Air Plan Approval; Georgia; Cross-State Air Pollution Rule

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is approving portions of a revision to the Georgia State Implementation Plan (SIP) concerning the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR) and the Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR) that was submitted by Georgia on July 26, 2017. Under CSAPR, large electricity generating units (EGUs) in Georgia are subject to Federal Implementation Plans (FIPs) requiring the units to participate in CSAPR's federal trading program for annual emissions of nitrogen oxides (NO<INF>X</INF>), one of CSAPR's two federal trading programs for annual emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO<INF>2</INF>), and one of CSAPR's two federal trading programs for ozone season emissions of NO<INF>X</INF>. This action approves the State's regulations requiring large Georgia EGUs to participate in new CSAPR state trading programs for annual NO<INF>X</INF>, annual SO<INF>2</INF>, and ozone season NO<INF>X</INF> emissions integrated with the CSAPR federal trading programs, replacing the corresponding FIP requirements. Under the CSAPR regulations, approval of these portions of the SIP revision automatically eliminates Georgia's units' obligations under the corresponding CSAPR FIPs addressing interstate transport requirements for the 1997 Annual Fine Particulate Matter (PM<INF>2.5</INF>) National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS), the 2006 24-hour PM<INF>2.5</INF> NAAQS, and the 1997 8-hour Ozone NAAQS. Approval of these portions of the SIP revision satisfies Georgia's good neighbor obligation for the 1997 Annual PM<INF>2.5</INF> NAAQS, the 2006 24-hour PM<INF>2.5</INF> NAAQS, and the 1997 8-hour Ozone NAAQS. In addition, approval of this revision removes from Georgia's SIP those state trading program rules adopted to comply with CAIR.