The Honorable Asa Hutchinson 

Governor of Arkansas 

500 Woodlane Street 

Little Rock, Arkansas 72201 

Dear Governor Hutchinson: 

Thank you for your recommendations dated September 11 , 2015, on air quality designations for the 

state of Arkansas for the 2010 revision to the primary National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) 

for sulfur dioxide (S02). Reducing levels of S02 pollution is an important part of the U.S. 

Environmental Protection Agency's commitment to a clean, healthy environment. Exposure to S02 can 

cause a range of adverse health effects, including narrowing of the airways which can cause difficulty 

breathing and increased asthma symptoms. This letter is to notify you of the EPA's preliminary 

intentions regarding your recommended designations. 

On June 3, 2010, the EPA strengthened the health-based or "primary" standard for S02 by establishing a 

standard for 1-hour average S02 concentrations at a level of75 parts per billion. Within one year after a 

new or revised standard is established, the Clean Air Act requires the Governor of each state to submit 

to the EPA a list of all areas in the state, with recommendations for whether each area meets the 

standard. Through an interactive process, the EPA considers the recommendations and then promulgates 

designations for all areas across the country. On July 25, 2013, the EPA designated 29 areas in 16 states 

as nonattainment, but did not at that time designate other areas. Pursuant to a March 2, 2015, courtordered schedule, 1 the EPA must complete the remaining S02 designations by three specific deadlines: 

July 2, 2016, December 31,2017, and December 31 , 2020. 

This current round of designations, to be completed by July 2, 2016, addresses two groups of areas: (1) 

areas that have newly monitored violations of the 2010 S02 NAAQS based on the most recent three 

calendar years of certified monitored ambient air quality data, and (2) areas that contain any stationary 

source that had not been announced as ofMarch 2, 2015, for retirement and that according to the EPA's 

Air Markets Database emitted in 2012 either (i) more than 16,000 tons of S02 or (ii) more than 2,600 

tons of S02 with an annual average emission rate of at least 0.45 pounds of S02/mmBTU. 

After carefully considering Arkansas' recommendations and other available technical information, the 

EPA intends to designate as unclassifiable/attainment the following area: 

1 Sierra Club v. lvfcCarthy, No. 3-13-cv-3953 (SI) (N.D. Cal. Mar. 2, 2015). 

This paper is printed with vegetable-oil-based inks and is 1 00-percent postconsumer recycled material, 

chlorine-free-processed and recyclable 
Intended Unclassifiable Area 

Independence County, Arkansas* 

Intended Unclassifiable Counties 

Independence County 

The asterisk (*) indicates the designation for this intended unclassifiable area represents a modification 

to the designation that you have recommended. 

The enclosed Technical Support Document provides a detailed analysis that supports our intended 

designation decisions. If your state has additional information that the EPA should consider prior to 

finalizing these designations, please submit it to us by April 19, 2016. We also will be publishing a 

notice in the Federal Register announcing a 30-day period for the public to provide input on the EPA's 

intended designation decisions. We will promulgate the designations for these areas by July 2, 201 6. We 

will designate all other previously undesignated areas in the state on a schedule consistent with the 

prescribed timing ofthe court order, i.e., by December 31,2017, or December 31,2020. 

We look forward to a continued dialogue with you and your staff as we work together to complete the 

area designations and implement the 2010 primary S(h standard. For additional information regarding 

designations under the S02 standard, please visit our website at www.epa.gov/so2designations. Should 

you have any questions, please do not hesitate to call me, or have your staff contact Mr. Guy Donaldson 

of my staff at (21 4) 665-7242, or via email at Donaldson.guy@epa.gov. 

Enclosure 

cc: Ms. Becky Keogh 

Director, Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality 

Mr. Stuart Spencer 

Chief of Air Division, Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality