Adequacy Status of the Alabama Portion (Jackson County) of the Chattanooga, Tennessee Tri-State Area 1997 Annual PM2.5, 34735-34736 [2010-14770]
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Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 117 / Friday, June 18, 2010 / Notices
and the partial Counties of Lawrence in
Kentucky; Mason in West Virginia; and
Adams and Gallia in Ohio. On
December 5, 2008, the Commonwealth
of Kentucky, through the Division of Air
Quality (DAQ), submitted an attainment
demonstration for the 1997 annual PM2.5
standard for the Kentucky portion of the
tri-state Huntington-Ashland area
(hereafter referred to as the Ashland
Area). As a result of EPA’s
insignificance finding, the Ashland Area
is no longer required to perform regional
emissions analyses for either directly
emitted PM2.5 or NOX as part of future
PM2.5 conformity determinations for the
1997 annual PM2.5 air quality standard.
This finding only relates to the
Kentucky portion of the tri-state
Huntington-Ashland 1997 PM2.5
nonattainment area. In a letter dated
October 23, 2009, EPA informed the
State of Ohio that regional mobile
emissions of direct PM2.5 and NOX are
insignificant for transportation
conformity purposes as well. That
insignificance finding took effect on
December 22, 2009. EPA will review the
adequacy of the West Virginia submittal
in a separate action.
DATES: This insignificance finding for
direct PM2.5 and NOX is effective July 6,
2010.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Dianna Smith, Environmental Scientist,
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,
Region 4, Air Planning Branch, Air
Quality Modeling and Transportation
Section, 61 Forsyth Street, SW., Atlanta,
Georgia 30303. Ms. Smith can also be
reached by telephone at (404) 562–9207,
or via electronic mail at
smith.dianna@epa.gov. The finding is
available at EPA’s conformity Web site:
https://www.epa.gov/otaq/
stateresources/transconf/adequacy.htm.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This
notice is simply an announcement of a
finding that EPA has already made. EPA
sent a letter to DAQ on March 23, 2010,
stating that regional direct PM2.5 and
NOX emissions are insignificant from
mobile sources as provided in the
Kentucky portion of the 1997 annual
PM2.5 attainment demonstration for the
tri-state Huntington-Ashland area. The
Commonwealth of Kentucky submitted
the 1997 annual PM2.5 attainment
demonstration for the Ashland Area on
December 5, 2008. Ohio and West
Virginia provided separate submittals
for their portion of this Area and EPA
is addressing these submissions in
actions separate from today’s action.
EPA posted the availability of the
insignificance finding for the Ashland
Area on EPA’s Web site on September
8, 2009, as part of the adequacy process,
VerDate Mar<15>2010
16:17 Jun 17, 2010
Jkt 220001
for the purpose of soliciting comments.
The comment period for Kentucky’s
submission ran from September 8, 2009,
through October 8, 2009. During EPA’s
adequacy comment period for
Kentucky’s submission, no comments
were received on the insignificance
finding for the Ashland Area. Through
this notice, EPA is informing the public
of the insignificance finding for direct
PM2.5 and NOX for the purpose of
implementing transportation conformity
in the Ashland Area for the 1997 PM2.5
standard. EPA’s findings have also been
announced on EPA’s conformity Web
site: https://www.epa.gov/otaq/
stateresources/transconf/adequacy.htm.
Transportation conformity is required
by section 176(c) of the Clean Air Act,
as amended in 1990. EPA’s conformity
rule requires that transportation plans,
programs and projects conform to State
air quality implementation plans and
establishes the criteria and procedures
for determining whether or not they do.
Conformity to a SIP means that
transportation activities will not
produce new air quality violations,
worsen existing violations, or delay
timely attainment of the national
ambient air quality standards. On March
2, 1999, the District of Columbia Circuit
Court ruled that submitted State
Implementation Plans (SIPs) cannot be
used for transportation conformity
determinations until EPA has
affirmatively found them adequate.
The criteria by which EPA determines
whether a SIP’s motor vehicle budget is
adequate for transportation conformity
purposes are outlined in 40 Code of
Federal Regulations (CFR) 93.118(e)(4).
The Transportation Conformity Rule in
40 CFR 93.109(k) states that a regional
emissions analysis is no longer
necessary if EPA finds through the
adequacy or approval process that a SIP
demonstrates that regional motor
vehicle emissions are an insignificant
contributor to the air quality problem
for that pollutant/precursor. A finding
of insignificance does not change the
requirement for a regional analysis for
other pollutants/precursors; the area’s
obligation to meet other transportation
conformity requirements (i.e., other than
the regional emissions analysis); and
does not change the requirement for hotspot analysis. (See 73 FR 4419, January
24, 2008.) Please note that an adequacy
review is separate from EPA’s
completeness review, and it also should
not be used to prejudge EPA’s ultimate
approval of the attainment
demonstration plan for the Ashland
Area. Even if EPA finds the
insignificance finding for direct PM2.5
and NOX adequate, the attainment
PO 00000
Frm 00053
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
34735
demonstration plan could later be
disapproved.
Transportation partners should note
this insignificance finding in future
transportation conformity
determinations. Additionally, while this
insignificance finding waives the
requirements for regional emissions
analyses for direct PM2.5 and NOX for
the Ashland Area for the 1997 PM2.5
standard, as mentioned above, it does
not waive other conformity
requirements for the 1997 PM2.5
standard for the Ashland Area, nor does
it waive transportation conformity
requirements for other pollutants/
precursors for which the Area may be
designated nonattainment or
redesignated to attainment with a
maintenance plan.
EPA has described the process for
determining the adequacy of submitted
SIP budgets in a May 14, 1999,
memorandum entitled ‘‘Conformity
Guidance on Implementation of March
2, 1999, Conformity Court Decision.’’
EPA has followed this guidance in
making this adequacy determination.
This guidance is incorporated into
EPA’s July 1, 2004, final rulemaking
entitled ‘‘Transportation Conformity
Rule Amendments for the New 8-hour
Ozone and PM2.5 National Ambient Air
Quality Standards and Miscellaneous
Revisions for Existing Areas;
Transportation Conformity Rule
Amendments: Response to Court
Decision and Additional Rule Changes’’
(69 FR 40004).
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Dated: June 9, 2010.
Beverly H. Banister,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4.
[FR Doc. 2010–14774 Filed 6–17–10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
[EPA–R04–OAR–2010–0260–201019; FRL–
9164–1]
Adequacy Status of the Alabama
Portion (Jackson County) of the
Chattanooga, Tennessee Tri-State Area
1997 Annual PM2.5 Attainment
Demonstration Insignificance Finding
for Transportation Conformity
Purposes
AGENCY: Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of Adequacy.
SUMMARY: In this notice, EPA is
notifying the public that EPA has made
an insignificance finding through the
transportation conformity adequacy
E:\FR\FM\18JNN1.SGM
18JNN1
srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with NOTICES
34736
Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 117 / Friday, June 18, 2010 / Notices
process for directly emitted fine
particulate matter (PM2.5) and nitrogen
oxides (NOX) emissions as contained in
the 1997 PM2.5 attainment
demonstration for the Alabama portion
of the tri-state Chattanooga, Tennessee
nonattainment area (hereafter referred to
as the ‘‘Jackson County Area’’). On
October 14, 2009, the State of Alabama,
through the Alabama Department of
Environmental Management (ADEM),
submitted an attainment demonstration
plan for the 1997 annual PM2.5 standard
for Jackson County, Alabama as part of
the tri-state Chattanooga 1997 PM2.5
nonattainment area. The tri-state
Chattanooga 1997 annual PM2.5
nonattainment area is comprised of a
portion of Jackson County, Alabama;
Catoosa and Walker Counties, Georgia;
and Hamilton County, Tennessee. As a
result of EPA’s finding, the portion of
Jackson County within the tri-state
Chattanooga 1997 PM2.5 nonattainment
area is no longer required to perform a
regional emissions analysis for either
directly emitted PM2.5 or NOX as part of
future PM2.5 conformity determinations
for the 1997 annual PM2.5 standard. This
finding only relates to the Alabama
portion of this Area, and does not
relieve the Georgia or Tennessee
portions of the tri-state 1997 PM2.5
nonattainment area from the
requirement of performing the regional
emissions analyses for direct PM2.5 and
NOX. EPA will review the adequacy of
the Georgia and Tennessee submittals
with regard to the motor vehicle
emission budgets or insignificance
findings (if any and if appropriate) in
separate actions.
DATES: This insignificance finding for
direct PM2.5 and NOX is effective July 6,
2010.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Dianna Smith, Environmental Scientist,
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,
Region 4, Air Planning Branch, Air
Quality Modeling and Transportation
Section, 61 Forsyth Street, SW., Atlanta,
Georgia 30303. Ms. Smith can also be
reached by telephone at (404) 562–9207,
or via electronic mail at
smith.dianna@epa.gov. The finding is
available at EPA’s conformity Web site:
https://www.epa.gov/otaq/
stateresources/transconf/adequacy.htm
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This
notice is simply an announcement of a
finding that EPA has already made. EPA
Region 4 sent a letter to ADEM on
March 25, 2010, stating that regional
mobile source emissions of direct PM2.5
and NOX emissions are insignificant as
provided in the Alabama portion of the
1997 annual PM2.5 attainment
demonstration for the Jackson County
VerDate Mar<15>2010
16:17 Jun 17, 2010
Jkt 220001
Area submitted on October 14, 2009.
EPA posted the availability of the
insignificance finding on EPA’s Web
site on February 16, 2010, as part of the
adequacy process, for the purpose of
soliciting comments. The comment
period ran from February 16, 2010,
through March 18, 2010. During EPA’s
adequacy comment period, no
comments were received on the
insignificance finding for the Jackson
County Area. Through this notice, EPA
is informing the public of the
insignificance finding for direct PM2.5
and NOX for the purpose of
implementing transportation conformity
in the Jackson County Area for the 1997
PM2.5 standard. EPA’s findings have also
been announced on EPA’s conformity
Web site: https://www.epa.gov/otaq/
stateresources/transconf/adequacy.htm.
Transportation conformity is required
by section 176(c) of the Clean Air Act,
as amended in 1990. EPA’s conformity
rule requires that transportation plans,
programs and projects conform to state
air quality implementation plans and
establishes the criteria and procedures
for determining whether or not they do.
Conformity to a SIP means that
transportation activities will not
produce new air quality violations,
worsen existing violations, or delay
timely attainment of the national
ambient air quality standards. On March
2, 1999, the District of Columbia Circuit
Court ruled that submitted State
Implementation Plans (SIPs) cannot be
used for transportation conformity
determinations until EPA has
affirmatively found them adequate.
The criteria by which EPA determines
whether a SIP’s motor vehicle emissions
budget is adequate for transportation
conformity purposes are outlined in 40
Code of Federal Regulations (CFR)
93.118(e)(4). The Transportation
Conformity Rule in 40 CFR 93.109(k)
states that a regional emissions analysis
is no longer necessary if EPA finds
through the adequacy or approval
process that a SIP demonstrates that
regional motor vehicle emissions are an
insignificant contributor to the air
quality problem for that pollutant/
precursor. A finding of insignificance
does not change the requirement for a
regional analysis for other pollutants/
precursors and does not change the
requirement for hot-spot analysis. (See
73 FR 4419, January 24, 2008.) Please
note that an adequacy review is separate
from EPA’s completeness review, and it
also should not be used to prejudge
EPA’s ultimate approval of the
attainment demonstration plan for the
Jackson County Area. Even if EPA finds
the insignificance determination
PO 00000
Frm 00054
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
adequate, the attainment demonstration
plan could later be disapproved.
Transportation partners should note
this insignificance finding in future
transportation conformity
determinations. Additionally, while this
insignificance finding waives the
requirements for regional emissions
analyses for direct PM2.5 and NOX for
the Jackson County Area for the 1997
PM2.5 standard, as mentioned above, it
does not waive other conformity
requirements for the 1997 PM2.5
standard for the Jackson County Area,
nor does it waive transportation
conformity requirements for other
pollutants/precursors for which the
Area may be designated nonattainment
or redesignated to attainment with a
maintenance plan.
EPA has described the process for
determining the adequacy of submitted
SIP budgets (which also applies to
insignificance determinations) in a May
14, 1999, memorandum entitled
‘‘Conformity Guidance on
Implementation of March 2, 1999,
Conformity Court Decision.’’ EPA has
followed this guidance in making this
adequacy determination. This guidance
is incorporated into EPA’s July 1, 2004,
final rulemaking entitled
‘‘Transportation Conformity Rule
Amendments for the New 8-hour Ozone
and PM2.5 National Ambient Air Quality
Standards and Miscellaneous Revisions
for Existing Areas; Transportation
Conformity Rule Amendments:
Response to Court Decision and
Additional Rule Changes’’ (69 FR
40004).
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Dated: June 8, 2010.
Beverly H. Banister,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4.
[FR Doc. 2010–14770 Filed 6–17–10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
[FRL–9163–6]
Draft FY 2011–2015 EPA Strategic Plan
AGENCY: Environmental Protection
Agency.
ACTION: Notice of Availability, request
for public comments.
SUMMARY: The U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing
the availability of the Draft FY 2011–
2015 EPA Strategic Plan (Strategic Plan)
for public review and comment, as part
of the periodic update required by the
Government Performance and Results
Act (GPRA). The Agency’s final
E:\FR\FM\18JNN1.SGM
18JNN1
Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 117 (Friday, June 18, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34735-34736]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-14770]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[EPA-R04-OAR-2010-0260-201019; FRL-9164-1]
Adequacy Status of the Alabama Portion (Jackson County) of the
Chattanooga, Tennessee Tri-State Area 1997 Annual PM2.5 Attainment
Demonstration Insignificance Finding for Transportation Conformity
Purposes
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of Adequacy.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: In this notice, EPA is notifying the public that EPA has made
an insignificance finding through the transportation conformity
adequacy
[[Page 34736]]
process for directly emitted fine particulate matter (PM2.5)
and nitrogen oxides (NOX) emissions as contained in the 1997
PM2.5 attainment demonstration for the Alabama portion of
the tri-state Chattanooga, Tennessee nonattainment area (hereafter
referred to as the ``Jackson County Area''). On October 14, 2009, the
State of Alabama, through the Alabama Department of Environmental
Management (ADEM), submitted an attainment demonstration plan for the
1997 annual PM2.5 standard for Jackson County, Alabama as
part of the tri-state Chattanooga 1997 PM2.5 nonattainment
area. The tri-state Chattanooga 1997 annual PM2.5
nonattainment area is comprised of a portion of Jackson County,
Alabama; Catoosa and Walker Counties, Georgia; and Hamilton County,
Tennessee. As a result of EPA's finding, the portion of Jackson County
within the tri-state Chattanooga 1997 PM2.5 nonattainment
area is no longer required to perform a regional emissions analysis for
either directly emitted PM2.5 or NOX as part of
future PM2.5 conformity determinations for the 1997 annual
PM2.5 standard. This finding only relates to the Alabama
portion of this Area, and does not relieve the Georgia or Tennessee
portions of the tri-state 1997 PM2.5 nonattainment area from
the requirement of performing the regional emissions analyses for
direct PM2.5 and NOX. EPA will review the
adequacy of the Georgia and Tennessee submittals with regard to the
motor vehicle emission budgets or insignificance findings (if any and
if appropriate) in separate actions.
DATES: This insignificance finding for direct PM2.5 and
NOX is effective July 6, 2010.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dianna Smith, Environmental Scientist,
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 4, Air Planning Branch,
Air Quality Modeling and Transportation Section, 61 Forsyth Street,
SW., Atlanta, Georgia 30303. Ms. Smith can also be reached by telephone
at (404) 562-9207, or via electronic mail at smith.dianna@epa.gov. The
finding is available at EPA's conformity Web site: https://www.epa.gov/otaq/stateresources/transconf/adequacy.htm
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice is simply an announcement of a
finding that EPA has already made. EPA Region 4 sent a letter to ADEM
on March 25, 2010, stating that regional mobile source emissions of
direct PM2.5 and NOX emissions are insignificant
as provided in the Alabama portion of the 1997 annual PM2.5
attainment demonstration for the Jackson County Area submitted on
October 14, 2009. EPA posted the availability of the insignificance
finding on EPA's Web site on February 16, 2010, as part of the adequacy
process, for the purpose of soliciting comments. The comment period ran
from February 16, 2010, through March 18, 2010. During EPA's adequacy
comment period, no comments were received on the insignificance finding
for the Jackson County Area. Through this notice, EPA is informing the
public of the insignificance finding for direct PM2.5 and
NOX for the purpose of implementing transportation
conformity in the Jackson County Area for the 1997 PM2.5
standard. EPA's findings have also been announced on EPA's conformity
Web site: https://www.epa.gov/otaq/stateresources/transconf/adequacy.htm.
Transportation conformity is required by section 176(c) of the
Clean Air Act, as amended in 1990. EPA's conformity rule requires that
transportation plans, programs and projects conform to state air
quality implementation plans and establishes the criteria and
procedures for determining whether or not they do. Conformity to a SIP
means that transportation activities will not produce new air quality
violations, worsen existing violations, or delay timely attainment of
the national ambient air quality standards. On March 2, 1999, the
District of Columbia Circuit Court ruled that submitted State
Implementation Plans (SIPs) cannot be used for transportation
conformity determinations until EPA has affirmatively found them
adequate.
The criteria by which EPA determines whether a SIP's motor vehicle
emissions budget is adequate for transportation conformity purposes are
outlined in 40 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 93.118(e)(4). The
Transportation Conformity Rule in 40 CFR 93.109(k) states that a
regional emissions analysis is no longer necessary if EPA finds through
the adequacy or approval process that a SIP demonstrates that regional
motor vehicle emissions are an insignificant contributor to the air
quality problem for that pollutant/precursor. A finding of
insignificance does not change the requirement for a regional analysis
for other pollutants/precursors and does not change the requirement for
hot-spot analysis. (See 73 FR 4419, January 24, 2008.) Please note that
an adequacy review is separate from EPA's completeness review, and it
also should not be used to prejudge EPA's ultimate approval of the
attainment demonstration plan for the Jackson County Area. Even if EPA
finds the insignificance determination adequate, the attainment
demonstration plan could later be disapproved.
Transportation partners should note this insignificance finding in
future transportation conformity determinations. Additionally, while
this insignificance finding waives the requirements for regional
emissions analyses for direct PM2.5 and NOX for
the Jackson County Area for the 1997 PM2.5 standard, as
mentioned above, it does not waive other conformity requirements for
the 1997 PM2.5 standard for the Jackson County Area, nor
does it waive transportation conformity requirements for other
pollutants/precursors for which the Area may be designated
nonattainment or redesignated to attainment with a maintenance plan.
EPA has described the process for determining the adequacy of
submitted SIP budgets (which also applies to insignificance
determinations) in a May 14, 1999, memorandum entitled ``Conformity
Guidance on Implementation of March 2, 1999, Conformity Court
Decision.'' EPA has followed this guidance in making this adequacy
determination. This guidance is incorporated into EPA's July 1, 2004,
final rulemaking entitled ``Transportation Conformity Rule Amendments
for the New 8-hour Ozone and PM2.5 National Ambient Air
Quality Standards and Miscellaneous Revisions for Existing Areas;
Transportation Conformity Rule Amendments: Response to Court Decision
and Additional Rule Changes'' (69 FR 40004).
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Dated: June 8, 2010.
Beverly H. Banister,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4.
[FR Doc. 2010-14770 Filed 6-17-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P