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The MPCA is amending its air quality rules in Minnesota
Rules chapters 7005, 7007, 7008, 7011, and 7019,
and plans to publish notice of proposed revisions in late February 2018.
The overall purpose of this rulemaking is to clarify permit requirements for
small sources of air emissions and develop rules governing the treatment of
small air-pollution-emitting facilities and activities.
The rules propose a simpler compliance path for many small
facilities such as auto-body shops, coating facilities, and woodworking
facilities by providing new technical standards that the facilities must follow
rather than writing those standards into individual permits. By listing the
expectations, the expanded categories of exempt sources provide for greater
environmental protection and compliance certainty, as well as cost savings for
both small businesses and the MPCA.
Other rule changes clarify requirements for activities that
emit small amounts of air pollution within larger facilities, providing greater
administrative efficiencies for both regulated entities and the MPCA.
If you are interested in receiving email notices about these
rules, please sign up for email notification of exempt source/conditionally insignificant
activities rule updates. You can sign up to receive our emails and find more
information on the proposed rules on our website.
The MPCA will soon begin rulemaking to incorporate several
federal New Source Performance Standards and National Emission Standards for
Hazardous Air Pollutants into state rules. This rulemaking may also include
changes necessary to support the addition of the new standards, such as
re-arranging existing rule language for better understanding, eliminating
duplicative requirements, correcting cross-referencing errors, and ensuring
consistent use of terms. Information about the amendments being considered is
available on the rulemaking webpage.
Sign up to receive emails about this rulemaking on our website.
Starting May 1, 2018, all applications for individual
air permit administrative amendments must be completed through the MPCA’s online
service (e-Service). As of that date, MPCA will no longer accept paper
applications for administrative amendments.
This spring, the MPCA plans to launch a new
e-Service that will allow facilities to submit individual air permit reissuance
applications online.
Benefits
Online submission makes permitting reviews faster
by streamlining processes and decreasing data entry, for example by populating forms
with permitting data, thereby reducing the time required to issue air quality
permits.
Getting started
First-time users of air quality e-Services should
go to the MPCA’s Air
permit forms and online submittals webpage
for help getting started. The forms page has links to all available air
e-Services, instructions on setting up an account and getting facility access,
and a list of information needed for each page in the e-Service. Additional
information will be added for the new service prior to its launch. Once in the
e-Service, users will have access to help files for every page and field. If
the help pages do not provide the information needed, contact the MPCA at onlineservices.pca@state.mn.us.
An e-Services account can be created before the new
e-Service goes live. Existing users will be able to use the same account they
already created to submit individual air permit reissuance applications.
If noted in your permit application or if taking credit for
using control equipment such as filters, cyclones, or afterburners in your
emission inventory calculations, you must follow the Control Equipment Rule (MN Rules 7011.0060-7011.0080)
to make sure the equipment is operating properly. According to the rules,
you must:
- Maintain an inventory of spare parts that
are subject to frequent replacement
- Maintain records when replacing or
repairing parts
- Train staff on how to properly operate and
monitor the equipment
- Always operate control equipment when
process equipment is operating
- Monitor and record results of daily,
monthly, quarterly, and annual inspection requirements
- If a shutdown or breakdown results in
increased emissions for more than 1 hour, report it
- Submit semi-annual reports if deviations
occur
- If using a certified hood, keep records
that the hood meets design and operating practice standards.
For specific requirements, see the rules referenced
above. Additional details can be found in MPCA’s Facts About
Control Equipment Standards.
Emissions Inventory reporting is due on April 1, 2018, and
is done through the MPCA e-Services website.
Starting in February, the MPCA will be accepting
grant applications for cost-effective projects to reduce emissions of volatile
organic compounds (VOCs) at small businesses, government agencies, educational
institutions, and nonprofits. Many of
these organizations have opportunities to use alternative equipment, solvents,
inks, finishes, or coatings that both save money and protect the health of
their employees and neighbors. The MPCA’s cost-share incentive program helps
organizations make these changes.
To
date, the MPCA has provided 21 organizations in Minnesota with a total of
$660,000 to reduce VOCs. Together, these projects have reduced about eighteen tons
of VOCs annually, equal to more than 18,000 cans of spray paint. Learn more about past projects on our website.
VOCs
are common air pollutants emitted from processes and liquids that can cause a
variety of health effects including irritation of the eyes and throat,
headaches, and nausea. They also combine
with other airborne pollutants in to form smog.
The MPCA is looking to fund cost-effective projects
for a wide range of organizations. The application for funding will be open
soon, so we urge anyone thinking about a VOC-reducing project to sign up now
for email updates
by visiting the MPCA VOC
reduction webpage or contacting Eric David
at 651-757-2218 or eric.david@state.mn.us.
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MPCA air quality forecasters had a successful start to the
new statewide Air Quality Index (AQI) forecasting program in 2017. Forecasters
brought together the power of artificial intelligence and years of experience
in weather forecasting to accurately predict air quality 92 percent of the time
from June 1st through December 31st. While elevated ozone levels gave the
forecasters an initial challenge in June, wildfire smoke from the western U.S.
and Canada ended up being the greatest challenge during the summer and fall.
Smoke contributed to yellow (moderate) air quality days across the state, with
the highest number of smoky yellow days in the Twin Cities (13).
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 Another unique factor in air quality forecasting this season
was the early winter snowfall deficit across the Midwest. Agricultural fertilizer exposed to warm
temperatures and high humidity both caused fine particles to increase and
created noticeable odors on a number of days across the Twin Cities.
While air quality was good across Minnesota last year on
average, a few days had the potential for AQIs in the orange (unhealthy for
sensitive groups) category. This
prompted forecasters to issue four air quality alerts in 2017. These alerts were issued not only through MPCA
and National Weather Service websites, but also through notifications on the
new and improved Minnesota Air mobile app. To learn more about the AQI, sign up
to receive air quality alerts, and download the mobile app, visit the MPCA’s website.
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The MPCA will soon be accepting applications from
organizations interested in participating as host sites for the 2018-2019 year
of the Minnesota GreenCorps program. Applications from eligible organizations
interested in hosting Minnesota GreenCorps members are anticipated to open in February. When the application period
opens, we will notify email subscribers and send instructions on how to
apply. Visit the GreenCorps website to learn
more about this program and subscribe to the email list.
Preview of the upcoming
program year
The MPCA plans to place up to 42 full-time GreenCorps members
with various host sites for the 2018-2019 program year. Members will serve about
40 hours a week for 11 months beginning in late September 2018 through August
2019. Eligible organizations include governments (local, regional, state, and
tribal), school districts, nonprofit institutions of higher education, and
501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations. Organizations may apply to host Minnesota
GreenCorps members who will serve on projects in the areas of:
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Air
pollutant reduction (energy conservation and transportation)
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Waste
reduction, recycling, and organics management
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Green
infrastructure improvements (stormwater and urban forestry)
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Community
readiness and outreach
Operation of the 2018-2019 program year is contingent on
receiving funds. Confirmation of funding may not be available prior to the
application deadline.
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Minnesota is receiving $47 million over 10 years to reduce
diesel pollution as part of a federal court
settlement with Volkswagen. The MPCA
has been seeking input from Minnesotans to develop our state’s plan for the
funds. During November and December, the
MPCA held five additional listening sessions around the state to dive into some
of the details of the settlement and understand the different interests and
needs across Minnesota. We had some
great conversations and learned a lot. For
a summary of some of the key things we heard at the meetings and additional
data from our “dotmocracy” survey tool, visit our website. You can also find materials and notes from
all our meetings here.
What’s next?
On January 30, Minnesota and all other states were formally
approved to receive funds. We are
currently processing all the input we’ve received and beginning to draft our plan
for using the funds. The settlement
requires states to develop a plan to explain what they intend to do with the
settlement funds, what their goals are, how they will consider environmental
justice, and what emissions benefits they expect to achieve. We expect to release the draft plan this
winter and provide opportunities for Minnesotans to comment on the draft
plan. After we receive input on our
draft, we will make any potential changes then submit the document to the trustee
for approval. Sign up here
to receive email updates.
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The MPCA’s Community Air Monitoring Project (CAMP) uses funding
from the Minnesota Legislature to do short-term air quality monitoring in
selected Minnesota neighborhoods. The objective is to monitor and assess
air quality in low-income neighborhoods or communities of color that may be
disproportionately impacted by air pollution from highways, air traffic, or
industrial sources. Since starting the project in October 2013, the MPCA
has completed monitoring in multiple communities in the Twin Cities and
Duluth.
The CAMP monitor is now located in the Bottineau/Marshall
Terrace neighborhood in Minneapolis. The monitor measures common air
pollutants such as fine particles (dust and soot), volatile organic compounds,
and metals that can be harmful to breathe. Monitoring in this
neighborhood started in January 2017 and is expected to continue through
mid-2018.
Monitoring from 2013-16 found that generally, except for a few
areas where fine particles were slightly elevated, pollutant concentrations in
the CAMP-monitored neighborhoods were similar to results from Minnesota’s
permanent, statewide air-monitoring network. However, monitoring in the St.
Paul West Side community during the spring of 2014 showed metals, while still
within health benchmarks, were higher than other Twin Cities monitoring sites.
In response, the MPCA returned to the West Side to do more metals monitoring at
the St. Paul Downtown Airport in 2016. Results from this monitor, as well as
for the monitor located in St. Anthony Park in St. Paul, are now available on
the CAMP website.
After monitoring in Bottineau/Marshall
Terrace is complete, MPCA staff will analyze results, post the results to the
CAMP website, and share the findings with the public. For more information,
please visit the website or contact Kari Palmer at kari.palmer@state.mn.us or 651-757-2635. More information about the MPCA’s air
monitoring program is available here.
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Applications deadline
extended through February 12, 2018.
Does your business have pollution prevention or conservation
projects that need a skilled set of hands to get off the ground? The Minnesota
Technical Assistance Program’s (MnTAP) summer intern program may be the answer!
MnTAP’s highly qualified engineering interns are able to dedicate their time
and skills to help optimize energy, water, and materials use in facilities
across Minnesota.
Interns collaborate with your business and MnTAP’s staff of
engineers and specialists to research conservation opportunities, perform
assessments, and develop actionable recommendations. In 2017, MnTAP interns
helped 17 companies identify opportunities to save $1,590,700 annually by
uncovering potential reductions of:
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1.1 million pounds of waste
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9.6 million kWh and 88,000 therms of energy
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272 million gallons of water
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231,000 pounds of chemicals.
On her experience with MnTAP’s intern program, Kelly
Gilliland of DiaSorin, a biotech company in Stillwater, says, “This is the
first time that DiaSorin teamed up with MnTAP to sponsor an intern, and it was
a huge success! The intern was professional, well prepared, and organized. He
stayed focused on mapping resource usage, collecting and analyzing data, and
identifying ways to reduce resource consumption. MnTAP’s intern program is a
great benefit for interns and Minnesota businesses alike.” Learn more about past projects here.
MnTAP is an outreach program at the University of Minnesota
School of Public Health. The organization helps businesses develop and
implement industry-tailored solutions that prevent pollution at the source to
improve public and environmental health while reducing operating costs. The
intern program is partially funded through grants from the MPCA and state
utility partners, which allows MnTAP to place interns at minimal cost to
Minnesota businesses.
Visit MnTAP’s website
to learn more and apply to host an intern.
If you are interested in a MnTAP intern for summer 2018 and would like
to discuss further, call Nathan Landwehr at (612) 624-4697.
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Electric vehicles are becoming
more visible in our communities. You may see one plugged into a charging
station at a local grocery store or in a parking ramp, or notice a car with
zero-emissions lettering on its side as it travels down the road. Ever wonder
why people choose to drive them? Learn
more about the technology, what it’s like to drive and maintain one, and their
environmental benefits in an article
on the MPCA’s website.
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On January
26, 2018, EPA rescinded a maximum achievable control technology (MACT) standard
policy known as “once in, always in.” The
OIAI policy from 1995 stated that once a facility emitting hazardous air
pollutants (HAPs) was considered a major source (has the potential to emit 10
tons of a single HAP and 25 tons of all HAPs), then it remained major even if
its emissions dropped below major-source levels.
In new
guidance that supersedes the OIAI policy, EPA states, “a major source becomes
an area source at such time that the source takes an enforceable limit on its
potential to emit (PTE) [HAPs] below the major source thresholds…”
The OIAI policy was implemented to prevent backsliding, and
has been very effective in doing so. However, because a facility could
never be relieved from a MACT standard after a facility complied with the
standard, there was little economic incentive to evaluate new pollution
prevention activities, like reformulating products to eliminate HAPs. The
OIAI policy also ended up affecting very small facilities. For some small
facilities that were never likely to emit many HAPs, OIAI permanently imposed
sometimes burdensome and costly permits and MACT controls because they failed
to properly restrict HAP emissions prior to construction.
EPA anticipates
publishing a notice in the Federal Register soon to take comment on
adding regulatory text to reflect the agency’s decision. For further information, see the EPA’s website.
The MPCA air
quality program supports this policy revision, and is evaluating the overall
impact of the policy change in both its permitting and compliance programs.
On January 31, 2018, the MPCA
released draft air and water permits and a draft 401 certification for PolyMet
Mining’s NorthMet project. The draft permits are open for public comment
through March 16, 2018. Comments can be
submitted to the agency in writing or at two public meetings held jointly with
the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
The
meetings are scheduled for February 7 in Aurora and February 8 in Duluth.
Details
on the meetings, the draft permits and support documents for the project, and
information on how to comment on them are available on the MPCA’s project pages or from the state’s PolyMet
portal. The MPCA’s formal public notices for the permits and
certification are on our public
notice webpage.
The
MPCA will consider all written comments received during the comment period or
made orally at the meetings before deciding to issue the permits or
certification.
The Clean Power Plan is a rule, developed under the Obama
administration, that would require states to reduce carbon dioxide pollution
from existing power plants. The Trump
administration reviewed this rule and is proposing
to repeal it based on a new, more narrow interpretation of the Clean Air
Act. The EPA is currently taking comment
on this proposed repeal and have three public meetings scheduled to hear input. The MPCA and Minnesota Department of Commerce
submitted comments to the administration in opposition to the proposed
repeal.
The EPA is also considering
replacing the Clean Power Plan with a new rule based on the current
administration’s interpretation of the Clean Air Act. EPA is accepting comment on this possible
rulemaking.
Air Mail is a quarterly,
email-based newsletter featuring updates on air quality issues and the work of
the MPCA and our partners. Subscribers to this list also receive Air Mail
Bulletins, which provide time-sensitive regulatory and technical updates.
To see past issues, Air Mail
Bulletins, or to subscribe, visit the MPCA's website.
If you have questions
or comments about Air Mail, please contact Amanda Jarrett Smith at
amanda.smith@state.mn.us.
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