[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 225 (Tuesday, November 23, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65696-65697]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-30514]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[AZ-016-COLMP; FRL-6480-2]
Adequacy Status of the Pima County Submitted CO Limited
Maintenance Plan for Transportation Conformity Purposes
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of Adequacy.
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SUMMARY: In this notice, EPA is notifying the public that we have found
that Pima County submitted CO Limited Maintenance Plan is adequate for
conformity purposes. On March 2, 1999, the D.C. Circuit Court ruled
that submitted SIPs cannot be used for conformity determinations until
EPA has affirmatively found them adequate. As a result of our finding,
Pima County is not required to use a motor vehicle emissions budget
from the submitted CO Limited Maintenance Plan for future conformity
determinations. This determination is effective December 8, 1999.
DATES: These budgets are effective December 8, 1999.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The finding and, if any comments are
received, the response to comments are available at EPA's conformity
website: http://www.epa.gov/oms/traq, (once there, click on the
``Conformity'' button, then look for ``Adequacy Review of SIP
Submissions for Conformity'').
Karina O'Connor, U.S. EPA, Region IX, Air Division AIR-2, 75
Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105; (415) 744-1247 or
oconnor.karina@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Today's notice is simply an announcement of a finding that we have
already made. EPA Region IX sent a letter to the Arizona Department of
Environmental Quality on September 30, 1999 stating that the Pima
County submitted CO Limited Maintenance Plan is adequate for conformity
purposes. This finding has also been announced on EPA's conformity
website: http://www.epa.gov/oms/traq, (once there, click on the
``Conformity'' button, then look for ``Adequacy Review of SIP
Submissions for Conformity'').
Transportation conformity is required by section 176(c) of the
Clean Air Act. EPA's conformity rule requires that transportation
plans, programs, and projects conform to state air quality
implementation plans (SIPs) 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.
The criteria by which we determine whether a SIP's motor vehicle
emission budgets are adequate for conformity purposes are outlined in
40 CFR 93.118(e)(4). 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 SIP. Even if we find a budget
adequate, the SIP could later be disapproved.
We've described our process for determining the adequacy of
submitted SIP budgets in guidance (May 14, 1999 memo titled
``Conformity Guidance on Implementation of March 2, 1999
[[Page 65697]]
Conformity Court Decision''). We followed this guidance in making our
adequacy determination.
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401-7671q.
Dated: November 15, 1999.
Felicia Marcus,
Regional Administrator, Region IX.
[FR Doc. 99-30514 Filed 11-22-99; 8:45 am]
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