Air Plan Approval and Air Quality Designation; GA; Redesignation of the Atlanta, GA, 1997 Annual PM2.5

On August 30, 2012, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, through the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (GA EPD), submitted a request for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to redesignate the Atlanta, Georgia, fine particulate matter (PM2.5) nonattainment area (hereafter referred to as the ``Atlanta Area'' or ``Area'') to attainment for the 1997 Annual PM2.5 national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) and a related state implementation plan (SIP) revision containing a maintenance plan for the Atlanta Area. EPA is taking the following separate final actions related to the August 30, 2012, redesignation request and SIP revision: Determining that the Atlanta Area is continuing to attain the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS; approving into Georgia's SIP the State's plan for maintaining the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS in the Atlanta Area (maintenance plan), including the associated motor vehicle emission budgets (MVEBs) for nitrogen oxides (NOX) and direct PM2.5 for the year 2024; and redesignating the Atlanta Area to attainment for the 1997 Annual PM2.5 NAAQS. Additionally, EPA finds the 2024 MVEBs for the Atlanta Area adequate for the purposes of transportation conformity.