§ 50.1 - Definitions.

§ 50.1 Definitions.

(a) As used in this part, all terms not defined herein shall have the meaning given them by the Act.

(b) Act means the Clean Air Act, as amended (42 U.S.C. 1857-18571, as amended by Pub. L. 91-604).

(c) Agency means the Environmental Protection Agency.

(d) Administrator means the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.

(e) Ambient air means that portion of the atmosphere, external to buildings, to which the general public has access.

(f) Reference method means a method of sampling and analyzing the ambient air for an air pollutant that is specified as a reference method in an appendix to this part, or a method that has been designated as a reference method in accordance with part 53 of this chapter; it does not include a method for which a reference method designation has been cancelled in accordance with § 53.11 or § 53.16 of this chapter.

(g) Equivalent method means a method of sampling and analyzing the ambient air for an air pollutant that has been designated as an equivalent method in accordance with part 53 of this chapter; it does not include a method for which an equivalent method designation has been cancelled in accordance with § 53.11 or § 53.16 of this chapter.

(h) Traceable means that a local standard has been compared and certified either directly or via not more than one intermediate standard, to a primary standard such as a National Bureau of Standards Standard Reference Material (NBS SRM), or a USEPA/NBS-approved Certified Reference Material (CRM).

(i) Indian country is as defined in 18 U.S.C. 1151.

(j) Exceptional event means an event(s) and its resulting emissions that affect air quality in such a way that there exists a clear causal relationship between the specific event(s) and the monitored exceedance(s) or violation(s), is not reasonably controllable or preventable, is an event(s) caused by human activity that is unlikely to recur at a particular location or a natural event(s), and is determined by the Administrator in accordance with 40 CFR 50.14 to be an exceptional event. It does not include air pollution relating to source noncompliance. Stagnation of air masses and meteorological inversions do not directly cause pollutant emissions and are not exceptional events. Meteorological events involving high temperatures or lack of precipitation (i.e., severe, extreme or exceptional drought) also do not directly cause pollutant emissions and are not considered exceptional events. However, conditions involving high temperatures or lack of precipitation may promote occurrences of particular types of exceptional events, such as wildfires or high wind events, which do directly cause emissions.

(k) Natural event means an event and its resulting emissions, which may recur at the same location, in which human activity plays little or no direct causal role. For purposes of the definition of a natural event, anthropogenic sources that are reasonably controlled shall be considered to not play a direct role in causing emissions.

(l) Exceedance with respect to a national ambient air quality standard means one occurrence of a measured or modeled concentration that exceeds the specified concentration level of such standard for the averaging period specified by the standard.

(m) Prescribed fire is any fire intentionally ignited by management actions in accordance with applicable laws, policies, and regulations to meet specific land or resource management objectives.

(n) Wildfire is any fire started by an unplanned ignition caused by lightning; volcanoes; other acts of nature; unauthorized activity; or accidental, human-caused actions, or a prescribed fire that has developed into a wildfire. A wildfire that predominantly occurs on wildland is a natural event.

(o) Wildland means an area in which human activity and development are essentially non-existent, except for roads, railroads, power lines, and similar transportation facilities. Structures, if any, are widely scattered.

(p) High wind dust event is an event that includes the high-speed wind and the dust that the wind entrains and transports to a monitoring site.

(q) High wind threshold is the minimum wind speed capable of causing particulate matter emissions from natural undisturbed lands in the area affected by a high wind dust event.

(r) Federal land manager means, consistent with the definition in 40 CFR 51.301, the Secretary of the department with authority over the Federal Class I area (or the Secretary's designee) or, with respect to Roosevelt-Campobello International Park, the Chairman of the Roosevelt-Campobello International Park Commission.

[36 FR 22384, Nov. 25, 1971, as amended at 41 FR 11253, Mar. 17, 1976; 48 FR 2529, Jan. 20, 1983; 63 FR 7274, Feb. 12, 1998; 72 FR 13580, Mar. 22, 2007; 81 FR 68276, Oct. 3, 2016]