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Maryland; Adequacy Status of the 2008 Reasonable Further Progress Plan for the Baltimore 8-Hour Ozone Nonattainment Area Motor Vehicle Emission Budgets

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[Federal Register: March 27, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 58)]
[Notices]
[Page 13433]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr27mr09-55]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-8787-3]

Maryland; Adequacy Status of the 2008 Reasonable Further Progress
Plan for the Baltimore 8-Hour Ozone Nonattainment Area Motor Vehicle
Emission Budgets

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 the Motor Vehicle Emissions Budgets (MVEBs) in the Reasonable
Further Progress Plan (RFP) submitted as a State Implementation Plan
(SIP) revision on June 4, 2007 by the Maryland Department of the
Environment, (MDE) are adequate for transportation conformity purposes.
As a result of EPA's finding, the State of Maryland must use the MVEBs
from the June 4, 2007 RFP Plan for future conformity determinations for
the 8-hour ozone standard.

DATES: These MVEBs are effective April 13, 2009.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Martin Kotsch, U.S. EPA, Region III,
1650 Arch Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103 at (215) 814-3335 or by e-mail
at: kotsch.martin@EPA.gov. The finding is available at EPA's conformity
Web site: http://www.epa.gov/otaq/stateresources/transconf/currsips.htm.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document ``we,'' ``us,'' or
``our'' refer to EPA. The word ``budgets'' refers to the motor vehicle
emission budgets for volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and nitrogen
oxides (NOx). The word ``SIP'' in this document refers to the RFP Plans
for the Baltimore 8-Hour Ozone Nonattainment Area submitted to EPA as
SIP revisions on June 4, 2007.
    Today's notice is simply an announcement of a finding that EPA has
already made. EPA Region III sent a letter to MDE on January 15, 2009
stating that the MVEBs in the RFP Plan are adequate for transportation
conformity purposes. As a result of EPA's finding, the State of
Maryland must use the MVEBs from the June 4, 2007 RFP Plan for future
conformity determinations for the 8-hour ozone standard. This finding
has also been announced on EPA's conformity Web site: 
http://www.epa.gov/otaq/stateresources/transconf/pastsips.htm. The adequate
MVEBs are provided in the following table:

            Table 1--Maryland Motor Vehicle Emissions Budgets
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                              2008 Reasonable further
                                                     progress
           Nonattainment area            -------------------------------
                                             VOC (tpd)       NOX (tpd)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Baltimore...............................            41.2           106.8
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    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 andprocedure
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 have described our
process for determining the adequacy of submitted SIP budgets in 40 CFR
93.118(f), and have followed this rule in making our adequacy determination.

    Dated: March 10, 2009.
William T. Wisniewski,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region III.
[FR Doc. E9-6883 Filed 3-26-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P

 
 

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