In a final action, the EPA has updated its 2011 Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR) with respect to the 2008 ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). According to the Agency, the action constitutes the first time the EPA has updated an existing program to address interstate transport of air pollution under a new air quality standard.
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The update promulgates new nitrogen oxides (NOx) ozone season budgets for 22 Eastern and Midwestern states that either contribute to nonattainment or interfere with maintenance of the 2008 ozone NAAQS in downwind states. The EPA issued the CSAPR under authority of Clean Air Act (CAA) Section 110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I), sometimes called the good-neighbor provision. The update includes federal implementation plans (FIPs) that provide new CSAPR NOx ozone season emissions budgets for fossil-fuel electric power plants within the affected states. Once a state submits to the EPA and receives approval of its state implementation plans (SIPs) to address interstate pollution, the FIP for that state is withdrawn.