Date: January 5, 2010
Source: Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA)
The Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) submitted comments to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) arguing that their proposed Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) and Title V Greenhouse Gas Tailoring Rule would impose a significant regulatory burden on a large number of very small solid waste disposal facilities "for a very small reduction in emissions."
On October 27, 2009, the EPA published a proposed rule that subjects facilities emitting more than 25,000 tons of greenhouse gases (GHGs) annually to construction and operating permitting requirements under the Clean Air Act. The Prevention of Significant Deterioration and Title V Gas Tailoring Rule (the "Proposed Rule") applies to new facilities and existing facilities proposing major emissions modifications. Facilities subject to the Proposed Rule will be required to minimize GHG emissions through installation of controls based on Best Available Control Technology ("BACT"), which would be determined during the permitting process.
The EPA accepted comments on the proposal through December 28, 2009; a final rule is expected to be issued in the spring.
It follows EPA's Mandatory Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule which became effective on December 29, 2009, and establishes for the first time, annual federal mandatory GHG reporting requirements for owners and operators of certain facilities, fossil fuel suppliers and industrial GHG suppliers that emit more than 25,000 tons of carbon dioxide ("CO2") or other GHGs per year. According to the EPA, it will apply to about 10,000 facilities that account for 85 percent of the nation's total GHG emissions. The rule also applies to municipal solid waste landfills that generate methane and manure management systems with combined methane and nitrous oxide emissions. Regulated entities must begin tracking their GHG emissions on January 1, 2010 and submit their first annual report to the EPA by March 31, 2011.
EPA's website: Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) Basic Information, www.epa.gov/nsr/psd.html.
PRESS RELEASE FROM SWANA:
SWANA Recommends Changes to EPA's Proposed Tailoring Rule
On Wednesday, December 23, 2009, the Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) submitted comments to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regarding their proposed Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) and Title V Greenhouse Gas Tailoring Rule. This proposal is targeted at facilities with emissions over 25,000 tons of CO2e annually and would require them to obtain permits that would demonstrate they are using Best Available Control Technologies (BACT) to minimize their GHG emissions.
SWANA's comments expressed many concerns with the rule, but mainly focused on the lack of industry involvement with BACT development and the fact that the proposed threshold is too low and does not represent the Congressional intent of PSD to cover "major sources".
"If EPA were to finalize this rulemaking as proposed, they would subject a large number of very small solid waste disposal facilities to regulation under the Clean Air Act, " said John Skinner, Executive Director and CEO of SWANA. "This would represent a very expensive undertaking for the regulated facilities for a very small reduction in emissions," Skinner added.
Landfills are perhaps the largest sector to be affected by this ruling. EPA estimates that using the 25,000 tons of CO2e threshold would newly subject 1,700 landfills to Clean Air Act permitting. Currently these landfills are not subject to PSD or Title V operating permits because they do not meet the non-methane organic compound (NMOC) or waste-in-place thresholds of the existing regulation. However they would exceed the 25,000 tpy CO2e threshold in the proposed regulation and would be subject to PSD and Title V. These additional landfills would be required to show they are using the BACT to control their GHG emissions.
Additionally, this ruling could unfairly affect waste-to-energy operations by forcing them to show use of BACT for their GHG emissions, regardless of the amount of GHG avoided by WTE on a life cycle basis.
To read our full letter to EPA please click here.
About SWANA:
For over 40 years, the Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) has been the leading professional association in the solid waste management industry. SWANA's mission is "to advance the practice of environmentally and economically sound management of municipal solid waste." SWANA serves more than 8,000 members and thousands more industry professionals with technical conferences, certifications, publications and a large offering of technical training courses. For more information, visit www.SWANA.org.
For more information, contact:
Robert Wolfe
Manager of Marketing & Communications
240-494-2256
rwolfe@swana.org.
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