Revisions and Confidentiality Determinations for Data Elements Under the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule

<RULE> ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY <CFR>40 CFR Parts 9 and 98</CFR> <DEPDOC>[EPA-HQ-OAR-2019-0424; FRL-7230-01-OAR]</DEPDOC> <RIN>RIN 2060-AU35</RIN> <SUBJECT>Revisions and Confidentiality Determinations for Data Elements Under the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule</SUBJECT> <HD SOURCE="HED">AGENCY:</HD> Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). <HD SOURCE="HED">ACTION:</HD> Final rule. <SUM> <HD SOURCE="HED">SUMMARY:</HD> The EPA is amending specific provisions in the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule to improve data quality and consistency. This action updates the General Provisions to reflect revised global warming potentials; expands reporting to additional sectors; improves the calculation, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements by updating existing methodologies; improves data verifications; and provides for collection of additional data to better inform and be relevant to a wide variety of Clean Air Act provisions that the EPA carries out. This action adds greenhouse gas monitoring and reporting for five source categories including coke calcining; ceramics manufacturing; calcium carbide production; caprolactam, glyoxal, and glyoxylic acid production; and facilities conducting geologic sequestration of carbon dioxide with enhanced oil recovery. These revisions also include changes that will improve implementation of the rule such as updates to applicability estimation methodologies, simplifying calculation and monitoring methodologies, streamlining recordkeeping and reporting, and other minor technical corrections or clarifications. This action also establishes and amends confidentiality determinations for the reporting of certain data elements to be added or substantially revised in these amendments. </SUM> <EFFDATE> <HD SOURCE="HED">DATES:</HD> This rule is effective January 1, 2025. The incorporation by reference of certain material listed in this final rule is approved by the Director of the Federal Register beginning January 1, 2025. The incorporation by reference of certain other material listed in the rule was approved by the Director of the Federal Register as of January 1, 2018. </EFFDATE> <HD SOURCE="HED">ADDRESSES:</HD> The EPA has established a docket for this action under Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2019-0424. All documents in the docket are listed in the <E T="03">www.regulations.gov</E> index. Although listed in the index, some information is not publicly available, <E T="03">e.g.,</E> confidential business information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such as copyrighted material, is not placed on the internet and will be publicly available only in hard copy. Publicly available docket materials are available either electronically in <E T="03">www.regulations.gov</E> or in hard copy at the EPA Docket Center, WJC West Building, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, DC. This Docket Facility is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the Public Reading Room is (202) 566-1744 and the telephone number for the Air Docket is (202) 566-1742. <FURINF> <HD SOURCE="HED">FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:</HD> Jennifer Bohman, Climate Change Division, Office of Atmospheric Programs (MC-6207A), Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: (202) 343-9548; email address: <E T="03">GHGReporting@epa.gov.</E> For technical information, please go to the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP) website, <E T="03">www.epa.gov/ghgreporting.</E> To submit a question, select Help Center, followed by “Contact Us.” <E T="03">World Wide Web (WWW).</E> In addition to being available in the docket, an electronic copy of this final rule will also be available through the WWW. Following the Administrator's signature, a copy of this final rule will be posted on the EPA's GHGRP website at <E T="03">www.epa.gov/ghgreporting.</E> </FURINF> <SUPLINF> <HD SOURCE="HED">SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:</HD> <E T="03">Regulated entities.</E> These final revisions affect certain entities that must submit annual greenhouse gas (GHG) reports under the GHGRP (codified at 40 CFR part 98). These are amendments to existing regulations and will affect owners or operators of certain industry sectors that are suppliers and direct emitters of GHGs. Regulated categories and entities include, but are not limited to, those listed in table 1 of this preamble: <GPOTABLE COLS="3" OPTS="L2,nj,i1" CDEF="s100,15,r100"> <TTITLE>Table 1—Examples of Affected Entities by Category</TTITLE> <CHED H="1">Category</CHED> <CHED H="1"> North American Industry <CHED H="1">Examples of facilities that may be subject to part 98:+</CHED> <ROW> <ENT I="01">General Stationary Fuel Combustion Sources</ENT> <ENT> 211 </ENT> <ENT> Facilities operating boilers, process heaters, incinerators, turbines, and internal combustion engines. Extractors of crude petroleum and natural gas. </ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>321</ENT> <ENT>Manufacturers of lumber and wood products.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>322</ENT> <ENT>Pulp and paper mills.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>325</ENT> <ENT>Chemical manufacturers.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>324</ENT> <ENT>Petroleum refineries, and manufacturers of coal products.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>316, 326, 339</ENT> <ENT>Manufacturers of rubber and miscellaneous plastic products.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>331</ENT> <ENT>Steel works, blast furnaces.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>332</ENT> <ENT>Electroplating, plating, polishing, anodizing, and coloring.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>336</ENT> <ENT>Manufacturers of motor vehicle parts and accessories.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>221</ENT> <ENT>Electric, gas, and sanitary services.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>622</ENT> <ENT>Health services.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>611</ENT> <ENT>Educational services.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Electric Power Generation</ENT> <ENT>2211</ENT> <ENT>Generation facilities that produce electric energy.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Adipic Acid Production</ENT> <ENT>325199</ENT> <ENT>All other basic organic chemical manufacturing: Adipic acid manufacturing.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Aluminum Production</ENT> <ENT>331313</ENT> <ENT>Primary aluminum production facilities.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Ammonia Manufacturing</ENT> <ENT>325311</ENT> <ENT>Anhydrous ammonia manufacturing facilities.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Calcium Carbide Production</ENT> <ENT>325180</ENT> <ENT>Other basic inorganic chemical manufacturing: calcium carbide manufacturing.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Carbon Dioxide Enhanced Oil Recovery Projects</ENT> <ENT>211120</ENT> <ENT>Oil and gas extraction projects using carbon dioxide enhanced oil recovery.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Caprolactam, Glyoxal, and Glyoxylic Acid Production</ENT> <ENT>325199</ENT> <ENT>All other basic organic chemical manufacturing.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Cement Production</ENT> <ENT>327310</ENT> <ENT>Cement manufacturing.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Ceramics Manufacturing</ENT> Pottery, ceramics, and plumbing fixture manufacturing. Clay building material and refractories manufacturing. </ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Coke Calcining</ENT> <ENT>299901</ENT> <ENT>Coke; coke, petroleum; coke, calcined petroleum.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Electronics Manufacturing</ENT> <ENT>334111</ENT> <ENT>Microcomputers manufacturing facilities.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>334413</ENT> <ENT>Semiconductor, photovoltaic (PV) (solid-state) device manufacturing facilities.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>334419</ENT> <ENT>Liquid crystal display (LCD) unit screens manufacturing facilities; Microelectromechanical (MEMS) manufacturing facilities.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Electrical Equipment Manufacture or Refurbishment</ENT> <ENT>33531</ENT> <ENT>Power transmission and distribution switchgear and specialty transformers manufacturing facilities.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Electricity generation units that report through 40 CFR part 75</ENT> <ENT>221112</ENT> <ENT> Electric power generation, fossil fuel ( <E T="03">e.g.,</E> coal, oil, gas). </ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Electrical Equipment Use</ENT> <ENT>221121</ENT> <ENT>Electric bulk power transmission and control facilities.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Electrical transmission and distribution equipment manufacture or refurbishment</ENT> <ENT>33361</ENT> <ENT>Engine, Turbine, and Power Transmission Equipment Manufacturing.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Ferroalloy Production</ENT> <ENT>331110</ENT> <ENT>Ferroalloys manufacturing.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Fluorinated Greenhouse Gas Production</ENT> <ENT>325120</ENT> <ENT>Industrial gases manufacturing facilities.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Geologic Sequestration</ENT> geologic sequestration sites. </ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Glass Production</ENT> Flat glass manufacturing facilities. Glass container manufacturing facilities. </ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>327212</ENT> <ENT>Other pressed and blown glass and glassware manufacturing facilities.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">HCFC-22 Production</ENT> <ENT>325120</ENT> <ENT>Industrial gas manufacturing: Hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC) gases manufacturing.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">HFC-23 destruction processes that are not collocated with a HCFC-22 production facility and that destroy more than 2.14 metric tons of HFC-23 per year</ENT> <ENT>325120</ENT> ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ Preview showing 10k of 1119k characters. Full document text is stored and available for version comparison. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━