The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) held its Industrial Stakeholders Group (ISG) meeting on February 7, 2025. During the meeting, NJDEP provided updates on the following topics:
- General Permit and General Operating Permit Updates
- 2024 PM2.5 Designation Recommendation
- Update on Alternative 185 Fee Program for Revoked 1-Hour Ozone NAAQS
- Monitoring/Recordkeeping Requirements for Air Permits
- Clarification of 5-Year Stack Testing Compliance Advisory
- Air Permit Fees Update
- Environmental Justice Implementation
The following sections provide a summary of each of the topics discussed:
General Permit and General Operating Permit Updates
As of January 1, 2025, the fee for a general permit has increased to $1,090. All general permit and general operating permits submitted on or after January 1, 2025 will cost $1,090. If a facility started a general permit application before January 1, 2025, but has not yet submitted the application or paid the invoice, the cost will be $1,090.
On December 18, 2024, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) issued “
Perchloroethylene (PCE); Regulation Under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)”. This regulatory action aims to phase out consumer, commercial, and dry-cleaning use of PCE over a 10-year time frame. Use of PCE for dry cleaning and spot cleaning will be phased out in stages beginning with prohibition of PCE use in machines acquired after June 16, 2025, followed by prohibition of PCE use in 3rd generation machines, ending with prohibition of all manufacture, processing, distribution, and/or use of PCE after December 19, 2034.
Currently NJDEP offers a general permit (GP-12A) for perchloroethylene (PCE) drycleaning equipment. There are approximately 170 GP-012A permits issued in New Jersey right now and approximately ninety-five (95) preconstruction permits for dry cleaning equipment using PCE. After June 16, 2025, no new GP-012A or preconstruction permits will be issued for dry cleaning equipment using PCE. Current permits for 3rd generation dry cleaning equipment will be automatically killed on December 20, 2027. Finally, current permits for 4th generation dry cleaning equipment will be automatically killed on December 19, 2034. In summary:
Phase 1: Prohibition of industrial and/or commercial use of PCE in dry cleaning machines acquired after June 16, 2025. New permit applications for dry cleaning equipment using PCE will not be accepted by NJDEP.
Phase 2: Prohibition of industrial and/or commercial use of PCE in dry cleaning and related spot cleaning in 3rd generation machines. All permits for 3rd generation machines using PCE will be auto-killed.
Phase 3: Prohibition of the manufacturing (including importing), processing, distribution in commerce, or industrial and/or commercial use of PCE for dry cleaning and spot cleaning. All permits for 4th generation machines using PCE will be auto-killed.
2024 PM2.5 Designation Recommendation
On February 7, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) revised the primary annual National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) for PM
2.5, lowering it from 12 µg/m³ to 9 µg/m³, while maintaining the secondary annual standard at 15 µg/m³ and the primary and secondary daily standard at 35 µg/m³. On February 6, 2025, New Jersey submitted its
designation recommendations to USEPA based on the 2024 PM
2.5 NAAQS.
In 2023, two monitors exceeded the 9 µg/m3 standard: Elizabeth Lab (9.4 µg/m3) and Camden Spruce (9.8 µg/m3). However, these design values include elevated monitoring data that was influenced by smoke from upwind wildfires in both 2021 and 2023. In response to the 2023 wildfires, New Jersey submitted an exceptional event demonstration to USEPA on December 11, 2024, for both the Elizabeth Lab and Camden Spruce monitors. Once the 2024 monitoring data is certified, it is expected that the annual averages for both sites will fall below the 9.0 µg/m³ threshold. As a result, all monitoring sites in New Jersey are anticipated to comply with the 2024 9.0 µg/m³ PM2.5 NAAQS. Accordingly, New Jersey recommended designating all counties in the state as in attainment. A 120-day letter will be issued to New Jersey on October 9, 2025, with the public comment period ending around mid-November 2025. USEPA is expected to make its final designations on February 6, 2026.
Update on Alternative 185 Fee Program for Revoked 1-Hour Ozone NAAQS
The Clean Air Act requires severe and extreme ozone nonattainment areas to implement a fee program (Section 185) if they fail to meet the ozone standard by the specified deadline. Under this program, major stationary sources of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and nitrogen oxides (NOX) must pay a fee for emissions that exceed a baseline level.
The NY-NJ-CT Nonattainment Area was classified as Severe-17 for the 0.12 ppm 1-hour ozone NAAQS in 1990, with an attainment deadline of November 15, 2007. The area did not achieve attainment until 2010, triggering the provisions of CAA Section 185 for 2008 and 2009. However, because the 1-hour standard was revoked in 2005, before the attainment date, the USEPA has approved the use of equivalent, alternative programs in place of the CAA Section 185 fee programs. According to CAA Section 172(e) and USEPA guidelines, these alternative programs must be “no less stringent” than the Section 185 fee program.
New Jersey has proposed an
alternative program demonstration to meet the obligations under Clean Air Act Section 185 for the revoked 1979 1-hour ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) in the New Jersey portion of the New York-N. New Jersey-Long Island (NY-NJ-CT) Severe-17 Nonattainment Area, dated December 4, 2024.
This proposal demonstrates that New Jersey’s Clean Energy Program (NJCEP) is an acceptable alternative to meet the Section 185 fee program requirements for the revoked 1979 1-hour ozone NAAQS. The actual fees expended by NJCEP exceed those that would have been collected by the CAA Section 185 fee program, thus proving the program is “no less stringent” and fulfills all requirements for an acceptable alternative program.
Monitoring/Recordkeeping Requirements for Air Permits
When air permits are issued in New Jersey. There are certain monitoring and recordkeeping requirements included to ensure that the facility is complying with the permit limits. Recently, there has been a lot of batch and forth between facilities and NJDEP on certain monitoring requirements. NJDEP recommends providing information with the permit application which documents what monitoring options are feasible for the facility. Make sure to review your pre-draft thoroughly and ensure that you can comply with the monitoring and recordkeeping requirements in your permit.
Additionally, when air dispersion modeling is required as part of an air permit application, modification, renewal, etc. It is important that the emission rates and emission point parameters in your modeling protocol and in your model match what is in your permit. If not, you should revise/modify your permit first to avoid delays in the process.
Clarification of 5-Year Stack Testing Compliance Advisory
NJDEP recently sent out a
compliance advisory to all holders of current and expired Title V Operating Permits subject to stack testing requirements. The purpose of the advisory is to clarify the language that defines stack testing every 5 years in Title V Operating permits. The new language is as follows:
“Testing every 5 years shall be defined as no later than the end of the 60th month after the first required and each subsequent stack test was completed for the new or modified source.”
This essentially means that the initial stack test will establish an “Anchor Point.” Subsequent stack tests will be due at the end of the 60th month after the first required stack test.
For example, if the initial stack test was performed on January 1, 2025, the 1st 5-year test will be due by January 31, 2030, the 2nd test will be due by January 31, 2035, and so on.
If the stack test is conducted earlier or later than the due date, the next due date does not change. For example, if the subsequent stack test was done on December 15, 2029, the due date from the next stack test will still be January 31, 2035.
If a facility fails their stack test and requires a follow-up test, this does not count toward the next due date. However, if the follow-up test occurs within 18 months of the next due date, the facility can request approval from the DAE Regional Enforcement Office to have it satisfy the requirement of the next 5-year test.
Existing permits without this new language will continue to follow the deadlines in their permits. When the permit language is updated in the permit, the anchor point will be the date of the most recent 5-year test conducted prior to the change in language.
Air Permit Fees Update
Environmental Justice Implementation
Previously, the New Jersey Environmental Justice Law was managed by the Office of Permitting and Project Navigation (OPPN). Now, this responsibility has been passed to the Air, Water, and Land Management Programs. Currently, there are thirty-nine (39) Environmental Justice (EJ) actions in progress, and they are all associated with air permits. NJDEP is working on general guidance for putting together an Environmental Justice Impact Statement (EJIS) as well as a checklist for facilities subject to EJ. NJDEP gave the following tips for developing an EJIS:
- All stressors must be evaluated.
- If your process is currently meeting State of the Art (SOTA), be sure to state that.
- For certain sources that exceed SOTA thresholds, a Localized Impact Control Technology (LICT) analysis is required.
- LICT is a top-down review of technically feasible control technologies
- Verify that your EJIS is consistent with your permit.
- Make sure you have the correct contacts included to avoid miscommunications/delays.
Additionally, NJDEP has advised that a full traffic study is not required to evaluate impacts on traffic stressors. Finally, NJDEP provided that whatever EJ MAP is valid on the date that your application is deemed “administratively complete,” is the EJ MAP to be used for EJ applicability determination.
Should you or your facility have any questions pertaining to any of the above topics, please contact Trinity Consultants’
Princeton office at
609.318.5500.
