Commence Construction
| Date | Title | EPA Office | Author | Issues Addressed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 05/05/1980 | Boilout under PSD | SSCD | Reich, Edward | Whether a boilout is considered commencement of operation under PSD. |
| 02/13/1978 | PSD Applicability Determination; Commenced Construction | SCCD | Reich, Edward | Whether the Virgin Islands Refinery Corporation’s (VIRCO) petroleum refinery had commenced construction prior to June 1, 1975. More specifically, the guidance addresses whether (1) VIRCO undertook a program of continuous construction, or (2) whether it had entered into a contract to undertake a continuous program. |
| 06/10/2002 | PREPA San Juan Repowering Project | Region 2 |
Riva, Steven |
Addresses two possible scenarios regarding the future of the San Juan project which has not yet commenced construction: (1) an extension of the 18-month period to construct the project in the existing Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) permit; and (2) installation of a different combustion turbine from the one permitted (new PSD permit). |
| 04/12/1979 |
PSD and NSPS Applicability PEPCO Dickerson Generating Station Unit #4 |
SSCD | Reich, Edward | Whether PEPCO must now undergo PSD review based on the revised Jun 19, 1978 PSD regulations because it failed to commence a program of continuous construction by June 1, 1975 and failed to obtain a PSD permit by March 1, 1978. |
| 07/01/1978 | SSCD | Reich, Edward | Provides guidance on the definition of “commence construction” under the 1978 PSD regulations and on what test should be used to decide, for enforcement purposes, if construction has commenced when a source has proceeded on a project without a permit. | |
| 03/11/1980 |
Agreement that the PSD Regulations Require a Source to Commence Construction |
SSCD | Reich, Edward | Response to a specific inquiry as to whether a source is required to commence construction by March 19, 1979 and the implementation of an amendment to 40 CFR 52.21 proposed on July 20, 1979 which may extend the commence construction deadline for certain sources under certain circumstances. |
| 01/27/1978 |
Applicability of PSD to Pennsylvania Power and Light Auxiliary Boiler |
SSCD | Reich, Edward | Whether Pennsylvania Power and Light commenced construction on a 325 MM BTU/hour boiler prior to June 1, 1975 and whether the boiler is a modification of the existing Steam Electric plant and is subject to PSD requirements. |
| 08/18/1978 | Interpretation of Section 52.21(i)(3) of the Regulations for the PSD Requirement | OGC | Bernstein, Joan | Provides an interpretation of section 52.21(i)(3) of the regulations for the prevention of significant air quality promulgated by EPA on June 19, 1978 as relates to electric utilities that had begun physical on-site construction on several power plants before June 1, 1975. |
| 06/19/1980 | PSD and NSPS Applicability Determination for Guardian Industries' Flat Glass Plant in Corsicana, Texas | SSCD | Reich, Edward | Determination of whether Guardian Industries “commenced construction” of a flat glass plant prior to March 19, 1979 and whether it is therefore not subject to the PSD regulations of June 19, 1978. |
| 03/05/1980 | General Applicability of the Existing PSD Regulations, Promulgated June 19, 1978 and the Amendments Proposed September 5, 1979 | OE | Wilson, Richard | Issues addressed include potentially delayed startup date and continuous program of construction within a reasonable time, among others. |
| 03/11/1980 | Phased Permits for PSD | OAQPS | Weigold, James | Answers questions related to phased permits for PSD including (1) how to apply the within 18-month commence construction criteria for starting construction of different phases and (2) what policy applies for a permit revision request involving start dates. |
| 08/20/1979 | Permitting Multi-Phase Construction Under PSD Regulations | SSCD | Reich, Edward | Answers a question regarding which conditions must be met before a multi-phase source can be PSD permitted. |
| 04/11/1978 | Offset Policy - Marathon Oil Company, Garryville, Louisiana | SSCD | Reich, Edward | Regards facility’s proposed construction plans and their applicability to the emission offset policy. More specifically, the memorandum answers the following questions: (1) was the permit issued to the facility consistent with the requirements of Section 51.18? and (2) what was the status of the construction as of December 21, 1976? |
| 02/24/1981 | Source Applicability Under the Interpretative Ruling | SSCD | Reich, Edward | Proposed project originally subject to the Jan. 16, 1979 Emission Offset Interpretative Ruling (EOIR). However, the facility did not get the permits by the requisite date. Addresses whether the proposed project is subject to the revised EOIR dated August 7, 1980. |
| 02/04/1987 | EPA Region IX Policy on PSD Permit Extensions | OAQPS | Emison, Gerald | Criteria that EPA Region IX examines prior to extending the 18-month commencement of construction deadline found in 40 CFR 52.21 (r)(2). |
| 11/26/1980 | Request for Extension of Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) Permits | OAQPS | Barber, Walter |
Whether decreased consumer demand for a company’s output is a justifiable cause for extending by two years the commence construction date in a PSD permit. |
| 01/31/2014 | Guidance on Extension of Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) Permits | OAQPS | Page, Stephen | Provides EPA guidance on submitting an adequate justification for an extension of the 18-month timeframe for commencing construction of a source that has been granted a preconstruction permit under the PSD provisions. Topics include: when an extension request should be made; length of extension; first and second permit extension request, public notice and comment, etc. |
| 07/05/1985 | Revised Draft Policy on Permit Modifications and Extensions | CPDD | Tyler, Darryl | Draft policy for handling changes to sources which have PSD permits and extensions of these permits. |
| 04/01/1976 | PSD Regulations - Interpretation of "Commencement of Construction" | OAWM | Strelow, Roger | Provides guidance on how the phrase “commence” as that term is used in EPA’s PSD regulations is to be interpreted. |
| 05/19/1992 | Questions Posed by Connecticut DEP Regarding the Moving and Addition of Operating Facilities by Web Technologies | Region 1 | Murphy, Linda | Company plans to relocate existing minor source operations to a new site. The new site will also have new equipment that will take 5-7 years to construct. Addresses the following questions: (1) whether Connecticut DEP can issue a single permit for the entire source even though the source will be installing the equipment over a long period of time; and (2) whether the source is subject to the revised NSR requirements [which are due Nov 15, 1992] or whether Connecticut DEP can instead issue the source a permit in accordance with its current minor source permitting requirements. |
| 10/10/1985 | Q & A on Implementing the Revised Stack Height Regulation | OAQPS | Helms, Tom G. | Answers several questions related to the implementation of the revised stack height regulations promulgated on July 8, 1985. These questions relate to SIP requirements and modeling analyses, including (1) what criteria should be used to determine when a stack was “in existence” with respect to various grandfathering dates in the regulation; (2) what “source” definition should be used in determining whether tie-ins to grandfathered stacks should be permitted; (3) what is meant by “facility;” (4) whether good engineering practice (GEP) stack height should be established separately for each pollutant; (5) how “reliance” on the 2.5H formula should be determined; and (6) whether OAQPS will be specifying structures not well represented by the formula other than those specifically addressed in the preamble; among other questions. |
| 06/22/1978 | IPALCO's Proposed Patriot, Indiana Generating Station | SSCD | Reich, Edward | Answers numerous questions related to a PSD permit application for a new fossil-fuel fired steam electric plant including (1) whether EPA can approve an application for approval to construct conditionally in such a manner that construction could not commence until design specifications become available for the 91% efficiency scrubber and EPA reviewed and approved the scrubber system; (2) to what extent the facility must demonstrate that the necessary scrubber system will be available before EPA can issue a conditional approval; and (3) whether EPA can reject the scrubber system the facility proposes and require a different system in a final approval. |
| 10/26/1978 | BACT for NOx Emissions from Oil Field Steam Generators | SSCD | Reich, Edward | Determining BACT for the control of nitrogen oxide emissions from oil field steam generators in the 10-250 MMBTU/hr heat input range. Specifically, this guidance addresses whether it would be appropriate to issue a PSD permit conditioned such that BACT for the control of NOx emissions would be specified just prior to the commencement of construction rather than at the time of permit issuance. This issue arose because there was expected significant technological improvement in the control of NOx in the near future. |
| 11/22/1978 | Applicability of the PSD Regulations to a Modification at the Little America Refinery | OAR | Wyckoff, Peter | Whether the PSD regulations recently promulgated by EPA on June 19, 1978 apply to a source which was in the process of constructing without the required NSR permit when EPA promulgated the final amendments to the old PSD regulations. |
Related Topics: Begin Actual Construction
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The “Relevant Guidance” index includes a collection of documents issued by EPA organized by topic area. These documents include memoranda, letters, orders, and other types of EPA actions that may provide guidance in one or more forms, such as an adjudication, statement of policy, interpretation of statutes or regulations, or technical information. Each collection is intended to be representative of EPA statements on the topic, but it may not be a complete listing of such statements. The collection does not reflect topic-specific statements that have been expressed by EPA though published rule preambles and Title V petition orders, nor does it include EAB decisions. Each document in the collection speaks for itself, and the inclusion or exclusion of a document in the collection is not intended by EPA to communicate anything more than what is expressed within each document. EPA makes no independent representations on this website as to the extent to which any document in the collection reflects EPA’s current views on the topic, is a final action by EPA, or has any legal effect or precedential weight. Readers are advised to review the documents in the collection and conduct their own assessment of such considerations based on the content of each document and other documents in the collection. Some of the information or views included in the documents may be affected by subsequent changes to the referenced statutory or regulatory language or by court decisions. In addition, many of the statements in these documents are based upon the federal regulations which may differ from rules that govern federally-approved programs. Permitting authorities are advised to consult with their EPA Regional Offices if there is a question as to the relevance of a particular statement to their NSR program.