Environmental Protection Agency
EPA is seeking comment on a proposed allowance system to control the United States (U.S.) production and consumption of class II controlled substances, the hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), in accordance with U.S. obligations under the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (Protocol). Under the Protocol, the U.S. is obligated to limit HCFC consumption (defined by the Protocol and this document as production plus imports, minus exports) under a specific cap, which will be reduced in a step-wise fashion over time. The U.S. is also a signatory to amendments to freeze HCFC production on January 1, 2004. EPA published an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) on April 5, 1999, laying out a variety of options for developing an allowance system. Having fully considered comments on the ANPRM, EPA is today proposing an HCFC allowance system, similar in many respects to the class I allowance system in place before January 1, 1996. Instituting such a system for HCFCs would allow EPA to ensure that the U.S. maintains compliance with the Protocol caps, while providing certainty and predictability to allowance holders. In addition, the Clean Air Act (CAA) requires EPA to establish an allowance system for HCFCs. A slightly different version of this document was signed on December 28, 2000, by then Administrator Carol Browner. It was sent forward to the Federal Register and made available on the EPA Web site. It was not published in the Federal Register, but rather was recalled to EPA for review by the incoming Administration. In the interim, EPA was alerted to some potential discrepancies in baseline allocations; this led to the discovery that the tracking databases manifested some correlation errors. EPA reviewed all paper records to determine accurate baseline numbers, and the corrected numbers are included in this document.
Document Headings Document headings vary by document type but may contain the following: the agency or agencies that issued and signed a document the number of the CFR title and the number of each part the document amends, proposes to amend, or is directly related to the agency docket number / agency internal file number the RIN which identifies each regulatory action listed in the Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions See the Document Drafting Handbook for more details. Environmental Protection Agency 40 CFR Part 82 [FRL-6929-9] RIN 2060-AH67 AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). ACTION: Proposed rule. SUMMARY: EPA is seeking comment on a proposed allowance system to control the United States (U.S.) production and consumption of class II controlled substances, the hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), in accordance with U.S. obligations under the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (Protocol). Under the Protocol, the U.S. is obligated to limit HCFC consumption (defined by the Protocol and this document as production plus imports, minus exports) under a specific cap, which will be reduced in a step-wise fashion over time. The U.S. is also a signatory to amendments to freeze HCFC production on January 1, 2004. EPA published an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) on April 5, 1999, laying out a variety of options for developing an allowance system. Having fully considered comments on the ANPRM, EPA is today proposing an HCFC allowance system, similar in many respects to the class I allowance system in place before January 1, 1996. Instituting such a system for HCFCs would allow EPA to ensure that the U.S. maintains compliance with the Protocol caps, while providing certainty and predictability to allowance holders. In addition, the Clean Air Act (CAA) requires EPA to establish an allowance system for HCFCs. A slightly different version of this document was signed on December 28, 2000, by then Administrator…
Citation: 66 FR 38064
