The Early Action Compact: A Brief History

On June 15, 2004, as part of a continuing federal-state effort to make the nation's air healthier to breathe, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) named areas across the U.S. that would be required to reduce emissions of ozone-causing pollution. These areas, called nonattainment areas, had (or contributed to) ozone levels higher than allowed under EPA's new 8-hour ozone national air quality standard. The standard was designed to protect the public from exposure to ground-level ozone. This designation process played an important role in letting the public know whether air quality in their community was healthy. Once the designations and classifications took effect, state, tribal and local governments prepared a plan that described their efforts to reduce ground-level ozone.

San Antonio was in compliance with the 1-hour ozone standard but was in violation of the stricter, newly enacted 8-hour ozone standard. San Antonio chose to sign an Early Action Compact (EAC) with EPA that would defer the effective date of a nonattainment designation.  Because the area was already meeting the national 1-hour ozone standard it was eligible for the innovative EAC program. Representatives of the local communities, state air quality officials, and EPA Regional Administrators signed the EAC. The EAC covers the San Antonio Metropolitan Statistical Area (SA/MSA) that includes: Bexar, Guadelupe and Comal counties. The EAC gave the area the flexibility to develop its own approach to meeting the 8-hour ozone standard and the ability to reduce ground-level ozone pollution sooner than the Clean Air Act (CAA) would otherwise require. As long as the EAC area meets agreed upon milestones, the impact of a nonattainment designation for the 8-hour ozone standard will continue to be deferred until December 31, 2007. By December 31, 2007 the SA/MSA attained the 8-hour ozone standard.  Therefore the area met the EAC attainment deadline, and received an attainment designation effective April 15, 2008.

To read the entire EAC visit: www.aacog.com/cap/CAP2002.html

For additional information visit:

• Clean Air Plan
• Alamo Area Council of Governments (AACOG)
• San Antonio Early Action Compact (EAC) Area (EPAs Site)