SOCMA urges EPA to revise costly area sources rulemaking

On March 3, SOCMA members and staff met with key EPA staff in North Carolina to discuss the chemical manufacturing area sources proposed rule. The meeting concluded with mixed results.

The proposed rule on national emissions standards for hazardous air pollutants (NESHAP) for chemical manufacturing area (i.e., non-major) sources will potentially have a significant economic impact on SOCMA members. For this reason, SOCMA has been actively engaged on the issue for much of the past two years. Most recently, in early January, SOCMA submitted extensive comments to EPA, arguing that the proposed rule’s costs would be substantial – far more so than EPA estimates – and would have serious adverse economic effects on SOCMA members.

At the March meeting, EPA made it clear that, “based on recent court decisions,” it is very unlikely that they will grant SOCMA its top priority – namely, the establishment of a de minimis threshold in the rule. The establishment of a de minimis threshold would be the single biggest thing EPA could do to reduce the applicability and the burden of the rule. On the other hand, EPA expressed serious interest in SOCMA’s second major recommendation: applying the rule’s requirements only to individual chemical manufacturing process units that emit urban HAPS, and (potentially) only regulating urban HAP emissions from these units. Furthermore, EPA seemed sympathetic to several other points that SOCMA had made in its comments. If EPA does not bend on the de minimis levels, SOCMA may examine whether it would be worthwhile to challenge the rule after it is finalised. The deadline for the final rule is May 15.