[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 24 (Tuesday, February 5, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6719-6720]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-2084]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-R05-OAR-2007-0653; FRL-8525-4]


Adequacy Status of the Metro-East St. Louis, IL, Submitted 8-Hour 
Ozone Attainment Demonstration and State Implementation Plan for 
Transportation Conformity Purposes

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of adequacy.

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[[Page 6720]]

SUMMARY: In this notice, EPA is notifying the public that we have found 
that the motor vehicle emissions budgets (MVEBs) for 8-hour ozone in 
Metro-East St. Louis (Madison, Monroe, St. Clair, and Jersey Counties), 
Illinois, are adequate for conformity purposes. As a result of our 
finding, Metro-East St. Louis must use the MVEBs from the 8-hour ozone 
attainment demonstration and state implementation plan (SIP) submitted 
on July 2, 2007, for future conformity determinations.

DATES: This finding is effective February 20, 2008.

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 action 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 December 19, 2007, stating that the 2008 and 2009 
MVEBs in Metro-East St. Louis are adequate. Illinois submitted the 
budgets on July 2, 2007, as part of the 8-hour ozone attainment 
demonstration for this area. This submittal was announced on EPA's 
conformity Web site, and received no comments: http://www.epa.gov/otaq/stateresources/transconf/adequacy.htm, (once there, click on ``What SIP 
submissions are currently under EPA adequacy review?'').
    The 2008 and 2009 MVEBs, in tons per day (tpd), for volatile 
organic compounds (VOC) and oxides of nitrogen (NOx) for 
Metro-East St. Louis (Madison, Monroe, St. Clair, and Jersey Counties) 
are as follows:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                 2008 MVEB    2009 MVEB
                                                   (tpd)        (tpd)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
VOC...........................................        14.27        13.44
NOX...........................................        34.87        31.94
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    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.
    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). We have described our process for determining the 
adequacy of submitted SIP budgets in our July 1, 2004, preamble 
starting at 69 FR 40038, and we used the information in these resources 
while making our adequacy determination. 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.
    The finding and the response to comments are available at EPA's 
conformity Web site: http://www.epa.gov/otaq/stateresources/transconf/adequacy.htm.

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

    Dated: January 24, 2008.
Margaret Guerriero,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 5.
[FR Doc. E8-2084 Filed 2-4-08; 8:45 am]
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