New EPA Changes to the Federal Register

On October 7, 2020 the EPA published an update to the Federal Register that impacts the rules and regulations regarding source testing.  The changes take effect on December 7, 2020.  According to the EPA “This action corrects and updates regulations for source testing of emissions. These revisions include corrections to inaccurate testing provisions, updates to outdated procedures, and approved alternative procedures that will provide flexibility to testers. These revisions will improve the quality of data and will not impose any new substantive requirements on source owners or operators.”

The revisions impact a slew of methods and performance specifications we are all familiar with including both Methods 5 and 7E which form the basis for almost all wet method and CEM sampling.  The changes incorporate corrections to existing methods, expand the options available for emissions testing, and in some cases change recommended practices to required ones.

Most of these changes are on the technical side for stack testers to deal with and will not be noticeable from the source owner’s perspective.

To take a look for yourself, you can find the update here: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2020-10-07/pdf/2020-18824.pdf