Air Quality: Revision to the Regulatory Definition of Volatile Organic Compounds-Exclusion of (Z)-1-chloro-2,3,3,3-tetrafluoropropene (HCFO-1224yd(Z))

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY <CFR>40 CFR Part 51</CFR> <DEPDOC>[EPA-HQ-OAR-2023-0295; FRL-10823-01-OAR]</DEPDOC> <RIN>RIN 2060-AW00</RIN> <SUBJECT>Air Quality: Revision to the Regulatory Definition of Volatile Organic Compounds—Exclusion of (Z)-1-chloro-2,3,3,3-tetrafluoropropene (HCFO-1224yd(Z))</SUBJECT> <HD SOURCE="HED">AGENCY:</HD> Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). <HD SOURCE="HED">ACTION:</HD> Proposed rule. <SUM> <HD SOURCE="HED">SUMMARY:</HD> The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to revise the EPA's regulatory definition of volatile organic compounds (VOC) under the Clean Air Act (CAA). This action proposes to add (Z)-1-chloro-2,3,3,3-tetrafluoropropene (also known as HCFO-1224yd(Z); CAS number 111512-60-8) to the list of compounds excluded from the regulatory definition on the basis that this compound makes a negligible contribution to tropospheric ozone (O <E T="52">3</E> ) formation. </SUM> <EFFDATE> <HD SOURCE="HED">DATES:</HD> Comments must be received on or before January 13, 2025. </EFFDATE> <HD SOURCE="HED">ADDRESSES:</HD> You may send comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2023-0295, by any of the following methods: • <E T="03">Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov/</E> (our preferred method). Follow the online instructions for submitting comments. • <E T="03">Mail:</E> U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA Docket Center, Docket No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2023-0295, Office of Air and Radiation Docket, Mail Code 28221T, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20460. • <E T="03">Hand Delivery or Courier:</E> EPA Docket Center, WJC West Building, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20004. The Docket Center's hours of operations are 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m., Monday-Friday (except Federal Holidays). <E T="03">Instructions:</E> All submissions received must include the Docket ID No. for this rulemaking. Comments received may be posted without change to <E T="03">https://www.regulations.gov/,</E> including any personal information provided. For detailed instructions on sending comments and additional information on the rulemaking process, see the “Public Participation” heading of the <E T="02">SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION</E> section of this document. <FURINF> <HD SOURCE="HED">FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:</HD> Dr. Souad Benromdhane, Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards, Health and Environmental Impacts Division, Mail Code C539-07, Environmental Protection Agency, P.O. Box 12055, Research Triangle Park, NC 27711; telephone: (919) 541-4359; email address: <E T="03">benromdhane.souad@epa.gov.</E> </FURINF> <SUPLINF> <HD SOURCE="HED">SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:</HD> <HD SOURCE="HD1">Public Participation</HD> <E T="03">Written comments:</E> Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2023-0295, at <E T="03">https://www.regulations.gov</E> (our preferred method), or the other methods identified in the <E T="02">ADDRESSES</E> section. Once submitted, comments cannot be edited or removed from the docket. The EPA may publish any comment received to its public docket. Do not submit to EPA's docket at <E T="03">https://www.regulations.gov</E> any information you consider to be Confidential Business Information (CBI), Proprietary Business Information (PBI), or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Multimedia submissions (audio, video, etc.) must be accompanied by a written comment. The written comment is considered the official comment and should include discussion of all points you wish to make. The EPA will generally not consider comments or comment contents located outside of the primary submission ( <E T="03">i.e.,</E> on the web, cloud, or other file sharing system). Please visit <E T="03">https://www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets</E> for additional submission methods; the full EPA public comment policy; information about CBI, PBI, or multimedia submissions; and general guidance on making effective comments. <HD SOURCE="HD1">Table of Contents</HD> <EXTRACT> <FP SOURCE="FP-2">I. Does this action apply to me?</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-2">II. Background</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">A. The EPA's VOC Exemption Policy</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">B. Petition To List HCFO-1224yd(Z) as an Exempt Compound</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-2">III. The EPA's Assessment of the Petition</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">A. Contribution to Tropospheric Ozone Formation</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">B. Potential Impacts on Other Environmental Endpoints</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">1. Contribution to Stratospheric Ozone Depletion</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">2. Toxicity</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">3. Contribution to Climate Change</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">C. Conclusions</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-2">IV. Proposed Action</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-2">V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">A. Executive Order 12866: Regulatory Planning and Review and Executive Order 14094: Modernizing Regulatory Review</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">B. Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA)</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">C. Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA)</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">D. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA)</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">E. Executive Order 13132: Federalism</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">F. Executive Order 13175: Consultation and Coordination With Indian Tribal Governments</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">G. Executive Order 13045: Protection of Children From Environmental Health and Safety Risks</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">H. Executive Order 13211: Actions Concerning Regulations That Significantly Affect Energy Supply, Distribution or Use</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">I. National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act (NTTAA)</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP1-2">J. Executie Order 12898: Federal Actions To Address Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations and Executive Order 14096: Revitalizing Our Nation's Commitment to Environmental Justice for All</FP> <FP SOURCE="FP-2">VI. References</FP> </EXTRACT> <HD SOURCE="HD1">I. Does this action apply to me?</HD> Entities potentially affected by this proposed rule include, but are not necessarily limited to, the following: State and local air pollution control agencies that adopt and implement regulations to control air emissions of VOC; and industries manufacturing and/or using HCFO-1224yd(Z) for use in foam blowing, refrigeration, as well as applications in solvents and aerosol propellants, and other minor uses. Potential entities that may be affected by this action include the following: <GPOTABLE COLS="3" OPTS="L2,nj,i1" CDEF="xs60,12,r200"> <TTITLE>Table 1—Potentially Affected Entities by North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) Code</TTITLE> <CHED H="1">Category</CHED> <CHED H="1">NAICS code</CHED> <CHED H="1">Description of regulated entities</CHED> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Industry</ENT> <ENT>333415</ENT> <ENT>Air-Conditioning and Warm Air Heating Equipment and Commercial and Industrial Refrigeration Equipment Manufacturing.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Industry</ENT> <ENT>811310</ENT> <ENT>Commercial and industrial machinery and equipment (except automotive and electronic) repair and maintenance.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Industry</ENT> <ENT>221116</ENT> <ENT>Geothermal Electric Power Generation.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Industry</ENT> <ENT>221117</ENT> <ENT>Biomass Electric Power Generation.</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">Industry</ENT> <ENT>221118</ENT> <ENT>Other Electric Power Generation.</ENT> </ROW> </GPOTABLE> This table is not intended to be exhaustive but rather provides a guide for readers regarding entities that might be affected by this deregulatory action. This table lists the types of entities that the EPA is now aware of that could potentially be affected to some extent by this action. Other types of entities not listed in the table could also be affected to some extent. To determine whether your entity is directly or indirectly affected by this action, you should consult your State or local air pollution control and/or air quality management agencies. <HD SOURCE="HD1">II. Background</HD> <HD SOURCE="HD2">A. The EPA's VOC Exemption Policy</HD> Tropospheric O <E T="52">3</E> , commonly known as smog, is formed when VOC and nitrogen oxides (NO <E T="52">X</E> ) react in the atmosphere in the presence of sunlight. Because of the harmful health effects of O <E T="52">3</E> , the EPA and State governments limit the amount of VOC that can be released into the atmosphere. VOC form O <E T="52">3</E> through atmospheric photochemical reactions, and different VOC have different levels of reactivity. That is, different VOC do not react to form O <E T="52">3</E> at the same speed or form different amounts of O <E T="52">3</E> . Some VOC react more slowly or form less O <E T="52">3</E> ; therefore, changes in their emissions have limited effects on local or regional O <E T="52">3</E> pollution episodes. It has been the EPA's policy since 1971 that certain organic compounds with a negligible level of reactivity should be excluded from the regulatory definition of VOC to focus VOC control efforts on compounds that significantly affect O <E T="52">3</E> concentrations. The EPA also believes that exempting such compounds creates an incentive for industry to use negligibly reactive compounds in place of more highly reactive compounds that are regulated as VOC. The EPA lists compounds that it has determined to be negligibly reactive in its regulations as being excluded from the regulatory definition of VOC (40 CFR 51.100(s)). The CAA requires the regulation of VOC for various purposes. Section 302(s) of the CAA specifies that the EPA has the authority to define the meaning of “VOC” and, hence, what compounds shall be treated as VOC for regulatory purposes. The policy of excluding negligibly reactive c ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ Preview showing 10k of 55k characters. Full document text is stored and available for version comparison. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━