IV-1_EMC Action Item_QC Measures Report_PowerPoint

Department of Environmental Quality
Report on Quality Control Measures for Title V Air Permit Processing Pursuant to Session Law
Environmental Management Commission Meeting –September 12, 2024
Acronyms
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Department of Environmental Quality
Abbreviation Term
15A NCAC Title 15A of the North Carolina Administrative Code
40 CFR Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations
AQC Air Quality Committee
DAQ Division of Air Quality
DEQ Department of Environmental Quality
EMC Environmental Management Commission
EPA United States Environmental Protection Agency
G.S.General Statute
S.L.Session Law
Background
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Department of Environmental Quality
Session Law (S.L.) 2023-134 became effective October 3, 2023.
•Section 12.17(a) through (u), established a Title V Air Permit Bonus Pilot Program for
qualifying employees who process Title V Air Permit applications. Qualifying employees
within the DAQ are to receive those bonuses after a Title V Air Permit is reviewed and
completed. The pilot program runs from January 1, 2024, through June 30, 2025.
•Sections 12.17(p) requires the EMC develop quality control measures to measure the
consistency and quality of Title V Air Permit processing that ensures each application is
adequately reviewed and, if denied, that there is good cause to deny the Title V Air Permit.
Background
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Department of Environmental Quality
Session Law (S.L.) 2023-134 became effective October 3, 2023.
•It further requires the EMC to consult with the DEQ and provide this information to be
included in the annual report submitted by the DEQ to the chairs of the Joint Legislative
Oversight Committee on Agriculture and Natural and Economic Resources pursuant to
Section 12.17(r). This report shall be submitted by December 1, 2024.
•Section 12.17(r) states that report shall also include a list of contested cases where the
Office of Administrative Hearings rendered a final decision or order with findings of fact and
conclusions of law, or a judgment on the pleadings or summary judgment in favor of a person
aggrieved by the Department, and an estimate of the resulting costs to the State from the
previous year.
Title V Permitting Section
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Department of Environmental Quality
•28 positions when fully staffed: Section Chief, 3 Branch Supervisors,
4 Engineer III, 13 Engineer II, 3 Engineer I, 1 Environmental Specialist,
and 3 Meteorologists
•As of August 22, 2024, the Title V Permitting Section has 6 vacancies.
•The Section is responsible for the state-wide permitting of all Title V facilities.
•Current population of Title V facilities is 307 and varies month to month.
•As of August 22, 2024, the number of open applications is 181, equating to
approximately 13 projects per engineer.
Title V Permitting Trends
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Department of Environmental Quality
The nine-year annual average of incoming and outgoing applications is 206 and 210, respectively.
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Apps Received Apps Closed Out
Permit Applications and Public Process
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Department of Environmental Quality
•There are currently 12 categories of Title V permit applications.
•7 of the 12 are bonus eligible. About 50% of the 181 current applications are bonus eligible.
•5 of the 12 are required to go through a public process and EPA review prior to taking final action. About 40% of the 181 current applications must go through that process.
•Public process is counted towards the total processing days and usually consists of two parallel comment periods, 30 days for public comments and 45 days for EPA comments.
•Public process may include a public hearing. The noticing for public hearing may occur at the same time of the noticing for public comment. Occasionally, this occurs sequentially if significant public comments request a public hearing that was not already planned.
•Occasionally, EPA moves its comment period to sequential if significant public comments are received or if a public hearing occurs, allowing them to review the draft permit after DAQ has made any changes based on public input.
Public Process Trends
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Number of Title V Air Permits that have gone through a public process:
Year
Notice for Public
Comment Only
(Required by rule)
Notice for Public
Comment and Public
Hearing
Notice for Public
Comment followed by
Notice for Public Hearing
Totals
2015 82 0 0 82
2016 101 0 0 101
2017 80 0 1 80
2018 72 1 1 73
2019 73 2 0 75
2020 74 0 0 74
2021 61 7 0 68
2022 66 1 1 67
2023 76 1 1 77
Totals 685 12 4 697*
*During this 9-year period, approximately 10% of those 697 applications that went
through the public process received comments from either the public or EPA during
the public comment period.
Resources for Quality and Consistency
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Department of Environmental Quality
All Title V Permitting Section staff have access to the following:
•Title V Permit Shell – A blank permit with cover letter, table of contents, & list of acronyms.
Includes uniform formatting, table locations, and section headers.
•General Conditions Shell – All Title V air permits include the same general conditions. When
general conditions are changed, shell is updated, and they get incorporated at the next touch.
•Permit Condition Shell – Specific permit conditions for commonly used regulations. Staff select
the specific permit conditions they need, keeping them consistent for similar sources.
•Renewal Technical Review Shell – A technical review, or statement of basis, is required for all
permitting actions. Title V permits are renewed every five years. A technical review for a permit
renewal is more detailed. Ensures consistent content for each renewal technical review.
Management Methods
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Department of Environmental Quality
Training new Title V Permitting Section staff:
•Give them the shells
•Pair them with one or more experienced review engineers as a point of contact
for questions
•Peer-review their work before supervisor review
•Follow the common procedure for processing applications
Management Methods
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All Title V Permitting Section staff follow the same procedure with multiple levels of review:
•Review applications for acceptance and assign to review engineer.
•If application includes modeling, route that to the Air Quality Analysis Branch for assignment
and review.
•Once application is deemed complete, prepare draft permits and draft technical reviews and
share with the following for review and comment:
Review engineer’s supervisor
Regional office inspector/permitting coordinator
Stationary Source Compliance Branch
Permit applicant and consultants
•As applicable, draft documents are sent through public process:
30-day public comment
45-day EPA review
Public hearing
EPA Review of Title V Permitting Programs
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Department of Environmental Quality
•There is federal oversight of Title V permitting programs due to recommendations of a
2002 Office of the Inspector General (OIG) audit submitted to EPA.
•EPA developed an action plan for performing reviews of Title V permitting programs for
each state/local air pollution control agency beginning in fiscal year 2003.
•DAQ has been evaluated 4 times since the OIG audit (2005, 2010, 2014, & 2021).
•The 2021 evaluation consisted of a review of staffing resources, internal management
support, Title V revenue and expenses, public participation, environmental justice in
permitting, permit issuance rates, and a detailed review of previously issued permits.
EPA Review of Title V Permitting Programs
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Results of the 2021 evaluation speak to the effectiveness of the quality control measures in
place, the quality of the staff, and the quality work products as follows:
•DAQ has qualified, experienced staff and management resources and those were found to be
very knowledgeable, professional, and dedicated to their mission.
•DAQ was commended for its enhanced public notice permitting process, including tools and
processes for meaningful engagement with the public and communities.
•DAQ has an excellent record of timely issuance of initial permits and significant and minor permit
modifications.
•DAQ has an excellent grasp of the requirement of Title V and is continually working to find
impactful ways to increase their staff’s ability to meet all the varied program elements of Title V.
•DAQ permits are generally complete and well written.
EPA Review of Title V Permitting Programs
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Additional EPA oversight of DAQ’s Title V permitting program takes the form of the
following activities:
•Permitting program oversight strategy meetings – last occurred in Fall 2023
•EPA and DAQ quarterly calls
•Semi-annual Title V Permit Data Reports (TOPs) – due each January & July
Permit Challenges
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Department of Environmental Quality
•Each Title V Air Permit includes an attachment to the cover letter highlighting the
rights of a permit applicant, Permittee, or other persons aggrieved to file a contested
case regarding DAQ’s final action on an air permit application.
•The attachment includes general filing instructions conforming to NCGS 150B-23 to
be filed with the Office of Administrative Hearings.
•This process seldom happens due to DAQ’s quality control measures in place.
•Only 4 of 2,045 (or 0.2%) final Title V Air Permits have been challenged since 2015.
•All 4 challenges were voluntarily dismissed.
Permit Denials
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Department of Environmental Quality
•DAQ’s Title V Permitting Section employs quality control measures aimed at promoting quality
and consistency in the Title V permitting process and ensures each application is adequately
reviewed, and if denied, there is a good cause to deny the Title V Air Permit.
•Permit denials are very rare.
•Title V Air Permit applicants are unlikely to submit an application that cannot demonstrate
compliance with all applicable laws and rules.
•15A NCAC 02Q .0518(a) addresses this infrequent occurrence already by giving the DAQ
authority to deny a permit application when necessary to carry out the purposes of
G.S. 143, Article 21B, and the federal Clean Air Act.
•When permit applications are incomplete, DAQ does not deny the permit, but instead works
with the applicant to obtain the missing information.
Recommendation
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Department of Environmental Quality
The Director recommends that the EMC approve the Report on
Quality Control Measures for Title V Air Permit Processing
pursuant to Session Law 2023-134, Section 12.17(p).
Department of Environmental Quality
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Report on Quality Control Measures for Title V Air Permit Processing
Timeline

September 11, 2024
Request to Air Quality Committee (AQC) for Approval to Proceed to the Environmental Management Commission (EMC) for Approval of Report on Quality Control Measures for Title V Air Permit Processing
September 12, 2024 Request to Environmental Management Commission (EMC) for Approval of Report on Quality Control Measures for Title V Air Permit Processing
December 1, 2024
Initial Annual Report submitted by DEQ to the chairs of the
Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Agriculture and
Natural and Economic Resources
June 30, 2025 Title V Air Permit Bonus Pilot Program ends
December 1, 2025
Final Annual Report submitted by DEQ to the chairs of the
Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Agriculture and
Natural and Economic Resources
Contact
Department of Environmental Quality
Mark Cuilla, EIT, CPM
Title V Permitting Chief
NC Division of Air Quality
919 707 8738 office
[e-mail]
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Taylor Hartsfield, EIT, CPM
Deputy Director
NC Division of Air Quality
919 707 8497 office
[e-mail]
Michael Abraczinskas, EIT, CPM
Director
NC Division of Air Quality
919 707 8447 office
[e-mail]
Department of Environmental Quality
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