Carherine E. Heige l. Direcror 

Promotillg and protecting tht, health o/,liJe pub/ic find tbe /'JIIJiron1fll'l1t 

April 19,2016 

Ms. Heather McTeer Toney 


Regional Administrator 


U.S . EPA Region 4 


Sam Nunn Atlanta Federal Center 


61 Forsyth Street SW 


Atlanta, GA 30303-8909 


Re: South Carolina Air Quality Implementation Plan 

Dear Ms. Toney: 

The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (Department) is providing 

this letter to the U.S. EPA (EPA) to provide a written commitment under section 110(k)(4) of the 

Clean Air Act (Act) to take action to meet the requirement of section 11 0(a)(2)(D)(i)(II) of the 

Act. This section of the Act states that state implementation plans (SIPs) are required to contain 

adequate provisions to prohibit emissions from interfering with measures required to be in other 

states' SIPs to protect visibility. The Department is committing to adopt the measures described 

herein for the control of air pollution and submit the SIP revision to the EPA no later than one 

year after the date of the EPA's conditional approval. South Carolina's anticipated schedule for 

the SIP revision is as follows: 

• SIP revision out for public comment December 2016; 

• Address comments received February 2017; 

• Submit final SIP revision for approval April 2017. 

To meet the requirements of section 11 0(a)(2)(D)(i)(II) for visibility, a state may rely on a fully 

approved regional haze SIP or may demonstrate that other SIP measures ensure that emissions 

from within the state will not interfere with other air agencies' plans to protect visibility. See 

Guidance on Infrastructure State Implementation Plan (SIP) Elements Under Clean Air Act 

Sections I I O(a) (I) and I IO(a)(2) (Sept. 13,2013). South Carolina's regional haze SIP is not 

fully approved because the EPA issued a limited approval and a limited disapproval of the SIP 

submitted by South Carolina on December 17, 2007, to address the requirements of the regional 

haze program. 77 Fed. Reg. 33,642 (June 7, 2012); 77 Fed. Reg. 38,509 (June 28,2012). We 

note that the EPA's limited disapproval of South Carolina's SIP was based on the regional haze 

SIP's reliance on the Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR), which at the time of the limited 

disapproval had been remanded by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. 77 Fed. Reg. 

33,642 (June 7, 2012). The EPA's limited disapproval, therefore, was based on the Agency's 

conclusion that CAIR would remain in place only temporarily; other aspects of the regional haze 

SIP were approved. 

SOT H C 1\ }{ 0 L 1 j\; A D £ PAR T MEN I 0 f H E i\ L T HAN DEN VIR 0 :'\i MEN TAL COT R 0 L 

2600 BI111 Street. • Columbia, SC 29201 • Phone: (803) 898-3432· \,'ww.scdhec.go\, 
To satisfy the requirement of section 11 0(a)(2)(D)(i)(II) related to visibility protection for the 

2008 8-hour ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS), 2010 nitrogen dioxide 

NAAQS, 2010 sulfur dioxide NAAQS, and 2012 fine particulate matter NAAQS, we intend to 

provide to the EPA a SIP revision that adopts provisions for participation in the Cross-State Air 

Pollution Rule ("CSAPR") annual NOx and annual S02 trading programs, including annual NOx 

and annual S02 budgets. Any adopted budgets would be at least as stringent as the budgets 

codified for South Carolina at 40 CFR 97.7l0(a) (annual S02 group 2 trading budgets) and 40 

CFR 97.4 1 O(a) (annual NOx trading budgets), as promulgated in the Federal Register notice of 

June 12,2012 (77 Fed. Reg. 34,830). We will rely on this SIP revision adopting such budgets to 

submit a concurrent SIP revision that will satisfy the visibility requirements of section 

11O(a)(2)(D)(i)(IJ) and EPA's corresponding guidance on those requirements. We commit to 

provide this concurrent SIP revision within the one-year period described above. This 

concurrent SIP revision will rely on either an analysis provided therein showing that emissions 

from sources in South Carolina will not interfere with the attainment of the reasonable progress 

goals of other states or on a fully approved regional haze SIP relying on CSAPR. If the 

concurrent SIP revision relies on a fully approvable regional haze SIP, we commit to provide this 

regional haze SIP to EPA within the one year period described above. 

Should you or your staff have any questions or comments concerning this SIP revision proposal, 

please contact Rhonda Banks Thompson, Chief of the Bureau of Air Quality (BAQ) at (803) 

898-4391 or thompsrb@dhec.sc.QOv. 

Sincerely, 

~Vl.~ Myra C. Reece 

Director of Environmental Affairs 

South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control 

ec: R. Scott Davis, Chief, Air Planning and Implementation Branch, EPA Region 4 

Lynorae Benjamin, Chief, Air Regulatory Management Section, EPA Region 4 

Brad Akers, Air Regulatory Management Section, EPA Region 4 

Rhonda B. Thompson, Chief, Bureau of Air Quality, SCDHEC 

Robert J. Brown, Director, Division of Air Assessment and Regulation, BAQ, SCDHEC