

[Federal Register: January 18, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 13)]
[Rules and Regulations]               
[Page 3389-3396]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr18ja08-6]                         

=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Part 52

[EPA-R09-OAR-2007-1079; FRL-8509-2]

 
Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; 
Nevada; Washoe County 8-Hour Ozone Maintenance Plan

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Direct final rule.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: EPA is taking direct final action to approve a revision to the 
Washoe County portion of the Nevada State Implementation Plan. 
Submitted by the State of Nevada on May 30, 2007, this plan revision 
consists of a maintenance plan prepared for the purpose of providing 
for continued attainment of the 8-hour ozone standard in Washoe County 
through the year 2014 and thereby satisfying the related requirements 
under section 110(a)(1) of the Clean Air Act and EPA's phase 1 rule 
implementing the 8-hour ozone national ambient air quality standard. 
EPA is taking this action pursuant to those provisions of the Clean Air 
Act that obligate the Agency to take action on submittals of state 
implementation plans and plan revisions.

DATES: This rule is effective on March 18, 2008 without further notice, 
unless EPA receives relevant adverse comment by February 19, 2008. If 
EPA receives such comment, EPA will publish a timely withdrawal in the 
Federal Register informing the public that this rule will not take 
effect.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by EPA-RO9-OAR-2007-1079, 
by one of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 

Follow the on-line instructions for submitting comments.
     E-mail: Eleanor Kaplan at kaplan.eleanor@epa.gov. Please 
also send a copy by e-mail to the person listed in the FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT section below.
     Fax: Eleanor Kaplan, Planning Office (AIR-2), at fax 
number (415) 947-4147.
     Mail or deliver: Eleanor Kaplan, Air Planning Office, 
(AIR-2), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne 
Street, San Francisco, CA 94105-3901. Hand or courier deliveries are 
accepted only between the hours of 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. weekdays except 
for legal holidays. Special arrangements should be made for deliveries 
of boxed information.
    Instructions: All comments will be included in the public docket 
without change and may be made available online at http://www.regulations.gov, 

including any personal information provided, unless the comment 
includes information claimed to be Confidential Business Information 
(CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. 
Do not submit information that you consider to be CBI or otherwise 
protected through http://www.regulations.gov or e-mail. The 

http://www.regulations.gov Web site is an ``anonymous access'' system, which 

means EPA will not know your identity or contact information unless you 
provide it in the body of your comment. If you send an e-mail comment 
directly to EPA without going through http://www.regulations.gov your e-mail 

address will be automatically captured and included as part of the 
comment that is placed in the public docket and made available on the 
Internet. If you submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you 
include your name and other contact information in the body of your 
comment and with any disk or CD-ROM you submit. If EPA cannot read your 
comment due to technical difficulties and cannot contact you for 
clarification, EPA may not be able to consider your comment. Electronic 
files should avoid the use of special characters, any form of 
encryption, and be free of any defects or viruses.
    Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the 
http://www.regulations.gov index. Although listed in the index, some 

information is not publicly available, e.g., CBI or other information 
whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such 
as copyrighted material, will be publicly available only in hard copy. 
Publicly available docket materials are available either electronically 
in http://www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the Planning Office (AIR-2), 

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, 
San Francisco, California 94105-3901. To inspect the hard copy 
materials, please schedule an appointment during normal business hours 
with the contact listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Eleanor Kaplan, Planning Office (AIR-
2), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region IX, 75 Hawthorne 
Street, San Francisco, California 94105-3901, telephone (415) 947-4147; 
fax (415) 947-4147; e-mail address kaplan.eleanor@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, the terms ``we,'' 
``us,'' and ``our'' refer to EPA. This supplementary information is 
organized as follows:

Table of Contents

I. Summary of Action
II. Background
    A. Ozone Facts, Effects and Ambient Standard
    B. General Description of Washoe County, Nevada
    C. Regulatory Context
    D. Ambient Ozone Conditions
III. Evaluation of State's Submittal
    A. CAA Procedural Requirements
    B. Evaluation of Ozone Maintenance Plan
    1. Attainment Inventory
    2. Maintenance Demonstration
    3. Ambient Air Quality Monitoring
    4. Verification of Continued Attainment
    5. Contingency Plan
    6. Conclusion
IV. Final Action and Request for Comment
V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

I. Summary of Action

    On May 30, 2007, the Governor's designee, the Nevada Division of 
Environmental Protection (NDEP), submitted the Maintenance Plan for the 
Washoe County 8-Hour Ozone Attainment Area (April 2007) (``Washoe 
County Ozone Maintenance Plan'' or ``Ozone Maintenance Plan'') to EPA 
for approval as a revision to the Washoe County portion of the Nevada 
State Implementation Plan (SIP). The Washoe County Ozone Maintenance 
Plan was developed by the Washoe County District Health Department, Air 
Quality Management Division (Washoe County AQMD) and adopted by the 
Washoe County District Board of Health (District Board of Health) on 
April 26, 2007. Washoe County AQMD prepared the plan to provide for 
continued attainment of the 8-hour ozone national ambient air quality 
standard (NAAQS) through 2014 and to thereby satisfy the requirements 
of section 110(a)(1) of the Clean Air Act (CAA or ``Act'') and EPA's 
phase 1 rule implementing the 8-hour ozone NAAQS. The May 30, 2007 SIP 
revision submittal includes the maintenance plan and related technical 
appendices, as well as documentation of notice, public hearing, and 
adoption by the District Board of Health.
    For the reasons set forth in this document, and pursuant to section 
110(k) of the Act, we are approving the Washoe County Ozone Maintenance 
Plan as a revision to the Washoe County portion of the Nevada SIP. In 
so doing, we find that the submitted ozone

[[Page 3390]]

maintenance plan meets all of the applicable requirements of CAA 
section 110(a)(1) and our phase 1 rule implementing the 8-hour ozone 
NAAQS.

II. Background

A. Ozone Facts, Effects, and Ambient Standard

    Ozone is a gas composed of three oxygen atoms. It is not usually 
emitted directly into the air, but at ground level is created by a 
chemical reaction between oxides of nitrogen (NOX) and 
volatile organic compounds (VOC) in the presence of sunlight. Ozone has 
the same chemical structure whether it occurs miles above the earth or 
at ground-level and can be ``good'' or ``bad,'' depending on its 
location in the atmosphere.
    In the earth's lower atmosphere, ground-level ozone is considered 
``bad.'' Motor vehicle exhaust and industrial emissions, gasoline 
vapors, and chemical solvents as well as natural sources emit 
NOX and VOC that help form ozone. Ground-level ozone is the 
primary constituent of smog. Sunlight and hot weather cause ground 
level ozone to form in harmful concentrations in the air. As a result 
it is known as a summertime air pollutant. Many urban areas tend to 
have high levels of ``bad'' ozone, but even rural areas are also 
subject to increased ozone levels because wind carries ozone and 
pollutants that form it hundreds of miles away from their original 
source. ``Good'' ozone occurs naturally in the stratosphere 
approximately 10 to 30 miles above the earth's surface and forms a 
layer that protects life on earth from the sun's harmful rays.
    Breathing ozone can trigger a variety of health problems including 
chest pain, coughing, throat irritation, and congestion. It can worsen 
bronchitis, emphysema, and asthma. Ground-level ozone also can reduce 
lung function and inflame the linings of the lungs. Repeated exposure 
may permanently scar lung tissue. People with lung disease, children, 
older adults, and people who are active can be affected when ozone 
levels are unhealthy.
    The CAA requires EPA to set national ambient air quality standards 
(NAAQS) to protect public health and public welfare. EPA has 
established a NAAQS for ozone at 0.08 parts per million (ppm), daily 
maximum 8-hour average. The 8-hour ozone NAAQS is met at an ambient air 
quality monitoring site when the three-year average of the annual 
fourth-highest daily maximum 8-hour average ozone concentration is less 
than or equal to 0.08 ppm. See 40 CFR 50.10 and appendix I.

B. General Description of Washoe County, Nevada

    Washoe County is located in the northwest portion of Nevada and is 
bounded by California, Oregon, and the counties of Humboldt, Pershing, 
Storey, Churchill, Lyon and Carson City. Washoe County is a long, 
narrow strip, between 30 and 50 miles wide, 190 miles long north and 
south, and encompasses a land area of 6,608 square miles.
    Population density in the county is concentrated for the most part 
in the eight valleys adjacent to the Truckee River, in the southern 
one-third of the county. The principal city, Reno (the county seat), is 
situated in the southern part of the county and is the business and 
transportation center for northern and western Nevada. Washoe County 
has experienced rapid growth over the past several decades and has seen 
its population roughly double since 1980 (from approximately 190,000 in 
1980 to approximately 360,000 in 2002). The Washoe County AQMD is the 
designated agency responsible for air quality management throughout the 
entire county with the exception of certain types of power plants, 
which are subject, under Nevada law, to the jurisdiction of NDEP.

C. Regulatory Context

    Under the Clean Air Act (CAA) as amended in 1970, EPA established 
national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) for certain pervasive 
air pollutants, such as photochemical oxidant, carbon monoxide, and 
particulate matter. The NAAQS represent concentration levels below 
which public health and welfare are protected. The 1970 Act also 
required States to adopt and submit State Implementation Plans (SIPs) 
to implement, maintain, and enforce the NAAQS. The original Nevada SIP 
was submitted and approved by EPA in 1972. SIP revisions are required 
from time-to-time to account for new or amended NAAQS or to meet other 
changed circumstances.
    The CAA was significantly amended in 1977, and under the 1977 
Amendments, EPA promulgated attainment status designations for all 
areas of the country with respect to the NAAQS. The Truckee Meadows 
portion of Washoe County (hydrographic area 87) was designated 
as a nonattainment area for the NAAQS for photochemical oxidant. See 43 
FR 8962, at 9012 (March 3, 1978). The Clean Air Act provides for 
periodic review and revision of the NAAQS by EPA, and in 1979, EPA 
established a new NAAQS for ozone of 0.12 ppm, one-hour average, to 
replace the oxidant standard of 0.08 ppm. See 44 FR 8202 (February 8, 
1979). Areas designated nonattainment for oxidant were considered to be 
nonattainment for ozone as well, but States could request redesignation 
to attainment if monitoring data showed that an area met the ozone 
NAAQS.
    To satisfy the requirements for oxidant/ozone nonattainment areas 
under the 1977 Amended Act, Washoe County District Board of Health 
adopted five stationary source rules regulating emissions of volatile 
organic compounds (VOC): Section 040.070 (``Storage of Petroleum 
Products''), section 040.075 (``Gasoline Loading into Tank Trucks and 
Trailers''), section 040.080 (``Gasoline Unloading from Tank Trucks and 
Trailers into Storage Tanks''), section 040.085 (``Organic Solvents''), 
and section 040.090 (Cut-back Asphalt''). On July 24, 1979, the State 
of Nevada submitted these five rules to EPA as a revision to the Nevada 
SIP. EPA approved them as such on April 14, 1981 (46 FR 21758). 
Meanwhile, late in 1980, the State of Nevada requested that EPA 
redesignate Truckee Meadows as an attainment area for the then-new 
ozone NAAQS based on available ozone monitoring data, and in the 
following year, EPA approved the redesignation of Truckee Meadows from 
nonattainment for oxidant to attainment for the ozone NAAQS. See 46 FR 
37896 (July 23, 1981).
    Congress significantly amended the Clean Air Act again in 1990, and 
under the 1990 Act Amendments, because of an ozone episode in 1990, EPA 
designated all of Washoe County as a ``marginal'' ozone nonattainment 
area, effective January 6, 1992. See 56 FR 56694 (November 6, 1991). 
Under the CAA, as amended in 1990, States with marginal ozone 
nonattainment areas were required to submit SIP revisions providing for 
changes to the program for review of new major sources and major 
modifications (``new source review'' or NSR), base year (1990) 
inventories of ozone precursor emissions and periodic inventory 
updates, rules requiring owners of larger stationary sources to submit 
annual emissions statements, and rules establishing procedures for 
determining conformity of certain types of projects to the SIP. See CAA 
sections 182(a) and 176(c).
    NDEP has submitted various revisions to the Washoe County portion 
of the Nevada SIP over the past 15 years to meet these requirements. 
Specifically, NDEP submitted a SIP revision related to the Washoe 
County NSR program on

[[Page 3391]]

April 7, 1994, SIP revisions related to ozone precursor emission 
inventories on November 13, 1992 (year 1990 inventory), January 19, 
1996 (year 1993), April 14, 1999 (year 1996), February 5, 2002 (year 
1999), and February 3, 2005 (year 2002), a SIP revision related to 
emission statements (Washoe County District Board of Health section 
030.219) on November 13, 1992, and a SIP revision related to general 
and transportation conformity on July 31, 1995.\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ The submittal of the attainment inventory (year 2002) in the 
Washoe County Ozone Maintenance Plan supersedes all of the 
previously-submitted ozone precursor inventories with the exception 
of the February 3, 2005 inventory submittal, which provides 
technical support and documentation for all of the source categories 
listed in the Ozone Maintenance Plan for year 2002 with the 
exception of nonroad and on-road vehicles. The NSR and conformity 
submittals are no longer necessary for ozone purposes, but remain 
relevant for the purposes of the carbon monoxide and particulate 
matter (PM10) NAAQS in the Truckee Meadows area of Washoe 
County. The State may withdraw the District's emission statements 
rule because it is no longer an ``applicable requirement'' for the 
Washoe County portion of the Nevada SIP given the county's 
designation as ``unclassifiable/attainment'' for the 8-hour ozone 
NAAQS and the revocation of the 1-hour ozone NAAQS. See 40 CFR 
51.900(f).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Improvements to the State's vehicle inspection and maintenance (I/
M) program for the Truckee Meadows planning area to meet EPA's 
``basic'' I/M performance standard, though adopted to meet CAA 
nonattainment planning requirements for carbon monoxide rather than 
ozone, also provide VOC emissions reductions.\2\ NDEP submitted the 
upgraded I/M program on June 3, 1994 and submitted updated I/M-related 
statutes and rules on May 11, 2007. We expect to take action on the I/M 
submittals for Truckee Meadows in the near future in the context of 
taking action on NDEP's request for redesignation of Truckee Meadows to 
attainment for the carbon monoxide NAAQS.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \2\ ``Marginal'' ozone nonattainment areas that had, or were 
required to have, I/M programs in their ozone SIPs prior to the 
passage of the 1990 CAAA were required to maintain and upgrade their 
programs under CAA section 182(a). Nevada implemented an I/M program 
in Truckee Meadows prior to the 1990 CAAA, but the EPA-approved 
version of the program at that time did not include emissions 
testing of hydrocarbons (i.e., the corresponding cutpoints in the 
approved program had been deleted). As such, the pre-1990 I/M 
program in Truckee Meadows is not considered a part of the ozone SIP 
for that area.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    NDEP, on behalf of Washoe County, submitted a maintenance plan for 
the 1-hour ozone NAAQS and a redesignation request to EPA on July 31, 
1995. The Washoe County 1-hour ozone maintenance plan and redesignation 
request was revised and re-submitted by NDEP on April 2, 1997 but 
withdrawn from further consideration at the county's request on 
September 12, 1997 in the wake of EPA's revision of the ozone NAAQS 
during the summer of 1997.
    In July 1997, subsequent to a periodic review of the ozone NAAQS, 
EPA established a new ozone NAAQS (0.08 ppm, eight-hour average) to 
replace the 1-hour ozone standard. See 62 FR 38856 (July 18, 1997). In 
1998, we found that Washoe County was attaining the 1-hour ozone NAAQS 
based on 1994-1996 monitoring data and listed it as one of the areas in 
the country where the 1-hour ozone NAAQS no longer applied. See 63 FR 
31014, at 31065 (June 5, 1998). In 2000, in response to continuing 
litigation over the 8-hour ozone NAAQS, we reinstated the 1-hour ozone 
NAAQS in those areas in which we had found the standard to no longer 
apply, such as Washoe County. See 65 FR 45182, at 45244 (July 20, 
2000). In that 2000 action, we also reinstated Washoe County's 
classification as a ``marginal'' nonattainment area for the 1-hour 
ozone NAAQS, effective January 16, 2001, see 65 FR 45829 (July 25, 
2000). In 2005, we made a second finding of attainment for Washoe 
County with respect to the 1-hour ozone NAAQS. See 70 FR 22803 (May 3, 
2005). An attainment finding is but one of the criteria necessary to 
qualify for redesignation to ``attainment.''
    Meanwhile, in 2004, following years of delay associated with court 
challenges, EPA promulgated area designations for the new 8-hour ozone 
NAAQS. See 69 FR 23858 (April 30, 2004). Washoe County was designated 
as an ``unclassifiable/attainment'' area, effective June 15, 2004. See 
69 FR 23858 at 23919-23920. In another EPA rule published on April 30, 
2004 (69 FR 23951), which is referred to as the ``Phase 1 8-Hour Ozone 
Implementation Rule'' or ``Phase 1 Rule,'' EPA revoked the one-hour 
ozone NAAQS effective June 15, 2005 and established certain 
requirements to prevent backsliding in those areas that were designated 
as nonattainment for the 1-hour ozone standard (or that were 
``attainment'' but subject to a maintenance plan) at the time of 
designation for the 8-hour ozone standard. EPA codified these 
requirements at 40 CFR 51.905.
    Because Washoe County's designations as of June 15, 2004 (i.e., the 
date of designation for the 8-hour NAAQS) were ``nonattainment'' for 
the 1-hour ozone NAAQS and ``unclassifiable/attainment'' for 8-hour 
ozone NAAQS, a maintenance plan was required for the area under CAA 
section 110(a)(1) and the Phase 1 Rule. See 40 CFR 51.905(a)(3). States 
were required to submit CAA section 110(a)(1) ozone maintenance plans 
by June 15, 2007. WCAQMD prepared the Maintenance Plan for the Washoe 
County 8-Hour Ozone Attainment Area (April 2007) to meet the 
requirements of section 110(a)(1) and EPA's Phase 1 Rule. In today's 
action, we are approving the Washoe County Ozone Maintenance Plan as a 
revision to the Washoe County portion of the Nevada SIP.

D. Ambient Ozone Conditions

    Generally, we will determine whether an area's air quality is 
meeting the NAAQS based upon data gathered at established state and 
local air monitoring stations (SLAMS) and national air monitoring sites 
(NAMS) and entered into the Air Quality System (AQS) database. Data 
entered into AQS has been determined to meet Federal monitoring 
requirements (see 40 CFR 50.6; 40 CFR part 50, appendix J; 40 CFR part 
53; 40 CFR part 58, appendices A and B) and may be used to determine 
the attainment status of areas. Also, we also take into account data 
from other air monitoring stations, such as Special Purpose Monitors 
(SPMs), if the data is collected using a Federal reference method or 
Federal equivalent method, unless the air monitoring agency 
demonstrates that the data came from a particular period during which 
EPA requirements concerning quality assurance, methods, or siting 
criteria were not met in practice. See 71 FR 61236, at 61302 (October 
17, 2006) and 40 CFR 58.20. All data are reviewed to determine the 
area's air quality status in accordance with 40 CFR part 50, appendix 
I.
    Washoe County AQMD measures ambient ozone concentration at six 
monitoring sites located in southern Washoe County, including Lemmon 
Valley, downtown Reno, Sparks, south Reno, Toll Road (Geiger Grade), 
and Incline Village. All of Washoe County AQMD's ozone monitoring sites 
are NAMS or SLAMS except for Incline Village, which is a SPM for ozone.
    The current ozone NAAQS is met at an ambient air quality monitoring 
site when the three-year average of the annual fourth-highest daily 
maximum 8-hour ozone concentration (also referred to as the ``design 
value'') is less than or equal to 0.08 ppm, and the standard is met 
within an air quality planning area when the standard is met at all of 
the monitoring stations. A review of the data gathered at the various 
ozone monitoring sites in Washoe County and entered into AQS confirms 
that Washoe County is in attainment of the 8-hour ozone NAAQS. Since 
1999, the highest design value at any of the ozone monitoring sites is 
0.075 ppm, a value

[[Page 3392]]

calculated for the Sparks monitor over the 2001-2003 period. For the 
purposes of comparison, due to rounding conventions, no design values 
less than 0.085 ppm violate the ozone NAAQS. More recently, the highest 
design value for both 2003-2005 and 2004-2006 periods is 0.071 ppm, the 
value calculated for the downtown Reno, south Reno, and Sparks 
monitoring sites.

III. Evaluation of State's Submittal

    As noted above, EPA promulgated the 8-hour ozone NAAQS in 1997 and 
designated and classified areas for this standard in 2004. In 2004, we 
also published the Phase 1 Ozone Implementation Rule. Code of Federal 
Regulations, title 40, part 51, Sec.  51.905(a)(3) and (4), established 
in that rulemaking, set forth requirements for anti-backsliding 
purposes for areas designated unclassifiable/attainment for the 8-hour 
standard. These provisions required States with such areas to submit 
10-year maintenance plans under section 110(a)(1) of the CAA if these 
areas were also nonattainment areas (or were attainment areas subject 
to a CAA section 175A maintenance plan) under the 1-hour ozone 
standard.\3\ Such plans are to be submitted as revisions to SIPs. 
Washoe County AQMD prepared the Washoe County Ozone Maintenance Plan in 
response to these requirements.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \3\ We provided guidance to States regarding section 110(a)(1) 
ozone maintenance plans in a memorandum from Lydia N. Wegman, 
Director, Air Quality Strategies and Standards Division, EPA Office 
of Air Quality Planning and Standards, entitled, ``Maintenance Plan 
Guidance Document for Certain 8-hour Ozone Areas Under Section 
110(a)(1) of the Clean Air Act,'' dated May 20, 2005. For the 
contingency plan element of section 110(a)(1) maintenance plans, our 
May 20, 2005 guidance cites an EPA policy memorandum from John 
Calcagni, entitled, ``Procedures for Processing Requests to 
Redesignate Areas to Attainment,'' dated September 4, 1992.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

A. CAA Procedural Requirements

    Under section 110 of the Act and EPA regulations (at 40 CFR part 
51, subpart F), each State must provide reasonable notice and public 
hearing prior to adoption of SIPs and SIP revisions for subsequent 
submittal to EPA.
    On March 23, April 5, and April 20, 2007, the District Board of 
Health published a notice in the Reno Gazette-Journal, a newspaper of 
general circulation in the Reno area, of a public hearing to consider 
the Washoe County Ozone Maintenance Plan. A public hearing was held on 
April 26, 2007 at District Health Department offices in Reno. On April 
26, 2007, the District Board of Health adopted the maintenance plan and 
forwarded the plan to NDEP. On May 30, 2007, in accordance with Nevada 
law, the Administrator of NDEP submitted the Ozone Maintenance Plan to 
EPA. NDEP's May 30, 2007 SIP submittal package includes evidence of 
public notice, public hearing, and District Board of Health adoption as 
described above. No public comments were received on the draft 
maintenance plan. Based on review of these materials, we find that NDEP 
and the District Board of Health have met the procedural requirements 
of CAA section 110 and 40 CFR part 51, subpart F.

B. Evaluation of Ozone Maintenance Plan

    The 8-hour ozone 110(a)(1) maintenance plan must provide for 
continued maintenance of the 8-hour ozone NAAQS in the area for 10 
years from the effective date of the area's designation as 
unclassifiable/attainment for the 8-hour ozone NAAQS. At a minimum, the 
maintenance plan for such areas must include the five following 
components: Attainment inventory, maintenance demonstration, ambient 
air quality monitoring, verification of continued attainment, and 
contingency plan. As explained below, we find that the Washoe County 
Ozone Maintenance Plan includes all five components, that each 
component is acceptable, and that the overall plan provides for 
continued maintenance of the 8-hour ozone NAAQS in Washoe County 
through 2014 (i.e., 10 years beyond 2004, the year of the county's 
designation for the 8-hour ozone NAAQS).
1. Attainment Inventory
    The attainment inventory should be based on actual ``typical summer 
day'' emissions of VOC and NOX. EPA's Phase 1 8-Hour Ozone 
Implementation Rule provides that the 10-year maintenance period begins 
as of the effective date of designation for the 8-hour ozone standard 
for the area. For purposes of an attainment emissions inventory, the 
State may use one of any of the three years on which the 8-hour 
attainment designation was based (i.e., 2001, 2002, and 2003). The 
inventory should be consistent with EPA's most recent emissions 
inventory methods, models, and factors and should be based on the 
latest planning assumptions regarding population, employment, and motor 
vehicle activity.
    For the Washoe County Ozone Maintenance Plan, Washoe County AQMD 
prepared an attainment inventory of ``typical summer day'' VOC and 
NOX emissions for year 2002. Washoe County AQMD's attainment 
inventory is comprehensive and includes essentially all point, area, 
mobile and biogenic sources within the county. Table 1 below summarizes 
the plan's attainment inventory, as well as the plan's inventories for 
projected VOC and NOX emissions for years 2010 and 2014.

                Table 1.--Washoe County Ozone Precursors Emission Inventory, 2002, 2010 and 2014
                                         [Pounds per typical summer day]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                 Emissions (lb per summer day)
               Source category                           Pollutant           -----------------------------------
                                                                                 2002        2010        2014
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
VOC EMISSIONS:
    Point Sources...........................  VOC...........................       2,971       3,419       3,658
    Area Sources............................  VOC...........................      16,912      19,259      20,451
    Biogenic Sources........................  VOC...........................     104,618     104,618     104,618
    Nonroad Mobile..........................  VOC...........................      30,299      22,032      20,890
    On-road Mobile..........................  VOC...........................      31,244      29,645      15,471
    Buffer Zone Sources.....................  VOC...........................       1,480       1,703       1,822
                                                                             -----------------------------------
        Total--VOC..........................  VOC...........................     187,524     180,676     166,910
        Change Relative to 2002.............  VOC...........................           0      -6,848     -20,614
NOX EMISSIONS:
    Point Sources...........................  NOX...........................         231         266         284

[[Page 3393]]


    Area Sources............................  NOX...........................       3,576       4,109       4,393
    Biogenic Sources........................  NOX...........................      25,480      25,480      25,480
    Nonroad Mobile..........................  NOX...........................      27,404      24,847      22,312
    On-road Mobile..........................  NOX...........................      54,869      57,258      24,838
    Buffer Zone Sources.....................  NOX...........................      24,153      27,794      29,738
                                                                             -----------------------------------
        Total--NOX..........................  NOX...........................     135,713     139,754     107,045
        Change Relative to 2002.............  NOX...........................           0       4,041    -28,668
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Note.--``Buffer zone'' refers to major sources within 25 miles of Washoe County.
Source: Washoe County Ozone Maintenance Plan (April 2007), tables 2, 3 and 4; EPA.

    On February 3, 2005, NDEP submitted Washoe County AQMD's emissions 
inventories of VOC and NOX for year 2002 as the latest in a 
series of periodic inventory updates that the county has prepared since 
1990 to meet 1-hour ozone planning requirements. To develop the 
attainment inventory for the Washoe County Ozone Maintenance Plan, 
Washoe County AQMD relied upon the previously-submitted inventory 
information for year 2002 for point and area sources but updated 
certain source categories, such as nonroad equipment and on-road motor 
vehicles, for which new EPA emissions estimation models had become 
available.
    As a general matter, for the point source portion of the attainment 
inventory, Washoe County AQMD used data collected from permitted 
sources during the annual permit renewal process or from emission 
statements. For area sources, Washoe County AQMD used EPA emission 
factor and methods or material balance calculations, except for 
structural and automobile fires for which Washoe County AQMD used 
emissions factors and methods developed by the California Air Resources 
Board. Aircraft and railroad emissions were estimated using EPA 
emissions factors and methods and local activity data provided by 
Washoe County Airport Authority and Union Pacific Railroad, 
respectively. Biogenic source emissions were determined using EPA's 
Biogenic Emissions Inventory System, version 2.3 (BEIS2.3). 
Documentation for the emissions developed for these various source 
categories is provided in Washoe County AQMD's Washoe County, Nevada 
Ozone Non-Attainment Area, 2002 Periodic Emissions Inventory of Ozone 
Precursors (May 2004), and related appendices A, B, and C, submitted by 
NDEP on February 3, 2005.
    As noted above, for nonroad vehicles and on-road motor vehicles, 
Washoe County AQMD re-calculated the emissions that had previously been 
calculated for 2002 to reflect updated EPA factors and models. For 
nonroad vehicles, Washoe County AQMD re-calculated emissions for 2002 
using the EPA model NONROAD2005, and for on-road motor vehicles, Washoe 
County AQMD re-calculated emissions using the EPA model MOBILE6.2.03. 
The on-road vehicle category incorporated the most recent planning 
assumptions for the transportation network including vehicle miles 
traveled and vehicle speeds. These planning assumptions were consistent 
with those used by the metropolitan planning organization (MPO), which, 
in Washoe County, is the Regional Transportation Commission. 
Documentation for the emissions estimates for nonroad and on-road 
vehicles is provided in appendices A, B, and C of the Washoe County 
Ozone Maintenance Plan.
    As shown in table 1, above, biogenic sources represent the largest 
source of VOC emissions during a typical summer day in Washoe County at 
approximately 56 percent of the inventory. Among the anthropogenic 
source categories, on-road and nonroad mobile sources contribute the 
most to the overall VOC inventory at 17 and 16 percent, respectively. 
With respect to NOX emissions, the largest contributing 
sources are on-road and nonroad mobile sources at 40 percent and 20 
percent, respectively.
    Based on our review of the documentation submitted with the 2002 
periodic inventory and the Washoe County Ozone Maintenance Plan, we 
conclude that the attainment inventory has been developed for the 
appropriate season of an acceptable attainment year, is comprehensive 
and based on appropriate factors and methods, and thus is acceptable 
for the purposes of a section 110(a)(1) ozone maintenance plan.
2. Maintenance Demonstration
    The key element of a section 110(a)(1) ozone maintenance plan is a 
demonstration of how the area will remain in compliance with the 8-hour 
ozone standard for the 10-year period following the effective date of 
designation as unclassifiable/attainment. The end projection year is 10 
years from the effective date of the attainment designation, which for 
Washoe County was June 15, 2004. Therefore, this plan must demonstrate 
attainment through 2014.
    The typical method that areas have used in the past to demonstrate 
that an area will maintain the 1-hour ozone standard has been to 
identify the level of ozone precursor emissions in the area which is 
sufficient to attain the NAAQS and to show that future emissions of 
ozone precursors will not exceed the attainment levels. To perform this 
analysis, for the 8-hour maintenance plan, the State needs to develop 
emission inventories for the attainment year and for the projection 
year. Also, because the plan must demonstrate maintenance throughout 
the applicable 10-year period, not just in the projection year, the 
State should develop an emission inventory for an interim year between 
the attainment inventory year and the projection inventory year to show 
a trend analysis for maintenance of the standard.
    For its maintenance demonstration, the Washoe County Ozone 
Maintenance Plan includes emissions inventories of ozone precursors in 
an interim year (2010) and the projection year (2014). To develop the 
emissions projections for these two future years, Washoe County AQMD 
used several different methods to project data from year 2002 to the 
years 2010 and 2014. For most point and area sources, Washoe County 
AQMD used Washoe County's 2010 and

[[Page 3394]]

2014 population and employment forecasts adopted by the Truckee Meadows 
Regional Planning Commission (which are consistent with those used by 
the local MPO) to project emissions into the future. Population 
forecasts were also used to project buffer zone source emissions and 
locomotive emissions. Emissions from fires and biogenic sources were 
assumed to remain constant over the 2002-2014 period. For nonroad 
vehicles and on-road vehicles, Washoe County AQMD used EPA models, 
NONROAD2005 and MOBILE6.2.03, respectively to project emissions for 
2010 and 2014 using the latest vehicle activity projections used by the 
local MPO. Aircraft emissions projections were based on aviation 
activity forecasts provided by the local airport authority. We find 
that the methods and assumptions used by Washoe County AQMD to project 
emissions to 2010 and 2104 are acceptable.
    Table 1, above, summarizes the emissions projections for 2010 and 
2014 developed by Washoe County AQMD for the Washoe County Ozone 
Maintenance Plan and compares those estimates with the corresponding 
estimates for the attainment year (2002). Washoe County AQMD concludes 
in the Ozone Maintenance Plan, based on the comparison of emissions in 
2014 with those in 2002, that the 8-hour ozone NAAQS will be maintained 
through the 10-year maintenance period. We agree with Washoe County 
AQMD's conclusion for the reasons given below.
    As shown in table 1 above, decreases in VOC emissions from nonroad 
and on-road vehicle categories (relative to 2002) are expected to more-
than-offset increases in the other source categories. With respect to 
NOX, overall emissions are expected to increase through 2010 
but then to decrease over the next four years as the benefits from new 
EPA emissions and fuels standards for diesel vehicles begin to take 
effect. We note, however, that the NOX emissions increase in 
2010 is less in absolute terms than the VOC emissions decrease in that 
same year. Thus, based on the inventory projections in the Washoe 
County Ozone Maintenance Plan, we believe that maximum daily 8-hour 
ozone concentrations in Washoe County through 2010 will most likely 
remain similar to those monitored in the 2001-2003 period (during which 
the area was in attainment of the standard) and then drop slightly 
afterwards in rough proportion to the decrease in ozone precursor 
emissions predicted from 2010 through 2014. As such, we find that the 
Washoe County Ozone Maintenance Plan demonstrates continued attainment 
of the 8-hour ozone standard through 2014.
3. Ambient Air Quality Monitoring
    The State should continue to operate air quality monitors in 
accordance with 40 CFR part 58 to verify maintenance of the 8-hour 
ozone standard in the area. In 2006, Washoe County AQMD operated six 
ozone monitoring stations in southern Washoe County. In the maintenance 
plan, Washoe County AQMD commits to the continued operation of an 
appropriate ozone monitoring network in accordance with 40 CFR part 58 
to verify the attainment status of the area. See page 9 of the Ozone 
Maintenance Plan. This is acceptable.
4. Verification of Continued Attainment
    A section 110(a)(1) ozone maintenance plan should indicate how the 
State will track the progress of the maintenance plan. This is 
necessary due to the fact that emissions projections made for the 
maintenance demonstration depend on assumptions of point, area and 
mobile source activity and turn-over rates. One option for tracking the 
progress of the maintenance demonstration would be for the State to 
periodically update the emissions inventory.
    To track the progress of the Washoe County Ozone Maintenance Plan, 
Washoe County AQMD has committed to prepare, and submit to EPA, 
comprehensive periodic ozone emissions inventories on a triennial basis 
through at least 2014. The plan's stated purpose for the triennial 
inventory updates is to screen for significant increases in actual 
ozone precursor emissions. See page 10 of the Ozone Maintenance Plan. 
This is acceptable.
5. Contingency Plan
    EPA's Phase 1 8-Hour Ozone Implementation Rule requires section 
110(a)(1) maintenance plans to include contingency provisions to 
promptly correct any violation of the ozone NAAQS that occurs. 
Generally, contingency plans should clearly identify the measures to be 
adopted, a schedule and procedure for adoption and implementation, and 
a specific timeline for action by the State. Also, the State should 
identify specific indicators or triggers, which will be used to 
determine when the contingency measures need to be implemented.
    The Washoe County Ozone Maintenance Plan includes a contingency 
plan that establishes a triggering mechanism, and identifies specific 
measures to be adopted, a schedule and procedure for adoption and 
implementation, and a specific timeline for action by the District 
Board of Health. The triggering mechanism is a confirmed violation of 
the 8-hour ozone NAAQS at one of the air monitoring stations operated 
by Washoe County AQMD.
    The Washoe County Ozone Maintenance Plan identifies a list of 
potential contingency measures that are to be considered by the 
District Board of Health for implementation in the event that the 
triggering event occurs. The identified measures focus on the two of 
the largest anthropogenic source categories of ozone precursor 
emissions in Washoe County: On-road motor vehicles and nonroad 
gasoline-powered vehicles. With respect to on-road motor vehicles, the 
potential contingency measures include: (1) Increase the I/M waiver 
repair rate, (2) establish/enhance trip reduction programs, and (3) 
establish an early vehicle retirement program. With respect to nonroad 
gasoline engines, the potential contingency measures include: (1) 
Portable gas container emission controls, (2) construction fleet 
modernization, and (3) establish a fund program to electrify existing 
gasoline lawn and garden equipment. See page 12 of the Ozone 
Maintenance Plan. The Ozone Maintenance Plan indicates that the list of 
potential measures will be reviewed and updated at least once every 
three years in coordination with the periodic ozone emissions inventory 
update process.
    With regard to adoption and implementation of measures, the 
contingency plan includes a commitment by Washoe County AQMD to make 
recommendations to the Washoe County District Board of Health at their 
next regularly scheduled meeting, but no later than 45 days after the 
trigger has been reached. The contingency plan then indicates that the 
District Board of Health's contingency measure adoption and 
implementation schedule shall be as expeditious as practicable, but not 
longer than 24 months.
    Given that the contingency plan included in the Washoe County Ozone 
Maintenance Plan establishes a triggering mechanism, and identifies 
specific measures to be adopted, a schedule and procedure for adoption 
and implementation, and a specific timeline for action, we find that 
the Washoe County Ozone Maintenance Plan includes contingency 
provisions to promptly correct any violation of the 8-hour ozone NAAQS 
that occurs in Washoe County and thus is acceptable.

[[Page 3395]]

6. Conclusion
    Based on the review presented above of the various elements of the 
submitted plan, we are approving the Washoe County Ozone Maintenance 
Plan as a revision to the Washoe County portion of the Nevada SIP. In 
so doing, we find that the Washoe County Ozone Maintenance Plan, 
adopted on April 26, 2007 by the Washoe County District Board of Health 
and submitted to EPA by NDEP on May 30, 2007, satisfies the 
requirements of CAA section 110(a)(1) and EPA's phase 1 rule 
implementing the 8-hour ozone standard.

IV. Final Action and Request for Comment

    Under section 110(k) of the Clean Air Act, EPA is approving a 
revision to the Washoe County portion of the Nevada SIP that was 
submitted to EPA on May 30, 2007 and that consists of the Maintenance 
Plan for the Washoe County 8-Hour Ozone Attainment Area (April 2007) 
(``Washoe County Ozone Maintenance Plan''). As described in more detail 
above, we are approving the Washoe County Ozone Maintenance Plan 
because we find that it provides for continued attainment of the 8-hour 
ozone standard in Washoe County through the year 2014 and thereby 
satisfies the related requirements under section 110(a)(1) of the Clean 
Air Act and EPA's phase 1 rule implementing the 8-hour ozone NAAQS. Our 
approval of the Washoe County Ozone Maintenance Plan as a revision to 
the Nevada SIP makes the commitments included therein, such as those 
related to ambient air quality monitoring, verification of continued 
attainment, and the contingency plan, federally enforceable.
    EPA is publishing this rule without prior proposal because we view 
this as a non-controversial action and anticipate no adverse comments. 
However, in the proposed rules section of this Federal Register 
publication, we are publishing a separate document that will serve as 
the proposal to approve the SIP revision if relevant adverse comments 
are received. This rule will be effective on March 18, 2008 without 
further notice unless we receive adverse comment by February 19, 2008. 
If we receive adverse comments, we will publish a timely withdrawal in 
the Federal Register informing the public that the rule will not take 
effect. We will address all public comments in a subsequent final rule 
based on the proposed rule. We will not institute a second comment 
period on this action. Any parties interested in commenting must do so 
now. Please note that if we receive adverse comment on an amendment, 
paragraph, or section of this rule and if that provision may be severed 
from the remainder of the rule, we may adopt as final those provisions 
of the rule that are not the subject of an adverse comment.

V. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews

    Under Executive Order 12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993), this 
action is not a ``significant regulatory action'' and therefore is not 
subject to review by the Office of Management and Budget. For this 
reason, this action is also not subject to Executive Order 13211, 
``Actions Concerning Regulations That Significantly Affect Energy 
Supply, Distribution, or Use'' (66 FR 28355, May 22, 2001). This action 
merely approves a state plan as meeting Federal requirements and 
imposes no additional requirements beyond those imposed by state law. 
Accordingly, the Administrator certifies that this rule will not have a 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities 
under the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.). Because 
this rule approves pre-existing requirements under state law and does 
not impose any additional enforceable duty beyond that required by 
state law, it does not contain any unfunded mandate or significantly or 
uniquely affect small governments, as described in the Unfunded 
Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-4).
    This rule also does not have tribal implications because it will 
not have a substantial direct effect on one or more Indian tribes, on 
the relationship between the Federal Government and Indian tribes, or 
on the distribution of power and responsibilities between the Federal 
Government and Indian tribes, as specified by Executive Order 13175 (65 
FR 67249, November 9, 2000). This action also does not have Federalism 
implications because it does not have substantial direct effects on the 
States, on the relationship between the national government and the 
States, or on the distribution of power and responsibilities among the 
various levels of government, as specified in Executive Order 13132 (64 
FR 43255, August 10, 1999). This action merely approves a state plan 
implementing a Federal standard, and does not alter the relationship or 
the distribution of power and responsibilities established in the CAA. 
This rule also is not subject to Executive Order 13045 ``Protection of 
Children from Environmental Health Risks and Safety Risks'' (62 FR 
19885, April 23, 1997), because it is not economically significant.
    In reviewing SIP submissions, EPA's role is to approve state 
choices, provided that they meet the criteria of the Clean Air Act. In 
this context, in the absence of a prior existing requirement for the 
State to use voluntary consensus standards (VCS), EPA has no authority 
to disapprove a SIP submission for failure to use VCS. It would thus be 
inconsistent with applicable law for EPA, when it reviews a SIP 
submission, to use VCS in place of a SIP submission that otherwise 
satisfies the provisions of the CAA. Thus, the requirements of section 
12(d) of the National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 
(15 U.S.C. 272 note) do not apply. This rule does not impose an 
information collection burden under the provisions of the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).
    The Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 801 et seq., as added by the 
Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, generally 
provides that before a rule may take effect, the agency promulgating 
the rule must submit a rule report, which includes a copy of the rule, 
to each House of the Congress and to the Comptroller General of the 
United States. EPA will submit a report containing this rule and other 
required information to the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House of 
Representatives, and the Comptroller General of the United States prior 
to publication of the rule in the Federal Register. A major rule cannot 
take effect until 60 days after it is published in the Federal 
Register. This action is not a ``major rule'' as defined by 5 U.S.C. 
section 804(2).
    Under section 307(b)(1) of the CAA, petitions for judicial review 
of this action must be filed in the United States Court of Appeals for 
the appropriate circuit by March 18, 2008. Filing a petition for 
reconsideration by the Administrator of this final rule does not affect 
the finality of this rule for the purposes of judicial review nor does 
it extend the time within which a petition for judicial review may be 
filed, and shall not postpone the effectiveness of such rule or action. 
This action may not be challenged later in proceedings to enforce its 
requirements. (See section 307(b)(2).)

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Incorporation by 
reference, Intergovernmental relations, Ozone, Reporting and 
recordkeeping requirements, Volatile organic compounds.

    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.


[[Page 3396]]


    Dated: November 29, 2007.
Wayne Nastri,
Regional Administrator, Region IX.

0
Part 52, Chapter I, Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations is 
amended as follows:

PART 52--[AMENDED]

0
1. The authority citation for part 52 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.

Subpart DD--Nevada

0
2. Section 52.1470 is amended by adding paragraph (c)(65) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  52.1470  Identification of plan.

* * * * *
    (c) * * *
    (65) The following plan was submitted on May 30, 2007 by the 
Governor's designee.
    (i) Incorporation by reference.
    (A) Washoe County District Health Department, Air Quality 
Management Division.
    (1) Maintenance Plan for the Washoe County 8-Hour Ozone Attainment 
Area (April 2007), Washoe County District Health Department, excluding 
appendices.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. E8-743 Filed 1-17-08; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
