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Adequacy Status of the Metropolitan Washington DC Area (DC-MD-VA) Area 8-Hour Ozone Non-Attainment Area's Reasonable Further Progress Plan Vehicle Emission Budgets for Transportation Conformity Purposes

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[Federal Register: September 4, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 171)]
[Notices]
[Page 45853]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr04se09-57]

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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-8952-7]

Adequacy Status of the Metropolitan Washington DC Area (DC-MD-VA)
Area 8-Hour Ozone Non-Attainment Area's Reasonable Further Progress
Plan Vehicle Emission Budgets 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
the Motor Vehicle Emissions Budgets (MVEBs) in the 2008 Reasonable
Further Progress (RFP) Plan, submitted on June 4, 2007, by the Maryland
Department of the Environment (MDE) and on June 12, 2007 by the
Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (VADEQ) and the District
of Columbia Department of the Environment (DCDOE) are adequate for
transportation conformity purposes. As a result of EPA's finding, the
Metropolitan Washington, DC area must use the MVEBs from the 2008 RFP
Plan for future conformity determinations for the 8-hour ozone standard.

DATES: These MVEBs are effective September 21, 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 Plan for the Metropolitan Washington DC 8-hour Ozone Nonattainment
Area submitted to EPA as SIP revisions on June 4 and June 12, 2007.
    Today's notice is simply an announcement of a finding that EPA has
already made. EPA sent a letter to MDE, VADEQ and DCDOE on July 29,
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, the Commonwealth of Virginia and the District of
Columbia must use the MVEBs from the 2008 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:

             Washington D.C. Motor Vehicle Emissions Budgets
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                              2008 Reasonable Further
                                                     Progress
           Nonattainment area            -------------------------------
                                             VOC (tpd)       NOX (tpd)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Washington D.C..........................            70.8           159.8
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    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 and procedure
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: August 21, 2009.
William C. Early,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region III.
[FR Doc. E9-21396 Filed 9-3-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P

 
 

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