[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 21 (Wednesday, February 2, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5439-5440]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-1996]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[IL-224-1; FRL-7867-6]


Adequacy Status of Metro-East St. Louis, IL Submitted 1-Hour 
Ozone Maintenance Plan 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 EPA has found 
that the motor vehicle emissions budgets in the Metro-East St. Louis, 
Illinois 1-hour ozone maintenance plan are adequate for conformity 
purposes. On March 2, 1999, the DC 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, Metro-East St. Louis can use the motor vehicle 
emissions budgets from the submitted 1-hour ozone maintenance plan for 
future conformity determinations. These budgets are effective February 
17, 2005. The finding and the response to comments will be available at 
EPA's conformity Web site: http://www.epa.gov/otaq/transp.htm, (once 
there, click on the ``Conformity'' button, then look for ``Adequacy 
Review of SIP Submissions for Conformity'').

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anthony Maietta, Life Scientist, 
Criteria Pollutant Section (AR-18J), Air Programs Branch, Air and 
Radiation Division, United States Environmental Protection Agency, 
Region 5, 77 West Jackson Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 60604, (312) 
353-8777, [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, whenever ``we'', 
``us'' or ``our'' is used, we mean EPA.

Background

    Today's notice is simply an announcement of a finding that we have 
already made. EPA Region 5 sent a letter to the Illinois Environmental 
Protection Agency on January 10, 2005, stating that the motor vehicle 
emissions budgets in the Metro-East St. Louis, Illinois submitted 1-
hour ozone maintenance plan for 2007 are adequate. This finding has 
been announced on EPA's conformity Web site: http://www.epa.gov/otaq/transp.htm, (once there, click on the ``Conformity'' button, then look 
for ``Adequacy Review of SIP Submissions for Conformity'').
    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 state air quality 
implementation plans 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.

[[Page 5440]]

    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 approval of the SIP. Even if we find a budget 
adequate, the SIP could later be disapproved.
    We've 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''). We followed this guidance in making our adequacy 
determination.

    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.

    Dated: January 18, 2005.
Norman Niedergang,
Acting Regional Administrator.
[FR Doc. 05-1996 Filed 2-1-05; 8:45 am]
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