Supporting the CASE act

The AFPM has offered support to the CASE Act, a bill that has been introduced by Senators John Thune and Joe Manchin, and Rep. Pete Olson to constrain the EPA from lowering the current ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS). This legislation seeks to impose extreme controls on ground level ozone that many natural habitats may not even be able to meet.

Charles T. Drevna comments

AFPM President Charles T. Drevna commented, “the CASE ACT is a very important piece of legislation that serves to protect US businesses and the jobs of millions of American citizens. If the current ozone NAAQS proposal is left intact, it will become the most expensive regulation in our nation’s history, costing US businesses hundreds of billions of dollars each year, and resulting in millions of lost jobs. Lowering the current ozone NAAQS would do very little to improve the environment and leave communities across the US in economic shambles, Many countries are having difficulty achieving compliance or are just beginning to implement the existing standard. Moving the goal post now will only serve to deliver the final blow to their economic survival.”

The US has reduced ozone levels by 30% since 1980. That trend will continue without lowering the ground level ozone standard further, since counties and states across the nation just began implementing a new standard earlier this year after a lengthy court battle that lasted since 2008, when the rule was finalised.

EPA filing

The AFPM has filed comments to the EPA on the Proposed Rulemaking: National Ambient Air Quality Standards for Ozone. In the comments, the AFPM detailed the investments made by industry, to date, which have already provided significant air quality improvements:

“Like many industrial sectors, AFPM members will be impacted by this rulemaking as a result of their manufacturing activities. AFPM members, however, have also made large investments in efforts to improve air quality in the US; the refining industry alone spend nearly US$20 billion to reduce sulphur from gasoline and diesel fuel to comply with Tier 2 and Ultra Low Sulphur Diesel standards. These actions, in combination with new vehicle emission technology, have resulted in substantial reductions in ozone precursors. AFPM members also have continuing obligations to address requirements for low Reid Vapour Pressure gasoline, including specially blended fuels required under State Implementation Plans to assist local air pollution control efforts. Furthermore, AFPM members have and will be making investments to comply with new Tier 3 fuel standards taking effect in 2017 that are intended to allow automobiles to reduce non-methane organic and nitrogen oxides emissions by an additional 80%. In addition, AFPM members have and will be making investments to comply with new regulatory requirements, including CAA section 112 requirements to comply with Maximum Achievable Control Technology (MACT), standards currently being reviewed for possible revision, the Boiler and Process Heater MACT standard and the Clean Power Plan rules.

“These efforts have contributed to and will continue to contribute to substantial local and national air quality benefits. Overall, total emissions of the six principal air pollutants in the US have been reduced by 62% since 1980 despite vehicle miles travelled having increased by 95% over the same period. And AFPM members will continue to be subject to numerous requirements associated with the implementation of various NAAQS, including requirements for the installation or reasonably available control technology.”

Edited from press release by Claira Lloyd

Read the article online at: https://www.hydrocarbonengineering.com/the-environment/18032015/afpm-support-case/