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Public Notice: White Mountain Apache Timber Company Tribal Minor NSR Permit Application

Publish Date: 03/12/2020

Summary

Proposed Action

The United States Environmental Protection Agency, Region 9 (EPA) provides notice of and requests public comment on the EPA’s proposed action relating to the draft Tribal Minor New Source Review (NSR) permit for the White Mountain Apache Timber Company (“WMATCO,” or “Source”). The Source is located at 501 E. Fatco Road, Whiteriver, Arizona 85941, within the Fort Apache Reservation. The EPA is proposing to issue this tribal minor NSR permit to White Mountain Apache Forest Industries, P.O. Box 1090, Whiteriver, Arizona 85941. The contact for the Source is Gary Moore, (928)338-5015.

This draft permit, if finalized, will authorize operation of WMATCO’s log yard, large log mill and byproduct processing, a small log mill and byproduct processing, sorting and stacking storage, a propane boiler, dry kilns, dry storage, planers and byproduct processing, bundlers, remanufacturing plant and storage for shipment. Permitted emissions at the sawmill will be limited to 8.8 tons per year (tpy) of oxides of nitrogen (NOX), 85.5 tpy of volatile organic compounds (VOC) (primarily from the lumber drying kilns), 85.1 of particulate matter (PM), 51.2 tpy, of PM less than 10 micrometers in diameter (PM10), 27.8 tpy of PM less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter (PM2.5) and 7.7 tpy of carbon monoxide (CO) emissions. The permit will ensure that the WMATCO facility will operate consistent with the minor NSR regulations for Indian country (40 CFR 49.151-161). More information on the emission and limitations associated with this draft permit can be found in Section 5 of the technical support document for this action.

Draft Permit Review

A copy of the draft permit prepared by the EPA, the technical support document for the draft permit, and all supporting materials are available for review by the public through the online docket, by contacting the permit writer at R9airpermits@epa.gov, or at the following locations:

  1. At the US EPA Region 9 office (address above), Monday through Friday, from 9:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m., excluding federal holidays. Due to building security procedures, please call Lisa Beckham at (415) 972-3811 at least 48 hours in advance to arrange a visit.
  2. At the White Mountain Apache Tribe’s Public Safety Building:Public Safety Building503 Highway 260 McNary, AZ 85930 Monday through Friday, 8:00 am to 12:00 pm, 1:00pm to 4:30 pm

Public Hearing

A public hearing has not been scheduled for the draft permit action. However, anyone may request a public hearing. Any request for a public hearing must be made in writing and state the nature of the issues proposed to be raised at the hearing. The EPA will hold a hearing whenever there is, on the basis of requests, a significant degree of public interest in a draft tribal minor NSR permit. The EPA may also hold a public hearing at its discretion, whenever, for instance, such a hearing might clarify one or more issues involved in the minor NSR permit decision. The EPA will provide notice at least 30 days in advance of the date and time of any scheduled public hearing. The 30-day public comment period will be extended to the close of any public hearing on the White Mountain Apache Timber Company.

Final Action

Before taking final action on the draft permit, the EPA will consider all written comments submitted during the public comment period. The EPA will send notice of our final permit decision to each person who submitted comments and contact information during the public comment period or requested notice of the final permit decision. The EPA will summarize the contents of all substantive comments and provide written responses in a document accompanying the EPA’s final permit decision. The EPA’s final permit decision will become effective 30 days after the service of notice of the decision unless:

  1. A later effective date is specified in the permit;
  2. The decision is appealed to the EPA’s Environmental Appeals Board (EAB) pursuant to 40 CFR 49.159(d); or
  3. There are no comments requesting a change to the draft permit decision, in which case the final decision shall become effective immediately upon issuance.

Appeals to the EAB

In accordance with 40 CFR 49.159, within 30 days after a final permit decision has been issued, any person who filed comments on the draft permit or participated in the public hearing may petition the EAB to review any condition of the permit decision. The 30-day period within which a person may request review under this section begins when the Region has fulfilled the notice requirements for the final permit decision. A petition to the EAB is, under Section 307(b) of the Act, a prerequisite to seeking judicial review of the final agency action. For purposes of judicial review, final agency action occurs when the EPA denies or issues a final permit and agency review procedures are exhausted.

Additional Information

If you have questions, or if you wish to obtain further information, please contact Lisa Beckham at (415)972-3811, via email at R9airpermits@epa.gov, or at the EPA mailing address above. If you would like to be added to our mailing list to receive future information about this draft permit decision or other permit decisions issued by EPA Region 9, please contact the EPA at the address listed above or send an email to R9airpermits@epa.gov.

***Please bring the foregoing notice to the attention of all persons who would be interested in this matter.***

Applicant or Respondent

White Mountain Apache Forest Industries
P.O. Box 109
Whiteriver, AZ 85941

Docket Number: 

Permit #: 2019-006-MNSR