[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 50 (Wednesday, March 15, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13386-13387]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-3729]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-R09-OAR-2006-0137; FRL-8044-8]


Adequacy Status of the Truckee Meadows (Washoe County, NV) 
Submitted Carbon Monoxide Maintenance Plan for Transportation 
Conformity Purposes

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of adequacy determination.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: In this notice, EPA is notifying the public that we have found 
that the motor vehicle emissions budgets contained in the submitted 
Redesignation Request and Maintenance Plan for the Truckee Meadows 
(Washoe County, Nevada) Carbon Monoxide Nonattainment Area (September 
2005) (``Truckee Meadows Carbon Monoxide Redesignation Request and 
Maintenance Plan'') are adequate for transportation conformity 
purposes. As a result of our finding, the Washoe County Regional 
Transportation Commission and the U.S. Department of Transportation 
must use the carbon monoxide motor vehicle emissions budgets from the 
submitted plan for future conformity determinations.

DATES: This determination is effective March 30, 2006.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The finding is available at EPA's 
conformity Web site: http://www.epa.gov/oms/traq, (once there, click on 
the ``Transportation and Air Quality Planning'' link and click on the 
``Transportation Conformity'' link, then look for ``Adequacy Review of 
SIP Submissions for Conformity''). You may also contact Eleanor Kaplan, 
U.S. EPA, Region IX, Air Division AIR-2, 75 Hawthorne Street, San 
Francisco, CA 94105; (415) 947-4147, or [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, whenever ``we'', 
``us'', or ``our'' is used, we mean EPA.
    This notice announces our finding that the emissions budgets 
contained in the Carbon Monoxide State Implementation Plan revision for 
Truckee Meadows (Washoe County, Nevada) (``Truckee Meadows Carbon 
Monoxide Redesignation Request and Maintenance Plan'') submitted by the 
State of Nevada on November 4, 2005, are adequate for transportation 
conformity purposes. EPA Region IX made this finding in a letter to the 
Nevada Division of Environmental Protection on February 13, 2006. We 
are also announcing this finding on our conformity Web site: http://www.epa.gov/oms/traq, (once there, click on the ``Transportation and 
Air Quality Planning'' link and click on the ``Transportation 
Conformity'' link, then look for ``Adequacy Review of SIP Submissions 
for Conformity'').
    Transportation conformity is required by section 176(c) of the 
Clean Air Act. Our conformity rule requires that transportation plans, 
programs, and projects conform to state air quality implementation 
plans (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.
    The criteria by which we determine whether a SIP's motor vehicle 
emissions

[[Page 13387]]

budgets are adequate for conformity purposes are outlined in 40 CFR 
93.118(e)(4). One of these criteria is that the motor vehicle emissions 
budgets, when considered together with all other emission sources, are 
consistent with applicable requirements for reasonable further 
progress, attainment, or maintenance (whichever is relevant to the 
given implementation plan submission). We have preliminarily determined 
that the Truckee Meadows Carbon Monoxide Redesignation Request and 
Maintenance Plan does provide for maintenance of the CO standard. 
Therefore, the motor vehicle emissions budgets can be found adequate. 
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 on the submitted plan itself. Even if we find a budget adequate, 
the submitted plan could later be disapproved.
    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 is now reflected in the amended 
transportation conformity rule, July 1, 2004 (69 FR 40004), and in the 
correction notice, July 20, 2004 (69 FR 43325). We followed this 
process in making our adequacy determination on the emissions budgets 
contained in the Truckee Meadows Carbon Monoxide Redesignation Request 
and Maintenance Plan.

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

    Dated: February 21, 2006.
Jane Diamond,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region IX.
 [FR Doc. E6-3729 Filed 3-14-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P