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ORANGE COUNTY <br />BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS <br />ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT <br />Meeting Date: September 9, 2004 <br />Action <br />Agenda <br />Item No. 7 -a <br />SUBJECT: Report on Air Quality Conformity and Durham - Chapel Hill - Carrboro Metropolitan <br />Planning Organization 2030 Long -Range Transportation Plan <br />DEPARTMENT: Planning and Inspections <br />ATTACHMENT(S): <br />1. Map of Triangle Ozone Nonattainment Area <br />2. Triangle Air Quality Conformity Partnership <br />3. Triangle Air Quality Conformity Calendar <br />4. Overview of Transportation Conformity Process <br />5. 2030 DCHC MPO LRTP Draft and changes <br />6. Summary of public comments on Draft LRTP <br />PUBLIC HEARING: (Y /N) No <br />INFORMATION CONTACT: <br />Karen Lincoln Ext. 2594 <br />TELEPHONE NUMBERS: <br />Hillsborough 732 -8181 <br />Chapel Hill 968 -4501 <br />Durham 688 -7331 <br />Mebane (336)227 -2031 <br />PURPOSE: To receive an update on the air quality conformity process and Draft 2030 Long - <br />Range Transportation Plan (LRTP) for the Durham - Chapel Hill - Carrboro Metropolitan Planning <br />Organization (DCHC). <br />BACKGROUND: Orange County is among the seven whole counties and portion of an eighth <br />county in the Triangle Area that were designated as an ozone non - attainment area by the U.S. <br />Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) last April 15, 2004. <br />The Triangle Ozone Nonattainment Area (Durham, Franklin, Granville, Johnston, Orange, Person <br />and Wake Counties and 4 townships in northeast Chatham County as depicted in Attachment 1), <br />as a region, must demonstrate transportation conformity for the new 8 -hour ozone standard by <br />June 15, 2005. If any part of that region fails to meet transportation conformity by the June 15th <br />lapse date, the entire region fails to meet conformity. <br />Failure to meet transportation conformity, i.e. to not have a conforming Long -Range <br />Transportation Plan (LRTP) and /or Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) in place and <br />approved by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and EPA by June 15, 2004, will result in <br />no new authorizations of federal aid projects. "Only project phases that received funding <br />commitments or an equivalent approval or authorization prior to a conformity lapse may continue <br />during a lapse. Transit projects that have received a Full Funding Grant Agreement or equivalent <br />approval prior to the conformity lapse may proceed during a lapse." <br />Attachment 2 is a list of organizations participating in the transportation conformity process. <br />Attachment 3 is the Triangle Air Quality Conformity Calendar developed by the Triangle <br />transportation conformity partnership, an interagency group consisting of staff from area <br />jurisdictions, Rural Planning Organizations, Metropolitan Planning Organizations, Triangle J <br />Council of Governments (TJCOG), FHWA, Federal Transit Administration (FTA), EPA Region IV, <br />North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources (NCDENR) Division of Air <br />