FACTS ON
U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY REGION FIVE
1 N. Wacker Dr. Chicago, Illinois 60606 312-353-5800
Program Support Branch
Program Support, a branch of the Air and Water Programs Division,
consists of three sections designed to more effectively administer the
needs of the various State and local governments within the six-state re-
gion.
They are the Air Program Development Section, the Air Technology
Section, and the Water Supply Section.
The Program Support Branch was expanded in the 1972 fiscal year from
14 to 41 people. This total is expected to continue to grow to meet an ever
expanding need for cleaner air and purer water.
Air Programs Development Section
Administrative and engineering planning is considered the most important
of the responsibilities of the Air Programs Development Section.
The planning is primarily directed toward the development and mainte-
nance of comprehensive state and local air pollution control agencies.
Within the scope of the section' s planning activities are program
grant funding, development and enforcement of state implementation plans,
and continuing evaluations.
Funds are granted to the programs of those agencies which meet the
criteria set forth under Section 105 of the Clean Air Act of 1970 and which
abide by the guidelines established in the Federal Register.
Also included under the section's planning activities are the develop-
ment and enforcement of state implementation plans as called for under Section
110 of the Clean Air Act.
The plans represent a comprehensive planning effort to gear the overall
state efforts toward meeting the Federally promulgated national ambient air
standards for sulfur oxides, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, photo-
chemical oxidants, nitrogen oxides, and hydrocarbons.
EPA 905-F-73-009
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Included within these plans are specific control strategies backed by-
appropriate rules and regulations, emergency episode plans, air monitoring
programs, and engineering and enforcement activities to get the job done
within a preset time schedule.
Finally, under planning, the section is responsible for continuing
evaluations aimed at the overall review of the various state and local pro-
grams. The result of the reveiw is a report containing recommendations for
the prompt correction of any deficiencies found to exist.
A second major responsibility of this section is the coordination of
Federal, State and local Agency interactions.
This includes the coordination and organization of technical .assistance
to state and local air pollution control programs, not only within the Re-
gional Office, but from technical centers in Rockville, Md.; Washington,
B.C.; and Raleigh-Durham-Research Traingle Park, N.C.
It also includes the coordination of assistance and recommendations
concerning personnel hiring by the various agencies through the Federal
state assignee program as well as assistance in the proper training of per-
sonnel through EPA courses.
And, finally, the section is responsible for the coordination of tech-
nical and legal assistance regarding such areas as equipment purchasing and
placement, source surveys and emission inventories.
Air Technology Section
The Air Technology Section has two primary functions. First, it is
responsible for providing the expertise concerning air pollution which is
required to fulfill the technical engineering request of the various air
pollution control agencies.
Its second major function is to bolster the capabilities of the re-
gional office through participation in activities ranging from backup tech-
nical assistance directly related to agency funding, to direct involvement
in onsite inspections.
In order to facilitate the accomplishment of its primary obligations
the section has been divided into five groups. They are the Air Monitoring
Group, the Agency Operations Group, and the Source Control Group, as well as
a group involved in legal advice and representation and a group which collects
meteorology and climatology data for the Regional Office.
The Air Monitoring Group reviews equipment requests and recommends and
approves air quality surveillance networks, including the lending of certain
Federal air sampling equipment to various agencies. In addition, the group
is responsible for procedures for air monitoring instrument calibration and
stationary source tests, including tests for hazardous air pollutants.
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The Agency Operations Group is charged with the following: stationary
source; new source performance standards; highway traffic and aircraft emis-
sions; environmental impact statements; automotive emission control and
inspection procedures; manpower analyses; emergency episode coordination;
data collection and processing; and source testing.
Tax certification procedures; stationary source control technology;
and foundry, incinerator, and coke oven emission controls are all within
the scope of the Source Control Group.
A fourth group included in the Air Technology Section works directly
with the Regional Enforcement Division on problems involving legal inter-
pretations concerning air pollution control agency authority and enforcement
procedures.
The fifth group has direct Regional Office coordinating responsibility
for air pollution emergency episodes in the six states included in Region V.
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