[Federal Register: January 2, 2001 (Volume 66, Number 1)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Page 85]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr02ja01-23]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 70
[FRL-6925-2]
Clean Air Act Operating Permit Program; Petition for Objection to
State Operating Permits for PacifiCorp's Jim Bridger and Naughton Coal-
Fired Power Plants, Wyoming
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of final order on petition to object to state operating
permit.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: This document announces that the EPA Administrator has
partially granted and partially denied a petition to object to two
state operating permits issued by the Wyoming Department of
Environmental Quality, Air Quality Division, to PacifiCorp for its Jim
Bridger plant and its Naughton plant in Wyoming. This order constitutes
final action on the petition submitted by the Wyoming Outdoor Council.
Pursuant to section 505(b)(2) of the Clean Air Act (Act) and 40 CFR
70.8(d), interested parties may seek judicial review of those portions
of the petition which EPA denied in the United States Court of Appeals
for the appropriate circuit within 60 days of this decision under
section 307 of the Act.
ADDRESSES: Copies of the final order, the petition and all other
supporting information are on file at the: U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, Region VIII, Air and Radiation Program, 999 18th
Street--Suite 300, Denver, Colorado, 80202. All documents will be
available for review at the U.S. EPA Region VIII office Monday through
Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (excluding federal holidays). The
final order is also available electronically at http://www.epa.gov/
region07/programs/artd/air/title5/t5memos/woc020.pdf.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Monica Morales, Air Technical
Assistance Unit, EPA Region VIII, telephone (303) 312-6936, e-mail
morales.monica@epa.gov. Interested parties may also contact the Wyoming
Department of Environmental Quality, Air Quality Division, 122 West
25th Street, Cheyenne, Wyoming 82002.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Clean Air Act affords EPA the
opportunity for a 45-day period to review, and object to as
appropriate, operating permits proposed by state permitting
authorities. Section 505(b)(2) of the Act authorizes any person to
petition the EPA Administrator within 60 days after the expiration of
this review period to object to state operating permits if EPA has not
done so. Petitions must be based only on objections to the permit that
were raised with reasonable specificity during the public comment
period provided by the state, unless the petitioner demonstrates that
it was impracticable to raise these issues during the comment period or
the grounds for the issues arose after this period.
The Wyoming Outdoor Council submitted a petition to the
Administrator on June 30, 1998, seeking EPA's objection to the
operating permits issued to PacifiCorp for its Jim Bridger and Naughton
coal-fired power plants. The petitioner maintains that the PacifiCorp
operating permits are inconsistent with the Act because the permits:
(1) fail to require continuous opacity monitoring for Naughton unit 3
and Jim Bridger units 1, 2, and 3 as required by the federal acid rain
regulations, 40 CFR 75.14(b); and (2) provide improper exemptions to
State Implementation Plan (``SIP'') emission limits by allowing excess
emissions due to malfunctions, abnormal conditions, or breakdowns that
are beyond the control of the operator.
The order partially granting and partially denying this petition
explains the reasons behind EPA's conclusions that (1) the permits fail
to meet the continuous opacity monitoring requirement for the four
coal-fired units and otherwise lack monitoring sufficient to assure
compliance with the permit's terms and conditions, and (2) the
petitioner failed to demonstrate that EPA has a basis for objecting to
the exemption from SIP emission limits due to malfunctions, abnormal
conditions or breakdowns.
Because the Order is a locally or regionally applicable action of
the Administrator, judicial review of this decision under section
307(b)(1) of the Clean Air Act (the Act) may be sought only by the
filing of a petition for review in the United States Court of Appeals
for the appropriate regional circuit within 60 days from the date on
which this notice is published in the Federal Register. Under section
307(b)(2) of the Act, this decision shall not be subject to later
judicial review in civil or criminal proceedings for enforcement.
Dated: December 20, 2000.
Jack W. McGraw,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region VIII.
[FR Doc. 00-33424 Filed 12-29-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P