Air Resources

BoardRobertF.Sawyer,Ph.D.,ChairAlanC.Lloyd,Ph.D.1001IStreet•P.O.Box2815ArnoldSchwarzeneggerAgencySecretarySacramento,California95812•www.arb.ca.govGovernorFebruary24,2006Mr.WayneNastri

RECEIVEDRegionalAdministratorRegion9FEO282006U.S.EnvironmentalProtectionAgency75HawthorneStreetAirvLsc,nAIR-SanFrancisco,California94105U.S.EPA,REGION9DearMr.Nastri:TheAirResourcesBoard(ARB)herebysubmitstotheU.S.EnvironmentalProtectionAgency(U.S.EPA)forapprovaltheSacramentoRegionalNonattainmentArea8-HourOzoneRate-Of-ProgressPlan(EarlyProgressPlan)asarevisiontotheCaliforniaStateImplementationPlan(SIP).TheEarlyProgressPlanisneededtoestablishnewtransportationconformitybudgetsfortheSacramentoregior.ThefullattainmentdemonstrationSIPwillbedevelopedoverthenextyeartomeettheJune2007deadline.AsnotedinourDecember27,2005letterrequestingparallelprocessingforthisplan,weaskthatU.S.EPAmakeanexpeditiousfindingontheadequacyofthemotorvehicleemissionbudgetsthatareneededtosupportanewtransportationconformitydeterminationfortheSacramentoregion.BackcroundTheSacramentoregion8-hourozonenonattainmentarea,classifiedasserious,coversallorpartoffivelocalairdistricts:ElDoradoCountyAirQualityManagementDistrict(ElDoradoCountyDistrict),FeatherRiverAirQualityManagementDistrict(FeatherRiverDistrict),PlacerCountyAirPollutionControlDistrict(PlacerCountyDistrict),SacramentoMetropolitanAirQualityManagementDistrict(SacramentoDistrict),andYolo-SolanoAirQualityManagementDistrict(Yolo-SolanoDistrict).EachoftheseairagencieshasapprovedtheEarlyProgressPlanandassociatedenvironmentalimpactreport(EIR).EachofthelocalairdistrictsconsideredandapprovedtheEarlyProgressPlanandEIRatseparatehearingsbetweenJanuary26andFebruary9.TheEarlyProgressPlanwastransmittedtoARBbytheSacramentoDistrictonFebruary9,2006forapprovalandsubmittaltoU.S.EPA.TheenergychallengefacingCaliforniaisreal.EveryCalifornianneedstotakeimmediateactiontoreduceenergyconsumption.Foralistofsimplewaysyoucanreducedemandandcutyourenergycosts,seeourWebsite:htt://www.arb.ca.ov.CaliforniaEnvironmentalProtectionAgencyPrintedonRecycledPaperMr. Wayne

Nastri February

24, 2006 Page

2 Plan Elements The most significant elements

in the Early Progress

Plan

are

as follows: 1. Progress Demonstration.

The Early Progress

Plan documents

that, between 2002

and 2008,

the Sacramento

region nonattainment

area

will achieve

an 18 percent reduction

in ozone precursor emissions

from adopted

control measures.

The Early Progress

Plan uses

both nitrogen

oxide (NOx)

and volatile organic compound

(VOC) emission reductions

to demonstrate compliance

with the

18 percent emissions reduction requirement. 2. Amended

1994 ROP Plan.

U.S. EPA guidance
requires

that

an area have

an approved

15 percent

VOC

rate

of progress

(ROP)

plan

for 1990-1996

before

an area

can
use NOx emission reductions

in addition

to VOC emission reductions for the 2002-2008

ROP.

The Early Progress

Plan contains

an amendment

to the Sacramento

region’s

1994

15 percent

VOC
ROP

plan prepared

for the 1-hour ozone standard.

The amendment documents

that, between

1990

and 1996,

the Sacramento

region nonattainment

area achieved

a 15 percent reduction

of VOC emissions. 3. Transportation

Conformity

Budgets.

The Early Progress

Plan contains revised transportation

conformity
emission
budgets

for 2008

that reflect adopted vehicle emission

control regulations

not included

in the existing

(1994)

SIP
and budgets.

It

is important

that metropolitan

planning organizations

in California

be able

to use motor vehicle emissions

budgets

as soon

as U.S. EPA finds them adequate. Accordingly,

we request

that U.S. EPA structure

its approval

of the Early Progress

Plan budgets

to allow

for their replacement

when

U.S. EPA finds the subsequent

budgets adequate.

This

is

in keeping

with past practice

and

is consistent

with U.S. EPA rules

as described

in 93.118(e)(1)

of the conformity regulation. Contents This package consists

of five copies

of the following: 1. February

9, 2006 letter
from

Mr. Larry Greene, Sacramento

District

Air Pollution Control Officer, transmitting

the following materials

to ARB: A. Sacramento

Regional Nonattainment

Area 8-Hour Ozone Rate-of-Progress Plan; B. Resolutions

from

the

El Dorado County, Feather

River, Placer County, Sacramento,

and Yolo-Solano

District Boards adopting

the Early Progress Plan; C. Proofs

of publication

and Notice

of Availability

of the draft Early Progress Plan;Mr.WayneNastriFebruary24,2006Page3D.EnvironmentalImpactReport;andE.CompilationofpubliccommentsontheEarlyProgressPlananddistricts’responses.2.ExecutiveOrderG-125-335oftheCaliforniaAirResourcesBoard,approvingtheSacramentoRegionalNonattainmentArea8-HourOzoneRate-of-ProgressPlan.3.SIPCompletenessChecklistfortheEarlyProgressPlan.Thissubmittalletter,ARBExecutiveOrder,detailedinformationaboutthedataandmethodologiesusedtodevelopthemotorvehicleemissionbudgets,andlinkstotheEarlyProgressPlanareavailableathttn://www.arb.ca.qov/rjlanninq/sip/sacrop05/sacron05.htm.Ifyouhaveanyquestions,pleasecallMs.LynnTerry,DeputyExecutiveOfficer,at(916)322-2739,orhaveyourstaffcontactMr.KurtKarperos,Chief,AirQualityandTransportationPlanningBranch,at(916)322-0285.Sincerely,/&C’herineWitherspoon;ExecutiveOfficerEnclosurescc:Seenextpage.Mr. Wayne

Nastri February

24, 2006 Page

4 cc: (Without Enclosures) Mr. Tom Christofk Air Pollution

Control Officer Placer County

Air Pollution Control District 11464

B Avenue Auburn, California

95603 Mr. Mat Ehrhardt Air Pollution

Control
Officer Yolo-Solano

Air Quality Management

District 1947 Galileo

Court,

Suite

103 Davis, California

95616 Mr. Lrry Greene Air Pollution

Control Officer Sacramento Metropolitan

Air Quality Management

District 777

l2” Street,

3rd Floor Sacramento,

California

95814 Ms. Deborah
Jordan, Director Air Division,

Region

9 U.S. Environmental

Protection

Agency 75 Hawthorne

Street San Francisco, California

94105 Mr. Mike McKeever Executive

Director Sacramento

Area Council of Governments 1415

L Street Sacramento,

California

95814 Continued

next page.Mr.WayneNastriFebruary24,2006Page5cc:(continued)Ms.MarcellaMcTaggartAirPollutionControlOfficerElDoradoCountyAirQualityManagementDistrict2850FairlaneCourt,BuildingCPlacerville,California95667Mr.DavidA.Valler,Jr.AirPollutionControlOfficerFeatherRiverAirQualityManagementDistrict93814thStreetMarysville,California95901Ms.LynnTerryAirResourcesBoardMr.KurtKarperosAirResourcesBoard