Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; Designation of Areas for Air Quality Planning Purposes; Virginia; Redesignation to Attainment of the Hampton Roads Ozone Nonattainment Area, Approval of the Maintenance Plan and Mobile Emissions Budget

EPA is approving a redesignation request and two State Implementation Plan (SIP) revisions submitted by the Commonwealth of Virginia. On August 27, 1996, the Commonwealth of Virginia submitted a request to redesignate the Hampton Roads marginal ozone nonattainment area to attainment and a maintenance plan as a SIP revision. This request is based upon three years of complete, quality-assured ambient air monitoring data for the area which demonstrate that the National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) for ozone has been attained. On August 29, 1996 Virginia submitted a second SIP revision establishing the mobile emissions budget (also known as a motor vehicle emissions budget) for the Hampton Roads ozone nonattainment area. The SIP revisions establish a maintenance plan for Hampton Roads including contingency measures which provide for continued attainment of the ozone NAAQS until the year 2008; and adjust the motor vehicle emissions budget established in the maintenance plan for Hampton Roads to support the area's transportation plans in the horizon years 2015 and beyond. Under the Clean Air Act (the Act), nonattainment areas may be redesignated to attainment if sufficient data are available to warrant the redesignation and the area meets the Act's other redesignation requirements. The intended effect of this action is to approve the redesignation request, the maintenance plan and the motor vehicle emissions budget for Hampton Roads. This action is being taken under sections 107 and 110 of the Act.