575 Proposed revision to the state implementation plan to update the motor vehicle emissions budgets in the Reading eight-hour ozone maintenance area; public hearing

Proposed Revision to the State Implementation Plan to Update the Motor Vehicle Emissions Budgets in the Reading Eight-Hour Ozone Maintenance Area; Public Hearing

[43 Pa.B. 1809]
[Saturday, March 30, 2013]

 The Department of Environmental Protection (Department) is revising the Motor Vehicle Emissions Budgets (MVEBs) for the Reading Area Eight-Hour Ozone Maintenance Area (Reading Area). The revised budgets, once approved by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), will expedite future transportation planning for the Reading Area. The Department will submit this to the EPA as a final revision to the State Implementation Plan (SIP). The EPA developed a new computer model, the Motor Vehicle Emissions Simulator, that estimates emissions from highway vehicles more accurately. The approved maintenance plan for the Reading Area used the former EPA-approved model, Mobile6, for estimating highway vehicle emissions. Emissions of oxides of nitrogen are estimated to be at higher levels by the new model than what was approved in the original maintenance plan. The transportation conformity regulation requires that emissions from updated local transportation improvement plans do not exceed the MVEBs in the area's approved, applicable SIP. By using similar modeling in transportation planning and the SIP, a more realistic comparison between the two will result with less chance of transportation projects being delayed.

 This proposal is available on the Department's web site at www.dep.state.pa.us (choose ''Air Plans'') or through the contact persons listed.

 The Department is seeking public comment on this SIP revision and changes made to the motor vehicle emissions budget in the 1997 Eight-Hour Ozone Maintenance Plan for the Reading Area. The Department will hold a public hearing to receive comments on the proposal on Tuesday, April 30, 2013, at 10 a.m. in Room Susquehanna A, South Central Regional Office, 909 Elmerton Avenue, Harrisburg, PA 17110.

 Persons wishing to present testimony at the hearing should contact Alex Haas, P. O. Box 8468, Harrisburg, PA 17105, [phone] or [e-mail] to reserve a time. If, by April 25, 2013, no person has expressed an interest in testifying at the hearing, the hearing will be cancelled. The Department will notify the public if the hearing is cancelled on the Bureau of Air Quality web page at http://www.dep.state.pa.us/dep/deputate/airwaste/aq/default.htm. Witnesses should keep testimony to 10 minutes and should provide two written copies of their statement at the hearing.

 Persons with a disability who wish to attend the hearing and require an auxiliary aid, service or other accommodation to participate in the proceeding should contact Alex Haas at [phone] or [e-mail]. TDD users may contact the Pennsylvania AT&T Relay Service at [phone] to discuss how the Department can best accommodate their needs.

 The Department must receive comments no later than April 30, 2013. Written comments should be sent to the attention of Chris Trostle, Mobile Sources Section Chief, Bureau of Air Quality, P. O. Box 8468, Harrisburg, PA 17105-8468 or [e-mail]. Use ''Reading MVEB Revision'' as the subject line in written communication.

MICHAEL L. KRANCER, 
Secretary

[Pa.B. Doc. No. 13-575. Filed for public inspection March 29, 2013, 9:00 a.m.]