Adequacy Status of the Knoxville, Tennessee 1997 PM2.5 Attainment Demonstration Motor Vehicle Emissions Budgets for Transportation Conformity Purposes

Résumé

In this notice, EPA is notifying the public that EPA has found that the direct particulate matter (PM 2.5 ) and Nitrogen Oxides (NO X ) motor vehicle emissions budgets (MVEBs) in the Knoxville, Tennessee Attainment Demonstration Plan for the 1997 PM 2.5 standard, submitted April 4, 2008, by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC), are adequate for transportation conformity purposes. On March 2, 1999, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (DC Circuit) ruled that submitted State Implementation Plans (SIPs) cannot be used for transportation conformity determinations until EPA has affirmatively found them adequate. As a result of EPA's finding, the Knoxville, Tennessee area, including the portion of Roane County, must use the MVEBs for future conformity determinations for the 1997 PM 2.5 standard.