[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 72 (Tuesday, April 15, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 18346-18347]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-9691]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-5812-1]


Tier 2 (Phase 2) Study To Assess Further Reduction in Light-Duty 
Vehicle and Light-Duty Truck Tailpipe Emission Standards

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of availability and notice of public workshop.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces the availability of an EPA White Paper 
and the scheduling of a public workshop regarding Tier 2 exhaust 
emission standards for motor vehicles.

DATES: The public workshop will be held on April 23, 1997, from 9:30 
a.m. until 5:00 p.m. The White Paper has been released and is currently 
available to the public.

ADDRESSES: Materials relevant to this notice have been placed in Docket 
No. A-97-10. The docket is located at the Air Docket Room, Room M-1500, 
Waterside Mall, 401 M Street SW, Washington, DC 20460, and may be 
inspected weekdays between 8:00 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. A reasonable fee may 
be charged by EPA for copying docket materials. Some materials are also 
available on the Internet at the Tier 2 Study home page, at http://
www.epa.gov/OMSWWW/tr2home.htm.
    The public workshop will be held at the U.S. EPA Judiciary Square 
Office, 1st Floor Conference Room, 501 3rd Street NW, Washington, DC.


[[Page 18347]]


FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jim Markey, Vehicle Programs and 
Compliance Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, National 
Vehicle and Fuel Emissions Laboratory, 2565 Plymouth Road, Ann Arbor, 
Michigan, 48105. Telephone: (313) 668-4534. Fax: (313) 741-7869. E-
mail: Markey.J[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Clean Air Act Amendments (CAAA) of 1990 
added subsections 202(g) and 202(h) to the Clean Air Act which required 
Phase I (or Tier 1) emission standards for light-duty vehicles and 
light-duty trucks, effective with a phase-in starting in 1994. The 
Amendments added subsection 202(i), which requires a Phase II Study 
(hereafter referred to as the Tier 2 Study) to consider, ``whether or 
not further reductions in emissions from light-duty vehicles and light-
duty trucks should be required pursuant to this title.''
    The CAAA also outlined the critical elements which EPA is to 
consider in the course of the Tier 2 study:
     Air quality need. EPA ``shall examine the need for further 
reductions in emissions in order to attain or maintain the national 
ambient air quality standards * * *''
     Technology assessment. EPA is to examine ``the 
availability of technology (including the costs thereof), in the case 
of light-duty vehicles and light-duty trucks with a loaded vehicle 
weight (LVW) of 3,750 lbs. or less, for meeting more stringent emission 
standards than those provided in subsections (g) and (h) for model 
years commencing not earlier than after January 1, 2003, and not later 
than model year 2006, including the lead time and safety and energy 
impacts of meeting more stringent emission standards.''
     Cost effectiveness assessment. EPA is to examine ``the 
need for, and cost effectiveness of, obtaining further reductions in 
emissions from such light-duty vehicles and light-duty trucks, taking 
into consideration alternative means of attaining or maintaining the 
national primary ambient air quality standards pursuant to State 
implementation plans and other requirements of this Act, including 
their feasibility and cost effectiveness.''
    With this Notice, the Agency has at this time completed and 
released a White Paper designed to outline the scope and timing of the 
Tier 2 Study and present issues identified by EPA as having potential 
importance to the Tier 2 Study. This paper also discusses the approach 
the Agency intends to take in conducting the air quality, technology, 
and cost effectiveness assessments required by the CAAA. This document 
is available to the public and may be inspected at the public docket, 
No. A-97-10, at the address provided in ADDRESSES, above. It is 
available electronically on the Internet at the Tier 2 Study home page 
at http://www.epa.gov/OMSWWW/tr2home.htm, and copies may also be 
obtained by contacting the contact person listed above.
    The Agency seeks to involve stakeholders early in the process 
through the public workshop. The White Paper will serve as the basis 
for the public workshop and EPA welcomes comment, in writing or at the 
workshop, on the specific issues raised in the White Paper, as well as 
comments on additional issues not captured by this initial review. It 
is important to note that EPA has not made any determination regarding 
elements in the Tier 2 Study, and EPA is particularly interested in 
receiving feedback from all parties as to the scope of the study.
    Anyone wishing to make a presentation at the public workshop (see 
DATES) should, if possible, notify the contact person listed above at 
least seven days prior to the day of the workshop. The contact person 
should be given an estimate of the time required for the presentation 
and notification of any need for audio/visual equipment. A sign-up 
sheet will be available at the registration table the morning of the 
workshop for scheduling those who have not notified the contact 
earlier. These presentations will be scheduled on a first-come, first-
served basis, and will follow the presentations that have been arranged 
in advance.
    The Agency recommends that multiple copies of the material to be 
presented be brought to the workshop for distribution to EPA and 
members of the audience.

    Dated: April 9, 1997.
Mary D. Nichols,
Assistant Administrator for Air and Radiation.
[FR Doc. 97-9691 Filed 4-14-97; 8:45 am]
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