[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 71 (Thursday, April 12, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 18928-18929]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-9058]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-6965-8]


Adequacy Status of Motor Vehicle Budgets in Submitted State 
Implementation Plans for Transportation Conformity Purposes; Maryland; 
Revised Phase II Plan for the Philadelphia-Wilmington-Trenton Ozone 
Nonattainment Area (Cecil County)

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of adequacy status.

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SUMMARY: EPA is announcing that the revised motor vehicle emissions 
budgets contained in the revised Phase II Plan for the Maryland portion 
(Cecil County) of the Philadelphia-Wilmington-Trenton Ozone 
Nonattainment Area are adequate for transportation conformity purposes. 
On December 28, 2000, the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) 
submitted its revised Phase II Plan to EPA as State Implementation Plan 
(SIP) revision. Maryland revised the 2005 attainment plan of its Phase 
II Plan to amend the motor vehicle emissions budgets of that plan to 
reflect the benefits of the Tier 2/Sulfur-in-Fuel Rule. The State also 
revised the 2005 rate of progress (ROP) plan of the Phase II plan to 
amend the motor vehicle emissions budgets to reflect rule effectiveness 
corrections and further reductions from the application of graphic arts 
rules to additional sources. EPA has found the amended budgets in 
Maryland's December 28, 2000 Phase II SIP revision adequate for 
transportation conformity purposes.

DATES: The findings that the budgets are adequate were been made in a 
letter dated March 26, 2001 from EPA Region III to the Maryland 
Department of the Environment. These adequacy findings are effective on 
April 27, 2001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul T. Wentworth, P.E., U.S. EPA, 
Region III, 1650 Arch Street, Philadelphia, PA. 19103 at (215) 814-2183 
or by e-mail at: [email protected].

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 revised Phase II Plan for the Philadelphia-Wilmington-Trenton 
nonattainment area submitted by MDE on December 28, 2000. The revisions 
to the Phase II Plan consist of amendments to the 2005 attainment 
demonstration plan for the one-hour ozone National Ambient Air Quality 
Standard (NAAQS) for the Philadelphia-Wilmington-Trenton nonattainment 
area and to the 2005 ROP plan for the Maryland portion of the 
Philadelphia-Wilmington-Trenton nonattainment area (Cecil County).
    On March 2, 1999, the D.C. Circuit Court ruled that budgets 
contained in submitted SIPs cannot be used for conformity 
determinations until EPA has affirmatively found them adequate. On 
December 28, 2000, the MDE formally submitted a SIP revision to the 
Phase II Plan for the Philadelphia-Wilmington-Trenton Ozone 
Nonattainment Area. On January 17, 2001, we posted the availability of 
the Revised Phase II Plan and the budgets on our conformity website for 
the purpose of soliciting public comment on the adequacy of the 
budgets. The comment period closed on February 16, 2001. We did not 
receive any comments. On March 26, 2001, EPA Region III sent a letter 
to the MDE which constitutes final Agency actions on the adequacy of 
the budgets contained in the revised Phase II Plan. Those actions were 
EPA's findings that the budgets in the revised Phase II plan submitted 
by MDE on December 28, 2000 are adequate for transportation conformity 
purposes. As a result of our March 26, 2001 findings, the budgets of 
the 2005 attainment plan and the budgets of the 2005 ROP in Maryland's 
December 28, 2000 revised Phase II SIP for its portion the 
Philadelphia-Wilmington-Trenton nonattainment area may be used for 
future conformity determinations.
    This is an announcement of adequacy findings that we already made 
on March 26, 2001. The effective date of these findings is April 27, 
2001. These findings will also be announced on EPA's website: http://www.epa.gov/oms/traq (once there, click on the ``Conformity'' button, 
then look for ``Adequacy Review of Submissions for Conformity''). The 
website will contain a detailed analysis of our adequacy findings.
    Transportation conformity is required by section 176 of the Clean 
Air Act. EPA's conformity rule requires that transportation plans, 
programs, and projects conform to SIPs and establishes the criteria and 
procedures for determining whether or not they do so. Conformity to a 
SIP means that transportation activities will not produce new air 
quality violations, worsen existing violations, or delay timely 
attainment of the NAAQS. The criteria by which we determine whether a 
SIP's budgets are adequate for conformity purposes are outlined in 40 
CFR 93.118 (e) (4). Please note that an adequacy finding for budgets 
contained in a SIP is separate from EPA's completeness determination of 
the SIP submission, and separate from EPA's action to approve or 
disapprove the SIP. Even if we find budgets adequate, the SIP could 
later be disapproved. We describe our process for determining the 
adequacy of submitted SIP budgets in guidance memorandum dated May 14, 
1999 and titled ``Conformity Guidance on Implementation of March 2, 
1999 Conformity Court Decision''. We followed this guidance in making 
these

[[Page 18929]]

adequacy findings of the budgets in Maryland's revised Phase II plan. 
You may obtain a copy of this guidance from EPA's conformity web site: 
http://www.epa.gov/oms/traq (once there, click on the ``Conformity'' 
button) or by calling the contact name listed in ``For Further 
Information Contact'' section of this notice.

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

    Dated: March 29, 2001.
William C. Early,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region III.
[FR Doc. 01-9058 Filed 4-11-01; 8:45 am]
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