|
State News
Monday, August 30, 2010
On August 24, 2010, U.S. EPA proposed a rule related to areas that were designated as non-attainment for the former 1-hour ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS). Previously, the agency's rules had indicated that, when the 1-hour ozone standard was revoked, states no longer had to retain the nonattainment New Source Review (NA-NSR) provisions for the 1-hour standard (which may have included lower major source thresholds, lower major modification thresholds and higher offset ratios). As a result of several petitions and the 2006 court decision regarding the South Coast Air Quality Management District v. EPA, U.S. EPA is now ...
Monday, August 30, 2010
On August 23, 2010, the U.S. EPA finalized the new 1-hour primary National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) for SO2. As a result of the new rule, all new or modified major sources will be required to demonstrate compliance with the new 1-hour SO2 NAAQS as part of federal permitting projects. Many states may also require a similar compliance demonstration for state-level permitting projects. Additionally, for the first time, U.S. EPA is requiring that states using dispersion modeling analyses to supplement ambient monitoring data in setting nonattainment area designations.The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) has reviewed ambient air monitoring data ...
Friday, August 27, 2010
On March 3, 2010, U.S. EPA amended the National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAPs) for existing stationary compression ignition (CI) reciprocating internal combustion engines (RICE), 40 CFR Part 63 Subpart ZZZZ. As part of this amendment, area sources of HAPs with existing CI RICE which are subject to the area source provisions of 40 CFR 63 Subpart ZZZZ must submit an initial notification pursuant to 40 CFR 63.6645. An area source of HAPs is a source with potential emissions of HAPs less than major source thresholds (10 tpy single HAP; 25 tpy combined HAPs). Affected sources in Minnesota ...
Monday, August 23, 2010
Trinity's Maryland office is currently assisting multiple clients in Pennsylvania and West Virginia with air quality permitting of numerous natural gas compressor stations that are undergoing ownership change, expansion, or greenfield construction as a result of the “natural gas rush” of Marcellus Shale development activities. Trinity conducts a comprehensive review of such projects for determining the proper air permitting path (e.g., General Permit GP-5 vs. Plan Approval in Pennsylvania) and assists clients with regulatory applicability reviews and preparation of permit application documents. Many of these projects require a close review of project and/or source aggregation issues (i.e., should multiple facilities ...
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
The Missouri Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) has proposed several new Control Technique Guideline (CTG) rules for the St. Louis Nonattainment Area (St. Louis City and Jefferson, St. Charles, Franklin, and St. Louis Counties). The CTG rules are based on federal guidelines issued for use in State Implementation Plan (SIP) development for nonattainment areas. Following is a brief description of each of the proposed rules:10 CSR 10-5.330 - Control of Emissions from Industrial Surface Coating Operations - applies to any installation with actual pre-control emissions above three tons per year of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) from surface coating operations, including ...
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
On June 2, 2010, the City of St. Louis updated its air pollution control regulations. The new Ordinance 68657 repeals and replaces Ordinance 65645 and Ordinance 65442. Major highlights of the new rules include:- Added several definitions, including a definition for Like-Kind Replacement.- Incorporated the asbestos rules into the same ordinance as other air pollution control rules.- Added a requirement for any facility subject to Section 15 - Restriction of Emission of Visible Air Contaminants to utilize an qualified observer certified in accordance with 40 CFR Part 60.- Included additional exemptions to Section 15 - Restriction of Emission of Visible ...
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
The Missouri Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) has proposed updates to 10 CSR 10-6.200 - Hospital, Medical, Infectious Waste Incinerators. The updates include changes to the requirements for emission limits; waste management plans; compliance and performance testing; and monitoring, recordkeeping and reporting. The updates are being made to provide consistency with a recent update to the federal regulations for incinerators promulgated under 40 CFR Part 60. Comments on the proposed rule are due by close of business on September 11, 2010. For more information on the proposed rule or to submit comments, please go to the following website: http://www.dnr.mo.gov/env/apcp/rulesdev.htm
Monday, August 16, 2010
On August 2, 2010, Greg Abbott, the Attorney General of Texas, and Bryan Shaw, Chairman of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ), responded to a request by the EPA to implement the PSD Tailoring Rule. They rejected any implementation of the rule as being contrary to existing U.S. law, unconstitutional, not supported by sufficient legislative review at the state or federal level, contrary to the definition of "subject to regulation" under the Clean Air Act and not allowing sufficient review and due-diligence under the existing SIP revision process. Bob Sussman, senior policy counsel at EPA has been quoted as ...
Monday, August 16, 2010
The TCEQ has proposed revisions to the Permit by Rule (PBR) and Standard Permit New Source Review (NSR) Authorization mechanisms for oil & gas operations. Driven largely by the increased public scrutiny of the natural gas exploration and production activity taking place in the Barnett Shale, the proposed revisions to PBR 352 and the associated Standard Permit greatly increase the registration, reporting, and control technology requirements for oil & gas operators from the wellhead through transmission. Under the current PBR, oil & gas sources can be authorized to install and operate equipment without the installation of emission controls as long ...
Monday, August 16, 2010
More than 5 years ago, ESSROC Cement Corporation (ESSROC), a part of the Italcementi Group of companies with headquarters in Nazareth, Pennsylvania, contacted Trinity to assist in the development of a compliance-focused ISO14001 Environmental Management System (EMS) for its North American cement manufacturing plants. Trinity began this project by meeting with corporate Environmental Affairs to determine the desired platform upon which the 17 ISO-required EMS elements would be addressed. With Intelex EMS software selected as the platform for the system, Trinity and ESSROC were ready to address the “Pillars” of the system. This included developing an Environmental Policy, identifying and ...
Thursday, August 12, 2010
After 3 years with Trinity’s Atlanta office, Jenna Glahn, Managing Consultant, is pleased to announce her return to Trinity’s New Jersey office. Ms. Glahn has been with Trinity for over 9 years and was a key member of the New Jersey team prior to her work in Atlanta. She has significant experience assisting industrial clients in the Northeast to navigate the increasingly complex and stringent environmental regulatory landscape. She has helped dozens of clients to apply for and to obtain federal (PSD and NNSR) and state construction and operating permits and develop and implement compliance-focused ISO14001 environmental management systems. Ms. ...
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
IDNR has posted a document outlining the frequently asked questions they have received regarding the GHG tailoring rule and associated responses.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Three public hearings have been scheduled for the first week of August by KDHE to accept public comments regarding the draft air quality permit for the Sunflower Electric Power Corporation's Holcomb Generating Station. More information regarding the permitting process, including the draft permit and application, can be reviewed on KDHE's website.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
NDEQ is hosting air program update workshops in August. For dates, locations, the agenda and registration information, visit the NDEQ website.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Effective July 12, 2010, EPA approved Wisconsin's request to redesignate Manitowoc and Door County to attainment for the 1997 8-hour ozone standard. Wisconsin's redesignation request included three years of data for the period of 2006-2008, indicating the 8-hour NAAQS for ozone, as promulgated in 1997, had been attained for the two counties. Manitowoc and Door County follow Kewaunee County which was redesignated as a maintenance area in 2008. Redesignation will increase the permit emission threshold trigger for new sources, thus resulting in a reduction in the number of sources needing permits in these areas. Counties still designated as nonattainment for ...
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
IDNR has posted several documents providing information on the requirements for stationary engines in the National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) for Reciprocating Internal Combustion Engines (RICE). This includes presentations about the rule requirements and applicability, the initial notification form (due August 31, 2010) and a questions and answers document.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
New York State recently conducted another successful quarterly auction of carbon dioxide (CO2) pollution allowances. This carbon auction, the eighth such auction conducted by the ten states participating in the regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), generated $80.5 million to invest in a clean energy economy. New York will share in the proceeds, receiving approximately $29.8 million. During this quarter’s RGGI auctions, the ten RGGI states combined to offer a total of 40,685,585 allowances for the current compliance period (2009-2011) at a price of $1.88 per allowance, and 2,137,993 allowances for the next compliance period (2012-2014) at a price of $1.86 ...
Thursday, July 15, 2010
On June 30, 2010, the U.S. EPA announced final disapproval of the Texas Commission of Environmental Quality’s (TCEQ) Flexible Permit Program in the Federal Register stating it does not meet Federal Clean Air Act requirements. Within 60 days of publication in the Federal Register, stakeholders have an opportunity to appeal the EPA’s decision. The TCEQ Flexible Permit Program allowed sites to manage operations by staying under an emissions cap rather than setting specific emission limits for individual emissions sources. It is interesting to note that the disapproval focuses on inadequate monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting (MRR) issues and inadequate safeguards for ...
Thursday, July 15, 2010
The U.S. EPA has objected to several draft TCEQ Title V Operating Permits. Among the objections, EPA contends the TCEQ Federal Operating Permits lack enough information for the public or inspectors to monitor a plant's performance against the applicable regulatory requirements since the TCEQ permits reference rules instead of stipulating details. As such, the EPA wants to make the operating permits easier to monitor by specifically stating requirements for sources. Another hot topic related to EPA’s objections is incorporation by reference (IBR) of major and minor New Source Review (NSR) permits. On June 10, 2010, the EPA issued a letter to ...
Thursday, June 24, 2010
New York State is a member of the Ozone Transport Commission (OTC) and is regulated as part of the Ozone Transport Region where ozone nonattainment is treated as a regional issue. Given the regional nature of ozone formation, the OTC provides coordinated rulemaking leadership, while each member state can promulgate rules at the state level to achieve regional ozone attainment goals. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) has revised the 6 NYCRR Part 227-2 (RACT for NOx) by lowering the NOx RACT emission limits for very large boilers (heat input > 250 MMBtu/hr), large boilers (heat input range 100 ...
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
On November 12, 2008 a revised lead NAAQS was published in the Federal Register reducing the standard from 1.5 micrograms per cubic meter (µg/m3), to 0.15 µg/m3, measured as total suspended particles (TSP). EPA is required to make area designations within two years of the effective date of the standard and states were required to submit recommended attainment designations. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) submitted recommendations to the EPA on December 17, 2009 along with a formal plan for gathering additional ambient air data for lead. In a letter dated June 14, 2010 to the Governor of Pennsylvania, ...
Monday, June 21, 2010
As required by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the District Department of the Environment (DDOE) must submit an annual monitoring network plan describing the DDOE’s current air quality surveillance system as well as the changes to the monitoring network and instrumentation upgrades required as part of the recent National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) revisions. In particular, DDOE is collaborating with the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) and Virginia Department of the Environmental Quality (VA DEQ) on the new near-roadway nitrogen dioxide (NO2) NAAQS monitoring requirements in the Washington, DC metropolitan area. In addition, DDOE will establish an ambient ...
Monday, June 21, 2010
On June 11, 2010, EPA approved a State Implementation Plan (SIP) revision submitted by the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) with regard to the Philadelphia area moderate nonattainment area of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for the 1997 8-hour ozone standard. Maryland’s SIP revision for Cecil County (Maryland’s portion of the Philadelphia nonattainment area) was submitted to the EPA on June 4, 2007 and included a reasonable further progress (RFP) plan, contingency measures, reasonably available control measures (RACM) analysis, as well as the 2002 base year inventory. The SIP approval also includes Maryland’s regulations for transformation conformity ...
Monday, June 21, 2010
Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PADEP) has revised its list of source types that are exempt from plan approval and operating permit requirements. The current list, contained in PADEP Technical Guidance Document Number 275-2101-003, was published on July 26, 2003 and outlines the units and facilities that can be constructed and operated without obtaining a permit. This document was originally revised in 2008. However, due to the substantial comments received, PADEP has made further revisions to the list which was published in Pennsylvania Bulletin on May 29, 2010. The proposed revised technical guidance document is currently undergoing a 30-day comment ...
Monday, June 21, 2010
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection’s (PA DEP’s) Bureau of Air Quality, in coordination with the Bureau of Oil and Gas Management, has recently initiated an ambient air monitoring program focusing on odor and air toxic releases from Marcellus Shale drilling locations. The purpose of the monitoring program is to gather information in regard to the nature of air pollutants resulting from various phases of drilling operations. Marcellus Shale is an organic rich shale formation that occurs beneath much of Pennsylvania and New York as well as portions of Ohio, West Virginia, Maryland, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia. Trillions of cubic ...
Monday, June 14, 2010
On June 14, 2010 Sheila Holman was named as the new director of the North Carolina Division of Air Quality (NDAQ). Sheila will replace Keith Overcash who retired at the end of June. Ms. Holman has worked at DENR since 1993 and has been deputy director of the Division of Air Quality since August of 2008. Prior to her time at DENR, Holman worked for the EPA on national policy for ozone and carbon monoxide.
Monday, June 14, 2010
NDEQ has created an Air DVD with a basic overview of the NDEQ Air Quality Program. An additional DVD with an inspection skit is also available. To view the Air DVD on the web, visit the NDEQ website or contact Melissa Ellis at NDEQ for copies of the Air DVD or inspection skit DVD.
Monday, June 14, 2010
IDNR has formed a workgroup to provide input to the DNR and explore approaches for implementing the PM2.5 standard in Iowa. Meetings are tentatively scheduled for June 9, June 23, July 8, August 5, September 2, October 7, and November 4, 2010 at the Air Quality Bureau offices. For more information, including information from the June 9 meeting, visit IDNR's PM2.5 Implementation website.Trinity is participating in this workgroup and will continue to provide updates in future newsletters.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
MPCA is charging new air permitting fees based on a rule published on March 8, 2010 in the State Register (effective March 15, 2010). Permit applications that were received by MPCA on and after July 1, 2009, but before March 15, 2010, are subject to the new fees and will be charged retroactive fees, as necessary. Applications submitted after March 15, 2010 must include the application fee or they will be deemed incomplete. Application fees can be determined using Form SCP-01. For more information, go to the MPCA's Air and Water Permit Fees web page.
|