Virginia Regulatory Town Hall
Agency
Department of Environmental Quality
Board
Air Pollution Control Board

General Notice
General Notice - State Implementation Plan Revision - Northern Virginia Ozone Nonattainment Area - Precursors to the Pollutant Ozone
Date Posted: 4/7/2020
Expiration Date: 5/27/2020
Submitted to Registrar for publication: YES
No comment forum defined for this notice.

Notice of action: The Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) is seeking comments and announcing a public comment period on a proposed 2017 base year inventory for precursors to the pollutant ozone, which are carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen oxides (NOX), and volatile organic compounds (VOC), in the Northern Virginia Ozone Nonattainment Area.  The Commonwealth intends to submit the inventory as a revision to the Virginia State Implementation Plan (SIP) in accordance with the federal Clean Air Act.  The SIP is the plan developed by Virginia in order to fulfill its responsibilities under the Act to attain and maintain the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) promulgated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Purpose of notice: DEQ is seeking comments on the overall 2017 inventory for the Northern Virginia portion of the Metropolitan Washington, DC-MD-VA Ozone Nonattainment Area, which is classified as marginal for the 2015 NAAQS, and consists of the counties of Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun, and Prince William and the cities of Alexandria, Fairfax, Falls Church, Manassas, and Manassas Park. 

Public comment period: April 27 to May 27, 2020.

Public hearing: A public hearing will be conducted if a request is made in writing to the contact listed below. In order to be considered, the request must include the full name, address and telephone number of the person requesting the hearing and be received by DEQ by the last day of the comment period. Notice of the date, time, and location of any requested public hearing will be announced in a separate notice, and another 30-day comment period will be conducted.

Description of proposal: The proposal consists of a comprehensive inventory of actual emissions from all sources of relevant pollutants for the base year 2017. This inventory, once finalized, will be the basis for any future planning exercises that have as a goal compliance with the 2015 ozone NAAQS. The proposal was prepared by the Metropolitan Washington Air Quality Committee (MWAQC), which consists of elected officials from the affected localities and representatives of state transportation and air quality planning agencies.

The complete proposal is available at https://www.mwcog.org/documents/2020/01/24/washington-dc-md-va-2015-ozone-naaqs-nonattainment-area-base-year-2017-emissions-inventory-/

Federal information: This notice is being given to satisfy the public participation requirements of federal regulations (40 CFR 51.102). The proposed inventory and supporting technical documents will be submitted as a revision to the Commonwealth of Virginia SIP under § 110(a) of the federal Clean Air Act in accordance with 40 CFR 51.104.

How to comment: DEQ accepts written comments by email, fax, and postal mail.  In order to be considered, comments must include the full name, address, and telephone number of the person commenting and be received by DEQ no later than the last day of the comment period. DEQ prefers that comments be provided in writing, along with any supporting documents or exhibits. Comments must be submitted to the contact person listed below. All materials received are part of the public record.

To review the proposal: The proposal and any supporting documents are available on the DEQ Air Public Notices for Plans and Programs web site:  https://www.deq.virginia.gov/Programs/Air/PublicNotices/airplansandprograms.aspx.   The documents may also be obtained by contacting the DEQ representative named above. The public may review the documents by appointment between 8:30 am and 4:30 pm of each business day until the close of the public comment period at the following DEQ locations: 1) DEQ Main Street Office, 22nd Floor, 1111 E. Main St, Richmond VA, 804-698-4249 and 2) Northern Regional Office, 13901 Crown Court, Woodbridge VA, 703-583-3800. Call the number provided to schedule an appointment.


Contact Information
Name / Title: Doris A. McLeod 
Address: 1111 East Main Street, Suite 1400
P.O. Box 1105
Richmond, 23218
Email Address: doris.mcleod@deq.virginia.gov
Telephone: (804)698-4197    FAX: (804)698-4319    TDD: ()-