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Air Quality and Greenhouse Gas Technical Report Griffith Energy Storage Project 2.2 REGULATORY SETTING Ambient air quality standards are the levels of air quality considered safe, with an adequate margin of safety, to protect the public health and safety. They are designed to protect those people most susceptible to respiratory distress (i.e., sensitive receptors), such as asthmatics, the elderly, very young children, people already weakened by other disease or illness, and people engaged in strenuous work or exercise. Healthy adults can tolerate occasional exposure to air pollutant concentrations considerably above these minimum standards before adverse effects are observed. Recent research suggests however, that long-term exposure to air pollution at levels that meet air quality standards may nevertheless have adverse health effects. For example, ozone exposure even at levels close to the ambient air quality standard may lead to adverse respiratory health. The following discussion describes the regulatory authority of the federal, state, and local jurisdictions. The federal CAA, the California Clean Air Act(CCAA), and the Air Quality Management Plan, prepared and adopted by the SJVAPCD, regulate air quality in the air basin. Federal and state standards are shown in Table 1, State and Federal Ambient Air Quality Standards. 2.2.1 Federal Regulations 2.2.1.1 Criteria Air Pollutants The federal CAA (42 United States Code Section 7401-7671 q) is a comprehensive Federal law that regulates air emissions from area, stationary, and mobile sources and requires the adoption of the NAAQS to protect public health and welfare from the effects of air pollution. The federal CAA Amendments of 1990 required that the EPA review all NAAQS with respect to health impacts and propose modifications or new rules as appropriate. In addition, the amendments of the 1990 federal CAA are associated with the attainment and maintenance of air quality standards, permits and enforcement, toxic air pollutants, acid deposition, stratospheric ozone protection and motor vehicles and fuels. Current NAAQS are assigned to SO2, CO, N021 Os, PM,o, PM2.5, and Lead. These pollutants are designated criteria pollutants. 2.2.1.2 Hazardous Air Pollutants The 1977 federal CAA amendments required the EPA to identify National Emission Standards for hazardous air pollutants (HAPs)to protect public health and welfare. HAPs include certain volatile organic compounds, pesticides, herbicides, and radionuclides that present a tangible hazard, based on scientific studies of exposure to humans and other mammals. The 1990 federal CAA Amendments, which expanded the control program for HAPs, identified 189 substances and chemical families as HAPs. Over the years, the list has been modified. Currently, there are 187 federally regulated HAPs. 2.2.2 State Regulations 2.2.2.1 Criteria Air Pollutants The CCAA, passed by the California Legislature and signed into law by the Governor in 1988, assigns state-specific ambient air quality standards. The California standards are, in most cases, more stringent than federal standards. The goal of the CCAA is to attain state air quality standards by the earliest practical date. Because California established Ambient Air Quality Standards several years before the federal action and because of unique air quality problems introduced by the restrictive dispersion meteorology in much of California, there can be a considerable difference between state and national clean air standards. Those standards currently in effect in California are shown on Table 1, State and Federal Ambient Air Quality Standards. OTETRA TECH 8 July 2023