U.S. EPA Finalizes Key PM2.5 New Source Permitting Concentration Limits
U.S. EPA has finalized ambient PM2.5concentration limits that apply to projects undergoing Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) permitting. The following thresholds have now been established for Class II areas (i.e., any area that is not considered a national park or other protected area):
- PSD Increment: the allowable incremental increase in ambient concentrations from a selected baseline date that may be caused by a project. The PSD increments were finalized at 4 and 9 µg/m3 on an annual and 24-hour basis, respectively.
- Significant Impact Levels (SILs): screening ambient concentrations that are used to determine whether a full National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) evaluation is required as part of a permit application. The SILs are finalized at 0.3 and 1.2 µg/m3 on an annual and 24-hour basis, respectively.
- Significant Monitoring Concentration (SMC): an ambient concentration resulting from an emissions increase that, if exceeded, would result in the requirement to perform pre-construction ambient monitoring for PM2.5. The SMC is finalized at 4 µg/m3 on a 24-hour basis (there is no annual SMC).
The final ambient thresholds are extremely stringent and will make it difficult to avoid conducting a full NAAQS assessment and performing ambient monitoring for any project that triggers PSD requirements for PM2.5. Similar to the recently promulgated NAAQS for NO2 and SO2, these PM2.5 ambient concentration thresholds underscore the importance of evaluating ambient requirements early in the planning phases of any air quality permitting project.
Who Owns Those Greenhouse Gas Emissions?
U.S. EPA has finalized amendments to the general provisions of the Mandatory Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Reporting Rule (MRR) codified at 40 CFR Part 98 to require those reporting to provide the name, address, and percentage ownership of their U.S. parent company(s); their applicable North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code(s); and an indication of whether or not any of their reported emissions are from a cogeneration unit. These amendments take effect on November 22, 2010 and reporters will be required to include this information when reporting their 2010 GHG emissions and in all subsequent annual GHG emissions reports. U.S. EPA intends to use this information to inform the implementation of Clean Air Act (CAA) strategies and to support more effective research on addressing GHG emissions requirements by providing for a more detailed understanding of GHG emissions sources.
The additional information that reporters must now include when submitting their annual GHG emissions report to U.S. EPA includes the following:
U.S. Parent Company
U.S. EPA had proposed two (2) options. The option that U.S. EPA has finalized will require reporting facilities to provide the names and physical addresses of all of their U.S. parent companies and their respective percentages of ownership. For this rule a “U.S. parent company” is the highest-level U.S. company (or companies) with an ownership interest in the reporting entity as of December 31 of the year for which data are being reported. A table in the preamble to the final rule amendment provides guidance on how facilities should report based on various ownership structures.
NAICS Code
Each facility required to report GHG emissions under 40 CFR Part 98 will be required to report its primary NAICS code and any additional applicable NAICS codes. For purposes of this rule a facility’s primary NAICS code is considered to be the six-digit code (as defined in the NAICS Manual 2007) that most accurately describes the facility’s primary product/activity/service which is the principal source of revenue for the facility. Reporters can also list additional NAICS codes that describe products/activities/services which are not related to their principle source of revenue.
Cogeneration
Reporting facilities must indicate whether any reported emissions include GHG emissions from a cogeneration unit located at the facility (either yes or no). U.S. EPA wants to be able to identify the types and characteristics of facilities that employ cogeneration technologies, as this information may be important to future development of GHG mitigation strategies.
Facilities subject to 40 CFR Part 98 are required to report the above information annually as it exists on December 31 of the year for which data are being reported.
