[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 245 (Friday, December 19, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 77682-77683]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-30206]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-8755-3]


Pennsylvania; Adequacy Status of the 2008 Reasonable Further 
Progress Plan for the Pennsylvania Portion of the Philadelphia-
Wilmington-Atlantic City 8-Hour Ozone Nonattainment Area Motor Vehicle 
Emission Budgets

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 (MVEBs) in the Reasonable 
Further Progress Plan (RFP) submitted as a State Implementation Plan 
(SIP) revision on August 29, 2007 by the Pennsylvania Department of 
Environmental Protection (PADEP), are adequate for transportation 
conformity purposes. As a result of EPA's finding, the Commonwealth of 
Pennsylvania must use the MVEBs from the August 29, 2007 RFP Plan for 
future conformity determinations for the 8-hour ozone standard.

DATES: These MVEBs are effective January 5, 2009.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Martin Kotsch, U.S. EPA, Region III, 
1650 Arch Street, Philadelphia, PA

[[Page 77683]]

19103 at (215) 814-3335 or by e-mail at: [email protected]. The 
finding is available at EPA's conformity Web site: http://www.epa.gov/otaq/stateresources/transconf/currsips.htm.

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 RFP Plans for the Pennsylvania portion of the Philadelphia-
Wilmington-Atlantic City Ozone Nonattainment Area submitted to EPA as 
SIP revisions on August 29, 2007.
    Today's notice is simply an announcement of a finding that EPA has 
already made. EPA Region III sent a letter to PADEP on November 20, 
2008 stating that the MVEBs in the RFP Plan are adequate for 
transportation conformity purposes. As a result of EPA's finding, the 
State of Pennsylvania must use the MVEBs from the August 29, 2007 RFP 
Plan for future conformity determinations for the 8-hour ozone 
standard. This finding has also been announced on EPA's conformity Web 
site: http://www.epa.gov/otaq/stateresources/transconf/pastsips.htm. 
The adequate MVEBs are provided in the following table:

          Table 1--Pennsylvania Motor Vehicle Emissions Budgets
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                                                 2008 Reasonable Further
                                                        Progress
              Nonattainment area               -------------------------
                                                 VOC (tpd)    NOX (tpd)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Philadelphia..................................        61.09       108.78
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    Transportation conformity is required by section 176(c) of the 
Clean Air Act, as amended in 1990. EPA's conformity rule requires that 
transportation plans, programs and projects conform to state air 
quality implementation plans and establishes the criteria and procedure 
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). 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 have described our process for determining the adequacy 
of submitted SIP budgets in 40 CFR 93.118(f), and have followed this 
rule in making our adequacy determination.

    Dated: December 5, 2008.
William T. Wisniewski,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region III.
 [FR Doc. E8-30206 Filed 12-18-08; 8:45 am]
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