Air Quality Planning
Planning for Clean Air
Federal law designates six air pollutants as criteria contaminants, requiring special measures to limit their presence in the nation's air. The six criteria contaminants are sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, ozone, carbon monoxide, particulate matter less than 2.5 microns (micrometers) in size, and lead.
The federal Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) designates as nonattainment areas those parts of the country where the air exceeds the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for one of the six criteria contaminants. State Implementation Plans (SIPs) set out control strategies to reduce air pollution in nonattainment areas. EPA requires states to adopt SIPs for all nonattainment areas, and periodically to evaluate the effectiveness of the strategies prescribed in each SIP.
At the present time, New York is under mandate to develop SIPs to address ozone and fine particulates less than 2.5 microns in size. New York is also developing state plans for the requirements of the Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR), the Clean Air Mercury Rule (CAMR), New Source Review (NSR), and regional haze.
Mobile and Stationary Source Planning
Mobile Sources: DEC uses air quality modeling to generate baseline and projection inventories of pollutants. Based on these inventories, the department can devise control strategies for on-road and off-road vehicles and other mobile sources. The control strategies are used in State Implementation planning for carbon and nitrogen oxides and other pollutants that typically come from mobile sources. A key element of the SIP for mobile sources is the Vehicle Inspection and Maintenance Program.
Stationary sources: To develop control strategies for pollutants from facilities and other stationary sources, DEC constructs statewide emissions inventories. Stationary source emissions inventories are based on actual emission data from major regulated facilities, and calculated emissions from minor stationary sources (US EPA has established area source procedures for these calculations).
- Revised State Implementation Plan (SIP) for New York Vehicle Inspection Program
- Oxides of Nitrogen Budget Requirements contained in the NOx SIP call
- Assessing and Mitigating Impacts of Fine Particulate Matter Emissions (PM2.5)
- Architectural and Industrial Maintenance (AIM) Coatings Resource Page
- Regional Haze Rule
- Oxygenate Waiver Request
- Oxygenate Waiver Request Fuel Emission Impacts Report
- Vehicle Inspection and Maintenance Program
