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National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutant Emissions from Miscellaneous Organic Chemical Processes
Note: EPA no longer updates this information, but it may be useful as a reference or resource.
[Federal Register: November 7, 1996 (Volume 61, Number 217)] [Proposed Rules] [Page 57602-57605] From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY 40 CFR Part 63 [AD-FRL-5649-3] National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutant Emissions from Miscellaneous Organic Chemical Processes AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). ACTION: Notice of available information and solicitation of additional information.
SUMMARY: The EPA intends to propose a single set of emission standards that will apply to more than 20 listed source categories of hazardous air pollutants (HAP). These emission standards will apply to a group of organic chemical processes for which final standards promulgation is required by November 15, 2000. The Agency anticipates that these standards will also apply to organic chemical processes that have either been excluded from the applicability of emission standards developed for other source categories, or that have not been included within a listed source category. [[Page 57603]] The purpose of this action is to notify interested parties including owners and operators of chemical processes that could be covered by national emission standards for hazardous air pollutants (NESHAP) applicable to miscellaneous organic processes. The EPA has invited State and Regional environmental agencies, representatives from industry, and representatives from environmental groups to provide input into the development of the set of proposed standards. Representatives of the Synthetic Organic Chemical Manufacturers Association and the Chemical Manufacturers Association are actively providing input into the regulatory development process for the proposed set of standards. The EPA encourages interested parties to provide input into this rulemaking process either through their respective trade organizations, or by contacting EPA directly. DOCKET: Docket No. A-90-49 contains information supporting development of the list of source categories, including those categories for which EPA proposes to develop a set of emission standards by November 15, 2000. A docket supporting development of emission standards discussed in this notice has not yet been established. Docket No. A-90-49 is available for public inspection and copying between 8 a.m. and 5:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, at EPA's Air and Radiation Docket and Information Center, Waterside Mall, Room M-1500, First Floor, 401 M Street, SW., Washington, DC 20406, or by calling (202) 260-7548 or 260- 7549. A reasonable fee may be charged for copying. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information concerning this notice, contact Mr. Randy McDonald, Emissions Standards Division, Mail Drop 13, U.S. EPA Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina 27711, telephone number (919) 541-5402. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: I. Background Section 112 of the Clean Air Act (Act) requires that the Agency list and promulgate NESHAP in order to control, reduce, or otherwise limit the HAP emissions from categories of major and area sources. Pursuant to the specific listing requirements in section 112(c), the Agency published on July 16, 1992 (57 FR 31576), an initial list of 174 categories of major and area sources that would be subject to MACT emission standards. Following this listing, pursuant to requirements in section 112(e), on December 3, 1993 (58 FR 63941) the Agency published a schedule for the promulgation of MACT emission standards for each of the 174 listed source categories.
A number of the source categories for which emission standards must be promulgated by November 15, 2000 (i.e., ten-year standards) can be broadly classified as miscellaneous organic chemical processes. The EPA began collecting information in April 1995 to support development of ten-year standards for listed organic chemical process source categories. Information was collected for more than 300 facilities falling within Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) code 28 (i.e., chemical production processes). These facilities are located in States which have implemented comprehensive air emissions inventory programs and contain high concentrations of chemical producers within their boundaries. The information collected includes process descriptions, sources and quantities of HAP emissions, and emission control levels. The principal sources of these data were air pollutant inventories, construction and operating permits, and electronic databases. Information collected reveals that many organic chemical processes described by SIC 28, including processes covered by 21 ten-year source categories, involve similar process equipment, similar emission points and control equipment, and are in many cases co-located with other listed sources. The EPA has also identified a number of organic chemical processes which are not included in the source category list (57 FR 31576). These processes, their emission points, and applicable controls are similar to the 21 listed source categories. These organic chemical processes are also co-located with each other and the listed source categories. II. Description of Agency's Intent A. Develop a Single Set of Emission Standards for the Group of Miscellaneous Organic Chemical Processes The knowledge gained from preliminary data collection efforts, combined with the section 112 (c) and (e) requirements to list categories of major HAP sources and to promulgate emission standards for all listed categories by November 15, 2000, has prompted the Agency to propose developing a set of emission standards which applies to a broad group of organic chemical processes. The EPA envisions that the set of emission standards would establish MACT for 21 of the listed source categories scheduled for promulgation by November 15, 2000. Other major sources not included within a listed source category, or excluded from the applicability of regulations promulgated for other source categories, will also be covered by the set of standards. Twelve of the 21 listed source categories which will be covered by the miscellaneous organic chemical processes MACT standards are listed under the Miscellaneous Processes Industry Group (57 FR 31576). These include: Benzyltrimethylammonium chloride production, carbonyl sulfide production, chelating agents production, chlorinated paraffins production, ethylidene norbornene production, explosives production, hydrazine production, photographic chemicals production, phthalate plasticizers production, rubber chemicals production, symmetrical tetrachloropyridine production, and OBPA/1,3-diisocyanate production. Eight of the 21 listed source categories which will be covered by the MACT standards for miscellaneous organic chemical processes are listed under the Polymers and Resins Industry Group. These include: Alkyd resins production, polyester resins production, polyvinyl alcohol production, polyvinyl acetate emulsions production, polyvinyl butyral production, polymerized vinylidene chloride production, polymethyl methacrylate production, and maleic anhydride copolymers production. One of the 21 listed source categories which will be covered by the MACT standards for miscellaneous organic chemical processes is listed under the Surface Coating Processes Industry Group. This category is manufacture of paints, coatings and adhesives. The EPA envisions that the set of emission standards will establish control requirements for organic chemical processes which: (1) Are described by SIC codes 282, 284, 285, 286, 287, 289, and 386; (2) emit HAP; (3) are located within a stationary source or a contiguous group of stationary sources that emit or has the potential to emit at least 10 tons of one, or an aggregate 25 tons or more HAP per year; and (4) are not covered by any other MACT standard. Organic chemical processes not covered by any other MACT standard include: (1) The 21 listed source categories identified above; (2) organic chemical processes excluded from applicable requirements of any other MACT standard, which include: (a) Process vents for batch reactors used in producing the organic chemicals listed in table 1 of the emission standards [[Page 57604]] popularly known as the hazardous organic NESHAP (HON), 40 CFR Part 63 Subpart F, covering the synthetic organic chemical manufacturing industry (SOCMI), (b) HAP emissions from a SOCMI process using HAP only as a solvent, (c) production of pesticide intermediates not covered by the agricultural chemicals production NESHAP, and (d) production of byproducts, co-products and intermediates not considered primary products under the NESHAP for Group I and Group IV polymers and resins; and (3) those product processes identified by EPA based on information gathered which include: alcohols, plasticizers, oil additives, synthetic fatty acids, trioxane/trioxane polymer, hexamethylene diisocyanate, urea, nitroparaffin derivatives, polyethylene, Exxate<SUP>TM, dicapryl phthalate, glyphosate, ethoxolates, alkyl naphthalene, polypropylene, neopentyl glycol, hexanediol, primene, hexamethylene diisocyanate, adipic acid, sorbic acid, alkyl phenol, primene, and lactic acid; and (4) other product processes not identified above that can be broadly characterized as organic chemical processes not covered by any other MACT standard.
The EPA recognizes that the list of source categories will need to be amended to reflect the inclusion of sources identified above. The list of categories of major sources of HAP will be amended by adding a new miscellaneous organic chemical source category. This category will subsume the 21 listed source categories and will include all other organic chemical processes not covered by another MACT standard. This action will be taken at a later date.
The set of emission standards for miscellaneous organic chemical processes would be promulgated by November 15, 2000. Section 112(c)(5) of the Act provides that for categories of major HAP sources added to the initial list, standards must be established by November 15, 2000, or within 2 years after the date when such category is listed, whichever is later. Therefore, the NESHAP promulgation date for the newly identified organic chemical processes will be the same as that for the 21 existing ten-year source categories. B. Rationale for Developing a Single Set of Emission Standards for the Group of Miscellaneous Organic Chemical Processes Preliminary data indicate that the process equipment, emission characteristics, and applicable control technologies are similar for the broad group of sources that EPA intends to regulate under a single set of standards. These data also indicate that, for purposes of characterizing and controlling process emissions, distinctions based on whether the production of these organic chemicals is a formulation operation or a chemical reaction, and whether the process vessel is a batch or continuous reactor, are more significant than differences among the final chemical products themselves. For these reasons, EPA believes that it is technically feasible to regulate emissions from a variety of organic chemical processes by a single set of emission standards. The Agency envisions a set of standards establishing separate control requirements for chemical production processes and formulation/blending operations. The set of standards could also establish varying control requirements based on distinctions among classes, types, and sizes of sources. Similar to the HON, separate requirements will be proposed for process vents, transfer operations, storage tanks, equipment leaks, and wastewater HAP emission points. Separate control requirements may also be established for emission points associated with continuous reactors, batch reactors, and formulation/blending.
Several other reasons support the development of a single set of emission standards for a group of organic chemical processes. Data gathered indicate that many of the organic chemical processes that EPA is proposing to regulate by this set of standards are co-located within individual facilities. Facilities with co-located organic chemical processes could more easily comply with a single set of emission standards than with individual standards for each of the co-located processes. For instance, a facility with co-located sources would have to implement only one leak detection and repair program, and would have to maintain only one set of records and submit one set of reports to document compliance if there is a single set of standards. Another justification for developing a single set of emission standards to regulate production of a variety of organic chemicals is that it would be less costly for EPA to develop a single standard than to develop separate standards for several individually listed source categories which have similar emission characteristics and applicable control technologies. Moreover, a single set of emission standards could cover production of future (i.e., not yet produced) organic chemicals. It is likely that such chemicals will be produced via batch reactions or continuous reactions or formulation/blending operations and, therefore, could be regulated by the miscellaneous organic chemical process NESHAP (MON) envisioned by EPA. Development of the MON would avoid the costs associated with having to develop emission standards for categories of organic chemicals that would otherwise be listed as major sources of HAP after November 15, 1998. In order to develop a single set of standards for a group of miscellaneous organic chemical processes, EPA will take advantage of its experience from previous actions that addressed groups of chemical processes in a single rulemaking. The EPA plans to use the products of past rulemakings and guidance documents, such as the HON, polymers and resins rules, and the Alternative Control Techniques Document-Batch Processes, as building blocks for developing the proposed set of standards. A single set of standards for miscellaneous organic chemical processes will ensure that process equipment with comparable HAP emissions and control technologies are subject to consistent emission control requirements. III. Administrative Requirements A. Docket The docket for revisions to the list of source categories is A-90- 49. This docket is an organized and complete file of all the information submitted to or otherwise considered by the Agency in the development of the revised list of categories of sources and the revised schedule for standards. A docket containing the information supporting development of the single set of emission standards discussed in this notice has not yet been established. Existing and future dockets associated with the actions discussed in this notice are, or will be available for public inspection at EPA's Air and Radiation Docket and Information Center, which is listed in the ADDRESSES section of this notice. B. Regulatory Requirements Today's notice is only a notice of the information available to the Agency for purposes of standard development. Today's notice is also a solicitation of information and participation from interested parties. The notice imposes no regulatory requirements or costs. Therefore, EPA has prepared neither an assessment of the potential costs and benefits pursuant to Executive Order 12866, an economic impact analysis pursuant to Section 317, a regulatory [[Page 57605]] flexibility analysis pursuant to the Regulatory Flexibility Act (Pub. L. 96-354, September 19, 1980), nor a budgetary impact statement pursuant to the Unfunded Mandates Act of 1995. Also, this notice does not contain any information collection requirements and, therefore, is not subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq. Dated: October 31, 1996.
Richard Wilson, Acting Assistant Administrator for Air and Radiation. [FR Doc. 96-28657 Filed 11-06-96; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6560-50-P