PRIA, Government Policy, Made Personal

Summary

Defines key words used in the chapter about air pollution so people know what the law means. Administrator means the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. Air pollution control agency covers state agencies, agencies run by two or more states, local governments or health authorities, joint municipal agencies, and tribal agencies. Interstate air pollution control agency means an agency set up by two or more states or by municipalities in different states. State includes the 50 States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands. Person includes people, corporations, partnerships, associations, states, municipalities, and U.S. agencies and their officers or employees. Municipality means a city, town, borough, county, parish, district, or other public body created under state law. Air pollutant means any physical, chemical, biological, or radioactive substance (including source material, special nuclear material, and byproduct material) that gets into the air and includes precursors the Administrator identifies. Welfare effects include impacts on soils, water, crops, plants, materials, animals, wildlife, weather, visibility, climate, property, transportation, the economy, and personal comfort. Federal land manager means the Secretary in charge of the federal lands. Major stationary source or major emitting facility means a stationary source that emits or could emit 100 tons per year or more, including certain fugitive emissions. Emission limitation/standard and standard of performance require continuous limits on emissions and may include operation, maintenance, design, equipment, or work-practice requirements; means of emission limitation means a system of continuous reduction (including specific technology or fuels). Primary standard attainment date is the date in an implementation plan to meet a national primary ambient air quality standard. Delayed compliance order postpones a plan’s compliance date for an existing source. Schedule and timetable of compliance is an enforceable sequence of steps to reach compliance. Applicable implementation plan means the approved or promulgated part(s) of a State implementation plan that implement this chapter. Indian tribe means a federally recognized tribe, band, nation, or organized group (including Alaska Native villages) eligible for federal Indian programs. VOC means volatile organic compound as defined by the Administrator. PM–10 means particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter less than or equal to a nominal ten micrometers as measured by methods the Administrator may set. NAAQS means national ambient air quality standard and CTG means Control Technique Guideline published under section 7408. NOx means oxides of nitrogen. CO means carbon monoxide. Small source means a source that emits less than 100 tons of regulated pollutants per year or a class of persons the Administrator finds generally lack technical ability or knowledge. Federal implementation plan means a plan the Administrator issues to fill or fix parts of a State plan, including enforceable limits or other controls (including economic tools like marketable permits or auctions) to attain the relevant NAAQS. Stationary source generally means any source of an air pollutant except emissions from an internal combustion engine used for transportation or from a nonroad engine or nonroad vehicle as defined in section 7550.

Title 42, §7602

The Public Health and Welfare, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

When used in this chapter—

(a)The term “Administrator” means the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.

(b)The term “air pollution control agency” means any of the following:

(1)A single State agency designated by the Governor of that State as the official State air pollution control agency for purposes of this chapter.

(2)An agency established by two or more States and having substantial powers or duties pertaining to the prevention and control of air pollution.

(3)A city, county, or other local government health authority, or, in the case of any city, county, or other local government in which there is an agency other than the health authority charged with responsibility for enforcing ordinances or laws relating to the prevention and control of air pollution, such other agency.

(4)An agency of two or more municipalities located in the same State or in different States and having substantial powers or duties pertaining to the prevention and control of air pollution.

(5)An agency of an Indian tribe.

(c)The term “interstate air pollution control agency” means—

(1)an air pollution control agency established by two or more States, or

(2)an air pollution control agency of two or more municipalities located in different States.

(d)The term “State” means a State, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, and American Samoa and includes the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.

(e)The term “person” includes an individual, corporation, partnership, association, State, municipality, political subdivision of a State, and any agency, department, or instrumentality of the United States and any officer, agent, or employee thereof.

(f)The term “municipality” means a city, town, borough, county, parish, district, or other public body created by or pursuant to State law.

(g)The term “air pollutant” means any air pollution agent or combination of such agents, including any physical, chemical, biological, radioactive (including source material, special nuclear material, and byproduct material) substance or matter which is emitted into or otherwise enters the ambient air. Such term includes any precursors to the formation of any air pollutant, to the extent the Administrator has identified such precursor or precursors for the particular purpose for which the term “air pollutant” is used.

(h)All language referring to effects on welfare includes, but is not limited to, effects on soils, water, crops, vegetation, manmade materials, animals, wildlife, weather, visibility, and climate, damage to and deterioration of property, and hazards to transportation, as well as effects on economic values and on personal comfort and well-being, whether caused by transformation, conversion, or combination with other air pollutants.

(i)The term “Federal land manager” means, with respect to any lands in the United States, the Secretary of the department with authority over such lands.

(j)Except as otherwise expressly provided, the terms “major stationary source” and “major emitting facility” mean any stationary facility or source of air pollutants which directly emits, or has the potential to emit, one hundred tons per year or more of any air pollutant (including any major emitting facility or source of fugitive emissions of any such pollutant, as determined by rule by the Administrator).

(k)The terms “emission limitation” and “emission standard” mean a requirement established by the State or the Administrator which limits the quantity, rate, or concentration of emissions of air pollutants on a continuous basis, including any requirement relating to the operation or maintenance of a source to assure continuous emission reduction, and any design, equipment, work practice or operational standard promulgated under this chapter..

(l)The term “standard of performance” means a requirement of continuous emission reduction, including any requirement relating to the operation or maintenance of a source to assure continuous emission reduction.

(m)The term “means of emission limitation” means a system of continuous emission reduction (including the use of specific technology or fuels with specified pollution characteristics).

(n)The term “primary standard attainment date” means the date specified in the applicable implementation plan for the attainment of a national primary ambient air quality standard for any air pollutant.

(o)The term “delayed compliance order” means an order issued by the State or by the Administrator to an existing stationary source, postponing the date required under an applicable implementation plan for compliance by such source with any requirement of such plan.

(p)The term “schedule and timetable of compliance” means a schedule of required measures including an enforceable sequence of actions or operations leading to compliance with an emission limitation, other limitation, prohibition, or standard.

(q)For purposes of this chapter, the term “applicable implementation plan” means the portion (or portions) of the implementation plan, or most recent revision thereof, which has been approved under section 7410 of this title, or promulgated under section 7410(c) of this title, or promulgated or approved pursuant to regulations promulgated under section 7601(d) of this title and which implements the relevant requirements of this chapter.

(r)Indian Tribe.—

The term “Indian tribe” means any Indian tribe, band, nation, or other organized group or community, including any Alaska Native village, which is Federally recognized as eligible for the special programs and services provided by the United States to Indians because of their status as Indians.

(s)VOC.—

The term “VOC” means volatile organic compound, as defined by the Administrator.

(t)PM–10.—

The term “PM–10” means particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter less than or equal to a nominal ten micrometers, as measured by such method as the Administrator may determine.

(u)NAAQS and CTG.—

The term “NAAQS” means national ambient air quality standard. The term “CTG” means a Control Technique Guideline published by the Administrator under section 7408 of this title.

(v)NOx.—

The term “NOx” means oxides of nitrogen.

(w)CO.—

The term “CO” means carbon monoxide.

(x)Small Source.—

The term “small source” means a source that emits less than 100 tons of regulated pollutants per year, or any class of persons that the Administrator determines, through regulation, generally lack technical ability or knowledge regarding control of air pollution.

(y)Federal Implementation Plan.—

The term “Federal implementation plan” means a plan (or portion thereof) promulgated by the Administrator to fill all or a portion of a gap or otherwise correct all or a portion of an inadequacy in a State implementation plan, and which includes enforceable emission limitations or other control measures, means or techniques (including economic incentives, such as marketable permits or auctions of emissions allowances), and provides for attainment of the relevant national ambient air quality standard.

(z)Stationary Source.—

The term “stationary source” means generally any source of an air pollutant except those emissions resulting directly from an internal combustion engine for transportation purposes or from a nonroad engine or nonroad vehicle as defined in section 7550 of this title.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Codification Section was formerly classified to section 1857h of this title.

Prior Provisions

Provisions similar to those in subsecs. (b) and (d) of this section were contained in a section 1857e of this title, act July 14, 1955, ch. 360, § 6, 69 Stat. 323, prior to the general amendment of this chapter by Pub. L. 88–206.

Amendments

1990—Subsec. (b)(1) to (3). Pub. L. 101–549, § 107(a)(1), (2), struck out “or” at end of par. (3) and substituted periods for semicolons at end of pars. (1) to (3). Subsec. (b)(5). Pub. L. 101–549, § 107(a)(3), added par. (5). Subsec. (g). Pub. L. 101–549, § 108(j)(2), inserted at end “Such term includes any precursors to the formation of any air pollutant, to the extent the Administrator has identified such precursor or precursors for the particular purpose for which the term ‘air pollutant’ is used.” Subsec. (h). Pub. L. 101–549, § 109(b), inserted before period at end “, whether caused by transformation, conversion, or combination with other air pollutants”. Subsec. (k). Pub. L. 101–549, § 303(e), inserted before period at end “, and any design, equipment, work practice or operational standard promulgated under this chapter.” Subsec. (q). Pub. L. 101–549, § 101(d)(4), added subsec. (q). Subsec. (r). Pub. L. 101–549, § 107(b), added subsec. (r). Subsecs. (s) to (y). Pub. L. 101–549, § 108(j)(1), added subsecs. (s) to (y). Subsec. (z). Pub. L. 101–549, § 709, added subsec. (z). 1977—Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 95–95, § 218(c), inserted “and includes the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands” after “American Samoa”. Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 95–190 substituted “individual, corporation” for “individual corporation”. Pub. L. 95–95, § 301(b), expanded definition of “person” to include agencies, departments, and instrumentalities of the United States and officers, agents, and employees thereof. Subsec. (g). Pub. L. 95–95, § 301(c), expanded definition of “air pollutant” so as, expressly, to include physical, chemical, biological, and radioactive substances or matter emitted into or otherwise entering the ambient air. Subsecs. (i) to (p). Pub. L. 95–95, § 301(a), added subsecs. (i) to (p). 1970—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 91–604, § 15(c)(1), substituted definition of “Administrator” as meaning Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency for definition of “Secretary” as meaning Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare. Subsecs. (g), (h). Pub. L. 91–604, § 15(a)(1), added subsec. (g) defining “air pollutant”, redesignated former subsec. (g) as (h) and substituted references to effects on soil, water, crops, vegetation, manmade materials, animals, wildlife, weather, visibility, and climate for references to injury to agricultural crops and livestock, and inserted references to effects on economic values and on personal comfort and well being. 1967—Pub. L. 90–148 reenacted section without change.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 1977 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 95–95 effective Aug. 7, 1977, except as otherwise expressly provided, see section 406(d) of Pub. L. 95–95, set out as a note under section 7401 of this title.

§7602 Definitions