Take credit for land use changes under the State Implementation Plan
Action
Under the federal Clean Air Act, states must meet national ambient air quality standards. Every three years, they are required to develop a State Implementation Plan (SIP) that describes how they will accomplish that goal. Typically, states develop SIPs for areas within the state that are out of compliance with air quality standards rather than for the whole state. Inability to meet air quality standards can result in a loss of federal transportation dollars.
In 2001, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued guidance that made it possible for states to receive credit for land uses that increase transportation choices. Under the guidance, states can receive credit for a range of smart growth land use activities, including infill, brownfield, mixed-used and transit-oriented development, as well as traditional neighborhood design, development of activity centers, strengthening of downtowns, and improvements to the region's jobs/housing balance.
Process
When developing their SIPs, states must project the anticipated emissions that will result if current conditions persist. The resulting projection is called the baseline emissions budget. Smart growth strategies are expected to lower anticipated emissions by increasing regional transportation choices. Thus, when estimating a baseline emissions budget, states should modify the baseline to reflect expected reductions from smart growth projects and policies that are planned or already in place.
States can identify smart growth projects as traditional control strategies within the SIP. In doing so, states indicate that such projects will help reduce future emissions and thus aid in compliance with air quality standards. States can also take credit for financial incentives, such as tax breaks for brownfield cleanup and redevelopment, or voluntary approaches, such as a developer's intent to build a neighborhood according to smart growth principles under the SIP.
Examples
- Atlantic Station
Atlantic Station, a $2 billion smart growth project on a 138-acre brownfield site in midtown Atlanta, is an example of an innovative approach to traditional control strategies. For adequate access to roads and transit, a bridge needed to be built. Because Atlanta had not met Clean Air Act standards, the bridge was prohibited under a standard interpretation of EPA regulations. After demonstrating the air pollution reductions that would be achieved through smart growth redevelopment of the site, EPA used available regulatory flexibility to allow the development to proceed, categorizing the redevelopment as a transportation control.
— Atlantic Steel Redevelopment Project
