On January 6, 2023, EPA published a proposed rule for particulate matter National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) that would retain the primary 24-hr PM_2.5 standard (35 µg/m³) and reduce the annual standard from 12 µg/m³ to 9 µg/m³. The agency is also taking comments on reducing the 24-hr PM­_2.5 standard as low as 25 µg/m³ and the annual standard as low as 8 µg/m³. The Clean Air Act requires that EPA review the NAAQS every five years to ensure their adequacy. The last review of the PM NAAQS was completed in December 2020 with no change, but EPA announced their decision to reconsider this action in June 2021.  Although no changes to the PM₁₀ NAAQS standard are expected at this time, changes to the PM2.5 NAAQS standard are proposed.

This proposal takes into account thousands of scientific studies since the last update of PM NAAQS in 2012 that have demonstrated the dangers of long term soot exposure. The evidence supports a likely relationship between long-term PM_2.5 exposure and respiratory effects, nervous system effects, and cancer. EPA estimates that if finalized, a strengthened annual PM_2.5 standard of 9 µg/m³ would:

• Prevent up to 4,2000 premature deaths per year;
• Prevent 270,000 lost workdays per year; and
• Result in as much as $43 billion in net health benefits in 2032.

EPA accepted public comments on the proposed rule through March 7th and has already held public hearings. Additional information will be made available on the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for PM webpage.

State, local, and tribal air agencies will be required to use this standard after it is finalized federally. Once in effect, this will cause more difficulty when emission units require PM_2.5 modeling as part of a permit application or modification. Several areas throughout the Pacific Northwest have high particulate background concentrations, which will narrow the allowable “new” particulate emitted even further. If you are planning any facility expansions or new sources that include particulate matter emissions and want to know if this rule would effect your business, please contact Spring Environmental for more information.

The March HAZWOPER Challenge is now closed. Thank you for participating. Please come back April 1^st for our next HAZWOPER Challenge!

The March winner is Pat Tapley Congratulations!

Effective March 20, 2023, the portion of waters of the United States (WOTUS) subject to federal regulatory control under the Clean Water Act (CWA) will be increasing.  This is the latest iteration of the rule, which the Environmental Protection Agency and Corps of Engineers describe as “a clear and reasonable definition of waters of the United States” designed to “reduce the uncertainty from constantly changing regulatory definitions that has harmed communities and our nation’s waters.”

As before, wetlands adjacent to traditional navigable waters, territorial seas, or interstate waters are under jurisdiction of the CWA.  The new rule will include tributaries that flow into these waters, as well as nearby wetlands, depending on their permanence and interconnectedness.  If the waters are “relatively permanent” or can “significantly affect WOTUS”, private and public parties performing work in or near these new waters may be subjected to regulations and permitting under the CWA.  These waters can include, naturally occurring ditches, prairie potholes, ephemeral drainages, and low spots on farmlands, and can be considered “relatively permanent” if continuous flow exists at any time during a year.  Significant potential effects include nutrients, sediment, temperature, and pollutants.

Additional information on this rule can be found here: https://www.epa.gov/wotus/revising-definition-waters-united-states

On September 15, 2022, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced updates to the Severe Violator Enforcement Program (SVEP) that will expand the criteria for being placed in the program.  Along with expanding the criteria, OSHA also outlined new information on follow-up inspections and conditions for being removed from the program.  The SVEP was developed to focus enforcement efforts on those employers that willfully violated certain safety and health standards, repeatedly violated standards, or refused to correct violations.  The update will broaden the scope of the program standards that would be included.

According to OSHA, the following criteria updates will be included:

Getting into the program:

• Employers will be placed in the program for citations of at least two willful or repeated violations or who receive failure-to-abate notices based on the presence of high-gravity serious violations.

Follow-up while in the program:

• After notice of the final order, follow-up or referral inspections will be made yearly – but not longer than two years.

Getting out of the program:

• Employers have the potential of removal from the Severe Violator Enforcement Program three years after the date of receiving verification from the employer that all program-related hazards have been abated.
  • Employers’ have the ability to reduce time spent in the program to two years, if they consent to an enhanced settlement agreement that includes use of a safety and health management system with seven basic elements in OSHA’s Recommended Practices for Safety and Health Programs.

For more information regarding the update, click here.

The August HAZWOPER Challenge is now closed. Thank you for participating. Please come back September 1^st for our next HAZWOPER Challenge!

The August winner is S. Woolley Congratulations!

Fire Marshals from Spokane Valley Fire Department (SVFD), City of Spokane Fire Department (SFD), Spokane County, City of Cheney, City of Airway Heights and City of Deer Park have all enacted the Fire Danger Burn Restriction effective Friday, July 22.

Campfires, backyard fire pits, and burning of fields and yard waste is not allowed.  With high temperatures in the forecast, all Cities and Fire Agencies want to keep area communities safe from fire risk by reducing the number of human-caused wildfires. See  Spokane County’s flyer here.

While the burn restriction is in place, any person found with a recreational fire or conducting open burning who fails to take immediate action to extinguish or otherwise discontinue such burning when ordered or notified to do so shall be charged with a misdemeanor. (IFC 109; SCC 3.02)

On December 22, 2021, the EPA Administrator signed a notice adding 1-bromopropane (1-BP) to the Clean Air Act’s list of hazardous air pollutants (also known as air toxics). The chemical 1-BP is largely used in solvent vapor degreasing, adhesives, dry cleaning, furniture foam fabrication, spot cleaners, stain removers, adhesives, sealants, automobile care products, and other applications including the aerospace industry. EPA is modifying the list of hazardous air pollutants because the Agency has determined that 1-BP is a hazardous air pollutant and its emissions, ambient concentrations, bioaccumulation, or deposition are known to cause or may reasonably be anticipated to cause adverse effects to human health or the environment.

Effective February 2022, facilities will need to include 1-BP in their assessment (i.e. Potential-to-Emit) of their source size classification (i.e., area source or major source).

EPA will be working to revise current NESHAP regulations and identify whether additional NESHAP are warranted. Under a separate action, EPA is developing a regulatory infrastructure that will address compliance and implementation issues that may arise from the addition of a chemical to the list of hazardous air pollutants. This regulatory infrastructure will be proposed for public notice and comment in 2022 and is expected to be finalized in early 2023.

This is the first time that EPA has added a pollutant to the list of hazardous air pollutants since Congress created the list through the 1990 Clean Air Act amendments. For more information, including a fact sheet and pre-publication version of the action, click here!

On June 1, 2022, Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) filed Outdoor Heat Exposure and Wildfire Smoke emergency rules that take effect June 15, 2022. The emergency rules are designed to keep workers that perform job tasks outside safe until permanent rulemaking can be established. Under the emergency rules, employers will be required to monitor temperatures and air quality, provide information to the workers, provide training, and more.

Craig Blackwood, L&I’s assistant director for the Division of Occupational Safety & Health stated, “The record-setting heat wave last summer underscored the importance of protecting outdoor workers. Add in the smoke from more frequent and devastating wildfires, which is a proven hazard, and it’s a recipe for danger every summer.”

For more information regarding the emergency rules, click here.