[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 12 (Thursday, January 19, 1995)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 3771-3773]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-1317]



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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 81

[CA-103-1-6722 FRL-5125-2]


Designation of Areas for Air Quality Planning Purposes; State of 
California; Correction of Design Value for San Diego Ozone 
Nonattainment Area; Reclassification of San Diego Ozone Nonattainment 
Area to Serious

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: This document announces the EPA Region IX decision to 
reclassify the San Diego, California, ozone nonattainment area (San 
Diego) from severe to serious. San Diego was classified as a severe 
ozone nonattainment area by EPA on November 6, 1991 (56 FR 56694). 
However, EPA has determined that the ozone design value of .190 ppm 
published by EPA and used in classifying San Diego as a severe ozone 
nonattainment area was incorrect. The correct monitored ozone design 
value was .185 ppm. This design value falls within the range of values 
which would have provided the opportunity for the State to request 
reclassification of San Diego under section 181(a)(4) of the Clean Air 
Act, as amended in 1990 (CAA or the Act). Pursuant to section 110(k) of 
the Act, which allows EPA to correct its actions, EPA is today 
publishing the correct design value of .185 ppm and is granting the 
State's request to reclassify the San Diego nonattainment area under 
section 181(a)(4).

EFFECTIVE DATE: February 21, 1995.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Angela Baranco, Plans Development 
Section (A-2-2), Air Planning Branch, United States Environmental 
Protection Agency, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, 
California, 94105, (415) 744-1196.

Supplementary Information:

Background

    Prior to the 1990 amendments to the Act, EPA identified and 
designated nonattainment areas with respect to the National Ambient Air 
Quality Standards (NAAQS). For such areas, States submitted State 
Implementation Plans (SIPs) to control emissions and achieve attainment 
of the NAAQS. The San Diego ozone nonattainment area (San Diego) was 
originally designated as nonattainment for ozone on March 3, 1978 (as 
well as for other pollutants not addressed in this document). The SIP 
for San Diego was first adopted in the early 1970's. The revised SIP 
was fully approved by EPA on November 25, 1983 (48 FR 53114) and 
December 28, 1983 (48 FR 57130).
    Under the 1990 amendments to the Act, San Diego retained its 
designation of nonattainment and was classified as severe by operation 
of law pursuant to sections 107(d) and 181(a) upon the date of 
enactment of the CAA. See 56 FR 56694 (November 6, 1991). This 
classification was required to be based on the design value for the 
area. The actual monitored value for San Diego was .185 ppm. This value 
was reported to the California Air Resources Board (CARB), which 
rounded the value to .19 ppm and submitted it to EPA. EPA published 
this number as .190 ppm in its November 6, 1991 Federal Register 
document.

CAA Provisions

A. Correction of Error Under Section 110(k)(6)

    Section 110(k)(6) of the Act provides:

    Whenever the Administrator determines that the Administrator's 
action approving, disapproving, or promulgating any plan or plan 
revision (or part thereof), area designation, redesignation, 
classification, or reclassification was in error, the Administrator 
may in the same manner as the approval, disapproval, or promulgation 
revise such action as appropriate without requiring any further 
submission from the State. Such determination and the basis thereof 
shall be provided to the State and public.

EPA interprets this provision to authorize the Agency to make 
corrections to a promulgation when it is shown to EPA's satisfaction 
that: (1) EPA erred in failing to consider or inappropriately 
considered information made available to EPA at the time of the 
promulgation, or the information made available at the time of 
promulgation is subsequently demonstrated to have been clearly 
inadequate; and (2) other information persuasively supports a change in 
the promulgation.
    EPA's initial action in classifying San Diego was based on an ozone 
design value of .190 ppm. That information was subsequently 
demonstrated to have been incorrect, and the true design value was .185 
ppm. Accordingly, in today's action, EPA is correcting this error by 
publishing the correct design value of .185 ppm for San Diego.

B. Classification Adjustment Under Section 181(a)(4)

    Section 181(a)(4) of the Act provides a 90-day period following 
publication of a classification during which any nonattainment area 
with a design value within 5 percent of the next higher or lower 
classification may request to be reclassified. When EPA published .190 
ppm as the ozone design value, the San Diego planning staff concluded 
it could not take advantage of the five-percent classification 
adjustment provision because this value does not fall within 5 percent 
of the cutoff for classification as serious. However, the correct value 
of .185 ppm does fall within 5 percent of this number (.179 ppm). When 
the discrepancy in the ozone design values was discovered, the State 
requested that EPA reclassify San Diego. After determining that the 
original classification had been based on an erroneous design value, 
and that the error may be corrected pursuant to section 110(k)(6), EPA 
accepted the State's request, made by letter dated July 19, 1993, to 
reclassify the San Diego ozone nonattainment area from severe to 
serious under section 181(a)(4).

C. Criteria for Reclassification

    Section 181(a)(4) of the CAA provides general guidelines to 
determine whether an area qualifies for a classification adjustment:

    In making such adjustment, the Administrator may consider the 
number of exceedances of the (NAAQS) for ozone in the area, the 
level of pollution transport between the area and other affected 
areas, including both intrastate and interstate transport, and the 
mix of sources and air pollutants in the area.

EPA interprets this provision to mean that the area must demonstrate 
that it can attain the ozone NAAQS by the earlier date required by the 
lower classification. As discussed in more detail in subsection 3 
below, San Diego has submitted a preliminary demonstration that ``but 
for transport'', it would attain the ozone NAAQS by the 1999 attainment 
deadline for serious areas. Documentation concerning each of the 
section 181(a)(4) criteria has been submitted by San Diego as part of 
this demonstration and is discussed briefly below. For a detailed 
discussion and analysis of these submissions please refer to EPA's 
Technical Support Document (TSD).
1. Exceedances
    San Diego submitted data concerning the number of exceedances per 
year from 1980 to 1992. This data shows a clear downward trend 
projecting zero exceedances in 1999. 

[[Page 3772]]

2. Pollution Sources
    San Diego provided information regarding the mix of sources and air 
pollutants which shows that on-road motor vehicle emissions are 
projected to decline through 1999 and beyond, and that other 
anthropogenic emissions will remain more or less constant. Based on 
these projections, motor vehicle emissions should not undermine San 
Diego's overall downward trends for both short and long term emissions.
3. Attainment Demonstration and Transport
    In initial responses to requests for reclassification under section 
181(a)(4), EPA required that an area under consideration for a 
classification downwards show that it would attain the NAAQS by the 
earlier attainment deadline, including transported emissions from 
upwind areas. However, EPA has recently issued guidance that allows 
attainment date extensions for downwind nonattainment areas which are 
overwhelmingly affected by transported pollutants from nonattainment 
areas of higher classifications, and which would otherwise attain the 
NAAQS for ozone (``Ozone Attainment Dates for Areas Affected by 
Overwhelming Transport'', Mary D. Nichols, Assistant Administrator for 
Air and Radiation, September 1, 1994). Under the new policy, a downwind 
area must demonstrate attainment of the NAAQS for locally generated 
ozone episodes by the attainment date specified by its new 
classification and demonstrate attainment under transport conditions 
except for transported pollutants.
    San Diego has provided a credible preliminary showing that it meets 
the requirements for demonstrating attainment by 1999 or locally 
generated ozone episodes and under transport conditions except for 
transported pollutants. This showing contained data showing 
overwhelming transport from the South Coast Air Basin, including a 
detailed discussion of San Diego's transport assessment methodology. 
San Diego also submitted preliminary documentation of modeling being 
prepared for its November 15, 1994 attainment demonstration. San Diego 
has modeled both a local and a transport ozone episode using the Urban 
Airshed Model (UAM). This preliminary showing demonstrates that San 
Diego will attain the ozone NAAQS ``but for'' transported emissions by 
1999. For an in-depth discussion and analysis of San Diego's 
preliminary showing, refer to EPA's technical support document.
4. Other Factors
    Discontinuity: A 5-percent classification downwards must not result 
in an illogical or excessive discontinuity relative to surrounding 
areas. In particular, in light of the area-wide nature of ozone 
formation, a classification downwards should not create a ``donut 
hole'' where an area of one classification is surrounded by areas of 
higher classification. The San Diego nonattainment area is bordered by 
the South Coast air district, an ``extreme'' ozone nonattainment area 
which transports emissions to San Diego from the north and west, and by 
the Imperial County air district, which is a ``transitional'' ozone 
nonattainment area. A serious classification falls between the 
classifications of the surrounding areas, and thus does not constitute 
discontinuity.
5. Affect on November 15, 1994 Attainment Demonstration
    The State must submit a full attainment demonstration (including 
transport) for San Diego on November 15, 1994, as required by the Clean 
Air Act. This demonstration must be in accord with all generally 
applicable requirements of section 110 of the Act, the requirements of 
section 182(c)(2)(A), and the EPA policy memo ``Ozone Attainment Dates 
for Areas Affected by Overwhelming Transport'' issued by Mary Nichols 
on September 1, 1994. This SIP submission will be reviewed in its 
entirety when submitted.
    EPA's action today reclassifying San Diego does not constitute 
approval of the attainment demonstration which is due on November 15, 
1994, and EPA does not by this action take a position concerning the 
approvability of the emission inventory, modelling, or control measures 
relied upon in the preliminary attainment demonstration.

Today's Action

A. Final Action

    In the Federal Register of November 6, 1991 (56 FR 56694), EPA 
issued a final rule promulgating the designations, boundaries, and 
classifications of ozone nonattainment areas (and for nonattainment 
areas for other pollutants not addressed in this action). In today's 
action, EPA is correcting its action, with respect to the publication 
of the .190 ppm ozone design value for San Diego and publishing the 
actual monitored value of .185 ppm in accordance with section 
110(k)(6). In addition, EPA is reclassifying San Diego as a serious 
ozone nonattainment area pursuant to section 181(a)(4).
    In accordance with CAA sections 107(d)(2)(B), 110(k)(6), 
172(a)(1)(B), and 181(a)(3) and (a)(4), this document is a final 
publication of the ozone design value for San Diego and of the 
reclassification of San Diego to a serious ozone nonattainment area, 
and is not subject to the notice and comment provisions of sections 553 
through 557 of Title 5.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 81

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, National parks, 
Wilderness areas.

    Dated: December 13, 1994.
Carol Browner,
Administrator.

    Therefore, 40 CFR part 81 is amended as follows:

PART 81--[AMENDED]

    1. The authority citation for part 81 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401-7671q.

    2. In Sec. 81.305 the table for ``California--Ozone'' is amended by 
revising the entry ``San Diego Area'' to read as follows:


Sec. 81.305  California.

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[[Page 3773]]
                                                California--Ozone                                               
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                                           Designation                               Classification             
     Designated area      --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                  Date\1\                Type                 Date\1\                Type       
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        *                  *                  *                  *                  *                  *        
                                                        *                                                       
      San Diego Area                                                                                            
                             ..................    ..................    ..................                     
San Diego County.........  ....................  Nonattainment.......  ....................  Serious.           
                                                                                                                
        *                  *                  *                  *                  *                  *        
                                                        *                                                       
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\1\This date is November 15, 1990, unless otherwise noted.                                                      


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[FR Doc. 95-1317 Filed 1-18-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P