New Source Review Program

National NSR Program

Congress established the New Source Review (NSR) permitting program as part of the 1977 Clean Air Act Amendments. NSR is a preconstruction permitting program that serves two important purposes.

First, it ensures that air quality is not significantly degraded from the addition of new and modified factories, industrial boilers and power plants. In areas with unhealthy air, NSR assures that new emissions do not slow progress toward cleaner air. In areas with clean air, especially pristine areas like national parks, NSR assures that new emissions do not significantly worsen air quality.
Second, the NSR program assures people that any large new or modified industrial source in their neighborhoods will be as clean as possible, and that advances in pollution control occur concurrently with industrial expansion.

NSR permits are legal documents that the facility owners/operators must abide by. The permit specifies what construction is allowed, what emission limits must be met, and often how the emissions source must be operated.

Region 7 NSR Program

State & Local Permitting Programs

Each of the Region 7 states operates a minor and major source construction permitting program under a fully approved state implementation plan (SIP). For more information on contacts, public notices, permits, links to the state permit web sites, permit forms, and information on Section 107 baseline increment areas, select the state of interest.
Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska

NSR Policy and Guidance Database

EPA has issued a number of policy and guidance documents that interpret the Part D nonattainment and Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) construction permit regulations. Region 7 has developed a searchable database which contains over 580 EPA-issued policy and guidance documents. You may access the database directly via an on-line search or by downloading to your personal PC or corporate network. You can also view an index sorted by date or document title for a quick link to each document in the database.
On-line NSR Database, Download NSR Database, Document Index By Title, Document Index by Date, Document Index by Author, NSR Workshop Manual

Past and Present Major Source NSR Permitting Activity in Region 7

The Region 7 states and EPA regional office have issued a significant number of PSD and Part D permits since 1978. To help understand the historical perspective of each project, we maintain information on key administrative milestones, emissions estimates, emission limitations, and a brief description of the control technology decisions for each permit.
Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, EPA Region 7 [January '09]

Region 7 also contributes to two "national" spreadsheets listing information on combustion turbine and coal-fired utility projects. EPA Regions 4 and 7 update the combustion turbine and coal fired utility project information, respectively, with assistance from the other regions, approximately every 5-6 months.
National CT Spreadsheet, National Coal-Fired Utility NSR Spreadsheet [August '09]

Region 7 NSR Contacts

Mark Smith
Chief, Air Permitting and Compliance Branch
smith.marka@epa.gov, (913) 551-7876

Bob Webber, Environmental Engineer
Iowa NSR Coordinator
webber.robert@epa.gov, (913) 551-7251

Jon Knodel, Environmental Engineer
Kansas NSR Coordinator
knodel.jon@epa.gov, (913) 551-7622

Tamara Freeman, Environmental Engineer
Missouri NSR Coordinator
freeman.tamara@epa.gov, (913) 551-7094

Pat Scott, Environmental Protection Specialist
Nebraska NSR Coordinator
scott.patriciaa@epa.gov, (913) 551-7312

Current Major Source Permitting Projects in Region 7

Region 7 reviews all major source PSD or Part D nonattainment permitting actions taken in the four state area. We often comment on draft permits and provide technical support when requested by the permitting agency. This interaction helps to assure that permits provide for best available control technology, demonstrate no adverse air quality impacts, are enforceable as a practical matter, and otherwise meet statutory and regulatory requirements. For more information on active permit projects in 2009, click on the documents of interest.

Iowa

Alliant Energy Sutherland Power Station (Marshalltown)

Grain Processing Corporation (Muscatine)

Holcim (Mason City)

LS Power Elk Run (Waterloo) [withdrawn]

MidAmerican Energy Walter Scott Energy Center (Council Bluffs)

SSAB Svenskt Stål AB (Muscatine)

Verasun (Ft. Dodge)

Quick Links: Construction Permits Website

Kansas

Abengoa Bioenergy (Hugoton)

Coffeyville Resources Refining & Marketing, LLC (Coffeyville)