Air Quality Plans
Planning for the Future
The Air District periodically prepares and updates plans to achieve the goal of healthy air. Typically, a plan will analyze emissions inventories (estimates of current and future emissions from industry, motor vehicles, and other sources) and combine that information with air monitoring data (used to assess progress in improving air quality) and computer modeling simulations to test future strategies to reduce emissions in order to achieve air quality standards. Air quality plans usually include measures to reduce air pollutant emissions from industrial facilities, commercial processes, motor vehicles, and other sources. Bay Area plans are prepared with the cooperation of the
Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) and the
Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG).
Particulate Matter (PM) Planning
In 2006 the U.S. EPA lowered the 24-hour PM2.5 standard from 65 µg/m 3 to 35 µg/m 3. The U.S. EPA designated the Bay Area as nonattainment of the PM2.5 standard on October 8, 2009. The effective date of the designation is December 14, 2009 and the Air District has three years to develop a plan, called a State Implementation Plan (SIP), that demonstrates the Bay Area will achieve the revised standard by December 14, 2014. The SIP for the new PM2.5 standard must be submitted to the U.S. EPA by December 14, 2012.
The District has adopted a PM Implementation Schedule, per the requirements of SB 656, as discussed below. In 2003 the California Legislature enacted Senate Bill 656 (SB 656, Sher), codified as Health and Safety Code (H&SC) section 39614. This legislation seeks to reduce public exposure to PM 10 and PM 2.5 and to make progress toward attainment of State and national PM 10 and PM 2.5 standards. SB 656 required ARB, in consultation with local air quality districts, to develop and adopt a list of the most readily available, feasible, and cost-effective control measures that could be used by ARB and air districts to reduce particulate matter. The bill required the ARB and air districts to adopt implementation schedules for appropriate ARB and air district measures.
To comply with SB 656, the Air District reviewed the list of 103 potential PM control measures prepared by the Air Resources Board and developed a (139 k PDF, 35 pgs)Particulate Matter Implementation Schedule (139 k PDF, 35 pgs) (139 k PDF, 35 pgs)which was adopted by the District’s Board of Directors on November 16, 2005.