Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; Virginia; Revision of Flow Control Date in Nitrogen Oxides Budget Trading Program

EPA is taking direct final action to convert a conditional approval in the Virginia State Implementation Plan (SIP) to a full approval. As required by the conditional approval, Virginia has submitted a SIP revision that pertains to the allowance banking provisions in Virginia's Nitrogen Oxides (NO<INF>X</INF>) Budget Trading Program. The SIP revision changes the start date of flow control from 2006 to 2005. Flow control is a limitation on banked allowances that are used for compliance purposes, and is required to start in the second year of the trading program. It is triggered when the regionwide total of banked allowances exceeds a specified threshold. The year 2005 will be the second year of Virginia's NO<INF>X</INF> Budget Trading program. EPA is approving this revision to Virginia's SIP in accordance with the requirements of the Clean Air Act.