Document ID: EPA-HQ-OAR-2003-0083-1364
Agency: epa
Document Type: Supporting & Related Material
Title: 
Posted Date: 2004-03-19T05:00Z

North
Carolina
Recommendation
for
Lincoln
County
The
purpose
of
this
paper
is
to
discuss
the
rationale
for
recommending
less
than
the
entire
Lincoln
County
as
nonattainment
for
the
8­
hour
ozone
standard,
which
is
part
of
the
Charlotte/
Gastonia/
Rock
Hill
Metropolitan
Statistical
Area
(
MSA).
The
following
areas
within
Lincoln
County
are
proposed
to
be
designated
nonattainment
for
the
8­
hour
ozone
standard:
all
parts
east
of
South
Fork
of
Catawba
River
from
Catawba
County
Line
to
Highway
150
to
Gaston
County
Line.
This
MSA
County
has
the
Crouse
monitor
located
in
it.

 
First,
this
area
has
a
marginal
8­
hour
ozone
problem,
with
the
Crouse
monitor
having
a
design
value
in
2001­
2003
of
0.092
ppm.
More
recent
8­
hour
ozone­
modeling
results
show
a
predicted
future
design
value
of
0.083
ppm
in
2007.
Control
measures
included
in
the
future
year
modeling
are
the
NOx
SIP
call,
new
highway
and
nonroad
mobile
engine
standards,
low
sulfur
gasoline,
and
the
phase
in
of
NC's
OBD
I/
M
program
starting
in
July
2002.
 
Second,
Lincoln
County
is
the
least
populated
county
of
the
Charlotte/
Gastonia
/
Rock
Hill
MSA
representing
only
4.7
percent
of
the
total
MSA
population
as
reported
by
the
2000
census.
Lincoln
County's
2000
population
is
63,780
out
of
total
of
1,334,679
in
the
MSA.
The
western
portion
of
Lincoln
has
a
low
population
density,
with
2
tracts
containing
only
50­
100
people
per
square
mile,
and
2
tracts
with
100­
250
people
per
square
mile.
The
portion
that
is
recommended
to
be
designated
nonattainment
encompasses
7
tracts
with
densities
of
under
500
people
per
square
mile.
 
Currently
there
are
few
major
point
sources
in
Lincoln
County
to
control.
The
1997
emissions
inventories
have
Lincoln
County
contributing
has
10.31
tons
per
day
of
NOx
(
state
total
is
2529
tons
per
day)
and
the
county
has
12.15
tons
per
day
of
VOC
(
state
total
is
1842
tons
per
day
 
anthropogenic
only).
 
There
are
few
major
point
sources
in
Lincoln
County.
Regional
significant
point
sources
are
subject
to
the
NOx
SIP
call
and
include
Duke
Energy's
Marshall
facility
(
neighboring
Catawba
County)
and
Transco
Natural
Gas
Pumping
Station
(
Iredell
County).
Meteorology
back
trajectories
show
winds
across
Lincoln
County
are
climatologically
from
the
southwest.
The
impact
of
future
emissions
reduction
is
captured
in
the
2007
model
runs
where
the
Crouse
monitor
is
attaining
the
8­
hour
standard.
 
The
majority
of
the
NOx
emissions
in
Lincoln
County
are
attributed
to
mobile
sources
based
on
1997
emissions
inventories.
Highway
mobile
is
3.61
tons
and
nonroad
mobile
is
2.55
tons
daily
out
of
a
county
total
of
10.31
tons
NOx
per
day
(
anthropogenic).
The
2007
8­
hour
modeling
shows
that
Federal
and
state
control
programs
help
reach
attainment
in
Lincoln
County.
Also
rural
Lincoln
County's
traffic
and
commuting
patterns
do
not
clearly
indicate
that
it
contributes
significantly
to
the
overall
mobile
source
NOx
emission
traveling
into
Mecklenburg
County.
The
counties
2001
Daily
VMT
is
1,432,320
of
which
only
1.4
percent
of
it
represents
commuter
miles
driven
into
Mecklenburg
County
to
work.
This
commuting
information
based
on
the
2000
census
ranks
Lincoln
County
travel
to
work
activity
last
as
compared
to
the
other
5
MSA
counties.

 
Finally,
North
Carolina
expects
the
Crouse
monitor
to
attain
by
2007
based
on
the
most
recent
air
quality
modeling
analysis.
North
Carolina
continues
to
believe
this
is
an
appropriate
boundary
for
this
region
with
a
low
population
density,
minimal
Daily
VMT
impact
on
Mecklenburg
County
and
low
design
value
at
the
monitor
that
is
located
"
downwind"
from
emissions
transported
from
as
far
away
as
Atlanta
to
regions
immediately
south
of
North
Carolina's
border.