Document
Adequacy Status of the Motor Vehicle Emissions Budget in the Fairbanks North Star Borough, Alaska Submitted 2006 24-Hour PM2.5 NAAQS Serious Area and 189(d) Plan
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is notifying the public that we have found the motor vehicle emissions budgets adequate for transportation conformity purposes for the ...
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Throughout this document, “we” and “our” refer to the EPA.
This document is simply an announcement of a finding that we have already made. The EPA Region 10 issued a letter on April 8, 2025, to the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation stating that the PM2.5
motor vehicle emissions budgets, submitted in the Fairbanks Revised 189(d) Plan, are adequate. The motor vehicle emissions budgets that we have determined are adequate for transportation conformity purposes are provided in the following table:
Adequate Motor Vehicle Emissions Budgets 1
for the 24-hour PM
2.5
NAAQS in the Fairbanks North Star Borough
| Budget years |
PM
2.5
2
On-road mobile
source emissions
(tons/day) |
Clean Air Act-related milestone |
| 2023 |
0.062 |
Reasonable further progress (RFP). |
| 2026 |
0.054 |
RFP. |
| 2027 |
0.052 |
Attainment. |
| 2029 |
0.049 |
RFP. |
Transportation
conformity is required by Clean Air Act section 176(c), 42 U.S.C. 7506(c). The EPA's Transportation Conformity Rule (40 CFR part 93, subpart A) 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.
See, e.g.,42 U.S.C. 7506(c)(1)(B).
The criteria by which we determine whether a SIP's motor vehicle emissions budgets are adequate for conformity purposes are outlined in 40 CFR 93.118(e)(4). The EPA has described its process for determining the adequacy of submitted SIP budgets in our July 1, 2004 (69 FR 40004) preamble starting at page 40038, and we used the information in these resources in making our adequacy determination. Please note that an adequacy review is separate from the EPA's completeness review and should not be used to prejudge the EPA's ultimate approval action for the SIP. Even if we find a budget adequate, the SIP could later be disapproved.
On January 8, 2025, the EPA proposed to approve the submitted Fairbanks Revised 189(d) Plan, including the motor vehicle emissions budgets contained therein. The EPA also initiated the adequacy process for the budgets included in that submission. We reviewed the criteria in 40 CFR 93.118(e)(4) to determine whether the motor vehicle emissions budgets are adequate for conformity purposes. See Enclosure 2 of EPA's April 8, 2025 letter for how the budgets meet these criteria.[]
We also initiated a public comment period for adequacy of the budgets as required by 40 CFR 93.118(f)(1)(ii). The public comment period on the adequacy process closed February 7, 2025. We received three comments during that public comment period related to adequacy of the motor vehicle emissions budgets.
Another comment was received during Alaska DEC's state rulemaking process. The EPA's response to these comments is included as Enclosure 1 to the letter notifying the State of our transportation adequacy finding
.[]
As discussed in the response to comments, after considering the comments and based on our review, the EPA concluded that the budgets meet the adequacy criteria in 40 CFR 93.118. Therefore, the EPA found the budgets adequate for transportation conformity purposes.
42 U.S.C. 7401
et seq.
Dated: April 29, 2025.
Daniel D. Opalski,
Deputy Regional Administrator, Region 10.