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National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for Ozone, Federal Register January 19, 2010 – Proposed Rule Would reduce the 8-hour primary standard, which protects public health, to a level between 0.070 and 0.060 parts per million (ppm), down from the 2008 standard of 0.075 ppm. The rule also proposes a separate cumulative “secondary” standard to protect the environment, especially plants and trees. This seasonal standard would be set within a range of 7-15 ppm-hours.

The proposed rule would require industry to revamp their existing emission control budgets and plans, or draw up new ones. Areas that will likely be most affected by this rule include the East, Midwest, and around the Gulf and West coasts. Initial non-attainment designations for would be assigned in 2011. States will then have two years to develop State Implementation Plans (SIPs) for these areas.

National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for Ozone, Federal Register March 27, 2008 Reduces the 8-hour primary and secondary standards for ozone to 0.075 parts per million (ppm), down from the 1997 standard of 0.08 ppm. Initial non-attainment designations will be assigned in 2010. States will then have three years to develop State Implementation Plans (SIPs) for these areas. Some states will have until as late as 2030 to comply. The new ozone standards are projected to result in the designation of 345 additional counties as non-attainment. EPA estimates that the cost of implementing this rule will exceed $8 billion annually.

Terminals located in non-attainment communities may expect increasingly stringent emissions limits. Click here for a map indicating the counties that are likely in violation of the new standard of 0.75 ppm. In addition to the map, EPA has provided a list of the counties with designations of attainment or non-attainment to the 2008 standard based on 2004-2006 NAAQS data.

The proposed rule was published in the Federal Register on July 11, 2007. It included alternative considerations for levels as low as 0.060 ppm for the primary standard. It also examined a different option for the secondary standard, which would have involved limiting cumulative daily ozone concentrations across a three-month period to range between 7-21 ppm-hours.

Clean Air Act of 1990, Title I, Air Pollution Prevention & Control, Part A: Air Quality and Emissions Limitations, Section 108, Air Quality Criteria and Control Technology and Section 109, National Ambient Air Quality Standards This act requires identification of toxic air pollutants (§108) that pose a health threat in the urban areas. It also mandates that EPA set primary and secondary standards (§109) for those pollutants.

Updates, Comments & Other Reports

December 2012 On December 14, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized a rule revising the National Ambient Air Quality Standard for pollution from fine particle matter of 2.5 micrometers (µm) in diameter or smaller (PM_2.5). The rule lowers the PM_2.5 primary standard from 15 micrograms per cubic meter (µg/m³), down to 12 µg/m³.

On December 14, six United States Senators sent a bipartisan letter to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson opposing the new standard. The senators argue that increasing the number of non-attainment areas is unnecessary and harmful to the domestic economy and that businesses are far less likely to invest in a non-attainment area than in other regions.

Industry groups opposing this new rule issued talking points on the rule, here, and a summary of its impacts, here.

February 2012 EPA has issued a proposed rule to implement the 2008 NAAQS for ozone. EPA’s proposed non-attainment designations would apply to approximately 210 whole counties and 31 partial counties. EPA will classify nonattainment areas and set compliance deadlines based on the air quality ranges as marginal, moderate, serious, severe, and extreme. Based on air monitoring data, EPA has indicated that many of the nonattainment areas are expected to be classified as marginal, which means they would be expected to meet the standard within three years. Federal pollution control measures may already be in place for many areas, however some may need to implement additional controls for nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds. Final designations for the 2008 ozone standards will be issued by May 31, 2012. A listing of all nonattainment areas and their classifications will be made available at that time. For more information, click here.

September 2011 President Barack Obama has ordered EPA to remove its decision to revise the 2008 NAAQS for ozone during 2011. According to the Heritage Foundation, the rule would likely have resulted in the loss of 7.3 million jobs and cost nearly $700 billion by 2020. Additionally, 565 U.S. counties would have been pushed into nonattainment status, resulting in further economic loss. Going forward, EPA will begin implementation of the 2008 NAAQS which set an 8-hour threshold for ozone of 75 parts per billion. In a recent memo to state officials, EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson stated that the agency will expedite a rulemaking on the 2008 implementation requirements. Additionally, she indicated that EPA plans to issue initial area designation letters to states by January 2012. EPA estimates that it will identify approximately 52 nonattainment areas where the air quality fails to meet the 2008 standard. Final area designations are expected by mid 2012.

October 2010 EPA failed to promulgate a final rule to replace the 2008 NAAQS for ground-level ozone. In September, 2009, EPA revoked the 8-hour standard of 0.075 parts per million (ppm) and stated that it would promulgate a new standard by August 2010. After missing the August deadline, EPA said that it would issue a final rule “on or about the end of October.” EPA has not yet indicated when it expects to have the rule finalized.

January 2010 On January 10, EPA proposed revisions to the NAAQS for ozone. Specifically, EPA is proposing to revise the level of the primary 8-hour ozone standard to a level within the range of .060-0.070 parts per million (ppm). EPA is also proposing to establish a separate cumulative secondary standard within a range of 7-15 ppm-hours. EPA will accept comments for 60 days following publication of the proposal in the Federal Register. EPA will hold three public hearings on the proposal:

February 2: Arlington, VA and Houston, TX
February 4: Sacramento, CA

For additional information, click here.

March 2008 On March 12, 2008, EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson signed the most aggressive 8-hour standard ever for ozone. The new primary 8-hour standard is 0.075 parts per million and the new secondary standard is set at a form and level identical to the primary standard. The previous primary and secondary standard was set at 0.08. A press statement and fact sheet were issued with the rule.

Days before Administrator Johnson announced the new standards, the Office of Management & Business, after reviewing the draft final rule, issued a memo to EPA stating that they failed to justify the need for setting a secondary standard lower than the primary standard. EPA responded with a letter stating that “by definition, the primary and secondary standards are separate legal actions based on separate criteria.” Ultimately, EPA was not able to set a secondary standard that was lower than the primary standard.

February 2008 ILTA recently participated in a conference call with U.S. Senator David Vitter (R-LA) to support his opposition to EPA’s proposed amendment that would reduce current 8-hour ozone levels under NAAQS. Senator Vitter indicated that EPA suggested that it may lower the standard from the current level of 0.079 parts per million (ppm) to 0.070 ppm. A new standard of 0.070 would likely result in 700 counties across the U.S. being added to the 391 counties already in non-attainment status. The deadline for EPA to finalize any changes to the existing standard is March 12, 2008.

EPA’s proposed amendments to the NAAQS for ozone have been opposed by numerous companies, trade associations, state agencies, governors, congressmen and other public officials alike. An index of filed comments that oppose a change in allowable ozone levels under the NAAQS may be viewed here.

December 2007 Eleven State Governors submitted a letter to EPA asking them to retain the existing standard on December 11. States represented include: Alabama, Alaska, Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, North Dakota, South Carolina and Texas.

October 2007 ILTA, in partnership with 23 other associations including the American Chemistry Council, American Petroleum Institute and the National Petrochemical Refiners Association, submitted comments demonstrating that the existing standard meets the statutory requirements and should be retained as both the primary and secondary standard. Also, the comments provided scientific evidence invalidating EPA’s conclusions that further reductions in the ozone standard would translate to improved health.

September 2007 If the primary standard is set within the 0.07- 0.075 range, the total number of nonattainment areas would increase 2.5 times from 442 to 1, 087, and an additional 30% to 1,234 if EPA sets the ozone standard at 0.06 ppm. Nonattainment area maps clearly illustrate potentially affected areas. EPA has provided a fact sheet for more information on the proposed rule.

Additionally, this presentation presents, in summary form, much of the subtext to the EPA data from which the proposed rule was derived.

EPA is soliciting comments from industry on the proposed rulemaking. Comments are due on October 9, 2007.

Related ILTA Articles

ILTA provides a monthly newsletter to its membership. Members may log in to the Member Resources page to access archived newsletters. The following is a list of articles ILTA has published in its newsletter relating to ozone standards.

EPA Withdraws Proposal for More Stringent Ozone Standards, October 2011 Issue (p.3)
Opposition Grows as ESP Seeks to Impose More Stringent Ozone Standards, September 2011 Issue (p.3)
EPA Delays Issuance of New Ozone Standards, November 2010 Issue (p.2)
EPA Tightens the Nation's Ozone Standards, April 2008 Issue (p.2)
New Ozone Standards May Triple the Number of Nonattainment Areas, September 2007 Issue (p.2)