Air pollution impacts of revised new source performance standards for industrial boilers

Conference · Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 1979

OSTI ID:5889372

Placet, M.; Streets, D. G.

Since EPA is currently considering a major revision to its strategy for control of emissions from new industrial boilers, a previously reported study was conducted to determine what a variety of new regulatory approaches would buy in terms of pollution reductions. A computerized environmental forecasting model,Strategic Environmental Assessment System (SEAS), was used to estimate changes in emission levels which would result from implementation of a series of six scenarios representing alternative New Source Performance Standards NSPS. A preliminary effort was then made to incorporate the results of long-range environmental trend analysis into the regulatory assessment process. Results of the study indicate that in the industrial fuel combustion sector, increases in sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions are projected through 1990 even if the revised NSPS is very strict. Since current State Implementation Plan (SIP) regulations for SO/sub 2/ and Nox are not very stringent, little reduction from old sources occurs. Therefore, increases due to additional combustion of coal (and other fuels) are not offset. Implementation of a strict NSPS has the greatest effect on SO/sub 2/ emissions. By 1990, industrial combustion is expected to contribute up to approximately 20% of total national SO/sub 2/ emissions. In the most stringent scenario, which requires 90% removal of SO/sub 2/ on all boilers greater than 10 MM BTU/Hr (through use of SO/sub 2/ scrubbers), industrial emissions are reduced almost 20%, lowering national emissions by practically 4% in 1990. The effect of a revised NSPS on NOx emissions is quite small. On the national level, particulate matter decreases due to strict control of new sources and are overshadowed by a drastic decline in emissions from old sources as they comply with State Implementation Plan regulations. Emphasis must be placed on sources not stressed in the standards that EPA is considering.

• Research Organization: Argonne National Lab., IL (USA)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Environmental Management (EM)
• DOE Contract Number: W-31-109-ENG-38
• OSTI ID: 5889372
• Report Number(s): CONF-790634-3
• Resource Relation: Conference: 72. annual Air Pollution Control Association meeting, Cincinnati, OH, USA, 24 Jun 1979
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
AIR POLLUTION
POLLUTION REGULATIONS
BOILERS
COAL
COMBUSTION
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS
ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
FORECASTING
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
NATURAL GAS
NITROGEN OXIDES
PETROLEUM
SULFUR DIOXIDE
CARBONACEOUS MATERIALS
CHALCOGENIDES
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
ENERGY SOURCES
FLUIDS
FOSSIL FUELS
FUEL GAS
FUELS
GAS FUELS
GASES
NITROGEN COMPOUNDS
OXIDATION
OXIDES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
POLLUTION
REGULATIONS
SULFUR COMPOUNDS
SULFUR OXIDES
THERMOCHEMICAL PROCESSES
500600* - Environment
Atmospheric- Regulations- (-1989)