§ 70.2 - Definitions.

§ 70.2 Definitions.

The following definitions apply to part 70. Except as specifically provided in this section, terms used in this part retain the meaning accorded them under the applicable requirements of the Act.

Act means the Clean Air Act, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 7401, et seq.

Affected source shall have the meaning given to it in the regulations promulgated under title IV of the Act.

Affected States are all States:

(1) Whose air quality may be affected and that are contiguous to the State in which a part 70 permit, permit modification or permit renewal is being proposed; or

(2) That are within 50 miles of the permitted source.

Affected unit shall have the meaning given to it in the regulations promulgated under title IV of the Act.

Alternative operating scenario (AOS) means a scenario authorized in a part 70 permit that involves a change at the part 70 source for a particular emissions unit, and that either results in the unit being subject to one or more applicable requirements which differ from those applicable to the emissions unit prior to implementation of the change or renders inapplicable one or more requirements previously applicable to the emissions unit prior to implementation of the change.

Applicable requirement means all of the following as they apply to emissions units in a part 70 source (including requirements that have been promulgated or approved by EPA through rulemaking at the time of issuance but have future-effective compliance dates):

(1) Any standard or other requirement provided for in the applicable implementation plan approved or promulgated by EPA through rulemaking under title I of the Act that implements the relevant requirements of the Act, including any revisions to that plan promulgated in part 52 of this chapter;

(2) Any term or condition of any preconstruction permits issued pursuant to regulations approved or promulgated through rulemaking under title I, including parts C or D, of the Act;

(3) Any standard or other requirement under section 111 of the Act, including section 111(d);

(4) Any standard or other requirement under section 112 of the Act, including any requirement concerning accident prevention under section 112(r)(7) of the Act;

(5) Any standard or other requirement of the acid rain program under title IV of the Act or the regulations promulgated thereunder;

(6) Any requirements established pursuant to section 504(b) or section 114(a)(3) of the Act;

(7) Any standard or other requirement under section 126(a)(1) and (c) of the Act;

(8) Any standard or other requirement governing solid waste incineration, under section 129 of the Act;

(9) Any standard or other requirement for consumer and commercial products, under section 183(e) of the Act;

(10) Any standard or other requirement for tank vessels under section 183(f) of the Act;

(11) Any standard or other requirement of the program to control air pollution from outer continental shelf sources, under section 328 of the Act;

(12) Any standard or other requirement of the regulations promulgated to protect stratospheric ozone under title VI of the Act, unless the Administrator has determined that such requirements need not be contained in a title V permit; and

(13) Any national ambient air quality standard or increment or visibility requirement under part C of title I of the Act, but only as it would apply to temporary sources permitted pursuant to section 504(e) of the Act.

Approved replicable methodology (ARM) means part 70 permit terms that:

(1) Specify a protocol which is consistent with and implements an applicable requirement, or requirement of this part, such that the protocol is based on sound scientific and/or mathematical principles and provides reproducible results using the same inputs; and

(2) Require the results of that protocol to be recorded and used for assuring compliance with such applicable requirement, any other applicable requirement implicated by implementation of the ARM, or requirement of this part, including where an ARM is used for determining applicability of a specific requirement to a particular change.

Designated representative shall have the meaning given to it in section 402(26) of the Act and the regulations promulgated thereunder.

Draft permit means the version of a permit for which the permitting authority offers public participation under § 70.7(h) or affected State review under § 70.8 of this part.

Emissions allowable under the permit means a federally enforceable permit term or condition determined at issuance to be required by an applicable requirement that establishes an emissions limit (including a work practice standard) or a federally enforceable emissions cap that the source has assumed to avoid an applicable requirement to which the source would otherwise be subject.

Emissions unit means any part or activity of a stationary source that emits or has the potential to emit any regulated air pollutant or any pollutant listed under section 112(b) of the Act. This term is not meant to alter or affect the definition of the term “unit” for purposes of title IV of the Act.

The EPA or the Administrator means the Administrator of the EPA or his designee.

Final permit means the version of a part 70 permit issued by the permitting authority that has completed all review procedures required by §§ 70.7 and 70.8 of this part.

Fugitive emissions are those emissions which could not reasonably pass through a stack, chimney, vent, or other functionally-equivalent opening.

General permit means a part 70 permit that meets the requirements of § 70.6(d).

Major source means any stationary source (or any group of stationary sources that are located on one or more continuous or adjacent properties, and are under common control of the same person (or persons under common control)) belonging to a single major industrial grouping and that are described in paragraph (1), (2), or (3) of this definition. For the purposes of defining “major source,” a stationary source or group of stationary sources shall be considered part of a single industrial grouping if all of the pollutant emitting activities at such source or group of sources on contiguous or adjacent properties belong to the same Major Group (i.e., all have the same two-digit code) as described in the Standard Industrial Classification Manual, 1987. State programs may adopt the following provision: For onshore activities belonging to Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) Major Group 13: Oil and Gas Extraction, pollutant emitting activities shall be considered adjacent if they are located on the same surface site; or if they are located on surface sites that are located within 1⁄4 mile of one another (measured from the center of the equipment on the surface site) and they share equipment. Shared equipment includes, but is not limited to, produced fluids storage tanks, phase separators, natural gas dehydrators or emissions control devices. Surface site, as used in the introductory text of this definition, has the same meaning as in 40 CFR 63.761.

(1) A major source under section 112 of the Act, which is defined as:

(i) For pollutants other than radionuclides, any stationary source or group of stationary sources located within a contiguous area and under common control that emits or has the potential to emit, in the aggregate, 10 tons per year (tpy) or more of any hazardous air pollutant which has been listed pursuant to section 112(b) of the Act, 25 tpy or more of any combination of such hazardous air pollutants, or such lesser quantity as the Administrator may establish by rule. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, emissions from any oil or gas exploration or production well (with its associated equipment) and emissions from any pipeline compressor or pump station shall not be aggregated with emissions from other similar units, whether or not such units are in a contiguous area or under common control, to determine whether such units or stations are major sources; or

(ii) For radionuclides, “major source” shall have the meaning specified by the Administrator by rule.

(2) A major stationary source of air pollutants, as defined in section 302 of the Act, that directly emits, or has the potential to emit, 100 tpy or more of any air pollutant subject to regulation (including any major source of fugitive emissions of any such pollutant, as determined by rule by the Administrator). The fugitive emissions of a stationary source shall not be considered in determining whether it is a major stationary source for the purposes of section 302(j) of the Act, unless the source belongs to one of the following categories of stationary source:

(i) Coal cleaning plants (with thermal dryers);

(ii) Kraft pulp mills;

(iii) Portland cement plants;

(iv) Primary zinc smelters;

(v) Iron and steel mills;

(vi) Primary aluminum ore reduction plants;

(vii) Primary copper smelters;

(viii) Municipal incinerators capable of charging more than 250 tons of refuse per day;

(ix) Hydrofluoric, sulfuric, or nitric acid plants;

(x) Petroleum refineries;

(xi) Lime plants;

(xii) Phosphate rock processing plants;

(xiii) Coke oven batteries;

(xiv) Sulfur recovery plants;

(xv) Carbon black plants (furnace process);

(xvi) Primary lead smelters;

(xvii) Fuel conversion plants;

(xviii) Sintering plants;

(xix) Secondary metal production plants;

(xx) Chemical process plants - The term chemical processing plant shall not include ethanol production facilities that produce ethanol by natural fermentation included in NAICS codes 325193 or 312140;

(xxi) Fossil-fuel boilers (or combination thereof) totaling more than 250 million British thermal units per hour heat input;

(xxii) Petroleum storage and transfer units with a total storage capacity exceeding 300,000 barrels;

(xxiii) Taconite ore processing plants;

(xxiv) Glass fiber processing plants;

(xxv) Charcoal production plants;

(xxvi) Fossil-fuel-fired steam electric plants of more than 250 million British thermal units per hour heat input; or

(xxvii) Any other stationary source category, which as of August 7, 1980 is being regulated under section 111 or 112 of the Act.

(3) A major stationary source as defined in part D of title I of the Act, including:

(i) For ozone nonattainment areas, sources with the potential to emit 100 tpy or more of volatile organic compounds or oxides of nitrogen in areas classified or treated as classified as “Marginal” or “Moderate,” 50 tpy or more in areas classified or treated as classified as “Serious,” 25 tpy or more in areas classified or treated as classified as “Severe,” and 10 tpy or more in areas classified or treated as classified as “Extreme”; except that the references in this paragraph to 100, 50, 25 and 10 tpy of nitrogen oxides shall not apply with respect to any source for which the Administrator has made a finding, under section 182(f)(1) or (2) of the Act, that requirements under section 182(f) of the Act do not apply;

(ii) For ozone transport regions established pursuant to section 184 of the Act, sources with the potential to emit 50 tpy or more of volatile organic compounds;

(iii) For carbon monoxide nonattainment areas:

(A) That are classified or treated as classified as “Serious,” and

(B) in which stationary sources contribute significantly to carbon monoxide levels as determined under rules issued by the Administrator, sources with the potential to emit 50 tpy or more of carbon monoxide; and

(iv) For particulate matter (PM-10) nonattainment areas classified or treated as classified as “Serious,” sources with the potential to emit 70 tpy or more of PM-10.

Part 70 permit or permit (unless the context suggests otherwise) means any permit or group of permits covering a part 70 source that is issued, renewed, amended, or revised pursuant to this part.

Part 70 program or State program means a program approved by the Administrator under this part.

Part 70 source means any source subject to the permitting requirements of this part, as provided in §§ 70.3(a) and 70.3(b) of this part.

Permit modification means a revision to a part 70 permit that meets the requirements of § 70.7(e) of this part.

Permit program costs means all reasonable (direct and indirect) costs required to develop and administer a permit program, as set forth in § 70.9(b) of this part (whether such costs are incurred by the permitting authority or other State or local agencies that do not issue permits directly, but that support permit issuance or administration).

Permit revision means any permit modification or administrative permit amendment.

Permitting authority means either of the following:

(1) The Administrator, in the case of EPA-implemented programs; or

(2) The State air pollution control agency, local agency, other State agency, or other agency authorized by the Administrator to carry out a permit program under this part.

Potential to emit means the maximum capacity of a stationary source to emit any air pollutant under its physical and operational design. Any physical or operational limitation on the capacity of a source to emit an air pollutant, including air pollution control equipment and restrictions on hours of operation or on the type or amount of material combusted, stored, or processed, shall be treated as part of its design if the limitation is enforceable by the Administrator. This term does not alter or affect the use of this term for any other purposes under the Act, or the term “capacity factor” as used in title IV of the Act or the regulations promulgated thereunder.

Proposed permit means the version of a permit that the permitting authority proposes to issue and forwards to the Administrator for review in compliance with § 70.8.

Regulated air pollutant means the following:

(1) Nitrogen oxides or any volatile organic compounds;

(2) Any pollutant for which a national ambient air quality standard has been promulgated;

(3) Any pollutant that is subject to any standard promulgated under section 111 of the Act;

(4) Any Class I or II substance subject to a standard promulgated under or established by title VI of the Act; or

(5) Any pollutant subject to a standard promulgated under section 112 or other requirements established under section 112 of the Act, including sections 112(g), (j), and (r) of the Act, including the following:

(i) Any pollutant subject to requirements under section 112(j) of the Act. If the Administrator fails to promulgate a standard by the date established pursuant to section 112(e) of the Act, any pollutant for which a subject source would be major shall be considered to be regulated on the date 18 months after the applicable date established pursuant to section 112(e) of the Act; and

(ii) Any pollutant for which the requirements of section 112(g)(2) of the Act have been met, but only with respect to the individual source subject to section 112(g)(2) requirement.

Regulated pollutant (for presumptive fee calculation), which is used only for purposes of § 70.9(b)(2), means any regulated air pollutant except the following:

(1) Carbon monoxide;

(2) Any pollutant that is a regulated air pollutant solely because it is a Class I or II substance to a standard promulgated under or established by title VI of the Act;

(3) Any pollutant that is a regulated air pollutant solely because it is subject to a standard or regulation under section 112(r) of the Act; or

(4) Greenhouse gases.

Renewal means the process by which a permit is reissued at the end of its term.

Responsible official means one of the following:

(1) For a corporation: a president, secretary, treasurer, or vice-president of the corporation in charge of a principal business function, or any other person who performs similar policy or decision-making functions for the corporation, or a duly authorized representative of such person if the representative is responsible for the overall operation of one or more manufacturing, production, or operating facilities applying for or subject to a permit and either:

(i) The facilities employ more than 250 persons or have gross annual sales or expenditures exceeding $25 million (in second quarter 1980 dollars); or

(ii) The delegation of authority to such representatives is approved in advance by the permitting authority;

(2) For a partnership or sole proprietorship: a general partner or the proprietor, respectively;

(3) For a municipality, State, Federal, or other public agency: Either a principal executive officer or ranking elected official. For the purposes of this part, a principal executive officer of a Federal agency includes the chief executive officer having responsibility for the overall operations of a principal geographic unit of the agency (e.g., a Regional Administrator of EPA); or

(4) For affected sources:

(i) The designated representative in so far as actions, standards, requirements, or prohibitions under title IV of the Act or the regulations promulgated thereunder are concerned; and

(ii) The designated representative for any other purposes under part 70.

Section 502(b)(10) changes are changes that contravene an express permit term. Such changes do not include changes that would violate applicable requirements or contravene federally enforceable permit terms and conditions that are monitoring (including test methods), recordkeeping, reporting, or compliance certification requirements.

State means any non-Federal permitting authority, including any local agency, interstate association, or statewide program. The term “State” also includes the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Where such meaning is clear from the context, “State” shall have its conventional meaning. For purposes of the acid rain program, the term “State” shall be limited to authorities within the 48 contiguous States and the District of Columbia as provided in section 402(14) of the Act.

Stationary source means any building, structure, facility, or installation that emits or may emit any regulated air pollutant or any pollutant listed under section 112(b) of the Act.

Subject to regulation means, for any air pollutant, that the pollutant is subject to either a provision in the Clean Air Act, or a nationally-applicable regulation codified by the Administrator in subchapter C of this chapter, that requires actual control of the quantity of emissions of that pollutant, and that such a control requirement has taken effect and is operative to control, limit or restrict the quantity of emissions of that pollutant released from the regulated activity. Except that:

(1) Greenhouse gases (GHGs), the air pollutant defined in § 86.1818-12(a) of this chapter as the aggregate group of six greenhouse gases: carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, methane, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, and sulfur hexafluoride, shall not be subject to regulation unless, as of July 1, 2011, the GHG emissions are at a stationary source emitting or having the potential to emit 100,000 tpy CO₂ equivalent emissions.

(2) The term tpy CO₂ equivalent emissions (CO₂e) shall represent an amount of GHGs emitted, and shall be computed by multiplying the mass amount of emissions (tpy), for each of the six greenhouse gases in the pollutant GHGs, by the gas's associated global warming potential published at Table A-1 to subpart A of part 98 of this chapter - Global Warming Potentials, and summing the resultant value for each to compute a tpy CO₂e. For purposes of this paragraph, prior to July 21, 2014, the mass of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide shall not include carbon dioxide emissions resulting from the combustion or decomposition of non-fossilized and biodegradable organic material originating from plants, animals, or micro-organisms (including products, by-products, residues and waste from agriculture, forestry and related industries as well as the non-fossilized and biodegradable organic fractions of industrial and municipal wastes, including gases and liquids recovered from the decomposition of non-fossilized and biodegradable organic material).

Whole program means a part 70 permit program, or any combination of partial programs, that meet all the requirements of these regulations and cover all the part 70 sources in the entire State. For the purposes of this definition, the term “State” does not include local permitting authorities, but refers only to the entire State, Commonwealth, or Territory.

[57 FR 32295, July 21, 1992, as amended at 66 FR 59166, Nov. 27, 2001; 69 FR 31505, June 3, 2004; 72 FR 24078, May 1, 2007; 74 FR 51438, Oct. 6, 2009; 75 FR 31607, June 3, 2010; 76 FR 43507, July 20, 2011; 80 FR 12318, Mar. 6, 2015; 80 FR 64659, Oct. 23, 2015; 81 FR 35633, June 3, 2016]