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EPA delays RICE NESHAP to January 14. American Municipal Power provides guidance to diesel unit owners in public power sector.
On 12 December 2012, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) gave notice it will delay issuing the final Reciprocating Internal Combustion Engine (RICE) National Emission Standard for Hazardous Air Pollutant (NESHAP) rule until 14 January 2013 instead of 14 December 2012 as previously promised.  The RICE NESHAP initial rule and re-proposed version released earlier this year followed challenges by groups seeking to use engines for demand response power generation. The re-proposed rule has caused the non-profit American Municipal Power (AMP) to publish guidance for its members using diesel units in its 14 December 2012 newsletter.
The EPA's rule has generated significant opposition from the public power sector according to AMP. Engines likely to be affected include those used in water plants, wastewater treatment plants, engines used to start combustion turbines and RICE engines used for peak shaving or demand response power generation.
AMP notes EPA's proposed amendments to the RICE NESHAP rule include the following important improvements of interest to AMP members:
- Allowing up to 100 hours (up from 15) for emergency demand response (EDR) as part of the currently allowable 100 hours for maintenance and testing.
- Providing an alternative voltage-variance trigger of 5 percent or more below standard for triggering EDR (other trigger is an EEA level 2).
- Providing for a temporary (until April 16, 2017) allowance of up to 50 hours annually for peak shaving and other non-emergency uses.
AMP advises one issue still requires immediate attention. The rule requires compliance by May 3, 2013, and AMP sees no reason to believe the EPA will allow that date to slip. Under the rule, unit owners have until 3 January 2013 to notify the EPA - if the owners plan to retrofit units to run for more than emergency or demand response purposes - the owner will need a one-year extension to May 2014 to complete the installation of control equipment.
What this means to you
Owners of CI-RICE gensets used primarily for emergency purposes may be required to install emission controls should they decide to generate power during high-demand periods.
MIRATECH can help
Contact MIRATECH to discuss your best options for ongoing compliance for CI RICE gensets.
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EPA proposes approval of Public Participation Rules in Texas' Clean-Air Plan.
On 30 November 2012 the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced it has proposed to approve the Texas clean-air plan that covers public notification requirements for facilities applying for air permits. The proposed approval applies to existing facilities that plan to make major changes as well as new projects. 
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) clarified the clean-air plan's procedures for citizens to submit comments on permit applications, as well as how TCEQ responds to comments. The revised rules give citizens two opportunities to provide comments on air permits. The first notice occurs when a facility applies for a permit, and the second notice occurs when the TCEQ submits a proposed permit. The second notice will also include expanded technical documents to ensure citizens and interested groups have as much information as possible on pending permits.
After extensive cooperation and dialog between TCEQ and the EPA, Texas also revised the public participation rules to apply to new and existing facilities that are classified as major or minor sources of pollution.
What this means to you The EPA is proposing to approve public notice requirements for Texas facilities applying for air permits for existing facilities making major changes or starting new projects. The rules will apply to facilities classified as either major or minor sources of pollution.
MIRATECH can help
Contact MIRATECH for answers to questions about commenting on Texas existing facilities air permitting.
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Call MIRATECH at 918-933-6232 for
Answers to RICE NESHAP Questions
What's the best way to get quick, smart answers to questions about the EPA's new RICE NESHAP regulations?
Compliance with these regulations is required by May 3, 2013 for compression ignition (CI) and by October 13, 2013 for spark ignition (SI) reciprocating internal combustion engines (RICE). The regulations strengthen National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) as defined in 40 CFR, part 63, supart ZZZZ.
Call MIRATECH at 918-933-6232 | Click image to learn more
about RICE NESHAP |
Email NESHAP@miratechcorp.com or Click Here for MIRATECH sales contacts.How can you get a project started?- Get regulation information
- Obtain product information
- Catalyst/Silencer Combination Units
Call MIRATECH at 918-933-6232 or Email NESHAP@miratechcorp.com for answers to NESHAP questions.
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EPA sets a lower limit for soot particles in the air.
On 14 December 2012, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a new standard for fine particle (PM 2.5) soot pollution that will force industry, utilities and local governments to find ways to reduce emissions of particles that are linked to thousands of cases of disease and death each year, according to a New York Times report. 
Acting under a court ordered deadline, the EPA set an annual standard of 12 micrograms per cubic meter of air, a significant tightening from the previous standard of 15 micrograms, set in 1997, which a federal court found too weak to adequately protect public health. The new standard is in the middle of the range of 11 to 13 micrograms per cubic meter that the EPA's science advisory panel recommended.
Communities must meet the new standard by 2020 or face possible penalties, including loss of federal transportation financing.
Today 66 counties in eight states do not meet the new standard, including the metropolitan areas of Los Angeles, Houston, St. Louis, Chicago, Cleveland and Pittsburgh. The EPA estimates that by 2020, when the rule is fully in force, only seven counties, all of them in California, will still be out of compliance.
Visit the EPA's Particulate Matter Web site for links to the ruling, fact sheet, and press release regarding EPA's new PM2.5 standard.
What this means to you
The EPA's lower PM 2.5 standard will likely force tighter emissions limits across a variety of industries and stationary engine applications.
MIRATECH can help
Contact MIRATECH for answers to questions about ways to reduce particulate matter emissions for your operation or application.
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Federal appeals court won't revisit
greenhouse gas ruling.
On 20 December 2012, a U.S. federal appeals court declined to revisit a decision that allowed the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to regulate greenhouse gas emissions. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia voted 6-2 to reject a request for the full court to reconsider a June ruling that upheld EPA's interpretation of the Clean Air Act according to a report from the online Web site, The Hill. 
The court's action could set up a Supreme Court challenge by industry, energy firms and the state of Alaska, which were pushing for the rehearing.
The decision in June by a three-judge panel determined the EPA properly evaluated the health effects of greenhouse gas emissions. That allowed the agency to continue regulating those emissions through the Clean Air Act.
The groups seeking a rehearing contended the EPA relied on faulty scientific data to draw its conclusions.
Circuit Judge David Sentelle, writing an opinion for the court, disagreed.
"Of course, we agree that the statute requires EPA to find a particular causal nexus between the pollutant and the harm in order to regulate. ... But that is exactly what EPA did: it found that 'greenhouse gases in the atmosphere may reasonably be anticipated both to endanger public health and to endanger public welfare,'" Sentelle wrote.
In a dissenting opinion, Judge Brett Kavanaugh argued the Clean Air Act should only govern the six pollutants listed under national ambient air quality standards. He said regulating greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide, went too far.
Sentelle disagreed, saying that with the Clean Air Act, "Congress did not say 'certain 'air pollutants.' ... It said 'any air pollutant,' and it meant it."
What this means to you
Barring a U.S. Supreme Court ruling or congressional action, greenhouse gas regulation will remain the responsibility of the EPA and tighter GHG emission standards with increased emphasis on low carbon fuels are likely in the future.
MIRATECH can help
Contact MIRATECH for answers to questions about how to minimize GHG emissions from your stationary engines.
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Seven states sue the EPA over methane emissions from oil and gas drilling.
On 18 December 2012, seven states in the northeastern United States announced plans to sue the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for alleged violations of the Clean Air Act in failing to address and limit methane emissions resulting from drilling for natural resources such as oil and gas according to a report from Envirotell.  In a press release issued earlier, New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman outlined the complaint, which focuses on methane emissions from resource-heavy states like Pennsylvania and Virginia. Joined by Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Vermont, the state of New York is leading the cause, demanding the EPA take immediate action to reduce methane emissions that threaten to increase the already troubling effects of anthropogenic climate change. For its part, the EPA has already announced new rules to be implemented in 2015 requiring firms drilling for gas and oil to install new equipment and enforce new rules limiting the amount of methane added to the atmosphere. Regarding this complaint, the EPA has promised a response. With a 60-day notice of the seven-state coalition's intention to sue currently on the books, the agency will have to do so quickly in order to avoid a potentially messy lawsuit. While the complaint in question references only those methane emission that result from the oil and gas industry, accounting for 37 percent of all U.S. methane emissions, the trend toward focusing on methane could lead the EPA to create new rules for the raising of livestock, which accounts for 21 percent, and for landfills, which account for 16 percent. What this means to you Methane is an extremely potent greenhouse gas and enters the atmosphere primarily from oil and gas operations. As GHG emission emphasis grows, tighter methane emissions controls are almost certain. MIRATECH can help Contact MIRATECH for learn more about how to control methane emissions in your operation. |
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