Notice2024-11309
Adequacy Status of the New Jersey Portion of the New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island and Pennsylvania-Delaware Areas Submitted PM2.5 Limited Maintenance Plan, 2006 24 Hour PM2.5 Maintenance Area
Primary source
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Published
May 23, 2024
Effective
June 7, 2024
Issuing agencies
Environmental Protection Agency
Abstract
In this notice, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is notifying the public that we have found that the Limited Maintenance Plan for PM<INF>2.5</INF> for the New Jersey portion of the New York- Northern New Jersey-Long Island, NNJ-NY-CT, and Philadelphia- Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE, PM<INF>2.5</INF> maintenance areas, submitted by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection on July 6, 2023, is adequate for transportation conformity purposes. This revision to the State Implementation Plan is associated with the second ten-year PM<INF>2.5</INF> Limited Maintenance Plan.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 101 (Thursday, May 23, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 101 (Thursday, May 23, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 45658-45659]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-11309]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[EPA-R02-OAR-2024-0122; FRL-11822-01-R2]
Adequacy Status of the New Jersey Portion of the New York-
Northern New Jersey-Long Island and Pennsylvania-Delaware Areas
Submitted PM2.5 Limited Maintenance Plan, 2006 24 Hour PM2.5
Maintenance Area
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 Limited Maintenance
Plan for PM<INF>2.5</INF> for the New Jersey portion of the New York-
Northern New Jersey-Long Island, NNJ-NY-CT, and Philadelphia-
Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE, PM<INF>2.5</INF> maintenance areas, submitted by
the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection on July 6, 2023,
is adequate for transportation conformity purposes. This revision to
the State Implementation Plan is associated with the second ten-year
PM<INF>2.5</INF> Limited Maintenance Plan.
DATES: This finding is effective on June 7, 2024.
ADDRESSES: Publicly available docket materials, identified by Docket ID
Number EPA-R02-OAR-2024-0122, are available either electronically
through <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a> or in hard copy at the EPA Docket Center,
WJC West Building, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington,
DC. The Docket Center's hours of operations are 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.,
Monday-Friday (except Federal Holidays). For further information on the
EPA Docket Center services and the current status, see: <a href="https://www.epa.gov/dockets">https://www.epa.gov/dockets</a>. You may access this Federal Register document
electronically from <a href="https://www.federalregister.gov">https://www.federalregister.gov</a>. This finding will
also be available at the EPA's conformity website: <a href="https://www.epa.gov/state-and-local-transportation/conformity-adequacy-review-region-2">https://www.epa.gov/state-and-local-transportation/conformity-adequacy-review-region-2</a>.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lily Black, Environmental Protection
Agency Region 2, Air and Radiation Division, 290 Broadway, 25th Floor,
New York, New York 10007-1866; (212) 637-3884, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#492b25282a226725202530092c3928672e263f"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="f89a94999b93d694919481b89d8899d69f978e">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Throughout this document, whenever ``we,''
``us,'' or ``our'' is used, we mean the EPA.
Today's notice is simply an announcement of a finding that we have
already made. On July 6, 2023, the New Jersey Department of
Environmental Protection (NJDEP) submitted a State Implementation Plan
(SIP) revision establishing the second ten-year maintenance plan as a
limited maintenance plan (LMP) for the New Jersey portion of the New
York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, NY-NJ-CT (Northern New Jersey)
and Philadelphia-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE (Southern New Jersey) 2006 24-
hour fine particulate matter (PM<INF>2.5</INF>) maintenance areas. We
announced availability of New Jersey's LMP on the EPA's transportation
conformity website on August 16, 2023, (<a href="https://www.epa.gov/state-and-local-transportation/state-implementation-plans-sip-submissions-currently-under-epa#NY-NJ-CT-PM2.5">https://www.epa.gov/state-and-local-transportation/state-implementation-plans-sip-submissions-currently-under-epa#NY-NJ-CT-PM2.5</a>) and requested comments by September
15, 2023. We received no comments in response to the adequacy review
posting. EPA Region 2 sent a letter to the New Jersey Department of
Environmental Protection on March 18, 2024, stating that the LMP for
the Northern New Jersey and Southern New Jersey maintenance areas is
adequate for transportation conformity purposes.
In October 2022, EPA issued Guidance on the Limited Maintenance
Plan Option for Moderate PM2.5 Nonattainment Areas and PM2.5
Maintenance Areas (EPA-420-B-22-044). The transportation conformity
regulations require that ``A limited maintenance plan would have to
demonstrate that it would be unreasonable to expect that such an area
[[Page 45659]]
would experience enough motor vehicle emissions growth for a [national
ambient air quality standards (NAAQS)] violation to occur.'' \1\
Additionally, the PM<INF>2.5</INF> LMP guidance suggests ``an LMP may
be particularly appropriate for a second maintenance plan, as the area
will have demonstrated attainment of the PM<INF>2.5</INF> NAAQS for at
least 8 years.'' \2\
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\1\ See 40 CFR 93.109(e) and EPA's ``Guidance on the Limited
Maintenance Plan Option for Moderate PM<INF>2.5</INF> Nonattainment
Areas and PM<INF>2.5</INF> Maintenance Areas.''
\2\ See EPA's ``Guidance on the Limited Maintenance Plan Option
for Moderate PM<INF>2.5</INF> Nonattainment Areas and
PM<INF>2.5</INF> Maintenance Areas.''
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To meet the transportation conformity regulation, i.e., demonstrate
that it would be unreasonable to expect that the area would experience
enough motor vehicle growth for a NAAQS violation to occur, an LMP
submission for an area's second maintenance plan should again address
the area's PM<INF>2.5</INF> air quality trends and its historical and
projected vehicle miles traveled (VMT). Since the Northern New Jersey
and Southern New Jersey areas have been attaining the PM<INF>2.5</INF>
NAAQS for 10 years, with a low risk of future exceedances, we find the
LMP adequate for transportation conformity purposes. Once an area has
an approved or adequate LMP for a specific pollutant and NAAQS, the
area no longer needs to satisfy the regional emissions analysis for CFR
93.118 and CFR 93.119.\3\ A conformity determination that meets the
requirements outlined in CFR 93.109(b)(Table 1), including the hot-spot
requirements for projects in CO, PM<INF>10</INF>, and PM<INF>2.5</INF>
areas, is still required for these maintenance areas with an approved
or adequate LMP.\4\
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\3\ See 40 CFR 93.109(e) and EPA's ``Guidance on the Limited
Maintenance Plan Option for Moderate PM<INF>2.5</INF> Nonattainment
Areas and PM<INF>2.5</INF> Maintenance Areas.''
\4\ Id.
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Transportation conformity is required by Clean Air Act section
176(c). EPA's conformity rule requires that transportation plans,
transportation improvement programs, and projects conform to State air
quality implementation plans (SIPs) and establishes the criteria and
procedures 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 NAAQS.
The criteria by which we determine whether a SIP's Limited
Maintenance Plan is adequate can be found in 40 CFR 93.109(e). Please
note that an adequacy review is separate from EPA's completeness review
and should not be used to prejudge EPA's ultimate approval action for
the SIP. Even if we find a limited maintenance plan adequate, the SIP
could later be disapproved.
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401-7671q.
Lisa Garcia,
Regional Administrator, Region 2.
[FR Doc. 2024-11309 Filed 5-22-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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