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DEQ rule docket updates federal air‑quality standards, incorporates PM2.5 and other federal changes; committee approves docket 5801012401
Summary
Tiffany Floyd of the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality asked the committee to approve docket 5801012401, an annual incorporation by reference of federal air regulations through July 1, 2024, including the EPA's lower annual PM2.5 standard; the committee approved the docket on a voice vote.
Tiffany Floyd, Air Quality Division Administrator for the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality, summarized the department's annual incorporation by reference of federal air regulations (docket 5801012401) and asked the Senate Health and Welfare Committee to approve the pending rule review.
Floyd said the docket adopts final federal changes through July 1, 2024, and listed actions that affect Idaho. She noted the EPA approved Idaho's removal of a vehicle inspection and maintenance program for Northern Ada County's carbon monoxide nonattainment plan and that EPA removed the Clean Air Act's "emergency defense" provision from title V permitting, leaving enforcement discretion largely to states.
Floyd highlighted EPA's lowering of the annual National Ambient Air Quality Standard for PM2.5 from 12 micrograms per cubic meter to 9, effective May 6, 2024, and said DEQ currently anticipates Idaho's statewide air quality to meet the new standard. She acknowledged certain communities — Pinehurst, St. Maries and Salmon — were near the standard and described DEQ outreach and education efforts focused on wood‑stove emissions and proper burning practices as the principal local source of PM2.5 in those communities.
The docket also incorporated federal updates for lead smelter operations, refrigeration and fire‑suppression substances, and removed major‑source permitting requirements for certain air curtain incinerators that burn only clean wood waste. Floyd told the committee the changes were intended to keep Idaho's rules aligned with federal requirements and to maintain DEQ program primacy.
Senator Van Orden moved to approve docket 5801012401 and Senator Harris seconded. Senator Wintrow commented in favor of incorporation by reference for clarity. The committee approved the docket on a voice vote.
