[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 16 (Tuesday, January 25, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4012-4013]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-1733]


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DEPARTMENT OF STATE

[Public Notice No. 3207]


Bureau of Oceans, International Environmental and Scientific 
Affairs; Public Meeting to Discuss Preparations for Negotiations on an 
Annex to the United States-Canada Air Quality Agreement to Address the 
Transboundary Problem of Ground-Level Ozone

SUMMARY: The United States government, through an interagency working 
group chaired by the U.S. Department of State, is seeking authority to 
negotiate an annex to the United States-Canada Air Quality Agreement of 
1991. The proposed annex would seek to address transboundary ground-
level ozone air quality problems by establishing commitments to reduce 
emissions of major constituents of air pollution. In preparation for 
the proposed negotiations, the United States will establish a 
negotiating team consisting of representatives of the U.S. Department 
of State, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and other 
interested U.S. government agencies. In addition, three representatives 
of interested party groups (one each from industry/mining/labor, U.S. 
states, and environmental groups) will be invited to participate on the 
U.S. delegation to the talks. The first negotiating session is expected 
to take place in Ottawa, Canada, in February 2000. The U.S. Department 
of State will host a public meeting in advance of this session to 
outline issues likely to arise in the context of the negotiations, to 
invite public comment, and to invite interested parties to collaborate 
on selecting their group's representative on the U.S. delegation. The 
public meeting will take place on Friday, February 4, 2000, from 9:00 
a.m. to 11:00 a.m. in Room 1107 of the U.S. Department of State, 2201 C 
Street NW, Washington, D.C. To expedite their entrance into the 
building, attendees should provide to Eunice Mourning of the Office of 
Environmental Policy, U.S. Department of State (tel. 202-647-9266, fax 
202-647-5947) their name, organization, date of birth and Social 
Security number by close of business on Wednesday, February 2, 2000. 
Attendees should enter the C Street entrance and bring picture 
identification with them. For further information, please contact Ms. 
Cornelia Weierbach, U.S. Department of State, Office of Environmental 
Policy (OES/ENV), Room 4325, 2201 C Street NW, Washington DC 20520. 
Phone 202-647-4548, fax 202-647-5947, e-mail [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Air Quality Cooperation With Canada

    The United States and Canada committed themselves to addressing 
transboundary air pollution issues in the 1991 United States-Canada Air 
Quality Agreement. Since that Agreement entered into force, work has 
focused on achieving reductions in emissions of the two major acid rain 
pollutants: sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides 
(NOX). Both parties have recorded excellent progress in 
complying with the SO2 and NOX emission reduction 
goals in the Agreement. Cooperative efforts on transboundary air 
pollution issues have led to the recognition that the U.S. and Canada 
have substantial common interests in the mitigation of ground-level 
ozone and particulate matter pollution.
    In April 1997, President Clinton met with Canadian Prime Minister 
Chretien to discuss, among other issues, bilateral transboundary 
pollution control initiatives. At that time, the U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator and the Canadian Minister of the 
Environment signed the Program to Develop a Joint Plan of Action for 
Addressing Transboundary Air Pollution. The focus of this initiative 
was on ground-level ozone and particulate matter. In June 1998, these 
officials endorsed a report from the U.S.-Canada Air Quality Committee 
in which the Committee undertook to deliver, by April 1999, 
recommendations on the negotiation of an ozone annex to the U.S.-Canada 
Air Quality Agreement. On April 6, 1999, the Committee recommended the 
negotiation of an ozone annex to the U.S.-Canada Air Quality Agreement. 
Both the Administrator and the Minister agreed with this 
recommendation.

U.S. Domestic Framework for Controlling Ground-Level Ozone and 
Related Precursors

    The United States has a strong regulatory program under the Clean 
Air Act (the Act) to reduce significantly emissions of ozone forming 
pollutants-- NOX and volatile organic compounds

[[Page 4013]]

(VOCs). This regulatory program is expected to form the basis of any 
commitments made by the U.S. under an ozone annex to the U.S.-Canada 
Air Quality Agreement.
    The EPA has established national ambient air quality standards 
(NAAQS) for several pollutants, including ozone. To help achieve these 
air quality standards, EPA has issued a series of national regulations 
over the past 20 years designed to continue to diminish significantly 
emissions of VOCs and NOX from light-duty vehicles, and 
NOX from heavy-duty vehicles. In addition, EPA has begun 
phasing in control programs to reduce these emissions from non-road 
engines. It has also reduced sulfur in diesel fuels, and required 
cleaner, less volatile gasoline (i.e., gasoline with a lower Reid Vapor 
Pressure) in most urban areas in the country. Several additional 
programs and regulations have been or are being phased in to further 
reduce emissions of NOX, sulfur and VOCs from vehicles and/
or fuels.
    Under the Act, EPA requires stringent levels of control for newly 
built or modified industrial sources of ozone precursor emissions of 
NOX and VOCs. EPA has also issued a series of emission 
standards that are significantly reducing emissions of NOX 
from existing industrial sources.

Relation to the UNECE LRTAP Protocol

    Parties to the U.N. Economic Commission for Europe's (UNECE) 
Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution (LRTAP) recently 
signed a Protocol to Abate Acidification, Eutrophication, and Ground-
Level Ozone (the LRTAP Protocol). The U.S. and Canada are both Parties 
to the LRTAP Convention, and each has signed the Protocol. Under the 
LRTAP Protocol, the U.S. and Canada have agreed to bring forward 
emission reduction commitments for SO2, NOX, and 
VOCs when negotiations on an ozone annex to the U.S.-Canada Air Quality 
Agreement are completed. The agreements in the LRTAP Protocol were 
based on an understanding by the European parties that the U.S. and 
Canada intended to negotiate an ozone annex, and would be committing to 
specific control programs and/or emission reductions under that annex. 
Their obligations under the annex would then be incorporated 
automatically into the LRTAP Protocol. Negotiation of this annex would, 
therefore, provide the basis of commitments under the LRTAP Protocol.

Participation of Interested Party Representatives on the U.S. 
Delegation 

    In order to further the public interest, the Department of State, 
in consultation with other U.S. government agencies, will invite three 
representatives from among all interested members of the public to 
participate in the negotiations as (non-U.S. government) members of the 
U.S. delegation. One individual will be invited to represent each of 
the following groups: industry/mining/labor, U.S. states, and 
environmental/public interest groups. Organizations that are members of 
each group are invited to nominate a spokesperson and collaborate on 
the selection of the representative who will participate on the U.S. 
delegation.
    The spokesperson of each group should notify the Office of 
Environmental Policy, U.S. Department of State, not later than February 
11, 2000, of the group's selection of its representative. Further 
discussion of this process will take place at the February 4, 2000 
public meeting.

Timetable and Point of Contact

    The United States and Canada expect to begin negotiations on the 
ozone annex in February 2000, and expect to complete negotiations by 
the end of 2000, with negotiating sessions to occur every three to four 
months. In preparation for the proposed negotiation, the Administration 
is preparing its position for the negotiation, and has scheduled a 
public meeting to be held on Friday, February 4, 2000 from 9:00 a.m. to 
11:00 a.m. in Room 1107 of the U.S. Department of State. Members of the 
Interagency Committee who will participate in the proposed negotiation 
will provide an overview of U.S. preparations for the first session. 
The U.S. Department of State is issuing this notice to help ensure that 
interested and potentially affected parties are aware of and 
knowledgeable about these negotiations, and have an opportunity to 
offer comments. Prior to subsequent briefings, we will be contacting 
organizations/individuals that have expressed an interest by mail, fax 
or e-mail. Those organizations/individuals which cannot attend the 
February 4, 2000 meeting, but wish to either submit a written comment 
or to remain informed, should provide Eunice Mourning of the Office of 
Environmental Policy, U.S. Department of State (phone 202-647-9266; fax 
202-647-5947) with their statement and/or their name, organization, 
address, telephone and fax numbers, and their e-mail address.

    Dated: January 19, 2000.
Daniel Fantozzi,
Director, Office of Environmental Policy.
[FR Doc. 00-1733 Filed 1-24-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4710-06-P