CENRAP Regional Haze State Implementation Plan Arkansas
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CENRAP Regional Haze State Implementation Plan Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality Submitted to the U. S. EPA, Region 6 December 31, 2008 Table of Contents INTRODUCTION PURPOSE REGIONAL PLANNING PROCESS CONSULTATION PROCESS WITH FEDERAL LAND MANAGER (FLM) DESCRIPTION OF CANEY CREEK AND UPPER BUFFALO WINDERNESS AREAS ASSESSMENT OF BASELINE, NATURAL, AND CURRENT VISIBILITY IMPAIRMENT, CONDITIONS AT CANEY CREEK AND UPPER BUFFALO WINDERNESS AREAS DATA FROM IMPROVE OR PM 2.5 MONITORS IN ARKANSAS OTHER MONITORING DATA OUTSIDE OF ARKANSAS ANNUAL AVERAGE VISIBILITY FOR ALL DAYS, 20 PERCENT BEST AND 20 PERCENT WORST DAYS FOR CANEY CREEK AND UPPER BUFFALO WILDERNESS AREAS NORMALIZED PERCENTAGE OF 20 PERCENT BEST AND WORSE DAYS BY MONTH FOR CANEY CREEK AND UPPER BUFFALO WINDERNESS AREAS MONTHLY AVERAGE VISIBILITY IN DECIVIEWS FOR CANEY CREEK AND UPPER BUFFALO WILDERNESS AREAS AEVERAGE COMPONENT CONTRIBUTION TO VISIBILITY IMPAIRMENT FOR CANEY CREEK AND UPPER BUFFALO WINDERNESS AREAS MONTHLY AVERAGE SULFATE EXTINCTION FOR CANEY CREEK AND UPPER BUFFALO WILDERNESS AREA MONTHLY AVERAGE NITRATE EXTINCTION FOR CANEY CREEK AND UPPER BUFFALO WILDERNESS AREAS MONTHLY AVERAGE ORGANIC CARBON EXTINCTION FOR CANEY CREEK AND UPPER BUFFALO WILDERNESS AREAS MONTHLY AVERAGE ELEMENTAL CARBON EXTINCTION FOR CANEY CREEK AND UPPER BUFFALO WINDERNESS AREAS MONTHLY AVERAGE FINE SOIL PARTICULATE MATTER EXTINCTION FOR CANEY CREEK AND UPPER BUFFALO WINDERNESS AREAS MONTHLY AVERAGE COARSE PARTICULATE MATTER EXTINCTION FOR CANEY CREEK AND UPPER BUFFALO WINDERNESS AREAS TRANSMISSOMETER SCHEMATIC ANNUAL TRANSMISSOMETER VISIBILITY TRENDS ANNUAL RECONSTRUCTED VISIBILITY TRENDS ASSESSMENT OF EMISSIONS CONTRIBUTION TO IMPAIRMENT AT CANEY CREEK AND UPPER BUFFALO WINDERNESS AREAS BART-ELIGIBLE SOURCES IN ARKANSAS BART OF COAL-FIRED POWER PLANTS EMISSIONS REDUCTIONS DUE TO ONGOING AIR POLLUTION CONTROL i PROGRAMS SOURCE RETIREMENT AND REPLACEMENT SCHEDULES MODELING MODELING DOMAINS MODELING INPUTS SELECTION OF GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATION AND SPECIFIC METEOROLOGICAL MODELING EPISODES MODEL APPLICATION AND RESULTS OF CALIBRATION TO ENSURE ACCEPTABLE PERFORMANCE MODELING CONCLUSIONS LONG-TERM STRATEGY REQUIREMENTS FOR REASONABLY ATTRIBUTABLE VISIBILITY IMPAIRMENT EXISTING IMPAIRMENT THE FEDERAL LAND MANAGER CERTIFIED TO THE STATE MODELING CONCLUSIONS ON EMISSION REDUCTIONS CONTROL STRATEGIES TO ACHIEVE EMISSION REDUCTIONS ENGINEERING ANALYSIS TO SUPPORT CONTROL STRATEGIES MEASURES TO MITIGATE THE IMPACTS OF CONSTRUCTION ACTIVITIES EMISSIONS LIMITATIONS AND SCHEDULES FOR COMPLIANCE TO ACHIEVE THE REASONABLE PROGRESS GOAL SMOKE MANAGEMENT TECHNIQUES FOR AGRICULTURAL AND FORESTRY MANAGEMENT DOCUMENTATION OF ONGOING MAINTENANCE OF CONTROL STRATEGIES RULES AND COMPLIANCE SCHEDULES OF ALL CONTROL STRATEGIES ALTERNATIVE CONTROLS (INCLUDING MARKET TRADING) AND ENGINEERING ANALYSES SCHEDULE FOR PERIODIC REVIEWS APPLICABLE REQUIREMENTS FOR SECTION 110 AND PART D OF THE CLEAN AIR ACT, 40 CFR PART 51, REQUIREMENTS FOR PREPARATION, ADOPTION, AND SUBMITTAL OF IMPLEMENTATION PLANS SPECIFIC LEGAL AUTHORITY PUBLIC NOTIFICATION, FLM NOTIFICATION, AND PUBLIC HEARING DOCUMENTATION APPENDICES ii EXECUTIVE SUMMARY iii INTRODUCTION Haze is caused when sunlight encounters tiny pollution particles in the air. Some light is absorbed by particles. Other light is scattered away before it reaches an observer. More pollutants mean more absorption and scattering of light, which reduce the clarity and color of what we see. Some types of particles, such as sulfates, scatter more light, particularly during humid conditions. Air pollutants come from a variety of natural and manmade sources. Natural sources can include windblown dust, and soot from wildfires. Manmade sources can include motor vehicles, electric utility and industrial fuel burning, and manufacturing operations. Some haze-causing particles are directly emitted to the air. Others are formed when gases emitted to the air form particles as they are carried many miles from the source of the pollutants. Some of the pollutants that form haze have also been linked to serious health problems and environmental damage. Exposure to very small particles in the air have been linked with increased respiratory illness, decreased lung function, and even premature death. In addition, particles such as nitrates and sulfates contribute to acid rain formation that makes lakes, rivers, and streams unsuitable for many fish, and erodes buildings, historical monuments, and paint on cars. The term visibility, when used in the context of scenic vistas at mandatory Federal Class I areas, refers to the clarity with which distant objects are perceived. Visibility is affected by pollutant concentrations, the viewing angle, relative humidity, cloud characteristics, and other physical factors such as color contrast between objects. 1 Without the effects of manmade air pollution, a natural visual range would be nearly 140 miles (225 km) in western areas and 90 miles (145 km) in eastern areas. The natural visual range is limited because atmospheric gases and aerosols absorb and scatter the light traveling from the vista to the observer. Absorbed light is converted into heat, and the scattered light is redirected from its straight-line approach. The natural light scattered from air molecules is referred to as Rayleigh scattering and causes the blue appearance of the sky. Visibility is impaired beyond the Rayleigh scattering as additional gases and particles are introduced into the air. In mandatory Federal Class I areas, the atmospheric pollutants that most often affect visibility exist as aerosols (tiny particles dispersed in the air). An aerosol particle is made of solid and/or liquid molecules that are held together by intermolecular or adhesive forces and act as a single unit. Fogs and mists are common examples of aerosols formed primarily from water vapor. Particulate matter refers to the nonwater particles that form solid or liquid aerosols in the atmosphere. The particulate matter that most greatly affects visibility in mandatory Federal Class I areas has an aerodynamic diameter less than 2.5 microns. (For comparison, a human hair has a diameter of about 70 microns). The individual aerosol particles (composed of both solid particles and liquid droplets) cannot be seen in the atmosphere, but they scatter and absorb light to impair the view. PURPOSE The national visibility goal, established in section 169A of the Clean Air Act (CAA) Amendments of 1977, requires the “prevention of any future, and the remedying of any existing, impairment of visibility in mandatory Federal Class I areas which 2 impairment results from manmade air pollution.” EPA issued regulations in 1980 to address the visibility problem that is “reasonably attributable” to a single source or small group of sources. At that time, EPA acknowledged that the regulations were only the first phase addressing visibility impairment and deferred regulations dealing with regional haze until improved monitoring and modeling techniques were developed, and EPA could improve its understanding of the pollutants causing the impairment. In 1988, the States, Federal Land Managers (e.g. National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management), and EPA, began monitoring of fine particle concentrations and visibility in 30 national parks and wilderness areas across the country. That data was analyzed to understand what portion of fine particles and visibility impairment can be attributed to various pollutants in the areas—sulfates, nitrates, organic and elemental carbon, and crustal material (soil dust). In 1999 under the 1990 CAAA, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced a major effort to improve air quality in national parks and wilderness areas. The final rule calls for states to establish goals aimed at improving visibility in the mandatory Federal Class I areas (see Table 1) and also to develop long-term plans for reducing pollutant emissions that contribute to visibility degradation. States are required to establish goals to improve visibility for the 20 percent worst days and to allow no degradation of the 20 percent best days. The rule gives states the flexibility to develop cost-effective strategies for pollution reductions and encourages states to coordinate through regional planning efforts. 3 The states and tribes of Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Texas formed the Central Regional Air Planning Association (CENRAP). The following table provides information on the national parks and wilderness areas found in the CENRAP Regional Planning Organization. Table 1. CENRAP Class I Areas (as listed in 40 CFR 81) State Name of Area Acreage Federal Land Manager Arkansas Caney Creek Wilderness Area 14,344 USDA-FS Upper Buffalo Wilderness Area 9,912 USDA-FS Iowa No Class I Area Kansas No Class I Area Louisiana Breton Wilderness Area 5,000 USDI-FWS Minnesota Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Area 747,840 USDA-FS Voyageurs National Park 114,964 USDI-NPS Missouri Hercules-Glades Wilderness Area 12,315 USDA-FS Mingo Wilderness Area 8,000 USDI-FWS Nebraska No Class I Area Oklahoma Wichita Mountains Wilderness Area 8,900 USDI-FWS Texas Big Bend National Park 708,118 USDI-NPS Guadalupe Mountains National Park 76,292 USDI-NPS REGIONAL PLANNING PROCESS [SIP Placeholder: A. States and Tribes in CENRAP B. Goals C. Objectives D. Management E. Decision-making Structure F. Deadlines for Completing Significant Technical Analysis