A L A S K A C A L I F O R N I A F L O R I D A M I D

- P A C I F I C N O R TH EA S T N O R TH ER N R O C K I E S

N O R TH W ES T R O C K Y M O U N TA I N W A S H I N G T O N , D . C . I N T ER N A TI O N A L

C A L I F O R N I A O F F I C E 5 0 C A L I F O R N I A S T R E E T , S U I T E 5 0 0 S A N F R A N C I S C O , C A 9 4 1 1 1

T : 4 1 5 . 2 1 7 . 2 0 0 0 F : 4 1 5 . 2 1 7 . 2 0 4 0 C A O F F I C E @ E A R T H J U S T I C E . O R G W W W . E A R T H J U S T I C E . O R G Mr. Andrew Steckel (AIR

- 4) U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region IX

75 Hawthorne Street
San Francisco, CA 94105

September 16, 2015

VIA ELECTRONIC MAIL

Dear Mr. Steckel,

Thank you for the opportunity to comment on EPA’s rulemaking proposing to approve emission reductions from incentive programs into the San Joaquin Valley portion of the California State Implementation Plan (“SIP”). Based on the materials submitted by the

C alifornia Air Resources Board (“ARB”), t hese emission reductions are not enforceable by the public, and should not be accepted as SIP

- creditable emission reductions.

EPA’s own definition of enforceable shows that these emission reductions cannot be a pproved into the SIP. EPA’s enforceability criteria require that “citizens have access to all emissions

related information obtained from participating sources [and] citizens may file suit against a responsible entity for violations.” 1 ARB’s Report on Redu ctions Achieved from Incentive

- Based Emission Reduction Measures in the San Joaquin Valley (“Emission Reduction Report”) simply states that Carl Moyer

- funded projects “are independently verifiable and enforceable by ARB

and the District.” 2 The Carl Moyer p rogram allows air districts to enter into emission reduction agreements with grant recipients, with ARB added to contracts as a 3 rd party with enforcement rights. 3 The public has no right to enforce the emission reduction agreements entered into among ARB, an air district, and a grant recipient.

B ased on the information presented in the Emission Reduction Report, citizens w ould not even be able to obtain the information necessary to quantify and verify emission reductions . For stationary and portable farm engines funded through the Carl Moyer Program , for example, total project life varies from two years to ten years. Project life varies in part because emission reductions cannot be counted as surplus after the compliance date for a regulat ion applicable to that project. 4 ARB is required to ensure tha t emission reductions from projects are no longer

counted as SIP

- creditable emission reducti ons after that compliance date. However, there is no

1 80 FR 51150.

2 Emission Reduction Report, p. 7.

3 Emission Reduction Report, p. 6.

4 Emission Reduction Report, p. 9.2

way to verify that those emission reductions were counted accurately from the information that ARB has pro vided. In order to determine whether the stationary and portable farm engine projects were counted only for the years during which they could be considered surplus, one would need to know: what type of engine was used as a replacement; the horsepower of th e engine used as a replacement; tier of the original agricultural engine; and fleetwide particulate matter (“PM”) levels. 5 Neither EPA nor the public has any way of knowing whether or not these projects were counted for only the years in which they were su rplus because ARB does not provide enough information to determine a project’s compliance date.

California’s incentive programs for the regulated community provide vital emission reductions, but cannot be approved i nto the SIP as a replacement for emissi on reductions from regulations without fulfilling the four fundamental integrity elements. The emission reductions obtained under these programs are not currently enforceable to the extent that EPA requires in its definition of enforceability. In addition, it is not possible for the public to quantify and verify emission reductions based on the materials submitted by ARB. We urge EPA to require that emission reductions from incentive programs be enforceable and quantifiable by citizens before approving them into the SIP.

Sincerely,

Adenike Adeyeye Research & Policy Analyst Earthjustice

5 California Air Resources Board. 2011. Fleet Rule Implementation Charts for Use with the 2011 Carl Moyer Program Guidelines, pp. 73

- 81.