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Attainment /Maintenance areas. Rio Blanco County (i.e. the project area) is designated as an <br />attainment area for all NAAQS pollutants. <br />All geographical regions are assigned a priority Class (I, II, or 111) which describes how much <br />degradation to the existing air quality is allowed to occur within the area under the Prevention of <br />Significant Deterioration (PSD) regulations. Class I areas are areas of special national or regional <br />natural, scenic, recreational, or historic value, and essentially allow very little degradation in air <br />quality, while Class II areas allow for reasonable industrial /economic expansion. There are <br />currently no Class III areas defined in Colorado. <br />For an area that is in attainment for the NAAQS and CAAQS, the CAA provides specific criteria <br />for stationary sources to allow for economic growth under the PSD regulations (40 CFR 52.21 or <br />40 CFR 51.166 for SIP approved rules). Major PSD sources (or major modifications to existing <br />PSD sources) are required to provide an analysis to ensure their net emissions will not cause or <br />contribute to a violation of any applicable NAAQS or PSD increment. In addition, the analysis <br />required for permitting must include impacts to surface waters, soils, vegetation, and visibility <br />(also known as air quality related values (AQRVs)) caused by increases in emissions, and from <br />any associated growth (or growth in industrial, commercial, and residential sectors that will <br />occur in the area as a direct result of the source). Where a PSD source is located near a Class I <br />airshed (within 50km) the AQRVs thresholds set by the applicable Class I controlling agency <br />(Federal Land Manager) must be assessed to determine if an adverse impact on the area is likely <br />to occur. According to the most recent valid permit issued by CDPHE, the Deserado Mine is not <br />a major PSD source for criteria pollutants. There are no Class I areas within 50 km of the <br />Deserado Mine, however, Dinosaur National Monument (a Class II Area) has been afforded <br />Class I area protections from emissions of SOZ. <br />Given the above and the fact that the BLM is not the regulatory authority authorizing emissions <br />and enforcing applicable permit conditions for the mine's operations; the mine is not located <br />within 50km of any Class I area; it is not a significant source of SOZ; and the proposed action <br />would not authorize or anticipate an increase in emissions from the mine's operations, the BLM <br />will not be providing any additional analysis for potential Class I area direct impacts for the <br />proposed action since they are not expected to occur. <br />Environmental Consequences of the Proposed Action: <br />The Proposed Action Alternative will produce direct and indirect emissions of the above <br />identified pollutants. As stated in the Proposed Action Alternative, and No Action Alternative, <br />emissions rates or intensities would not increase under either alternative and therefore the <br />emissions inventory can reasonably be expected to be the same for each alternative based on the <br />fact that authorized production rates, and currently employed extraction and processing <br />methodologies would not increase or change under either scenario. <br />Direct Emissions <br />With the exception of particulate matter all of the directly emitted criteria pollutants originating <br />for the mine's operations are from fuel combustion sources, such as mobile mining equipment, <br />haul trucks, and stationary sources (emergency generators, light poles, heaters, etc.). HAPs and <br />GHGs are also emitted from fuel combustion sources, albeit in de minimis amounts. CMM will <br />DOI- BLM -CO- 110 - 2012 - 0023 -EA 19 <br />