250 R.I. Code R. 250-RICR-120-05-49.5

Current through December 26, 2024

Section 250-RICR-120-05-49.5 - Definitions

A. Unless otherwise expressly defined in this section, the terms used in this regulation shall be defined by reference to Part 0 of this Subchapter (General Definitions). Terms used but not defined in this regulation or Part 0 of this Subchapter (General Definitions) shall have the meaning given them by the CAA, 49 U.S.C. § 7401 et seq ., R.I. Gen. Laws Chapter 23-23, other Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations, or other DOT regulations, in that order of priority.

B. As used in this regulation, the following terms shall, where the context permits, be construed as follows:

1. "Applicable implementation plan" is defined in 42 U.S.C. § 7602(q) (section 302(q) of the CAA) and means the portion (or portions) of the implementation plan, or most recent revision thereof, which has been approved under section 110, or promulgated under 42 U.S.C. § 7410(c) (section 110(c) of the CAA), or promulgated or approved pursuant to regulations promulgated under 42 U.S.C. § 7601(d) (section 301(d) of the CAA) and which implements the relevant requirements of the CAA.

2. "CAA" means the Clean Air Act, 42 U.S.C. § 7401 et seq.

3. "Control strategy implementation plan revision" means the implementation plan which contains specific strategies for controlling the emissions of and reducing ambient levels of pollutants in order to satisfy CAA requirements for demonstrations of reasonable further progress and attainment (including implementation plan revisions submitted to satisfy 42 U.S.C. §§ 7502(c), 7511a(b)(1), 7511a(c)(2)(A), 7511a(c)(2)(b), 7512a(a)(7), 7512a(g), 7513a(a)(1)(B), 7513a(b)(1)(A), 7513a(d), 7514a(a), 7514a(b) (sections 172(c), 182(b)(1), 182(c)(2)(A), 182(c)(2)(B), 187(a)(7), 187(g), 189(a)(1)(B), 189(b)(1)(A), and 189(d); §§192(a) and 192(b) of the CAA), for nitrogen dioxide; and any other applicable CAA provision requiring a demonstration of reasonable further progress or attainment).

4. "Design concept" means the type of facility identified by the project, e.g., freeway, expressway, arterial highway, grade-separated highway, reserved right-of-way rail transit, mixed-traffic rail transit, exclusive busway, etc.

5. "Design scope" means the design aspects which will affect the proposed facility's impact on regional emissions, usually as they relate to vehicle or person carrying capacity and control, e.g., number of lanes or tracks to be constructed or added, length of project, signalization, access control including approximate number and location of interchanges, preferential treatment for high-occupancy vehicles, etc.

6. "DOT" means the United States Department of Transportation.

7. "Donut areas" mean geographic areas outside a metropolitan planning area boundary, but inside the boundary of a nonattainment or maintenance area that contains any part of a metropolitan area(s). These areas are not isolated rural nonattainment and maintenance areas.

8. "Exempt projects" means projects of the type listed in 40 C.F.R. § 93.126, Table 2, "Exempt Projects" or 40 C.F.R. § 93.127 Table 3, "Projects Exempt from Regional Emissions Analyses," incorporated in § 49.4 of this Part.

9. "FHWA" means the Federal Highway Administration of DOT.

10. "FHWA/FTA project" means any highway or transit project which is proposed to receive funding assistance and approval through the Federal-Aid Highway program or the Federal mass transit program, or requires Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) or Federal Transit Administration (FTA) approval for some aspect of the project, such as connection to an interstate highway or deviation from applicable design standards on the interstate system.

11. "FTA" means the Federal Transit Administration of DOT.

12. "Final document or decision" means the document or decision prepared after consideration of and responding to comments received, if any, during the interagency consultation process and, if applicable, the public comment process.

13. "Highway project" means an undertaking to implement or modify a highway facility or highway-related program. Such an undertaking consists of all required phases necessary for implementation. For analytical purposes, it must be defined sufficiently to:

a. Connect logical termini and be of sufficient length to address environmental matters on a broad scope;

b. Have independent utility or significance, i.e., be usable and be a reasonable expenditure even if no additional transportation improvements in the area are made; and

c. Not restrict consideration of alternatives for other reasonably foreseeable transportation improvements.

14. "Hot-spot analysis" means an estimation of likely future localized CO, PM₁₀, and/or PM_2.5 pollutant concentrations and a comparison of those concentrations to the national ambient air quality standards. Hot-spot analysis assesses impacts on a scale smaller than the entire nonattainment or maintenance area, including, for example, congested roadway intersections and highways or transit terminals, and uses an air quality dispersion model to determine the effects of emissions on air quality.

15. "Isolated rural nonattainment and maintenance areas" means areas that do not contain or are not part of any metropolitan planning area as designated under the transportation planning regulations. Isolated rural areas do not have federally required metropolitan transportation plans or TIPs and do not have projects that are part of the emissions analysis of any MPO's metropolitan transportation plan or TIP. Projects in such areas are instead included in statewide transportation improvement programs. These areas are not donut areas.

16. "Maintenance area" means any geographic region of the United States previously designated nonattainment pursuant to the CAA Amendments of 1990 and subsequently re-designated to attainment subject to the requirement to develop a maintenance plan under 42 U.S.C. § 7505a (section 175A of the CAA).

17. "Maintenance plan" means an implementation plan under 42 U.S.C. § 7505a (section 175A of the CAA).

18. "Metropolitan planning organization" or "MPO" means the State Planning Council and its staff in the Department of Administration, Division of Planning.

19. "Milestone" means the meaning given in 42 U.S.C. §§ 7511a(g)(1) and 42 U.S.C. § 7513 a(c)(sections 182(g)(1) and 189(c) of the CAA) for serious and above ozone nonattainment areas and PM₁₀ nonattainment areas, respectively. For all other nonattainment areas, a milestone consists of an emissions level and the date on which that level is to be achieved as required by the applicable CAA provision for reasonable further progress towards attainment.

20. "Motor vehicle emissions budget" means that portion of the total allowable emissions defined in the submitted or approved control strategy implementation plan revision or maintenance plan for a certain date for the purpose of meeting reasonable further progress milestones or demonstrating attainment or maintenance of the NAAQS, for any criteria pollutant or its precursors, allocated to highway and transit vehicle use and emissions.

21. "National ambient air quality standards" or "NAAQS" means those standards established pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 7409 (section 109 of the CAA).

22. "NEPA" means the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended, 42 U.S.C. § 4321 et seq.

23. "NEPA process completion" means the point at which there is a specific action to make a determination that a project is categorically excluded, to make a Finding of No Significant Impact, or to issue a record of decision on a Final Environmental Impact Statement under NEPA.

24. "Nonattainment area" means any geographic region of the United States which has been designated as nonattainment under 42 U.S.C. § 7407 (section 107 of the CAA) for any pollutant for which a national ambient air quality standard exists.

25. "Project" means a highway project or transit project.

26. "Regionally significant project" means a transportation project (other than an exempt project) that is on a facility which serves regional transportation needs (such as access to and from the area outside of the region, major activity centers in the region, major planned developments such as new retail malls, sports complexes, etc., or transportation terminals as well as most terminals themselves) and would normally be included in the modeling of a metropolitan area's transportation network, including at a minimum all principal arterial highways and all fixed guideway transit facilities that offer an alternative to regional highway travel.

27. "RIDOT" means the Rhode Island Department of Transportation.

28. "RIPTA" means the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority.

29. "Transit" means mass transportation by bus, rail, or other conveyance which provides general or special service to the public on a regular and continuing basis. It does not include school buses or charter or sightseeing services.

30. "Transit project" means an undertaking to implement or modify a transit facility or transit-related program; purchase transit vehicles or equipment; or provide financial assistance for transit operations. It does not include actions that are solely within the jurisdiction of RIPTA, such as changes in routes, schedules, or fares. It may consist of several phases. For analytical purposes, it must be defined inclusively enough to:

a. Connect logical termini and be of sufficient length to address environmental matters on a regional scope;

b. Have independent utility or independent significance, i.e., be a reasonable expenditure even if no additional transportation improvements in the area are made; and

c. Not restrict consideration of alternatives for other reasonably foreseeable transportation improvements.

31. "Transportation control measure" or "TCM" means any measure that is specifically identified and committed to in the applicable implementation plan, including a substitute or additional TCM that is incorporated into the applicable implementation plan through the process established in 42 U.S.C. § 7506(c)(8) (section 176(c)(8) of the CAA), that is either one of the types listed in 42 U.S.C. § 7408 (section 108 of the CAA), or any other measure for the purpose of reducing emissions or concentrations of air pollutants from transportation sources by reducing vehicle use or changing traffic flow or congestion conditions. Notwithstanding the first sentence of this definition, vehicle technology-based, fuel-based, and maintenance-based measures which control the emissions from vehicles under fixed traffic conditions are not TCMs for the purposes of this subpart.

32. "Transportation improvement program" or "TIP" means a transportation improvement program developed by a metropolitan planning organization under 23 U.S.C. § 134(j).

33. "Transportation plan" means the official intermodal metropolitan transportation plan that is developed through the metropolitan planning process for the metropolitan planning area, developed pursuant to 23 C.F.R. § 450.

34. "Transportation project" means a highway project or a transit project.

35. "Written commitment" means a written commitment that includes a description of the action to be taken; a schedule for the completion of the action; a demonstration that funding necessary to implement the action has been authorized by the appropriating or authorizing body; and an acknowledgment that the commitment is an enforceable obligation under the applicable implementation plan.

250 R.I. Code R. 250-RICR-120-05-49.5

Amended effective 12/26/2018