The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) is proposing to revoke a January 2009 rule that changed the way existing industrial facilities combine upcoming construction projects to determine if Clean Air Act permits are needed.

The 2009 rule directed facilities and permitting authorities to combine emissions from construction projects only when the changes are “substantially related.”

Following a petition to reconsider the 2009 rule, the EPA is proposing to revoke its January 2009 rule out of concern that last year’s changes would make the agency’s New Source Review permitting program less effective and actually allow facilities to increase emissions without a thorough review. EPA proposes extending the effective date of the 2009 aggregation rule for six months to give EPA time to complete the reconsideration.

New Source Review is a pre-construction permitting program that ensures air quality is maintained by requiring state-of-the art emission control technology be installed when factories, industrial boilers and power plants are built or substantially modified. For more information on New Source Review permitting or the impact of EPA’s recent decisions on industry, please contact Steve O’Day or Phillip Hoover.