LOS ANGELES - U.S. EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson announced today in a keynote address at the California Governor’s Global Climate Summit that the Agency has taken a significant step to address greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions under the Clean Air Act.

The Administrator announced a proposal requiring large industrial facilities that emit at least 25,000 tons of GHGs a year to obtain construction and operating permits covering these emissions. These permits must demonstrate the use of best available control technologies and energy efficiency measures to minimize GHG emissions when facilities are constructed or significantly modified.

The full text of the Administrators remarks is available here.

“By using the power and authority of the Clean Air Act, we can begin reducing emissions from the nation’s largest greenhouse gas emitting facilities without placing an undue burden on the businesses that make up the vast majority of our economy,” said EPA Administrator Jackson.

The EPA proposal is seen by many as a move to keep the pressure on the Senate to advance climate-change legislation that would cap the annual emissions of power plants, refineries and cement plants. Senate Democrats released draft legislation Wednesday to achieve steep reductions in emissions from industrial pollution sources. 

“EPA is ready to work with Congress,” said Jackson. “But we are not going to continue with business as usual any longer. We have the tools and technologies to move forward today, and we are using them.”

The EPA move also provides evidence the Obama Administration wishes to convey that the United States is serious about climate change as negotiators prepare for the upcoming United Nations meetings in Copenhagen in December.

“This is a common sense rule that is carefully tailored to apply to only the largest sources – those from sectors responsible for nearly 70 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions sources. This rule allows us to do what the Clean Air Act does best - reduce emissions for better health, drive technology innovation for a better economy, and protect the environment for a better future - all without placing an undue burden on the businesses that make up the better part of our economy.” EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson

Large facilities to be regulated include power plants, refineries, and factories. Small businesses such as farms and restaurants, and many other types of small facilities, would not be included in these requirements. “We know the corner coffee shop is no place to look for meaningful carbon reductions,” said Jackson.

If the proposed fuel-economy rule to regulate GHGs from cars and trucks is finalized and takes effect in the spring of 2010, Clean Air Act permits would automatically be required for stationary sources emitting GHGs. This proposed rule focuses these permitting programs on the largest facilities, responsible for nearly 70 percent of U.S. stationary source greenhouse gas emissions.

With the proposed emissions thresholds, EPA estimates that 400 new sources and modifications to existing sources would be subject to review each year for GHG emissions. In total, approximately 14,000 large sources would need to obtain operating permits that include GHG emissions. Most of these sources are already subject to clean air permitting requirements because they emit other pollutants.

The proposed tailoring rule addresses a group of six greenhouse gases: carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane (CH₄), nitrous oxide (N₂O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs), and sulfur hexafluoride (SF₆).

In addition, EPA is requesting public comment on its previous interpretation of when certain pollutants, including CO2 and other GHGs, would be covered under the permitting provisions of the Clean Air Act. A different interpretation could mean that large facilities would need to obtain permits prior to the finalization of a rule regulating greenhouse gas emissions.

EPA will accept comment on these proposals for 60 days after publication in the Federal Register. Click here for the proposed rules and more information.  

For More Information: Environmental Protection Agency - US