EPA accepts plan to cut power plant emissions Sept 26, 2013 By Kathy Helms Diné Bureau navajo1@gallupindependent WINDOW ROCK — Jared Blumenfeld, regional administrator for U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Region 9, signed a supplemental notice Wednesday for a “Better than BART” alternative to reduce emissions at Navajo Generating Station, one of the largest sources of harmful nitrogen oxide emissions in the country, according to EPA. The Best Available Retrofit Technology alternative was submitted to the federal agency July 26 by a coalition of NGS stakeholders known as the Technical Working Group. The group is composed of the Central Arizona Water Conservation District, the Environmental Defense Fund, the Gila River Indian Community, Navajo Nation, the Salt River Project Agricultural Improvement District, the Department of the Interior and Western Resources Advocates. Emissions Under the Clean Air Act, Congress required that EPA improve visibility in 156 federal national parks and wilderness areas across the country. States are required to adopt Regional Haze plans that improve visibility over time. These plans include BART determinations, where older sources are evaluated for additional pollution controls. Most states have completed this process and many have required stationary sources under their jurisdiction to install new air pollution controls for BART. The Navajo Nation has not developed a Tribal Implementation Plan for BART; therefore, EPA is developing a Federal Implementation Plan for Navajo Generating Station. NGS already has installed pollution control equipment to significantly reduce emissions of sulfur dioxide and particulate matter to protect visibility and improve air quality. Now EPA is proposing that the facility take comparable action to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions, the last component of pollution that significantly affects regional haze. Reduced emissions On Feb. 5, EPA issued a proposal to reduce by 73 percent the visibility impacts of NGS at 11 national parks and wilderness areas. As part of that proposal, EPA asked the public to submit alternative scenarios that would achieve greater visibility benefits through different mechanisms. In response, the Technical Working Group developed and submitted to EPA an alternative that establishes a lifetime cap in NOx emissions, accommodates different future ownership scenarios, and ensures greater emission reductions than EPA’s initial proposal for the 2,250-megawatt coalfired power plant located less than 20 miles from the Grand Canyon, near Page. Wednesday’s supplemental proposal adds the Technical Working Group’s alternative as a third option now available for public comment prior to final agency action. EPA said it conducted a rigorous review of the third alternative to ensure that it meets the requirements of the Clean Air Act. “These creative alternatives achieve greater emissions reductions at NGS while giving tribes and owners more flexibility,” Blumenfeld said. “This is good news for visitors to national parks and for public health.” In an Aug. 28 letter to Blumenfeld, Navajo Nation President Ben Shelly said that although the Nation signed on to the Technical Work Group agreement for NGS, that didn’t mean it was in agreement. “In the end, the Nation signed the TWG agreement because the Nation believed the agreement presented the best alternative of various other options, all of which could have detrimental impacts on the Nation, particularly in terms of the Nation’s economy,” he said. Although not formally part of the Wednesday’s action, the Technical Working Group plan also includes commitments by the U.S. Department of the Interior to achieve 80 percent clean energy for the federal share in NGS by 2035, and to complete a study on renewable energy options for the plant by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. The plan also includes a guarantee that the environmental review for NGS will consider clean energy generation options. NGS is co-owned by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, Salt River Project, Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, Arizona Public Service, Nevada Power Co. and Tucson Electric Power. Public hearings EPA is requesting comment by Jan. 6 on Wednesday’s supplemental proposal and the initial February proposal. The public will have five opportunities to attend open houses and public hearings in Arizona the week of Nov. 12. Those include: ■ Nov. 12 – LeChee Chapter House. Concurrent open house/public hearing, 10 a.m.-1 p.m. The chapter house is located on Coppermine Road, 3 miles south of Page. ■ Nov. 12 – Page High School Cultural Arts Building, 434 Lake Powell Blvd. Open house 3-5 p.m.; public hearing 6-9 p.m. ■ Nov. 13 - Hopi Day School, Kykotsmovi. Open house 3-5 p.m.; public hearing 6-9 p.m. ■ Nov. 14: Phoenix Convention Center, 100 N. 3rd St., Phoenix. Open house 3-5 p.m.; public hearing 6-10 p.m. ■ Nov. 15: Pima Community College West Campus, Proscenium Theatre, Center for the Arts Building, 2 miles west of I-10 on St. Mary’s Road. Open house 3-5 p.m.; public hearing 6-9 p.m. Information: epa.gov/region9/air/navajo/
Posted on: Thu, 26 Sep 2013 23:15:32 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015