[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 163 (Thursday, August 22, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43806-43807]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-18087]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OAR-2018-0279; FRL-9998-51-OAR]


Release of Integrated Review Plan for the Ozone National Ambient 
Air Quality Standards

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: On or about August 26, 2019, the Environmental Protection 
Agency (EPA) will make available the final document, Integrated Review 
Plan for the Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards (IRP). This 
document contains plans for the current review of the air quality 
criteria and national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) for 
photochemical oxidants including ozone (O3). The primary and 
secondary O3 NAAQS are set to protect the public health and 
the public welfare from O3 and other photochemical oxidants 
in ambient air.

ADDRESSES: This document will be available on the EPA's website at 
https://www.epa.gov/naaqs/ozone-o3-air-quality-standards. The document 
will be accessible under ``Planning Documents'' from the current 
review.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Deirdre L. Murphy, Office of Air 
Quality Planning and Standards, (Mail Code C504-06), U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC 27711; telephone number: 
(919) 541-0729, fax number: (919) 541-0237; or email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. General Information

A. How can I get copies of this document and related information?

    1. Docket. EPA has established a docket for this action under 
Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2018-0279. A separate docket established for 
the Integrated Science Assessment being prepared for this action (EPA-
HQ-ORD-2018-0274) is also incorporated into the rulemaking docket for 
this review. Publicly available docket materials are available 
electronically through www.regulations.gov or may be viewed at the Air 
and Radiation Docket and Information Center, EPA/DC, EPA West, Room 
3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, DC. The Public Reading 
Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the Public Reading 
Room is (202) 566-1744, and the telephone number for the Air and 
Radiation Docket and Information Center is (202) 566-1742.
    2. The document announced today and related information will be 
available via the internet on the EPA's website at https://www.epa.gov/naaqs/ozone-o3-air-quality-standards. The document announced today will 
be accessible under ``Planning Documents'' from the current review.

II. Information Specific to This Document

    Two sections of the Clean Air Act (CAA or the Act) govern the 
establishment and revision of the NAAQS. Section 108 directs the 
Administrator to identify and list certain air pollutants and then 
issue ``air quality criteria'' for those pollutants. The air quality 
criteria are to ``accurately reflect the latest scientific knowledge 
useful in indicating the kind and extent of all identifiable effects on 
public health or welfare which may be expected from the presence of 
such pollutant in the ambient air. . .'' (CAA

[[Page 43807]]

section 108(a)(2)). Under section 109 of the Act, the EPA is then to 
establish primary (health-based) and secondary (welfare-based) NAAQS 
for each pollutant for which the EPA has issued air quality criteria. 
Section 109(d)(1) of the Act requires periodic review and, if 
appropriate, revision of existing air quality criteria. Revised air 
quality criteria are to reflect advances in scientific knowledge on the 
effects of the pollutant on public health and welfare. Under the same 
provision, the EPA is also to periodically review and, if appropriate, 
revise the NAAQS, based on the revised air quality criteria.
    The Act additionally requires appointment of an independent 
scientific review committee that is to periodically review the existing 
air quality criteria and NAAQS and to recommend any new standards and 
revisions of existing criteria and standards as may be appropriate (CAA 
section 109(d)(2)(A)-(B)). Since the early 1980s, the requirement for 
an independent scientific review committee has been fulfilled by the 
Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC).
    Presently the EPA is reviewing the air quality criteria and NAAQS 
for photochemical oxidants and O3.\1\ The document announced 
in this notice has been developed as part of the planning phase for the 
review. In this phase, a draft IRP was prepared jointly by the EPA's 
National Center for Environmental Assessment, within the Office of 
Research and Development, and the Office of Air Quality Planning and 
Standards, within the Office of Air and Radiation. The draft IRP was 
the subject of a consultation with CASAC on November 29, 2018 and was 
available for public comment (83 FR 55163, November 2, 2018; 83 FR 
55528, November 6, 2018). The document announced today has been 
prepared after consideration of CASAC and public comments. This IRP 
presents EPA's current plans for the schedule for the entire review, 
the process for conducting the review, and the key policy-relevant 
science issues that will guide the review. This document does not 
represent and should not be construed to represent any final EPA 
policy, viewpoint, or determination.
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    \1\ The EPA's call for information for this review was issued on 
June 26, 2018 (83 FR 29785).

    Dated: August 16, 2019.
Panagiotis Tsirigotis,
Director, Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards.
[FR Doc. 2019-18087 Filed 8-21-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P