UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENC Y WASHINGTON , D.C. 20460

The Honorable Nat han Deal Governor of Georgia 203 State Cap itol Atlanta, Georgia 3033 4
Dear Governor Deal: 

## DE C 1 

## 8 2014

T H E ADMI NI S T RATOR

I am writing to summa rize the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's recent action to address fine particle pollution in your state. As required by the Clean Air Act, the EPA has determined which areas are meeting the national ambient air quality standards for fine particle pollution and which areas must take steps to reduce emissions that contri bute to violations of the standard.
On December 14, 2012, the EPA strengthened the annual, health-based fine particle standard from 15.0 micrograms per cubic meter

**(~-tg/m )**  to 12.0 11g/m3

. Thousands of scientific studies have linked exposure to these tiny particles- approximately l/30th the size of a human hair

- with serious human health problems including premature death in people with heart and lun g disease, nonfatal heart attacks, and inc reased hospital admissions and doctor and emergency room visits for respiratory and cardiovascular disease.
I ap preci ate the information you and your staff have sha red with the EPA throughout this process to
assess fine particle pollution levels in communities across your state and the impact of emission sources that could be contributing to unhealthy air. After considering your recommendations, reviewing the most recent certified fine particle air quality data for your state and evaluating factors to assess contribution to nearby levels of fine particle pollution, I have determined that most areas within Georgia do not violate the 2012 standard or cont ribute to a nearby violation ofthe standard. As a result , consistent with your comments provided during the 120-day process, the EPA is designating most of the state "unclassitiable /attainment."
As we have been discussing with your staff, the EPA identified data quality issue s earlier this year that invalidated fine particle pollution monitoring data for parts of the state of Georgia. As a result, the EPA does not have sufficient air quality monitoring data for 2011-2013 to determine whether these areas in Georgia meet the 2012 annual fine particle standard or cont ribute to a nearby violatio n
. The EPA expects that for these areas, monitoring data collected after 2013 wi ll provide the requisite amount of valid data for designations and the EPA is deferring final design ations for these areas. Once we have determined that sufficient quality assured data are available, we will proceed with a final designation. The enclosed table lists the areas, and counties within them, for which the EPA is deferring its final des ignat ion decision.

I n te rn et Add ress (U R L) • h ltp :// www
. epa

.gov Recyc l ed/Recyclable • Prin t ed wi th Veg etable O il Based Inks on 100% Postconsumer. P r oce ss Ch lorine Free Recycled PaperBecause air quality mon it oring 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 would like the EPA to re-eva l uate any areas within your state, please submit to the EPA, complete ,

quali t y-assured and certified air quality data for 2014 by February 27, 2015 .

The EPA shares responsibility w i th the states and tr i bes for managing particle pollution levels. E ffo rts

by sta t es and tribes to attain the 1997 and 2006 fine particle po ll ution standards a re al r eady working to reduce unhea l thy leve l s of fine particle pollution. In addition, current and u pcoming federal standards and safeguards, inc l ud i ng pollution reduction rules fo r power plants, vehicles and fue l s w ill assure s t eady reductions of fine particle pollution and wi ll protect public health in commun i t i es across the country. Together , we have made cons i derab l e progress to reduce fine particle pollution. Nationwide, monitored l evels of fine particle pollution have fallen 34 percent since 2000 when we fi r st began n at i onw i de monitoring for part i cles of th i s s i ze . I am confident t hi s p r ogress will continue as we work together towards ou r shared goa l of clean air. For additional information about these designations , please visit our webs i te at: \vww.epa.gov/pmdesignations . I f you have quest i ons or concerns, please contact me or your staff may contact Mark Rupp, Deputy Associate Administrator for Intergove r nmental Relations , at ruop.mark(a)epa.gov or at (202) 564-7 1 78. Sincerely , E nclosure

### Enclosure
- Deferred Area Designations for the 2012 Annual Fine Particle Standard, Georgia

State Area Name 2014 EPA Deferred Counties Washington County, GA Washington, GA S avannah, GA Chatham , GA Effingham, GA Augusta, GA-SC Columbia, GA Richmond, GA Brooks, GA Valdosta, GA Lowndes, GA Columbus , GA-AL Muscogee , GA Bartow, GA Clayton, GA GA Cobb, GA Coweta, GA DeKalb, GA Atlanta, GA Fulton, GA Gwinnett, GA Cherokee , GA Henry, GA Forsyth, GA Paulding, GA Douglas , GA Brunswick, .OA Glynn, GA A lbany, GA Dougherty, GA