U.S. EPA Proposes Greenhouse Gas Permitting Guidance

The Climate Report - Winter 2011

Under EPA's May 2010 " Tailoring Rule," greenhouse gas emissions from the largest industrial sources became subject to the Clean Air Act's "prevention of significant deterioration," or "PSD," preconstruction permit program and the Act's Title V operating permit program on January 2, 2011. With the PSD program applicable to greenhouse gas emissions, federal, state, and local permitting authorities must now determine what constitutes the "best available control technology," or "BACT," for such emissions.

On November 10, 2010, U.S. EPA issued draft guidance to assist permit writers in making such determinations. In its proposed guidance, EPA makes clear that it is not changing its established "top-down" process for selecting BACT on a case-by-case basis for greenhouse gas emissions. Rather, EPA stresses that permit writers have discretion to determine BACT for greenhouse gases using the same five-step process it has recommended