National Ambient Air Quality Standards Changes

Walker WilliamsonAir Quality Division

Texas Commission on Environmental QualityAdvanced Air Permitting Seminar 2015

Today’s Topics

• Revisions to the 2015 Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS)

• Impacts to Texas

• Update on 2010 Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) NAAQS

2015 Revisions to the Ozone NAAQS

2015 Ozone NAAQS

• On October 1, 2015, the EPA revised the primary and secondary NAAQS for eight-hour ozone.

• Primary NAAQS protect public health:

– 2008 NAAQS: 0.075 parts per million (ppm)

– 2015 NAAQS: 0.070 ppm

2015 Ozone NAAQS

• Secondary NAAQS protect public welfare (trees, plants, ecosystems, etc.):

– 2008 NAAQS: 0.075 ppm

– 2015 NAAQS: 0.070 ppm

– Form is identical to the primary NAAQS but the target level is based on the W126 index.

• NAAQS is set in ppm but usually discussed in parts per billion (ppb).

Calculating Eight-Hour Ozone Design Values

• Find the fourth highest eight-hour daily peak at each monitor.

• Average those fourth highest values from the most recent three years; do this for each monitor. This is the design value for your monitor.

• The design value for a county or area is the maximum design value from all of the monitors located within that county or area.

Calculating Eight-Hour Ozone Design Values: An Example

1. Monitor A has three years of complete data:

The 4th Highest Peak Eight-Hour Ozone for Monitor A was 95 in 2009, 88 in 2010 and 86 in 2011.

2. Mean of the 4th highest peak from each year

3. Now truncate the average

Eight-Hour Ozone 2013 2014 2015Maximum Peak 87 85 86

2nd Highest Peak 85 83 80

3rd Highest Peak 70 78 75

4th Highest Peak 69 73 72

69+73+723

=71.334

71.334=𝟕𝟏𝐩𝐩𝐛

Comparing Design Values to the NAAQS

• Design values must be greater than the NAAQS for an area to exceed.

• If a design value for an area is equal to the NAAQS, the area meets the standard.

• 2015 NAAQS set at 70 ppb (0.070 ppm):

• 70.99999 ppb 70 ppb MEETS NAAQS

• 71.00001 ppb 71 ppb EXCEEDS NAAQS

2015 Ozone NAAQS Implementation Schedule

• Final Rule – October 1, 2015

• State Nonattainment Area Recommendations due to the EPA – October 1, 2016

• EPA Response to State Recommendations – June 1, 2017

• EPA Final Nonattainment Area Designations – October 1, 2017

2015 Ozone NAAQS Implementation Schedule

• Infrastructure and Transport Plans Due – October 2018

• Emissions Inventories Due – October 2019

• Attainment Plans Due – 2020 or 2021

• Attainment Deadlines – 2020 to 2037

Final NAAQS and Designations

NAAQS FinalScheduled Designations

Actual Designations

1997 1999 2004

2008 2010 2012

2015 2017 ?

Impacts to Texas

Impacts to Texas

Texas Air Quality Planning Areas

2015 Ozone Design Values by County

CSA/CBSA County2015 8Hr Ozone DV

(ppb)Dallas—Fort Worth Denton 83Dallas—Fort Worth Tarrant 80Houston—The Woodlands Brazoria 80Houston—The Woodlands Harris 79

San Antonio—New Braunfels Bexar 78

Dallas—Fort Worth Collin 76Dallas—Fort Worth Dallas 75Dallas—Fort Worth Parker 75Dallas—Fort Worth Hood 74Houston—The Woodlands Montgomery 73Dallas—Fort Worth Johnson 73Houston—The Woodlands Galveston 72El Paso—Las Cruces El Paso 71Dallas—Fort Worth Rockwall 70Killeen-Temple Bell 69Austin—Round Rock Travis 68Beaumont—Port Arthur Jefferson 68Dallas—Fort Worth Ellis 68Longview-Marshall Gregg 68Dallas—Fort Worth Kaufman 67Tyler-Jacksonville Smith 67Waco McLennan 67Amarillo-Borger Randall 66Beaumont—Port Arthur Orange 66Longview-Marshall Harrison 66Dallas—Fort Worth Navarro 66Corpus Christi—Kingsville—Alice

Nueces 65

Dallas—Fort Worth Hunt 64No CSA Brewster 64No CSA Polk 64Victoria—Port Lavaca Victoria 64Laredo Webb 59Brownsville-Harlingen Cameron 58McAllen-Edinburg Hidalgo 54

*2015 design values are calculated as of 9/29/2015 and subject to change.

**The Brewster County, Randall County, and Polk County monitors are part of the Clean Air Status and Trends Network (CASTNET) of monitors and report data directly to the EPA.

2015 Ozone Design Values by CSA

CSA/CBSA2015 8Hr Ozone DV

(ppb)Dallas—Fort Worth 83Houston—The Woodlands 80San Antonio—New Braunfels 78El Paso—Las Cruces 71Killeen-Temple 69Austin—Round Rock 68Beaumont—Port Arthur 68Longview-Marshall 68Tyler-Jacksonville 67Waco 67Amarillo-Borger 66Corpus Christi—Kingsville—Alice 65Brewster County (No CSA) 64Polk County (No CSA) 64Victoria—Port Lavaca 64Laredo 59Brownsville-Harlingen 58McAllen-Edinburg 54

*2015 design values are calculated as of 9/29/2015 and are subject to change.

**The Brewster County, Randall County, and Polk County monitors are part of the Clean Air Status and Trends Network (CASTNET) of monitors and report data directly to the EPA.

Summary of Preliminary 2015 Ozone Design Values

Based on preliminary 2015 ozone data:

• Six Texas counties in three CSAs are above the 2008 ozone NAAQS of 75 ppb.

• Seven additional Texas counties and one additional CSA (13 counties and 4 CSAs) are currently monitoring above 70 ppb.

• Only Bexar and El Paso counties are not currently designated nonattainment for ozone.

Example Classification Ranges

Thresholds Based on Percent-Above-Standard Approach at 0.070 ppm

Marginal 0.071 up to 0.081 ppm

Moderate 0.081 up to 0.093 ppm

Serious 0.093 up to 0.105 ppm

Severe – 15 0.105 up to 0.111 ppm

Severe – 17 0.111 up to 0.163 ppm

Extreme 0.163 ppm or more

SIP Requirements for Ozone Nonattainment Areas

EXTREME(20 Years)

Clean Fuels and Controls for Boilers

Traffic Controls During Congestion

SEVERE(15-17 Years)

VMT Growth Offset

Major Source Fees for Failure to Attain

(185 Fees)

SERIOUS(9 Years)

Enhanced Monitoring and I/M

Modeled Attainment Demonstration

3% per Year VOC Reductions After 6

Years

RFP Milestone Contingency

Measures

Clean Fuels Program

VMT Demonstration

MODERATE(6 Years)

Basic I/M

RACT & RACM Emissions Reductions

Attainment Demonstration

Contingency Measures

RFP - 15% VOC Reductions within 6

years

MARGINAL(3 Years)

Emissions Inventory

Emissions Statements

Nonattainment NSR Program & Emissions

Offsets

RACT Fixups

I/M Corrections

Conformity

Major Source Threshold(TPY)

10

1.5 : 1

25

1.3 : 1

50

1.2 : 1

100

1.15 : 1

100

1.1 : 1

NSR Off set Ratios

Nonattainment requirements compound as classification increases.

Sulfur Dioxide

2010 SO2 NAAQS

• In 2010, EPA revised SO2 NAAQS by establishing a new one-hour standard at 75 ppb.

• EPA completed the first round of nonattainment designations on July 5, 2013:

– Based on regulatory monitoring data, there were no nonattainment areas in Texas.

2010 SO2 NAAQS

• On March 3, 2015, enforceable order between the EPA and environmental groups:

– The agreement sets designation deadlines in 2016, 2017, and 2020.

• Designations scheduled for July 2, 2016 include sources with:

– 16,000 tons or more SO2 emissions in the Air Markets database in 2012; or

– more than 2,600 tons SO2 and an emission rate of at least 0.45 lbs SO2/MMBtu in 2012.

EPA-Identified Texas Sources for Designation by July 2, 2016 (Part 1)Facility County

San Miguel Electric Plant Atascosa

WA Parish Electric Generating Station Fort Bend

Big Brown Steam Electric Station Freestone

Coleto Creek Power Station Goliad

Tolk Station Lamb

Limestone Electric Generation Station Limestone

EPA-Identified Texas Sources for Designation by July 2, 2016 (Part 2)Facility County

Sandy Creek Energy Station McLennan

Sandow Steam Electric Station Milam

Harrington Station Power Plant Potter

Twin Oaks Robertson

Martin Lake Electrical Station Rusk

Monticello Steam Electric Station Titus

Recommendations for Designation by July 2, 2016

• Recommendations made September 18, 2015.

• Counties with regulatory 2014 one-hour SO2 design values less than 75 ppb:

– Dallas, El Paso, Ellis, Galveston, Gregg, Harris, Jefferson, Kaufman, McLennan, Navarro, and Nueces

• All other Texas counties were recommended unclassifiable/attainment:

– This is consistent with the EPA’s March 20, 2015 designations guidance.

Data Requirements Rule

• EPA’s Data Requirements Rule:

– The rule includes criteria for sources that states must evaluate for compliance with the NAAQS through either modeling or monitoring.

– The threshold is set at 2,000 tons per year.

– There is an option to establish enforceable limits <2,000 tons per year.

Data Requirements Rule Key Dates

• List of sources meeting rule criteria due to EPA – January 15, 2016

• List of monitored and modeled sources due to EPA – July 1, 2016

• New monitors scheduled to be operational – January 1, 2017

• Analyses for modeled sources due to EPA – January 13, 2017

• Third year of data used to calculate design values for new monitors due to EPA – May 2020

Implementation Timeline

Round 4New Monitored Areas/All Remaining Areas

DesignationsDecember 31, 2020

Designations EffectiveBy February 2021

Attainment Demonstration SIP DueAugust 2022

Attainment DeadlineFebruary 2026

Round 3Modeled Areas and Areas Without MonitorsDesignations

December 31, 2017Designations Effective

By February 2018Attainment Demonstration SIP Due

August 2019Attainment Deadline

February 2023

Round 2 Areas Associated with Court Order and New Monitored ViolationsDesignations

July 2, 2016Designations Effective

By September 2016Attainment Demonstration SIP Due

March 2018Attainment Deadline

September 2021

Round 1Areas Associated with 2009-2011 Monitored ViolationsDesignations

August 5, 2013Designations Effective

October 4, 2013Attainment Demonstration SIP Due

April 2015 Attainment Deadline

October 2018

Round 1: Areas with 2009-2011 Monitored Violations

Designations August 5, 2013

Designations Effective October 4, 2013

Attainment SIP Due April 2015

Attainment Deadline October 2018

August 5, 2013

October 4, 2013

April 2015

October 2018

Round 2: Areas Associated with Court Order

Designations July 2, 2016

Designations Effective By Sept. 2016

Attainment SIP Due March 2018

Attainment Deadline September 2021

July 2, 2016

By September 2016

March 2018

September 2021

Round 3: Modeled Areas and Areas Without Monitors

Designations December 31, 2017

Designations Effective By February 2018

Attainment SIP Due August 2019

Attainment Deadline February 2023

December 31, 2017

By February 2018

August 2019

February 2023

Round 4: New Monitored Areas/All Remaining Areas

Designations December 31, 2020

Designations Effective By February 2021

Attainment SIP Due August 2022

Attainment Deadline February 2026

December 31, 2020

By February 2021

August 2022

February 2026

Contact Information

• Walker Williamson:– SIP Team Leader– 512-239-3181– walker.williamson@tceq.texas.gov

• Join the SIP/Air Quality update e-mail list.