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PA Bulletin, Doc. No. 07-369

NOTICES

INDEPENDENT REGULATORY REVIEW COMMISSION

Notice of Comments Issued

[37 Pa.B. 1101]
[Saturday, March 3, 2007]

   Section 5(g) of the Regulatory Review Act (71 P. S. § 745.5(g)) provides that the Independent Regulatory Review Commission (Commission) may issue comments within 30 days of the close of the public comment period. The Commission comments are based upon the criteria contained in section 5.2 of the Regulatory Review Act (71 P. S. § 745.5b).

   The Commission has issued comments on the following proposed regulation. The agency must consider these comments in preparing the final-form regulation. The final-form regulation must be submitted within 2 years of the close of the public comment period or it will be deemed withdrawn.

Reg No. Agency/Title Close of the Public Comment Period IRRC
Comments Issued
7-406 Environmental Quality Board
Notification of Proximity to Airports		1/22/072/21/07
36 Pa.B. 7867 (December 23, 2006)

____

Environmental Quality Board
Regulation #7-406
(IRRC #2587)

Notification of Proximity to Airports

February 21, 2007

   We submit for your consideration the following comments on the proposed rulemaking published in the December 23, 2006 Pennsylvania Bulletin. Our comments are based on criteria in Section 5.2 of the Regulatory Review Act (71 P. S. § 745.5b). Section 5.1(a) of the Regulatory Review Act (71 P. S. § 745.5a(a)) directs the Environmental Quality Board (Board) to respond to all comments received from us or any other source.

1.  Section 271.1. Definitions.--Reasonableness; Fiscal impact.

   This section adds ''military airport'' to the definition of ''airport.'' When describing this amendment in the Preamble, the Board states ''By including 'military airport' in the definition of 'airport,' regulatory requirements that relate to airports, current and proposed, will apply to military airports'' (Emphasis added).

   The Pennsylvania Waste Industries Association (PWIA) raised objections and stated that the ''Inclusion of military airports within the definition of airport retroactively imposes . . . setback restrictions on existing, permitted facilities, and raises the potential for a confiscatory scenario.'' Specifically, PWIA pointed to 25 Pa. Code § 273.202(a)(14)--(16), relating to the areas where municipal waste landfills are prohibited.

   Will this notification requirement for existing facilities result in setback restrictions or ''confiscatory scenarios'' on those facilities? Will existing, permitted municipal waste landfills be grandfathered from these requirements? These questions also apply to Section 287.1.

2.  Section 279.112. Notification of proximity to airport.--Reasonableness; Clarity.

   We have two concerns with this section. They also apply to proposed Section 293.112.

   First, the proposed language in this section does not adequately guide waste transfer facilities. It imposes notification requirements for new proposed waste transfer facilities or for existing facilities that wish to expand their operation. The facility is required to notify the Bureau of Aviation of the Department of Transportation, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the airport if the facility is, or will be, within six miles of an airport. However, the section fails to set forth the required method of notification, the timeframe under which this notification must be delivered or how long the notified parties have to respond. These provisions should be added to the final-form regulation.

   Second, PWIA stated that FAA studies have shown that birds are not attracted to facilities that do not accept ''putrescible waste.'' The Board should consider adding an exemption for these facilities.

ARTHUR COCCODRILLI,   
Chairperson

[Pa.B. Doc. No. 07-369. Filed for public inspection March 2, 2007, 9:00 a.m.]


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