UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY WASHINGTON, D.C. 20460

The Honorable Lolo Matalasi Moliga Governor of American S amoa 

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## . a 2014

A. P. Lutali Executive Office Building , Third Floor Pago Pago, American Samoa 96799 Dear Go v ernor Moliga: THE ADMINISTRATOR

I am writing to summa r i ze the U.S. Environmenta l Protection Agency ' s recen t action to address fine particle pollution in your state. As required by the Clean Air Act, t he EPA has determined which areas are meeting the national ambient air quality standards for fine particle pollut ion and which areas must take steps to reduce emissions that contribute to violations of the s tandard
. On December 14,2012 , the EPA strengthened the annual , health

- based fine particle standard from 1 5.0 micrograms per cub ic meter (J.l g/m3 ) to 12
.0 J.lg/m3

. Thousands of scientific studies have linked exposure to these tiny particles-approximate ly 1/ 30th the size of a human hair-wi th serious human health problems including premature death in peop le with heart and lung disease , nonfatal heart attacks , and increased hospital admissions and doctor and emergency room visits for respiratory and cardiovascular disease. I appreciate the information you and your staff have shared with the EPA throughout this process to assess fine particle pollution levels in communities across your state and the impact of emi ssion sources that could be contributing to unhealthy air. After considering your recommendati ons , reviewing the most recent certified fine particle air quali t y data for your state and evaluating factors to assess contribution to nearby levels of fine particl e pollution, I have determined that no area within American Samoa violates the 2012 standard or contributes to a nearby v iolation of the standard. As a result , t he EPA i s designating all of American Samoa "unclassifiable / attainment. " Because air quali ty monitoring for 2014 is nearly complete , if a state or tribe requests it , the EPA will evaluate the status of an area based on its annual fine particle monitoring data for 2012

- 2014. If you wou ld like the EPA to re - evaluate any areas within your st a t e , please submit to the EPA , complete , quality-assured and certified air quality data for 2014 by February 27,2015. The EPA shares responsibility w ith the states and tribes for managing particle pollution levels. E f forts by states and tribes to attain the 1997 and 2006 fine particle polluti on standards are already working to reduce unhealthy leve l s of fine particle pollution. In addition , current and upcoming federal standards and safeguards , including pollution reduction rule s for power plants, vehicles and fuels will assure steady reductions of fine particle pollution and will protect public health in commu ni ties ac ross the country.

Internet Address (URL) • htlp://www
. epa . gov Recycled/Recyclable • Pri nted with Vegetable Oi l Based Inks on 100% Postconsumer, Process Ch l ori ne Free Recyc l ed PaperTogether, we have made considerable progress to red uce fine particle pollution. Nationwi de , monitored levels of fine particle pollution fell 34 percent since 2000 when we first began nationwide moni t oring for particles of this size. I am confident this progress will acce l erate as together we continue to work towards our shared goal of clean a i r. For additional information about these designations, please visit our website at: www.epa.gov / pmdesignations .

If you have questions or concerns, please contact me or your staff may contact Mark Rupp, Deputy Associate Adm i nistrator for Intergovernmental Relations, at rupp . mark@epa.gov or at (202) 564-7178. Sincerely,