; and Reynold's
Metals) for which the applicable local regulations do not reflect the
minimum level of control required nationally. The state and local air
districts remain under an obligation to adopt and submit ``RACT''
regulations for these sources. Since these agencies (specifically,
Placer County and El Dorado County Air Pollution Control Districts)
have not yet acted, EPA is today proposing detailed provisions that
will contribute to attainment in the Sacramento area by supplementing
the applicable regulations to match available control technology. See
section III.C.2, and proposed 40 CFR 52.2961(p)-(s).
EPA selected a second set of proposed FIP controls by comparing
existing air pollution regulations in each FIP area with the best
existing state or local regulation, on a category-by-category basis.
Where a more effective control measure that could provide significant
reductions already existed (either as an adopted or draft rule), EPA
has adapted and proposed the rule for federal administration in the
applicable FIP areas. Since existing South Coast controls are generally
the most stringent in the country, many of these proposed rules were
based on existing SCAQMD regulations and are proposed for the
Sacramento and Ventura areas. In some cases, the proposed FIP rules
newly regulate sources in the area (e.g., commercial bakeries and
municipal landfills in the Sacramento FIP area). In other cases, the
proposed rules significantly strengthen existing regulatory provisions
(e.g., tighter coatings and solvents limits in Sacramento and Ventura).
The costs, regulatory strategy, and technical basis of these measures
are discussed individually in section III.C.3. The regulations
themselves appear in proposed 40 CFR 52.2961(a)-(o) and (t)-(v).
EPA is proposing to enforce on a statewide basis a group of four
area source rules. EPA proposes that they be administered on a
statewide basis primarily because ensuring compliance only within the
FIP areas would be relatively ineffective. EPA's rationale for
statewide control appears in section III.C.4.a.
The first of these controls simply proposes CARB's existing
consumer product regulations, which regulate products such as
detergents, floor finishes and deodorants, and are enforced against
manufacturers, distributors, and retailers. While the CARB regulations
have been adopted and enforced by the state for several years,
California has not yet submitted them to EPA for inclusion in the SIP.
The proposed FIP measure would make the measures federally enforceable,
and is discussed in sections II.B.1. and III.C.4.c. The proposed
regulation is 40 CFR 52.2957.
The second proposed statewide control is based on a draft CARB
consumer product rule for the aerosol spray paint category, as well as
rules developed by SCAQMD and the Bay Area Air Quality Management
District. Proposed rule 40 CFR 52.2958 would limit the VOC content of
spray paints that could be sold or used within the state.
The third proposed statewide control deals with one of the largest
nonmobile sources of VOC: architectural and industrial maintenance
(AIM) coatings, including most primers, paints, lacquers, stains, and
specialty coatings used for residential, commercial, and industrial
purposes. The proposed rule progressively tightens restrictions on VOC
content in three phases of reduction through the year 2003 in order to
allow for development of additional VOC reduction strategies. The FIP
rule may be amended if appropriate, in the event that EPA issues a
national AIM coatings rule.
The fourth rule proposed for statewide application is designed to
reduce VOC emissions from agricultural and structural pesticides use.
Many other pesticides are subject to CARB's consumer product rule and
EPA's proposed 40 CFR 52.2957. The proposed agricultural and structural
pesticides rule, 40 CFR 52.2960, is necessarily complex and is
discussed extensively in section III.C.4.d. The rule initially requires
producers to submit VOC analyses of their pesticides. Following EPA
review of the data, EPA will implement a six-step procedure for setting
a VOC limit to achieve target VOC reductions.
In order to achieve further necessary reductions from stationary
and area sources, EPA proposes declining emission ``cap'' rules in each
of the FIP areas. The cap rules apply to a large portion of the
stationary sources of VOC and NOX. For these sources, the rules
require annual reductions in emissions from 2001 through 2005, but
allow each source the flexibility to determine how reductions are to be
made. If a 1999 attainment option is selected for Sacramento, the
Sacramento VOC cap rule would require that all reductions be achieved
in the attainment year (i.e., by January 1, 1999). EPA strongly
encourages affected sources to identify pollution prevention approaches
as the ideal response to this market-based initiative.
The proposed cap rules require sources to submit compliance plans
in the year 2000, showing how the mandated reductions will be achieved,
using 1990 actual emissions as the baseline but subtracting emissions
required to be reduced through any SIP or FIP rules in the period after
1990. EPA is proposing VOC cap rules in each area, with annual
reductions of between 4 and 9 percent, depending upon public comment
and EPA's final determination of the appropriate and necessary
reduction rate. A NOX cap rule with annual reductions of between 6
and 9 percent is proposed only in Ventura, since further NOX
reductions are not needed in Sacramento, and the South Coast has
recently adopted a cap program (RECLAIM) achieving comparable
reductions to the proposed FIP NOX cap rule.
EPA is inviting comment on a number of important issues associated
with these innovative rules. The Agency particularly solicits comment
on whether a trading component should be added to increase compliance
options, and whether it is preferable to establish a manufacturers'
``bubble'' rule for industrial and commercial solvents and coatings,
rather than regulating users (see III.C.5. and 40 CFR 52.2952-52.2955).
b. Mobile source measures--(1) Programs for vehicles. Because the
magnitude of needed emissions reductions is so great, the FIPs seek to
build on reductions already being achieved by the California Low
Emission Vehicle (LEV) program. In order to achieve these reductions,
EPA is asking for comment on the need for and benefits of adopting an
enhanced in-use compliance program which would provide extra in-use
emissions reductions beyond the substantial reductions already provided
by the California LEV program.
Specifically, EPA is proposing to strengthen the recall program for
cars and light and medium duty trucks. Vehicle manufacturer's recall
responsibilities will be determined by testing the emissions
performance of typical vehicles instead of only vehicles which have
been properly maintained. EPA is also proposing to increase
manufacturer's liability for repair of vehicle emissions control
equipment. Both of these proposals are intended to provide incentives
to manufacturers to increase the durability of the emissions control
systems in the vehicles they produce (III.D.2.d., Appendix I.A., and 40
CFR 52.2962).
EPA is also seeking comment on a program which would require that
on-board diagnostic systems of new vehicles be capable of
communicating, to on-road sensors, the operational status of the
emission control system. This approach would be intended to
particularly target high emitting vehicles, and would remain in effect
for the life of the vehicle (III.D.2.d.).
For the South Coast, EPA is also proposing a requirement that
certain commercial vehicle fleets make the majority of their purchases
from inherently low emitting vehicles (ILEVs),\9\ including, for
example, natural gas and electric vehicles, 40 CFR 52.2962.
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\9\Beyond very low exhaust emissions, these vehicles must have
little or no evaporative emissions even when emissions control
systems malfunction. In practice this means using fuel sources which
have little or no evaporative emissions.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
For light-duty vehicles, EPA proposes to prohibit California
residents from importing or registering vehicles purchased outside of
California that are not certified to meet California's stringent
vehicle standards. This prohibition would begin in 1999, and is
described in section III.D.2.h. The proposed regulation is 40 CFR
52.2964.
Given the level of emissions reductions necessary to demonstrate
attainment in each of the three FIP areas, EPA believes it is
absolutely essential to propose an enhanced inspection and maintenance
(I/M) program for vehicles which meets national performance standards.
As previously discussed, the structure of the FIP proposal will follow
EPA's model program. If the state enacts and submits approvable
legislation and regulations for its own enhanced program which meets
national performance standards, EPA will withdraw or rescind the FIP I/
M program. This issue is described in more detail in sections
III.D.1.b.(7).(a). and III.D.2.c. The proposed regulation is 40 CFR
52.2963.
For heavy duty trucks, the FIP proposals include tighter
hydrocarbon (HC) and NOX exhaust standards for model years 1999
and beyond, strict evaporative HC standards to minimize shifting from
diesel to gasoline beginning in 1999 as well, and a declining average
NOX level for fleet operators beginning in 2000. Fees for fleet
emission averages above the declining NOX targets are proposed to
help maintain turnover to the newer, cleaner engines.
At the option of the fleet owner, interstate trucks may comply with
limitations on the number of stops allowed within FIP areas beginning
in 1998 rather then complying with the declining NOX levels. The
heavy duty truck proposals are discussed in section III.D.3. and the
proposed regulations are in 40 CFR 52.2966.
Finally, for the 1999 attainment date option in Sacramento, EPA is
proposing to include an accelerated retirement strategy for on-highway
heavy duty engines. This accelerated retirement strategy is discussed
in section III.B.3..
(2) Programs for nonroad vehicles and engines. EPA is proposing to
regulate a number of categories of nonroad vehicles and equipment:
Nonroad heavy duty engines, small nonroad equipment, motorcycles and
recreation vehicles, and marine engines. See discussion in section
III.D.4.(a)-(d).
For nonroad heavy duty engines (at or above 50 horsepower, 37 kW),
a phased approach would begin with a national program targeted for
final rulemaking in May 1994. In the next phase, EPA is proposing
additional standards for the FIP areas and increased manufacturers
liability for repair of emissions control systems to help ensure
continued low emission performance. An emissions- based, fleet-average
fee system with a declining emission levels is proposed for the FIP
areas to maintain turnover to the cleaner engines. For the 1999
attainment date option in Sacramento, EPA is proposing a growth cap for
the nonroad heavy equipment category. This cap is discussed in section
III.B.3.
For small nonroad equipment (spark ignited engines at or below 25
horsepower, 19kW), EPA is proposing to employ a two-phased strategy of
first setting national standards for implementation by 1995, and then
employing negotiated rulemaking to achieve still further reductions
after 2000 or 2001. This strategy reflects discussions already underway
at the national level. The standards EPA will propose in the first
phase will be similar to the State of California's regulation for
utility and lawn and garden equipment engines manufactured in 1995 and
beyond. In both phases, the effect of this action will be to extend
regulations to engines which California is currently pre-empted from
regulating (III.D.4.b.2.).
The FIP proposals include more stringent exhaust emissions
standards for motorcycles and recreational vehicles such as mopeds,
dirt bikes, all terrain vehicles (ATVs), and go-karts sold in
California after January 1996. The level of stringency may require
substitution of 4-stroke nonroad engines for some current 2-stroke
applications (III.D.4.c.(1).).
Finally, EPA is proposing to apply national emission standards,
scheduled to be proposed in 1994 and finalized by November 1995, to
spark-ignited marine propulsion engines such as outboard engines,
personal watercraft (``jet-skis,'' etc.), and sterndrive and inboard
engines. These national rules will apply to new spark ignition marine
propulsion engines produced after August 1, 1998 and are proposed to be
combined with a registration/permitting and fee system for marine
engine use in FIP area waters. Marine engines meeting the new national
standards would be exempt from the fees which are proposed to begin in
2004 (III.D.4.b.(3). and III.D.4.c.(2).). For the 1999 attainment
option in Sacramento, EPA is proposing a fee system or boating
restriction to reduce emissions from recreational boating by one-third.
(3) Program for National Transportation Sources and Federal Activities
The litigation which resulted in today's FIP proposals arose in
part from the South Coast's concern that emission regulation of
``federal sources'' such as those associated with interstate
transportation or military bases was not keeping pace with controls in
other sectors. In order to achieve appropriate emissions reductions in
these areas, the FIP proposals include controls for locomotives,
airports and aircraft, large marine vessels, and military
installations.
For locomotives, EPA is relying on a national regulation that will
apply to NOX emissions from newly manufactured locomotive engines
in two phases, first in 2000, then in 2005. Tighter standards for
remanufactured locomotive engines are also being proposed and may be
implemented either statewide or nationwide. Because the necessary
reductions in NOX emissions are so significant in the South Coast,
EPA is proposing a supplemental program for railroads in the South
Coast FIP. This program would require that railroads reduce their
average emission rate of their fleet by 2010 to a level consistent with
the reductions proposed for stationary sources. See discussion in
section III.D.4.e.(3) and proposed regulation 40 CFR 52.2971.
As described in section III.D.4.e.(2), EPA is proposing that
commercial aviation operations be subject to an environmental
performance target in the FIPs, including mobile emissions sources
under the direct control of the airline (aircraft, aircraft auxiliary
power units, ground service equipment, captive vehicle fleets, and any
other airline-operated mobile source). Declining emissions rate targets
for these emissions, consistent with the caps proposed for stationary
sources, would be set beginning with the ozone season of 2001. This
level of allowable emissions would translate into an industry-wide
environmental performance factor expressed as an allowable pounds of
pollutant per passenger equivalent unit. Airlines which exceed their
allowable performance factor would pay a fee based on the amount of
excess emissions. In order to provide additional flexibility in meeting
these targets, EPA is also proposing intra-airline averaging for
airlines with operations at multiple airports within the same FIP area.
The Agency is also seeking comment on the establishment of an inter-
airline credit and trading program. The proposed regulation is 40 CFR
52.2970.
For general aviation in the FIP areas, EPA is proposing two fee
systems in the alternative. One proposal would simply charge a fee for
each takeoff sufficient to discourage use without making general
aviation prohibitively expensive. The second approach would incorporate
an exemption into the fee program for engines that are certified to
``clean'' emissions levels. EPA also requests comment on
differentiation of fees based on airport proprietor's programs for
other emissions reductions such as refueling vapor recovery and other
alternative control programs. See discussion in section
III.D.4.e.(2).(d). and proposed regulation at 40 CFR 52.2970.
Section III.D.4.e.(2).(c). and (5) describes EPA's proposed
military installation bubble for each FIP area encompassing all mobile
emission sources under the control of the Department of Defense (DOD),
with the exception of military aircraft and vessels. This includes
auxiliary power units, ground service equipment, captive vehicle
fleets, privately owned vehicles, and any other mobile source operated
within the boundaries of the installation. A declining emissions cap
would apply similar to the cap imposed on stationary sources within
each FIP area. Each installation would be required to determine a
baseline inventory from which the reductions will be achieved. The
proposed regulation, 40 CFR 52.2972, allows trading among active bases
and credit for base closures that generate permanent emission
reductions.
Marine vessels are the largest uncontrolled source of emissions of
NOX and sulfur oxides in California. In order to encourage
emissions reductions from these vessels in a manner consistent with
existing international standards, EPA is proposing a flexible control
strategy for the reduction of emissions from ships in port.
Specifically, a user fee would be based on the type emission control
that a particular ship used. Ship operators would be allowed (and
encouraged) to reduce the fees which would be applied by using low
emission engines, using electrical onshore power service instead of the
ship's engines while in port, and for travelling outside of the Channel
Islands. Compliance with all three operational changes would eliminate
the fees altogether. Ships that use South Coast ports more frequently
would be faced with higher annual fees, and therefore would have a
greater incentive to make operational changes and install more
efficient emission control devices to reduce or avoid fees.
In Ventura there are no large ports, but marine vessel emissions
are still large contributors to the area's NOX inventory, because
of the emissions that are blown onshore from passing ships by the
prevailing winds. As mentioned above, the South Coast FIP includes a
discount in the proposed fee system to encourage ships to move further
out to sea when passing the Ventura coastline. See discussion of marine
vessels and ports in section III.D.4.e.(4). and proposed regulation 40
CFR 52.2973.
(4) Programs to Reduce Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT)
As described earlier, vehicle emissions continue to be a large
portion of future total VOC and NOX emissions inventory, despite
increasingly stringent emission standards, because of projections of
continued high growth in vehicle miles traveled (VMT). Due to current
growth projections, EPA is proposing programs designed to decrease
growth in VMT by targeting single occupant vehicle use. The proposed
regulations require increases in average occupancy in personal vehicles
in Sacramento (for the 1999 attainment option only) and encourage
shifts to carpooling and public modes of transportation in all the FIP
areas. Various other strategies could be used to achieve decreases in
VMT, but most depend on local planning and implementation to be
successful. Unfortunately, EPA resources and statutory authority have
constrained our ability to propose these possibly more effective
strategies. These constraints are discussed generally in section
III.A.2.
Finally, for purposes of the 1999 attainment date option for
Sacramento, EPA is proposing a restriction on the use of on-road
vehicles such that each vehicle in the Sacramento nonattainment area
would be prohibited from being driven on one day out of five weekdays.
This is, of course, one of the least desirable of mobile source options
available to EPA, but, as is described in detail in III.B.3.d.(3), it
appears necessary in order to meet the 1999 attainment deadline. It is
also one of the main reasons why EPA is recommending the 2005
attainment option.
D. Role of State and Local Agencies
1. SIP Responsibilities
EPA has every intention of using the FIP process to propose and
promulgate real solutions to the ozone problems in Sacramento and
Ventura, as well as both the ozone and carbon monoxide problems in the
South Coast. EPA will implement these solutions as it becomes
necessary. However, under the CAAA of 1990, nothing in the FIPs
proposed today or to be finalized in February, 1995 releases the state
and local governments from their independent legal responsibilities to
meet all requirements of the Clean Air Act. Furthermore, failure to
meet any of these requirements will subject applicable areas of the
state to the mandatory sanctions required by section 179 of the Act.
One of the most important responsibilities that any nonattainment
area has under the Clean Air Act is to adopt and submit to EPA in
November 1994, comprehensive plans to attain the ozone standard by its
applicable attainment date. Regardless of the FIPs, the state must
still implement plans sufficient to demonstrate attainment. Nothing in
the FIP can relieve them of that responsibility under the law. As
discussed earlier, EPA is requesting comment on whether there should be
an exception to this requirement. Specifically, comment is requested on
whether, as a legal and policy matter, states should be allowed to take
credit for emission reductions associated with FIP controls applied to
sources over which EPA has sole jurisdiction.
2. State and Local Opportunities
EPA hopes that state and local agencies will take full advantage of
the opportunities provided by the FIP development process. EPA believes
that the emission reduction strategies proposed today, together with
the public involvement process described below, can be used to leverage
support for state and local emission reduction strategies. EPA has
purposefully chosen to maximize the number of strategies in this
proposal that could be adopted wholesale by state and local agencies.
In other cases, the necessarily blunt EPA strategies should provide
support for better tailored state and local regulation of the same
emission sources. Finally, state and local agencies have the ability to
adopt innovative emissions growth management, transportation control
and land use strategies that EPA cannot propose. These types of
strategies adopted at the local level could displace the more onerous
strategies in the FIPs.
E. Public Involvement
1. Public Participation in Development of the FIPs
One of the more difficult aspects of developing these FIPs has been
to build in meaningful public participation. Sufficient time is at best
a luxury in meeting the court-ordered deadlines to promulgate the final
FIPs. Conversely, sufficient time is an absolute necessity for full
public involvement. An inevitable conflict arises when trying to meet
both of these needs.
If community-wide support for the changes necessary to reach
attainment were easy to achieve, there would be no need for these FIPs
or even the attainment deadlines in the first place. Unfortunately, any
level of real public participation in matters this controversial can
easily degenerate into parochial disagreements with no real benefit to
anyone involved. Any participation process which facilitates consensus
solutions must be designed to minimize these disagreements.
Finally, given the limited resources available to EPA for actually
developing the strategies in these FIPs, it is a measure of the
Agency's commitment to public involvement that we have and will
continue to direct them toward increasing public involvement in this
effort.
Irrespective of these difficulties, EPA has and will continue to
engage in every possible effort to make the final plans a product of
local involvement and consensus. We will do so because we believe
strongly that we can best fulfill the goal of the Clean Air Act--that
is, clean and healthy air for all Americans--and meet our court-ordered
obligations by preparing these plans with the state and local
communities, not in spite of them. We are highly cognizant of the fact
that each area affected by our rules has its own unique qualities and
concerns. We also believe that the only way in which EPA can fully
understand those concerns--and take them into account--is through
direct participation by the affected interests and communities.
Ultimately we believe that the success of any air quality plan--
federal, state or local--will be dependent upon the level of
understanding and support which exists in the community regarding the
need for and benefits of the plan. Without that understanding and
support, we are unlikely to meet the difficult challenges which lie
ahead.
2. Public Meetings Prior to Proposal
As a result of these beliefs, we have initiated an effort to
develop these plans in a manner which encourages local input. First,
our plans, and their assumptions, were built with significant input
from state and local air agencies, other local and state officials, and
representatives of various affected interests. EPA has tried to use the
best and most current data that these entities could provide within our
FIP proposal timeframe.
Second, our FIP development effort has included eight informal,
pre-proposal public meetings (two each in Ventura and Sacramento, and
four in the South Coast). The purposes of these meetings were to: (1)
Begin the process of education and interaction among the various
parties--local, state, federal, and the public; (2) solicit initial
thoughts and concerns from the affected communities as we developed the
proposals; and (3) solicit suggestions about how best to continue the
interactive process through the development of the final plans due in
February 1995. The results of these meetings are found throughout these
FIP proposals, both in the emission reductions strategies and in the
post-proposal process.
Finally, our FIP development process has included numerous staff-
to-staff discussions among the local and state air boards and EPA. The
results of these discussions, as well, are found throughout the
proposals.
3. Process for Post-Proposal Public Involvement
In order to organize and facilitate meaningful community
involvement during the period between proposal and the final plans, EPA
plans to enhance the normal notice and comment period. Our primary
effort in this area will consist of working to coordinate the FIP
processes with the ongoing local processes so as to minimize public
confusion and coordinate planning resources. This approach is based on
comments and requests received in pre-proposal meetings, and will
rely--to the greatest extent feasible--on the processes already in
place at the local level. Following proposal of the FIPs, EPA will
continue to meet with responsible state and local air agencies to
coordinate the SIP and FIP public processes, as well as with community
groups, environmental and business interests.
A set of conflicts exist though, which may make it necessary for
the FIP processes to also follow its own separate track. For example,
the local air boards are currently developing plans which not only meet
the requirements of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990, but also must
meet the requirements of the California Clean Air Act. No such
California specific requirement exists for the FIPs.
Further, EPA believes that it is necessary for the FIPs to apply
many of the controls to all three areas or in some cases, state-wide.
Reliance on the various local SIP processes to engage the public on
these particular FIP measures would make it difficult for interested
parties to participate fully in all aspects of the dialogue, and could
lead the public to believe that EPA has the ability to tailor these
measures to the conditions of the local areas.
Finally, EPA must meet the mandates of the federal courts and the
terms of settlement agreements which require it to promulgate final
FIPs by February 1995. This deadline cannot be changed by EPA and means
that coordination with ongoing local processes must be constrained to
fit within EPA's timeframe.
For these reasons, EPA believes that we should take additional
steps outside of the local processes in order to provide an opportunity
for productive public input on the proposed FIPs in a timeframe which
is consistent with the final promulgation deadline of February 1995.
These steps will include:
(a) Following proposal of the FIPs, EPA will convene a public
workshop in each FIP area in order to describe in some detail our
proposals, to help us identify appropriate issues for in-depth
examination, and to encourage local participation and support for
issue-specific focus meetings.
(b) Depending on the level of support that exists, issue-specific
focus meetings may be held in each FIP area, and possibly a central
forum for selected statewide issues, to help develop comments on the
FIP issues of greatest concern. The goals of each issue-specific group
will be to develop a consensus position, if possible, and to submit
consensus comments, if possible, on its set of FIP issues. EPA will
also encourage each group to direct its comments to the state and local
air agencies which will be developing ozone plans due in November 1994.
(c) EPA will not ``select'' specific attendees or chairpersons for
these focus meetings, but will encourage participation that is
sufficiently representative and inclusive so as to make any consensus
real and meaningful. To the extent possible, EPA will provide
contractor and staff support for the meetings. EPA will encourage the
local air districts and the Air Resources Board to provide staff
support as well.
(d) All group meetings sponsored by EPA will be open to the public.
The number of meetings for each issue area will vary by issue.
(e) Following the workshops and group meetings, formal public
hearings will be held in each FIP area, probably in early July 1994.
Notice will be given of the formal public hearings in the Federal
Register thirty (30) days prior to such hearings.
(f) The public comment period will be held open from the
publication of the FIP proposals until 30 days after the public
hearings.
(g) It is EPA's intention to give great weight to any comments on
which local consensus has been reached through this public involvement
process. EPA, of course, remains ultimately responsible for the content
of the final rule which must meet federal legal requirements and
address national policy concerns. Although EPA encourages all
interested parties to participate in focus meetings and workshops, any
member of the public who has chosen not to do so has the right to
submit written comments and/or testify at the public hearings. EPA will
consider all comments received during the public comment period.
EPA realizes that the time constraints involved pose a very real
obstacle to achieving consensus on issues as complex and controversial
as those raised in developing clean air strategies. The requirement to
finalize these FIPs by February 1995 means that EPA, and the public,
will need to make very efficient use of this period until the public
comment period closes in mid-summer. EPA is realistic about the level
of consensus that can be reached in such a short period of time. We
have decided to go forward with an expanded public involvement process
because we believe that the potential benefits are great--and at a
minimum, all parties will benefit from a greater understanding of the
air quality problems, the concerns of affected parties, and the range
of solutions.
In summary, we see the development of the final federal
implementation plans due in February of 1995 as a real opportunity for
local communities, in conjunction with federal and state authorities,
to build air quality plans that can be successfully implemented.
Optimally, this process will also provide state and local authorities
with workable ideas and strategies that can be incorporated into the
1994 ozone plans, thus facilitating recision of all or significant
parts of the FIPs. Through the enhanced notice and comment process each
participant--state, local, federal, and every interested member of the
public--will have the opportunity to take responsibility where it
should be taken, and to work cooperatively where it can be done.
4. Solicitation of Comment
Written comments on the proposals contained in today's NPRM will be
accepted throughout the public process described above. EPA expects to
hold public hearings in early July, 1994 and expects that the deadline
for written comments will be approximately 30 days after the public
hearings. EPA will give notice in the Federal Register of the public
hearings and public comment deadline as soon as possible, but no later
than 30 days prior to the hearing dates.
EPA encourages the public to participate both through formal
hearing and written comments as well as in the informal workshop and
focus meeting forums described above. Workshops will be held in each
FIP area in mid to late March 1994. Throughout today's NPRM, EPA has
encouraged the public to comment on specific issues and alternatives.
We expect that these issues will be appropriate for further examination
in informal workshop and focus meeting forums.
II. Background and Proposed SIP Actions
A. Description of the Affected Areas
1. Sacramento Area
The Sacramento area includes all of Sacramento and Yolo Counties,
the northeast portion of Solano County, the southern portion of Sutter
County, and all of El Dorado and Placer Counties except for the Lake
Tahoe area.\10\ The population of this area is approximately 1.6
million, and is projected to increase to 1.9 million by 2000 and 2.2
million by 2005.\11\ The annual personal income of the area exceeds $30
billion. The economy is dominated by agricultural, commercial, and
service sectors, with almost no heavy industry.
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\10\At the time EPA's FIP obligation arose, the Sacramento
nonattainment area did not include any portions of El Dorado and
Sutter Counties. These portions were added in revised designations
promulgated in conformance with the 1990 Amendments. See 56 FR
58694, 56726 (November 6, 1991).
\11\Population projections for 2000 and 2005 are based on the
latest SACOG data and do not yet include estimates from the
northeast portion of Solano County.
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Mobile sources, particularly motor vehicles, are the dominant
source of VOC and NOX in the Sacramento area. By 1999, mobile
sources will account for approximately 50 percent of VOC emissions and
over 90 percent of NOX emissions. Industrial, commercial, and
residential solvents and coatings are also significant sources of VOC,
contributing almost 30 percent of VOC emissions in 1999.
Violations of the ozone NAAQS occur in the Sacramento area from as
early as April through mid-November, although most violations in recent
years have been confined to the warmer months of June through October.
The Sacramento ozone design value at the time of classification was
0.16 ppm (based on 1987-1989 data), substantially above the NAAQS for
ozone, which is 0.12 ppm, measured as a one-hour average. Over the
period 1990-1992, the design value was still 0.16 ppm. For this 1990-
1992 measurement period, only four areas had a higher design value:
South Coast (.30 ppm); the Southeast Desert area, immediately to the
east of the South Coast (.23 ppm); Houston/Galveston (.21 ppm); and San
Diego (.17 ppm).
Based on this design value, the Sacramento area was classified as
``Serious'' under section 181(a) of the Clean Air Act, with an
attainment deadline of no later than November 15, 1999. See 56 FR
56728. However, according to EPA's most recent national air quality and
emissions trends data (through calendar year 1992), the area also has
the eighth largest number of average expected exceedances of the ozone
standard in the country (9.0 days).\12\ Outside of southern and central
California, only the Houston and Philadelphia areas have a greater
number of expected exceedances.
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\12\The average estimated number of exceedances is the number of
days the 0.12 ppm standard was exceeded on average at the site
recording the highest second maximum 1-hour concentration, after
adjustment for incomplete or missing data days.
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This unusual frequency of exceedances--coupled with the absence of
easy-to-control pollution sources, the immense emissions reductions
needed, the rapid population growth predicted for this area, and the
possibility that some of the ozone violations in Sacramento may be due
primarily to transport of pollution from the south and southwest--
suggest the appropriateness of a bump-up to a ``Severe''
classification, in accordance with the provisions of section 181(b)(3).
See discussion below.
Urban airshed modeling suggests that a 40 percent reduction in
current levels of VOC coupled with a 30 percent reduction in NOX
emissions would be needed for attainment. As displayed in a table
included in the Sacramento FIP attainment demonstration (see section
III.H.3.a.), other combinations of VOC and NOX reductions also
could yield attainment, but in EPA's judgment the 40:30 option appears
to have a greater potential to minimize dislocation and inequities
among source categories.
2. Ventura Area
The Ventura area includes all of Ventura County, which lies on the
California coast between Santa Barbara and Los Angeles Counties. The
1990 population was 660,000 and is projected to increase to 840,000 by
2005. The County ranks third in California in petroleum production and
17th in the Country in agricultural income. Twenty-five percent of the
work force commute to jobs in Los Angeles.
Ventura's emissions inventory is less dominated by the mobile
source component than is Sacramento's. For the year 2005, mobile
sources account for approximately 40 percent of VOC emissions and 70
percent of NOX emissions. The ozone season extends from April
through November, but very few violations have been recorded before
June.
Ventura is classified as a ``Severe'' ozone area, with a November
15, 2005 attainment deadline.\13\ For the period 1990-1992, the design
value was .15 ppm. While this design value is the same as Sacramento's
for the 1990-1992 period, Ventura had more than twice the number of
expected exceedance days (17.6).
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\13\Based on a request and supporting information from the
State, EPA's designation under the 1990 CAA Amendments divided the
Los Angeles Consolidated Metropolitan Statistical Area into four
distinct areas with respect to ozone designations and
classifications. This action made the entire Ventura County a
separate nonattainment area with a ``Severe'' classification,
although the 1988-1990 design value calculated for the area would
have supported a ``Serious'' classification. See 56 FR 56698, 56700,
56731 (November 6, 1991). Prior to this designation, the Ventura
ozone nonattainment area included only that portion of the County
south of the southern boundary of the Los Padres National Forest.
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Transport of ozone and ozone precursors from Los Angeles, Santa
Barbara, and outer continental shelf activity can be significant.
However, emissions from Ventura itself can result in ozone standard
exceedances independent of transport from other areas. In addition,
mountains bordering the Ventura urban areas contribute to a meteorology
that favors high ozone concentrations, particularly within the southern
portions of the County.
Based on recent urban airshed modeling analyses, EPA has determined
that attainment requires 40 percent reductions from current levels of
both NOX and VOC.
3. South Coast Area
The South Coast area (South Coast Air Basin) includes all of Orange
County and the more populated portions of Los Angeles, San Bernardino,
and Riverside Counties.\14\ Ventura County lies to the northwest, the
Southeast Desert ``Severe'' ozone nonattainment area (portions of San
Bernardino, Riverside, Kern, and Los Angeles Counties) is to the north
and east, and the San Diego ``Severe'' ozone area is to the south.
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\14\For a description of the boundaries of the South Coast Air
Basin, see 40 C.F.R. 81.305 and 56 FR 56726-56728 (November 6,
1991).
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The current population of approximately 13 million is expected to
grow to more than 18 million by 2010. The South Coast is the largest
industrial area in the United States, with a gross domestic product of
$300 billion. Practically every commercial and industrial category is
represented in the area's economy.
In the year 2010, mobile sources will account for 46 percent of VOC
emissions, 81 percent of NOX emissions, and 97 percent of CO
emissions in the South Coast.
The South Coast area has by far the worst ozone levels in the
Country and is the only area classified as ``Extreme.'' For the period
1990-1992, the design value was .30 ppm and the average number of
actual exceedance days was 134.3. Ozone levels are particularly high
during the months of July through October, but violations also occur
under warm and stagnant conditions in April, May, June, and November.
The South Coast is one of only three ``Serious'' CO areas in the
Country. Its design value is 16.4 ppm for the period 1991-1992. The
average yearly number of exceedances for those years was 38. In recent
years, CO violations have occurred only in the months of November,
December, January, and February, and at certain monitoring sites in Los
Angeles and Orange Counties. No CO violations have been recorded in the
Riverside and San Bernardino portions of the South Coast area since the
1970's.
These uniquely high levels of pollution are the result of the
massive emissions generated within the area, combined with especially
adverse meteorology and topography. A number of factors--sunshine, high
temperatures, ocean breezes carrying pollutants into the inland
valleys, mountains to the north and east trapping the pollutants within
the basin, and prolonged thermal inversion layers--conspire to create
ideal conditions for the generation of high ozone levels. Extreme
wintertime inversions retard the dispersion of CO emissions from the 9
million motor vehicles within the area. This leads to a buildup of CO
concentrations over time, particularly within west-central Los Angeles
County. Attainment requires approximately a 45 percent reduction in CO
emissions from the baseyear.
B. SIP Status
1. Introduction; Relationship of the FIP to the SIP
At the same time EPA is proposing federal plans for these areas,
the responsible State and local agencies have been developing and
adopting their own plans and rules to meet the scheduled Clean Air Act
requirements. In relation to the FIPs, the most important of these new
SIP requirements and submittal deadlines are:
(1) CO plan for the South Coast demonstrating attainment and
addressing the provisions of section 187 of the Act--due November
15, 1992;
(2) Ozone 15 percent rate-of-progress plans for each area
meeting the requirements of section 182(b)(1)--due November 15,
1993;
and (3) ozone plans for each area demonstrating attainment and
satisfaction of the relevant portions of section 182--due November
15, 1994.
EPA has issued preliminary interpretations of the amended Act's
provisions applicable to these SIP obligations. See, for example, the
``General Preamble for the Implementation of Title I of the Clean Air
Act Amendments of 1990,'' [see generally 57 FR 13498 (April 16, 1992)
and 57 FR 18070 (April 28, 1992)], and ``Guidance for Growth Factors,
Projections, and Control Strategies for the 15 Percent Rate-of-Progress
Plans,'' (EPA-452/R-93-002, March 1993).
Ultimately, EPA expects that SIP measures meeting the requirements
of the 1990 amendments and more carefully tailored to the FIP areas
will supplant the potentially severe measures EPA is compelled to
propose here. EPA understands that this scenario presents facilities
with the prospect of changing compliance requirements as the FIP is
replaced by SIP measures. In the long term, however, it will better
serve the area to have in place measures which are designed by State,
regional, and local authorities, who are best situated to minimize any
disruption of the local economy and communities.
In the discussion below, the more important completed and pending
SIP submittals for the State and each area are briefly described. To
the extent that the submittals satisfy, or help to satisfy EPA's
obligations under the existing court orders, EPA will approve the SIPs
and refrain from promulgating FIP provisions addressing those aspects
of the air quality problem.
A submittal from the State and local districts of an approvable\15\
SIP demonstrating attainment by the applicable deadline will enable EPA
to rescind the FIP in its entirety. EPA believes that this rescission
is appropriate even if the SIP for the area has other deficiencies
(such as deficient RACT or NSR rules) which trigger separate FIP
actions.\16\
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\15\Under section 110(k)(4) of the Act, EPA can conditionally
approve a state plan which lacks adopted enforceable measures as
long as the state has been made a commitment to adopt the
enforceable measures within one year of the conditional approval.
\16\The Act allows states to replace FIP requirements with SIP
measures, subject, of course, to EPA's approval of the SIP measures
under sections 110(a), (k), and (l) of the Act. The Act provides
that EPA is relieved of having to promulgate a FIP at all if the
state submits and EPA approves a replacement SIP before the FIP must
be promulgated. Section 110(c)(1) of the Act provides: ``The
Administrator shall promulgate a Federal implementation plan at any
time within 2 years after the Administrator [makes certain findings
or disapproves a SIP] unless the State corrects the deficiency, and
the Administrator approves the plan or plan revision, before the
Administrator promulgates such Federal implementation plan.''
Section 302(y) of the Act defines a FIP as ``a plan (or portion
thereof) promulgated by the Administrator to fill all or a portion
of a gap or otherwise correct all or a portion of an inadequacy in a
State implementation plan. . . .'' If a state fills a gap or cures
an inadequacy in its SIP subsequent to EPA promulgating a FIP, the
FIP may be rescinded or revised. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the
Ninth Circuit recognized this principle in Coalition for Clean Air
v. EPA (reported as Coalition for Clean Air v. Southern California
Edison), 971 F.2d 219.
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EPA wishes to emphasize that all existing and future SIP
obligations remain the responsibility of State and local agencies,
despite provisions in the FIP that may fulfill, in whole or in part,
these obligations. Thus, the State and the applicable areas of the
State are subject to the sanctions provisions of section 179 for any
failure to submit a required plan or plan element, or upon EPA
disapproval of a required plan or plan element.\17\
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\17\Under section 179 of the Act, two principal sanctions are
authorized: a highway funding restriction and an increased offset
requirement for major new or modified sources. The highway funding
sanction is enforced through an EPA prohibition on approval by the
U.S. Secretary of Transportation of projects or grants in the area
except where the Secretary has determined that the purpose of the
project or grant is to improve a demonstrated safety problem.
Section 179(b)(1)(B) also allows the Secretary to exempt certain
projects and grants that are intended to minimize air pollution
problems. The offset sanction requires that major new or modified
sources in the area obtain at least 2 to 1 offsets before
construction.
Section 179(a) requires EPA to impose one of these sanctions
within 18 months and the remaining sanction within 24 months if: (1)
The state has failed to submit a required plan or element; (2) the
required submission is deemed incomplete; (3) EPA disapproves the
required submission; or (4) an approved SIP provision is not being
implemented. Section 110(m) allows EPA to impose these sanctions at
any time after EPA has made one of these findings.
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While EPA's FIP promulgation process unfolds, the responsible State
and local agencies in Sacramento, Ventura, and the South Coast are
developing their own plans under the schedule provided by the 1990
Amendments. Depending upon the time EPA is able to approve SIP
replacement measures submitted by these agencies, EPA may upon approval
of such measures either refrain from promulgating, or withdraw the
corresponding portions of the FIP. sections 110(c) and 302(y).
As the relationship between the FIPs and the developing SIPs
evolves, EPA will confront a number of issues. One question that has
been raised is whether the State may claim credit toward meeting
progress or attainment requirements for the emissions reductions from
FIP measures that apply to a limited category of sources over which
State or local control is legally preempted. The issue is whether the
State, in its plan, may seek not to replace these FIP measures, but
rather continue to rely upon them, at the same time obtaining EPA's
full approval for the state plan.
Although EPA has not previously addressed this specific question, a
straightforward reading of the Clean Air Act's text and structure
suggests that a state plan to be approvable must demonstrate attainment
of the relevant standard, without reliance on measures that EPA has
promulgated solely pursuant to its FIP authority. (Under this theory, a
state could still rely on any measures that EPA has promulgated under
its independent authority, such as Title II, as opposed to its
authority under section 110(c) to assume California's waiver role
under, for example, section 209. See discussion of EPA's FIP authority,
section III.A.2.a. To decide otherwise would require the conclusion
that Congress intended FIP measures to remain in place, perhaps
permanently, without sanctions being imposed on the state--a view
arguably at odds with the Act's historic emphasis on the primacy of
state responsibility and the role of FIPs as temporary substitutes for
state failures.
On the other hand, it may be argued that, for a limited number of
sources over which the federal government, when promulgating a FIP,
demonstrably has sole legal authority, and over which the state is
barred from exerting control, removing the FIP measures and hence
requiring the state to compensate for the lack of control of these
sources may force it to impose unreasonably and inequitably harsher
controls on other sources. Thus, the argument goes, EPA should consider
whether there is any basis in law, and justification in policy, for
carving out a limited exception to the traditional view.
EPA does not resolve this complex issue here, but intends to
continue to analyze and explore it. In this proposal we solicit comment
on the legal and policy implications raised by this aspect of the
relationship between the FIP and the SIP.
2. Sacramento
On November 15, 1993, the State submitted Sacramento ozone rate-of-
progress plans for the Sacramento Metropolitan Area, addressing the
Act's 15 percent rate-of-progress plan requirements. The Sacramento
area's 15 percent plans involved a coordinated effort by the Sacramento
Area Council of Governments (SACOG) and the five local air pollution
control agencies. Each of the air agencies developed a plan for their
portion of the area.
The reductions in Sacramento's 15 percent plans rely on an enhanced
I/M program, measures that the State and local governments have adopted
or have committed to adopt, measures that the Federal government will
have to develop and implement for the Sacramento area, and substitution
of NOX for VOC reductions. However, an approvable enhanced I/M
program has not been authorized by the State legislature, EPA has
decided preliminarily that it will not accept commitments for measures
for purposes of the Act's 15 percent rate-of-progress provision, and
EPA cannot credit NOX reductions in place of the necessary VOC
reductions. Therefore, EPA cannot take action at this time to approve
this submittal with respect to the Clean Air Act progress
demonstration.
The Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District
(SMAQMD), the Yolo-Solano Air Pollution Control District (YSAPCD), the
Placer County Air Pollution Control District (PCAPCD), the El Dorado
County Air Pollution Control District (EDCAPCD), the Feather River Air
Quality Management District (FRAQMD), SACOG and CARB plan to submit a
comprehensive revised ozone attainment SIP on or before November 15,
1994. The local agencies hope to release a draft of this SIP in the
Spring of 1994 and to modify it after EPA finalizes the FIP in February
1995. The air quality modeling in the SIP and FIP are based on similar
data and should be consistent. There may, however, be significant
differences between the regulations included in the two plans to attain
the ozone standard.
3. Ventura
On November 15, 1993, the State submitted a Ventura ozone rate-of-
progress plan addressing the Act's requirement that a plan be submitted
by that date demonstrating creditable VOC reductions of at least 15
percent from 1990 to 1996. The plan describes how this reduction can be
accomplished with an enhanced I/M program plus measures that the State
committed to adopt and implement by 1996 in Ventura's 1991 Air Quality
Management Plan. Many of the promised local measures have already been
adopted, but an approvable enhanced I/M program has not been authorized
by the State legislature. As in the case of Sacramento, EPA cannot now
approve this Ventura plan submittal with respect to the progress
demonstration.
The Ventura County Air Pollution Control District (VCAPCD), the
Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG), and the CARB
plan to submit a comprehensive revised ozone attainment SIP on or
before November 15, 1994. VCAPCD hopes to release a draft of this SIP
by the Spring of 1994 and to modify it after EPA finalizes the FIP in
February 1995. The air quality modeling in the SIP and FIP are based on
similar data and should be consistent. As in the case of Sacramento,
however, the regulations included in the two plans may be different.
4. South Coast
On December 31, 1992, the State submitted the CO plan for the South
Coast. This plan includes a demonstration of attainment by the year
2000 relying on emission reductions from previously adopted regulations
as well as from an enhanced I/M program meeting the requirements of
sections 182(c)(3) and 187(a)(6). Because the State legislature has not
yet enacted legislation authorizing such an enhanced I/M program, EPA
proposes to disapprove the CO plan with respect to the requirements for
an attainment demonstration, reasonable further progress, reasonably
available control measures, and enhanced I/M.
On January 15, 1993, the Agency issued a finding of failure to
submit two other mandatory elements of the CO plan: (1) Transportation
control measures (TCMs) to offset growth, as required by section
182(d)(1)(A); and (2) adopted contingency measures to be implemented if
vehicle miles traveled (VMT) forecasts are exceeded, in accordance with
section 187(a)(3). In section II.C.1., below, EPA is proposing to
disapprove the CO SIP with respect to these six elements: attainment
demonstration, reasonable further progress, reasonably available
control measures, provision for an enhanced I/M program, TCMs to offset
growth, and contingency measures to be implemented if VMT forecasts are
exceeded. EPA is also proposing a partial approval of other portions of
the plan that represent an improvement over what is currently in the
SIP, do not conflict with proposed FIP provisions, and meet some of the
applicable requirements of the Act.
On November 15, 1993, the State submitted a 15 percent rate-of-
progress plan for the South Coast. The 15 percent plan relies on
reductions from currently adopted rules, but also depends upon a
relatively small contribution from 10 SCAQMD measures scheduled for
full adoption in 1994 or 1995 and an improved I/M program. As in the
case of Sacramento and Ventura, EPA cannot at this time propose to
approve this South Coast submittal with respect to the 15 percent rate-
of-progress demonstration. However, in section II.C.2., below, for
entirely different purposes EPA is proposing to conditionally approve
the SCAQMD commitments to adopt rules during 1994 and 1995.
On October 15, 1993, the SCAQMD adopted rules implementing the
Regional Clean Air Incentives Market (RECLAIM) program for NOX and
sulfur oxides (SOX). This innovative program establishes a
declining cap ``bubble'' requirement on most facilities with emissions
greater than 4 tons per year of NOX or SOX. The program
includes emissions allocation and emissions trading components. EPA
intends to propose to approve (or conditionally approve) the RECLAIM
regulations in separate rulemaking, following SIP submittal. For the
purposes of the FIP attainment demonstration, EPA proposes to assign
credit to the adopted RECLAIM program, which went into effect on
January 1, 1994. If EPA does not finally approve the NOX RECLAIM
rules, EPA would not be able to grant credits for associated
reductions, and would need to amend the FIP accordingly. For more
details on the RECLAIM rules, see section III.C.5.
The SCAQMD, SCAG, and CARB are currently preparing a comprehensive
revision to existing air quality plans, addressing all pollutants and
the requirements of both the federal and State Clean Air Acts. SIP
submittal of this comprehensive plan (or portions of the plan) is
scheduled to occur on or before November 15, 1994. The new plan will
include revised 1990 baseyear emissions inventories, and projected
inventories for interim years through the year 2020. With respect to
motor vehicle emissions, these inventories may be significantly
different from those used in the proposed ozone and CO FIPs, because
the 1994 plan is expected to rely on new trip modeling input data and
revised motor vehicle emissions factors. For ozone, the plan may
analyze additional episodes, including a weekend episode.
5. State of California
California's motor vehicle control program (CMVCP) predates the
first federal statute regulating motor vehicle emissions, the Motor
Vehicle Air Pollution Control Act of 1965. In the Air Quality Act of
1967 (Pub. L. 90-148), Congress allowed California a waiver of the Air
Quality Act's preemption section on motor vehicle emissions control
because of California's pioneering efforts and unique problems. The
1977 amendments to the CAA expanded the flexibility granted to
California in order ``to afford California the broadest possible
discretion in selecting the best means to protect the health of its
citizens and the public welfare.'' H.R. Rep. No. 294, 95th Cong., 1st
Sess. 301-2 (1977).
So long as California demonstrates that its motor vehicle standards
are ``in the aggregate'' at least as protective of public health and
welfare as applicable federal standards, section 209(b) of the Act
requires the Administrator to waive the Act's general prohibition on
state adoption of standards relating to the control of emissions from
new motor vehicles or new motor vehicle engines, unless the
Administrator finds that California's determination was arbitrary and
capricious, that California does not need the standard to meet
``compelling and extraordinary conditions,'' or that the California
standards and accompanying enforcement procedures are not consistent
with section 202(a) of the Act.\18\ Section 211(c)(4)(B) also provides
that a state that has received a section 209 waiver (i.e., California)
may prescribe controls or prohibitions respecting fuels or fuel
additives.
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\18\In section 209 waiver decisions EPA has explained that
California standards are inconsistent with section 202(a) if there
is inadequate lead time to permit the development and application of
requisite technology, giving appropriate consideration to the cost
of compliance within such period. In addition, the Agency has held
that to avoid inconsistency with section 202(a), California's
procedures may not impose inconsistent certification requirements
such that manufacturers would be unable to meet both the California
and Federal requirements with the same test vehicle.
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The 1990 CAAA further expanded the California waiver provisions to
cover nonroad vehicles or engines (except for certain preempted
engines), and also established a special California clean-fuel vehicle
program to be implemented in California (the California Pilot Test
Program). See sections 209, 211(c)(4), and 249.
California law reserves to CARB most authorities for adopting and
enforcing motor vehicle emission controls (including restrictions on
fuels and fuel content) and standards for nonroad engines and consumer
products. Under this authority, particularly as strengthened by the
California Clean Air Act of 1988 (Chapter 1568, Statutes of 1988), CARB
has adopted many new provisions with the potential for vast VOC and
NOX emission reductions. CARB regulations adopted through the
first half of 1990 are described at length in EPA's 1990 proposed FIP
for the South Coast. See 55 FR 36470-36479.
More recently adopted State measures include: Low Emissions
Vehicles (LEV) and Clean Fuels Program; Utility and Lawn and Garden
Equipment Engine Exhaust Emission Standards and Test Procedures;
Standards for Consumer Products (CARB regulations adopted thus far
cover approximately 30 consumer product categories); and Emission
Standards for Construction and Farm Equipment.
EPA is not generally assigning credit in the attainment
demonstration for State (or local) regulations that have not already
been approved as part of the SIP or are not now undergoing SIP
approval. EPA's policy restricts State credit in either their
attainment demonstrations or progress plans for reductions from
measures that have not been submitted as approvable elements of the
SIP.
The principal reason for this policy has been to comply with
section 110(a)(2)(A) of the Act, which requires that each SIP ``include
enforceable emission limitations and other control measures, means, or
techniques (including economic incentives such as fees, marketable
permits, and auctions of emissions rights), as well as schedules and
timetables for compliance, as may be necessary or appropriate to meet
the applicable requirements of this Act * * *.''
In general, EPA policy has been to require that reductions used in
attainment demonstrations be submitted for incorporation in the SIP, to
ensure that the reductions are enforceable directly by EPA in the event
that the responsible State and local agencies fail to perform their
implementation responsibilities. It is for this reason that EPA is
proposing in this NPRM to promulgate consumer product regulations
comparable to rules which CARB has previously adopted and already
enforces, but which the State has not yet submitted as a SIP revision.
C. Proposed Action on the South Coast SIP Revisions
1. CO Plan
a. Statutory provision and general preamble requirements. The air
quality planning requirements for CO nonattainment areas are set out in
sections 186-187 of the Act, which pertain to the classification of CO
nonattainment areas and to the submission requirements of the SIPs for
these areas, respectively. EPA has issued a ``General Preamble''
describing the Agency's preliminary views on how EPA intends to act on
SIPs submitted under Title I of the Act [see generally 57 FR 13498
(April 16, 1992) and 57 FR 18070 (April 28, 1992)]. The reader should
refer to the General Preamble for a more detailed discussion of the
EPA's preliminary interpretations of Title I. In this proposed
rulemaking action, EPA is applying these policies to the proposed South
Coast CO SIP, taking into consideration the specific factual issues
presented.
Those states containing CO nonattainment areas classified as
``Serious'' were required under the Act to submit by November 15, 1992,
a plan that provides enforceable measures to achieve annual emissions
reductions leading to attainment of the NAAQS by December 31, 2000. The
Act mandates other specific plan elements, which are discussed below.
In today's action, EPA is proposing to partially disapprove and
partially approve the plan for the South Coast, in accordance with the
provisions of section 110(k) of the Act governing EPA's review of SIP
submittals (see 57 FR 13565-13566). EPA is proposing to approve the
plan with respect to procedural requirements, employee commute options
(ECO) program, and forecast of VMT. EPA is proposing to disapprove the
plan with respect to the attainment demonstration, reasonable further
progress (RFP), reasonably available control measures (RACM), enhanced
inspection and maintenance (I/M), VMT contingency measures, and TCMs to
offset growth in motor vehicle emissions and meet progress and
attainment requirements. The State's submission to address the
requirements for the clean-fuel vehicle fleet has been conditionally
approved in a separate rulemaking. EPA will also act separately on the
State's oxygenated fuel program. EPA is proposing to take no action on
the plan's emissions inventory for the reasons discussed below.
b. Procedural requirements. Section 110(a)(2) of the Act requires
states to provide reasonable notice and public hearing before plan
adoption. The SCAQMD satisfied this requirement by furnishing proper
notice and adopting the plan at a public hearing held on November 6,
1992. Following adoption by the Governing Board of the SCAQMD, the plan
was forwarded to CARB, which submitted the CO plan as a proposed
revision to the California SIP on December 31, 1992. On April 29, 1993,
CARB submitted a letter correcting certain adoption and implementation
dates for measures under CARB's jurisdiction.
c. Emissions inventory. Section 172(c)(3) of the Act requires that
nonattainment plans include a comprehensive, accurate, current
inventory of actual emissions from all sources of relevant pollutants
in the nonattainment area. The emissions inventory included with the
South Coast CO plan generally conforms to applicable EPA guidance (see,
for example, Emission Inventory Requirements for Carbon Monoxide State
Implementation Plans, EPA-450/4-91-011; Procedures for the Preparation
of Emission Inventories for Carbon Monoxide and Precursors of Ozone,
Volume I: General Guidance for Stationary Sources, EPA-450/4-91-016;
Procedures for Emission Inventory Preparation, Volume IV: Mobile
Sources, EPA 450/4-81-026d Revised). This guidance allows approval of
California's motor vehicle emissions factors (in this case, the
EMFAC7EP update) in place of the corresponding federal emissions
factors. The methodologies used to prepare the base year and projected
emissions inventories, as described in Chapter 3 of the plan, are
acceptable. EPA is not proposing to approve into the SIP the State's
emission inventories, however, because a different inventory is
employed in the federal attainment demonstration for CO, and a new CO
inventory has been developed for use in a South Coast SIP revision
scheduled for adoption later this year. EPA hopes to be able to approve
the revised inventory in the final SIP action and use this new
inventory in the final CO FIP.
Moreover, State and local agencies are preparing comprehensive
revisions to the base year and projected inventories for motor
vehicles. EPA may use some or all of this revised and updated motor
vehicle data to amend the attainment demonstration in the final FIP. If
the State submits an approvable CO SIP along with acceptable updated
emissions inventories for the South Coast, EPA will be able to approve
the revised State plan and inventories and substitute them for the
federal plan and federal emissions inventories.
d. Reasonably available control measures (RACM). Section 172(c)(1)
requires the plans for all nonattainment areas to provide for the
implementation of all RACM (including Reasonably Available Control
Technology, or RACT) as expeditiously as practicable. EPA interprets
this requirement to impose a duty on all nonattainment areas to
consider all available control measures and to adopt and implement such
measures as are reasonably available for implementation in the area as
components of the area's attainment demonstration.
The South Coast CO plan's control measures are presented in Chapter
4, Chapter 6, Appendix B, and Appendix C. The control measures are also
discussed below in sections II.C.1.g., h., i., and j. The State and
local control measures (with adoption/implementation dates before 2001)
are as follows:
M-G-12, Oxygenated Fuels Program (1991/1992);
ARB-4, Improved Certification Requirements for alternative Fuel
Retrofit Systems (1992/1992);
M-G-5, Motor Vehicle Buyback Program (1993/1993-1997);
M-G-4, Low-Emission New Fleet Vehicles (1991/1993-2000);
M-G-11, Inspection and Maintenance Program Enhancement (1993/1994);
M-G-1, Zero-Emission Urban Bus Implementation (1992/1994-2000);
ARB-5, Low Emission Vehicles and Clean Fuels Program (1990/1994-
2003);
ARB-1, Revised Emission Standards and Test Procedures for Medium-
Duty Vehicles and Light Heavy-Duty Engines (1990/1995-1996);
ARB-7, Low Emission Vehicle Standards for Heavy-Duty Engines (1992/
1998-2007);
ARB-11, Inspections of Fleet Heavy-Duty Trucks (1992/to be
determined);
ARB-12, Control of Off-Cycle Emissions (1993/to be determined);
ARB-16, Retrofit/Operational Requirements for Locomotives (1993/
1992-1997);
M-I-7, Eliminate Leaf Blowers (1993/1994);
ARB-13, Emission Standards for Utility Engines (1990/1994-1999);
ARB-15, Emission Standards for Off-Road Motorcycles (1992/1995);
ARB-14, Emission Standards for Construction and Farm Equipment
(1992/1995-2000);
ARB-18, Emission Standards for Off-Highway Vehicles (1993/1995-
2000);
ARB-17, Emission Standards for Marine Vessels (1993/1997-1999);
P-B-6, Control of Emissions from Petroleum Refinery Flares (1992/
1996);
FC-1/2g, Transit Improvements (to be determined/to be determined);
F-2/2f, HOV and Bus Lanes/Roads (to be determined/to be determined);
FC-3/M-H-5(c), Employer-Based Trip Reduction (1993/1994);
FC-4, Additional VMT/VT Reduction Strategies (1989-2000, with SCAQMD
backstop 1994/1991-, with SCAQMD backstop 1994);
FC-5/4, Traffic Flow Improvements (1989-2000/1991-);
FC-6/M-G-7, Control Extended Idling (1993/1994);
FC-7/M-G-5, Encourage Removal of Pre-1980 Vehicles (1993/1993);
FC-8, M-G-6, Reduce Cold Start Emissions from Vehicles (1994/1994);
M-H-1, Environmental Review Program (1992/1992);
M-H-2, Trip Reduction for Schools (1993/1993);
M-H-4, Special Activity Centers (1993/1994).
EPA has reviewed the extensive list of scheduled measures and has
concluded that the plan would reflect RACM but for the omission of an
enhanced I/M program. By this NPRM, EPA is proposing to disapprove the
plan with respect to the RACM requirement because of this single
deficiency. EPA invites comment on whether other RACM exist for the
South Coast CO plan.
e. Attainment demonstration. As noted, ``Serious'' CO nonattainment
areas were required to submit a demonstration that the plan will
provide for attainment by December 31, 2000. The SCAQMD conducted an
attainment demonstration using both areawide (Urban Airshed Model, or
UAM) and hotspot (CAL3QHC) modeling analyses. The two modeling analyses
and the selection of the design value (23.4 ppm, recorded in 1988 at
the Lynwood monitoring station) are discussed in Chapter 4 and Appendix
D of the CO plan. The modeling analyses are consistent with EPA's
guidance (Guideline for Modeling Carbon Monoxide from Roadway
Intersections, User's Guide to CAL3QHC: A Modeling Methodology for
Predicting Pollutant Concentrations near Roadway Intersections, and
Guideline for Regulatory Application of the Urban Airshed Model for
Areawide Carbon Monoxide). The SCAQMD's modeling analyses predict
attainment of the 8-hour CO NAAQS by the year 2000, based upon the
control strategies included in the plan.
However, since attainment depends upon large CO emissions
reductions (587.4 tons per day) assigned to the enhanced I/M program,
which has not yet been adopted by the State, EPA proposes to disapprove
the attainment demonstration portion of the plan. In the future, the
attainment demonstration could be approved if the State submits
approvable enhanced I/M legislative authorization and regulations.
f. Quantitative milestones and reasonable further progress (RFP).
The CO plan must contain measures which demonstrate RFP toward
attainment by the applicable attainment date. Reasonable further
progress is defined in section 171(1) of the Act as such annual
incremental reductions in emissions of the relevant air pollutant as
are required by Part D or may reasonably be required by the
Administrator for the purpose of ensuring attainment of the NAAQS by
the applicable date.
EPA has reviewed the attainment demonstration and control strategy
for the area (see Chapter 6 and Appendix C of the CO plan). EPA
concludes that the plan would provide for RFP but for the fact that the
State legislature has not yet adopted legislation authorizing an
enhanced I/M program and California has not submitted implementing
regulations for the program. Therefore, EPA proposes to disapprove the
RFP provision. Again, however, this defect could be cured by State
action to authorize, adopt, and submit an approvable enhanced I/M
program.
g. Adoption of mandatory control measures. The Act mandates State
adoption of four control programs for CO areas such as the South Coast.
(1) Enhanced Inspection and Maintenance (I/M)
Section 187(a)(6) requires implementation of an enhanced I/M
program in the nonattainment area's urbanized portions (as defined by
the Bureau of Census) with a CO design value greater than 12.7 ppm.
EPA's regulations respecting this requirement were issued on November
5, 1992 (57 FR 52950). The reader should refer to section III.D.2.c.
for a detailed discussion of the purpose and components of the enhanced
I/M program. As noted, the California State Legislature has to date
failed to enact legislation that would authorize such a program. While
EPA is not now required to propose a FIP enhanced I/M measure (as
discussed in section III.A.1.), the Agency has chosen to do so as part
of the FIP attainment demonstrations.
(2) Oxygenated Fuels
Sections 211(m) and 187(b)(3) mandate SIP provisions prohibiting
the sale of gasoline during winter months containing less than 2.7
percent oxygen by weight. Increasing the oxygen content of gasoline
causes motor vehicle engines to run with leaner overall fuel/air
mixture, thereby reducing the amount of CO generated during the
combustion process.
California's adopted regulations (California Wintertime Oxygenates
Program for the years 1992-1995, and Phase 2 Reformulated Gasoline
regulation for the years after 1995) provide for the sale of 1.8 to 2.2
percent oxygenated fuels. On October 30, 1992, the CARB applied for a
partial waiver from the 2.7 percent level specified in the Act.
EPA intends in a separate NPRM to propose to conditionally approve
the waiver under the provisions of section 211(m)(3)(A), which
authorizes the Administrator to waive, in whole or in part, this fuel
requirement if the State demonstrates that use of oxygenated gasoline
would prevent or interfere with the attainment of a NAAQS or a state or
local ambient air quality standard.
CARB's waiver petition argues that an oxygen content above an
average of 2.0 percent would interfere with attainment of the
California standards for ozone, nitrogen dioxide, and particulate
matter, because the higher oxygenated fuel levels have the potential to
increase emissions of NOX, which is a precursor to ozone and (in
the South Coast) nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter.
(3) Clean-Fuel Vehicle Fleet Program
Section 246 of the Act requires that the CO SIP for the South Coast
provide for a Clean-Fuel Vehicle Fleet program by May 15, 1994. Section
182(c)(4) places a similar requirement on the South Coast ozone SIP.
The Act mandates SIP provisions requiring the purchase of clean new
vehicles, beginning in 1998, for use in centrally fueled fleets of cars
and light-duty trucks.
On November 13, 1992, CARB submitted as a SIP revision the State's
regulations mandating the availability of clean fuels. At the same
time, CARB applied for conditional approval of an opt-out from this
requirement based upon a showing that the State's Low- Emission
Vehicles (LEV) and Clean Fuels programs (adopted in 1990) qualify as a
substitute for the federal clean fleet program. On November 29, 1993
(58 FR 62532), EPA approved the State's clean fuels availability
regulations and conditionally approved the opt-out request.\19\
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\19\In Section III.D.2.d.(6), EPA proposes as part of the South
Coast FIP a clean fuel fleet program, consistent with EPA's final
fleet program rules [see 58 FR 64679 (December 9, 1993)].
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(4) Employee Commute Options Program
Section 187(b)(2) requires SIP submission by November 15, 1992, of
an Employee Commute Options (ECO) regulation to reduce commute trips to
the worksites of large employers. Section 182(d)(1)(B) mandates that
the ECO SIP requirement also applies to ``Severe'' and ``Extreme''
ozone nonattainment areas, and this same section establishes minimum
program performance levels: the rules must ``require that each employer
of 100 or more persons in such area increase average passenger
occupancy per vehicle in commuting trips between home and the workplace
during peak travel periods by not less than 25 percent above the
average vehicle occupancy for all such trips in the area at the time
the revision is submitted.''
In December 1992, EPA issued Employee Commute Options Guidance to
assist states in developing approvable ECO SIP revisions. This
guidance, and the ECO requirement in the 1990 Amendments, derive in
part from the SCAQMD employee trip reduction program, Regulation XV,
which was adopted on December 11, 1987, as the Country's first large-
scale ECO program.
Regulation XV has undergone several significant revisions since
that date to expand the program and address implementation issues. The
SCAQMD rule was initially submitted as a SIP revision on February 7,
1989, and CARB submitted an amended Regulation XV on two occasions:
March 31, 1991 and May 31, 1993. EPA has reviewed the amended
Regulation XV for consistency with the Act and EPA's guidance. This
review is available as a Technical Support Document, ``EPA Analysis of
the Approvability of South Coast Air Quality Management District
Regulation XV.'' Based on this detailed analysis, EPA proposes in this
NPRM to approve Regulation XV as meeting the requirements of sections
187(b)(2) and 182(d)(1)(B) of the Act.
While the current Regulation XV meets federal approval criteria,
EPA encourages the SCAQMD to continue to evaluate and adjust the
program, if necessary, to ensure that the rule is fully and successfuly
implemented. Any adjustments to the rule must not jeopardize timely
achievement of average passenger occupancy targets and emissions
reductions from the rule.
h. Vehicle miles traveled (VMT) forecast and contingency measures.
Section 187(a)(2)(A) requires the South Coast CO plan to contain a
forecast of VMT for each year until attainment. The plan must also
provide for annual updates of the forecasts along with annual reports
regarding the extent to which the forecasts proved to be accurate.
Finally, section 187(a)(3) requires that the plan contain specific
contingency measures to be implemented if the annual estimate of actual
VMT or a subsequent VMT forecast exceeds the most recent prior forecast
of VMT or if the area fails to attain the CO NAAQS by the attainment
date. These contingency measures must be adopted and enforceable in the
SIP and must take effect without further action by the State or the
Administrator.
The required VMT forecasts are included in Table 3-3 and Appendix A
of the plan. The forecasts require significant update, and SCAG is now
preparing and adopting such an amendment for a new Regional Mobility
Plan and an air quality plan revision scheduled for adoption later in
1994. EPA therefore proposes to approve the forecasts, but intends to
amend the VMT projections in the FIP when the new VMT numbers are
adopted and submitted as a SIP revision. EPA also proposes to approve
the responsible agencies' commitments to replace the VMT projections
and monitor actual VMT levels in the future.
The State has not yet submitted, however, fully adopted and
enforceable contingency measures to meet the requirements of section
187(a)(3). The plan includes three groups of potential controls,
identified as contingency measures. The measures, in fact, are surplus
rather than contingent. The committal measures achieve reductions
beyond those needed for progress and attainment, and they are scheduled
for adoption and implementation by fixed dates, which are independent
of determinations that VMT levels have been exceeded or that the plan
has failed to achieve progress milestones or attainment. Although the
measures are not designed to be triggered by excess VMT levels or by a
failure to achieve scheduled progress or attainment, the measures could
be approved as meeting the contingency requirement if: (1) They are
submitted in fully adopted form, and (2) the RFP and attainment
deficiencies are resolved by SIP submission of approvable enhanced I/M
authorization and regulations.
The first group of ``contingency'' measures (Table 6-4 of the plan)
consists of two stationary source measures: P-B-5, Control of Emissions
from OCS Exploration, Development and Production; and P-B-6, Control of
Emissions from Petroleum Refinery Flares. Emissions reductions were not
estimated for these possible measures. Moreover, neither of the
controls have yet been adopted, although the plan scheduled both for
adoption in 1992. Thus, the two measures cannot be approved.
The second group (Table 6-5) comprises five measures. One of the
measures is assigned to CARB: ARB-8, Fleet Average Standards for Post-
2003 Model Years (Passenger Cars, Light-Duty Trucks, and Medium-Duty
Vehicles). The remaining four measures were scheduled for adoption by
1992, but the State has provided no evidence that the measures have in
fact been adopted. The four measures are energy conservation programs:
E-D-1b, Residential Sector; E-C-1b, Commercial Sector; E-C-2b,
Industrial Sector; and E-C-3, Local Government Sector.
Each of the five measures is designed to serve as contingency
measures after the year 2000. As such, the measures would be
appropriate for SIP submission in the context of a CO maintenance plan.
In their present form, they could not serve to meet contingency
requirements for the attainment plan, since the measures are not
designed to remedy plan shortfalls in achieving reasonable further
progress before, and attainment by, the year 2000. Moreover, EPA cannot
either approve or conditionally approve the measures since the
scheduled full adoption date has elapsed without evidence of such
adoption. Nevertheless, the measures are important pollution prevention
initiatives with multiple benefits, and EPA strongly encourages further
progress at the State, regional, and local level to implement the
measures fully.
The third group of ``contingency'' measures (Table 6-6) includes 11
transportation and indirect source measures. The plan requests
conditional approval of the measures to allow time to fully develop and
adopt the controls, and the resolution of adoption commits the SCAQMD
to revise the measures in 1993 to be fully quantifiable as required by
the CAA (SCAQMD Board Resolution No. 92-36, Finding 10).
These potentially significant measures are undergoing further
revision at the local and regional level, in order to improve the
design and quantification of the controls and confirm implementation
responsibilities. This is particularly the case with respect to the
only two measures to which substantial emissions reductions are
assigned: FC-3--Employer-Based Trip Reduction (advances beyond existing
Regulation XV), and FC-4--Additional VMT/VT Reduction Strategies. EPA
hopes to receive these revised measures as a SIP submittal and will
take action to approve or conditionally approve the controls at that
time.
The CO plan therefore lacks approvable measures that fulfill the
section 187(a)(3) requirements for fully adopted contingency measures
to be triggered if estimates of actual VMT exceed the plan's forecasted
levels. EPA proposes to disapprove the plan with respect to this
requirement. In separate rulemaking, EPA will propose as part of the
South Coast ozone and CO FIP/SIP a substitute contingency measure to be
implemented automatically in the event actual VMT excesses are
monitored.
i. Transportation control measures (TCMs) to offset growth in
emissions from growth in vehicle miles traveled. Section 187(b)(2) of
the Act requires ``Serious'' CO areas to meet a TCM requirement
specified in section 182(d)(1)(A) for ``Severe'' and ``Extreme'' ozone
areas. The Act provides that all such plans must include specific and
enforceable TCMs to offset any growth in emissions from growth in VMT
and numbers of vehicle trips, and to achieve reductions in mobile
source emissions as necessary in conjunction with other measures to
comply with the periodic emissions reduction and attainment
requirements of the Act. EPA's preliminary interpretation of this
requirement appears in the General Preamble, 57 FR 13521-13523 and
13533-13534 (April 16, 1992).
As mentioned above, Table 6-6 of the South Coast CO plan includes
11 transportation and indirect source ``contingency'' measures. These
measures and the plan's scheduled adoption dates are as follows:
FC-1, Transit Improvements (to be determined by the implementing
agency)
FC-2, HOV and Bus Lanes/Roads (to be determined by the implementing
agency)
FC-3, Employer-Based Trip Reduction (1993)
FC-4, Additional VMT/VT Reduction Strategies (1989-2000, with an
SCAQMD backstop rule adoption in 1994, if necessary)
FC-5, Traffic Flow Improvements (1989-2000)
FC-6, Control Extended Idling (1993)
FC-7, Encourage Removal of Pre-1980 Vehicles (1993)
FC-8, Reduce Cold Start Emissions from Vehicles (1994)
M-H-1, Environmental Review Program (1992)
M-H-2, Trip Reduction for Schools (1993)
M-H-4, Special Activity Centers (1993)
While progress has been made in local and regional adoption and
implementation of certain measures (e.g., FC-1, FC-2, FC-4, and FC-5),
none of these important measures has been fully adopted and submitted
at this time.
Table 3-3 of the CO plan projects VMT and CO emissions for each
year through the attainment year. This table shows that CO emissions
will decline each year through the year 2000, despite the predicted VMT
growth. As a result, the CO plan does not need to include TCMs to
offset growth in CO emissions.
As discussed above, the CO plan would meet the attainment
demonstration and progress requirements of the Act if the State adopts
and submits an approvable enhanced I/M program. Until the attainment
and RFP deficiencies are cured, it is not possible for EPA to find that
the CO plan includes specific and enforceable TCMs that are sufficient,
in conjunction with other measures, to meet the progress and attainment
requirements of the Act. EPA therefore proposes to disapprove the plan
with respect to the TCM requirement. Approval of an enhanced I/M
program in the future would allow EPA to change this section 187(b)(2)
disapproval to an approval.
j. Fully adopted and enforceable control measures. The attainment
demonstration relies upon SCAQMD and CARB stationary, area, and mobile
controls adopted before July 1, 1990, and three additional controls:
(1) CARB's Low-Emission Vehicles (LEV) and Clean Fuels Program (adopted
September 1990); (2) CARB's California Wintertime Oxygenates Program
and Phase 2 Gasoline Specifications (adopted November 1991); and (3) an
Enhanced I/M Program. Except for the enhanced I/M program, all of the
measures included in the attainment modeling analysis are fully adopted
and enforceable.
The plan also includes a group of 18 supplemental measures (Tables
4-1 and 4-2). Most of these measures have not yet been adopted in
enforceable form, and the attainment demonstration does not claim
credit for the potential reductions associated with the controls. If
the measures are submitted by the State in approvable form, EPA will
propose to approve them and assign them credit in the attainment
demonstration.
k. Implications of EPA's proposed action. EPA is proposing to
disapprove in part the SIP revision submitted by the State of
California on December 31, 1992, for the South Coast CO nonattainment
area. If finalized, this disapproval would constitute a disapproval
under section 179(a)(2) of the Act (see generally 57 FR 13566-13567).
As provided under section 179(a) of the Act, the State would have up to
18 months after a final SIP disapproval to correct the deficiencies
that are the subject of the disapproval before EPA is required to
impose either the highway funding sanction or the requirement to
provide two-to-one new source review offsets. If the State has not
corrected its deficiency within 6 months thereafter, EPA must impose
the second sanction. Any sanction EPA imposes must remain in place
until EPA determines that the State has corrected the deficiency.
2. Ozone Rate of Progress Plan
a. Statutory provisions and General Preamble requirements. The
requirements for the 15 percent rate-of-progress plans appear in
section 182(b)(1) of the Act, which describes how ozone nonattainment
areas must achieve an actual VOC reduction of at least 15 percent
during the first 6 years after enactment of the 1990 CAA Amendments
(i.e., up to November 15, 1996). The General Preamble provides an
overview of EPA's preliminary policy interpretation of this statutory
requirement (see 57 FR 13507-13510, April 16, 1992). EPA has issued
detailed guidance documents on the plan requirements, including:
Guidance on the Adjusted Base Year Emissions Inventory and the 1996
Target for the 15 Percent Rate-of-Progress Plans (EPA-452/R-92-005),
and Guidance for Growth Factors, Projections, and Control Strategies
for the 15 Percent Rate-of-Progress Plans (EPA-452/R-93-002).
The CAA requires that the 15 percent rate-of-progress plan be
submitted by November 15, 1993. The plan must show an actual reduction
in typical ozone season weekday VOC emissions of at least 15 percent
for the period 1990-1996.\20\ The reduction must be calculated from the
1990 baseline of actual emissions, adjusted in accordance with section
182(b)(1)(B), and must account for any net growth in emissions. Section
182(b)(1)(D) provides that reductions from the federal motor vehicle
control program (FMVCP) as promulgated by January 1, 1990, or from the
federal 9.0 Reid Vapor Pressure (RVP) gasoline regulation may not count
toward meeting the 15 percent reduction target. Also excluded from
credit are ``fix-ups'' to VOC RACT rules or I/M programs to comply with
prior statutory and regulatory requirements.
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\20\For the initial progress period (1990-1996), the Act
specifies that the SIP must ``provide for volatile organic compound
emission reductions . . . of at least 15 percent. . . .'' Section
182(b)(1)(A). NOx emission reductions may substitute for VOC
reductions in subsequent progress demonstrations, in accordance with
section 182(c)(2)(C) of the Act.
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b. Description of plan. On November 12, 1993, the SCAQMD adopted
its Rate-of-Progress Plan, following reasonable notice and public
hearing. CARB submitted the Rate-of-Progress plan as a proposed SIP
revision on November 15, 1993. The submitted plan shows a 1990 base
year emissions inventory of 1683 tons per day of reactive organic
compounds (ROC), an adjusted 1990 inventory of 1450 tons per day (after
subtracting FMVCP and RVP reductions of 233), resulting in a 1996
target emissions reductions of 217.5 tons per day. After credit for
fully adopted State and local measures and taking into account growth
in emissions through 1996, the plan achieves almost all of the
reductions needed to meet the target. The plan addresses the small
remaining shortfall by commitments to adopt 9 SCAQMD measures in 1994,
one SCAQMD measure in 1995, and one CARB measure: the enhanced I/M
program. Even after applying an 80 percent rule effectiveness discount
(in accordance with EPA's policy), the proposed SCAMQD measures alone
would eliminate the shortfall, without the need to count credits
assigned to the enhanced I/M program.
Under section 110(k)(4) of the Act, EPA has the authority to
conditionally approve the South Coast plan based upon the State's
commitment to adopt these measures. However, EPA's current policy does
not allow approval of rate-of-progress plans if they depend upon
commitments to adopt measures in order to meet the 15 percent reduction
requirement. See Memorandum from Michael H. Shapiro, EPA Acting
Assistant Administrator for Air and Radiation, ``Guidance on Issues
Related to 15 Percent Rate-of-Progress Plans,'' August 23, 1993. As a
result, EPA intends not to take action to approve the South Coast Rate-
of-Progress Plan at this time.
c. Conditional approval of commitments. As discussed above, EPA
policy does not allow approval of 15 Percent Rate-of-Progress Plans
based on committal measures. In accordance with this policy, EPA does
not propose to assign credit to the SCAQMD committal measures and
approve the progress plan until all measures are submitted in fully
enforceable form. However, commitments that strengthen the existing SIP
can be approved, although without assignment of emission reduction
credit.
EPA proposes to conditionally approve the SCAQMD commitments to
adopt the measures listed below, as strengthening the SIP. EPA has
evaluated the commitments to adopt measures and finds that those
commitments to adopt rules before 1996 are eligible for conditional
approval under section 110(k)(4). EPA cannot propose to conditionally
approve commitments to adopt measures with 1996 or later adoption dates
because the SCAQMD's commitment may extend beyond one year from the
date of the final conditional approval action (see pages 2-4 and 6-2 of
the plan, and the SCAQMD Resolution of Adoption).
(1) Commitments to adopt measures to contribute emission reductions
in the period 1990-1996. The SCAQMD has committed to adopt fully
enforceably controls in 1994 for the following measures:
P-B-7, Further Control of Emissions from Bulk Terminals;
P-C-1, Further Emission Reductions from Rubber Products
Manufacturing;
A-B-2, Control of Emissions from Gasoline Transfer: Phase II
Improvements;
A-B-3, Control of Emissions from Pleasure Boat Fueling Operations;
A-B-5, Further Control of Emissions from Gasoline Dispensing
Facilities;
A-B-6, Control of Emissions from Utility Engine Refueling
Operations;
A-B-9, Control of Emissions from Active Draining of Liquid Products;
A-C-2, Control of Emissions from Commercial Charbroiling;
A-C-4, Control of Emissions from Deep-Fat Frying.
The SCAQMD committal measure scheduled for adoption in 1995 is A-F-
1, Installation of Best Available Retrofit Control Technology on
Miscellaneous Sources. All of the measures are listed in Table 4-1 of
the plan, along with the identification of the date for full
implementation, the implementing agency, and the 1996 ROC emissions
reductions with and without the 80 percent rule effectiveness discount.
Appendix A of the plan provides further details on each of the
measures, including descriptions of the regulatory history, the
proposed method of control, and the calculation of emissions reductions
and cost effectiveness.
(2) Commitments to adopt measures before 1996 to contribute
emission reductions in the period 1997-2000. The South Coast Rate-of-
Progress Plan also includes SCAQMD and ARB committal measures, with
adoption and implement schedules, to reduce VOC and NOX emissions
during 1997-2000. The SCAQMD commitments are to adopt the following VOC
and NOX measures by the years shown:
P-A-2, Further Control of Emissions from Auto Assembly Coatings
(1995);
A-B-7, Control of Emissions from Over-Filling of Vehicle Fuel Tanks
(1994);
A-D-3, Control of Emissions from Residential and Commercial Water
Heating (1994);
A-E-1, Control of Emissions from Pesticide Applications (1994);
A-E-2, Control of Emissions from Livestock Waste (1994);
M-G-1, Zero-Emission Urban Bus (1993);
M-G-8, Aerodynamic Devices for Trucks (1994);
M-I-1, Control of Emissions from Ship Berthing Facilities (1995);
M-I-4, Control on Marine Diesel Operations (1995);
This list does not include SCAQMD committal NOX measures which
have now been subsumed in the NOX/SOX RECLAIM program,
adopted on October 15, 1993.
For the period 1997-2000, the CARB committal measures and adoption
dates are:
ARB-7, Low Emission Vehicle Standards for Heavy-Duty Engines (1995);
ARB-15, Emission Standards for Recreational Vehicles (1994);
ARB-16, Retrofit/Operational Requirements for Locomotives (1994);
ARB-17, Emission Standards for Marine Vessels (1994).
In section III of this NPRM, EPA proposes to promulgate as part of
the FIP attainment demonstration federal measures comparable to some of
these SCAQMD and CARB committal measures. If any of the State or local
committal measures for these categories are adopted and submitted as a
SIP revision and achieve emission reductions comparable to the FIP
controls, EPA will approve the SIP rules and modify the FIP rules
accordingly. d. Implications of EPA's Proposed Actions.
If EPA issues final conditional approval of the SCAQMD commitments,
the SCAQMD must fulfill the commitments to adopt the rules by the date
specified in the plan and shown above, and the State must submit these
rules to EPA. If the SCAQMD fails to adopt or CARB fails to submit any
of the rules to EPA within this time frame, this approval will become a
disapproval following EPA written notification to the State.
If the rules are submitted to EPA within the applicable time frame,
the SCAQMD commitments will remain a part of the SIP until EPA takes
final action approving or disapproving the new submittal. If EPA
disapproves the submittal, the measures on which the conditional
approval was based will also be disapproved at that time. If EPA
approves the submittal, those newly approved rules will become a part
of the SIP and will modify or replace the measures on which the
conditional approval is based. As discussed above, EPA's proposed
conditional approval of the committal measures does not mean that the
State has satisfied the initial 15 Percent Rate-of-Progress plan
requirements of section 182(b)(1). EPA's current policy would not allow
such approval until all necessary measures are submitted in fully
adopted and enforceable form.
EPA's final conditional approval of the SCAQMD commitments to adopt
measures to achieve minimum progress requirements for the 1990-2000
period will establish a federally enforceably obligation on the part of
the SCAQMD to adopt these measures in fully enforceable form according
to the committed schedule. It is essential not only that SCAQMD but
also CARB and all other responsible agencies follow through on their
commitments to meet the Act's near-term progress requirements through
expeditious adoption of enforceable regulations to achieve the
necessary creditable reductions.
III. California FIP
A. Basis for the FIP Actions in Applicable Law and EPA Policies
1. FIP Obligation
a. Introduction. In 1988, in the wake of lawsuits and ensuing court
orders, EPA disapproved the 1982 South Coast ozone and CO plans and the
Sacramento and Ventura ozone plans on the ground that, among other
things, they failed to demonstrate attainment of the NAAQS by the
December 1987 statutory attainment date, as required by Section 172(a)
of the Act. See 53 FR 1780 (January 22, 1988). In March 1989, EPA
entered into a settlement agreement with the South Coast plaintiffs
which obligated EPA to promulgate federal plans for the South Coast in
final form by February 1991. EPA issued a proposed FIP in September
1990.
For Sacramento, EPA also negotiated settlement agreements
containing schedules by which EPA would propose and promulgate a
federal plan. Pursuant to these schedules, EPA published Advance
Notices of Proposed Rulemakings (ANPRMs) on April 5, 1990 (55 FR 12669)
and May 27, 1992 (57 FR 22194).
For Ventura, EPA similarly entered into settlements setting a
schedule, and published an NPRM on January 17, 1991.
But as time progressed, it became increasingly clear that the South
Coast, Sacramento, and Ventura--all areas with difficult air pollution
problems--could not possibly meet the ambitious requirements of the
1977 CAA Amendments without severe economic dislocation.
(1) Passage of 1990 amendments. On November 15, 1990, Congress
enacted the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990. Pub. L. No. 101-549, 104
Stat. 2422-2423. Among other things, Congress completely revised the
Part D nonattainment provisions of the Act. In so doing Congress
repealed the provisions of Section 172 that had required SIPs for the
South Coast, Ventura, and Sacramento to demonstrate attainment by
December 31, 1987. Those provisions had formed the basis for EPA's
disapprovals of the California SIP submissions for those areas, and
thus the 1990 Amendments removed the statutory justification for those
disapprovals. Congress replaced the provisions of section 172 with a
detailed scheme of new requirements and extended deadlines specifically
applicable to ozone and CO nonattainment SIPs. Sections 171-193, 42
U.S.C. 7501-7515.
In particular, the 1990 Amendments established a graduated series
of requirements for different areas, depending on the severity of the
air quality problem in each. Congress established five classifications
of ozone nonattainment areas based on the level of each area's ozone
problem--ranging from ``Marginal'' to ``Extreme''--and two
classifications of CO nonattainment areas. The Amendments also set new,
extended deadlines for the attainment of the primary NAAQS for each
classification. Sections 181(a)(1) and 186(a)(1).
Consistent with the new Amendments, EPA issued a regulation
classifying Sacramento as a ``Serious'' area for ozone nonattainment;
under the statute, ``Serious'' areas must attain the ozone standard as
expeditiously as practicable but no later than November 15, 1999. 40
C.F.R. 81.305 (1992); CAA section 181(a). Ventura is classified as a
``Severe'' area for ozone, and must attain as expeditiously as
practicable, but no later than November 15, 2005. The South Coast is
classified as the only ``Extreme'' area for ozone, and must demonstrate
attainment as expeditiously as practicable but no later than November
15, 2010. For carbon monoxide, the South Coast is classified as a
``Serious'' area, and must demonstrate attainment as expeditiously as
practicable but no later than December 31, 2000.
In the 1990 Amendments Congress also imposed specific and
increasingly rigorous requirements for Part D SIPs, depending on the
area's nonattainment classification, with new deadlines, ranging from
immediately to six years from enactment, for submitting various
components of the plans to EPA. Sections 181, 182, 186, and 187. In
addition, the 1990 Amendments amended Section 110(c)(l), the principal
provision governing EPA's FIP obligation.
EPA concluded that these revisions, directing States to develop
SIPs meeting new requirements and deadlines, and to submit SIPs to EPA
on specific schedules, demonstrated that EPA's obligation to promulgate
FIPs would arise only upon future disapprovals of those newly submitted
SIPs. EPA appealed to the courts to determine whether the Amendments
had relieved the Agency of its pre-existing FIP obligations.
In Coalition for Clean Air, 971 F.2d 219 (9th Cir. 1992), a divided
panel of the Ninth Circuit held that although Section 110(c)(l) had
been revised by the 1990 Amendments, the language of section
110(c)(l)(B), which requires EPA to promulgate a FIP within two years
after it ``disapproves'' a SIP, applies to pre-Amendment disapprovals.
Thus, the court ruled that new section 110(c)(l)(B) operates
retroactively to retain EPA's preexisting FIP obligation, even though
the statutory provisions forming the basis for that obligation have
been repealed. In reaching this conclusion, the court declined to
indicate whether the requirements of the old law or the 1990 Amendments
would govern the contents of this FIP.
The Court acknowledged that ``the proper contents of FIPs for the
South Coast are not before us,'' and that ``we need not decide whether
EPA would be required to meet any additional requirement imposed by the
1990 Amendments in promulgating FIPs for the South Coast,'' 971 F.2d at
225.
EPA sought, and was denied, a writ of certiorari (113 S.Ct. 1361
(1993)).
(2) Applicable law. Thus, although the Ninth Circuit found that the
passage of the Amendments did not release EPA from a FIP obligation
arising from a pre-Amendment disapproval, it did not decide whether any
requirement of the 1990 Amendments applies to this continuing
obligation. In the absence of any guidance from the Court, this task
falls to EPA.
The threshold question, then, is what requirements govern the
content of a FIP which will take effect after enactment of the Clean
Air Act Amendments, but which is based on a plan failure and
disapproval arising from pre-Amendment Clean Air Act provisions which
have since been repealed. The greatly altered legal regime established
by the 1990 Amendments creates a discontinuity between the plan
contents required under the new and old acts. Thus, EPA is faced with a
choice as to how to design the FIP.
(3) New law applies. It is well settled that ``[c]ourts must apply
new laws to pending cases, unless such application would result in
manifest injustice or be contrary to statutory direction or legislative
history.'' United States v. Ford, 737 F.2d 1508 (9th Cir. 1984). See
Bradley v. School Bd. of Richmond, 416 U.S. 696, 711 (1974); DeGurules
v. INS, 833 F.2d 861, 863 (9th Cir. 1987); California Cartage Co. v.
United States, 802 F.2d 353, 357 (9th Cir. 1986). In accordance with
the principle embodied in these cases, EPA believes that the 1990
Amendments should be applicable to the FIPs arising from EPA's pre-
Amendment disapprovals. But an analysis of the new Act's provisions
reveals that the new Act does not require this FIP to include each and
every pollution control program required of States under the
Amendments.
The 1990 Amendments make explicit a principle that was implicit in
the preceding Act--that a FIP corrects or fills a void in a deficient
state plan. The amended Act defines a FIP as a plan to fill a gap or
``correct all or a portion of an inadequacy in a State implementation
plan.'' 42 U.S.C. 7602(y) (Supp. II. 1990) (emphasis added). The
California SIPs at issue here were rejected by EPA in 1988 because they
were ``inadequa[te]'' to demonstrate attainment under the pre-Amendment
deadlines, and thus EPA's obligation under the pre-1990 Act was to
promulgate a FIP in order to correct that ``inadequacy.'' Thus EPA's
FIP obligation is to fulfill the requirement to demonstrate attainment.
Stated differently, what the Ninth Circuit's ruling preserved was EPA's
existing FIP obligation to correct the state plan's failure to provide
for attainment. That is the inadequacy that EPA must address in this
FIP, not any failure that might have arisen under any of the numerous
requirements of the new law.
Of course, if the State fails to meet any of the new Act's
requirements, that failure would trigger a new FIP obligation in the
future, but that would be an entirely different obligation, not the one
on which the district court orders under the old Act were premised. And
even as to such obligations, the Administrator is not required to
promulgate a federal plan until two years after she disapproves a
deficient state plan or finds that the state has failed to submit a
required plan element. Section 110(c)(l).
With respect to new requirements imposed by the 1990 Amendments,
there has either been no state failure, or the 24-month clock for EPA
to promulgate a FIP has not yet run. When a state failure giving rise
to a new FIP obligation occurs, EPA will address that obligation in a
separate FIP NPRM. For example, FIPs addressing state failures to
satisfy the VOC RACT catch-up requirement of the new Amendments may
become due late in 1994 and in 1995. In the absence of approvable state
measures correcting for these deficiencies, EPA will issue separate
FIPs to rectify them.
Given EPA's position as to the effect of the new Amendments, one
might argue that the logical extension is that since the state has not
yet failed to adopt an attainment demonstration under new section
182(c)(2)(A), no attainment demonstration is due. But since the Ninth
Circuit conclusively decided that the obligation to promulgate an
attainment demonstration survived, EPA must prepare one under the new
Act.
For policy as well as legal reasons, this resolution makes sense,
and it avoids extreme results. On the one hand, it would be unhelpful
for EPA to design the FIP to meet the old law requirements that have
since been repealed. And for EPA to impose in 1995 a regulatory regime
that became extinct in 1990 would surely not serve Congressional intent
or constitute sound regulatory policy. On the other hand, it would
equally disserve Congressional intent to compel these FIPs, which are
not based on state failures to meet any requirements of the new Act, to
meet all those requirements and to cure failures that were not part of
the obligation that the Court orders preserved.
In the Coalition case, the Ninth Circuit Court itself seemed to
imply that EPA's FIP need not address new requirements when it noted
that the state could ``propose these new measures as revisions to the
FIP under the timetables provided in the 1990 Amendments just as the
state would be required to do if a FIP had been in effect when those
Amendments were adopted''. Coalition for Clean Air, 971 F.2d at 226.
Indeed, if the FIP were to try to meet all the requirements of the
new Act, it would have to anticipate and cure new failures before they
had arisen under the new Act, and before the State has had an
opportunity to develop and submit plans to comply with the new Act.
This would violate the express congressional determination that ``air
pollution prevention'' and ``air pollution control at its source is the
primary responsibility of States and local governments.'' Section
101(a)(3).
Thus, EPA has concluded that the FIPs must cure the original
failure to demonstrate attainment. But in these FIPs the Agency need
not assume additional obligations to meet new requirements as to which
no state delinquency has yet been established under the new Act, or as
to which EPA's FIP obligation has not yet matured.
b. The FIPs Must Demonstrate Attainment--(1) What Attainment
Deadline Governs?
(a) Background. The Ninth Circuit last addressed the issue of what
attainment deadline applied to a pre-Amendment FIP obligation in
Delaney v. EPA, 898 F.2d 687 (9th Cir. 1990). But at that time the
attainment deadline in the then extant Clean Air Act--December 31,
1987--had passed, and Congress had not yet extended it.
In a March 1990 opinion, prior to the passage of the Clean Air Act
Amendments, the Ninth Circuit vacated EPA's approval of two Arizona
carbon monoxide SIPs, and ordered EPA to promulgate FIPs consistent
with that court's opinion. Interpreting EPA's statutory requirement to
develop a FIP in light of the elapsed statutory attainment date of
December 31, 1987, the Court concluded that ``the national ambient air
quality standards must be attained as soon as possible with every
available control measure * * *.'' 898 F.2d at 691. The Court relied
upon EPA guidance, subsequently revoked, for the part of its
formulation requiring ``all possible measures'' or ``every available
measure.'' 55 FR 36505 (September 5, 1990).
The Court, in formulating this attainment test, made plain that,
while it understood that a Congressional re-determination of the
attainment deadlines was in the works, the Court was constrained until
Congress acted. Thus, at the time the Delaney Court and EPA last
struggled to define an appropriate FIP attainment deadline, they
confronted not only a lapsed attainment deadline, but Congressional
silence as to an appropriate replacement.
Quoting from its opinion in Abramowitz v. EPA, 832 F.2d 1071, 1079
(9th Cir. 1987), the Delaney Court stated: ``We are informed by counsel
for both sides of their expectation that Congress will extend the
deadline once again in the near future, but we must apply the law as it
now stands, not as it may become. * * * Until the Clean Air Act is
further considered * * * the Agency must `give effect to the
unambiguously expressed intent of Congress.' We, and the EPA, are bound
by the statutory scheme until Congress alters that scheme.'' 898 F.2d
at 691.
(b) Current law. Now, however, Congress has indeed ``alter[ed] that
scheme'', the new law applies, and EPA, in formulating its FIPs, has
the benefit of Congressional determination of appropriate attainment
dates. With the passage of the Clean Air Act Amendments, Congress has
made specific attainment deadline determinations with respect to each
type of area. As with other aspects of the new law, EPA believes that
the attainment dates of the new law apply. Indeed, even if it were not
clear that the new attainment dates apply, it is now impossible to
design FIPs to meet the 1987 attainment date that governed the original
state plans, and there is a clear expression of Congressional intent as
to substitute attainment deadlines.
As noted above, under the new Act, the ozone attainment date must
be ``as expeditiously as practicable but not later than'' November 15,
1999 for Sacramento; November 15, 2005 for Ventura; and November 15,
2010 for the South Coast. Section 181(a). The carbon monoxide
attainment date for the South Coast must be ``as expeditiously as
practicable but not later than'' December 31, 2000.
(2) These FIPs need not address new requirements other than the
requirement to demonstrate attainment. As shown above, EPA's obligation
to design a FIP arose from state failures to demonstrate attainment
under the old Clean Air Act. The Amendments imposed for the first time
additional, different requirements that were not in effect when EPA
disapproved the state plans giving rise to its FIP obligation, and
which took effect after EPA's FIP obligation matured. Thus California
was given no opportunity to meet these requirements in its previous
SIPs, and any failure to meet these requirements would be a new
delinquency that was not the subject of EPA's original FIP obligation.
EPA therefore has concluded that the FIPs need not address these
requirements unless and until California has failed to satisfy them and
the time for EPA to promulgate a replacement FIP under the new Act has
elapsed.
For example, the Amendments contain new and highly specific targets
for Reasonable Further Progress. Section 182(b)(l) in the Amendments
requires plans under the Act to provide for VOC emissions reductions of
at least 15 percent by 1996, and section 182(c)(2)(B) requires an
additional 9 percent emissions reduction every three years after 1996.
Each of these sections contains detailed instructions for calculating
the creditability of those reductions. Sections 182(b)(1) and
182(c)(2).
While EPA does not believe that these progress requirements are
applicable to its FIP obligation, EPA has concluded that it is wise
policy to achieve some degree of progress during the time preceding the
attainment dates. As a result, the FIPs do establish incremental
reduction targets for the purpose of ensuring attainment by the
applicable attainment date.
At this time, the State of California has become delinquent in
meeting a few requirements in the new Act, thereby giving rise to new
EPA FIPs obligations under the new Act's deadlines. FIPs to address
these deficiencies, which primarily involve submissions of RACT catch-
ups and emission statements, are not yet due. EPA will address these
FIPs in separate rulemakings as they become due.
c. FIPs may use new provisions providing additional flexibility.
Since EPA has concluded that the new law applies to its FIP obligation,
EPA may avail itself of new provisions of the law that furnish
additional flexibility in designing implementation plans.
The Ninth Circuit in its opinion recognized that EPA could take
advantage of increased flexibility in the new Act. For example, the
Court noted that EPA now has authority under new section 182(e)(5) to
approve some parts of the South Coast ozone SIP that it had disapproved
in 1988. Coalition for Clean Air, 971 F. 2d at 226. Similarly, as
explained below, EPA believes it may invoke section 182(e)(5) in
designing its FIP to obtain greater flexibility to anticipate new
control techniques or the improvement of existing techniques. To the
extent that EPA invokes such discretionary provisions of the new Act,
it will satisfy any new prerequisites prescribed in those sections. For
example, as explained below, in order for EPA's FIP to obtain the
benefit of the latitude granted by section 182(e)(5) to rely on
measures anticipating improvements in technology, the FIP must address
progress requirements of that section which otherwise would have been
inapplicable.
As described in more detail below, EPA in its FIPs is also applying
the new law's classifications for each ozone nonattainment area, and,
for Sacramento, the provision for ``bumping'' up an area to a new
classification. As with section 182(e)(5), where EPA relies on a new
provision for added flexibility, it intends to fulfill any conditions
imposed on the exercise of that authority.
EPA recognizes that its FIPs must weave a complicated path between
the old and new laws, and that its FIP obligation is necessarily a
hybrid of old and new. This complexity is unavoidable, however, because
of the anomalous nature of the task EPA faces: EPA must cure a failure
under an old Act, since repealed, but administer the cure under new
law.
d. Maintenance demonstration for the south coast. EPA's FIP
obligations for the South Coast, Sacramento, and Ventura arose from
disapprovals of their SIPs solely on the ground of their failure to
demonstrate attainment by 1987 or any fixed near-term date. See 53 FR
1280-1281 (January 22, 1988) (South Coast); 53 FR 39087-39088 (October
5, 1988) (Ventura); 53 FR 48535-48536 (Dec. 1, 1988) (Sacramento). The
settlement agreements for Ventura and Sacramento describe EPA's FIP
obligation solely in terms of promulgating a plan for attainment. The
South Coast settlement agreement refers to a plan for attainment and
maintenance. Thus, with respect to the South Coast, EPA must determine
what requirements apply to maintenance.
As noted above, EPA is applying the new law to its FIP obligation.
The 1990 Amendments changed the law with respect to maintenance
demonstrations. Under the pre-Amendment Clean Air Act, sections
172(a)(1) and 110(a)(2)(b) required plans to include measures to
``insure attainment and maintenance''. (emphasis added) But the 1990
Amendments revised both the general planning and ozone and CO specific
planning provisions to delete the requirement for a maintenance
demonstration to be submitted simultaneously with an attainment
demonstration.
The Amendments revised section 110(a)(2) to delete any reference to
a maintenance demonstration. When we look to Part D for requirements
applicable to areas classified ``Serious'' and above for ozone, and
``Moderate'' (with a design value greater than 12.7ppm) and above for
CO, we find that section 172(c)(1), the closest analog to old section
172(a)(1), also drops any mention of planning for maintenance. Sections
182(c)(2)(A) and 187(a)(7) of the new Amendments, which set forth the
specific requirements for ozone and CO nonattainment areas,
respectively, to provide for attainment, similarly makes no mention of
any maintenance requirement.\21\
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\21\Section 110(a)(1) of both the pre-amended and amended Acts
requires areas to provide for maintenance (as well as implementation
and enforcement) after EPA issues a new or revised NAAQS. But this
is not applicable here, since that obligation is past for ozone and
CO, and the failure that gave rise to the FIP obligation here was
grounded in maintenance provisions of section 172(a) that were
repealed in 1990.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rather, the requirement for nonattainment areas to provide for
maintenance in the amended Act is now found in new section
107(d)(3)(E)(iv) and section 175A. These sections provide that
maintenance plans must be submitted when an area requests redesignation
to attainment. The combination of the amendments to section 172 and the
addition of these new maintenance plan provisions indicates that the
requirement for a maintenance plan arises only much later, when it must
accompany a request for redesignation.
This reflects a Congressional determination to focus on attainment,
and to compel maintenance plans only when an area has progressed to the
point when it has already attained and is ready to demonstrate
attainment. This legal regime and policy has thus superseded any
obligation arising out of old section 172(a).
EPA's existing regulation, promulgated under the aforementioned
pre-Amendment maintenance provisions, requires SIPs to provide for
maintenance for 20 years, or for 10 years upon the making of an
appropriate finding. Section 193 of the 1990 Amendments, the ``General
Savings Clause'', provides in pertinent part that each regulation shall
remain in effect except to the extent ``otherwise provided under this
Act, or inconsistent with any provision in effect. * * *''
As demonstrated above, the changes to section 172 and the new
requirements of section 175A and related provisions deleted from the
Act any requirement to provide for maintenance prior to a request for
redesignation. The new Act thus establishes a whole new regime for
demonstrating attainment and maintenance, the timing and requirements
of which are inconsistent with the old law. Under the Amendments,
attainment plans no longer must provide ``up front'' a plan for
maintenance. And when the Act does require submission of maintenance
plans (at the time of a redesignation request), such plan need
demonstrate maintenance for only ten years instead of twenty.
Although EPA has not yet accomplished the formal rescission of its
pre-1990 regulations on maintenance, we consider the rules nullified by
operation of Section 193, and therefore no longer applicable. EPA will
propose in separate rulemaking to rescind these national regulations,
which appear at 40 CFR part 51 subpart D--Maintenance of National
Standards. EPA may or may not promulgate a replacement for the
regulations.
2. Other Issues Relating to EPA's Authority in Issuing a FIP
a. Comprehensive FIP authorities under the clean air act. When
forced by a state planning delinquency to promulgate a FIP, EPA has
wide-ranging authority under section 110(c) to fill the gaps left by
the state failure. EPA's authority to prescribe FIP measures is of
three types. First, EPA may promulgate any measure which it is
expressly permitted to issue under any circumstances pursuant to pre-
existing independent statutory authority--for example, explicit
provisions of Title II. That is, EPA may promulgate any measure which
it has authority to issue in a non-FIP context, without reliance on
section 110(c). Second, EPA may invoke Section 110(c)'s general FIP
authority, and act to cure a planning inadequacy in any way not clearly
prohibited by statute. Third, under section 110(c), the Courts have
held that EPA may exercise all authority that the State may exercise
under the Act.
The second type of authority, EPA's general authority under section
110(c), is essentially remedial, and EPA has broad power under that
section to cure a defective state plan. Thus, in promulgating a FIP,
EPA may exercise its own, independent regulatory authority under the
Act in any way not clearly prohibited by an explicit provision of the
Act. When EPA promulgates a FIP, courts have not required explicit
authority for specific measures: ``We are inclined to construe
Congress' broad grant of power to the EPA as including all enforcement
devices reasonably necessary to the achievement and maintenance of the
goals established by the legislation.'' South Terminal Corp. v. EPA,
504 F.2d 646, 669. (1st Cir. 1974). See also City of Santa Rosa v. EPA,
534 F.2d 150, 153-154 (9th Cir. 1976) (upholding the Administrator's
authority to promulgate a FIP imposing gas-rationing in Los Angeles on
a massive scale). ``The authority to regulate pollution carries with it
the power to do so in a manner reasonably calculated to reach that
end.'' Id. at 155.
In addition, when a State's failure to discharge the primary
responsibility to protect its air quality compels EPA to assume this
task, the powers of the defaulting State accrue to EPA. As the Ninth
Circuit recently held, when EPA acts in place of the State pursuant to
a FIP under section 110(c), EPA ```stands in the shoes of the
defaulting State, and all of the rights and duties that would otherwise
fall to the State accrue instead to EPA.''' Central Arizona Water
Conservation District v. EPA, 990 F.2d 1531, at 1541 9th Cir. 1993).
The First Circuit, in an early FIP case, agreed:
The Administrator must promulgate promptly regulations setting
forth `an implementation plan for a State should the State itself
fail to propose a satisfactory one.' The statutory scheme would be
unworkable were it read as giving to EPA when promulgating an
implementation plan for a State, less than those necessary measures
allowed by Congress to a State to accomplish federal clean air
goals. We do not adopt any such crippling interpretation.
South Terminal Corp. v. EPA, supra at 668.
b. EPA authority to charge fees. State Implementation Plans for
nonattainment areas are clearly authorized to include emission fees as
economic incentives to reduce pollutants. Sections 110(a)(2)(A)
(relating to SIPs generally) and 172(c)(6) broadly authorize SIPs to
meet the Act's requirements through any ``control measures, means, or
techniques * * * necessary or appropriate'', including ``economic
incentives such as fees * * *''
EPA interprets the FIP provisions to authorize fees as well, by
virtue of both the case law that grants FIPs much the same scope as
SIPs, and by the provisions of section 302(y), which defines a FIP to
include--
Enforceable emission limitations or other control measures,
means or techniques (including economic incentives, such as
marketable permits or auctions of emissions allowances).
EPA interprets this phrase, including the parenthetical reference to
economic incentives, as providing authority to impose a broad range of
economic incentives, including fees, even if not specifically listed in
the provision. Thus, EPA takes the position that a FIP includes
authority to impose fees concerning ozone generating emissions or other
activities.
c. Restrictions on EPA's authority regarding fees. As a legal
matter, EPA's authority under section 110(c) and 302(y) to impose fees
is limited only to the extent that the fees must be enforceable, and
must provide an incentive that may result in a reduction in ozone
generating emissions or other activities. As a practical matter,
because only quantifiable emissions reductions may be credited in the
attainment demonstration, EPA may limit the types or amounts of fees
imposed to those that assure quantifiable emissions reductions.
The Clean Air Act includes no provision directing that FIP fees
collected by EPA remain at EPA's disposal; as a result, in general, EPA
must deposit any FIP fees it collects in the Treasury, under 31 U.S.C.
3302(b) (the Miscellaneous Receipts Act). The prohibition against
retaining fees applies as well against directing how those fees are
spent. For example, EPA could (by itself or through a contractor,
described below) establish an I/M program and charge fees for
conducting the inspection, but the Miscellaneous Receipts Act precludes
EPA from rebating those fees to car owners who failed the inspection
and elected to scrap their vehicles.
Under certain circumstances, fees relating to services or products
provided by a contractor may be retained by that contractor to defray
its costs. See 61 Comp. Gen. 285 (1982) (contractor may charge and
retain fees to offset costs of providing public microfilm copies of
Federal Election Commission reports).
d. Land use. Section 131 of the Act states: ``Nothing in this Act
constitutes an infringement on the existing authority of counties and
cities to plan or control land use, and nothing in this Act provides or
transfers authority over such land use.'' This language merely
preserves in general terms the existing authority of counties and
cities to plan or control land use. However, this language could be
interpreted as a constraint on EPA's authority under section 110(c).
This could happen if, for example, the FIP proposes to regulate certain
air emissions, which indirectly has the effect of narrowing or
restricting a district's or locality's zoning or land use planning
choices. However, any FIP actions taken by EPA would be for the purpose
of regulating air emissions, not local land use or zoning requirements
that are unrelated to air quality. As such, they would not infringe on
the authority of local governments to control land use; rather they, at
best, would restrain the ability of certain entities to engage in
activities that cause certain air quality problems. This interpretation
is confirmed by the House Conference Committee Report which states:
Depending on the nature of the air pollution problem in a State
and the control options available to the State, the measures
required [to attain the NAAQS] may or may not include measures
involving land use requirements. New section [131] clarifies that if
land use requirements are necessary to meet the requirements of the
Clean Air Act, nothing in the Act should be construed to affect
State laws regarding the appropriate entities to adopt and implement
such land use requirements * * * [nor to authorize] air pollution
control agencies to override individual project-specific land use
decisions made by a city or county.
See H.R. Re. No. 490, 101st Cong., 2d Sess. 401 (1990) (analyzing
section 706 of H.R. 3030, which added section 131 [mistakenly
identified as section 130]).
e. Parking management. FIP fees imposed with respect to parking
management are subject to additional limitations under section
110(c)(2)(B) and (D)--such a fee is not permissible if it constitutes a
``parking surcharge''. A parking surcharge is defined to include--
Any tax, surcharge, fee, or other charge on parking spaces, or
any other area used for the temporary storage of motor vehicles.
This provision effectively eliminates a variety of parking
management fees, such as surcharges designed to increase parking costs.
Several such measures were included in the 1973 FIP setting forth
transportation control plans for several areas in California, 38 FR
31232, 31236-31237, 31247-31248 (Nov. 12, 1973), but the parking
measures were withdrawn when a provision to preclude them was included
in the Energy Emergency Act of 1973, 39 FR 1848 (Jan. 15, 1974).
(Although the Energy Emergency Act of 1973 ultimately was not enacted,
110(c)(2) was enacted as part of the Energy Supply and Environmental
Coordination Act, June 22, 1974, Pub.L. 93-310, S 4, 88 Stat. 256.)
f. Authority to order the state to implement specific measures
requiring the state to legislate or expend money. EPA's authority to
promulgate measures in a FIP which require the State to enact
legislation or expend state funds may be somewhat limited under prior
case law. In general, EPA may require the State to implement FIP
measures, including requirements for legislation and expenditure of
funds, if the measures affect the pollution-creating activities of the
State. However, in Brown v. EPA, 521 F.2d 827 (9th Cir. 1975), vacated
on other grounds, 431 U.S. 99 (1977) (Brown I''), the court held that
Section 113 of the Clean Air Act did not provide statutory authority
for EPA to bring an enforcement action against the state (or other
municipal authority) for failing to implement a motor vehicle
inspection and maintenance program. The court reasoned that the Act
authorized federal enforcement if the State did not implement
regulations to control its own pollution creating activities, ``but not
against a state that chooses not to govern polluters as the
Administrator directs.'' Id. at 832. In a subsequent decision, the
court rejected EPA's argument that ownership of the roads and highways
made the State responsible for the pollution created from their use.
Brown v. EPA, 566 F.2d 665 (9th Cir. 1977), vacated on other grounds,
431 U.S. 99 (1977).
The same court, however, held in City of Santa Rosa v. EPA, 534
F.2d 150 (9th Cir. 1976), that the EPA may require gas rationing under
its FIP authority. The court found that the Administrator of EPA has
authority to limit gas delivery to retail outlets and may require the
citizens of the State to curtail their gas usage. The FIP measure in
City of Santa Rosa did not require the State to implement the gas
rationing scheme, and the court distinguished Brown because the
petitioners had challenged the effect of gas rationing, not EPA's
authority to order rationing. Id. at 155.
The Brown holding was similarly distinguished and limited by the
Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals in United States v. Ohio Department of
Highway Safety, 635 F.2d 1195 (6th Cir. 1980). The court upheld EPA's
enforcement against the State under Section 113 of the Act for
registering motor vehicles which did not pass an inspection and
maintenance program promulgated by EPA. The court held that the State
was interfering with EPA's implementation of a measure that had been
promulgated under its federal authority. See also Pennsylvania v. EPA,
500 F.2d 246 (3d Cir. 1974).
The court in Brown did not reach constitutional issues raised under
the commerce clause. It is unclear, but unlikely, that requiring the
State to implement FIP measures which mandate legislation and
expenditure of funds would be struck down under the commerce clause.
See Garcia v. San Antonio Metropolitan Transit Authority, 469 U.S. 528
(1985) (holding that the federal government may require states to pay
minimum wages and overtime pursuant to the Fair Labor Standards Act).
However, even assuming that the commerce clause poses no such obstacle,
nothing in the enactment of the 1990 Amendments casts doubt on the
continued vitality of the Brown holdings with respect to the statutory
limits on EPA's FIP authority. Thus, the constraints discussed above
still apply. In short, EPA may require the state to legislate or expend
funds that affect the state's own pollution creating activities.
Although EPA may not require the state to legislate or spend money to
govern the pollution creating activities of others, EPA may promulgate
and implement such measures directly in a FIP and the State may not
interfere with EPA's enforcement of those measures.
B. Overview of Components of Each FIP
1. FIP Control Strategy
a. Introduction. This NPRM addresses EPA's FIP obligations to
prepare attainment demonstrations for ozone in Sacramento and Ventura,
and for both ozone and carbon monoxide in the South Coast. EPA's task
requires the Agency to complete four fundamental air quality planning
activities: (1) Preparation of information on current and projected
emissions of each precursor pollutant; (2) modeling assessment of the
levels of these pollutants that must be reached for each area to attain
the relevant NAAQS; (3) identification of control options sufficient to
achieve the necessary reductions in emissions; and (4) drafting of
federally enforceable regulations adequate to secure the reductions.
In this section of the NPRM, EPA summarizes information used in
establishing the technical foundations of the attainment demonstration:
the sources of data on existing and future emissions, EPA adjustments
to that data, and modeling analyses used to simulate the ambient
consequences of emissions changes and to set the overall reduction
targets for each precursor pollutant.
The bulk of this section, however, presents the complete set of
federal regulations for each area. The regulations themselves appear at
the end of the NPRM, and they are further explained, in many cases, by
technical support documents which are available as part of the docket
for this NPRM.
For each set of regulations, EPA has attempted to: (1) Specify
clearly which sources are subject to the rule's requirements, and which
are exempt; (2) describe in simple terms the most important source
obligations, whether procedural or emissions related; (3) identify
possible compliance options and estimated costs per unit of pollution
reduced; and (4) characterize the emissions reduction benefits
associated with the rule in each applicable FIP area.
Because many of the FIP rules are unprecedented in their regulatory
targets or approach, EPA has reserved portions of the rules for later
development, and seeks full input from affected sources on the best
ways to fill in these implementation details before the compliance
deadlines of each rule approach.
In other cases, EPA must complete ongoing technical projects,
including further emissions sampling and analysis, to finalize
important rule implementation elements, such as protocols for use in
the stationary and area source cap rules. Ideally, EPA would undertake
these projects in coordination with affected industry and State and
local air pollution control agencies in the FIP areas. These additions
to the FIP rules may be proposed as actual regulations or they may be
issued as supplementary guidance materials that expand on practical
compliance issues.
EPA encourages readers to provide information and regulatory
suggestions to allow EPA to improve the proposed rules' clarity and
compliance certainty, provide for least-cost compliance approaches, and
tailor the rules more precisely to fit local circumstances and foster
program transfer to the State or local level.
In many cases, affected sources are already subject to existing
State and local emission reduction requirements, and the responsible
State and local agencies may be developing further regulatory
initiatives, as part of their ongoing SIP efforts. EPA has attempted to
craft FIP rules which, to the extent possible, match the format of
State or local regulations and minimize conflict between the federal
regulatory regime and current or proposed State and local requirements.
To reduce compliance costs and duplication of effort by sources and the
enforcing agencies, EPA will consider future FIP rule amendments for
the purpose of harmonizing federal and State controls and eliminating
any jeopardy of the regulated community for inadvertent violations of
similar but not identical federal and State rules.
b. Enforcement. As described in section III.A.2.a of this NPRM, the
FIP requirements contained in sections 52.2950-52.3002 are proposed
pursuant to section 110(c) and other sections of the Clean Air Act. If
finalized, these requirements will be subject to Federal enforcement
under section 113(a)(3) of the Act. Pursuant to section 113(a)(3), EPA
may pursue the following actions against any person who violates a
requirement of the final FIP rules:
(1) Administrative penalty order. EPA may issue an administrative
order assessing a civil administrative penalty of up to $25,000 per day
per violation.
(2) Compliance order. EPA may issue an order to comply with any
requirement of the FIP.
(3) Civil action. EPA may commence a civil action for permanent or
temporary injunction and/or assess a civil penalty of up to $25,000 per
day per violation.
(4) Criminal action. EPA may request that the Attorney General
commence a criminal action against any person who knowingly violates
any requirement of the FIP.
Owners and operators of sources subject to the FIP rules should be
aware that compliance with the FIP requirements does not generally
relieve them of the obligation to comply with other applicable federal
requirements or with their obligations under State law and regulations,
or local air pollution control rules.
c. Application of FIP Requirements to OCS Sources. Section 328 of
the 1990 CAA Amendments required EPA to establish requirements to
control air pollution from Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) sources to
attain and maintain federal and state ambient air quality standards and
to comply with part C of title I of the CAA. EPA promulgated the new
OCS air regulations at 40 CFR part 55 (``Part 55'') on September 4,
1992 (57 FR 40792).
As required by section 328 of the Act, OCS sources located within
25 miles of states' seaward boundaries,\22\ must meet requirements that
are the same as the requirements that would be applicable if the OCS
source were located in the corresponding onshore area (``COA'').\23\
These include, but are not limited to, all applicable federal, state,
and local requirements for control technology, permitting, monitoring,
reporting, compliance and fees. New OCS sources must comply with the
requirements of Part 55 immediately and existing sources must comply by
September 4, 1994.
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\22\The state seaward boundary of California extends three miles
from the coastline.
\23\Part 55 also establishes federal requirements for sources
located beyond 25 miles from state seaward boundaries. However,
there currently are no OCS sources located, or proposed to be, in
this outer regime.
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Both VCAPCD and SCAQMD are designated as the COA for several OCS
facilities located within 25 miles of the State seaward boundary. These
OCS sources will be required to meet all the applicable requirements of
the FIP when the FIP requirements are incorporated into part 55. The
OCS rule establishes a ``consistency update'' procedure at 40 CFR 55.12
to amend part 55 to include new federal, state, and local regulations
when they are adopted.
The OCS rule also establishes procedures for EPA to delegate
implementation and enforcement of the requirements of part 55 to state
and local agencies. Thus, any FIP requirements applicable to the
affected OCS sources can be implemented by VCAPCD and SCAQMD when they
are delegated authority for part 55. The reader is referred to the
preamble of the OCS regulation for further background and information
on part 55.
d. Application of FIP Requirements to Sources Located in Indian
Country. As described below, the CAA empowers EPA to apply the FIP
requirements to affected air pollution sources in Indian country.\24\
Thus, EPA is also proposing to apply the FIP requirements to all
affected air pollution sources located on Tribal lands. This means that
the proposed FIP rules will apply with equal force to State and Tribal
lands.
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\24\Indian country includes: (a) All land within the limits of
any Indian reservation under the jurisdiction of the United States
Government, notwithstanding the issuance of any patent, and,
including rights-of-way running through the reservation, (b) all
dependent Indian communities within the borders of the United States
whether within the original or subsequently acquired territory
thereof, and whether within or without the limits of a state, and
(c) all Indian allotments, the Indian titles to which have not been
extinguished, including rights-of-way running through the same. 18
U.S.C. section 1151.
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Congress has authorized EPA to make Indian Tribes partners in Clean
Air Act implementation in the same manner as States. See section
301(d)(2) of the Act. As a prerequisite, EPA must identify provisions
of the CAA for which it is appropriate to treat Tribes in the same
manner as States. EPA may provide by regulation other means by which it
will directly administer any other provisions of the CAA not
identified, to achieve the appropriate purpose. See section 301(d)(4).
The overarching purpose of the Clean Air Act is, among other
things, ``to protect and enhance the quality of the Nation's air
resources so as to promote the public health and welfare and the
productive capacity of its population.'' See section 101(b)(1) of the
CAA (emphasis added). The NAAQS are one of the fundamental CAA
benchmarks by which public health and welfare protection is measured.
EPA has not yet issued rules under section 301(d)(2) authorizing
Tribes to submit NAAQS-related CAA programs for EPA approval in the
same manner as States. Sections 110(c)(1) and 301(d)(4) of the Act
nevertheless evince Congressional intent to authorize EPA to directly
protect public health and welfare where States or Tribes fail to submit
such CAA programs or lack authority to do so. Federal implementation on
Indian lands is especially appropriate in these particular exigencies
where federal action will prevent voids in public health and welfare
protection. See Phillips Petroleum Co. v. EPA, 803 F.2d 545, 555-56
(10th Cir. 1986) (affirming EPA's authority to directly implement Safe
Drinking Water Act Underground Injection Control program on Indian
lands in Oklahoma where concluding otherwise would contradict the
meaning and purpose of the Act by creating ``a vacuum of authority over
underground injections on Indian lands, leaving vast areas of the
nation devoid of protection from groundwater contamination).
It is not necessary for EPA to determine to what extent at the
local level the State or certain Indian Tribes would have authority
over specific geographic areas within the scope of the FIPs. The State
has failed to make required SIP submittals to protect the NAAQS and any
affected Tribes lack authority to make such submittals at this time. In
these circumstances the CAA empowers EPA to protect air quality
throughout the affected areas. Id. at 553 (``the underground drinking
water provisions of the SDWA apply throughout the country, border to
border, ocean to ocean'').
2. Common Elements
a. Mobile source regulations. The mobile source control measures
which are discussed in section III.D. of this NPRM range in scope from
national application to restricted application in one or more of the
three FIP areas depending on the category. Technology improvements are
generally required in phases, with new national emission standards
applicable in the early years, and California, or FIP area requirements
scheduled for implementation later. In some cases, the mobile source
measures are applied only locally because they are adopted to fill a
lack in a particular area's plan, such as enhanced I/M or the employee
commute options program. Local strategies are also proposed to deal
with the emissions from transportation and military facilities that
contain more than one type of mobile emission source. Following is a
brief classification of the measures according to the breadth of their
application:
(1) Nationwide. New emission standards have recently been proposed
or are shortly scheduled for proposal for several mobile source
emission categories. Both on-highway and off-road heavy duty engines
will meet tighter NOX standards, as will locomotives. Lawn and
garden, recreational marine, and other small nonroad equipment are the
subject of new exhaust and evaporative hydrocarbon standards.
(2) Statewide. In California, it is also possible to adopt
standards more stringent than those applied at the national level, if
it is necessary to do so for attainment purposes. The market for
vehicles and equipment in California is large enough to encourage
manufacturers to supply a full range of product in the state, even
though it may be different than similar product in the rest of the
country. Today's NPRM proposes special standards for medium duty
vehicles, heavy duty highway engines, and onroad and off-road
motorcycles sold and used in California and gives notice that such
standards may become necessary for lawn and garden equipment and other
small engines.
(3) FIP areas. In the nonroad heavy duty engine category, the FIP
proposal contains special NOX and evaporative HC requirements for
engines used in the FIP areas. The standards represent a significant
challenge for heavy duty engine manufacturers and are not considered to
be necessary for attainment in other areas of the United States.
Engines used in highway applications are regulated in the FIP at the
statewide level, but the approach to the special NOX and
evaporative HC standards for the nonroad engines will involve an engine
registration and sticker enforcement system. For that reason, the
standards are applied to engines actually used in each individual FIP
area, and not to all engines sold in California.
In several categories, the FIP proposes emission bubbles to allow
facilities or entities with many mobile sources as much flexibility as
possible to find reductions across different mobile emission sources.
These bubbles are proposed for commercial airlines, marine vessels,
railroads (South Coast only), and military installations in the FIP
areas. In some cases, fees are proposed to encourage the purchase and
use of the cleanest engines, to encourage activity reductions, or to
promote the use of lower emitting operational procedures. These fees
would apply to heavy-duty nonroad fleets, recreational marine engines,
commercial and general aviation, and ships in the FIP areas only.
Finally, the FIP proposes two light duty vehicle measures in only
the FIP areas of California, namely motor vehicle inspection and
maintenance (I/M), and parking cash out (a transportation control
measure).
b. Stationary and area source regulations. As discussed in section
III.C of this NPRM, the proposed stationary source control package
includes five general strategies:
Regulations for specific sources;
Regulations for specific source categories in the FIP
areas;
Regulations imposed statewide;
Cap regulations; and
New technology measures for the South Coast pursuant to
section 182(e)(5) of the Act.
Regulations for specific sources are, by definition, particular to
individual sources and thus not common to the three FIP areas. In fact,
all the source-specific regulations proposed in this NPRM apply only in
the Sacramento area. Similarly, new technology measures proposed for
the South Coast apply only in the South Coast as specified in section
182(e)(5) of the Act. Some or all regulations from the other three
categories, however, are proposed for implementation in all three FIP
areas. These are summarized briefly below.
(1) Regulations for specific source categories. Sections III.C.3.b-
p of this NPRM describe eighteen rules proposed for specific source
categories in one or more FIP areas. Categories were selected for
regulation generally because a State or local agency had already
published a regulation that could be adapted for implementation in the
FIP, or a previously unregulated category contributed substantial VOC
or NOX emissions. Because the FIP areas have different emission
inventories and local rules, the projected impact of new federal rules
varies from area to area. Therefore, EPA is proposing to implement
these FIP rules only in the areas where they may have a significant
impact. As a result, only a few of the rules are common to all three
FIP areas.
(2) Regulations imposed statewide. As discussed in section III.C.4,
EPA is proposing several stationary source rules for implementation
statewide: Architectural coating, pesticides, aerosol paints and other
consumer products. EPA believes that statewide implementation of these
rules is necessary to assure compliance in the FIP areas.
(3) Cap regulations. As discussed in section III.C.5, EPA is
proposing cap regulations for both VOC and NOX in this NPRM. These
rules cap emissions at 1989-1990 levels and require sources to reduce
emissions below this level by a fixed annual percent, beginning in the
year 2001.\25\ The VOC regulations are common to all three areas. The
NOX cap rules apply only to Ventura, since stationary sources
contribute only a small part of the NOX inventory in Sacramento
and NOX sources in the South Coast are now controlled under the
recently adopted SCAQMD NOX RECLAIM rules.
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\25\For Sacramento's alternative 1999 attainment demonstration,
the cap program will require full reductions by 1990.
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3. Sacramento Ozone
a. Reduction requirements for 1999 and 2005. Anthropogenic
emissions in the Sacramento area in 1990 totaled approximately 236 tons
per day of VOC and 185 tons per day of NOX. There are many
existing State and local regulatory requirements in the Sacramento
area. These requirements include numerous State and local stationary
source regulations and the existing CARB standards on new engines and
equipment which will deliver increasing reductions each year as a
result of replacement of old engines and equipment with newer cleaner
engines and equipment. Sections II.B.2., II.B.5., and III.H. of today's
NPRM discuss the adopted CARB and local districts' rules and EPA's
assignment of credit to the rules as part of the FIP/SIP attainment
demonstration.
Unfortunately, projected emissions reductions from the State and
local requirements must compete with projected growth in the area's
population, automobile traffic and industrial activity.
As a result, without further SIP or FIP measures, the total amount
of emissions in the Sacramento area is not expected to change
significantly by 1999 or 2005.
CARB and EPA have performed extensive meteorologic analysis and
urban airshed modeling (UAM) of ozone formation for the Sacramento
area. This modeling suggests that several combinations of VOC and
NOX reduction can achieve attainment of the ozone standard. As
discussed in Section III.H.3.a., EPA is using reduction targets of 40
percent VOC and 30 percent NOX from 1990 baseyear emission levels
for the Sacramento area FIP attainment demonstration. In order to
achieve the 40:30 target, SIP and FIP controls must reduce the future
inventories for 1999 and 2005 to approximately 140 tons per day of VOC
and 130 tons per day of NOX. (These targets are often referred to
as ``carrying capacities.'')
b. SIP rules. Irrespective of EPA's FIP obligation, California and
the Sacramento nonattainment area are required to submit an ozone
attainment SIP in November 1994. As part of this and previous SIP
efforts, CARB and the local air agencies in the Sacramento area are
continually adopting and modifying regulations to reduce NOX and
VOC emissions. EPA is not proposing to act on any SIP improvements as
part of this NPRM, but will do so on a case-by-case basis in separate
actions.
For purposes of the attainment demonstration in this NPRM, EPA is
not generally assigning emission reduction credit for those measures
that are not fully adopted in enforceable form. EPA urges the
responsible State and local agencies to complete rule development and
submit rules for SIP approval as soon as they are fully adopted. This
will allow EPA to approve the regulations and substitute the locally
developed measures for FIP rules.
c. FIP rules for 1999 and 2005. Sacramento is classified as a
``Serious'' ozone nonattainment area and is, therefore, initially
required by the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 to demonstrate
attainment by 1999. There are several reasons why a 1999 attainment
target for a FIP, however, would result in an unreasonable plan with
undesirable impacts on the local economy. The following discussion
outlines these reasons and explains EPA's proposed solution (i.e.,
bumping up the classification to ``Severe'' and extending the
attainment deadline). EPA is soliciting comment on whether its solution
is appropriate or whether the advantages of attainment by an earlier
date justify the imposition of the kinds of measures which would be
necessary.
The FIP rules proposed for implementation in the Sacramento area
for the 1999 and 2005 attainment options are discussed in sections
III.B.2 and III.B.3. Mobile source measures which yield emission
reductions for both the 1999 and 2005 options include an enhanced I/M
program, credit for national standards for nonroad vehicles and
engines, offroad recreational vehicle standards, motorcycle standards,
and a parking cash out requirement. Other mobile source measures needed
for attainment, discussed above and below, depend on the attainment
year, 1999 or 2005. For 1999, the additional measures include
accelerating turnover for heavy duty truck engines, capping emissions
for nonroad fleets, restricting driving for highway vehicles and a
strategy for recreational boats. For 2005, the additional measures
includes strategies for motor vehicles, locomotives, recreational
boats, airports, military installations, and an employee commute
options (ECO) program.
For stationary sources in Sacramento, both the 1999 and 2005
proposals include the source specific reasonably available control
technology (RACT) regulations discussed in III.C.2, all of the
regulations for specific source categories discussed in III.C.3 and the
statewide regulations discussed in III.C.4. Many sources will also be
subject to the cap regulations discussed in III.C.5. which will require
approximately a 20-45 percent reduction in VOCs by 1999 (for the 1999
attainment option) or a gradual 4-9 percent per year reduction in VOCs
from 2001 through 2005 (for the 2005 attainment option).
d. 1999 attainment option. By 1999, the existing State and proposed
FIP measures common to both the 1999 and 2005 proposals for both
stationary\26\ and mobile sources will have reduced the Sacramento VOC
inventory from 236 tons per day in 1990 to 155 tons per day in 1999,
and the NOX inventory from 185 to 153 tons per day. Much of the
progress on VOC and NOX comes from the stationary source measures,
continued benefits of the current motor vehicle control programs, and a
substantial improvement in in-use emissions of light duty vehicles due
to an enhanced I/M program. New initial emissions standards affecting
nonroad diesels and locomotives are just barely beginning to be felt in
new engine purchases. New standards for medium duty vehicles, heavy
duty vehicles, and heavy duty nonroad engines in California are just
taking effect in the 1999 model year.
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\26\The stationary measures include all of the measures
discussed in III.C that are identified as applying to Sacramento and
those that are applied statewide, and the cap regulation which
requires a 20-45 percent reduction by 1999.
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In 1999, the shortfall in emission reductions is about 15 tons per
day for VOC and 23 tons per day for NOX. NOX is almost
entirely contributed by mobile sources in Sacramento. Twenty-three tons
per day represent about 16 percent of the remaining mobile source
emissions of NOX in 1999, or 43 percent of the remaining light
duty motor vehicle emissions (i.e., passenger cars, light duty trucks
and motorcycles). If the FIP must reduce the additional 23 tons of
NOX without the benefit of new standards and normal turnover, then
it must contain measures to require accelerated turnover and to reduce
the activity of mobile sources. Under the option of retaining
Sacramento's ``Serious'' area classification, EPA's strategy for making
up the shortfall focused on mobile sources because of the absence of
significant stationary NOX sources and aimed first at technology
measures that are able to yield NOX reductions by 1999. EPA then
considered whether similar opportunities existed for VOC reductions.
The remainder of the reductions came necessarily from measures to
reduce activity.
(1) Onroad heavy duty trucks. On-highway heavy duty trucks are a
category for which EPA believes an accelerated retirement/replacement
program can be adopted and implemented because the regulatory
development for tighter emission standards, certification protocols and
product design work was updated in 1993. For the 2005 option, the FIP
proposes significant changes to the emission standards and
certification protocols which will be applied to on-highway heavy duty
trucks beginning with the 1999 model year. However, the NOX
standard for this category was also recently made more stringent. Since
the 1991 model year, engine manufacturers have been certifying engines
meeting a 5 gram per brake horsepower-hour standard. The federal
NOX standard reduces further to 4 grams per brake horsepower-hour
in 1998. Engines currently in use may range in design standard as high
as 10.7 grams per brake horsepower-hour. Thus, there is an opportunity
to require accelerated turnover in this category to effect reductions
from the current fleet in order to contribute to a 1999 attainment
strategy.
In order for EPA to implement and enforce an engine replacement
requirement, it will be necessary for California fleets to show
compliance with a fleet average NOX standard prior to
registration. The details of such a registration system and other
requirements are described in section III.D.3., Programs for Onroad
Heavy Duty Vehicles and Engines. For the 2005 option, a fleet averaging
program begins in 2001. If the 1999 attainment option is ultimately
selected, fleets registered in California would be required, after
1997, to have an average gram per brake horsepower-hour level of no
more than 5 grams.
Some 1999 truck travel in the Sacramento area would be by fleets
not subject to any fleet standard. The emissions reductions available
depend on the contribution to vehicle miles traveled made by fleets
which are subject to the rule. For the purpose of this proposal, it is
assumed that 80 percent of the onroad heavy duty miles come from
California fleets, yielding an estimated reduction of approximately 6
tons of NOX per day.
(2) Nonroad growth cap. The remaining NOX shortfall is
approximately 17 tons per day, 13 percent of total mobile source
inventory or 33 percent of the light duty motor vehicle NOX
inventory in 1999. Before turning to activity reductions in the light
duty motor vehicle category, it is reasonable to consider whether any
reductions are available in this time frame from nonroad heavy-duty
equipment. The difficulties of implementing a retrofit rule are
discussed in I.D. However, there are emission reduction strategies
which could be implemented by equipment fleet operators in the
Sacramento area. For example, nonroad engines meeting higher national
standards should be available from manufacturers as early as 1996.
There are also applications which have on-road configurations as well
as nonroad configurations, and fleet operators can purchase
replacements meeting the tighter standards.
One of the reasons that the overall nonroad category is estimated
to contribute significantly to a 1999 inventory is that it has been
unregulated up to this time. The other reason is that substantial
growth is projected for the category: 8.8 tons per day NOX
increase from 1990 to 1999. If growth in emissions from the largest
NOX-emitting nonroad sources could be avoided, the task of
attaining the standards by 1999 or any later date would be made easier.
EPA is proposing as part of the 1999 attainment FIP that growth in the
nonroad heavy-duty category be capped such that NOX emissions not
exceed 1995 projected levels. The cap would be implemented via a fleet
averaging concept like that described in section III.D.4 which contains
the nonroad proposal for the 2005 attainment strategy. Section III.D.4
proposes a declining fleet average emissions level to assure that the
historical rate of engine turnover is maintained; the 1999 attainment
cap would require that fleet operators acquire and utilize low emission
engines as necessary to maintain NOX emissions at projected 1995
levels. The estimated benefit of this cap is the reduction of
approximately 4 tons per day of NOX which would have resulted from
further growth in the heavy-duty equipment category.
(3) No drive days. The remaining NOX shortfall is
approximately 13 tons per day which amounts to approximately 10 percent
of the total mobile source inventory, 16 percent of the on-road mobile
source inventory, or 25 percent of the light duty motor vehicle
inventory in 1999. This represents a substantial reduction from sources
that can not be significantly controlled by further technological
solutions or forced turnover to cleaner alternatives. Therefore, the
shortfall would have to be achieved with even more difficult measures
that focus on reducing the use of mobile sources.
Activity restrictions could be obtained from various mobile source
categories using a variety of regulatory approaches. For example,
broad-based reductions from essentially all categories could be
obtained with such blunt measures as fuel surcharges or gas rationing.
More focused reductions could be made by targeting motor vehicle
activity through fees on vehicle-miles-traveled (VMT) or no-drive days.
EPA believes such potentially severe measures should only be
selected after substantial public participation and debate. However,
the Agency is compelled to make a selection for the proposed 1999
attainment date option. When faced with a similar dilemma in the 1990
proposed FIP for the South Coast Basin (55 FR 36458), EPA chose to
limit mobile source activity with a no-drive day program for on-road
motor vehicles. Today's proposal also contains that control measure in
order to achieve the sizeable, remaining NOX shortfall for the
1999 attainment option. More specifically, in order to achieve the 13
tons of NOX reductions needed, EPA is proposing that each highway
vehicle registered in the Sacramento nonattainment area be prohibited
from being driven one day out of five weekdays.
(4) Recreational boat fees or prohibitions. A no-drive day, which
is imposed on all highway vehicles one out of five weekdays, would
produce approximately a 20 percent decrease in the emissions of the
remaining NOX and VOC from highway vehicles. This would be
sufficient to reduce NOX in the Sacramento area to the area's
carrying capacity. However, the VOC reductions from the above no-drive
day proposal provides only eleven out of the required fifteen tons per
day. The accelerated retirement strategy and growth cap proposed for
heavy duty engines do not significantly affect VOC emissions. There is
a nonroad mobile source category, recreational boating, which does
contribute significantly to the VOC inventory in Sacramento and which
will eventually be reduced through the adoption of national standards
for new engines and subsequent fleet turnover. It is possible to
achieve an accelerated turnover similar to that required for heavy
equipment either by restricting the operation of boats which use
engines which do not meet new national standards, or by imposing a fee
on the excess emissions from such boats. As a final measure in a 1999
attainment option for VOC reductions, EPA is proposing a fee system or
boating restriction which will reduce emissions from recreational
boating by one-third in 1999. A similar fee system is explained in the
2005 attainment proposal.
As an alternative to the fees or restrictions on recreational
boating, EPA requests comment on obtaining the additional VOC
reductions from stationary sources. This alternative would consist of
either increasing the cap reduction requirement or achieving further
VOC reductions from sources which are not covered by the cap
regulations (e.g., architectural coatings, consumer products).
e. EPA's preferred option--(1) EPA authority to initiate bump-up.
Under section 181(b)(3) of the Act, EPA must grant the request of a
state to reclassify a nonattainment area to a higher classification.
Once the area has been bumped-up pursuant to such a request, it becomes
subject to the more stringent control requirements associated with the
higher classification. While a state need not make any particular
showing for the bump-up request to be granted, legislative history
indicates that the voluntary bump-up ``is provided for areas that wish
to impose the more stringent control measures associated with a higher
classification or that, for reasons such as extremely rapid population
growth, conclude that they will not be able to attain by their
otherwise applicable date [sic].'' H.R. Rep. No. 101-490, Part 1, 101st
Cong., 2d Sess., 232 (1990).
In the case of the Sacramento nonattainment area, the State could
mitigate the difficulties in achieving attainment by 1999 by requesting
a voluntary reclassification from ``Serious'' to ``Severe,'' which
would allow up to an additional six years to attain the ozone NAAQS. To
date, the State has not opted to do so for the purposes of its
attainment SIP, which must be submitted to EPA in November 1994. See
section 182(c)(2) and (d). EPA, however, must confront these same
difficulties now in designing its FIP proposal and, in the absence of a
State request, must determine whether the Agency may avail itself of
the voluntary bump-up option.
While the Act specifically provides for an EPA-initiated
reclassification only upon failure of an area to attain the ozone NAAQS
by the applicable attainment date, the Agency believes that a recent
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals case offers a persuasive basis for
interpreting the Act as authority for a unilateral bump-up in the FIP
context.
Central Arizona Water Conservation District et al. v. EPA, 990 F.2d
1531 (9th Cir. 1993), involved EPA promulgation of a visibility FIP to
remedy visibility impairment in the Grand Canyon National Park. In that
case, the court upheld EPA's action under regulations that on their
face applied only to state action in adopting a SIP. The court stated
that when ``[a]cting in the place of the state * * * pursuant to a FIP
under 42 U.S.C. Sec. 7410(c), EPA `stands in the shoes of the
defaulting State, and all of the rights and duties that would otherwise
fall to the State accrue instead to EPA.''' 990 F.2d at 1541. Based on
this decision, EPA has concluded that when the Agency promulgates a
FIP, it can stand in the shoes of the state in order to bump up an
ozone nonattainment area under section 181(b)(3) on its own initiative.
(2) Rationale for bump-up to ``Severe.'' Although the design value
assigned to Sacramento for the period 1988 through 1990 resulted in its
classification as ``Serious,'' a review of the most recent design
values and yearly exceedances for several ozone areas including
Sacramento (summarized in the following table) show that it is
comparable to other ``Severe'' nonattainment areas with the 4th highest
design value in the group and the 7th highest number of yearly
exceedances.
Ozone Classifications and Air Quality Data
[Design Values and Number of Exceedance Days Based on Most Recent 3
Years of Data]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Design
Area Classif. value Exceedances
(ppm) (days)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
So. Coast............... Extreme................ .300 106.1
SE Desert............... Severe-17.............. .230 52.9
Houston................. Severe-17.............. .210 13.0
San Diego............... Severe-15.............. .170 7.3
San Joaquin............. Serious................ .160 22.6
Sacramento.............. Serious................ .160 6.1
New York................ Severe-17.............. .160 3.4
Baltimore............... Severe-15.............. .156 4.9
Philadelphia............ Severe-15.............. .153 8.4
Ventura................. Severe-15.............. .150 17.6
Milwaukee............... Severe-17.............. .148 4.7
Chicago................. Severe-17.............. .143 4.7
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Note: Most of the classifications were based on 1987-1989 data. Design
values and exceedance numbers are for 1990-1992 and derive from
National Air Quality and Emissions Trends Report, 1992 (November 2,
1993).
The urban airshed modeling which calculates the reductions needed to
attain the standards also produces results comparable to the percent
reduction needed for attainment in Ventura (an area classified as
``Severe'' under the Act). The VOC reduction target is identical at 40
percent; the NOX target is somewhat lower at 30 percent (compared
to 40 percent).
However, the main reason EPA believes a bump-up to 2005 for the
Sacramento area is appropriate is the difficulty in achieving
significant emissions reductions from a mobile source dominated
emissions inventory where less than 10 percent of the NOX
emissions are from stationary sources. A 1999 attainment date does not
allow sufficient time for the emissions reductions of many of the
mobile source strategies discussed in section III.D to occur. This
includes strategies which rely on the normal replacement of older,
dirtier engines and vehicles with cleaner engines and vehicles. It also
would include strategies that rely on longer lead times to develop and
implement lower emitting operational improvements or control hardware.
Thus, EPA must turn to measures which require retrofits or replacements
for in-use engines and vehicles, and restrictions on mobile source
activity to achieve the necessary emissions reductions. A bump-up would
allow the Sacramento area to take advantage of the new engine standards
and other requirements proposed in section III.D, and avoid
accelerating turnover for heavy duty truck engines, capping nonroad
engine emissions growth and restricting driving--measures EPA is
proposing to satisfy the 1999 attainment demonstration.
A bump-up is also important for stationary sources which will be
required to meet EPA's Cap Regulations (section III.C.5). Under the
1999 attainment date, these stationary sources would be required to
submit compliance plans by 1998 which will demonstrate an additional
20-45 percent reduction in VOC emissions by 1999. With the additional
time allowed by a ``Severe'' area classification, these sources would
instead be subject to a declining cap requiring gradual 4-9 percent per
year emissions reductions, which will not be required to begin until
2001. The additional years for compliance would allow a company to
investigate control options and take greater advantage of technological
developments, and thus avoid production cutbacks or shutdowns to meet
emissions reductions levels. EPA believes it is reasonable to
anticipate that substantially improved emission reduction alternatives
and control technologies will develop for stationary and area sources
during the additional time that a higher classification for Sacramento
would provide.
(3) 2005 attainment option. The FIP measures common to both the
1999 and 2005 proposals for both stationary\27\ and mobile sources will
have reduced the Sacramento VOC inventory from 236 tons per day in 1990
to 157 tons per day in 1999, and the NOx inventory from 185 to 149
tons per day. Like the 1999 proposal discussed above, these reductions
come from the stationary source measures, continued benefits of the
current motor vehicle control programs, and a substantial improvement
in in-use emissions of light duty vehicles due to an enhanced I/M
program. However, by 2005 additional reductions are realized from the
new emissions standards affecting medium duty vehicles, heavy duty
vehicles, nonroad diesels and locomotives due to engine turnover, and
from the enhanced in-use compliance program.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\27\The stationary measures include all of the measures
discussed in III.C that are identified as applying to Sacramento and
those that apply statewide, and the cap regulation which requires a
gradual 4 percent per year VOC reduction from 2001 through 2005.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
With the benefits from the recreational boat measure and ECO
program discussed above and in section III.D, total emissions
reductions by 2005 will be large enough to provide for attainment.
It is important to note that a bump-up of the Sacramento area to
``Severe'' also leads to the following additional Clean Air Act
requirements associated with a ``Severe'' area classification, which
include: (1) A more stringent major source definition (25 tons per
year, down from 50 tons per year); (2) a more stringent offset
requirement for new major sources (1.3:1 instead of 1.2:1); (3) TCMs to
offset VMT growth; (4) and an employer-based trip reduction rule. The
responsibility for meeting these requirements is discussed below.
If EPA grants the request of a state to reclassify a nonattainment
area to a higher classification under section 181(b)(3), that area must
meet all deadline and control requirements applicable to the higher
classification, and is not eligible for any adjustment of those
deadlines. H.R. Rep. No. 101-490, Part 1, 101st Cong., 2d Sess., 233
(1990). If reclassification is promulgated by EPA unilaterally in the
FIP, the area likewise becomes responsible for meeting all such
deadlines and requirements for SIP purposes.
The substance of these additional requirements is set forth in
section 182(d) of the Act.\28\ Because the statutory deadlines for
compliance with or submission to EPA of these requirements have already
passed, if EPA finalizes in February 1995 its bump-up option for the
Sacramento area, the State will be responsible for submitting the
actual regulations to comply with the ``Severe'' area requirements at
that time. If the State fails to do so, the Sacramento area will be
subject to a finding of failure to submit these requirements upon final
promulgation of the FIP in 1995.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\28\For a more complete description of the requirements and EPA
preliminary policies with respect to them, readers should consult
the ``General Preamble for Implementation of Title I of the Clean
Air Act Amendments of 1990'' (57 FR 13521).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
As discussed previously in this NPRM, EPA's current obligation is
to design a FIP for the Sacramento area that attains the ozone NAAQS by
1999 or 2005. EPA is not legally required to meet all SIP submittal
requirements that appeared for the first time in the 1990 Amendments
and for which there are no state failures which EPA must cure.
Nevertheless, as a policy matter, and because it has invoked the
provisions of the Amendments in initiating a bump-up, EPA is proposing
in today's NPRM the ``Severe'' area provisions (section III.F.) in
regulatory form.
The measures proposed in III.F. were developed to help the State
and local agencies meet the additional ``Severe'' area requirements if
the Sacramento area is bumped up. For example, the proposed new source
review rule discussed in section III.F.4. is based on the actual
language of existing rules in the Sacramento area in order to provide a
rule that is easy for the local APCDs to adopt and implement. The
employee commute options (ECO) rule discussed in section III.F.2. is
also adoptable by the local APCDs; alternatively, it may provide an
incentive for the local APCDs to develop, adopt and submit ECO programs
that are currently being considered. Thus, if bump-up is promulgated,
EPA believes that the measures proposed in III.F. will help the State
and local agencies meet their mandate in a timely fashion and avoid
sanctions.
If EPA ultimately chooses its preferred option of bumping up
Sacramento, EPA plans, if necessary, to implement the ``Severe'' area
measures proposed in section III.F. on their respective effective dates
following final promulgation of the FIP in February 1995. Until a
submittal of replacement measures is made by the State and approved by
EPA, the ``Severe'' area requirements proposed in section III.F. will
remain in effect. If EPA finds that there will be a significant time
period before the submittal is made and approved, EPA will try to
delegate portions or all of the federal program to the State and local
agencies.
f. Summary of 1999 and 2005 attainment options. The following table
summarizes the FIP measures proposed for the alternative 1999 and 2005
attainment demonstrations:
Summary of Sacramento FIP Measures for 1999 and 2005 Attainment Options
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1999 2005
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mobile Measures:
Enhanced I/M.......................................... X X
Nonroad stds (nat'l).................................. X X
Offroad recreational vehicle stds-w/normal turnover... X X
Motorcycle stds w/normal turnover..................... X X
Parking Cash Out...................................... X X
Airports/Military Installations declining cap
reduction............................................ ...... X
Accelerated turnover for heavy duty trucks............ X
Nonroad growth cap based on available retrofits....... X
Onroad driving restrictions (no-drive days)........... X
Fees for recreational boats........................... X X
Stationary Measures:
Applicable FIP Rules.................................. X X
Cap reduction by 1999................................. X
Declining Cap reduction by 2005....................... ...... X
2005 Bump-Up Requirements:
NSR Rule.............................................. ...... X
ECO Program........................................... ...... X
------------------------------------------------------------------------
EPA requests comment on whether the bump-up is an appropriate
solution or whether the advantages of attainment by an earlier date
justify the imposition of the measures necessary for 1999 attainment.
g. Attainment demonstrations. As discussed in Section III.H.5.a,
EPA believes that the set of measures proposed in this NPRM, in
conjunction with adopted State and local measures, will bring the
Sacramento area into attainment with the ozone standard by 1999 or
2005. This projection is based on extensive computer simulations of
ozone formation performed using the Urban Airshed Model.
4. Ventura Ozone
a. Reduction requirements. Anthropogenic emissions in Ventura in
1990 totaled approximately 105 tons per day of VOC and 86 tons per day
of NOX. The existing air pollution regulations controlling these
emissions are among the most stringent in the country. In addition,
many of the CARB and VCACPD regulations prescribe future compliance
requirements that are still more stringent, and the existing CARB
standards on new engines and equipment will deliver increasing
reductions each year as a result of fleet turnover. Sections II.B and
III.H of this NPRM discuss the adopted CARB and VCAPCD rules and EPA's
assignment of credit to the rules as part of the FIP/SIP attainment
demonstration.
Unfortunately, projected emission reductions from many of these
State and local measures are offset by continued growth in the area's
population and activity levels. Consequently, in the absence of further
SIP or FIP measures, emissions in Ventura are projected to be 98 tons
per day VOC and 75 tons per day NOX by the year 2005.
EPA, CARB, and VCAPCD have performed extensive meteorologic
analysis and airshed modeling of ozone formation in the area. This
modeling suggests that various combinations of VOC and NOX
reductions can achieve attainment with the ozone standard. As discussed
in Section III.H.3, EPA is using reduction targets of 40 percent VOC
and 40 percent NOX from the 1990 base-year emissions levels.
Therefore, the SIP and FIP controls must achieve, by 2005, emission
levels of 57 tons per day VOC and 46 tons per day NOX.
b. SIP rules. Irrespective of EPA's FIP obligation, California and
Ventura County are required to submit an ozone attainment SIP in
November 1994. As part of this and previous SIP efforts, CARB and
VCAPCD are continually adopting and modifying regulations to reduce
NOX and VOC emissions. EPA is not proposing to act on any SIP
improvements as part of this NPRM, but will do so on a case-by-case
basis in separate actions.
For purposes of the attainment demonstration in this NPRM, EPA is
generally not assigning emission reduction credit to measures until
they are fully adopted in enforceable form. EPA urges the responsible
State and local agencies to complete rule development and submit rules
for SIP approval as soon as they are fully adopted. This will allow EPA
to approve the regulations and substitute the locally developed
measures for FIP rules.
c. FIP rules. The set of FIP measures proposed for implementation
in Ventura relies largely on those regulations discussed in Section
III.B as elements common to all three FIP areas. For mobile sources,
this includes regulations for motor vehicles and I/M, nonroad vehicle
and engine controls, forthcoming national regulations for locomotives,
and strategies to reduce the ambient impact of ship traffic along the
coast. For stationary sources, it includes regulations for solvent
cleaning operations, wood products coatings, service stations, waste
burning, and fugitive emissions, as well as the statewide measures and
the emission cap programs.
One FIP measure peculiar to Ventura affects emissions from ocean-
going ships transitting up and down the Ventura coastline. In Section
III.D.5.e.(4) of this NPRM, EPA discusses rerouting the Santa Barbara
shipping channel farther from the coast, and a fee system designed to
encourage ships to travel outside of the Channel Islands.
d. Attainment demonstration. As discussed in Section III.H., EPA
believes that the set of measures proposed in this NPRM, along with
adopted State and local measures, will bring Ventura County into
attainment with the ozone standard by 2005. This projection is based on
extensive computer simulations of ozone formation performed using the
Urban Airshed Model.
e. Alternative attainment date discussion. Section 181(a)(1) of the
Act requires that ozone SIPs demonstrate attainment as expeditiously as
practicable but not later than, in the case of Ventura, 2005. As a
result, EPA has attempted to identify practicable measures that could
achieve attainment by an earlier date. For illustrative purposes, EPA
focused this investigation on a target attainment date of 2000. EPA is
not, however, proposing this attainment date or the following
strategies in this NPRM.
In today's NPRM, EPA is proposing two attainment options for the
Sacramento area. 1999 is proposed because Sacramento is currently
classified as a ``Serious'' ozone area, and 2005 is proposed because
EPA is recommending reclassifying Sacramento to a ``Severe'' area. As
discussed in paragraph III.B.3.e of this NPRM, EPA believes that
attainment in Sacramento by 1999 would require unacceptably harsh
control measures, and therefore prefers the 2005 option. Since
Ventura's ozone problem is worse than Sacramento's (e.g., EPA is
projecting that a 30% reduction of NOX emissions is needed for
attainment in Sacramento while a 40% reduction is needed in Ventura),
it is not surprising that attainment in Ventura by 2000 would also
prove to be impracticable.
Many of the mobile source FIP controls for the 2005 attainment
demonstration are proposed for near-term implementation in Ventura, and
will achieve substantial emission reductions by 2000. These include an
enhanced inspection and maintenance program, national standards for
nonroad vehicles and engines, offroad recreational vehicle standards,
motorcycle standards, and a parking cash-out program. The difficulty in
achieving full attainment by that date, however, is that many of the
proposed mobile source strategies rely on engine and vehicle turn-over
to reduce emissions. Tight emission standards for new onroad vehicles,
for example, are not effective while people are still driving older
cars. By 2000, new emission standards affecting heavy duty onroad and
nonroad engines and locomotives will just barely begin to be felt in
new engine purchases.
In trying to identify practical measures for attainment in Ventura
by 2000, EPA has considered control strategies similar to those
proposed to bring Sacramento into attainment by 1999. These include the
following:
Onroad heavy duty trucks. EPA could accelerate replacement of old
high-emitting onroad heavy duty truck engines by requiring local truck
fleet owners to register and sticker their equipment to assure
compliance with tight emission standards.
Nonroad growth cap. EPA could propose that growth in the nonroad
heavy duty category be capped such that emissions not exceed 1995
projected levels.
Accelerate shipping fee system. EPA could accelerate the fee system
designed to encourage shipping companies to reroute their shipping
activities beyond the Channel Islands.
Accelerate airport and aircraft programs. EPA could accelerate
programs designed to reduce emissions from commercial, general, and
military aircraft and associated activity.
Accelerate turnover of recreational boat engines. Emissions from
recreational boat engines will eventually be reduced through the
adoption of national standards for new engines and subsequent fleet
turnover. It is possible to achieve an accelerated turnover similar to
that required for heavy equipment either by restricting operation of
boats which use engines that do not meet new national standards, or by
imposing a fee on the excess emissions from such boats.
Most of the requirements for stationary source categories described
in section III.C.3 and the statewide area sources described in section
III.C.4 are scheduled for implementation in 1996. EPA expects, in fact,
that all stationary source emission reductions projected under the 2005
attainment demonstration will be achieved by 2000 except for those
required by the cap rules discussed in section III.C.5.
The proposed cap programs require most stationary sources in
Ventura to reduce VOC and NOX emissions by at least 4% and 6% per
year respectively for each year from 2001 through 2005. Theoretically,
EPA could require 20% or greater VOC reductions (and 30% or greater
NOX reductions) by 2000. While this might accelerate attainment,
EPA cannot conclude that accelerating such reductions would be
practicable, and believes it could well be counterproductive in
practice. Specifically, such a dramatic near-term reduction requirement
might result in massive non-compliance that would overwhelm EPA's
enforcement abilities and fail to achieve real air quality improvement.
EPA has estimated the effects of an onroad heavy duty truck
measure, nonroad growth cap, accelerated shipping fee system,
accelerated airport and aircraft programs, accelerated turnover of
recreational boat engines, and accelerated stationary source cap on the
overall Ventura emission inventory. After accounting for these
controls, EPA projects an emission reduction shortfall of approximately
10 tons/day of VOC and 5 tons/day of NOX. Note that the NOX
contribution by stationary sources in Ventura is substantially greater
than in the Sacramento area. Therefore, the mobile source measures do
not produce the same effect as they did in Sacramento.
In order to address the remaining emission reduction shortfall, EPA
could impose activity restrictions using a variety of regulatory
approaches. For example, broad-based reductions from many stationary
and almost all mobile source categories could be obtained with such
blunt measures as fuel surcharges or gas rationing. More focused
reductions could be made by targeting motor vehicle activity through
fees on vehicle-miles-traveled (VMT) or no-drive days.
EPA believes such potentially severe measures should only be
selected after substantial public participation and debate. When faced
with an attainment shortfall in the 1990 proposed FIP for the South
Coast Basin (55 FR 36458), EPA did propose to limit mobile source
activity with a no-drive day program for onroad motor vehicles. In the
1990 South Coast case, however, EPA was struggling to find enough
reductions to attain by the latest legally acceptable date. In Ventura,
the issue is whether there are practical measures to attain prior to
the statutory deadline. In order to achieve the remaining emission
reductions necessary for Ventura to attain by 2000, EPA estimates that
two no-drive days or equivalent alternative activity reductions would
be needed. That is, each highway vehicle registered in Ventura would be
prohibited from being driven on two of the five workdays in each week.
Obviously, this and other measures needed to accelerate attainment
in Ventura would have dramatic negative socioeconomic impacts in the
area. EPA does not consider them legally required as practical measures
or good policy. For that reason, EPA cannot conclude that such measures
would be practicable and EPA is not, therefore, proposing to attain the
standard before 2005.
5. South Coast Ozone
a. Reduction requirements. Anthropogenic emissions in the South
Coast in 1990 totaled approximately 1913 tons per day of VOC and 1273
tons per day of NOX for an average summer weekday. The air
pollution control regulations now in effect in the South Coast are,
with few exceptions, the most stringent in the Country. In addition,
many of the CARB or SCAQMD adopted regulations prescribe future
compliance requirements that are still more stringent, and the existing
CARB standards on new engines and equipment will deliver increasing
reductions each year as a result of fleet turnover. Sections II.B and
III.H. of this NPRM discuss the adopted CARB and SCAQMD rules which are
assigned credit as part of the FIP attainment demonstration.
Even after allowing credit for reductions from these State and
local measures, continued growth in the area's population and activity
levels will erode much of the future benefits of currently adopted
controls. Consequently, in the absence of further SIP or FIP measures,
emissions in the South Coast will not decline appreciably. The 2010
emissions levels are projected to be 1390 tons/day VOC and 1142 tons/
day NOX for an average summer weekday.
Extensive urban airshed modeling of three episodes in 1985 and 1987
provided the basis for the SCAQMD's 1991 Air Quality Management Plan,
which concluded that ozone attainment could be achieved if basin-wide
emissions were reduced to approximately 187 tons per day of VOC and 399
tons per day of NOX (episode-specific emissions). Based on the
current baseline emissions inventory, and prior to the completion of
extensive new modeling analyses that are underway, EPA is using
reduction targets of 90 percent for VOC and 69 percent for NOX
from the 1990 base-year emissions levels.\29\ Assuming these reduction
targets, the combination of SIP and FIP controls must achieve, by 2010,
total reductions of 1726 tons per day of VOC and 874 tons per day of
NOX from 1990 emissions, or 1203 tons per day of VOC and 743 tons
per day of NOX from 2010 baseline emissions.
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\29\Other combinations of VOC and NOX reductions may be
evaluated in preparation of the 1994 ozone SIP. To the extent
possible, EPA will attempt to conform the final FIP (and any
subsequent amendments to the FIP) to the State's chosen mix of VOC
and NOX reductions used in the 1994 ozone SIP.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
As with Sacramento and Ventura, EPA's control strategy analysis for
the South Coast began with a comparison of the applicable existing
South Coast rules to the rules currently in effect in other areas.
Although the SCAQMD generally has among the most advanced regulations
in the Country, EPA was able to identify stationary and area source
categories for which new or enhanced technology-based rules could be
promulgated immediately to yield additional emission reductions.
Section III.C.3. discusses those new or improved category-specific
stationary and area source rules which EPA is able to propose at this
time.
After credit for emissions reductions from this initial set of FIP
measures, a massive shortfall in necessary emission reductions still
remains. The FIP mobile source core measures are identified in section
III.B.2. and III.D.1.b. These measures contribute substantial further
reductions (approximately 205 tons per day VOC and 181 tons per day
NOX), leaving roughly 1000 tons per day VOC and 562 tons per day
NOX to be achieved by added stationary and area source controls.
EPA proposes to achieve the remaining target reductions through a
combination of the emission cap rules set forth in section III.C.5.,
additional mobile source controls discussed in section III.D, and the
``new technology'' commitments discussed in section III.B.5.d. below
and in section III.G.
b. SIP rules. In section II.C.2., EPA proposes to conditionally
approve commitments by the SCAQMD and CARB to continue their
development of a number of new or strengthened regulations and to adopt
them within the next two years to accomplish the first rate-of-progress
installments required under the Act. These committal measures have the
potential to deliver approximately 83 tons per day of VOC. Scheduled
SCAQMD rule development could also contribute substantial additional
NOX reductions.
In preparing the November 1994 ozone attainment plan, CARB, SCAQMD,
and SCAG are now reassessing strategies for adopting measures to reduce
NOX and VOC emissions. The SCAQMD is also developing a VOC RECLAIM
program for near-term adoption and implementation.
For purposes of this attainment demonstration, however, EPA is not
assigning emission reduction credit to measures until they are fully
adopted in enforceable form. EPA urges the responsible State and local
agencies to complete rule development and submit rules for SIP approval
as soon as they are fully adopted. This will allow EPA to approve the
regulations and substitute the locally developed measures for FIP
rules.
c. FIP Rules. The set of FIP measures proposed for implementation
in the South Coast relies largely on those regulations discussed in
Section III.B as elements common to all three FIP areas. This includes
the controls for onroad and nonroad mobile sources, supplemented by
such elements as I/M and sticker programs. In addition, the proposed
FIP for the South Coast includes the mobile source controls discussed
in the Ventura FIP summary, and two measures peculiar to the South
Coast FIP: A fee-based program to reduce emissions from ports and a
locomotive cap rule. For stationary and area sources, it includes
regulations for service stations, livestock waste, fugitive emission
controls for petroleum and chemical facilities, and waste burning, as
well as the statewide measures and the emission cap program. Finally,
the South Coast FIP relies on the new technology commitments discussed
immediately below.
d. Section 182(e)(5) provisions. (1) Statutory provision and
General Preamble requirements Section 182(e)(5) of the Clean Air Act
applies exclusively to ``Extreme'' ozone areas (i.e., only the South
Coast area). This provision authorizes the State (or EPA, standing in
the shoes of the State\30\) to rely for its ozone attainment
demonstration on conceptual, as yet unadopted measures that anticipate
new or improved technology. The South Coast's 1991 Air Quality
Management Plan employs a similar approach in its ``Tier II'' and
``Tier III'' new technology measures, which consist of brief
discussions of control targets (percentage and emission reductions) for
specific or general source categories, to be achieved in future years
through technological advances.
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\30\As discussed above, the Ninth Circuit has held that ``Acting
in place of the State of Arizona pursuant to a FIP under 42 U.S.C.
Sec. 7410(c), EPA `stands in the shoes of the defaulting State, and
all of the rights and duties that would otherwise fall to the State
accrue instead to EPA.''' Central Arizona Water Conservation
District et al. v. EPA, 990 F.2d 1531, 1541 (9th Cir. 1993).
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For EPA to credit such measures toward the ozone attainment
demonstration (either by SIP approval or FIP promulgation), EPA must
find that the measures are not needed to meet the Act's progress
requirements for the first 10 years (see section 182(e)(5)(A)), and EPA
must approve State commitments or make its own commitments to submit
contingency measures no later than three years before proposed
implementation of the measures, sufficient to ensure the required rate
of progress and attainment (section 182(e)(5)(B)).
EPA's General Preamble for the Implementation of Title I provides
the Agency's preliminary articulation of how it will exercise its
considerable discretion under section 182(e)(5). At this time, EPA, in
approving or promulgating measures under this section, will look to see
that the plan shows that the measures cannot be fully developed and
adopted by the submittal date for the attainment demonstration; that
the plan contains a schedule outlining the steps leading to final
development and adoption of the measures; and that the plan contains
commitments from those agencies that would be involved in developing
and implementing the schedule for each measure (57 FR 13524, April 16,
1992).
With respect to the Act's requirement that the technology
advancement measures not be needed to achieve progress required during
the first 10 years, EPA believes that the Administrator should satisfy
herself with respect to three separate progress requirements applicable
during the 10-year period following enactment of the 1990 Amendments to
the Act: (1) 15 percent reduction of VOC emissions for the 6-year
period from 1990 to 1996, as required by section 182(b)(1); (2) 9
percent reduction of VOC and/or NOX emissions for the 3-year
period from 1997 to 1999, as required by section 182(c)(2)(B); and (3)
a further 3 percent reduction of VOC and/or NOX emissions during
the year 2000, as the initial installment of the 9 percent reductions
required for the period 2000 to 2002.\31\ In section III.B.5.d.(4) of
this NPRM, EPA demonstrates that each of these three progress
requirements is satisfied (with regard to section 182(e)(5)) by the
combination of State and local measures and the FIP regulations
proposed in this NPRM.
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\31\EPA policies on rate-of-progress plan requirements,
including substitution of NOX for VOC emissions reductions for
the post-1996 period, appear in two recent guidance documents:
Guidance for Growth Factors, Projections, and Control Strategies for
the 15 Percent Rate-of-Progress Plans (EPA-452/R-93-002, March
1993); and Guidance on the Post-1996 Rate-of-Progress Plan and the
Attainment Demonstration.
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(2) Need for additional time to develop new technologies in
enacting special provisions for ozone attainment in the South Coast,
Congress recognized that attainment in this area may require 20 years,
even on an expeditious schedule of progress. The difficulty of the
ozone attainment project derives primarily from the topography and
climate of the South Coast basin, which combine to produce ideal
conditions for the formation and persistence of tropospheric ozone. In
this setting exists one of the world's largest industrial and
commercial centers, with a population projected to approach 18 million
by the attainment year.
The technological challenge of attainment is evident in the
extraordinary remaining ozone precursor reduction requirements--
approximately 90% for VOC and 70% for NOX--which are superimposed
on an already very strict level of existing control. Complete
elimination of all emissions from motor vehicles would not accomplish
even half of the needed reductions. In fact, the South Coast could not
reach attainment even if there were no mobile source and industrial
emissions in the basin. The area's unique reduction responsibilities
therefore necessitate breakthroughs in air pollution control
technologies for practically every pollution source, coupled with the
most advanced techniques and initiatives for preventing pollution.
EPA believes that the pace of air pollution control technology
development in the past provides a reasonable basis for confidence that
the South Coast can meet the Clean Air Act's 2010 ozone attainment goal
using section 182(e)(5). Lacking sufficiently detailed data to predict
and mandate specific controls for each particular source category,
however, EPA proposes to employ section 182(e)(5) commitments to extend
the rate of progress beyond the levels now foreseeable and reflected in
the declining cap rules discussed above. EPA also proposes to commit to
achieving additional reductions from smaller stationary source
categories than are covered under the proposed cap rules, as well as
from area and mobile sources. The commitments would allow EPA, the
State, and the affected sources sufficient time to cooperate in the
further development and commercialization of control approaches to
deliver the remaining reductions needed for attainment. EPA strongly
encourages CARB and SCAQMD to devote their substantial resources to
expediting development and adoption of State and local controls in
advance of the section 182(e)(5) commitment dates for rule adoption and
implementation.
(3) Federal Role in Support of Technological Development Activities
(a) Scope of EPA's Responsibilities. From its inception, EPA has
been charged with a leadership role in coordinating, assisting, and
independently advancing national research efforts to develop methods
and technologies for air pollution control. This continuous program has
taken many forms:
EPA laboratories to conduct research, testing, and
development;
EPA surveys, reports, networks, and clearinghouses to
disseminate the most current information on technology development and
transfer;
EPA programs and EPA-lead task forces to coordinate
technology development and application studies and projects with other
Federal departments and agencies; with State, local, and international
air pollution control agencies; with private agencies, institutions,
and organizations; and with involved industries;
EPA study and assessment (in accordance with section 405
of the Act and in conjunction with the Council of Economic Advisors) of
economic incentive measures and approaches for stimulating additional
air pollution control progress, concentrating on air pollution problems
for which no existing methods of control exist;
EPA research contracts with public and private agencies,
institutions, and individuals to carry out specific projects relating
to new air pollution reduction technologies;
EPA grants under section 105 of the Act to State and local
air pollution control agencies and to other nonprofit organizations to
conduct research or demonstration projects; and
EPA research fellowships both at EPA and at research
organizations or universities.
In the 1990 Amendments to the CAA, Congress assigned EPA additional
responsibilities for several specific new air pollution control
technology projects, ranging from hydrogen fuel cell vehicle test
programs to studies of renewable energy and energy conservation
incentives. Congress also broadened the scope of EPA's mission: ``the
[EPA] Administrator shall conduct a basic engineering research and
technology program to develop, evaluate, and demonstrate nonregulatory
strategies and technologies for air pollution prevention. Such
strategies and technologies shall be developed with priority on those
pollutants which pose a significant risk to human health and the
environment, and with opportunities for participation by industry,
public interest groups, scientists, and other interested persons in the
development of such strategies and technologies.'' Section 103(g).
(b) Recent National Initiatives. The Federal commitment to a
leadership role in development of clean technologies and control
approaches is reflected in several new comprehensive initiatives.
(1) Climate Change Action Plan. The Climate Change Action Plan was
announced by President Clinton and Vice President Gore on October 19,
1993. The plan consists of 50 new or expanded programs and innovative
public-private partnerships. The unifying goal of the plan is reduction
in greenhouse gases, which include one of the two principal ozone
precursors: oxides of nitrogen. In addition, the majority of the plan's
initiatives--whether in the area of energy demand actions,
transportation actions, or energy supply actions--will directly advance
progress toward ozone attainment in the South Coast, either through
projects to reduce energy consumption or programs to spur increased
reliance on clean energy sources.
Many provisions of the Action Plan are intended to produce almost
immediate progress, and some of these actions, like the parking cash-
out program, are already incorporated as core measures in this FIP.
Successful implementation of this group of initiatives will reduce the
growth in emissions in the South Coast associated with the area's
projected population increases, economic development, rising energy
use, and expanded transportation requirements.
Other provisions of the Climate Change plan involve a continuing
effort to advance long term strategies and stimulate programs and
technologies that will yield their greatest reductions in the first
decade of the next century. As a means of ensuring overall
coordination, the President has instructed the White House National
Economic Council, the Office on Environmental Policy, and the Office of
Science and Technology Policy to co-chair interagency working groups to
examine all budget, technology, research and development, regulatory
and economic policies that could impact greenhouse gas emission levels
beyond the year 2000. From this effort will come cooperative federal
pilot projects and technical assistance programs designed to establish
an empirical basis for the technological advances that will provide the
foundation for sustainable development in future decades.
An example of this coordinated long-term commitment is the
pesticide use reduction project of EPA, the Department of Agriculture,
and the Food and Drug Administration. The specific strategies under
this initiative include establishing incentives for the development,
registration, and use of biological pesticides and the promotion of the
high-technology bio-engineering industry; initiation of demonstration
projects for reductions in overall pesticide use; and support for
integrated pest management programs. The success of this program should
eventually, through regulatory and nonregulatory incentives, accomplish
further VOC reductions beyond the air pollution achievements of the
pesticide control measure proposed in this FIP (see section
III.C.4.d.). Besides impressive reductions in greenhouse gas emissions,
this program is anticipated to result in energy savings worth $1.9
billion through 2000, and savings of $9 billion of the period of 2001-
2010.
(2) Technology Innovation Strategy. EPA's newly announced
Technology Innovation Strategy was released in draft form on November
23, 1993. This inter-agency initiative is under the direction of the
Innovative Technology Council. It has as its goal to foster the
development, commercialization, and widespread use of innovative
technologies that can efficiently close the gap tween our Nation's
ambitious environmental goals and its ability to meet them, and provide
the base for sustainable development as economic activity, population,
and threats to the environment grow worldwide.
The Strategy includes four focus areas. The first plan area,
Environmental and Restoration Technologies, begins with an allocation
of $10.8 million for projects in FY-94. The program's goal is to
support the development, testing, and commercialization of
technological breakthroughs needed for critical environmental progress.
Projects currently funded include:
Cleaner Processes in Plating and Metal Finishing--developmental
research for cleaner technologies in electroplating and metal finishing
operations;
Pollution Prevention-Based Materials Cleaning/Decontamination--
development and demonstration of pollution-prevention based surface
cleaning technologies for use in advanced manufacturing operations and
service industries;
Supercritical CO2--production of a solvent-free alternative
technology for metal degreasing operations;
Enhancing Market Penetration of Water-Borne and Other Low-Solvent
Consumer/Commercial Adhesives--identification of the key technical and
institutional barriers to the use of new adhesive technologies by EPA's
Air and Energy Engineering Research Laboratory, pinpointing research
and development needs, directing key product and applications research
and development, and demonstrating successfully developed processes and
products; and
NOX Control by Hybrid Technologies--development of cost-
effective hybrid NOX control technologies for combustion sources,
including advanced fuel reburning (AFR)/selective non-catalytic
reduction (SCNR).
The second plan area, Clean Technology for Small Business, is
initially funded at a $12 million level. It includes many projects
directed toward development, commercialization, and diffusion of new
cleaner technologies. Among the projects is the Merit program in
Southern California, facilitating the use of pollution prevention
technologies in the South Coast.
Clean Technology Use projects involve cooperative testing and
development programs for less polluting technologies applicable to many
other types of small businesses:
Dry cleaning--EPA's Office of Pollution Prevention Technology
projects to test and develop emerging technologies for cleaner solvents
and alternative cleaning methods;
Printing--cooperative projects with industry to reduce emissions
from the flexography, lithography, and screen printing sectors of the
printing industry;
Printed wiring boards--projects with the Department of Energy (DOE)
and industry to develop and disseminate information on environmentally
improved manufacturing options;
Metal degreasing--projects with DOE and industry to expand use of
cleaner, safer degreasing operations;
Solvents--updates to EPA's Office of Research and Development
Solvents Alternative Guide l(SAGE) software system to identifying
viable alternative solvent substitution options for industrial users;
projects to demonstrate innovative manufacturing projects for reducing
VOC emissions; and
Coatings--two projects, in conjunction with Southern California
Edison's Customer Technology Application Center, to accelerate
development and market penetration of very low or zero VOC wood
furniture coatings; project to promote technology transfer of
Department of Defense powder coating technology; Applied Innovative
Coatings Research Center projects to complete field trials of
reformulated low- or zero-VOC coatings.
The third plan element--Gaps, Barriers, and Incentives--will
concentrate on identifying gaps in environmental technology development
in order to stimulate technology innovation and create a national
climate supportive of such innovation. Typical projects will work on
institutional, legislative, and tax changes that can stimulate support
for development and use of improved environmental technologies. The
U.S. Department of Commerce is a key participant in several of these
efforts, along with industry and other regulatory agencies.
The fourth plan component--Improving Competitiveness of U.S.
Environmental Technologies may also contribute to the development and
commercialization of technologies relevant to further progress in the
South Coast, but the primary focus of this activity is to promote use
of U.S. technologies and expertise to solve international environmental
problems. Initial funding for this plan area is $12 million.
(3) Clean Car Initiative. On September 29, 1993, President Clinton
and Vice President Gore announced the ``Clean Car Initiative,'' an
historic cooperative effort between the U.S. automakers, the Department
of Energy, the Department of Defense, and EPA. The primary goal of this
initiative is to develop an ultra fuel efficient, safe, and clean
vehicle by the year 2000.
To implement this goal, industry and government engineering teams
will undertake research projects in three categories:
Technologies that can lead to near-term improvements in automobile
efficiency, safety, and emissions--research in this area will include
efforts to develop lightweight, recyclable materials and catalysts for
reducing exhaust pollution.
Research that could lead to production prototypes of vehicles
capable of up to three times greater fuel efficiency--projects will
include fuel cells and advanced energy storage systems such as
ultracapacitors, to produce more fuel-efficient cars that are
affordable, meet or exceed current safety standards, and retain the
performance and comfort available today.
Advanced manufacturing techniques to make it easier to get new
product ideas into the marketplace quickly--this effort will involve
computer-based design and testing systems and automation and control
systems.
In support of the Clean Car Initiative, both the U.S. automakers
and the major utility companies throughout the country are striving to
develop inexpensive high energy battery technology--a technology that
will be applicable to virtually all types of mobile sources. Various
projects are underway to develop and perfect engines that operate on
alternative cleaner burning fuels or utilize fuel cells. The
application of regenerative breaking technology to motor vehicles is
being studied for light duty vehicles and is even being implemented in
a limited number of heavy duty vehicles. Hybrid electric vehicles
utilizing both electric and clean burning combustion technology are
being developed and tested to demonstrate their potential in-use
capabilities.
EPA is also engaged in several other motor vehicle-related
technological advancement initiatives. For example, EPA is undertaking
a regulatory process to introduce improved vapor recovery technologies
to automobiles for use during the refueling process. Finally, expected
improvements in remote sensing technology may enable inspection
programs to more clearly identify in-use high-emitters.
(c) SCAQMD Technology Advancement Office. In addition to these
federally managed programs and projects, EPA has provided assistance to
the SCAQMD's critically important Technology Advancement Office (TAO).
Since its inception in 1987, the TAO has supported research,
development, demonstration, and commercialization of advanced emissions
control technologies and clean fuels.\32\ EPA intends to contribute
continued support for the TAO and anticipates that many of the new
stationary and mobile source control technologies needed for eventual
attainment will derive from the TAO's research efforts. EPA expects to
incorporate the results of the SCAQMD's projects in the design of new
technology measures issued in the future under the section 182(e)(5)
provision.
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\32\Information on current and planned TAO projects may be
obtained from the SCAQMD. Some of the TAO projects are also jointly
sponsored by the Clean Fuels Working Group, of which CARB and the
California Energy Commission are also members.
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(4) Demonstration That Progress Requirements for 1990-2000 Are Met
Without the Need for Section 182(e)(5) Measure Reductions
As discussed above, section 182(e)(5) provides that an attainment
demonstration can rely on new technology commitments if the measures
are shown not to be needed to achieve the incremental emission
reductions required during the first 10 years after the date of
enactment of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990. Section 182(e)(5)
contains no requirement that this demonstration be based exclusively on
adopted and submitted measures. Section 182(e)(5) explicitly states
that the showing need be only ``to the satisfaction of the
Administrator.'' EPA must be able to conclude, however, that the State
has the ability to meet the progress requirements without relying on
the new technology measures.
Elsewhere in this NPRM (see section II.C.2.), EPA describes the
recently submitted South Coast Rate-of-Progress Plan, which
demonstrates achievement of the progress requirements for the first 6
years primarily through fully adopted State and local measures. To the
extent that the demonstration rests on measures not yet fully adopted,
EPA cannot now propose to accept the plan for purposes of satisfying
the 15 percent reduction requirement of section 182(b)(1), in
conformance with the referenced EPA policy memorandum, ``Guidance on
Issues Related to 15 Percent Rate-of-Progress Plans'' (August 23,
1993).
In this NPRM, however, EPA proposes to conditionally approve these
measures as strengthening the SIP and for the purpose of finding under
section 182(e)(5) that later-enacted measures are not needed to meet
this progress requirement. Although section 182(e)(5) does not require
conditional approval for the purpose of such a finding, EPA has decided
to conditionally approve, under the authority of section 110(k)(4) of
the Act, the SCAQMD's enforceable commitments to adopt in fully
enforceable form by 1996 specific measures to deliver the small,
remaining shortfall in necessary reductions. This conditional approval,
combined with the South Coast plan, assures to the satisfaction of the
Administrator that the State will ultimately be able to meet the 15
percent progress requirements for the period 1990-1996 by means of
recently adopted creditable control measures, along with a small number
of new measures scheduled for full adoption and implementation in 1994,
1995, and 1996.
As discussed in section III.B.5.d.(1) above, the Act also
establishes two other progress requirements applicable within the first
10 years following enactment of the 1990 Amendments. A further 9
percent of creditable reductions must be achieved by 1999, followed by
an additional 3 percent for the year 2000, as part of the 9 percent due
by 2002.\33\
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\33\For EPA's applicable policy on the post-1996 progress
requirements, the reader should consult Guidance on the Post-1996
Rate-of-Progress Plan and the Attainment Demonstration (OAQPS,
December 1993).
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While the Act specifies that progress for the period 1990-1996 is
in terms of VOC reductions, section 182(c)(2)(C) allows the
substitution of NOX reductions for VOC in meeting the post- 1996
progress requirements. EPA has recently issued the Agency's policy and
procedures for substituting NOX reductions, NOX Substitution
Guidance (OAQPS, December 1993.) For purposes of the progress plans,
this guidance authorizes any combination of VOC and NOX emission
reductions which total 3 percent per year, so long as the proposed
level of NOX substitution is consistent with the emission
reductions in the modeled ozone attainment demonstration. In the case
of the South Coast, UAM analyses support a one-for-one substitution of
NOX for VOC, inasmuch as peak ozone concentrations in the South
Coast Air Basin are sensitive to both VOC and NOX controls (see
discussion below in section III.H.).
EPA has concluded that the Act allows NOX emissions reductions
occurring since 1990 to be applied to the post-1996 emissions
reductions requirements.\34\ 57 FR 13517, April 16, 1992. SCAQMD's
aggressive rule adoption schedule for NOX has resulted in recent
adoption of rules that contribute creditable NOX reductions during
the period 1990-2000. Particularly important new or revised rules
include: Rule 1109--Refinery Heaters & Boilers; Rule 1110.2--Internal
Combustion Engines; Rule 1134--Gas Turbines; Rule 1135--Electric Power
Generators and Boilers; Rule 1146--Crude Oil Pipeline Heaters and Oil
Field Steam Generators, and Industrial Boilers, Heaters, & Generators;
Rule 1146.1--Small Boilers and Heaters; and the NOX/SOX
RECLAIM program. Creditable reductions in VOC and NOX for 1997-
2000 also derive from CARB measures, including reductions from the
California Low Emission Vehicles/Clean Fuels Program and California's
regulation of certain nonroad engine categories. Finally, the FIP
contributes significant creditable NOX and VOC reductions in the
period 1997-1999 and in 2000, primarily through the enhanced I/M
program and initial benefits from the other mobile source controls.
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\34\Emission reductions from the measures listed in section
182(b)(1)(D) are not creditable toward meeting the progress
requirements, whether the emissions are VOC or NOX.
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A technical support document entitled ``Calculation of Creditable
SIP/FIP Rate-of-Progress Reductions for the Period 1997-1999 and for
the Year 2000'' identifies individual FIP and SIP measures and
associated creditable reductions for both progress periods. EPA's
analysis determined that cumulative creditable VOC and NOX
emissions reductions for 1997-1999 exceed the Act's 9 percent rate-of-
progress requirement for 1997-1999 and 3 percent requirement for 2000,
without the need for any emission reductions from the FIP's new
technology measures.
e. Attainment demonstration--As discussed in section III.H., EPA
believes that the set of measures proposed in this NPRM will bring the
South Coast into attainment with the ozone standard by 2010. This
projection is based on photochemical grid modeling performed by the
South Coast Air Quality Management District. Six episodes
representative of conditions conducive to high concentrations of ozone
were selected for the modeling exercise. Four of the episodes chosen
were from the period for which an intensive air quality and
meteorological data base from the Southern California Air Quality Study
was available.
The emissions for the basin were projected for the year 2010, as
discussed in section III.H.2.b, and the emission reductions resulting
from the implementation of the set of proposed measures were quantified
(section III H.4.). The resulting emissions were used as input for each
of the six episodes. The projected ozone concentrations for the modeled
episodes were below the NAAQS for ozone for all portions of the domain,
hence demonstrating attainment of the ozone standard.
f. Alternative attainment date discussion--As in the case of the
Sacramento and Ventura attainment analyses, EPA considered for the
South Coast ozone FIP a number of mechanisms to achieve attainment
before 2010, the Act's deadline for the South Coast. For a discussion
of possible controls, the reader should refer to sections III.B.3.d. on
the Sacramento 1999 attainment option and section III.B.4.e. on an
alternative attainment date in Ventura. Expedited attainment using
these approaches is even less practicable in the South Coast than in
the other two California FIP areas. The enormous emission reductions
required for ozone attainment in the South Coast mean that the
restrictions would have to be so severe as to interfere profoundly with
the economic and social organization of the area, commerce generally,
the provision of public services, and the effective operation of local
governments. EPA believes this strategy would not be in the public's
interest, despite the benefits of any acceleration in the attainment
date.
6. South Coast Carbon Monoxide
a. Reduction Requirements--EPA's attainment analysis uses a 1990
South Coast CO emissions level of 7084 tons per day. Motor vehicles are
responsible for 93 percent of these emissions. Without adoption of
further controls, CO emissions are expected to decline to 4349 tons per
day in the year 2000. This reduction is due primarily to turnover in
the motor vehicle fleet (including the benefits of California's LEV
program) and to reductions from the California wintertime oxygenated
gasoline requirement (see section II.C.1.).
b. Attainment Demonstration--In order to maximize consistency
between the FIP and local SIP efforts, EPA has elected to employ the
SCAQMD modeling analyses for purposes of the CO attainment
demonstration. As discussed above, the SCAQMD's 1992 CO SIP revision
based the attainment demonstration on both areawide (Urban Airshed
Model, or UAM) and hotspot (CAL3QHC) modeling analyses, and used an
appropriate design value of 23.4 ppm, recorded in 1988 at the Lynwood
monitoring station.
The modeling analyses predict attainment of the 8-hour CO NAAQS by
reductions in areawide emissions of tons per day, based upon the
control strategies included in the plan and the transportation modeling
assumptions for the year 2000. As noted in section II.C.1, however, the
SIP's attainment demonstration relies upon large CO emissions
reductions (587.4 tons per day) assigned to an enhanced I/M program,
which has not yet been adopted by the State. EPA proposes to disapprove
the attainment demonstration portion of the SIP and fill the gap in
necessary emissions reductions through the promulgation of the federal
enhanced I/M program described in section III.D.2.c.\35\ In the future,
the SIP attainment demonstration could be approved if the State submits
approvable enhanced I/M legislative authorization and regulations.
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\35\The FIP contributes additional CO emission reductions from
other federal mobile source measures, as shown in sections III.D.,
III.E., and III.H., below. These reductions are not so great,
however, as to advance the attainment date.
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c. Alternative Attainment Date Discussion--As in the case of the
California ozone FIPs, advancement of the CO attainment date could be
achieved through activity restrictions more severe than those proposed
in this FIP. For example, EPA could prohibit registration of cars
emitting more than 3.4 grams of CO per mile, the national federal motor
vehicle standard for 1994 and later model years. Alternatively, the FIP
could mandate no-drive days or restrict sale of gasoline during winter
months. EPA believes that these approaches are simply not practicable
because of their widespread adverse consequences and enforceability
issues. Therefore, EPA proposes not to include such additional measures
in the CO FIP.
C. Stationary and Area Source Rules
1. Introduction
a. Source Category Description and Significance--Stationary sources
of air pollution are traditionally divided into ``point'' and ``area''
categories. Point sources include refineries, electric utilities,
manufacturing plants, and other large industrial facilities, and have
received considerable regulatory attention under the Act. Most, for
example, are visited annually by District inspectors and are restricted
to activities described in District air permits. As a result, belching
smokestacks have largely disappeared as industrial facilities have
installed scrubbers, incinerators, carbon adsorbers, and other
expensive equipment to reduce air pollution. Nevertheless, EPA believes
these sources can reduce NOX and VOC emissions even further.
Area sources consist of widely dispersed commercial and residential
equipment and activities. While some are not currently subject to air
pollution regulations (e.g., pesticide application and some consumer
products), most have been controlled in California for many years
(e.g., gasoline pumps, dry cleaners, architectural coatings,
degreasers, etc.). Despite regulation, these small sources are so
numerous that they now emit more in the FIP areas than do point
sources. Among the largest contributors are livestock waste in
Sacramento, pesticides in Sacramento and Ventura, and coatings,
solvents, consumer products, and petroleum extraction in all three
areas. As discussed in sections II.A, III.G.2 and elsewhere in this
NPRM, overall stationary source contributions to the total
anthropogenic emission inventories range from roughly 5 percent
NOX and 45 percent VOC in Sacramento to 35 percent NOX and 65
percent VOC in Ventura. Even with the relatively favorable emission
reduction targets and stationary source contributions to NOX in
Sacramento, EPA has aggressively sought stationary source emission
reductions to help achieve attainment. For VOC in Sacramento and both
pollutants in Ventura and South Coast, dramatic emission reductions
from stationary sources are essential for attainment.
b. Selection of Control Strategies--EPA faces several large
obstacles to obtaining the needed emission reductions from stationary
sources. First, primary control of these sources has historically
fallen to State and local agencies. Particularly in California, these
agencies have developed an excellent understanding of the control
technologies available to the specific sources in their jurisdiction,
and have cooperated together to determine the best available retrofit
control technology (BARCT) standards for major point sources, as
required under the California Clean Air Act.
Second, there are literally hundreds of different stationary
activities that emit NOX and VOCs in the FIP areas. Even if EPA
had the expertise, it would not have the time nor resources to
scrutinize each source and determine the costs and technical details of
control strategies to achieve the tremendous emission reductions needed
for the South Coast, or even the lesser reductions needed for
Sacramento and Ventura.
Within these and other constraints, EPA has attempted to propose a
set of stationary source control strategies which best fulfill the
goals described in section I.B of this NPRM. A brief summary and
explanation of the strategies is presented below.
(1) Source-Specific RACT Rules. As a first step, EPA developed
source-specific RACT rules for major point sources in the FIP areas not
already subject to a RACT rule. These are described in section III.C.2
of this NPRM. In addition to contributing emission reductions towards
the overall attainment targets, these rules are an appropriate first
stage of the stationary source rule package because (1) RACT is already
required for these sources under sections 181 and 182 of the Act, and
(2) promulgation of RACT for these sources establishes greater equity
with regard to other major sources.
(2) Traditional Stationary Source Category Rules. As discussed in
section III.C.1 of this NPRM, EPA cannot evaluate every source category
in the FIP areas for availability and cost of emission reductions
needed to meet the tremendous FIP reduction targets. Nevertheless, this
type of source-by-source evaluation and rulemaking is exactly how State
and local agencies have traditionally regulated VOC and NOX.
Therefore, in order to create a State/federal partnership, minimize
federal intrusion into State affairs, and achieve the other goals
described in section I, EPA believes it is important to propose
traditional stationary source rules by source category wherever
possible.
Sections III.C.3 and III.C.4 of this NPRM describe the regulations
that EPA is proposing under this effort. Categories were generally
selected because: (1) A State or local agency had already published a
regulation that could be adapted for implementation in the FIP, or (2)
a currently unregulated category contributed substantial emissions.
While many of these rules will not achieve all the needed reductions,
all provide reductions in the near-term and contribute progress towards
attainment. In addition, many of these regulations were recommended by
State or local agencies. EPA believes these agencies should and will
follow the FIP proposal by promulgating equivalent rules, further
supporting the FIP goals.
(3) Cap Regulations. Section III.C.4 of this NPRM describes a set
of emission cap regulations designed to achieve additional stationary
source reductions. These rules impose substantial requirements on a
wide range of sources, but they leave the sources a great deal of
flexibility in how the reduction requirements are to be met.
The requirements in the cap rules are designed to achieve the
stationary sources' share of the emission reductions needed for
attainment in Sacramento and Ventura. While these reductions are
substantial and challenging to the regulated community, EPA believes
that the reductions are achievable on the schedule reflected in the cap
rules. EPA believes that this level of reduction is achievable by
sources in the South Coast, in the same time frame. EPA does not know,
however, whether current technologies and control techniques are
adequate to achieve the additional reductions necessary in the South
Coast. As a result, EPA is proposing that the South Coast reduction
requirements under the cap rules be similar to those proposed for
Ventura.
(4) New Technology Measures under section 182(e)(5). The additional
stationary source reductions needed for attainment in the South Coast
are discussed in Section III.G. Section 182(e)(5) of the Clean Air Act
allows States and EPA, acting in place of the State, to postpone
promulgation of regulations in the South Coast (the only ``Extreme''
ozone nonattainment area) in order to provide for technology
advancements. EPA is proposing to include in this category all
stationary, area, and mobile source emission reductions needed in the
South Coast beyond those proposed for Ventura. As discussed above, EPA
lacks evidence at this time that either accelerating the reduction
schedule or increasing the reduction requirements of the proposed cap
rules would be achievable, in light of feasible existing control
options.
EPA solicits information from industry and the public on
demonstrated and commercially available technologies that could
reliably achieve a greater level of reduction than required in the cap
rules. As soon as new or improved technologies and control techniques
are foreseeable, EPA will consider amendments to the FIP to mandate
further reduction requirements, even in advance of the schedule for
rule development set forth in the proposed section 182(e)(5)
commitments. EPA also urges the State and SCAQMD to pursue aggressively
the development and application of low-emission technologies, clean
fuels, and pollution prevention approaches capable of advancing and
sustaining the pace of air quality progress in the South Coast.
c. Future Evolution of Rules--EPA intends to reevaluate these
stationary source requirements as air pollution control technology
continues to improve. All four of the general strategies discussed in
paragraph III.C.1.b are subject to ongoing efforts to develop cost-
effective emission reductions. This includes industry- sponsored
environmental audits, CARB's RACT/BARCT development, EPA's continuing
research and development initiatives and CTG and MACT efforts, and
SCAQMD's RECLAIM and Tier 1, 2, and 3 programs, including projects of
the SCAQMD's Technology Advancement Office.
Where appropriate, the final promulgated FIP rules will reflect
modifications to the proposed regulations based on information received
from these and other efforts during the public comment period. However,
EPA fully intends to continue modifying the FIP rules through
subsequent separate actions, even after final promulgation. As
discussed elsewhere in this NPRM, EPA hopes that the final modification
to most FIP rules will be delegation to a State or local agency or
recision of the FIP rules in deference to an approvable State or local
program.
2. Regulations for Specific Sources in Sacramento
(a) Introduction and rationale for selection of sources. In
developing the attainment demonstration, EPA evaluated the possibility
of achieving emissions reductions from stationary point sources in the
Sacramento area. EPA has identified several major stationary sources of
VOC in the Sacramento area which are not subject to reasonably
available control technology (RACT) requirements. Under section
182(a)(2)(A) and 182(b)(2) of the Clean Air Act, local air pollution
control agencies are responsible for the submittal of RACT rules for
all major sources to EPA. Formica Corporation (Placer County), Sierra
Pine Limited (Placer County), Michigan California Lumber Company (El
Dorado County), and Reynolds Metal's tab lubricant operation (Placer
County) are four major VOC sources which are not currently subject to
RACT requirements. In order to achieve VOC emissions reductions for the
FIP and to provide rule models that will help the local air agencies
meet their Clean Air Act requirements, EPA is proposing the following
source specific RACT rules for the Sacramento area.\36\
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\36\These four sources will also be required to achieve
additional VOC emissions reductions required by the Cap Rules
discussed in section III.C.5. of today's notice, as well as any
NOX requirements that may apply.
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(b) Formica Corporation (Placer County) Proposed 40 CFR 52.2961(p)
sets VOC emission limits for resins used at Formica Corporation's
Sierra Plant (``Formica'') which manufactures plastic laminate
products. Emissions are generated from the lamination process which
involves the application of melamine and phenolic resins to several
types of paper, followed by oven curing. VOC emissions reductions have
been achieved by Formica due to past changes in resin formulations.
Proposed 40 CFR 52.2961(p) represents Formica's current resin
formulations and EPA's proposal of a RACT rule for Formica.
Formica has made several changes in resin formulation which have
reduced their VOC emissions. In 1987, Formica switched from a phenolic
resin with a VOC content of 2.88 lb/gal to one at 1.85 lb/gal. In 1991,
Formica reduced their phenolic resin VOC content again from 1.85 lb/gal
to 1.13 lb/gal. Also in 1991, the melamine resin was switched so that
the VOC content was reduced from 0.2 lb/gal to 0.002 lb/gal. EPA is
proposing that 1.13 lbs of VOC per gallon of phenolic resin applied and
0.002 lbs of VOC per gallon of melamine resin applied represent RACT
for Formica. Proposed RACT rule 52.289(p) will also allow control
equipment with an overall efficiency of 85 percent as an alternative to
meeting the above VOC limits.
Based on the 1990 CARB point source inventory, Formica emitted
211.8 tons per year (tpy) of reactive organic gases (ROG). However,
more recent and accurate emissions data indicate that Formica's
emissions in 1990 were actually 601.6 tpy of VOC and that with the
change in resin formulations in 1991, Formica's emissions were reduced
to 461.3 tpy of VOC. Thus, with the resin changes made by Formica since
1990, approximately 140 tpy or 0.38 tons per day (tpd) of VOC emissions
reductions have been achieved by Formica.
Since the resin changes required by the proposed RACT rule have
already been implemented, there should be no additional costs for
Formica to meet the rule's requirements. However, it appears that the
past reformulations were cost effective.
EPA is aware that Formica is currently in the process of obtaining
an Authority to Construct permit from Placer County APCD to install a
thermal oxidizer in order to bank emissions reductions credits. EPA
also understands that Formica has plans to bank the emissions
reductions from the second phenolic reformulation discussed above. In
order for Formica to bank the emissions from the second phenolic
reformulation, EPA would have to propose a rule which set the phenolic
limit at 1.85 lbs/gal., rather than 1.13 lb/gal. The emissions
reductions achieved by the second reformulation would then have to be
achieved elsewhere by the FIP. Given the stringency of some of the
other FIP measures, EPA believes that proposed rule 52.2961(p) should
represent RACT.
(c) SierraPine Limited (Placer). Proposed 40 CFR 52.2961(q)
controls the emissions from SierraPine Limited, a medium density
fiberboard plant in Placer County. Estimated uncontrolled emissions at
the facility total approximately 306 tons of VOC per year, with the
primary emissions points at three fiber dryers (178 tpy), two press
vents (117 tpy), and wood-waste fired boiler (11 tpy). The three wood
fiber dryers use steam heat to dry the wood fibers but in the process
drive off VOCs in the wood. After the fibers are dried and formed into
the desired shape, a resin is applied. A steam heated press is then
used to form the fiberboard. As the fiberboard is heated, VOCs (mostly
formaldehyde) are driven off. Currently all VOCs are emitted directly
to the atmosphere.
Based on a review of currently available controls, emissions from
the dryers and vents could be reduced significantly through the
addition of a control device (e.g., wet electrostatic precipitator/
carbon adsorption system or regenerative thermal oxidation). Emissions
at the wood-fired boiler could also be reduced by maintaining optimum
combustion practices.
The proposed rule for this facility would require the reduction of
dryer and press vent emissions by 90 percent, which would be achievable
through currently available technology at an estimated cost of $2,200
to $3,400 per ton of VOC reduced. The cost per ton may be partially
offset by the additional PM10 reductions expected as the result of
controls.\37\ The rule is expected to reduce VOC emissions at the
facility by approximately 280 to 290 tpy.
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\37\SierraPine has applied for permits to construct wet
electrostatic precipitators and wet scrubbers to reduce PM10
emissions at the facility. While these controls will have some
smalll VOC reduction benefit, EPA has determined that these controls
alone will not address the need for RACT level reductions as
required under the Clean Air Act.
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(d) Michigan-California Lumber Company (El Dorado) Proposed 40 CFR
52.2961(r) controls the VOC emissions from Michigan-California Lumber
(``Michigan-California'') which is a lumber processing and timber
manufacturing facility located in El Dorado County. Various coniferous
tree species, including Sugar Pine, Douglas Fir, Ponderosa Pine, and
White Fir, are harvested, transported to the facility, and processed
for commercial sale. The main source of VOC emissions from Michigan-
California is a spreader-stoker boiler which uses waste bark and wood
as fuel. Due to several operational changes to increase the efficiency
of the boiler, VOC emissions reductions have also been realized.
Proposed 40 C.F.R. 52.2961(r) represents Michigan-California's current
operating conditions and EPA's proposal of a RACT rule for Michigan-
California.
EPA's proposed RACT rule will require Michigan-California to meet
an emission limit of 150 parts per million by volume (ppmv) of VOCs in
the stack exhaust stream from the spreader-stoker furnace. Since 1988,
Michigan-California has made improvements in the combustion process and
regulated moisture concentration of the wood fuel for the spreader-
stoker furnace which resulted in an average VOC emission rate of
approximately 218 ppmv during a 1992 source test. Further changes and
improvements made since 1992 have resulted in a VOC emission rate of
approximately 127 ppmv during a 1993 source test. Therefore, a maximum
VOC limit of 150 ppmv is reasonable for Michigan-California's spreader-
stoker furnace.
The 1990 CARB point source inventory reports Michigan-California
emitting 251.7 tpy of VOC which was based on 1988 emissions test
estimates. With the changes since 1988, current VOC emissions should be
approximately 48.8 tpy. Thus, Michigan-California has achieved
approximately 200 tpy or 0.56 tpd of VOC reductions since 1990.
Since the requirements of the proposed RACT rule are currently
being met, there should be no additional costs for Michigan-California
to meet the rule's requirements.
(e) Reynolds Metals (Placer). Reynolds manufactures aluminum ``Stay
On Tab'' can ends in Rocklin, California and uses several VOC
containing compounds which include end sealing compound, equipment
cleaner and tab lubricants. Proposed 40 CFR 52.2961(s) controls the VOC
emissions from the tab lubricating process at Reynolds Metals Company
(``Reynolds'') in Placer County. The end sealing compound is currently
regulated by Placer County APCD and the equipment cleaner is covered by
the Solvent Cleaning Operations rule discussed below. VOC emissions
reductions from the tab lubrication process have been achieved by
reducing the VOC content and application rate of the lubricant.
Proposed 40 CFR 52.2961(s) requires Reynolds' to meet limits that are
based on the lower VOC and application rate of the tab lubricant.
In 1992, Reynolds switched from a tab lubricant with a VOC content
of 6.38 lbs of VOC per gallon, which was applied at a rate of 50
milliliters per minute (ml/min) to make 3240 tabs/min (or 2.60 x
10-5 lbs VOC/tab) to a tab lubricant with a VOC content of 5.73
lb/gal which is applied at a rate of 25 ml/min to make 3240 tabs/min
(or 1.17 x 10-5 lbs VOC/tab). EPA is proposing a limit of 5.73
lb/gal for the tab lubricant and total tab lubricant VOC emissions of
not more than 1.2 x 10-5 lbs of VOC per tab produced in a given
press. Proposed RACT rule 52.2961(s) will also allow control equipment
with an overall efficiency of 85 percent as an alternative to meeting
the above VOC limits.
In 1990, Reynolds emitted a total of 247.5 tons of VOC from which
77.5 tons was generated by the tab lubricant process. The changes made
in 1992 achieve an estimated 55 percent reduction in VOC (or 42.3 tpy,
0.12 tpd). Since the tab lubricant changes required by the proposed
RACT rule have already been implemented, there should be no additional
costs for Reynolds to meet the rule's requirements, and apparently the
past reformulations were cost effective.
3. Regulations for Specific Source Categories in the FIP Areas
a. Introduction--(1) Rationale for Selection of Categories and
Requirements. As discussed in section III.C.1 of this NPRM, EPA
believes the FIP should include traditional category-specific
stationary source rules where possible. Such rules improve the State/
federal partnership, minimize federal intrusion into State affairs, and
contribute to other goals described in section I.B of this NPRM. While
EPA is unable to develop rules for all stationary source categories,
the proposed FIP includes 15 rules for specific categories as described
in sections III.C.3.b-p and 3 statewide area source regulations
presented in section III.C.4 below.
Many of these rules have been adapted from regulations already
existing or proposed in parts of California. In such cases, EPA has
generally selected the most stringent requirements available and relied
on the technical work performed by CARB and local Districts to estimate
associated costs and emission reductions. While there may be additional
rules that EPA could have adapted for the FIP under this effort, EPA
used the amount of potential emission reductions as a primary screening
device for evaluating which rules were appropriate for the FIP
proposal. Thus, rules projected to reduce emissions by more than 0.1
percent of the uncontrolled attainment year inventory were considered
good candidates. EPA also considered cost-effectiveness and District
recommendations in selecting categories and specific requirements under
this effort. Examples of proposed FIP elements adapted from existing
District rules are those affecting solvent cleaning operations, wood
products coatings, and auto refinishing. Many of these category-
specific rules are based on regulations adopted by the SCAQMD or CARB.
EPA's application of these rules to Sacramento and Ventura should not
discourage the SCAQMD and CARB from pursuing further emission
reductions from these source categories in order to meet the progress
and attainment requirements of federal and State law.
EPA also developed rules for source categories which have not yet
been regulated under the Clean Air Act but which contribute substantial
emissions in the FIP areas. For these categories, EPA worked with the
State and Districts to evaluate various mechanisms for reducing
emissions. Among the FIP rules developed under this effort are those
affecting pesticides, aerosol coatings, and livestock waste management.
(2) Relationship to existing and pending SIP provisions Some
stationary sources proposed for control through category-specific FIP
rules are already regulated by existing State or District SIP rules.
Architectural coating, for example, has been regulated in the South
Coast by versions of South Coast Rule 1113 since 1977. EPA's proposed
FIP rule (section 52.2959), however, would reduce architectural coating
emissions even further. Where a State or local rule has been approved
by EPA into the SIP (as, for example, Rule 1113 was approved in 57 FR
8104, August 11, 1992), affected sources would have to meet the tighter
of each element in the two rules.\38\ Sources will, however, need to
continue to comply with applicable State and local rules.
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\38\Section 302(q) of the Act defines the applicable
implementation plan as that ``portion . . . or most recent revision
thereof, which has been approved under section 110, or promulgated
under section 110(c) . . .'' While the regulations discussed in
sections III.C.3 and 4 of this notice may effectively supersede less
stringent provisions of federally approved SIP rules addressing the
same source categories, the State or local rules would remain in the
SIP and be enforceable.
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As discussed in section III.J. and elsewhere in this NPRM, EPA
intends to delegate the FIP rules and/or remove them whenever the State
submits an approvable, equivalent SIP provision.\39\ If, for example,
SCAQMD submits a proposed SIP amendment that makes Rule 1113 an
approvable substitute for the FIP rule, upon EPA approval, EPA would
amend section 52.2959 to rescind its applicability within the South
Coast. In many cases, CARB and affected Districts are already
developing rules similar to those proposed in this NPRM. If these are
submitted to EPA before February 1995, EPA may, upon SIP approval,
simply amend or remove the analogous component from the final
promulgated FIP. Alternatively, EPA may remove FIP elements under
separate action.
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\39\Pursuant to Sec. 110(1) of the Act, State rules are not
approvable as revisions to an implementation plan if they `interfere
with any applicable requirement concerning attainment and reasonable
further progress . . . or any other applicable requirement of this
Act.''
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If, however, EPA determines that a new or modified State rule does
not achieve emission reductions equivalent to the FIP rule, and no
other State rule compensates for the differences, EPA will maintain
implementation of the FIP measure.\40\ In such cases, sources could
again be subject to overlapping State and federal requirements.
Therefore, EPA encourages the State to adopt approvable regulations as
soon as possible to avoid duplicative effort for both regulators and
affected sources.
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\40\EPA could also approve a substitute SIP attainment
demonstration relying on a different mix of control measures to
achieve attainment and interim progress that at least equals the
FIP's schedule. In this case, EPA may rescind individual FIP rules
that are more stringent than the substitute SIP provisions, if the
particular FIP rules are no longer necessary to provide for
expeditious attainment because the SIP achieves greater reductions
from controls on other source categories.
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(3) Relationship to other applicable FIP provisions. Many of the
sources subject to the proposed category-specific rules described here
will also be affected by the cap regulations described in section
III.C.5 of this NPRM. As proposed, the cap regulations require almost
all significant stationary sources to reduce emissions by a specified
percentage. The reduction rates are currently the same for sources
which are affected by category-specific rules and for sources which are
not. As discussed in section III.C.5 of this NPRM, EPA specifically
requests comments on whether fairness and other concerns justify
adjusting the reduction requirements to give sources credit for
emission reductions required in the proposed FIP rules described in
sections III.C.2-4 of this NPRM.
(4) Rule structure. These proposed rules generally follow the
structure of New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) in 40 CFR part 60.
They contain sections on applicability, definitions, specific
requirements, exemptions, reporting, recordkeeping, test methods, and
additional components as necessary. Where immediate or near-term
compliance is feasible, the effective dates of the substantive
requirements are generally January 1, 1996, roughly one year after
final FIP promulgation is due. Issues specific to individual rules are
discussed in sections III.C.3.b-p and III.C.4 below.
(b) Solvent Cleaning Operations (Sacramento, Ventura). Proposed 40
CFR 52.2961(a) controls VOC emissions resulting from certain solvent
cleaning operations in the Sacramento and Ventura nonattainment areas.
Emission reductions are achieved by: (1) Limiting the VOC content and
vapor pressure of solvents used in solvent cleaning operations; (2)
allowing the use of add-on control equipment in lieu of meeting the VOC
content and vapor pressure limits; and (3) prescribing procedures and
requirements for solvent cleaning operations.
The proposed rule applies to facilities that use VOC-containing
materials in the production, repair, maintenance, or servicing of
parts, products, tools, machinery, equipment, or general work areas, or
that store and dispose of VOC-containing materials used in solvent
cleaning operations. Affected facilities include manufacturing plants,
printing presses, shipyards, and repair and refinishing facilities such
as auto garages, auto body shops and workshops for buses, aircraft,
trains and trucks. This proposed rule also applies to repair, service,
and production operations at institutional facilities such as
government buildings, schools, hospitals, sanitariums, prisons,
restaurants, health clubs, and theaters.
This proposed rule is based largely on SCAQMD Rule 1171 (Solvent
Cleaning Operations) as adopted on August 2, 1991. Evaluation of the
environmental, economic, socioeconomic, and other impacts of the
proposed FIP rule's requirements can be found in SCAQMD's final staff
report for Rule 1171, dated July 1991. This proposed FIP rule also
incorporates changes from the draft amended Rule 1171 released by
SCAQMD on October 6, 1993 and components of the VCAPCD Rule 74.19
(Graphic Arts) as adopted on August 11, 1992.
EPA is in the process of developing an Alternative Control
Technology (ACT) Document for solvent cleaning operations. The ACT will
primarily address recordkeeping and will not establish national
guidelines for solvent content and work practices. The proposed FIP
rule requirements on VOC content and work practices do not conflict
with the draft ACT.
As described in the technical support document, uncontrolled VOC
emissions from affected facilities are projected to total 10.44 tpd in
Sacramento in 1999, 11.82 tpd in Sacramento in 2005, and 3.55 tpd in
Ventura in 2005. Implementation of this proposed rule is projected to
reduce those emissions by 6.75, 7.66, and 2.66 tpd respectively at an
overall cost savings of $991 per ton VOC removed (1990 dollars). A cost
savings is projected because CARB and the Districts have identified
compliant solvents which are less expensive than high-VOC solvents
currently in use.
(c) Wood Products Coatings (Sacramento, Ventura) Proposed 40 CFR
52.2961(b) controls VOC emissions resulting from commercial and
industrial application in the Sacramento and Ventura nonattainment
areas of coatings while manufacturing wood products. Emission
reductions are achieved by: (1) limiting the VOC content of various
wood coating products; (2) allowing the use of add-on control equipment
that reduces VOC emissions by 85 percent in lieu of meeting the VOC
limits on coatings; and (3) restricting application of wood coatings to
application methods and equipment with high transfer efficiencies.
The proposed rule applies to all persons applying coating, inks,
stains, and/or strippers in wood product coating operations for the
purpose of manufacturing wood products, including furniture and other
coated objects made of solid wood and/or wood composition and/or
simulated wood material. The proposed rule does not apply to
residential noncommercial operations. The majority of the affected wood
products coating operators are expected to comply with the proposed
rule through the use of reformulated coatings rather than add-on
emission control devices.
The proposed rule is based largely on SCAQMD Rule 1136 entitled
``Wood Products Coatings,'' as amended on August 2, 1991. In addition,
EPA has incorporated some of SCAQMD's proposed amendments to Rule 1136,
dated July 23, 1993. Evaluation of the environmental, economic,
socioeconomic, and other impacts of Rule 1136 can be found in SCAQMD
Staff Report ``Proposed Amended Rule 1136--Wood Products Coatings,''
dated April 19, 1988, and SCAQMD Supplemental Staff Report ``Proposed
Amended Rule 1136--Wood Products Coatings,'' dated July 5, 1988.
EPA has prepared a draft Control Techniques Guideline (CTG)
document on wood products coatings that is entitled ``Control of
Volatile Organic Compound Emissions from Wood Furniture Coating
Operations.'' Upon publication of the CTG, revisions to this FIP rule
may be appropriate for consistency. EPA expects, however, that the
proposed FIP rule may be more stringent than the CTG in some regards to
reflect the unusually difficult air pollution problems in the FIP
areas.
As described in the technical support document, uncontrolled VOC
emissions from affected facilities are projected to total 0.49 tpd in
Sacramento in 1999, 0.55 tpd in Sacramento in 2005, and 0.65 tpd in
Ventura in 2005. Implementation of this proposed rule is projected to
reduce those emissions by 0.45, 0.51, and 0.61 tpd respectively at a
cost of $18 per ton VOC removed (1988 dollars).
(d) Automotive Refinishing Operations (Sacramento). Proposed 40 CFR
52.2961(c) controls VOC emissions from automobile refinishing
operations in the Sacramento nonattainment area. Emission reductions
are achieved by: (1) limiting the VOC content of various automobile
refinishing coatings; (2) allowing the use of add-on control equipment
that reduces VOC emissions by 85 percent in lieu of meeting the VOC
limits on coatings; and (3) restricting application of automotive
refinishing coatings to application methods and equipment with high
transfer efficiencies.
The proposed rule applies to facilities that apply coatings to
motor vehicles and mobile equipment or their existing parts and
components for the purpose of on-site refinishing and modification. The
proposed rule does not apply to application of original equipment
manufacturing coatings applied at manufacturing plants. Affected
facilities include autobody repair/paint shops, production autobody
paint shops, new car dealer repair/paint shops, fleet operator repair/
paint shops, custom-made car fabrication facilities, and truck body
builders.
Proposed 40 CFR 52.2961(c) is based largely on SCAQMD's Rule 1151,
Motor Vehicle and Mobile Equipment Non-Assembly Line Coating Operations
(September 6, 1991). Portions of the proposed FIP rule are based on
CARB's Determination of Reasonably Available Control Technology and
Best Available Retrofit Control Technology (RACT/BARCT) for Automotive
Refinishing Operations (January 8, 1991). An evaluation of the
environmental, economic, socioeconomic, and other impacts of Rule 1151
requirements can be found in SCAQMD's staff report for the proposed
amended Rule 1151 (August, 1991); this evaluation is also applicable to
this proposed FIP rule.
As described in the technical support document, uncontrolled VOC
emissions from affected facilities are projected to total 4.23 tpd in
1999 and 4.71 tpd in 2005. Implementation of this proposed rule is
projected to reduce those emissions by 3.77 tpd and 4.19 tpd
respectively at a cost of $7,200 per ton of VOC removed (1990 dollars).
Under section 183(e)(3) of the Act, EPA may in the future issue
either national regulations or a CTG for this source category, as well
as for other categories discussed in this section. If EPA does so and
the FIP rule is less stringent than the national guidance or rule, EPA
will amend the FIP rule appropriately.
(e) Adhesives and Sealants (Sacramento) Proposed 40 CFR 52.2961(d)
controls VOC emissions resulting from industrial and commercial use of
adhesives and sealants in the Sacramento nonattainment area. Emission
reductions are achieved by: (1) limiting the VOC content of various
adhesives and sealants; and (2) allowing the use of add-on control
equipment that reduces VOC emissions by 85 percent in lieu of meeting
the VOC limits on coatings.
This proposed rule applies to certain facilities that supply, sell,
or use adhesives, sealants, or adhesive primers. Affected facilities
include (but are not limited to) manufacturing plants, architectural
and construction companies, and welding operations. Various activities
are exempt from all or part or the proposed rule, including tire
repair, undersea-based weapon systems manufacturing, research and
development, and small quantity users.
Proposed 40 CFR 52.2961(d) is based largely on draft guidance and
model rules developed by members of the CARB/California Air Pollution
Control Officers Association's (CAPCOA) Technical Review Group included
in ``Reasonably Available Control Technology and Best Available
Retrofit Control Technology (RACT/BARCT) for Adhesives and Sealants,''
as presented in a workshop on September 30, 1993. In addition, portions
of the proposed FIP rule are based on Bay Area Air Quality Management
District (BAAQMD) Regulation 8, Rule 51, Adhesive and Sealant Products;
VCAPCD Rule 74.20, Adhesives and Sealants; and SCAQMD Rule 1168,
Control of Volatile Organic Compound Emissions from Adhesive
Application. Evaluation of the environmental, economic, socioeconomic,
and other impacts of the proposed FIP rule's requirements was partially
based on the information provided in the BAAQMD and VCAPCD staff
reports for their respective rules.
As described in the technical support document, uncontrolled VOC
emissions from affected facilities are projected to total 2.64 tpd in
1999 and 2.99 tpd in 2005. Implementation of this proposed rule is
projected to reduce those emissions by 1.29 tpd and 1.47 tpd
respectively at a cost of $890 per ton of VOC removed (1989 dollars).
(f) Can and Coil Coating (Sacramento). Proposed 40 CFR 52.2961(e)
controls VOC emissions from certain metal container, metal closure, and
metal coil coating operations in the Sacramento nonattainment area.
Emission reductions are achieved by: (1) limiting the VOC content of
various can and coil coatings; (2) allowing the use of add-on control
equipment that achieves a 90 percent capture efficiency and 95 percent
destruction or removal efficiency in lieu of meeting the VOC limits on
coatings; and (3) restricting application of can and coil coatings to
application methods and equipment with high transfer efficiencies.
The proposed rule applies to facilities that apply coatings to
metal containers, metal closures, and/or metal coils. Facilities that
apply 1 gallon per day or less of spray coating, however, are exempt
from the requirements of the proposed rule. Sacramento and Placer
counties have implemented can and coil rules (SMAQMD Rule 452 and
PCAPCD Rule 223) similar to this proposed FIP rule, although not as
stringent. Currently, no sources exist in El Dorado and Sutter
counties. Therefore, while the rule is proposed for implementation in
the entire Sacramento ozone nonattainment area (as described in 40 CFR
81.305), most of the near-term emission reductions are projected to
occur in Yolo and Solano counties.
Proposed 40 CFR 52.2961(e) is based largely on SCAQMD's Rule 1125,
Metal Container, Closure, and Coil Coating Operations. Portions of the
proposed FIP rule are based on the following: CARB's ``Determination of
Reasonably Available Control Technology and Best Available Retrofit
Control Technology (RACT/BARCT) for Metal Container, Closure and Coil
Coating Operations'' (July 21, 1992); San Diego County Air Pollution
Control District (SDAPCD) Rule 67.4, Metal Container, Closure, and Coil
Coating Operations (1990); and SMAQMD Rule 452, Can Coating (August 21,
1990).
An evaluation of the environmental, economic, socioeconomic, and
other impacts of Rule 1125 requirements can be found in the SCAQMD
staff reports for Rule 1125 (February 2, 1979 and October 13, 1989).
Evaluations of these impacts are also presented in CARB's RACT/BARCT
Determination for Metal Containers, Metal Closures, and/or Metal Coils.
Both of these evaluations are applicable to this proposed FIP rule.
As described in the technical support document, uncontrolled VOC
emissions from affected facilities are projected to total 2.09 tpd in
1999 and 2.34 tpd in 2005. Implementation of this proposed rule is
projected to reduce those emissions by 0.26 tpd and 0.30 tpd
respectively at a cost savings of $540 per ton of VOC removed (1990
dollars). A cost savings is projected in part because CARB and the
Districts have identified compliant coatings which are less expensive
than high-VOC coatings currently in use.
(g) Commercial Bakeries (Sacramento). Proposed 40 CFR 52.2961(f)
controls VOC emissions from commercial bakery ovens in the Sacramento
nonattainment area that emit VOCs while baking yeast-leavened products.
The proposed rule requires that certain bakeries install and operate a
VOC pollution control system to reduce VOC emissions by at least 95
percent by weight. The following four yeast-leavened dough processes
are affected: sponge dough, straight dough, liquid ferments, and no-
time dough.
Facilities with a combined rated heat input capacity of all ovens
less than 2 million British Thermal Units (Btus) per hour and
facilities with ovens used exclusively for baking products leavened
chemically (without yeast) are exempt from all of the proposed rule
requirements, including recordkeeping and test method provisions.
Facilities which emit less than 6.5 tons of VOC per year are exempt
from the standards and compliance schedule requirements, but still must
observe the recordkeeping and test method requirements.
The proposed rule is based largely on SDCAPCD proposed Rule 67.24
(Bakery Ovens), as presented in Workshop Draft form on September 17,
1992. Portions of the proposed rule are based on SCAQMD Rule 1153
(Commercial Bakery Ovens) as adopted on January 4, 1991 and BAAQMD
Regulation 8, Rule 42 (Large Commercial Bread Bakeries) as adopted on
September 20, 1989. Evaluations of environmental, economic,
socioeconomic, and other impacts of the proposed rule can be found in
EPA's ACT Document for Bakery Oven Emissions (EPA-453/R-92-017,
December 1992).
As described in the technical support document, uncontrolled VOC
emissions from affected facilities are projected to total 1.28 tpd in
1999 and 1.40 tpd in 2005. Implementation of this proposed rule is
projected to reduce those emissions by 1.22 tpd and 1.33 tpd
respectively at a cost of $1,200 per ton VOC removed or 0.2 cents per
pound of bread (1990 dollars).
(h) Municipal Waste Landfills (Sacramento). Proposed 40 CFR
52.2961(g) controls emissions of non-methane organic compounds (NMOC)
from certain municipal solid waste (MSW) landfills in the Sacramento
nonattainment area by collecting and processing the landfill gases
evolved from decomposition of organic material in MSW landfills.
Emission reductions are achieved by requiring collection of 90 percent
of the landfill gases produced, and destruction of 98 percent of the
NMOCs collected. By controlling NMOCs, VOCs are also controlled because
NMOCs include, but are not limited to, VOCs.
The substantive requirements of the proposed rule apply to MSW
landfills that have received more than 500,000 tons of decomposable
solid waste during their operational lifetime. The following types of
landfills are exempt from some or all requirements of this proposed
rule: facilities that have accepted only hazardous waste; facilities
issued an Authority to Construct permit from the applicable air quality
management district or air pollution control district prior to April 1,
1995 and that have an NMOC control device in place with at least 90
percent efficiency; and facilities that demonstrate a low concentration
of landfill gas (i.e., less than 500 ppm by volume total organic
compounds measured as methane) at all points near the surface of the
landfill.
Proposed 40 CFR 52.2961(g) is based largely on VCAPCD Rule 74.17
(Solid Waste Disposal Sites), as adopted on September 17, 1991.
Evaluation of the environmental, economic, socioeconomic, and other
impacts of that rule can be found in VCAPCD's ``Final Staff Report for
Rule 74.17,'' dated September 17, 1991.
EPA is in the process of developing ``Standards of Performance for
New Stationary Sources and Guidelines for Control of Existing Sources:
Municipal Solid Waste Landfills'' (``MSW Guidelines''). This proposed
FIP rule is also based on work performed in development of the ``MSW
Guidelines.'' Upon publication of the ``MSW Guidelines'' in the Federal
Register, it may be appropriate to revise the FIP rule for consistency.
As described in the technical support document, uncontrolled VOC
emissions from affected facilities are projected to total 0.94 tpd in
1999 and 1.08 tpd in 2005. Implementation of this proposed rule is
projected to reduce those emissions by 0.60 tpd and 0.69 tpd
respectively at a cost of $18,000 per ton of VOC removed.
(i) Livestock Waste (Sacramento, South Coast, and Ventura).
Proposed 40 CFR 52.2961(h) controls VOC emissions from livestock waste
operations. Livestock waste emission sources include cattle, hogs,
sheep, and poultry operations. VOC emissions are created during the
anaerobic decomposition of livestock wastes. Although methane emissions
are estimated to make up 70 to 80 percent of the total organic gases
(TOG) created, VOC emissions account for approximately 10 percent of
the TOG. Livestock waste operations account for approximately 7.7 tpd
of VOC emissions in the Sacramento area, 34.4 tpd in the South
Coast,\41\ and 3.8 tpd in Ventura. Although livestock waste operations
have traditionally not been the subject of VOC regulation, they are now
under consideration because of the magnitude of livestock waste
emissions and the need to achieve reductions from all FIP area emission
VOC sources, most of which have previously reduced or will soon be
required to reduce their VOC emissions.
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\41\These estimates do not include methane and ethane emissions.
Because limited information was available regarding the fraction of
poultry operations within Riverside, San Bernardino, and Los Angeles
counties which are located in the South Coast Air Basin, the 34.4
tpd estimate includes the total poultry population found in the
three aforementioned counties. As a result, livestock waste emission
estimates may be slightly overestimated for the South Coast Air
Basin.
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As proposed, the rule would only apply to dairy cattle operations
of 400 head or greater. These operations are estimated to represent
approximately 1.8 tpd of VOC emissions in the Sacramento area and 10.8
tpd in the South Coast. Ventura County currently does not have any
dairy operations of greater than 200 head of cattle and, as a result,
dairy operations would not be affected in Ventura. Although other
livestock waste operations (e.g., chicken, hogs, sheep facilities) are
not being proposed for regulation at this time, EPA will continue to
investigate potential options for reducing emissions from other
livestock waste operations as appropriate.
Emissions from livestock waste are determined by the quantity of
manure produced, how it is handled, and the temperature at which it is
handled. The manure management system employed is very important. Wet
management systems, such as liquid or slurry based systems (e.g.,
lagoons), convert large portions of the carbon to methane and other
gases. Dry management systems, which rely on placing the manure in
storage piles, also result in methane and other volatile organic
compound emissions created by the anaerobic conditions within the
storage piles. The primary emission reduction strategies available to
reduce VOC emissions include utilizing methane recovery systems and/or
promoting enhanced aerobic conditions in manure storage areas.
Methods recommended for promoting aerobic decomposition of
livestock waste include: aerating manure storage piles every three to
seven days; scraping feedlots at least three times per year; and
spreading oxidizing agents on feedlots. For waste management practices
using a dry method, the proposed FIP measure will require the periodic
aeration and removal of manure storage piles. This measure is estimated
to reduce VOC emissions by 25 percent.
Methane recovery and utilization systems are considered a potential
control method for reducing VOC and methane emissions. Methane is
considered an important greenhouse gas and also a potential energy
source. Depending on the size of the livestock waste operation, methane
recovery systems can pay for themselves over time and result in cost
savings for large-scale dairy operations. Methane recovery systems are
currently operating at 23 sites in the U.S., including at a swine
facility near Tulare, CA and a dairy near Modesto, CA. Near Chino, CA,
a recovery system is under development which would process an estimated
2,500 tpd of cattle waste and 600 tpd of chicken waste. Technologies
for methane recovery include covered lagoons, plug flow digesters, and
complete mix digesters. Although these recovery systems represent a
viable, demonstrated technology, some systems have not been as
successful as expected because of improper design or other factors. For
these reasons, EPA requests comment and information on any examples,
circumstances, and/or reasons why a previously installed recovery
system may not have achieved its full expectations.
The proposed FIP rule will require that at least 55 percent of the
manure generated be collected and managed through a methane recovery
system. These systems are estimated to reduce emissions by 80 percent.
The technical and economic feasibility of this technology depends
on farm size, climate, and energy process. The off-gas (i.e., methane)
collected can be utilized in the dairy operation for processes such as:
electricity production (e.g., to fuel an engine generator); heating
(e.g., to fire boilers and/or space heaters); and cooling (e.g., to
fire chillers or other refrigeration equipment). This in turn can
create farm profits from avoided energy costs or sales of excess
electricity to the local utility. Although methane recovery systems
would require a large initial investment, estimated annual costs range
from $100 to $1,300 per year (for a 400 head dairy) to a cost savings
of $10,000 per year (for a 1,400 head dairy). The initial investment
could be recovered within six to fourteen years, depending on dairy
size.
The overall emission reductions from livestock waste operations
will depend on the percentage of waste which is managed via the dry
method (e.g., placed in storage piles) compared to the handled through
a wet method (e.g., sent to the covered lagoon or digester). For
purposes of the FIP reduction estimates, it is assumed that a minimum
of 55 percent of the livestock waste would be sent to a lagoon or
digester. Assuming that a hypothetical dairy farm would install a
recovery system for liquid management and use the dry method for the
remaining fraction of the wastes not sent to the recovery system,
overall expected cost per ton of VOC reduced is estimated to range from
about $2,100 per ton for a 400 head dairy to a $400 (cost) to $100
(savings) per ton for a 1,450 head dairy.
Preliminary evaluation of the environmental, economic, and other
impacts of the proposed rule are discussed in EPA's technical support
document. VOC Emission reductions expected from this proposed
regulation are estimated at 1.0 tpd in the Sacramento area and 6.0 tpd
in the South Coast. No reductions are expected in Ventura County
because all livestock waste operations are believed to be less than 200
head. Additional reductions could be achieved if the requirements were
extended to smaller livestock waste operations, such as 250 head or
greater.
EPA is requesting comments and information on a number of issues
related to this proposed measure. Comments are requested on the
proposed FIP requirements and/or other potential emission reduction
strategies not addressed in the proposal. Because each dairy operation
is unique and can vary in its waste management practices, comments are
specifically requested on alternative emission reduction methods and/or
more cost effective strategies which might achieve equivalent results
to those proposed.
EPA also requests comments and information on the number of dairy
farms in the FIP areas which contain at least 400 head and the
percentage of dairy farms which manage at least 55 percent of the
livestock waste through a wet method. Because the emission factors used
to estimate VOC emissions from these sources should be updated, EPA
intends to explore options for additional testing to verify that VOC
emission factors accurately reflect emissions expected from both wet
and dry waste management methods.
(j)(1) Fugitive Emissions from Oil and Gas Production Facilities
and Conveying Stations (Sacramento, South Coast, Ventura).
Proposed 40 CFR 52.2961(t) controls VOC fugitive leak emissions
from valves, flanges, fittings, pumps, compressors, open ended lines
and/or other components at oil and gas production facilities and
conveying stations.\42\ 1990 VOC emissions from these fugitive sources
were estimated at approximately 0.9 tons per day (tpd) in the
Sacramento area, 4.4 tpd in the South Coast, and 3.8 tpd in Ventura.
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\42\Conveying stations include any compressor station, metering
station, or other transfer station located between the extraction
well and the refinery or gas processing plant.
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The proposed rule builds upon current regulations and strengthens
and improves existing rules through retrofits on gas-operated control
valves, lower allowable leak thresholds, correction of rule
deficiencies, and improved inspection and repair programs. The proposed
regulation is based on: CARB RACT guidance for the control of fugitive
emissions of VOCs from oil and gas production and processing
facilities, refineries, chemical plants, and pipeline transfer
stations; Santa Barbara APCD Rule 331; SCAQMD Rule 1173; and new
information regarding gas-operated control valves.
Currently, gas-operated control valves are not regulated in the FIP
areas. These valves are designed to bleed upon actuation, resulting in
the release of uncontrolled VOC emissions. The proposed FIP rule would
require that these valves be retrofitted using a control valve which
would reduce gas bleed emissions by an estimated 95 percent. EPA has
estimated a California population of 10,000 gas-operated control valves
and assumed that these valves are evenly distributed throughout the
state. EPA has also assumed that the control valves are only used in
natural gas conveyance and petroleum production. Comments are
specifically requested on the number of gas-operated control valves in
the FIP areas and whether these valves are used in other operations
besides those described above.
The proposed FIP rule will establish a fugitives regulation for oil
and gas production and conveying stations within the Sacramento FIP
area. Previously, these fugitive sources were unregulated. The majority
of expected reductions will be from the Yolo-Solano portion of the FIP
area. In the Ventura FIP area, the rule builds upon requirements in
VCAPCD Rule 74.10 and lower the number of allowable leaking components
and leak definition to requirements consistent with existing rules and
CARB's RACT guidance.
In the South Coast FIP area, the proposed FIP rule will correct the
gas leak definition in SCAQMD Rule 1173. The proposed correction
defines a gas leak as total gaseous hydrocarbon in excess of the
applicable parts per million limit measured as methane.
In the Sacramento FIP area, the proposed FIP rule will establish an
inspection and repair program. In the Ventura FIP area, the proposed
FIP rule will further strengthen the existing program to make it
consistent with those adopted in other districts and CARB's RACT
guidance.
Evaluation of the environmental, economic, and other impacts of the
proposed rule are discussed in EPA's technical support document.
Emission reductions expected from this proposed rule are estimated at
0.8 tpd in the Sacramento area, 2.8 tpd in the South Coast, and 2.1 tpd
in Ventura. (j)(2) Fugitive Emissions from Gas Processing Plants,
Refineries, Bulk Plants, Bulk Terminals, and Chemical Plants
(Sacramento, South Coast, Ventura). Proposed 40 CFR 52.2961(i)
controls VOC emissions from fugitive leaks resulting from valves,
flanges, fittings, pumps, compressors, open ended lines and/or other
components at gas processing plants, refineries, bulk plants, bulk
terminals, and chemical plants. 1990 VOC emissions from these fugitive
sources were estimated to be less than 0.9 tons per day (tpd) in the
Sacramento area, approximately 17.5 tpd in the South Coast, and 0.8 tpd
in Ventura.
The proposed rule builds upon current or proposed regulations and
strengthens and improves existing rules through: regulation of
additional fugitive sources; lower allowable leak thresholds;
correction of rule deficiencies; and improved inspection and repair
programs. The proposed FIP regulation is based on: CARB RACT guidance
for the control of fugitive emissions of VOCs from oil and gas
production and processing facilities, refineries, chemical plants, and
pipeline transfer stations; Bay Area AQMD (BAAQMD) Regulation 9--Rules
18, 22, and 25; SCAQMD Rule 1173; and EPA's proposed National Emission
Standards for Organic Hazardous Air Pollutants (HON) from the synthetic
organic chemical manufacturing industry and equipment leaks from seven
other processes (FR 52 62685).\43\
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\43\Although EPA's proposed HON is expected to be finalized
soon, the proposed HON covers only emissions designated as hazardous
air pollutants, which may make up only a fraction of VOC emissions
from affected FIP sources. The proposed FIP fugitives rule is
intended to reduce VOC emissions. In some instances, the proposed
HON is less stringent than adopted SIP regulations in California and
the proposed FIP measure. Although the proposed HON was considered,
EPA's proposed fugitives rule relies primarily on current California
regulations and/or guidance. After the HON is finalized, EPA will
clarify the overlap between existing SIP and/or proposed FIP rules
and the proposed HON.
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The proposed rule will establish and/or lower allowable leak levels
for affected components. Allowable leak levels for valves and
connectors are proposed at 500 parts per million based on BAAQMD
regulations\44\ and EPA's proposed HON. Allowable leak levels for other
components are proposed at levels based on CARB's RACT guidance and
SCAQMD Rule 1173.
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\44\On January 1, 1997, BAAQMD Regulation 8, Rules 18 and 25
reduce allowable leak levels to 100 ppm for valves and connectors
and 500 ppm for pumps and compressors. Although these lower limits
are not being proposed as FIP limits at this time, EPA will continue
to investigate the need for and potential reductions from leak
thresholds consistent with the BAAQMD regulations.
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In all three FIP areas, the proposed measure will regulate
fugitives from bulk plants and bulk terminals. Because only a portion
of these sources have traditionally been regulated for their fugitive
emissions (i.e., loading and storage of petroleum liquids), fugitive
emissions may have been underestimated in previous inventory
projections. Because emission factors were not readily available for
these sources, emission estimates were made using fugitive emission
factors for refineries. Preliminary analyses have determined that bulk
plant and bulk terminal emissions may account for as much as an
additional 2.9 tpd in the Sacramento area, 9.3 tpd in the South Coast,
and 1.7 tpd in Ventura. Potential reductions from these sources alone
would be 2.2 tpd in the Sacramento area, 4.1 tpd in the South Coast,
and 1.4 tpd in Ventura. EPA requests comments and information regarding
appropriate emission factors to use for fugitive emissions from bulk
plants and bulk terminals.
The proposed FIP rule will correct the gas leak definition in South
Coast AQMD Rule 1173. The proposed correction defines a gas leak as
total gaseous hydrocarbon in excess of the applicable parts per million
limit measured as methane.
Evaluation of the environmental, economic, and other impacts of the
proposed rule are discussed in EPA's technical support document.
Emission reductions expected from this proposed rule are estimated to
be 0.7 tpd in the Sacramento area, 3.1 tpd in the South Coast, and 0.7
tpd in Ventura. Fugitive emission reductions from bulk plants and bulk
terminals are not included in the above estimates.
(k) Service Stations (Sacramento, Ventura, South Coast). Proposed
rule 40 CFR 52.2961(j) reduces VOC emissions from gasoline dispensing
facilities. Gasoline service stations are a source of VOC emissions
created during vehicle refueling and storage tank working/breathing
losses. Service station VOC emissions are estimated at approximately
3.2 tpd in the Sacramento area, 25.3 tpd in the South Coast, and 1.2
tpd in Ventura. Although service stations in the FIP areas currently
have vapor recovery systems, the proposed FIP rule builds upon current
Phase I and Phase II regulations and strengthens and improves existing
rules by requiring pressure/vacuum relief valves on open vent pipes and
the phasing out of inefficient vapor recovery system components.
Pressure-vacuum relief valves are expected to virtually eliminate
breathing and working losses from the storage tank vent pipe. Pressure-
vacuum relief valves cost less than fifty dollars, are easily installed
without underground construction, and improve efficiency of existing
vapor recovery systems by one to three percent. The pressure/vacuum
relief valves typically pay for themselves within less than one year
and result in a cost savings. Additional emission reductions will be
achieved through elimination of exemptions and the replacement of
remote check valves in Phase II control systems. The Phase I efficiency
is expected to be increased through the combined impact of the
requirements for poppetted drybreaks in the Phase I vapor control
systems, the installation of the pressure-vacuum valve on the vent
pipes, and the installation of CARB certified spill boxes. Phase II
efficiency is expected to be increased through the combined impact of
using proper tubing between the riser and dispenser cabinet, requiring
a certified insertion interlock mechanism on all bellows-equipped
nozzles, and replacing non- coaxial hose with coaxial hose. Many of the
proposed revisions are based on recent amendments to BAAQMD Regulation
8, Rule 7--Gasoline Dispensing Facilities.
Emission reductions expected from this proposed rule are estimated
at 1.3 tpd in the Sacramento area, 8.9 tpd in the South Coast, and 0.3
tpd in Ventura. Because fuel savings result from installation of the
pressure/vacuum relief valves and because inefficient vapor recovery
components wear out and can be replaced by more efficient components
during regularly scheduled maintenance, the cost impacts of the
proposed measure will be minimized. The overall cost effectiveness is
estimated at $1,600 per ton of VOC reduced.
(l) Waste Burning (Sacramento, South Coast, and Ventura). Proposed
40 CFR 52.2961(k) controls VOC emissions from waste burning. Waste
burning activities are defined as agricultural burning, range
management burning, forest management burning, and open burning. 1990
waste burning emissions\45\ were estimated at 3.8 tpd in the Sacramento
FIP area, 0.7 tpd in the South Coast FIP area, and less than 0.1 in the
Ventura FIP area.
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\45\These estimates do not include emissions from incineration
and unplanned fires (e.g., structural fires and wildfires).
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Most waste burning activities are currently restricted by a
permissive burn/no-burn day program as specified in the California
Health and Safety Code Regulations. This program allows the local air
district office to declare a permissive burn day or a no-burn day,
requires that subject sources obtain a burn permit from the local
designated county or state agency, and limits burning to permissive
burn days. Waste burning is restricted to days with acceptable air
quality based largely on current and forecasted visibility and
particulate levels.
The proposed FIP rule would complement and expand the current
permissive burn/no-burn day program to incorporate ambient ozone air
quality considerations. The purpose of this proposal is not to ban
waste burning but to restrict waste burning to days when ambient ozone
concentrations are within acceptable levels. On days predicted to
exceed the California ambient air quality standard for ozone (0.09
ppm), all forms of waste burning would be prohibited. EPA is currently
investigating the methodologies used to predict ozone exceedances and
no-burn days. These methodologies could be used to predict air quality
conditions using current and forecasted weather, meteorology, ozone
levels, and other relevant criteria. A similar forecasting strategy
would be used as part of the proposed FIP waste burning rule. SMAQMD
has a voluntary permissive burn/no-burn program which takes into
account predicted high ambient ozone levels. VCAPCD restricts burning
when the California ozone standard of 0.09 ppm is expected to be
exceeded.
Although not contained within the proposed FIP rule, EPA expects to
establish a notification system compatible with and similar to those
already in place for current permissive burn day/no-burn day programs.
Because poor visibility or high particulate levels can also result
during conditions conducive to high ambient ozone levels, there is
expected to be some overlap between current no-burn days and any
additional no-burn days resulting from the proposed FIP program. During
1990 no-burn days were declared on 16 days in the Sacramento FIP area,
68 days in the South Coast FIP area, and 311 days in the Ventura FIP
area. Using 1990 air quality data, the proposed rule is expected to
restrict burning on an estimated additional 45 days per year (dpy) in
the Sacramento FIP area, 121 dpy in the South Coast FIP area, 3 dpy in
the Ventura FIP area. In the Sacramento area, the largest impact would
occur on days during July through September when ozone levels typically
reach their highest levels. In the South Coast, the largest impact
would occur on high ozone days during March through October. Because of
Ventura's current policy on waste burning, the proposal would have
minimal impact.
Open burning operations at single and two-family dwellings are
currently exempt from most permissive burn/no-burn day programs.
Although EPA is not proposing that these sources be required to obtain
a burn permit, the proposed FIP regulation would also require that this
type of burning activity be restricted to permissive burn days.
Comments are requested on the impacts and issues resulting from
including these sources in the proposed FIP regulation.
The cost resulting from the lost opportunity to burn waste on the
additional no-burn days would be minimized by allowing sources to burn
on days when exceedances are not predicted. In the case of Sacramento,
the proposed rule is expected to allow waste burning during over 80
percent of the calendar days each year. However, in the South Coast,
where the state ozone standard is exceeded roughly 50 percent of the
calendar days each year, the proposed rule would restrict burning to
approximately 50 percent of the calendar days per year. The impact of
the proposed FIP measure in Ventura is expected to be minimal since the
district has already instituted a policy of restricting burning when
the state standard is predicted to be exceeded.
Comments are requested on the feasibility of this strategy for the
FIP areas, especially for the South Coast FIP area. EPA also requests
information on potential costs resulting from the proposed FIP measure.
Comments are also requested on alternative strategies (e.g., soil
incorporation, residue removal, after market disposal alternatives)
which will reduce waste burning impacts on ambient ozone air quality.
EPA seeks comments on ways to avoid any increased costs and increased
pesticide use that may be associated with the rule. Comments are
requested on potential VOC reductions resulting from implementation of
the Connelly-Areias-Chandler Rice Straw Burning Reduction Act of 1991
(California Health & Safety Code, Part 4, Chapter 3, Article 3, Section
41865).
Comments are requested on the necessity of exemptions in the
proposed FIP measure. For example, California district offices may
exempt a source from no burn day prohibitions during circumstances of
imminent and substantial economic loss. However, these terms are
undefined. Comments are requested on an appropriate definition for the
aforementioned terms.
EPA is also requesting comment on an alternative to the
aforementioned strategy. As an alternative, a waste burning measure
could be designed to only allow waste burning during the period of the
year when ozone levels are within the state ozone standard, typically
November through February depending on the area. This alternative would
supplement the current no-burn day program and prohibit burning during
the ozone season. This approach would provide greater certainty to
affected parties so they could adequately plan their burn schedules;
however, it would also provide less flexibility by prohibiting burning
on days expected to be within ozone standard.
While EPA is continuing to evaluate the emissions inventory and
potential reductions from the proposed FIP measure, preliminary
emission reduction estimates from the 1990 baseline are 1.8 to 3.6 tpd
in the Sacramento area, 0.3 to 0.5 tpd in the South Coast FIP area, and
less than 0.1 tpd in the Ventura FIP area. Actual reductions will
depend on the overall effectiveness of the FIP measure.
(m) Residential Water Heaters (Sacramento). Proposed 40 CFR
52.2961(l) controls NOX emissions resulting from residential water
heaters. Emission reductions are achieved by: (1) replacement of
conventional gas-fired water heaters with low-NOX units; (2)
replacement of conventional gas-fired water heaters with electric water
heaters; or (3) installation of solar panels to decrease natural gas
consumption associated with the use of gas-fired water heaters.
The proposed rule applies to any natural gas-fired water heater
installed in the Sacramento FIP area after August 15, 1995, which emits
in excess of 40 nanograms of NOX (calculated as weight equivalent
NOX per joule) and with a heat input rating less than 75,000
British thermal units per hour (Btu/hr). The rule does not apply to
water heaters with a rated heat input of 75,000 Btu/hr or greater, used
for recreational vehicles, or used exclusively to heat swimming pools
and hot tubs.
The proposed rule is based largely on SCAQMD Rule 1121, BAAQMD
Regulation 9--Rule 6, and VCAPCD Rule 74.11.
Evaluation of the environmental, economic, and other impacts of the
proposed rule are discussed in detail in EPA's technical support
document. The proposed rule is expected to result in a cost savings
created by the more energy efficient units and lower cost of the low-
NOX units (compared to currently sold units). Considering the
long-term fuel costs for residential water heating, solar water heaters
can also be a cost-effective option.
As described in the technical support document, uncontrolled 1990
NOX emissions from residential water heaters were 1.8 tpd in the
Sacramento FIP area. Emissions are projected to continue to grow to 2.3
tpd in 1999 and to 2.7 tpd in 2005. Implementation of this proposed
rule is projected to reduce those emissions by 0.2 and 0.6 tpd
respectively at a retail cost savings of $3.00 to $19.00 per heater
(1992 dollars) if replaced with a low-NOX heater. Additional
reductions will continue to occur until approximately 2008 when it is
expected that all existing units will have been replaced\46\ by the
low-NOX units. Energy savings and costs would also accrue if
currently available low-NOX, higher efficiency units or solar
powered water heaters were used. While electric water heaters are also
an option, electricity currently costs approximately three times the
cost of natural gas in the Sacramento area.
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\46\Estimated service life of a residential water heater is
approximately twelve years.
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Additional reductions could be achieved in all three FIP areas by
requiring that a percentage of new housing starts in the areas install
solar water heater systems. While it is not feasible for EPA to require
this approach through a FIP regulation, it is very feasible for local
communities to adopt ordinances that require a percentage of solar
water heaters in new construction. Examples of such communities include
the Gold River Area Housing Development in Sacramento, the City of La
Verne in Los Angeles County, and the cities of Thousand Oaks and Del
Mar.
Comments are requested on additional methods or options, such as
market incentives and methods encouraging solar technologies, which
might further reduce NOX emissions from residential water heaters.
(n) Stationary Internal Combustion Engines (Sacramento). Proposed
40 CFR 52.2961(m) controls NOX emissions resulting from stationary
internal combustion (IC) engines. These engines are used for a variety
of applications including electric power generation for both base and
standby service, oil and gas pipeline pumping/transport, oil and gas
exploration and production, irrigation, hoisting, and nuclear power
plant emergency cooling water pump operation. Engines are generally
classified by fuel type, method of ignition, combustion cycle, and
charging method. 1990 NOX emissions from IC engines in the
Sacramento FIP area were estimated at 2.6 tons per day.
Several control techniques are available for controlling NOX
emissions from IC engines. Combustion controls include exhaust gas
recirculation, prestratified charge, injection timing retard, pre-
ignition chamber combustion, control of the air-to-fuel ratio, and wet
injection. Post combustion add-on controls include selective
noncatalytic reduction selective catalytic reduction. Other control
techniques include conversion of fuel-fired engines to electric motors
or the use of alternative fuels such as methanol in place of diesel
fuel.
The proposed rule applies to any owner or operator of an IC engine
rated at 50 or more brake horsepower in the Sacramento area. After May
15, 1997, all IC engines shall meet a parts per million NOX
standard based on engine and fuel type as follows: rich-burn engines,
25 ppm; lean-burn engines, 45 ppm; diesel 80, ppm; rich-burn (waste
gas), 50 ppm; lean-burn (waste gas), 125 ppm. VOC and CO limits are
also included within the standards. Engines rated at less than 50 brake
horsepower or operated less than 200 hours per calendar year are exempt
from the requirements of the proposed rule. Additional exemptions are
provided for very low or specialized uses.
The proposed rule limits are based largely on SCAQMD Rule 1110.2,
VCAPCD Rule 74.9, and EPA's ACT guidance for IC engines.
Evaluation of the environmental, economic, and other impacts are
discussed in detail in EPA's technical support document. The rule is
expected to affect approximately 100 IC engines in the Sacramento FIP
area. Although there are additional IC engines in the FIP area, these
sources are already meeting the proposed FIP limits or would be exempt
from the proposed measure. As described in the technical support
document, 1990 uncontrolled NOX emissions from subject sources
were estimated at 2.6 tons/day (tpd). Implementation of this rule is
expected to reduce those emissions by 2.3 tpd at an average estimated
cost of $7,200 per ton of NOX reduced.
It is important to note that this proposed rule will be amended in
the final promulgation to further clarify which engines are subject to
the rule's provisions. The effect of such amendment may be to exempt
from the requirements of this rule any new IC engines which will be
subject to proposed FIP nonroad engine rules or national nonroad engine
regulations issued under EPA's authority for regulating mobile sources
in accordance with Title II of the Act. These mobile IC engines are
proposed to be governed by specific emission standards and other
requirements discussed below in section III.D.4.
The emission reduction estimates presented above are associated
with reductions only from existing IC engines reflected in the 1990
emissions inventory. In the final FIP, EPA will attempt to adjust this
calculation of credit to clarify the relationship between reductions
from this proposed rule and reductions from the nonroad engine rule
proposed in III.D.5., which applies to newly manufactured nonroad IC
engines. The adjustment would amend NOX reduction credits
attributed to proposed rule 40 CFR 52.2961(m), by a factor relating to
the expected turnover of existing IC engines through the year of
attainment.
(o) Industrial, Commercial, and Institutional Boilers, Steam
Generators, and Process Heaters (Sacramento). (1) Biomass Boilers.
Proposed 40 CFR 52.2961(n) controls NOX emissions resulting from
biomass boilers. Biomass boilers typically burn wood, wood waste, and/
or bark as a fuel source. Almond shells, landfill gas, or natural gas
have also been used as a supplemental fuel source. Emission reductions
are achieved through application of selective noncatalytic reduction or
selective catalytic reduction. Both systems are post-combustion
NOX control techniques in which ammonia (or urea) is injected into
the flue gas to reduce NOX to nitrogen and water.
The proposed rule applies to any owner or operator of a biomass
boiler or steam generator with a rated heat input capacity equal to or
greater than 5 million British thermal units per hour (mmBtu/hr) and an
annual heat input greater than or equal to 9 billion Btu/yr. After May
15, 1997, biomass boilers shall either meet a 70 ppm NOX standard
or reduce uncontrolled NOX emissions by 50 percent.
The proposed rule limits are based largely on demonstrated controls
at approximately 30 different biomass boilers located in the U.S.
Although a SIP rule written solely for biomass boilers does not exist
in any other California districts, the FIP rule is modeled after
currently adopted NOX boiler rules in California.
Evaluation of the environmental, economic, and other impacts are
discussed in detail in EPA's technical support document. The rule is
expected to affect biomass boilers at five sources (Michigan California
Lumber, SierraPine Limited, Lausmann Lumber and Moulding, Formica
Corporation, and Blue Diamond) in the Sacramento FIP area. Three of
these sources (Michigan California Lumber, SierraPine Limited, and
Formica Corporation) are also subject to RACT rules in this FIP
proposal (see section III.C.2). Although additional biomass boilers are
located in the FIP area, these boilers are already meeting the proposed
FIP limits.
As described in the technical support document, 1990 uncontrolled
NOX emissions from these five sources were 0.8 tpd. Implementation
of this proposed rule is projected to reduce those emissions by 0.34
tpd at an average estimated cost of $2,500 per ton of NOX reduced.
Additional reductions could be achieved by requiring replacement of
the biomass boilers with new boilers which burn cleaner fuels (e.g.,
natural gas), although this may not be a cost effective option for some
sources.
(2) Gaseous/Liquid Fuel Fired Boilers with a Rated Heat Input
Capacity of Equal to or Greater than 5 mmBtu/hr. Proposed 40 CFR
52.2961(u) controls NOX emissions resulting from boilers, steam
generators, and process heaters which have a rated heat input capacity
of greater than 5 mmBtu/hr. A boiler or steam generator is used to
produce steam which is then used to produce mechanical power, thermal
energy, or electricity. A process heater is combustion equipment used
to transfer heat indirectly to water or process streams. These units
can be fired with natural gas, propane, distillate or residual oil, or
landfill or sewage gas.
Emission reductions are achieved through: (1) Retrofitting units
with low-NOX burners; (2) retrofitting units with flue gas
recirculation systems; (3) application of selective noncatalytic
reduction (e.g., installing an ammonia injection system); or (4)
application of selective catalytic reduction (e.g., installing an
ammonia injection system with a catalyst).
The proposed rule applies to any owner or operator of a boiler,
steam generator, and process heater which has a rated heat input
capacity of equal to or greater than 5 mmBtu/hr. After May 15, 1997,
all units with an annual heat input rate greater or equal to 9 billion
Btu per year (109 Btu/yr) and using gaseous fuels shall meet a 30
ppm NOX standard; units using liquid fuels shall meet a 40 ppm
NOX standard. Units that operate with an annual heat input rate
less than 9 x 109 Btu/yr shall be tuned once every six months or
after 750 hours of operation.
The proposed rule limits and requirements are based largely on
SCAQMD Rule 1146, VCAPCD Rule 74.15, Yolo-Solano AQMD Rule 2.27, CARB's
RACT/BARCT guidance, and EPA's ACT document for process heaters.
Evaluation of the environmental, economic, and other impacts are
discussed in detail in EPA's technical support document. The rule is
expected to affect approximately 60 units in the Sacramento FIP area.
Approximately nine of these units are already scheduled for replacement
with cleaner burning cogeneration gas turbines. As described in the
technical support document, 1990 uncontrolled NOX emissions from
these sources were 1.2 tpd. Implementation of this proposed rule is
projected to reduce those emissions by 0.78 tpd at an average estimated
cost of $6,900 per ton of NOX reduced.
(3) Gaseous/Liquid Fuel-Fired Boilers with a Rated Heat Input
Capacity of less than 5 mmBtu/hr but greater than 1 mmBtu/hr. Proposed
40 CFR 52.2961(v) controls NOX emissions resulting from boilers,
steam generators, and process heaters which have a rated heat input
capacity of less than 5 mmBtu/hr but greater than 1 mmBtu/hr. A boiler
or steam generator is used to produce steam which is then used to
produce mechanical power, thermal energy, or electricity. A process
heater is combustion equipment used to transfer heat indirectly to
water or process streams. These units are typically fired with natural
gas or propane. Emission reductions are achieved through retrofitting
units with low-NOX burners.
The proposed rule applies to any owner or operator of a boiler,
steam generator, and process heater which has a rated heat input
capacity of less than 5 mmBtu/hr but greater than 1 mmBtu/hr. After May
15, 1997, all units with an annual heat input rate greater than or
equal to 1.8 x 109 Btu/yr shall meet a 30 ppm NOX standard.
Units that operate with an annual heat input rate less than 1.8 x 109
Btu/yr but greater than 0.3 x 109 Btu/yr shall be tuned once every
six months or after 750 hours of operation.
The proposed rule limits and requirements are based largely on
SCAQMD Rule 1146.1 and VCAPCD Rule 74.15.1. Evaluation of the
environmental, economic, and other impacts are discussed in detail in
EPA's technical support document.
The proposed rule is expected to affect approximately 25 units in
the Sacramento FIP area. As described in the technical support
document, 1990 uncontrolled NOX emissions from these sources were
0.05 tpd or 19.2 tpy.
Implementation of this proposed rule is projected to reduce those
emissions by 9.2 tpy at an average estimated annual savings of $4,600
per ton of NOX reduced. The savings accrue from an estimated 10
percent reduction in fuel resulting from the installation of low-
NOX burners.
(p) Gas Turbines (Sacramento). Proposed 40 CFR 52.2961(o) controls
NOX emissions resulting from gas turbines. A gas turbine is an
internal combustion engine that operates with a rotary rather than a
reciprocating motion. Compressed air and fuel are introduced to the
combustor section were the fuel is burned. Hot combustion gases then
enter the turbine section, where the gases rotate one or more shafts
which power the compressor and electric generator. Electric utilities
and cogenerators use gas turbines to produce electricity and useful
thermal energy. Gas turbines can burn a variety of fuels including
natural gas, waste process gases, or liquid fuels such as distillate
oils.
There are three generic control techniques available for
controlling NOX emissions from gas turbines: (1) Injection of
water or steam into the combustor; (2) add-on post combustion controls
(e.g., selective catalytic reduction); and (3) modification to
combustor designs.
The proposed rule applies to any owner or operator of a stationary
gas turbine with a rated heat output capacity equal to or greater than
0.3 megawatt (MW). After May 15, 1997, all stationary gas turbines
rated equal to or greater than 0.3 but less than 2.9 MW shall meet a
compliance limit based on 25 ppm NOX times a demonstrated percent
efficiency. Stationary gas turbines rated equal to or greater than 2.9
MW shall meet a compliance limit based on 9 ppm NOX times a
demonstrated percent efficiency. Peaking units and emergency standby
units operated less than 200 hours per calendar year are exempt from
the reduction requirements but must keep records to verify hour of
operation. Additional exemptions are provided for very specialized
uses.
The proposed rule limits are based largely on SCAQMD Rule 1134,
CARB RACT/BARCT guidance, and EPA's ACT guidelines.
Evaluation of the environmental, economic, and other impacts are
discussed in detail in EPA's technical support document. The proposed
rule is expected to affect gas turbines at only one source (i.e.,
Proctor and Gamble) in the Sacramento FIP area. However, the Procter
and Gamble unit is currently scheduled for replacement with a newer gas
turbine which will operate at 5 ppm NOX. Although additional gas
turbines are located in the FIP area, these units are already meeting
the proposed FIP limits or are exempt from the proposed rule.
As described in the technical support document, 1990 uncontrolled
NOX emissions from this source was 0.43 tpd. Implementation of
this proposed rule is projected to reduce those emissions by 0.2 tpd at
an estimated cost of $6,700 per ton of NOX reduced.
4. Regulations Imposed Statewide
a. Introduction--Rationale for Statewide Control.--Section
110(a)(2)(A) of the Act directs states to include in a SIP those
enforceable control measures necessary to demonstrate attainment. This
requirement extends to development of federal plans. Paragraphs
III.C.4.b-e of this NPRM describe a set of area source rules that EPA
is proposing to implement on a statewide basis in order to assure
compliance and emission reductions. In addition, an option for a
statewide manufacturers rule is discussed for the solvents and coatings
categories regulated under the proposed VOC cap rules (see section
III.C.5).
EPA is proposing statewide requirements for area source categories
that consist of portable VOC-containing materials including
architectural coatings, pesticides, aerosol paints and other consumer
products. These categories differ from traditional point source
categories for which emissions principally occur at a few stable
locations where products are manufactured. In contrast, area sources
are distributed widely and emit pollutants where products are used. EPA
believes that regulations for these categories will be most effective
if applied uniformly throughout the State.
Most notably, EPA cannot assure compliance for these area source
categories at the point of emissions as achieved with point sources.
This would require routine inspection and enforcement against
individual consumers for using, for example, high VOC house paints and
bathroom cleansers. EPA has neither the resources for such a program,
nor the expectation that individual consumers should be responsible for
monitoring the VOC contents of their paints and cleansers. Instead, EPA
must rely on compliance at point of sale or manufacture such as, in
this example, paint and cleanser distributors.
Unfortunately, because there is little threat of enforcement
against actual product users, EPA believes that regulations affecting
these categories would be routinely circumvented if standards varied in
neighboring areas. If, for example, the architectural coating rule
applied only in the narrow FIP areas, house painters in southern Sutter
County (part of the nonattainment area) might drive to northern Sutter
(outside the nonattainment area) to purchase cheaper paints, or lemon
growers in Ventura might cross into Santa Barbara for a pesticide
formulation they had used the year before.
While EPA has not attempted to quantify the erosion in projected
emission reductions that would occur if these FIP rules were
implemented on an area rather than statewide basis, there is much
anecdotal evidence to confirm that considerable circumvention of the
rules would occur. California air pollution agencies, for example,
believe such circumvention routinely erodes the effectiveness of
existing architectural coating, automobile refinishing, and other local
regulations. Such circumvention is an important force behind the
ongoing national regulatory negotiation designed to establish
consistent architectural coating standards. It is also a primary
rationale for existing California legislation requiring statewide
regulation of consumer products.
One could extend this discussion to argue that these area source
rules should be implemented on a national basis. Particularly along the
northern and eastern State borders, EPA expects some circumvention of
rules affective only in California. These borders are relatively
scarcely populated, however, and fairly far from the FIP areas. EPA
expects, therefore, minimal impact in the FIP areas and believe that
the State of California is the most appropriate area in which to
implement these rules.
While the need for enforceability is the primary and independently
legally sufficient justification for implementing these rules on a
statewide basis, several additional benefits to this approach are
discussed below:
(i) Consistency. With the exception of architectural coatings, all
the categories proposed as statewide measures in this NPRM are
currently addressed in California on a statewide basis.\47\ Statewide
FIP measures maintain consistency with these regulations, minimizing
unnecessary complexity for all concerned parties.
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\47\Pesticides are regulated statewide under the California Food
and Agriculture Code, consumer products are regulated statewide
under the California Code of Regulations, and aerosol paints are
proposed for inclusion in the statewide consumer products
regulations.
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(ii) Fairness. Statewide rules would provide a more level playing
field than do area-specific requirements. Area-specific pesticide
controls, for example, might place parsley growers in Ventura at a
competitive disadvantage compared to parsley growers in San Joaquin.
Statewide rules minimize the potential for such inequities, helping
fulfill one of the FIP goals discussed in section I.B of this NPRM. In
addition, many parts of California besides the FIP areas have
significant ambient ozone problems, including San Diego, the San
Joaquin Valley, and the Southeast Desert. These areas may also need the
statewide controls described in this NPRM in order to attain the
health-based ozone standard.
(iii) Reduce costs to industry. From an industry perspective, it is
important for certain types of rules to be consistent throughout the
state. In this instance, EPA believes that most manufacturers support
statewide regulations for the suggested source categories. Coating
manufacturers complain, for example, of the current expense and
complexity of complying with different standards in California's many
districts. These expenses accrue not only from research resources
needed to develop multiple coatings, but from subsequent complexities
in marketing, distributing, and tracking compliance. All these tasks
would be simplified, however, by establishing one standard for the
entire State as proposed in this NPRM.
b. Architectural Coatings--Architectural and industrial maintenance
(AIM) coatings are coatings or paints generally used by consumers and
contractors. These coatings are formulated and recommended for field
application to structures (e.g., residences, commercial buildings, and
bridges) and their appurtenances (e.g., doors, cabinets, fences,
railings, and gutters).
AIM coatings primarily provide a decorative and/or general
protective function. Although there are a myriad of types and grades,
AIM coatings are generally classified as exterior and interior paints,
industrial maintenance coatings, roof coatings, primers, lacquers,
stains, traffic paints, and specialty coatings.
These coatings are formulated with a variety of components
including pigments, resins, solvents, and additives. Solvents, which
are typically VOCs, often contribute to the formation of ozone as they
volatilize after application. AIM coatings have been regulated in
California since the late 1970s and all major metropolitan areas in the
State have an architectural coating rule. AIM coating emissions for
California were estimated at 197 tpd (in 1989), with approximately 50
percent of the emissions within the three FIP areas. 1990 FIP area
emissions were estimated at 92 tpd in the South Coast, 5 tpd in
Ventura, and 12 tpd in the Sacramento area. Because of the magnitude of
emissions resulting from this group of coatings, EPA is proposing a FIP
measure which will provide reductions to help demonstrate attainment in
the FIP areas.
The proposed AIM coatings FIP rule (see 40 CFR 52.2959) builds upon
the California Air Resources Board--California Air Pollution Control
Officers Association 1989 Suggested Control Measure (SCM) for
Architectural Coatings and upon current district rules. In addition,
and parallel to the FIP effort, EPA is involved in a Regulatory
Negotiation\48\ (Reg Neg) for the development of a national AIM coating
regulation. The relationship between a potential national rule and the
proposed FIP rule is discussed later in this section. Where possible,
EPA has attempted to take into account the potential outcome of the Reg
Neg and its possible impact on a FIP regulation.
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\48\The Regulatory Negotiation includes representatives from
industry, user groups, regulators, and environmental organizations.
The goal of this consensus building process is to assist EPA in the
development of a national AIM rule or control technique guideline.
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The proposal is modeled after the 1989 SCM and currently adopted
California regulations, and it incorporates recent information
regarding low VOC AIM coatings. The proposed regulation phases in lower
coating limits from 1996 to 2003. In January 1996, initial limits for
approximately 40 coating categories will go into effect. This will be
followed by a second reduction phase in 2000 with lower limits for
select categories such as: all clear wood finishes [350 grams of VOC
per liter (g/l)]; concrete curing compounds (250 g/l); and traffic
paints (125 g/l). A third reduction phase in 2003 will lower limits for
select categories such as: varnishes (250 g/l); flats (50-150 g/l);
many industrial maintenance coatings (275 g/l); non-flats (150 g/l);
roof coatings (250 g/l); and traffic paints (50 g/l). In addition, the
small container (less than one liter) exemption will be phased out as
of 2003.
The environmental, economic, and other impacts of the proposed rule
are discussed in EPA's technical support document. The rule is expected
to affect approximately 150 paint manufacturers who market their AIM
coatings in the State. Implementation of this rule is expected to
reduce emissions by an estimated 25-30 percent, depending on the
stringency of the current SIP regulation for a given district. FIP area
reductions are expected to be 2.0 tpd (1999) and 2.3 tpd (2005) for
Sacramento, 1.7 tpd (2005) in Ventura, and 21 tpd (2010) in South
Coast.
The proposed FIP AIM coating rule establishes future effective
limits which allow industry time to transition, where necessary, to
lower VOC coatings. For the most part, low VOC coatings are being sold
today which can meet the limits proposed for 2000 and 2003. While EPA
acknowledges that the proposed limits may in some cases phase out
certain high VOC technologies (e.g., nitrocellulose lacquers), the
proposal assumes that available alternative resin technologies can
adequately replace high VOC coatings. The proposal will also encourage
the further development of new and improved low VOC technologies.
As described earlier, AIM coatings are formulated with pigments,
resins, solvents, and additives. Changes and improvements in coating
technologies begin in the research laboratories of the resin
manufacturers/suppliers and paint manufacturers capable of researching
new resin technologies. The cost of phasing in lower VOC AIM coatings
will depend in part on the ability of resin manufacturers/suppliers and
paint manufacturers to develop and market low VOC coatings. For those
already manufacturing low VOC products, the proposed regulation would
initially impose no additional costs and might, in fact, lead to
increased profits. For AIM coating manufacturers who manufacture high
VOC coatings affected by the proposed rule, the cost may approach
several thousand $/ton for conversion to low VOC product lines. These
costs can be partially reduced through the assistance of resin
manufacturers/suppliers and/or large paint manufacturers, who are
primarily responsible for researching and developing new coating
formulations. Upon request, most resin manufacturers/suppliers are
willing to share information and sample low VOC coating formulations
with interested paint manufacturers, both large and small, to assist in
the development of low VOC coatings.
While low VOC coatings are available today which meet the proposed
coating limits, there continues to be debate over the performance
characteristics and perceived limitations of certain low VOC AIM
coatings. EPA requests comment and technical information on: available
or soon to be available low VOC coatings which meet the proposed
limits; previous or potential reformulation costs; performance or
application limitations (if any) of low VOC coatings; and any AIM
coatings or promising technologies where low VOC technology is expected
to advance beyond the proposed AIM FIP limits.
(1) Relationship to National Rule Development. In early 1992, EPA
began to explore a Reg Neg (57 FR 1443; January 14, 1992) to assist in
fulfilling its obligation for a national AIM regulation or CTG as
described under section 183(e) of the Act. Although today's proposed
FIP action is independent of the ongoing Reg Neg process and is not an
attempt by the Agency to meet the requirements of section 183(e), EPA
will fully consider the potential Reg Neg outcome and may modify the
proposed FIP rule as appropriate.
Either a FIP AIM coating rule or a national AIM coating rule/CTG
will ultimately provide the basis for the regulation which reduces
emissions from AIM coatings sold into and used in California. While the
Reg Neg process is nearing completion, unresolved issues remain and EPA
does not anticipate that the proposed action under section 183(e) will
be published prior to the court-ordered FIP proposal deadline. In
addition, there is not a statutory deadline for an AIM rule per se
under section 183(e),\49\ so there is currently no assurance as to when
the AIM regulation will be finalized. Because of the need to
demonstrate through actual regulations the emission reductions
necessary to achieve attainment in the FIP areas, EPA could not rely on
the speculative outcome of the Reg Neg for its FIP rule and is
therefore proposing a FIP AIM rule. While EPA is hopeful that the Reg
Neg will result in a rule/CTG which could benefit the FIP areas, the
court ordered deadline for the FIP proposal does not allow EPA the
opportunity to wait for the potential national rule/CTG. Upon
completion of the Reg Neg process and EPA's proposed national AIM rule/
CTG, EPA will reevaluate its FIP strategy for AIM coatings.
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\49\Section 183(e) of the CAA requires that EPA submit a report
to Congress by November 15, 1993. Upon submission of the final
report, the Administrator will establish categories of consumer and
commercial products intended for regulation and divide the
categories into four groups to establish regulatory priorities.
Every two years after promulgation of the list, EPA shall regulate
one group until all four groups are regulated. EPA has yet to submit
the report and establish the list of categories to be regulated.
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(2) Relationship to Local Rules. While all of the major
metropolitan areas in California already have an architectural coatings
rule, coating limits may vary between districts for certain AIM
categories. Because the proposed FIP regulation will be more stringent
than all current district regulations, the proposed FIP rule will
effectively bring all of the areas under a common standard to provide
equity within the industry and greatly enhance the enforceability the
rule.\50\
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\50\As a matter of law, the local agencies could continue to
enforce their local SIP rules, but manufacturers would be expected
to formulate their coatings to address the more stringent statewide
FIP provisions.
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(3) Alternative Reduction Approaches. The following additional
approaches for reducing emissions from AIM coatings were also
considered.
(a) Fees. Because of large diversity within and among AIM coating
categories and because of the multitude of uses for these coatings, it
may be preferable to establish a fee-based strategy for providing
additional emission reductions rather than to establish limits for
specific categories. For example, a fee-based strategy could be
established using a combination of gallons sold and VOC in each gallon
(e.g., an annual fee equaling total grams or pounds of VOC sold by each
manufacturer). Because fees provide uncertainty as to actual emission
reductions, the fees would need to be periodically adjusted to achieve
their intended reduction and market response. Currently, EPA has
limited FIP authority (see III.A.2.b. and c.) to collect and
redistribute fees. Because fees have previously not been used as an
emission reduction strategy, limited data is available to predict and
establish the level of fee necessary to achieve the intended
reductions. With these constraints in mind, EPA is asking for comment
on the potential use of fee-based approaches for within the FIP. This
concept is also discussed in III.C.5.i.(3).
(b) Corporate Average VOC Emission (CAVE) Limit. Within the Reg Neg
discussions, the concept of a CAVE limit has been suggested. The CAVE
limit would allow each manufacturer to average all coatings sold
nationally to meet a single, overall grams of VOC per liter CAVE limit.
The CAVE limit would be based on a table of standards (e.g., VOC limits
for each category) and the previous sales for each manufacturer. In
theory, the CAVE approach could be applied in the FIP on a statewide
basis. Because the limit is based on averaging, it could provide
uncertainty as to the expected reductions (e.g., increased use of both
a high and low VOC coating may not decrease actual emissions to the
predicted amount). Therefore, a backstop measure (e.g., a cap on
overall emissions per manufacturer) may be needed to guarantee expected
reductions. Although the details of this concept have not been worked
out, EPA is asking for comment on the potential use of a CAVE approach
for AIM coatings regulated within the FIP.
(c) Manufacturers Bubble. In EPA's 1990 FIP proposal, the concept
of a manufacturers bubble was proposed as a backstop measure. This
approach would establish a single gram or pound of VOC per year limit
for each manufacturer selling coatings within California. Each
manufacturer's limit could be established using a table of standards
and historical annual sales. This approach aggressively encourages the
use of low-VOC coatings, provides greater assurance of actual
reductions, and could potentially be expanded to incorporate additional
flexibility, such as a banking/trading component. Although the details
of this concept have not been worked out, EPA is asking for comment on
the potential use of a manufacturers bubble for coatings regulated
within the FIP. This concept is further discussed in III.C.5.i.
c. Consumer Products.\51\ (1) FIP Promulgation of Existing CARB
Rules. Proposed 40 CFR 52.2957(a) and (b) control VOC emissions from
consumer products and antiperspirants and deodorants. These proposed
FIP measures reflect previously adopted CARB limits. Because CARB has
not submitted the measures as SIP revisions, EPA is promulgating these
measures, which are needed for progress and attainment in the three FIP
areas. These measures would also provide the framework for additional
future FIP reduction strategies as needed.
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\51\As specified under section 183(e)(3) of the CAAA of 1990,
EPA is required to study emissions of VOCs from consumer and
commercial products and to investigate the development of a national
regulation or CTG for selected consumer products. While in all
likelihood EPA will be developing a national regulation or CTG for
many of the consumer products covered by the proposed FIP
regulations, the proposed FIP regulation is not an attempt on EPA's
part to meet its 183(e)(3) responsibilities. When and if EPA
promulgates a national regulation or CTG for consumer products, EPA
will reevaluate its FIP strategy for consumer products.
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(a) Consumer Products. Proposed 40 CFR 52.2957(a) controls VOC
emissions from consumer products, with the exception of
antiperspirants, deodorants, aerosol paints, and a few other consumer
product categories.\52\ Consumer products are chemical formulations
used in households and institutions and includes products such as
detergents, cleaning compounds, polishes, floor finishes, personal care
products, disinfectants, and automotive specialty products. The
proposed regulation limits the VOC content in products sold, supplied,
offered for sale, or manufactured for use within California. The rule
establishes VOC limits consistent with limits previously adopted by
CARB. 1990 Statewide emissions from consumer products are estimated at
250 tpd, 14.2 tpd in Sacramento, 108 tpd in South Coast, and 6 tpd in
Ventura.
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\52\While CARB has attempted to regulate most consumer products,
some products have not been regulated at this time. These include:
lubricants, hand washing detergents, toilet bowl cleaners,
disinfectants, paint strippers, laundry detergents, and herbicides.
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The CARB and proposed FIP regulations for consumer products,
including antiperspirants and deodorants, cover just over half of the
consumer products in the inventory or approximately 130 tpd statewide.
The CARB and proposed FIP consumer product rules are estimated to
achieve a VOC emission reduction of over 25 percent. However, these
reductions will be partially offset by growth in consumer product
sales. The FIP area reductions after growth were estimated at 1.3 tpd
(1999) and -1.6 tpd (increase in 2005) in Sacramento, 1.6 tpd in South
Coast, 0.2 tpd in Ventura. Because the FIP consumer product
requirements are almost identical to the CARB rules, the cost of the
consumer products FIP measure is expected to be zero.
Although the proposed FIP measure is very similar to that
previously adopted by CARB, minor differences exist between the
proposed FIP regulation and CARB's regulation. Differences are intended
to simplify or reduce the administrative burden on the affected
manufacturers or to correct rule deficiencies. The proposed FIP
consumer products rule differs from the CARB rule in that it deletes:
requirements for certification of charcoal lighter materials; a
variance section; and a federal enforceability section. Otherwise the
rules are virtually identical.
(b) Antiperspirants and Deodorants. Proposed 40 CFR 52.2957(b)
controls VOC emissions from antiperspirants and deodorants. The
regulation limits the VOC content of products sold, supplied, offered
for sale, or manufactured for use within California. The rule
establishes VOC limits based on those previously adopted by CARB. The
rule establishes a percent VOC by weight limit for both aerosol and
non-aerosol products (e.g., sticks and roll-ons). Although aerosols
make up approximately 25 percent of the market, they account for
approximately 90 percent of the emissions from this category. Statewide
emissions and expected reductions are incorporated in the consumer
product totals described under III.C.4.c.(1).(a).
Although the proposed FIP measure is very similar to that
previously adopted by CARB, minor differences exist between the
proposed FIP regulation and CARB's regulation. Differences between the
proposed FIP antiperspirant and deodorant rule and the CARB rule
include: the compliance date\53\ for aerosol products has been extended
to January 1, 1999; deletion of the administrative requirements that
aerosol product manufacturers apply to CARB by January, 1994 for a
compliance date extension to 1999; deletion of the section restricting
toxic air contaminants; deletion of certain reporting requirements;
deletion of the variance section; and deletion of the federal
enforceability section. Otherwise the rules are virtually identical.
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\53\CARB's regulation allows manufacturers to apply for the
January 1, 1999 compliance date if certain requirements are met.
Based on conversations with CARB, EPA believes that most if not all
aerosol product manufacturers have or will apply for the 1999
compliance date.
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(2) Aerosol Paints. Proposed 40 CFR 52.2958 reduces VOC emissions
from aerosol coatings. Aerosol coatings are self dispensing,
pressurized products containing coating solids (i.e., pigments, resins,
and binders) and solvent designed to dispense product ingredients by
means of a propellant. The solvent and propellant are typically VOCs
which make up from 70-95 percent of the product by weight. The VOCs are
emitted into the atmosphere during the coating delivery and curing
process.
Aerosol spray paints account for approximately 25 tpd of VOC
emissions in California. FIP area 1990 emissions were estimated at 1.3
tpd in the Sacramento area, 11.6 tpd in the South Coast, and 0.6 tpd in
Ventura. The use of aerosol paints has grown steadily since the 1950s.
Growth peaked in 1977, but in 1978, the federal government restricted
the use of chlorofluorocarbons as aerosol coating propellants and
hydrocarbons were introduced as a replacement for the CFC propellants.
Since the mid 1980s, use of aerosol paints has continued to steadily
grow, with annual sales reaching historical highs during the early
1990s.
Aerosol coatings have previously been regulated by the BAAQMD
(Regulation 8, Rule 49) and the SCAQMD (Rule 1129). CARB recently
assumed authority to regulate the VOC content of aerosol paints. The
FIP aerosol paint rule is based on a draft regulation workshopped by
CARB on November 10, 1993. The draft regulation is not scheduled for
adoption until after EPA's court ordered deadline for the FIP proposal.
In addition, current State law giving CARB the authority to regulate
aerosol coatings also limits CARB's ability to submit some future-
effective limits and reductions to EPA as SIP submittals.
Because of the need to demonstrate attainment in each of the FIP
areas, EPA is proposing an aerosol coating rule which is generally
consistent with the regulation expected to be adopted by CARB in 1994.
Minor differences exist between the FIP proposal and the CARB draft,
however. The proposed FIP aerosol paint rule does not include sections
for a special recognition label, variances, and federal enforceability.
Also, the proposed FIP measure does not include a provision for a five
year compliance date extension as found in CARB's draft rule. Instead,
EPA intends to monitor industries progress and CARB's 1999
determination regarding the coating limits. If necessary, EPA will
consider amendments to the FIP aerosol coating rule where appropriate.
By adopting the FIP aerosol coating regulation, EPA hopes to avoid
having to impose more stringent requirements on other VOC sources which
would need to compensate for the reduction shortfall pending SIP
submittal of the adopted CARB regulation. While this proposed FIP
aerosol coating regulation will be published prior to CARB's adoption
of its regulation, EPA expects to modify the FIP regulation, if
appropriate, to be consistent with the final CARB regulation.
The proposed FIP regulation will build upon the previous work by
the BAAQMD and the SCAQMD and closely parallel CARB's regulation. The
proposed FIP regulation would apply to any person who sells, supplies,
offers for sale, applies, or manufactures for use in California any
aerosol coating products as described in the proposed regulation.
Because of the diversity of uses and coating types, the proposed
regulation establishes VOC limits for a variety of product coating
types. The initial 1996 limits are based on limits in the BAAQMD
regulation. A second phase of lower limits goes into effect in 1999.
Aerosol coating manufacturers are expected to develop compliant
products through propellant replacement, product reformulation, and
improvements in packaging and delivery systems. Two promising
propellent alternatives, hydrofluorocarbon (HCFC) 152a and dimethyl
ether, are potential replacements for current hydrocarbon propellants.
Reformulation to a lower VOC content could be achieved through
increased solids, lower VOC solvents and propellants, or a combination
of both. A further opportunity to reduce emissions lies in the redesign
of the packaging and delivery system such that a nonhydrocarbon gas or
mechanical device acts to displace the container's contents.
Improvements in the transfer efficiency of the delivery systems would
result in reduced overspray, higher surface coating percentage per
container, and cost savings to the consumer.
The proposed FIP aerosol coating regulation is to reduce VOC
emission by approximately 60 percent from 1990 levels. The reductions
from 1990 levels equate to approximately 15 tpd in California. FIP area
attainment year reductions are estimated at 0.9 tpd in 1999 and 1.1 tpd
in 2005 in the Sacramento area, 8.9 tpd in 2010 for the South Coast,
and 0.4 tpd in 2005 for Ventura. Only limited data is available to
estimate the cost of developing compliant products. The first phase of
the regulation is expected to have a minimal cost because compliant
products are already available to meet the BAAQMD rule. Costs of
meeting the 1999 limits will depend in part on the availability of HCFC
152a. Although a promising propellant substitute, HCFC 152a is
estimated to cost five to ten times more than current hydrocarbon
propellants. However, with increased demand for HCFC 152a, its cost is
expected to decrease.
(3) Alternative Reduction Approaches. CARB is currently developing
an alternative compliance plan (ACP) approach which would allow
additional flexibility for affected consumer product manufacturers. The
ACP would allow manufacturers to average a limited number of products
when determining compliance. The ACP concept is under development and
EPA is working with CARB to assure its consistency with EPA's Economic
Incentive Program guidance. After the ACP program is adopted by CARB,
EPA will consider it for adoption as part of the FIP. Additional
alternative reduction approaches as described in III.C.4. for
architectural coatings could also be applied to consumer products.
Comments are requested on the use of these approaches to achieve
additional emission reductions from consumer products.
(4) Need for Additional Reductions. Because additional reductions
from consumer products will be needed to attain the ozone standard in
the South Coast, EPA will continue to investigate strategies such as
setting VOC limits, fees, a manufacturers bubble, or a corporate
average to further encourage reductions from these products. Because a
fraction of the consumer products inventory (e.g., laundry detergents,
hand washing detergents, lubricants) are not regulated by current CARB
regulations or the FIP proposal, EPA will investigate strategies for
reducing emission resulting from these unregulated products. EPA
intends to use section 182(e)(5) commitments for these additional
reductions and to develop appropriate control strategies based on
continuing evaluation of new technologies and compliance options.
d. Pesticides. (1) Summary and Applicability. Proposed 40 CFR
52.2960 is designed to reduce VOC emissions from agricultural and
structural pesticide application.
Producers of such pesticides must determine the VOC content\54\ of
their products as defined by an analytical method. All agricultural and
structural pesticides registered in California must be tested,
regardless of whether the producer is located inside or outside of the
State. Distribution, application, and storage of pesticides with high
VOC contents will be restricted in California.
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\54\The actual volatility of the organic compounds in a
particular pesticide depends on the temperature, moisture,
substrate, application technique, and other conditions under which
it is applied. Therefore, ``VOC emission potential'' might more
accurately reflect the result of the analytical test methods. EPA,
however, is using the term ``VOC content'' to be consistent with
analogous coating regulations.
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9,500 pesticide formulations may be subject to the analysis
requirement, and sale and use of several thousand may be subsequently
restricted. EPA cannot determine how industry will respond to
restrictions on each specific formulation. Generally, however, EPA
expects that low-VOC reformulations will provide feasible alternatives
for many restricted pesticides.
The proposed rule is not intended to apply to consumer-oriented
pesticides that are subject to consumer products regulations in this
NPRM (40 CFR 52.2957) or in the California Code of Regulations (Title
17, Division 3, Subchapter 8.5--Consumer Products, Secs. 94507-94517).
The proposed rule is also not intended to apply to production or
distribution of pesticides intended for use outside of California.
(2) Specific provisions. Required submission of data. By June 1,
1996 or 120 days after the effective date of the rule, whichever is
later, producers must submit analyses identifying the VOC content of
all affected pesticides. EPA believes that 120 days is ample time to
perform this analysis, and notes that the requirement is being proposed
over two years before the analysis will come due. Concern has been
raised that independent laboratory capacity may be insufficient to
analyze all regulated pesticides within 120 days. EPA believes,
however, that most large pesticide manufacturers will perform the
required analysis in-house, and that independent laboratory capacity
will be sufficient to handle the remaining analytic demand.
Analysis is required of all California-registered pesticides
including those not currently in use. This information is needed to
determine an accurate base-year VOC emission inventory to compare
against future emission reductions. It is also important to identify
all available low-VOC pesticides regardless of whether they are
currently in use in order to maximize the available pest-control
options.
Establish VOC limit. The proposed rule describes a six-step
procedure for establishing a VOC limit for pesticides.
(i) EPA will establish a base-year pesticide use inventory for each
pesticide registered in California. This inventory may consist simply
of the amount of each pesticide applied in the State according to the
1990 pesticide use report (PUR) combined with the inerts data-base,
both of which are maintained by the California Department of Pesticide
Regulation (DPR). The proposed rule is drafted, however, to provide the
Agency discretion to establish the base-year inventory using other
information. EPA could, for example, use an average of the 1990 to 1993
PUR data for just the three FIP areas if that was determined to be more
appropriate. In any case, EPA intends to discuss the base-year
inventory actually used when promulgating the VOC limit pursuant to
Sec. 52.288(c)(2)(vi).
(ii) EPA will rank the pesticides according to their VOC content.
The pesticide with the largest VOC content (i.e., a gas or highly
volatile liquid) will be ranked #1. If EPA determines that adequate
data for a particular pesticide is not submitted by the deadline, EPA
may assign the pesticide a VOC content equal to the largest VOC content
reported for any pesticide (i.e., also ranking it #1). This would
effectively prohibit distribution and application of this pesticide in
the affected area pursuant to Sec. 52.2960(c)(5). EPA's intention is to
provide an incentive for manufacturers to submit the required data
while simultaneously enabling the Agency to implement the regulation in
the absence of some data. Nevertheless, the regulation is drafted to
provide the Agency some discretion in assigning VOC contents for
pesticides in the absence of adequate data. EPA might, for example,
determine it more appropriate to assign VOC contents for such a
pesticide based on the largest VOC content reported for its formulation
type (e.g., oil, emulsifiable concentrate, pressurized liquid, etc.)
Or, if analysis of a pesticide failed to demonstrate a specific VOC
content but did demonstrate that the VOC content fell within a discrete
range, EPA might assign the pesticide the largest VOC content within
that range. In any case, EPA intends to discuss the VOC contents
actually assigned when promulgating the VOC limit pursuant to
Sec. 52.288(c)(2)(vi).
(iii) EPA will multiply the VOC contents (weight percent basis) by
the base-year inventory (kilogram-per-year basis) to establish the
individual base-year VOC emissions (kilogram-per-year basis). A
pesticide not used in the affected area in the base-year(s) would have
a base-year inventory and a VOC emission of zero.
(iv) EPA will add the base-year VOC emissions of all affected
pesticides to determine the total base-year VOC emissions in the
affected area.
(v) Starting with the highest-ranking pesticides (i.e., those with
the largest VOC content and those without adequate data), EPA will add
the individual base-year VOC emissions until the sum equals 40 to 65
percent of the total base-year VOC emissions. The VOC content of the
last pesticide needed to achieve 40 to 65 percent is the VOC limit. EPA
has assumed that restricted pesticides will be replaced on a one to one
mass basis with pesticides at the VOC limit.\55\ Based on an analysis
described in the technical support document (TSD) for the proposed
rule, EPA has calculated that a 40 to 65 percent threshold value will
achieve emission reductions of 20 to 45 percent off the base-year
inventory. The target reduction of 20 to 45 percent was chosen for
consistency with the range of target reductions of the stationary
source cap rules described in section III.C.5 of this NPRM. Based on
planned modeling and inventory analysis and comments received during
the comment period, EPA hopes to select a specific reduction target
from within this range for use in the final rule promulgation. The
relationship between the 20-45 percent reduction target and the 40-65
percent threshold value is discussed further in the TSD.
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\55\Imbedded in the one-to-one replacement assumption is another
assumption that, in the aggregate, pesticide efficacy is not reduced
by reformulation to lower VOC products. For some specific
pesticides, efficacy may decrease and applicators may respond by
using greater quantities of the reformulated product. Emissions
associated with this phenomenon will be somewhat offset by
replacement of specific restricted products by pesticides with VOC
contents below the VOC content limit.
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(vi) EPA will publish the VOC limit. EPA intends to publish this
limit in the Federal Register with a discussion of the data and
assumptions used to generate the limit. If the limit is generated by a
straightforward execution of the procedure described in this NPRM, EPA
may publish the limit directly in final form. If, however, EPA
exercises significant discretion (as provided for in the proposed rule)
in generating the limit, EPA intends to take public comment on a
proposed limit before publishing the final limit.
Restrictions on pesticides. One year after EPA publishes the VOC
limit, all persons are prohibited from distributing in the affected
area pesticides with VOC contents greater than the VOC limit. After
that time, distributors with remaining inventory of high-VOC pesticides
could still sell them to persons outside the affected area.
Two years after EPA publishes the VOC limit, all persons are
prohibited from applying or storing in the affected area pesticides
with VOC contents greater than the VOC limit. EPA believes this is
sufficient time for affected applicators to apply existing inventory of
high-VOC pesticides or to sell them to persons outside the affected
area.
Revisions to the VOC limit. EPA may require a producer to reanalyze
its pesticides at any time. Based on this or other information, EPA may
recalculate the VOC limit at any time. EPA does not anticipate
recalculating the VOC limit frequently, as recalculation has
significant resource implications for both the Agency and the regulated
community. Recalculation may be appropriate, however, if EPA determines
that the existing VOC limit is not equitably achieving the targeted
emission reductions of 20 to 45 percent. Developments that might
justify a recalculation include changes in pesticide use patterns and
improved understanding of VOC emissions from pesticides.
Alternative ranking scheme. Rather than ranking pesticides simply
by VOC content, representatives of DPR and CARB have suggested ranking
by VOC emissions. Under the former scheme, as incorporated in this
NPRM, application of a high-VOC low-use pesticide (e.g., a pheromone)
would be regulated even if it contributed much fewer VOC emissions than
unregulated application of a medium-VOC high-use product. Under the
latter scheme, pesticides would be ranked and regulated in order of
their overall emissions, as determined by VOC content times quantity
applied in the base-year(s).
While the two ranking systems could provide equivalent emission
reductions, EPA believes the simplicity of the former makes it easier
to implement and enforce. Once the VOC limit is established, Agency
inspectors can simply determine whether pesticides sold and used in the
affected area comply with the limit. Under the latter scheme, however,
rather than publishing a single limit, EPA would need to publish and
regulate a list of all the specific restricted pesticides, which would
need to be revised regularly to account for new and reformulated
products and for changing use patterns. If, for example, a high-VOC
pesticide had low use and low emissions in the base-year but high use
and high emissions thereafter, it would need to be added to the list of
restricted pesticides. Conversely, pesticides with unusually high use
in the base-year might need to be removed from the list of restricted
pesticides, adding to the likelihood of inequities and compliance
problems.
Nevertheless, EPA understands that alternatives to the regulatory
structure contained in the proposed FIP rule offer different trade-offs
between the various FIP goals (described in section I.B of this NPRM)
of reducing emissions, encouraging State action, minimizing federal
interference, etc. EPA has attempted to address some of these
alternatives in paragraph III.C.4.d(4) of this NPRM.
(3) Reporting, recordkeeping and test methods. Proposed
Sec. 52.2960(f) describes the test methods required for determining the
VOC content of pesticides. Pesticide producers may use one of two test
methods:
(i) Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA). This is one of the two test
methods described in EPA's alternative control technology document
(ACT) for pesticides (``Alternative Control Technology Document;
Control of VOC Emissions from the Application of Agricultural
Pesticides,'' EPA-453/R-92-011, March 1993, Appendix C). The method is
based on the ``American Standard Test Method (ASTM) for Compositional
Analysis by Thermogravimetry'' (ASTM E-1131-86).
(ii) Volatile organics in pesticides (VOP) method. This is the
second test method described in EPA's ACT for pesticides. It includes a
purge and trap procedure conducted at constant temperature that allows
for direct measurement of water content.
DPR has investigated various modifications to ASTM E-1131-86 for
analyzing a wide variety of pesticide formulations. Some of DPR's work
is reflected in modifications to the method included in the ACT and in
Sec. 52.2960(f)(1)(i) by reference. DPR's work is ongoing, however, and
EPA expects that additional modifications to the method may be
determined appropriate. Depending on the timing and scope of such
modifications, EPA may address them through the discretion allowed in
the proposed rule, by incorporating them into the final FIP rule, or by
formally proposing and promulgating subsequent rule modifications.
Modifications may include the following:
(i) Modifications to the method for estimating water content. DPR
is currently investigating several analytical methods for estimating
water content including both Karl Fischer titration and spectroscopic
analysis of the vapor-phase effluent from the TGA analysis. Until
adequate validation of these methods is available, DPR may calculate
water content based on the ``percentage water added'' component of the
statement of formulation required pursuant to FIFRA (7 U.S.C.
136a(c)(1)(E)). Because this generally does not account for water
present as impurity, water produced in reaction, or water present as a
component of other raw materials, it should provide a conservative
(i.e., low) estimate of true water content. Reliance on formulation
data is consistent with EPA's historic policy regarding analogous
coating regulations before reliable test methods (e.g., ASTM D-4017 and
D-3792) were available.\56\
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\56\See, for example, ``Procedure for Certifying Quantity of
Volatile Organic Compounds Emitted by Paint, Ink, and Other
Coatings, ``U.S. EPA, EPA-450/3-84-019, December 1984.
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(ii) Modifications to the method for estimating exempt compounds.
Again, until adequate validation of a specific test method(s) is
available, DPR may rely on the statement of formulation for estimating
the amount of exempt compounds present in specific pesticides. This is
also analogous to coating regulations which generally relied on
formulation data until ASTM D-4457 was available.\57\
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\57\ibid.
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(iii) Modifications to address solid pesticide formulations.
As described in Sec. 52.2960 (d) and (e), producers of affected
pesticides must submit copies of all raw data and a summary of the
results of the VOC content analyses. Distributors must submit a
distributor notification and an annual report summarizing the
pesticides distributed in the affected area during the preceding year.
Applicators must submit a copy of the PUR for all pesticide
applications within the affected area.
Pesticide producers, distributors, and applicators are required to
maintain all information necessary to demonstrate compliance with the
regulation for a period of five years. At a minimum, this information
must include copies of all reports specifically required in paragraph
52.2960(d), and any technical support to these reports.
(4) Relationship to State rules. As discussed in sections I.D.,
III.J., and elsewhere in this NPRM, EPA believes that State and local
agencies can adopt and implement regulations that are better tailored
to the specific characteristics and needs of the affected areas.
Therefore, EPA strongly encourages the State to continue ongoing
efforts to adopt approvable rules to replace all or part of the FIP.
Pursuant to Sec. 110(l) of the Act, State rules are not approvable
if they, ``* * * interfere with any applicable requirement concerning
attainment and reasonable further progress * * * or any other
applicable requirement.'' For purposes of the pesticide rule, EPA
intends to determine approvability based largely on emissions.
Modifications to the pesticide rule which EPA may consider approvable,
if shown to result in no significant emission increases, include the
following:
(i) Provisions for exempting de minimis use of high-VOC pesticides.
(ii) Provisions for allowing use of high-VOC pesticides to prevent
overwhelming economic dislocation.
(iii) Provisions for allowing use of high VOC pesticides to prevent
harm to human health or the environment.
(iv) Provisions for allowing use of high-VOC pesticides during
times of the year when low ambient ozone concentrations are projected.
(v) Modifications of the test method discussed in section
III.C.3.d(3) of this NPRM.
(vi) Modifications to 40 CFR 52.2960(c)(2) of the proposed rule,
such as ranking pesticides based on emissions instead of VOC content as
discussed in section III.C.3.d(2) of this NPRM.
(vii) Consideration of the relative reactivity of different VOCs.
Or, of course, the State could adopt rules based on completely
different regulatory strategies that still achieve equivalent emission
reductions.\58\
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\58\EPA, for example, considered several other regulatory
strategies for inclusion in the FIP, and analyzed two in detail
through a contract to Midwest Research Institute (``Development of
Pesticide Rules for the Sacramento, South Coast, and Ventura
Nonattainment Area FIPs,'' prepared by Midwest Research Institute
for EPA, April 30, 1993 draft final report).
The no-use day strategy was fashioned after existing no-burn day
programs. EPA would establish meteorologic criteria for predicting
unfavorable ozone conditions and pesticide use would be restricted
on a day-to-day basis. A major drawback to this strategy is that
postponing pesticide application for several consecutive days could
result in significant crop damage and an increase in overall annual
pesticide use.
The users bubble strategy would be somewhat analogous to the
stationary source emission cap programs proposed in this notice.
Pesticide users (e.g., growers) would calculate a base-year VOC
emission rate as: amount of pesticide applied times VOC content of
pesticides divided by total acreage. Users would then be required to
reduce their VOC emission rate a certain percentage by the
attainment year. A major drawback to this strategy is the difficulty
in establishing equitable baseline inventories.
EPA selected the VOC content strategy incorporated in this
notice for a variety of reasons including better enforceability,
consistency with State regulatory plans, and minimization of
disruption to the affected industries. EPA invites comment on
mechanisms to improve the proposed pesticides rule, as well as on
other strategies to reduce VOC emissions from pesticides. EPA is
interested, for example, in mechanisms to encourage pesticide
application technologies (e.g., electrostatic application) that
decrease VOC emissions. In addition, EPA requests comment on how to
optimize the interaction between the proposed FIP rule and ongoing
pesticide programs and initiatives including those targeting
pesticide use reduction, pollution prevention, and integrated pest
management.
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The State is likely to propose substitution for the FIP rule's
``Required submission of data'' provision in 40 CFR 52.2960(c)(1) of
the proposed rule. DPR is currently planning to issue a data call-in
during early 1994 which would require submittal of much of the same
information. If these data are timely and approvable, EPA may remove 40
CFR 52.2960(c)(1) from the final FIP rule.
(5) Relationship to FIFRA. EPA acknowledges the unique situation
in which the proposed FIP rule places the pesticide and agriculture
industries, which are already subject to considerable regulation under
FIFRA.
However, because pesticide use is estimated to represent a
significant component of the VOC emissions inventory in the Sacramento,
South Coast and Ventura areas, EPA considers emission reductions from
pesticides an important part of the overall FIP attainment
strategy.\59\
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\59\As with all components of the FIP, Sec. 52.2960 is proposed
under authority of the Clean Air Act. Failure to comply with any
provision of Sec. 52.2960 will violate the applicable implementation
plan for purposes of section 113 of the Clean Air Act, and be
subject to all administrative, civil, and criminal penalties
described therein.
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Under the proposed rule, EPA will establish a VOC limit that all
pesticides must meet to be distributed or applied in the affected area.
Specific pesticides are not regulated, and the proposed rule does not
conflict with FIFRA's registration cancellation or suspension
procedures (7 U.S.C. 136d). Nonetheless, EPA expects that many
pesticides will need to be reformulated in order to meet the VOC limit
and be useable in the affected area. EPA has accounted for the costs of
reformulation in the technical support to this proposed rule. EPA
specifically requests comment on how to minimize the costs of this
regulation in light of existing FIFRA regulations while still achieving
the necessary emission reductions.
5. Cap Regulations
a. Introduction--EPA is today proposing to promulgate Federal
control measure rules to reduce emissions of VOC from sources located
in all three FIP areas, and NOX from sources in the Ventura FIP
area.\60\ The proposed measures impose an annual rate of reduction on
affected sources for as many controllable VOC and NOX categories
as possible. The purpose of these proposed rules is to ensure that the
FIP areas achieve attainment of the ozone NAAQS by the statutory
attainment dates for each area. These proposed rules are designed to
supplement reductions achieved by other proposed FIP and SIP measures
as necessary to make up for any emission reduction shortfalls in the
affected FIP areas.
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\60\EPA assumes that the South Coast's NOX RECLAIM program
will be submitted to EPA as a SIP revision and that EPA will take
some form of approval action on NOX RECLAIM so that the South
Coast FIP area can be credited with those reductions. In the event
that NOX RECLAIM is not submitted to EPA in an approvable form,
then EPA will prepare regulations for NOX emissions similar to
those proposed for the Ventura FIP area.
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The FIP cap measures proposed today differ in several ways from
those proposed in the 1990 South Coast FIP (55 FR 36458). Most
importantly, the current FIP proposal adds complete regulations for
most categories of industrial sources of NOX emissions, whereas
the 1990 proposal dealt only with VOC sources. The NOX cap
regulations proposed today for Ventura (and discussed as an alternative
for the South Coast) contain comprehensive control requirements,
including specific detailed provisions for source monitoring.
EPA's cap regulations proposed today also make significant changes
from the 1990 rules in terms of the cap compliance period, penalties
for noncompliance with emission limits, and establishment of emissions
baselines. In addition, this NPRM significantly revises the discussion
of two potential amendments to the cap program: the development of an
emissions trading element and the replacement of the industrial
solvents/coatings rules with a manufacturers bubble.
Many of these changes from the 1990 proposal derive from extensive
EPA involvement in the evolution of SCAQMD's RECLAIM program. However,
EPA's proposed cap rules deviate from the RECLAIM program in several
areas. For example, in RECLAIM, which is currently a NOX and
SOX market, the term of each emission cap is one year. In the
proposed FIP measures, the term of each emission cap is one month. EPA
selected the shorter compliance term as providing more certainty that
the one-hour ozone NAAQS would not be exceeded. EPA will continue to
evaluate the compliance period as more information becomes available.
For each FIP area, data may allow EPA to determine that different
compliance periods would provide sufficient security against short-term
emission increases that jeopardize air quality progress.
The 1990 proposal did not include regulations specifying the
noncompliance penalty structure. This NPRM proposes penalty provisions
for emissions cap exceedances based on EPA's conclusion (expressed
repeatedly in the context of the RECLAIM development process) that
exceedance-based systems of establishing penalties are the most
appropriate for the use of mass emission caps. Exceedance-based penalty
systems establish violations based on the amount of excess emissions
above the facility cap. This penalty structure is most protective of
the NAAQS and comports best with the Act and with EPA's established
enforcement policies.
EPA has included in this FIP a much more detailed method for
setting baselines for the facilities subject to the cap program. The
method requires sources to examine the following data to calculate
their year 2001 cap emissions:
1990 annual emissions, and
Reductions to be made as a result of compliance with SIP
and/or FIP control measures between the years 1990 and 2001.
This methodology will inherently rely on emission inventory data
and planning projections to set year 2001 emissions caps. However, the
methodology has the advantage that it will not unfairly penalize
facilities which have made reductions ahead of schedule. This baseline
proposal provides flexibility beyond the 1990 proposal for facilities
which have made early reductions of NOX and VOC emissions.
EPA is not now proposing to incorporate a trading system into the
program in regulatory form. EPA will observe the functioning of the
RECLAIM market system, the Acid Rain (CAA Title IV) market system, and
other markets to determine the design which is most successful for
reducing emissions in the FIP areas while achieving other program
goals, including the avoidance of air toxics hotspots. In the 1990 FIP
proposal, EPA indicated that a trading scheme would be proposed in the
future; in this round, given that there will be more experience with
trading markets by the time this FIP is finalized, EPA chose to observe
the developing markets in parallel with its own research effort prior
to selecting a market structure.
Finally, the 1990 proposal discussed the use of a manufacturers
bubble as an alternative to emissions caps for users of industrial and
commercial solvents and coatings. The current FIP proposal describes
this concept in greater detail and discusses EPA's various reasons for
preferring this approach, if EPA is able to successfully resolve
certain issues involved in regulating manufacturers at the national
level.
(1) Rationale for Approach. All of the California FIP areas suffer
from emission reduction shortfalls when the FIP attainment analysis is
performed. The shortfalls, or reductions beyond the other proposed FIP
and SIP measures, which must be accounted for in order to bring the FIP
areas into attainment, range from at least 20 percent additional
reductions for VOC to at least 30 percent additional reductions for
NOX.\61\ In consideration of the limitations of available
technology-based regulations, and to provide the regulated community
with maximum flexibility when trying to achieve the shortfall
reductions, EPA is proposing a facility-wide declining emission cap
program.
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\61\The rates of reduction shown here represent the results of
EPA's preliminary analysis of the FIP areas' emission inventories.
Further analysis of these inventories is currently being performed
and may ultimately impact the final rates of reduction for the FIP
cap program. The reates of reduction may increase or stay the same
as appropriate. The current rates of reduction analysis shows that a
4 percent to 9 percent annual rate of reduction for VOC and 6
percent to 9 percent for NOX may be necessary to demonstrate
attainment in the FIP areas.
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The declining facility-wide emission caps will have a monthly
compliance period (i.e., a single monthly emissions limit for the
entire facility that declines annually as opposed to emission limits on
single emission points), an annual reduction rate (4 to 9 percent for
VOC, 6 to 9 percent for NOX), and initial baseline emission caps
(caps for the first 12 months of the program) established using
anticipated implementation-year inventories (year 2001 projected
inventories) for the universe of facilities included in the FIP cap
program. The facilities subject to the FIP cap program will be those
facilities that generate emissions of NOX or VOC greater than or
equal to 4 tpy in the FIP areas. The universe of facilities included in
the FIP cap program is based on process lists or emission categories
that make up a significant portion of the emissions necessary to be
reduced to ensure attainment in the FIP areas.
In developing its proposal, EPA has drawn on its experience and
involvement in other emission cap programs such as the CAA Title IV
program (Acid Rain), the South Coast Air Quality Management District's
Regional Clean Air Incentives Market (RECLAIM), and the general
guidance provided by the proposed Economic Incentive Program (EIP)
rules and guidance (58 FR 11110, February 23, 1993).
Discussed below are the source categories for which rules have been
developed. These measures would be promulgated as complete regulations
in the FIP but would not require emissions reductions until 2001 in
order to allow the FIP areas time to develop measures which obtain the
necessary reductions and to allow EPA adequate time to implement these
measures to ensure attainment and progress towards attainment by the
statutory attainment dates. The measures for stationary and areas
sources would mandate a linear annual reduction of emissions from
individual facilities with emissions greater than or equal to 4 tpy in
order to accomplish necessary reductions not achieved through other FIP
measures and federally approved SIP rules (facilities with emissions
greater than or equal to 2 tons per year will be subject to exemption
verification reporting requirements). Because EPA has chosen not to
develop conventional control measures at this time for a portion of the
VOC and NOX inventory, the level of control for the FIP cap
measures must be sufficient to make up for at least a 20 percent VOC
and at least a 30 percent NOX emission reduction shortfall.
(2) Reduction Rate. Assuming that the creditable State rules and
FIP rules will meet minimum progress requirements (particularly in the
South Coast FIP area) for the period up to 2000, the proposed FIP cap
rules are designed to go into effect beginning in 2001 and to achieve
reductions from each category of between 4 and 9 percent per year for
VOC and between 6 and 9 percent per year for NOX until the year
2005.\62\ This design, for example, means that in 2001 a VOC-emitting
facility would reduce its emissions at least 4 percent from its
baseline emissions; in 2002 the same facility would reduce its
emissions by at least 8 percent of its baseline emissions. By 2005, the
facility's emissions would be reduced by at least 20 percent of its
baseline (or year 2000) emissions.
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\62\This design assumes that the Sacramento area's ozone
nonattainment classification is changed to allow for a year 2005
attainment date. If a 1999 attainment date for Sacramento is
assumed, then the cap program in the Sacramento area would start
with compliance plan submittal in 1998 and full reductions required
in 1999, in order to achieve the earlier attainment date. The
Ventura area's ozone nonattainment classification allows for a year
2005 attainment date.
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(3) Withdrawal of Rules Based on SIP Progress. These proposed FIP
cap measures serve as a strong incentive for State efforts, since they
could be rescinded before their scheduled implementation dates if
areawide emissions are reduced to the prescribed levels through the
adoption and implementation of future SIP rules. In addition, any of
these measures could be rescinded upon EPA approval of State or local
measures that obtain the necessary reductions and which would not
interfere with any applicable requirement concerning attainment and
reasonable further progress, or any other applicable requirement of the
CAA. EPA strongly encourages the State to adopt measures quickly and in
a manner that will minimize adverse economic impacts.
(4) Relationship to Other Applicable FIP Provisions. Given the
overlap between the source categories in the proposed FIP cap program
(see section III.C.5.b.(2)) and those source categories regulated by
traditional means, EPA is proposing to include the reductions achieved
by the other regulations (i.e., the other FIP and/or SIP measures which
are effective at the time of the FIP cap program's implementation) in
the FIP cap program baseline setting procedures. This design means that
EPA is assuming that all reductions required by other portions of the
regulatory framework are achieved by the year 2001. EPA believes this
design to be a necessity given the emission reduction shortfalls and
attainment dates faced in the FIP areas. However, EPA seeks comment on
this design and potential alternatives that will ensure attainment and
progress prior to a given FIP area's attainment date. This design also
assumes that facilities after 2001 would not be operating under two
regulatory frameworks; rather, the traditional regulations are assumed
to have achieved their associated reductions and the FIP cap
regulations would make up for shortfalls necessary in the FIP areas.
This issue will be examined periodically to determine the impacts of
the interface and the ultimate reduction rate for the FIP cap program
in the FIP areas.
In the proposed FIP cap regulations EPA assumed no participation of
new sources in the program. EPA's design assumes that new sources will
be subject to federally approved new source review rules and emission
limits. However, EPA seeks comment on means for including new sources
in the FIP cap program and alternatives to the current design.
(5) Implementation and Enforcement Issues. The emission reduction
requirements derive from the areawide emission reduction requirements
of the FIP, rather than from the normal Agency assessments of available
technologies. As such, they may be costly and disruptive, and the
prospect of their federal implementation, in the case of inadequate
State progress, should inspire successful adoption of the SIP.
Over time, the State and local agencies can develop carefully
tailored economic incentive programs or traditional rules based upon
the most recent technologies and regulatory approaches. For example,
the SCAQMD has recently adopted the RECLAIM program and also has a
multi-million dollar technology development program to assist industry
to identify and successfully apply the latest scientific approaches
that can be employed to reduce pollutant emissions. With these types of
resources and, most importantly, with additional time to develop the
most feasible control approaches, the State and local agencies are in a
superior position to construct regulations that avoid social and
economic dislocation.
(a) Compliance mechanisms. As designed, the FIP cap program
requires affected sources to submit facility compliance plans to the
Agency for review by 1999. These plans must outline the facility's
means to achieve the specific annual reductions from 2001 to 2005. The
options for meeting the annual reductions include, but are not limited
to, product reformulation, product substitution, control equipment,
and, if necessary, production curtailments.\63\
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\63\See section (i) for a discussion of the option of trading
credits as a possible means of meeting reduction requirements.
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EPA will review and approve or disapprove these plans depending on
whether they achieve the required emission reduction requirements.
Given that these plans will encompass multiple emission sources with
different emission measurement methods, EPA believes that the
compliance plan review effort will be resource intensive. For those
sources subject to Title V operating permit regulations, the provisions
of the compliance plans would be federally enforceable permit
conditions. For such sources, procedures used in reviewing and
approving the compliance plans would not supersede public participation
and other requirements found in the Part 70 Title V regulations.
Compliance with the monthly caps established in the FIP cap program
will be determined by two means. Routine inspections to determine
whether or not monthly caps are met will be conducted. In addition,
facilities subject to the FIP cap program will be required to certify
that they met their monthly caps on an annual basis by submitting
annual reports within 60 days of the close of each calendar year. Prior
to the implementation of the FIP cap program, EPA will prepare a
statistical showing that the aggregate effect of the specified
averaging time is consistent with attaining the ozone NAAQS and
satisfying applicable progress requirements on a typical summer day
basis in accordance with the proposed economic incentive program rules
and guidance (see 58 FR 11110, February 23, 1993). EPA seeks comment on
the term of the emission caps (i.e., monthly as opposed to a shorter or
longer timeframe) and the means by which to determine compliance at
facilities subject to the FIP cap program.
(b) EPA Resources. EPA believes that the compliance mechanisms
outlined above require a significant resource investment by the Agency.
These resources include staff to review the compliance plan submissions
and evaluate the subject facilities' compliance status. EPA seeks
comment on alternative designs to those outlined in the FIP cap
regulations that may reduce this resource burden (including the
delegation of these responsibilities to the State or local agencies
discussed elsewhere in this NPRM).
(c) Emission Quantification Mechanisms. EPA recognizes that in
order to quantify mass emissions, the suggested emissions
quantification mechanisms may need further development. EPA will be
evaluating the methods outlined and alternatives for adequacy prior to
implementation of the FIP cap program.\64\ EPA may develop and propose
additional methods to obtain the appropriate mass emission results
required of the FIP cap program prior to its implementation. EPA seeks
comment on the methods outlined in the proposed regulations and any
alternative means for determining emissions from the affected source
categories.
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\64\This issue may impact the structure of any emission
reduction trading market established as a result of subsequent
analysis. See discussion later in this section.
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b. Control Approach-- (1) Rule Structure. This overview explains
the format used in the proposed FIP cap program rules.
All of the proposed rules contain sections discussing definitions,
applicability, specific provisions, reporting, recordkeeping, testing,
and monitoring requirements. The definitions section of each rule
contains the definitions which apply only to that rule. The
applicability section specifies the area to which the rule applies, who
is subject to the rule, and references the sections and/or paragraphs
of the rule to which subject persons must comply.
The specific provisions section of the rules specifies applicable
VOC or NOX limitations and requires subject persons to submit
baseline VOC or NOX emissions data to the EPA. Once implemented,
the rules would require affected facilities to annually reduce VOC
emissions by 4 to 9 percent and NOX emissions by 6 to 9 percent
beginning in 2001 and ending in 2005 to achieve at least a 20 percent
VOC reduction and at least a 30 percent NOX reduction overall. It
is expected that subject facilities would continue to maintain VOC and
NOX levels at 2005 levels after 2005.\65\ EPA may reduce the
annual percent reduction requirement during one or more years if rules
adopted by the local, State, and EPA (through the promulgation of
additional FIP or national measures) achieve the VOC and NOX
reductions necessary to demonstrate progress toward attainment of the
ozone standard.
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\65\Except in the case of the South Coast, where continued
reductions may be necessary to achieve attainment. See the
discussions elsewhere in this notice of EPA's use of section
182(e)(5) of Act.
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The purpose of the reporting, recordkeeping, testing, and
monitoring requirements of the proposed rules is to complement the
compliance plan and to ensure their enforceability. The reporting
section specifies annual reporting requirements (subject to
certification requirements) to demonstrate compliance with the monthly
caps and the recordkeeping section requires subject persons to
maintain, for at least three years, all information necessary to verify
compliance with the VOC and NOX limitations. The testing and
monitoring section of the rules require persons to test and/or install
monitoring equipment to demonstrate compliance with the VOC and
NOX limitations as requested by EPA. The VOC and NOX cap
regulations incorporate the specific methods for reporting,
recordkeeping, testing, and monitoring. EPA intends that facilities
which use the incorporated test methods will have satisfied the
requirements discussed in the proposed enhanced monitoring program\66\
regarding the source-specific analysis otherwise required by the
proposed enhanced monitoring program.
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\66\The proposed program was published on October 22, 1993--see
58 FR 54648.
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In addition to the proposed source category specific rules, EPA is
proposing a general provisions section which will be applicable to all
sources covered in each pollutant's cap program (i.e., one section for
VOC sources and one for NOX sources). The general provisions
section includes definitions applicable to all of the rules and test
methods and procedures referenced in the testing and monitoring
sections of most of the rules.
(2) Applicability and Exemptions. The proposed rules are designed
to regulate and limit VOC and NOX emissions at subject facilities
(process sources and other sources). Examples of process sources
include extraction, manufacturing, fabrication, and combustion
operations. Other sources include the use of solvent and paints (not
directly used in extraction, manufacturing, and fabrication processes),
VOC waste disposal and storage sites, and smaller combustion processes
(for example, smaller internal combustion engines). The FIP cap rules
are proposed for the following source categories:
For VOC:
(a) facilities which emit greater than or equal to 4 tons per year
from any of the following processes or combination of these processes:
Industrial and commercial solvents and coatings;
VOC emissions associated with the manufacturing of
products;
Disposal of materials containing VOCs;
Commercial food preparation and/or baking;
Petroleum and natural gas extraction, processing, and
storage;
For NOX:
(a) facilities which emit greater than or equal to 4 tons per year
of NOX from any of the following processes or combination of these
processes:
Any boiler, furnace, oven, dryer, heater, incinerator,
test cell and any solid, liquid or gaseous fueled equipment with a
maximum rated capacity greater than or equal to 2 million Btu per hour;
Any internal combustion engine with rated brake horsepower
(bhp) greater than or equal to 50 bhp, regardless of operating time;
Any gas turbine rated greater than or equal to 0.2
megawatts excluding any emergency standby equipment or peaking unit;
Any petroleum refinery fluid catalytic cracking unit;
Any petroleum refinery tail gas unit;
Any kiln or calciner;
Any equipment burning or incinerating solid fuels or
materials;
Any sulfuric acid production unit;