The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved changes to North Carolina's State Implementation Plan (SIP) submitted on July 10, 2019. This approval removes the need for certain facilities to report annual emissions in areas now meeting older ozone standards but keeps the reporting requirement in place for the 2008 ozone standards. The adjustments update the start year for emissions reporting and make minor edits to the regulation. EPA's decision is based on these changes meeting the requirements of the Clean Air Act.
Simple Explanation
The EPA decided it's okay for some places in North Carolina to stop counting how much pollution they make each year since they are now cleaner, but they still need to keep counting if they have to follow newer rules from 2008.