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PA NEW EPA RULE TO HELP INDUSTRY PROTECT PUBLIC HEALTH AND THE ENVIRONMENT
Release Date: 10/03/97
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FOR RELEASE: FRIDAY, OCTOBER 3, 1997
NEW EPA RULE TO HELP INDUSTRY PROTECT PUBLIC HEALTH AND THE ENVIRONMENT
EPA today announced a new rule under the Clean Air Act to improve industry compliance with existing air emission standards protecting public health and the environment. The Agency believes the regulation will help facilities achieve emission reductions, as well as reduce the need for additional regulations. Under the final rule,
called the “Compliance Assurance Monitoring” (CAM), owners and operators of industrial plants must continuously and efficiently monitor the operation and control of their pollution control equipment. Meeting these monitoring requirements will enable operators to provide local, state and federal officials with reasonable assurance that emission standards are being met (emission standards are measured at the smokestack, unlike national ambient air quality standards which are measured in the atmosphere). If operators find that equipment is not working properly, they must take action to fix it, and must also report the problem to the appropriate state and local enforcement agencies. If problems persist, EPA will allow state and local agencies to require significant repair or even replacement of control devices. The control devices monitored under this new rule will cover over 97 percent of emissions from all major industrial facilities nationwide that use control equipment. The monitoring program must include an acceptable operating range for the control equipment (known as the “indicator range”). Generally, facility operators will use results of performance tests, in conjunction with equipment design data or other information, to determine the indicator range. If subsequent performance is within the range, EPA assumes a reasonable assurance of compliance with emission limitations, and will not target the facility for enforcement actions. The CAM final rule will appear soon in the Federal Register, but can be downloaded immediately from the EPA Office of Air and Radiation website on the Internet, under “recently signed rules” at: (https://www.epa.gov/ttn/oarpg/rules.html). The compliance period begins anytime after six months from publication of this regulation in the Register and kicks in for any specific facility when the owner applies for a new or renewed permit to operate. For further technical information on the rule, contact Peter Westlin in EPA’s Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards at 919-541-1058, or e-mail him at: [email protected].
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