Section 1.0 Executive Summary
State Implementation Plan for the Annual PM2.5 Standard
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) promulgated national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) for particulate matter equal to or less than 2.5 microns (PM2.5) in size in July of 1997. These standards required that concentrations of this pollutant in the air not exceed 65 micrograms per cubic meter (ug/m3) on a daily (24-hour) basis (based on the 3-year average of the 98th percentile of 24-hour concentrations) and 15 ug/m3 on an annual basis (based on the 3-year average of annual mean PM2.5 concentrations.)
The Clean Air Act (CAA) requires that states submit a State Implementation Plan (SIP) to the EPA consistent with the requirements of sections 110(a)(1) and 110(a)(2) of the CAA to show how nonattainment areas will meet NAAQS. Areas to be considered as being in nonattainment with the annual PM2.5 NAAQS in New York were recommended by the Department in 2004, and revised areas were approved and finalized by EPA on April 5, 2005, making the PM2.5 SIP due date April 5, 2008. The result of this approval was the designation of one nonattainment area in New York State for the annual standard encompassing 10 counties in the New York Metropolitan Area (NYMA). The NYMA counties included in the nonattainment area are Bronx, Kings, Nassau, New York, Orange, Queens, Richmond, Rockland, Suffolk and Westchester counties.
All of New York State is in compliance with the 1997 24-hour standard, and so no SIP is required for this NAAQS.
This document has been prepared in satisfaction of the requirement that the State submit a state implementation plan (SIP) to show how the New York Metropolitan nonattainment area will be brought into compliance with the annual NAAQS. This SIP, or attainment demonstration, includes inventory data for both the base and projection years, proposed emission limits, and modeling results showing the effect of the control measures needed to reach attainment. The Clean Air Act requires that attainment be reached as expeditiously as practicable, but no later than the beginning of the year prior to the attainment date. Additionally, this SIP contains a discussion of the applicable Reasonable Further Progress requirements, as well as contingency measures that apply.
The results of this attainment demonstration indicate that compliance will be achieved by 2010 based on monitoring data from the 2007-2009 time period. Compliance will be achieved due to the effect of emission reduction programs already in place that will lower the ambient concentrations of PM2.5, including CAIR and diesel retrofits taking place in the New York City metropolitan area, as well as new measures described in Section 8 of this document.
While a projected modeling value of 15.3µg/m3 in the attainment year slightly exceeds the 15µg/m3 NAAQS, it falls within the weight of evidence (WOE) range required to demonstrate that compliance will likely occur. This WOE range is applicable because a number of control programs will come into effect that were not accounted for when the modeling was done. These include the control measures associated with the 8-hour ozone SIP, the proposed High Electric Demand Day (HEDD) program, the regulation of distributed generation, new NOx RACT measures, New York Port Authority greenhouse gas and criteria pollutants emission reduction efforts, the "15 by 15" initiative, efforts being undertaken by Canada, and PlaNYC. The latter is an effort by New York City to institute a comprehensive program of environmental improvement related to land use, water and air quality, transportation, energy and climate change. The combined effects of all emission reductions are expected to bring the present nonattainment area for the annual PM2.5 NAAQS into compliance by 2010.
Clean Air Act Section 110 "Infrastructure" Demonstration
Clean Air Act sections 110(a)(1) and (2) contain basic requirements that must be met by state implementation plan submissions. As a consequence of a consent decree resulting from an Earth Justice lawsuit against EPA for failure to take action against States that had not made SIP submissions that met the requirements of CAA sections 110(a)(1) and (2), EPA was obligated to make official findings whether States have made SIP submissions required to meet CAA section 110(a)(2)(D)(i) relating to interstate transport by no later than October 5, 2008 for PM2.5. Pursuant to EPA guidance dated October 2, 2007, this submission not only constitutes the required SIP for the annual PM2.5 standard, but also contains the necessary demonstration that each of the required elements of CAA sections 110(a)(1) and (2) have been met by New York State as they pertain to PM2.5.
