COMPLIANCE INFO_FINAL INITIAL STUDY/MITIGATED NEGATIVE DECLARATION 5/25

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North County Recycling Center and Sanitary Landfill Permit Revision Project Final Initial Study/Mitigated Negative Declaration · San Joaquin County | May 2025 16 Criteria Air Pollutants The California Air Resources Board (CARB) and United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) focus on the following air pollutants as regional indicators of ambient air quality: • Ozone • Coarse particulate matter (PM10) • Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) • Nitrogen dioxide (NOx) • Carbon monoxide (CO) • Sulfur dioxide (SOx) • Lead These are referred to as “criteria air pollutants” because they are the most prevalent air pollutants known to be harmful to human health based on extensive criteria documents. In accordance with the Federal Clean Air Act and California Clean Air Act (described in the Regulatory Setting section below), areas in California are classified as either in attainment, maintenance, or nonattainment of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) and California ambient air quality standards (CAAQS) for each criteria air pollutant. At the Federal level, SJVAB is currently designated as extreme nonattainment for the 8-hour ozone standard and is designated nonattainment for the PM2.5 standard. At the State level, the SJVAB is designated as nonattainment for the 8-hour ozone, PM10, and PM2.5 standards (CARB 2023). The SJVAB is designated as an attainment or unclassified area for all other pollutants at the Federal and State level. Therefore, the primary criteria air pollutants of concern in the SJVAB are ground-level ozone formed through reactions of NOx and reactive organic gases (ROG), PM10, and PM2.5 due to the nonattainment designations. Toxic Air Contaminants In addition to criteria air pollutants, individual projects may emit toxic air contaminants (TACs). TACs include a diverse group of air pollutants that can adversely affect human health and include diesel particulate matter (DPM)s, lead, benzene, formaldehyde, and hexavalent chromium, among others. In addition, substances which have been listed as federal hazardous air pollutants are TACs under the state's air toxics program. TACs are not subject to ambient air quality standards but are regulated through state and local risk management programs. Unlike criteria air pollutants, which generally affect regional air quality, TAC emissions are evaluated based on estimations of localized concentrations and risk assessments. The adverse health effects a person may experience following exposure to any chemical depend on several factors, including the amount (dose), duration, chemical form, and any simultaneous exposure to other chemicals. Landfill Gas Landfill gas (LFG) is primarily made up of methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2), which are produced by the natural process of bacterial decomposition of organic material within the landfill under anaerobic conditions. In addition to these main components, LFG contains small amounts