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Final Rules - Air Quality Division

Completed Rulemakings

Air Quality Division

Revised on: Dec. 14, 2023 - 1:33 p.m.

ADEQ maintains a list of completed rulemakings on our website for two years following their effective dates. Following is a list of completed rulemakings related to the Air Quality Division:

Summary

ADEQ amended Arizona Administrative Code (A.A.C.) Title 18, Chapter 2, Articles 1 and 4, to address deficiencies found by the EPA in ADEQ’s new source review (NSR) rules, including inter-precursor trading (IPT) rules that are now disallowed.

The purpose of this rulemaking addressed two issues related to the NSR program:

First, ADEQ amended the definition of municipal incinerators to conform ADEQ’s rules to the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments and EPA's correction of its rules that changed the definition of a “major emitting facility” with regard to municipal incinerators | 86 Federal Register 37,918 (July 19, 2021) >

Second, ADEQ amended A.A.C. Title 18, Chapter 2, Article 4, R18-2-404(a), to remove the sentence authorizing ozone IPT as required by Sierra Club v. EPA, 985 F.3d 1055 (D.C. Cir., 2021) | View >

These rule amendments are required by federal law and therefore, do not increase regulatory burden beyond what is required by the Clean Air Act. If ADEQ does not address this requirement, EPA is required to issue a finding of failure to submit or a disapproval for those elements of the 2015 ozone State Implementation Plan revisions. If the deficiencies remain uncorrected, EPA must impose sanctions, including 2-for-1 offsets, the loss of highway funds and a federal implementation plan.

Documents

  • Notice of Proposed Expedited Rulemaking Docket Opening | View >
  • Notice of Proposed Expedited Rulemaking | View >
  • Notice of Final Expedited Rulemaking | View >

Effective Date: May 4, 2022

Summary

On June 24, 2020, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) determined that the West Pinal County PM10 Nonattainment Area had not attained the PM10 national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) by the applicable Dec. 31, 2018, deadline. Because of this determination, West Pinal was automatically reclassified from “moderate” to “serious” and became subject to the requirements for serious PM10 nonattainment areas in Clean Air Act § 189(b).

Under § 189(b), Arizona must submit a state implementation plan (SIP) that, among other things, provides for the imposition of best available control measures (BACM) on all significant sources of PM10 in the West Pinal nonattainment areas, including agricultural operations. The amendments adopted in this rulemaking are designed to satisfy these Clean Air Act requirements with respect to agricultural operations subject to the Agricultural Best Management Practices (AgBMP) General Permit.

The AgBMP Committee, which is appointed by the Governor,  has authority to adopt and amend AgBMP general permits by rule under ARS § 49-457(H), (L), and (P). Under Laws 2011, Chapter 214, Section 4, rulemakings by the AgBMP Committee are exempt from the Title 41, Chapter 6, Article 3, including the requirements to publish a Notice of Docket Opening, to publish a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, and to submit the final rulemaking to the Governor’s Regulatory Review Council for approval.

Documents

  • Notice of Final Exempt Rulemaking (filed with the Secretary of State: Nov. 5, 2021) | View >

Effective Date: Nov. 5, 2021

ADEQ accepted comments on the proposed rulemaking to amend Arizona Administrative Code (AAC) R18-2-327 Annual Emissions Inventory Questionnaire. 

Summary

The purpose of this rulemaking was to amend the agency's annual emission inventory questionnaire regulation to reduce the reporting burden on Class II air quality permitted sources. ADEQ amended the reporting frequency from annually to at least once every three years and at the request of the Director.

In addition, ADEQ amended the agency's annual emission inventory questionnaire regulation to include federally required emission statement requirements for stationary sources located in ozone nonattainment areas that emit ozone precursors. This rulemaking action is required to secure full approval of Arizona’s ozone rules into the state implementation plan (SIP) and avoid sanctions under the federal Clean Air Act.

Documents

  • Notice of Docket Opening | View >
  • Notice of Proposed Rulemaking | View >
  • Notice of Comment Period and Public Hearing | View >
  • Notice of Final Rulemaking | View >

Effective Date: Jan. 19, 2021

Additional Information

Governor’s Regulatory Review Council (GRRC) Study Session and Council Meeting Agendas, Meeting Documents, including PDF copies of materials provided to GRRC for rulemakings, and Minutes | Visit GRRC Page >

Voice of the Customer and Design Principles | View >

Emission Inventory Reporting | Learn More >

ADEQ accepted comments on the proposed rulemaking for the addition of a significant emission rate for ammonia, as a precursor in the formation of secondary fine particulate matter (PM2.5), in PM2.5 nonattainment areas in the State.

Summary

ADEQ proposed a definition of "significant" that varies from the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM).  The definition of "significant" in the NPRM would have required minor sources of ammonia in PM2.5 nonattainment areas to obtain a Class II permit.  The definition of "significant" in the Rulemaking clarifies the rule language so that only major sources of ammonia in PM2.5 nonattainment areas will be required to obtain a permit.

Additionally, based on public comments received during the NPRM’s comment period, ADEQ updated incorporations by reference of 40 C.F.R. Part 51, Appendix W (“Appendix W”), which governs modeling, to incorporate the most current version. Additional proposed technical corrections were made to existing Articles 3 and 4 to improve clarity and consistency.

The rule amendment was submitted to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as a revision the Arizona State Implementation Plan pursuant to Clean Air Act § 110 (42 U.S.C. § 7410).

Documents

  • Current Rules | View >
  • Notice of Docket Opening | View >
  • Notice of Proposed Rulemaking | View >
  • Arizona State Implementation Plan Revision: Determination of a Significant Emission Rate for Ammonia | View >
  • Notice of Supplemental Proposed Rulemaking | View >
  • SIP Revision: New Source Review -- Significant Emission Rate for Ammonia in PM2.5 Nonattainment Areas | View >
  • Notice of Final Rulemaking | View >

Effective Date: Feb. 1, 2020 

Additional Information

Governor’s Regulatory Review Council (GRRC) Study Session and Council Meeting Agendas, Meeting Documents, including PDF copies of materials provided to GRRC for rulemakings, and Minutes | Visit GRRC Page >