NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING AND PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD ON AIR QUALITY ISSUES
Proposed Regional Haze State Implementation Plan
Notice is hereby given that a public hearing will be held on Monday, September 30, 2019 at 5:30 PM in Room 574 at 1200 First Street NE, Washington, DC. This hearing provides interested parties an opportunity to comment on the District’s proposed Regional Haze State Implementation Plan (“SIP”).
The District is currently required to submit its Regional Haze SIP for the second planning period to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) by July 31, 2021. The SIP is required under § 169A of the Clean Air Act. The goal of the Regional Haze Program is for Class I Federal Areas designated by the Federal Land Managers (“FLMs”) (National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and U.S. Forest Service) to achieve natural visibility conditions and for any state that has sources that are reasonably anticipated to contribute to visibility degradation in those Class I Federal Areas to submit a SIP to address those sources.
This proposed SIP was completed pursuant to the requirements of EPA’s Regional Haze Rule as updated for the second planning period (82 Fed. Reg. 3078, January 10, 2017). As a member of the Mid-Atlantic/Northeast Visibility Union (“MANE-VU”), the District participated in a regional process to develop a long-term strategy to ensure that reasonable progress is made to eliminate visibility degradation by 2064. The District’s SIP describes specific plans to meet the region’s goals and implement the Regional Haze Rule.
The District is also required to consult with the FLMs prior to proposing public comment. The District received no substantive comments from the FLMs.
The entire proposed SIP and Appendices are available for public review during normal business hours at the offices of the District Department of Energy and the Environment (“DOEE”), 1200 First Street, NE, 5th floor, Washington, D.C. 20002.
Due to the size and extent of the Appendices, only the main SIP document is available in the attachments section below.
- DC REGS Notice: Proposed Regional Haze State Implementation Plan
Persons wishing to present testimony at the hearing should furnish their name, address, telephone number, and affiliation, if any, to Joseph Jakuta by 4:00 PM, September 30, 2019.
No written comments will be accepted after September 30, 2019. Written comments should be sent to Joseph Jakuta, Monitoring and Assessment Branch, Air Quality Division, 1200 First St, NE, 5th floor, Washington, DC 20002. E-mail comments may be sent to [email protected]. Please use "Proposed Regional Haze State Implementation Plan" in the subject line. For more information, call Mr. Jakuta at (202) 535-2988.
