Environmental News and Views Vol. 12

Hello, and welcome to the 12th edition of Environmental News and Views!?This is a content series made up of several updates on what is happening.?If you have not already done so, check out Volumes One, Two, Three, ?Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, and Eleven!?

Alrighty then, let us get to it.

?THE LEAD—Ozone, PM, and the State Implementation Plan (SIP).?Many of y’all knew David Schanbacher, who served as TCEQ’s Chief Engineer in the early- to mid-aughts.?David once characterized demonstrating SIP compliance as an elaborate accounting exercise.?Another wag at TCEQ said it was like predicting the weather on a specific day…years into the future.?I remembered all of this while tuning into the TCEQ’s recent and very informative (and eye-opening) Air Modeling Science and Technical Information Meetings.?Click here for more information.

Even though I once worked on the SIP (back when there was only a one-hour standard and available control measures, i.e., the good old days), I had to recalibrate my brain a bit to keep up with developments.?But here were my main takeaways:

Environmental Justice Could Be a Big Deal for SIP Approval.?EPA had already cited EJ as a justification for recommending bump-up of Houston-Galveston-Brazoria (HGB) and Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW).?During the technical meetings, EPA staff also referred to EPA’s Legal Tools to Advance Environmental Justice, issued last May.?The document is a broad blueprint for how EPA will implement its EJ goals through its air, water, and waste programs.?The discussion of NAAQs implementation, which starts on Page 17 of the document, identifies numerous steps EPA may take to promote environmental justice during SIP development, including guidance on where to put monitors and what control measures may be implemented.

Timeframes Are Short.?Based on EPA’s presentations in the meeting, we can expect the bump-ups under the 2008 and 2015 ozone standards to be finalized by September 15th.?SIP revisions to address the 2008 standard will be due sometime in the Spring of 2024, but those timeframes get much tighter when you consider control measure development, modeling, and internal deadlines.?In other words, the agency will need to have a good handle on things by this Fall.?As for the 2015 standard, according to EPA, SIP revisions are due January 1, 2023.

Oh, And the Standards Are Being Revisited.?Sounds like things have slowed down a bit on ozone to allow the Clean Air Science Advisory Committee to continue its review.?CASAC will have a further discussion on September 12th.?Things, however, are thrumming along with the PM standards.?It looks like the PM 10 standards will remain in place, as will the 24-hour PM2.5 standard of 35ug/m3.?The PM2.5 annual standard, however, could go from 12 ug/m3 to as low as eight (8).?And we will know quickly—EPA says they are on track to propose the new standard this summer (which still has a month left in it) and finalize it by the Spring.?Recall that if it goes to 8 ug/m3, HGB, Laredo, Austin-Round Rock, DFW, the Lower Rio Grande Valley, Beaumont-Port Arthur, Corpus Christi, El Paso, and San Antonio could all be affected.?Remember, too, that changes will ripple through permitting as well (e.g., standard permit protectiveness reviews).

Oh, And The Permian Thing is Still Hanging Out There.?EPA did not mention this during the meetings I attended, but a very much alive issue remains whether EPA will unilaterally designate portions of the Permian Basin as nonattainment for ozone.?Governor Abbott issued another strong letter of protest (from which the map image was taken) that can be read here.

It sounds kind of stupid to say, but TCEQ has a lot of work on its hands, and folks will need to get a seat at the table to keep up.?Stay tuned.

Meanwhile, In California….?The California Air Resources Board Resolution 22-12 made waves recently with press coverage stating that the sale of new gas-powered cars will be banned by 2035.?The actual CARB order is a bit more detailed than that.?California has always influenced mobile source policy, so it would not be surprising to see other states follow suit.?It is a little amusing, though, to wonder if parts of California could start to resemble Cuba as people try to hang onto their conventional vehicles.?More ominously, will there be sufficient reserves of cobalt (mined in Africa), lithium (mined in Chili and China), and other crucial metals to meet increase demand??The chart below has been making the rounds on LinkedIn and elsewhere.

And what about the reliability of California’s grid??Speaking of, the state also moved to extend the life of its last nuclear power plant.?Perhaps that reflects some belated recognition that swapping everything out for renewables (and electrifying everything) can indeed affect said reliability.

On the Calendar.

·???????House Appropriations, September 8th and 9th

·???????House Energy Resources and State Affairs Joint Hearing, September 13th

·???????LBB Hearing on TCEQ’s Budget Request, September 26th (other agencies also listed via the link)

·???????House Environmental Regulation, October 9th in Odessa

·???????Sunset Commission Hearing, including decisions on TCEQ and the TLLRWDCC, October 12th

?Sneak Peek at Next Week. Next week's edition will feature a special guest. Stay tuned!

Thanks for reading everyone!

xxx