Air Plan Approval; Reconsideration and Repeal of Air Plan Partial Approval and Partial Disapproval of North Dakota's Regional Haze State Implementation Plan for the Second Implementation Period
- Published
- Sep 9, 2026
- Comments close
- Oct 9, 2026
- Citation
- 91 FR 57302
- Docket
- EPA-R08-OAR-2023-0495, FRL-13512-01-R8
Proposed rule; reconsideration of final rule.
Summary
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing to undo a 2024 decision that only partially approved North Dakota’s 2022 regional‑haze State Implementation Plan (SIP) for the second compliance period. The agency now plans to fully approve the portions of the state’s plan that were previously rejected, because EPA has concluded that the plan does meet the required federal standards after reviewing new information and arguments from the state and several power companies. The change is intended to bring North Dakota’s air‑quality strategy into full compliance with the Clean Air Act’s regional‑haze program, which aims to improve visibility and reduce pollution in national parks and other protected areas. The rule is being issued by the EPA and directly affects North Dakota’s state government, its utility companies (including Basin Electric Power Cooperative, Lignite Energy Council, Rainbow Energy Center, Coyote Station co‑owners, Montana‑Dakota Utilities, and NACCO Natural Resources), and any entities subject to the state’s haze‑control measures. The proposal was published on September 9, 2026, and comments must be submitted by October 9, 2026. After the comment period, EPA will review the feedback and issue a final rule that either confirms the full approval or makes further adjustments, after which the approved portions of the SIP will become legally enforceable.
AI-generated summary — verify against the Federal Register text.
Official abstract
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or Agency) is proposing to repeal a final rule published in the Federal Register on December 2, 2024, partially approving and partially disapproving North Dakota's 2022 regional haze State Implementation Plan (SIP) submission for the second implementation period. As a result, the EPA is proposing to approve the portions of North Dakota's 2022 SIP submission for the second implementation period that were disapproved in the EPA's 2024 partial approval/partial disapproval. In the December 2024 final rule, the EPA determined that North Dakota submitted a regional haze SIP that did not meet all the statutory and regulatory requirements for the regional haze second implementation period. On January 31, 2025, and February 6, 2025, EPA received petitions for reconsideration from the State of North Dakota, Basin Electric Power Cooperative, Lignite Energy Council (LEC), Rainbow Energy Center, and the Coyote Station Co-Owners. On January 31, 2025, the State of North Dakota, Montana-Dakota Utilities Company, NACCO Natural Resources Corporation, Basin Electric Power Cooperative, Rainbow Energy Center, and Lignite Energy Center filed petitions for review in the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals. EPA granted reconsideration on April 30, 2025, sending letters to the State of North Dakota, Basin Electric, LEC, Rainbow Energy Center, and Coyote Station Co-Owners. The petitions for review were held in abeyance by the Eighth Circuit on June 4, 2025 pending the administrative reconsideration process.
Topics
Track this rulemaking
Get alerts when this document changes status or its comment period closes, plus the bills that connect to it.
Sign up free