[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 187 (Tuesday, September 27, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 66271-66272]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-23295]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-R05-OAR-2016-0135; EPA-R05-OAR-2016-0269; EPA-R05-OAR-2016-0372; 
EPA-R05-OAR-2016-0396; FRL-9953-10-Region 5]


Adequacy Status of the Cleveland-Akron-Lorain and Columbus, Ohio 
Areas and the Ohio and Indiana Portions of the Cincinnati Indiana-Ohio-
Kentucky Area Submitted 8-Hour Ozone Redesignation Requests and 
Maintenance Plans for Transportation Conformity Purposes

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of adequacy.

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SUMMARY: In this notice, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is 
notifying the public that we have found that the motor vehicle 
emissions budgets (MVEBs) for volatile organic compounds 
(VOCs) and oxides of nitrogen (NOX) in the 
Cleveland-Akron-Lorain and Columbus, Ohio ozone nonattainment areas, 
and the Indiana and Ohio portions of the Cincinnati Indiana-Ohio-
Kentucky ozone nonattainment area are adequate for use in 
transportation conformity determinations under the Clean Air Act (CAA). 
Ohio submitted redesignation

[[Page 66272]]

requests and maintenance plans for the Cleveland-Akron-Lorain and 
Columbus areas on July 6, 2016 and June 16, 2016, respectively. Ohio 
submitted a redesignation request and maintenance plan for the Ohio 
portion of the Cincinnati area on April 21, 2016. Indiana submitted a 
redesignation request and maintenance plan for the Indiana portion of 
the Cincinnati area on February 23, 2016. As a result of our finding, 
these areas must use their submitted MVEBs for future transportation 
conformity determinations.

DATES: This finding is effective October 12, 2016.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anthony Maietta, Life Scientist, 
Control Strategies 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 an announcement of a finding that we have already 
made. On August 23, 2016, EPA sent letters to the Indiana Department of 
Environmental Management and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency 
transmitting our determination that the 2020 and 2030 MVEBs contained 
in the redesignations and maintenance plans for the Cleveland and 
Columbus, Ohio areas and Indiana and Ohio portions of the Cincinnati 
area are adequate for transportation conformity purposes. These MVEBs 
were announced on EPA's transportation conformity Web site, and no 
comments were submitted in response. The information is available at 
EPA's conformity Web site: http://www.epa.gov/otaq/stateresources/transconf/adequacy.htm.
    The Cleveland-Akron-Lorain ozone nonattainment area consists of 
Ashtabula, Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, Lorain, Medina, Portage, and Summit 
Counties. The Columbus ozone nonattainment area consists of Delaware, 
Fairfield, Franklin, Knox, Licking, and Madison Counties. The Indiana 
portion of the Cincinnati ozone nonattainment area consists of 
Lawrenceburg Township (located within Dearborn County, Indiana). The 
Ohio portion of the Cincinnati area consists of Butler, Clermont, 
Clinton, Hamilton, and Warren Counties. For transportation conformity 
purposes, the MVEBs for the Indiana and Ohio portions of the Cincinnati 
area are combined. The 2020 and 2030 MVEBs, in tons per day (tpd), for 
VOCs and NOX for the Indiana and Ohio portions of 
Cincinnati, and the Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio areas are as follows:

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                                                                     2020 VOCs                       2030 VOCs
                      Area                        2020 NOX (tpd)       (tpd)      2030 NOX (tpd)       (tpd)
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Indiana and Ohio Portions of the Cincinnati--              30.79           30.00           16.22           18.22
 Indiana/Ohio/Kentucky Area.....................
Cleveland-Akron-Lorain, Ohio....................           61.56           38.85           43.82           30.80
Columbus, Ohio..................................           99.54           50.66           85.13           44.31
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    Transportation conformity is required by section 176(c) of the CAA. 
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 conform. Conformity to a State Implementation Plan (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 MVEBs are 
adequate for transportation conformity purposes are outlined in the 
regulation at 40 CFR 93.118(e)(4). As set forth above, EPA determined 
that these MVEBs are adequate under the applicable standards set forth 
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.

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

    Dated: September 19, 2016.
Robert Kaplan,
Acting Regional Administrator, Region 5.
[FR Doc. 2016-23295 Filed 9-26-16; 8:45 am]
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