Transportation Conformity Highlights

April 2009

Prepared by the Office of Natural and Human Environment Federal Highway Administration

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Announcements and Recent Events

Draft MOVES Model Released by EPA. EPA recently released its Draft MOVES2009 model which is a major update to EPA's mobile source emission rate models. The Motor Vehicle Emission Simulator, (MOVES), model and supporting documentation are available at: www.epa.gov/otaq/models/moves/index.htm. The draft MOVES model is not approved for use in either SIP submissions or for making conformity determinations. Nor is it approved for use for PM2.5 or PM10 hot-spot analyses or to be used as part of NEPA analysis requirements. See the EPA website above for questions and answers on MOVES and to make comments on the draft MOVES model.

FHWA Issues Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) to Solicit Research Proposals. FHWA recently issued a "Transportation and Air Quality Emissions Analysis' BAA solicitation for research and development projects that could lead to better understanding and advances for tools and methodologies in conducting emissions analysis for transportation projects in the United States. Four research focus areas have been identified: 1) Testing, Evaluation and Validation of New Emission Models and Methodologies, 2) Research on Conducting Project Level Analysis, 3) Air Quality and Transportation Conformity Outreach and Communication, and 4) Fleet Data for On-road Mobile Sources Emissions Inventory. For more information of this BAA, visit: https://www.fbo.gov/index?s=opportunity&mode=form&id=a258f44cc6fd6dde384587007f0b5024&tab=core&_cview=1

EPA's Actions on 1997 Ozone NAAQS State Implementation Plans. On April 29, EPA signed seven Federal Register (FR) notices to propose disapprovals of ozone SIPs for five states and is also making a finding that two states missed the June 15, 2007 SIP submittal deadline for ozone SIPs. The fact sheet on this proposed action can be found at: http://www.epa.gov/air/ozonepollution/fs20090429.html EPA will accept public comment for 30 days on the proposed action and then take final action.

EPA Finds Greenhouse Gases Pose Threat to Public Health, Welfare. On Friday, April 17, EPA issued a proposed finding that greenhouse gases contribute to air pollution that may endanger public health or welfare. This finding results from a thorough scientific review ordered in 2007 by the U.S. Supreme Court. The proposed finding, which will be open for public comment period, identified six greenhouse gases that pose a potential threat. The proposed endangerment finding does not include any proposed regulations. Before taking any steps to reduce greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act, EPA must conduct an appropriate process and consider stakeholder input. For more information see: http://yosemite.epa.gov/opa/admpress.nsf/7ebdf4d0b217978b852573590040443a/0ef7df675805295d8525759b00566924!OpenDocument.

EPA Releases Report on Potential Impacts of Climate Change on Regional U.S. Air Quality. EPA recently released the report "Assessment of the Impacts of Global Change on Regional U.S. Air Quality: A Synthesis of Climate Change Impacts on Ground-Level Ozone'. The report suggests that there is potential for climate change to make ozone pollution worse in some regions and that future ozone management decisions may need to account for the impacts of climate change. For more information see: http://cfpub.epa.gov/ncea/risk/recordisplay.cfm?deid=203459&CFID=40948578&CFTOKEN=46469902.

EPA Awards $3.5 Million for Particulate Matter Research. On April 3, EPA awarded four grants to universities to research the relationship between particulate matter (PM) and health effects. The awards were made to the Georgia Institute of Technology, North Carolina State University, the University of California at Davis, and the University of Iowa. For more information on grants, see http://epa.gov/ncer//.

Reminders

FHWA Continues to Update Questions and Answers on Implementing The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. FHWA has updated a number of questions and answers for the implementation of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). These questions were developed to assist all State and local agencies to implement the ARRA. For more information, visit: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/economicrecovery/qandas.htm

Upcoming Events and Conferences

Transportation Planning, Land Use and Air Quality Conference. The focus of the 2009 TRB Transportation and Air Quality Committee Summer Conference on Transportation Planning, Land Use and Air Quality will be Global Climate Change. The conference will explore the latest research in the coordination of transportation, land use and air quality with a specific focus on climate change strategies. The conference will be held in Denver, CO July 28 and 29, 2009. For more information, see: http://www.ucs.iastate.edu/mnet/tpluaq/home.html.

Mark your calendar! Southern Transportation and Air Quality Summit (STAQS) 2009, will be held at the Hyatt Regency Jacksonville Riverfront, Jacksonville, FL, August 25 -27, 2009. Fore more information, contact Mike Roberts at Michael.Roberts@dot.gov

Training Opportunities

EPA and FHWA Offer MOVES Training. To assist potential users of Draft MOVES2009, EPA and FHWA are scheduling a series of MOVES training sessions at locations around the country. The training will include overview information on MOVES and hands-on work with the draft model. Most sessions will take a day and a half, although some venues will compress the training into a single day. The most recent training session was conducted in Anchorage, AK on May 1. Upcoming training sessions with contact information are listed below:

May 6-7- Wasatch Front Regional Council, Salt Lake City, UT. Contact: Jeff Houk, FHWA Resource Center, jeff.houk@dot.gov

May 18-19 - Chicago, IL. Contact: Michael Leslie, US EPA Region 5, leslie.michael@epa.gov

May 19-20 - CDOT Fossil Trace conference room, Golden, CO. Contact: Jeff Houk, FHWA Resource Center, jeff.houk@dot.gov

May 27-28 - Phoenix, AZ. Contact: TBD

June 1-2 - Boston, MA. Contact: Donald Cooke, US EPA Region 1, cooke.donald@epa.gov

June 11-12 - Portland, OR. Contact: TBD.

June 24-25 - Newington, CT (near Hartford. CT). Contact: Robert Turner, FHWA Connecticut Division, Robert.W.Turner@fhwa.dot.gov

June 29- 30 - Washington DC. Contact: TBD

June 30-July 1 - Frankfort, KY. Contact: TBD

Future sessions: In addition, EPA and FHWA are working to schedule training sessions in:

New York, NY
Detroit, MI
Austin, TX
Jacksonville, FL
Pennsylvania
West Virginia

FHWA Resource Center Training Activities. FHWA's Resource Center Air Quality Technical Services Team is available to offer air quality-related training opportunities and information is available at: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/resourcecenter/teams/airquality/courses.cfm. For further information, contact: Mike Roberts at 404-562-3928 or at Michael.Roberts@dot.gov.

FHWA Resource Center Air Quality Team:
http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/resourcecenter/teams/airquality/index.cfm.

If you have any suggestions for future monthly conformity highlights, please email: ssiwek@aol.com.