[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 121 (Monday, June 24, 2013)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 37717-37719]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-14908]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[Docket No. EPA-R02-OAR-2012-0889; FRL-9826-9]


Adequacy Status of the Submitted 2009 and 2025 PM2.5 
Motor Vehicle Emission Budgets for Transportation Conformity Purposes 
for New Jersey

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of adequacy.

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SUMMARY: In this action, EPA is notifying the public that we have found 
that the motor vehicle emissions budgets for PM2.5 and 
NOX in the submitted maintenance plans for the New Jersey 
portions of the New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, NY-NJ-CT, and 
Philadelphia-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE, PM2.5 nonattainment areas 
to be adequate for transportation conformity purposes. The 
transportation conformity rule requires that the EPA conduct a public 
process and make an affirmative decision on the adequacy of budgets 
before they can be used by metropolitan planning organizations in 
conformity determinations. As a result of our finding, two metropolitan 
planning organizations in New Jersey (the North Jersey Transportation 
Planning Authority and the Delaware Valley Regional Planning 
Commission) must use the new 2009 and 2025 PM2.5 budgets for 
future transportation conformity determinations.

DATES: This finding is effective July 9, 2013.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Matt Laurita, Air Programs Branch, 
Environmental Protection Agency--Region 2, 290 Broadway, 25th Floor, 
New York, New York 10007-1866, (212) 637-3895, [email protected].
    The finding and the response to comments will be available at EPA's 
conformity Web site: http://www.epa.gov/otaq/stateresources/transconf/adequacy.htm.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    On December 26, 2012, New Jersey submitted redesignation requests 
and maintenance plans to EPA for both the New York-Northern New Jersey-
Long Island, NY-NJ-CT (Northern New Jersey), and Philadelphia-
Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE (Southern New Jersey), PM2.5 
nonattainment areas. The purpose of New Jersey's submittal was to 
request a redesignation to attainment for both the 1997 and 2006 
PM2.5 National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) and 
submit a state implementation plan to provide for maintenance of the 
standard for the first ten years of a 20-year maintenance period. New 
Jersey's request was pursuant to EPA's findings that that the Northern 
New Jersey area had attained the 1997 (75 FR 69589) and 2006 (77 FR 
76867) PM2.5 NAAQS, and that the Southern New Jersey area 
had attained the 1997 (77 FR 28782) and 2006 (78 FR 882) 
PM2.5 NAAQS, based on ambient air quality monitoring data. 
New Jersey's submittal included motor vehicle emissions budgets 
(``budgets'') for 2009 and 2025 for use by the State's metropolitan 
planning organizations in making transportation conformity 
determinations. On September 12, 2012, EPA posted the availability of 
the budgets our Web site for the purpose of soliciting public comments. 
The comment period closed on October 12, 2012, and we received no 
comments.
    New Jersey developed these budgets, as required, for the last year 
of its maintenance plan, 2025, and an additional year, 2009, for the 
purpose of establishing budgets for the near-term based on EPA's MOVES 
model. Previously established and approved budgets had been based on 
MOBILE6.2. New Jersey also determined that budgets based on annual 
emissions of direct PM2.5 and NOX, a precursor, 
are appropriate for the 2006 daily standard because exceedences of the 
standard were not isolated to one particular season; therefore, the 
budgets being found adequate today will be used by transportation 
agencies to meet conformity requirements for both the annual and daily 
standards.
    The 2009 budgets were developed without an accompanying full 
emissions inventory. EPA believes that this approach is approvable and 
is consistent with attainment and maintenance of both the 1997 and 2006 
PM2.5 standards because of our earlier determinations that 
both the Northern New Jersey and Southern New Jersey PM2.5 
nonattainment areas had attained the standards based on monitored air 
quality that included the year 2009.
    The budgets for 2025 reflect the total on-road emissions for 2025, 
plus an allocation from the available NOX and 
PM2.5 safety margins. Under 40 CFR 93.101, the term ``safety 
margin'' is the difference between the attainment level (from all 
sources) and the projected level of emissions (from all sources) in the 
maintenance plan. The safety margin can be allocated to the 
transportation sector; however, the total emissions must remain below 
the attainment level. New Jersey chose to add 8% of the available 
safety margin to

[[Page 37718]]

both the PM2.5 and NOX budgets for 2025 for both 
the Northern New Jersey and Southern New Jersey nonattainment areas. 
The NOX and PM2.5 budgets and safety margin 
allocations were developed in consultation with the transportation 
partners and were added to accommodate expected future improvements to 
MOVES model inputs and methodologies.
    In the submittal, the State has also established ``sub-area 
budgets'' for the two metropolitan planning organizations (MPO) within 
the Northern New Jersey nonattainment area: the North Jersey 
Transportation Planning Authority (NJTPA) and the Delaware Valley 
Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC). These sub-area budgets allow each 
MPO to work independently to demonstrate conformity by meeting its own 
PM2.5 and NOX budgets. Each MPO must still 
verify, however, that the other MPO currently has a conforming long 
range transportation plan and transportation improvement program (TIP) 
prior to making a new plan or TIP conformity determination. The budgets 
for both the Northern New Jersey and Southern New Jersey areas are 
defined in Tables 1 and 2 below.

Adequacy Process

    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 conform. 
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). We have followed this rule 
in making our adequacy determination. The motor vehicle emissions 
budgets being found adequate today are listed in Tables 1 and 2 and 
include direct PM2.5 and its precursor, NOX. 
EPA's finding will also be announced on EPA's conformity Web site: 
http://www.epa.gov/otaq/stateresources/transconf/adequacy.htm.

EPA Review

    EPA's adequacy review of New Jersey's submitted budgets indicates 
that the budgets meet the adequacy criteria set forth by 40 CFR 
93.118(e)(4), as follows:
    (i) The submitted control strategy implementation plan revision or 
maintenance plan was endorsed by the Governor (or his or her designee) 
and was subject to a State public hearing: The SIP revision was 
submitted to EPA by the Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of 
Environmental Protection, who is the Governor's designee.
    (ii) Before the control strategy implementation plan or maintenance 
plan was submitted to EPA, consultation among federal, State, and local 
agencies occurred; full implementation plan documentation was provided 
to EPA; and EPA's stated concerns, if any, were addressed: New Jersey 
conducted an interagency consultation process involving EPA and USDOT, 
the New Jersey Department of Transportation and affected MPOs. All 
comments and concerns were addressed prior to the final submittal.
    (iii) The motor vehicle emissions budget(s) is clearly identified 
and precisely quantified: The budgets were clearly identified and 
quantified and are presented here in Tables 1 and 2.
    (iv) The motor vehicle emissions budget(s), when considered 
together with all other emissions sources, is consistent with 
applicable requirements for maintenance: Both the 2009 and 2025 budgets 
are less than the on-road mobile source inventory for 2007 that was 
shown to be consistent with attainment of the standards. In addition, 
the 2009 budgets are for a year in which EPA has determined that New 
Jersey attained the applicable air quality standards and are therefore 
consistent with maintenance of the respective standards.
    (v) The motor vehicle emissions budget(s) is consistent with and 
clearly related to the emissions inventory and the control measures in 
the submitted control strategy implementation plan revision or 
maintenance plan: The budgets were developed from the on-road mobile 
source inventories, including all applicable state and Federal control 
measures. Inputs related to inspection and maintenance and fuels are 
consistent with New Jersey's Federally-approved control programs.
    (vi) Revisions to previously submitted control strategy 
implementation plans or maintenance plans explain and document any 
changes to previously submitted budgets and control measures; impacts 
on point and area source emissions; any changes to established safety 
margins (see Sec.  93.101 for definition); and reasons for the changes 
(including the basis for any changes related to emission factors or 
estimates of vehicle miles traveled): The submitted maintenance plan 
establishes new 2009 and 2025 budgets to ensure continued maintenance 
of the standards; therefore, this is not applicable.

Adequacy Finding

    Today's action is simply an announcement of a finding that we have 
already made. EPA Region 2 sent a letter to New Jersey on May 14, 2013, 
stating that the 2009 and 2025 motor vehicle emissions budgets in New 
Jersey's SIPs for both the Northern New Jersey and Southern New Jersey 
PM2.5 nonattainment areas are adequate because they are 
consistent with the required maintenance demonstration. In our letter 
we noted that there are existing approved and adequate budgets for 
2009, but that the 2009 budgets contained in the submitted maintenance 
plans will be the most recent budgets in place to satisfy the latest 
Clean Air Act requirement and therefore will be the applicable 2009 
budgets to be used in future transportation conformity determinations 
for analysis years prior to 2025.

   Table 1--2009 PM2.5 Motor Vehicle Emissions Budgets for New Jersey
                             [Tons per year]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
   Metropolitan planning organization      Direct PM2.5         NOX
------------------------------------------------------------------------
North Jersey Transportation Planning               2,736          67,272
 Authority..............................
Delaware Valley Regional Planning                    224           5,835
 Commission (Mercer County only)........
Delaware Valley Regional Planning                    680          18,254
 Commission (Burlington, Camden, and
 Gloucester Counties)...................
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[[Page 37719]]


   Table 2--2025 PM2.5 Motor Vehicle Emissions Budgets for New Jersey
                             [Tons per year]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
   Metropolitan planning organization      Direct PM2.5         NOX
------------------------------------------------------------------------
North Jersey Transportation Planning               1,509          25,437
 Authority..............................
Delaware Valley Regional Planning                    119           2,551
 Commission (Mercer County only)........
Delaware Valley Regional Planning                    363           8,003
 Commission (Burlington, Camden, and
 Gloucester Counties)...................
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List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Incorporation by 
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Nitrogen dioxide, Particulate 
matter, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

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

    Dated: June 10, 2013.
Judith A. Enck,
Regional Administrator, Region 2.
[FR Doc. 2013-14908 Filed 6-21-13; 8:45 am]
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