EPA FINALIZES CHANGES TO BOILER STANDARDS

Tamar Hallerman
GHG Monitor
12/21/12

The Environmental Protection Agency finalized revisions to its emissions standards for industrial boilers, incinerators and cement kilns late this week. In a Dec. 21 announcement, the agency said the changes to the rulemaking, which aim to cut toxic air pollutants emitted from boilers like mercury and particle pollution, incorporate more compliance flexibility for operators while also “dramatically” reducing the cost of implementation for individual boilers compared to the initial rulemaking finalized last year. Pollution from boilers can prompt adverse health effects such as cancer, heart disease, aggravated asthma and premature death. EPA said the revised standards would help avoid up to 8,100 premature deaths, 5,100 heart attacks and 52,000 asthma attacks annually in 2015 and lead to $13 to $29 in health benefits for every dollar spent on compliance.

EPA said that less than 1 percent of the country’s 1.5 million boilers would need to enact changes to meet numerical emissions limits for toxic emissions under the rulemaking, which gives operators three to four years to comply. The agency said the standards are meant to hone in on the country’s largest boilers that emit the majority of pollution in the sector, most of which are operated at refineries, chemical plants and other industrial facilities. The majority of the country’s boilers are not covered by the rulemaking or can meet the standards by conducting regular tune-ups and periodic maintenance, EPA said.

Multiple Groups Requested Reconsideration

The agency originally finalized the rulemaking, known widely as Boiler MACT, in March 2011. But multiple requests for reconsideration from industry groups—which said the finalized rulemaking was not achievable—caused EPA to recalibrate certain aspects of the rule. It released its proposed adjustments in December 2011. “The specific set of adjustments address new data provided to the agency and additional information about real-world performance and conditions under which affected boilers and incinerators operate,” EPA said in a fact sheet. The House passed legislation in fall 2011 that gave EPA 15 months to repurpose Boiler MACT and utilities at least five years to comply with the rulemaking. That bill, though, saw no action in the Senate and a veto threat from President Obama.

Within hours of the rule being finalized, House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich.) and Energy and Power Subcommittee Chairman Ed Whitfield (R-Ky.) said they “welcomed” the revisions. “However, we still have concerns over the high cost of the rules and their potential effects on jobs and the overall economy,” the pair said in a statement. “Our committee will continue to exercise its oversight authority to ensure the rules are implemented in a way that minimizes the impacts on jobs, businesses and consumers.”