DEP Advisory Committee To Discuss First Details Of Oil & Gas Methane Controls, Ozone Nonattainment Dec. 8

The DEP Air Quality Technical Advisory Committee is scheduled to meet December 8 to review the first details of DEP’s strategy for controlling methane emissions from oil and gas operations in the form of two new general permits and a revised Category Number 28 permit.

DEP will also be proposing that 14 counties in the state be designated as nonattainment areas for the new federal ozone pollution standard: Western PA: Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Fayette, Washington and Westmoreland; Southeast PA: Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery and Philadelphia; Indiana County; and Lebanon County.

The draft revised GP-5 General Permit would update permitting requirements for sources at natural gas compression, processing and transmission facilities.  The draft GP-5A General Permit would cover new or modified unconventional well sites and remote pigging stations.

DEP will also be revising its existing Category Number 38 Air Quality Permit Exemption List to make it only applicable to unconventional natural gas well sites that were constructed between August 10, 2013 (when the original list of put out) and the effective date of the amended list.

In addition, DEP will be developing a regulation for adoption by the Environmental Quality Board to cover existing oil and gas methane sources.
Andrew Williams, Senior State Regulatory and Legislative Affairs Manager from the Environmental Defense Fund, said, “Reducing oil and gas methane emissions is essential to protecting air quality and conserving an important domestic energy resource. Common sense methane controls -- such as those proposed by the Wolf administration today -- are cost-effective, present economic opportunities in the methane mitigation industry, and benefit public health, the environment and energy security.  We will review the proposal carefully over the coming days but we are pleased that Gov. Wolf is following through on his commitment to protect Pennsylvania’s families from the impacts of oil and gas development.”

Also on the agenda are--

-- Update On The EPA Cross-State Air Pollution Final Rule (CSAPR)

-- Overview Of 2014 Emissions Inventory For Unconventional Natural Gas Wells, Other Sources

-- Update On Rulemakings Related To State Implementation Plan Revisions

The meeting will be held in Room 105 Rachel Carson Building in Harrisburg starting at 9:15.

For more information and available handouts, visit the DEP Air Quality Technical Advisory Committee webpage. Or contact Nancy Herb, Bureau of Air Quality, 717-783-9269 or send email to: nherb@pa.gov.