Virginia Regulatory Town Hall
Agency
Department of Environmental Quality
Board
Air Pollution Control Board

General Notice
General Notice - Proposed State Implementation Plan Revision - Rev. H12
Date Posted: 3/17/2014
Expiration Date: 5/7/2014
Submitted to Registrar for publication: YES
No comment forum defined for this notice.

Notice of action: The Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) is announcing an opportunity for public comment on a proposed revision to the Commonwealth of Virginia State Implementation Plan (SIP). The SIP is a plan developed by the Commonwealth in order to fulfill its responsibilities under the federal Clean Air Act to attain and maintain the ambient air quality standards promulgated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the Act. The Commonwealth intends to submit the regulation to EPA as a revision to the SIP in accordance with the requirements of § 110(a) of the federal Clean Air Act.

Regulations affected: The regulation of the board affected by this action is Permits for Stationary Sources of Pollutants Subject To Regulation, Greenhouse Gas Plantwide Applicability Limits, 9VAC5 Chapter 85 (Revision H12).

Purpose of notice: DEQ is seeking comments on the issue of whether the regulation amendments should be submitted as revisions to the plan.

Public comment period: April 7 to May 7, 2014.

Public hearing: A public hearing may be conducted if a request is made in writing to the contact listed below. In order to be considered, the request must include the full name, address and telephone number of the person requesting the hearing and be received by DEQ on the last day of the comment period. Notice of the date, time, and location of any requested public hearing will be announced in a separate notice, and another 30-day comment period will be conducted.

Public comment stage: Because the regulation amendments have been adopted by the board in accordance with the Administrative Process Act and have subsequently become effective, DEQ is accepting comment only on the issue cited above under "purpose of notice" and not on the content of the regulation amendments.

Description of proposal: On July 12, 2012 (77 FR 41051), EPA promulgated final amendments to its regulations for permitting of greenhouse gases (GHGs). The purpose of these amendments is to provide for better implementation of the federal program for  establishing plantwide applicability limits (PALs) for GHG emissions. A PAL establishes a site-specific plantwide emission level for a pollutant that allows the source to make changes at the facility without triggering the requirements of the prevention of significant deterioration (PSD) program. Such PALs are already available under PSD for non-GHG pollutants and for GHGs on a mass basis, and EPA has revised the PAL regulations to allow for GHG PALs to be established on a carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) emissions basis as well. EPA also revised its regulations to allow a GHG-only source to submit an application for a CO2e-based GHG PAL while also maintaining its minor source status.  Because these actions could streamline PSD permitting, it would be beneficial to implement them in Virginia.

Federal information: This notice is being given to satisfy the public participation requirements of federal regulations (40 CFR 51.102).  The proposal will be submitted as a revision to the Commonwealth of Virginia SIP under § 110(a) of the federal Clean Air Act in accordance with 40 CFR 51.104.  It is planned to submit all provisions of the proposal as a revision to the Commonwealth of Virginia SIP.

How to comment: DEQ accepts written comments by email, fax, and postal mail.  In order to be considered, comments must include the full name, address and telephone number of the person commenting and be received by DEQ by the last day of the comment period.  All materials received are part of the public record.

To review proposal: The proposal and any supporting documents are available on the DEQ Air Public Notices for Plans web site (http://www.deq.state.va.us/Programs/Air/PublicNotices/airplansandprograms.aspx).  The documents may also be obtained by contacting the DEQ representative named below.  The public may review the documents between 8:30 am and 4:30 pm of each business day until the close of the public comment period at the following DEQ locations: 1) DEQ Main Street Office, 8th Floor, 629 E. Main St, Richmond VA, 804-698-4070; 2) Southwest Regional Office, 355 Deadmore St, Abingdon VA, 540-676-4800; 3) Blue Ridge Regional Office, Roanoke Location, 3019 Peters Creek Rd, Roanoke VA, 540-562-6700; 4) Blue Ridge Regional Office, Lynchburg Location, 7705 Timberlake Rd, Lynchburg VA, 804-582-5120; 5) Valley Regional Office, 4411 Early Rd, Harrisonburg VA, 540-574-7800;  6) Piedmont Regional Office, 4949-A Cox Rd, Glen Allen VA, 804-527-5020; 7) Northern Regional Office, 13901 Crown Court, Woodbridge VA, 703-583-3800; and 8)Tidewater Regional Office, 5636 Southern Blvd, Virginia Beach VA, 757-518-2000.


Contact Information
Name / Title: Karen G. Sabasteanski 
Address: 629 East Main Street
P.O. Box 1105
Richmond, 23218
Email Address: karen.sabasteanski@deq.virginia.gov
Telephone: (804)698-4426    FAX: (804)698-4510    TDD: ()-