More Stringent SO2 NAAQS Finalized by U.S. EPA

U.S. EPA has announced the promulgation of a new 1-hour National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) for sulfur dioxide (SO2). The new 1-hour NAAQS level is 75 parts per billion (ppb) measured as the three year average of the 99th percentile daily 1-hour maximum concentration. The new 1-hour NAAQS is a primary standard that replaces the existing annual and 24-hour SO2 NAAQS levels. The NAAQS will become effective in August 2010, at which point any future construction permit applications or applications that are still under state or U.S. EPA review for major new sources or major modifications will need to address compliance with the 1-hour NAAQS level (i.e., there is no “grandfathering” of existing construction permit applications). 

The new NAAQS is extremely restrictive due to the stringency of the NAAQS level and the short-term nature of the standard. The NAAQS level is lower than the recently promulgated 1-hour NO2 NAAQS (75 ppb versus 100 ppb) and is measured in a manner that will capture more peak concentrations (99th percentile versus 98th percentile). In areas that will be in attainment with the new SO2 NAAQS, the new standard will make demonstrating NAAQS compliance for Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) construction permits and Title V renewals extremely difficult where required. Some areas will eventually be designated as nonattainment areas with respect to the new NAAQS, at which point Lowest Achievable Emission Rate (LAER) requirements that have not historically been addressed for SO2 will need to be implemented for major new sources or major modifications. Proactively planning for the impacts of the new NAAQS is critical (see ALL4’s May 2010 4 The Record article for guidance). 

Stationary Compression and Spark Ignition Internal Combustion Engine Rule Revisions Proposed

On May 21, 2010, U.S. EPA proposed amendments to 40 CFR Part 60, Subparts IIII (Standards of Performance for Stationary Compression Ignition Internal Combustion Engines) and Subpart JJJJ (Standards of Performance for Stationary Spark Ignition Internal Combustion Engines). The proposed rule would make the following changes to the existing Subpart IIII and JJJJ rules:

1. Implement more stringent standards for stationary compression ignition engines with displacement greater than or equal to 10 liters per cylinder and less than 30 liters per cylinder consistent with recent revisions to standards for similar mobile source marine engines (Subpart IIII). 
2. Allow owners and operators to develop their own operation and maintenance plans as an alternative to following manufacturer provided operation and maintenance procedures (Subpart IIII). Note: Owners and operators that choose this revised approach to operation and maintenance will generally be subject to additional testing and will be required to keep maintenance plans and records. 
3. Clarify the applicability of Subparts IIII and JJJJ to the installation and operation of temporary engines (i.e., engines in one (1) location for less than one (1) year) (Subparts IIII and JJJJ). 
4. Revise the requirements for engines with displacement at or above 30 liters per cylinder to align more closely with recent standards for similar mobile source marine engines, and for engines in rural portions of Alaska that are not accessible by the Federal Aid Highway System (Subpart IIII). 
5. Add a definition for “reconstruct” that is specific to Subpart IIII and JJJJ. 
6. Revise the standards of performance for new stationary spark ignition internal combustion engines to mirror certain revisions proposed for compression ignition engines (Subpart JJJJ). 

U.S. EPA will accept comments on the proposed amendments to 40 CFR Part 60, Subparts IIII and JJJJ rule until 60 days following the publication of the proposed amendments in the Federal Register. 

U.S. EPA Convenes RSL Modelers Workshop

On May 10 – 13, U.S. EPA met with regional, state, and local modelers in Portland, Oregon for the U.S. EPA Regional/State/Local (RSL) Modelers Workshop. Several “hot-topic” items were included on the agenda, most notably, the new NO2 and SO2 National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). The regulated community was anticipating that further guidance related to Significant Impact Levels (SILs) for NO2 would be released at the workshop. However, based on ALL4 follow-up discussions with state regulators who attended the workshop, no significant guidance regarding a proposed NO2 SIL was provided by U.S. EPA. It is anticipated that U.S. EPA will release guidance on this in the “near future” on the Support Center for Regulatory Atmospheric Modeling (SCRAM) website (www.epa.gov/ttn/scram/). Several pending AERMOD and AERMET changes that are expected to be reflected in new versions of the regulatory dispersion models to be released in the “near future” were discussed at the workshop. The most notable technical change will be the addition of a maximum daily output file feature to AERMOD. This will help AERMOD users identify the 3-year 98th and 99th percentile of the daily maximum 1-hour average concentrations, representing the form of the new NO2 and SO2 NAAQS. 

The workshop, which is not open to the public, is held to discuss regulatory air quality modeling issues. However, presentations given at the workshop are made available to the public and can be viewed here. 

Widespread Applicability and Energy Assessment Highlight the Proposed New Boiler MACT Rules

As we reported in last month’s 4 The Record, April 29, 2010 was a busy day for U.S. EPA and marked the culmination of years of background effort and planning related to air toxic emissions from boilers. U.S. EPA has proposed four (4) rules that, when finalized, will impact thousands of facilities. Two (2) of these rules are intended to reduce emissions of toxic air pollutants from boilers and process heaters located at both major and area sources of hazardous air pollutant (HAP) emissions (Boiler MACT rules). 

Widespread Applicability and New Challenges for Industry 

ALL4 recognizes that these proposed new rules will affect almost the entire regulated community and we have assembled an internal RegTech team of experts to analyze the impact that this rulemaking will have on boilers and process heaters everywhere. ALL4’s opinion of the proposed Boiler MACT rules is that they contain some very restrictive emission limitations and onerous monitoring requirements for both existing and new sources. In their present form, the proposed new Boiler MACT rules will present a compliance challenge for many facilities. 

New Energy Assessment Requirement 

One interesting new feature present in both Boiler MACT rules is the requirement to perform an energy assessment. No other MACT standard requires affected sources to perform an energy assessment; however, we’re not all that surprised to see it in light of where U.S. EPA seems to be heading with their regulatory development process. Most are aware of U.S. EPA’s greenhouse gas (GHG) regulatory activities. The energy assessment requirement appears to bridge the GHG regulations and the MACT standards. Furthermore, one of the first considerations of a climate change GHG reduction strategy or GHG Best Available Control Technology (BACT) analysis is to perform an energy assessment. The energy assessment is a constant theme in these regulatory activities because improved energy efficiency means less fuels burned, and less fuel burned means less criteria pollutants, less HAPs, and less GHG emissions. 

In reviewing the preambles, the proposed rules, and the rule summary tables, U.S. EPA has not clearly communicated what equipment must be included in the energy assessment. In some places, the rules refer to conducting the assessment on the boiler steam system, and in other places there are references to conducting the assessment on the entire facility which implies that the assessment needs to include all energy consuming activities. It’s critical that U.S. EPA clarify their intent surrounding energy assessments because they could require considerable time and resources to prepare. 

There is one difference between the proposed energy assessment requirements for major sources and area sources. Major sources must also develop an energy management program using the ENERGY STAR Guidelines for Energy Management. The ENERGY STAR website indicates that an energy management program must include procedures that are put into place to continually assess and improve energy usage. 

With a deadline for comment submittal of only 60 days after publication in the Federal Register (i.e., by August 3, 2010), we encourage you to take part in the public process and submit comments, either through a trade organization or your company. 

We’re wrapping up our 4 Part Boiler MACT and CISWI Webinar Series. If you missed out on the series, be sure to check out our presentation slides. Stay tuned for more in-depth updates over the coming months in ALL4’s 4 The Record and 4 The Record Extra. 

Final PSD and Title V Greenhouse Gas Tailoring Rule

Final PSD and Title V Greenhouse Gas Tailoring Rule