Victoria: Current Attainment Status

Victoria Area: Attainment Status by Pollutant

*The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) revoked the one-hour ozone standard in all areas, although some areas have continuing obligations under that standard. See ozone history for more information.

**Standard will be revoked one year after the effective date of final designations for the 75 ppb standard.

Victoria Attainment Areas

2008 Eight-Hour Ozone Standard Designation: Attainment/Unclassifiable, effective July 20, 2012 (77 FR 30088)
On March 27, 2008, the EPA lowered the primary and secondary eight-hour ozone NAAQS to 0.075 parts per million (73 FR 16436) . Victoria County was designated attainment/unclassifiable under the 2008 eight-hour ozone NAAQS, effective July 20, 2012.

1997 Eight-Hour Ozone Standard Designation:  Attainment, April 30, 2004 (69 FR 23858) 
On April 30, 2004, the EPA designated Victoria County attainment for the 1997 eight-hour ozone NAAQS with an effective date of June 15, 2004. States with areas designated attainment for both the 1997 eight-hour ozone standard and the one-hour ozone standard with an approved one-hour maintenance plan were required to submit a 10-year maintenance plan for the 1997 eight-hour standard. On March 7, 2007, the commission approved the 1997 Eight-Hour Ozone Maintenance Plan for the Victoria County area.

One-Hour Ozone Standard Designation: Attainment, March 7, 1995 (60 FR 12453)
On March 7, 1995, the EPA redesignated Victoria County as attainment for the one-hour ozone standard, effective May 8, 1995. The state submitted a second maintenance plan to the EPA on February 18, 2003, and the EPA published a direct final rule approving the maintenance plan on January 3, 2005 (70 FR 53).

National Ambient Air Quality Standards

The EPA has set National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for six principal criteria pollutants: ground-level ozone, lead, carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and particulate matter. 

No later than one year after promulgation of a new or revised NAAQS for any pollutant, the governor must submit designation recommendations to the EPA for all areas of the state. The EPA must then promulgate the designations within two years of promulgation of the revised NAAQS. Areas that do not meet (or contribute to ambient air quality in a nearby area that does not meet) the NAAQS are designated nonattainment. Areas that meet the NAAQS are designated attainment; and areas that cannot be classified based on the available information, unclassifiable.

For ozone, the Federal Clean Air Act establishes nonattainment area classifications ranked according to the severity of the area’s air pollution problem. These classifications—marginal, moderate, serious, severe, and extreme—translate to varying requirements with which Texas and nonattainment areas must comply.