8 ii. Executive Summary

Congress addressed visibility prot ection at national parks and scen ic areas in an amendment to the Clean Air Act in 1977. The Congressional visibility goals were most recently promulgated in the federal Regional Haze Rule on July 1, 1999. The goal of the federal regional haze program is to reach natural background visibility conditions at mandatory Class I Federal areas by 2064.

Iowa does not have a mandatory Class I Federal area. The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (MN), Voyageurs National Park (MN) , Badlands National Park (SD), HerculesGlades Wilderness Area (MO), and Mingo Wilderness Area (MO) are the clos est Class I areas to Iowa. The pollutants that reduce visibility at th ese Class I areas include fine particulate matter (PM 2.5 ), and compounds which contribute to its forma tion, such as nitrogen oxides (NOx), sulfur dioxide (SO 2 ), ammonia, and under certain conditi ons volatile organic compounds (VOCs).

States were required to address visibility impa iring pollutant emissions from major source

facilities with units constructed between 1962 and 1977. These units, if they met additional requirements, were subject to additional review and possible c ontrol. EPA’s recommended tools were inappropriate for IDNR given the distances to the Class I areas. IDNR used multiple methods to determine the extent of possible visib ility impairment attributable to BART units.

IDNR determined that none of the 27 BART units cau sed or contributed to vi sibility impairment.

The U.S Environmental Protection Agency (E PA) created Regional Planning Organizations (RPOs) to facilitate the development of the fe derally mandated state implementation plans (SIP) across the country. Iowa, as a member state, worked closely with th e Central Regional Air Planning Association (CENRAP) to develop this SIP. Through a consu ltation process, IDNR worked with Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Mi nnesota, and Michigan. Emissions sources in

Iowa were not found to contribute to visibility impairment in the Class I areas in Missouri, Arkansas, and Oklahoma. Minnesota requested that Iowa review emissions and consider reductions that may affect Minnesota Class I areas.

Based upon results generated through the RPO pro cess, Iowa may contribute to the visibility impairment at Class I areas in Minnesota and Michigan. The most recent EPA forecasts anticipate a decline in Iowa’s SO2 emissions from electrical generating units (EGUs) by approximately 15% between 2002 and 2018. A reducti on of 27% is also fo recast for EGU NOx

emissions. IDNR has determined that additional reductions are not needed at this time due to existing emissions controls, the projected reduc tions from recently mandated requirements, and

the costs associated with additional controls.

The Regional Haze program requires States to revise the SIP by July 31, 2018, and every ten years thereafter. Federal land managers, with the U.S. Department of Interior and U.S. Department of Agriculture, were given 60 days to review the SIP prior to the public hearing as required in the federal Regional Haze Rule. Pr ogress towards meeting goals is evaluated every five years following the initial SIP submittal. Th e IDNR will continue to work with industry, the public, and regional partners to evaluate control st rategies to address regional haze, as needed.9 1. Background and Overview of Federal Haze Regulations

In the 1977 amendments to the Clean Air Act (CAA), Congress added Section 169 (42 U.S.C. 7491) setting forth the following national visibili ty goal of restoring pr istine conditions in national parks and wilderness areas:

“Congress hereby declares as a national goa l the prevention of any future, and the remedying of any existing, impairment of visi bility in mandatory Class I Federal areas which impairment results from man-made air pollution.”

Over the following years modest steps were take n to address the visibility problems in Class I areas. The control measures taken mainly ad dressed “Plume Blight” from specific pollution sources, and did little to address regional haze issues in the Eastern United States. Plume blight is the visual impairment of air quality that manifest s itself as a coherent plume. This results from specific sources, such as a power plant smoke stac k, emitting pollutants into a stable atmosphere. The pollutants are then transported alof t with little or no vertical mixing.

Plume blight is controlled thr ough the reasonably attributable visibility impairment (RAVI) regulations codified at 40 CFR § 51.302. RAVI refers only to vi sual impairment that results from a single source or a small number of s ources. RAVI requirements do not impact Iowa sources as the transport distances are too great for a plume to have retained an applicable level of cohesion upon reaching a Class I area.

When the CAA was amended in 1990, Congre ss added Section 169B (42 U.S.C. 7492), authorizing further research and regular assessmen ts of the progress made so far. In 1993, the National Academy of Sciences concluded that “c urrent scientific knowledge is adequate and control technologies are availabl e for taking regulatory action to improve and protect visibility.” 1

In addition to authorizing creation of a visibil ity transport commissions and setting forth their duties, Section 169B(f) of the CAA specifi cally mandated creation of the Grand Canyon Visibility Transport Commission (GCVTC) to make recommendations to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for the region affecting the visibility of the GCVTC. Following four years of research and policy development the GCVTC submitted its report to EPA in June 1996. This report, as well as the many research reports pr epared by the GCVTC,

contributed invaluable information to EPA in its development of the federal Regional Haze Rule.

EPA’s Regional Haze Rule was adopted July 1, 1999, and went into effect on August 30, 1999. The Regional Haze Rule aimed at achieving nati onal visibility goals by 2064. This rulemaking

addressed the combined visibili ty affects of various pollution sources over a wide geographic region. This wide reaching pollution net meant th at many states – even those without Class I areas – would be required to par ticipate in haze reduction efforts. EPA designated five Regional

1 Protecting Visibility in National Parks and Wilderness Areas . National Research Council. Washington, DC: 1993.10 Planning Organizations (RPOs) to assist with the coordination a nd cooperation needed to address the visibility issue. Those States and Tribes that make up the midsection of the contiguous United States were designated as the Central Regional Air Pl anning Association (CENRAP). The State of Iowa is part of CENRAP. The Io wa Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) is the designated air pollution contro l agency as indicated in section 455B.132 of the Iowa Code.

On May 24, 2002, the U. S. Court of Appeals, D. C. District Court ruled on the challenge brought by the American Corn Growers Associa tion against EPA’s Regional Haze Rule of 1999.

The Court remanded to EPA the Best Availabl e Retrofit Technology (BAR T) provisions of the rule, and denied industry’s challenge to the h aze rule goals of natu ral visibility and no degradation requirements. EPA published the fina l revisions to the Regional Haze rule pursuant to the remand on July 6, 2005.

On February 18, 2005, the U.S. Court of Appeals fo r the District of Columbia Circuit issued another ruling, in Center for Energy and Ec onomic Development v. EPA, granting a petition challenging provisions of the Regional Haze Ru le governing an optional emissions trading program for certain western States and Tribes . EPA published revised regulations for the provisions of the governing alternativ e trading programs on October 13, 2006.

To facilitate the review of this State Impl ementation Plan (SIP) by the EPA, Federal Land Managers (FLMs) 1 , stakeholders and the public, “A Guide to Locating 40 CFR § 51.308 Requirements” is provided in Appendix 1.1 of this document.

Some emissions sources within the State of Io wa may have impacts on nearby Class I areas. Figure 1.1 provides a map of all 156 mandatory Cla ss I Federal areas and Figure 1.2 assists with the identification of nearby Cla ss I areas. Combining the eff ects of distance and relevant transport patterns, nearby Class I areas cons idered include: Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (MN), Voyageurs National Park (MN) , Isle Royale National Park (MI), Seney Wilderness Area (MI), Badlands National Park (SD), Hercules-Glades Wilderness Area (MO), and Mingo Wilderness Area (MO).

In addition, the IDNR believes that improved visibi lity will lead to aest hetic and environmental

benefits in the affected Class I areas. Mo re information is provided in Appendix 1.2.

List of Chapter 1 Appendices

1.1 Guide to Locating 40 CFR § 51.308 Requirements. 1.2 Benefits of Improved Visibility.

1 FLMs include representatives from the National Park Serv ice, U.S. Forest service, and the U.S Fish and Wildlife

Service.

# APPENDIX 2Appendix 2.1(a): Legal Authority

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (D NR) is primary state ag ency responsible for protecting the environment, as indicated in the Iowa Code § 455A. The Environmental

Protection Commission established in the Io wa Code § 455A.6, is the governing commissions for the environmental protection portion of the DNR.

Iowa Code § 455B.133(2) provides that the Environmental Protection Commission shall “[a]dopt, amend, or repeal rules pertaining to the evaluation, abat ement, control, and prevention of air pollution,” and that “[t]he rules may include those that ar e necessary to obtain approval of the state implementation plan under section 110 of the federal Clean Air Act as amended through January 1, 1991.”

Iowa Code § 455B.133(3) provides that the Environmental Protection Commission shall “[a]dopt, amend, or repeal ambient air quality sta ndards for the atmosphere of this state on the basis of providing air quality necessary to prot ect the public health and welfare and to reduce emissions contributing to acid rain pursuant to Title IV of the federal Clean Air Act

Amendments of 1990.”Appendix 2.1(b): Public Participation and Rulemaking Process

The DNR’s rulemaking process is governed by Iowa Code § 17A, also referred to as the Iowa Administrative Procedure Act (IAPA). The IAPA details the procedures and format of state agency rulemakings. All rulemakings must be adopted within 180 days following either the published notice or the last date of the oral presentations on the propos ed rule, whichever is later.

Administrative rules are a pproved by the Environmental Protection Commission (EPC) as authorized under Iowa Code 455A.6. An exampl e of the rulemaking pro cess is listed below:

1. Information: The DNR provides an informational notice of a rulemaking to the EPC and incorporates changes requested by the EPC.

2. Notice of Intended Action: The DNR proposes the rulemaking through a Notice of Intended Action. A fiscal impact statement is included with this document. If approved by the EPC, the proposed rulemaking will be published in the Iowa Administrative Bulletin (IAB).

3. Public Comment Period and Pubic Hearing(s): The IAB indicates the length of the comment period, the agency contact, and th e details of the public hearing(s). The minimum amount of time for the public comme nt period and public hearing date is 30 days for rules that the DNR plans to submit in a SIP revision.

4. Initial Administrative Rules Review: At some point during th e rulemaking process, the proposed rule is reviewed by the Iowa Gene ral Assembly's Administrative Rules Review Committee (ARRC). The DNR provides an ove rview of the rulemaking and responds to questions at the ARRC’s public meeting.

5. Adopted and Filed: After the close of the public co mment period, the DNR returns to the EPC to request adoption of the rule making. A summary of public comments and responses are included with the proposed rulemaking. If adopted, the rulemaking is published in the IAB.

6. Final Publication: The adopted and filed rulemaking will be published in the IAB.

7. Final Administrative Rules Review: Upon publication of the final rulemaking, the

ARRC conducts their final review at thei r public meeting. The ARRC does have the discretion to object to a rule. The ARRC may also delay the effective date of a proposed rule pending additional review by the Iowa General Assembly.

8. Rule Effective: Typically, the rulemaking become s effective 35 days after final publication in the IAB. The DNR can propose a later effective date , if necessary.Rains, Wendy [DNR]

From: Iowa Air Quality Newsletter [M indy.Kralicek@dnr.state.ia.us]

Sent: Wednesday, December 26, 2007 7:56 AM

To: Rains, Wendy [DNR]

Subject: Air List Serve for December 26, 2007 Pa g e 1 of 2

2/12/2008 

## Public Notice Iowa Department of Natural Resources

The Iowa Department of Na tural Resources (DNR) reque sts public comment on a propos ed revision to the state implementation plan (SIP) to address vi sibility protection at nati onal parks and scenic areas, also referred to as mandatory Class I Federal areas. The United States Envir onmental Protection Agency (E PA), under the authority of Section 169(a) of the federal Clean Air Act (CAA), promulgated vi sibility goals in the federal Regional Haze Rule on July 1, 1999, with amendments in 2005 and 2006.

This SIP revision will fulfill the requir ements of Section 169(a) of the CAA that requires each state to adopt and submit a plan that addresses the state’s contri butions to visibility impa irment at the mandatory Class I Federal areas. The mandatory Class I Federal areas were established by C ongress under the 1977 Amendments to the CAA . Iowa does not have a mandatory Class I Federal area.

Iowa may contribute to the visibility impairment at mandato ry Class I Federal areas in Minnesota and Michigan . DNR has determined that emissions reductions of air pollutants that cause visibility impairment ar e not needed at this time due to existing emissions controls, th e projected reductions from recently mandated requirements, and the costs

associated with additional controls.

The proposed SIP revision is pos ted on the DNR’s website at http://www.iowadnr.gov/air/ prof/progdev/files/RH_SIP% 20_FLM%20review.pdf . A link to the appendices is available at http://www.iowadnr.gov/ai r/prof/progdev/progdev.html

.

Any person may make written comments on this proposed SIP revision on or before January 31, 2008. Written comments should be directed to Wendy Rains, Department of Natural Resources, Air Quality Bureau, 7900 Hickman Road, Suite 1, Urbandale, Iowa 50322, fax (515) 242-5094, or by el ectronic mail to wendy.rains@dnr.iowa.gov

.

A public hearing will be held January 30, 2008 at 10:00 a.m. in the conference rooms at the DNR’s Air Quality Bureau office located at 7900 Hickman Road, Urba ndale, Iowa. All comments must be received no later than January 31, 2008.

Any person who plans to attend the public hearing and has sp ecial requirements such as t hose related to hearing or mobility impairments should cont act Wendy Rains at (515) 281-6061 to advise of specific needs.

A responsiveness summary will be prepared by the DNR following the close of the public comment period. The responsiveness summary will include writ ten or oral comments received during th e public participation process and the DNR’s response to the comments. The completed responsiven ess summary will forwarded to EPA and made available to the public upon request.

# # #

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