[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 110 (Thursday, June 7, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 30737-30738]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-14375]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[AL-056-200106; FRL-6993-4]


Adequacy Status of the Birmingham, AL, Ozone Attainment 
Demonstration 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 
that the motor vehicle emissions budgets in the Birmingham, Alabama 
ozone attainment demonstration submitted on November 1, 2000, are 
adequate for conformity purposes. On March 2, 1999, the D.C. Circuit 
Court ruled that submitted State Implementation Plans (SIPs) cannot be 
used for conformity determinations until EPA has affirmatively found 
them adequate. As a result of our finding, the Birmingham ozone 
nonattainment area must use the motor vehicle emissions budgets from 
the submitted ozone attainment demonstration for future conformity 
determinations.

DATES: This finding is effective June 22, 2001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The finding and the response to 
comments will be available at EPA's conformity website: http://www.epa.gov/oms/traq, (once there, click on the ``Conformity'' button, 
then look for ``Adequacy Review of SIP Submissions for Conformity''). 
The SIP is available for public viewing at the United States 
Environmental Protection Agency, 61 Forsyth Street, SW., Atlanta, 
Georgia, 30303. You can request a copy of the SIP submission by 
contacting Kelly Sheckler, Regulatory Planning Section, United States 
Environmental Protection Agency, 61 Forsyth Street, SW., Atlanta, 
Georgia 30303, Phone: (404) 562-9042, Fax: (404) 562-9019, E-mail: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    This notice is simply an announcement of a finding that we have 
already made. EPA Region 4 sent a letter to the Alabama Department of 
Environmental Management on May 22, 2001, stating that the motor 
vehicle emissions budgets in the Birmingham, Alabama, ozone attainment 
demonstration for 2003 are adequate. This finding has been announced on 
EPA's conformity website referenced above.
    EPA Region 4 received comments on the motor vehicle emissions 
budget for transportation conformity purposes contained in the 
Birmingham, Alabama, 1-hour ozone attainment demonstration. EPA Region 
4 has prepared a response to those comments and has posted the response 
on the website referenced above.
    Transportation conformity is required by section 176(c) 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. 
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.
    We have described our process for determining the adequacy of 
submitted SIP budgets in guidance (May 14, 1999 memo titled 
``Conformity Guidance on Implementation of March 2, 1999 Conformity 
Court Decision''). This guidance was used in making our adequacy 
determination. 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 action to approve or disapprove the SIP. The 
SIP could later be disapproved for reasons unrelated to the 
transportation conformity even though the budgets have been deemed 
adequate.

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


[[Page 30738]]


    Dated: May 21, 2001.
A. Stanley Meiburg,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 4.
[FR Doc. 01-14375 Filed 6-6-01; 8:45 am]
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