Air Quality Contacts
For more information, please contact Victoria Martinez (787-771-2524).
National Transit Institute Training Course: Introduction to Transportation/Air Quality Conformity. The National Transit Institute is currently registering people for two sessions of the Introduction to Transportation/Air Quality Conformity course. The two sessions will be held in Stockton, CA on October 19-21 and in Newington, CT on November 8-10. The course is currently being updated with information on conformity under the new air quality standards and the updated course will be offered beginning with the course in Stockton, CA. These sessions are the only courses planned for the western states and New England over the next 12 months. Five additional courses will be offered in other locations and plans are currently being made to schedule those courses. To register on line for the course, go to: www.ntionline.com.
NHI Training Course: Estimating Regional Mobile Source Emissions. The National Highway Institute course on Estimating Regional Mobile Source Emissions will be offered September 14-17 in Austin, TX. Estimating regional mobile source emissions is a crucial part of the transportation conformity process. The course helps to develop the skills of planners and practitioners responsible for estimating mobile source emissions so that they can incorporate these techniques into practice in their areas. Participants should have 1- 3 years of experience in travel demand forecasting, conformity or air quality analysis or have completed NHI Course 152054. The cost of the course is $460 per participant. Registration is available online at: http://tti.tamu.edu/conferences/nhi/.
Environmental Protection Agency Releases Guidance on Transportation Conformity in Multi-Jurisdictional Areas. On July 21, EPA released Companion Guidance for the July 1 2004 Final Transportation Conformity Rule: Conformity Implementation in Multi-jurisdictional Nonattainment and Maintenance Areas for Existing and New Air Quality Standards. This guidance discusses how regional emissions analysis is conducted in nonattainment areas with multiple jurisdictions and/or agencies (i.e., multi-MPO, multi-State). The guidance Is available on EPA's website: www.epa.gov/otaq/stateresources/transconf/policy.htm#require (click on "policy guidance").
Transportation Conformity Training Sessions. FHWA's Office of Natural and Human Environment conducted 4 regional workshops on the conformity rule and CMAQ under the new air quality standards during July and August. The workshop materials will be available on FHWA's Transportation Conformity website soon. FHWA also participated in EPA's training workshops. EPA's Office of Transportation and Air Quality (OTAQ), in cooperation with EPA Regional offices, is offering five transportation conformity training sessions this summer in locations across the U.S. The final session was offered in Cambridge, MA on August 24-25.
If you have any suggestions for future monthly conformity highlights, please email: ssiwek@aol.com.
FHWA HQ Transportation Conformity Team Contacts:
FHWA Resource Center Air Quality Team Contacts:
http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/resourcecenter/teams/airquality/index.cfm.
