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PA DEP |
Relevant State Sites: Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission DEP Air Quality Regulations Site |
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WHAT'S NEW:
No recent state activity has been identified.AIR EMISSIONS REGULATIONS:
The whole state is in the OTR. 10 areas are given Subpart 1 designations under the 8-hr ozone standards, and 5 areas are considered in moderate nonattainment with the 8-hr ozone standards. 22 areas are considered in nonattainment for PM2.5 standards. |
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100 tons of NOx or 50 tons of VOC. 100 tons of any other criteria pollutant. 25 tons of VOC or NOx in severe nonattainment areas. |
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Size based |
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Case-by-case |
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None |
Combustion sources smaller than 1 MMBtu/hr are exempt from permitting. No state notification is required.
GENERAL PERMITS:
The following sources are exempt from permitting:
- Combustion units rated at 2.5 MMBtu/hr or less of heat input,
- Combustion units with a rated capacity less than 10 MMBtu/hr of heat input fueled by natural gas supplied by a public utility or by commercial fuel oils which are No. 2 or lighter-viscosity less than or equal to 5.82 C St--and which meet the sulfur content requirements. Commercial fuel oil shall be virgin oil which contains no reprocessed, recycled, or waste material added.
The restrictions and controls under this permit will be determined on a case-by-case basis. All sources have to do Best Available Technology (BAT) for all criteria pollutants (a form of state BACT). The state has also developed a new general permit (see below). The language in the general permit requires a fuel sulfur limit of 0.3% and PM emissions less than 0.4 g/hp-hr. There is a 30 day public comment period for minor source permits. The entire permitting process generally takes approximately 180 days. See the following general operating permit for small gas and No. 2 oil fired combustion units.
By May 1, 2005 and each year thereafter, the owner or operator of a stationary combustion turbine greater than 100 MMBtu or a stationary internal combustion engine that is rated at greater than 1,000 hp located in Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery or Philadelphia County shall calculate the difference between actual emissions during the period of May 1st -- September 30th and allowed emissions. A source must surrender to the PA DEP a NOx allowance for each ton of NOx over the permitted limit. The surrendered NOx allowances shall be of current year vintage. For the purpose of determining the amount of allowances to surrender, any remaining fraction of a ton equal to or greater than 0.50 ton is deemed to equal 1 ton and any fraction of a ton less than 0.50 ton is deemed to equal zero tons. The applicable emission rates for stationary combustion turbines and reciprocating engines are outlined below.
The state has NOx requirements for stationary combustion turbines and for stationary reciprocating engines. Stationary reciprocating engines rated at 200 hp or greater no later than 1/1/2005 must meet the following NOx limits –
- for a spark-ignited engine, a 1.5 g/bhp-hr or an emission rate approved by the Department that achieves a NOx emission reduction of 80% from uncontrolled levels;
- for a combustion ignition reciprocating engine firing diesel fuel or a combination of diesel fuel and natural gas, 2.3 g/bhp-hr
No later than 1/1/2005 stationary combustion turbines must meet the following emission limits –
- Stationary combustion turbines with a nameplate rated capacity of greater than 100 MMBtu/hr but less than or equal to 250 MMBtu/hr must meet the following NOx emission standards –
(i) Combined cycle or regenerative cycle stationary combustion turbines shall emit no more than 42 ppmvd, corrected to 15% O 2, when firing natural gas or a non-commercial gaseous fuel or shall emit no more than 65 ppmvd, corrected to 15% O 2, when firing oil.
(ii) Simple cycle stationary combustion turbines shall emit no more than 55 ppmvd, corrected to 15% O 2, when firing natural gas or a non-commercial gaseous fuel or shall emit no more than 75 ppmvd, corrected to 15% O 2, when firing oil.
(2) Stationary combustion turbines with a nameplate rated capacity of greater than 250 million Btu/hour that are not subject to the requirements of Sections 145.1 — 145.76 (related to NO x Budget Trading Program) shall meet the lower of the permit emission limit established under Chapter 127 (relating to permits) or emit no more than 0.17 lb NO x per million Btu heat input.
General Permits
Combustion units with a rated capacity less than 50 MMBtu/hr of heat input fueled by natural gas supplied by a public utility, liquefied petroleum gas, or by No. 2 or lighter (viscosity less than or equal to 5.82 cSt) commercial fuel oils, are eligible to use the “Small Combustion Unit General Permit”. This Small Combustion Unit General Permit authorizes the construction of combustion unit(s) that meet the Pennsylvania best available technology (BAT) requirements outlined in sections 25 Pa Code §§127.1 and 127.12(a)(5). BAT applies to combustion units constructed after 12/2/1995 with a rated capacity equal to or greater than 10 MMBtu/hr and considered to be small gas and No. 2 virgin oil fuel combustion units. Specific NOx limits under BAT apply such as – 30 ppmdv NOx at 3% O2 when firing gas; 90 ppmdv at 3% O2 when firing No. 2 fuel oil; and 300 ppmdv CO at 3% O2. There are specific opacity, sulfur, and PM limits applicable to units that began operation on or before June 9, 1989; units that began operation after this date must comply with NSPS limits. Additionally for units for which construction commenced after 1/24/2004 that are not located within the inner zone of the Southeast Pennsylvania air basin, all oil-fired combustion units will be restricted to the use of No. 2 oil that has a sulfur content of 0.3% by weight or less.
250 tons of any criteria pollutant triggers PSD. 100 tons of NOx and 50 tons of VOC triggers NSR in most of the state. In the severe nonattainment areas 25 tons of NOx or VOC triggers NSR.TREATMENT OF EMERGENCY ENGINES
Emergency electrical generator –is defined as an electrical generator operated only during emergencies due to circumstances beyond the control of the owner or operator of the facility including, but not limited to, a power outage. The emergency electrical generator may not operate for more than 500 hours per year or more than 200 hours per ozone season. An electrical generator used for peak or load shaving is not included in this definition.SITING REQUIREMENTS FOR NON-UTILITY GENERATORS:
The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission does not have any jurisdiction or authority over electrical generation siting. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection is responsible for the environmental permitting. Local zoning laws dictate where generation facilities can be built.BUILDING, ZONING AND FIRE CODES:
Building Codes: Pennsylvania has adopted the Uniform Construction Code, which is enforced statewide. It is based on the 2006 IBC and includes state-specific amendments. The code is updated when the IBC is updated, every three years, with the next update being in 2009.
Energy Codes : Pennsylvania has adopted the 2006 IECC with no amendments. [1]
Fire Codes: Pennsylvania has adopted the 2006 IFC when referenced by the IBC. [2]
Zoning: Zoning and planning happens at the local level. Check with each jurisdiction regarding their zoning codes.
Resources (information may not be as current as provided above)
A general overview of each state’s enacted codes can be found HERE.
The International Code Council Adoption page gives state-by-state adoption status of specific ICC codes, as well as information about code adoption by some municipal governments within that state.
Information about energy codes can be found at the DOE’s Building Codes for Energy Efficiency page or at the Building Codes Assistance Project.
In Progress: A separate rule has been proposed in August 2008, M-0051865, defining application fees for different levels of interconnection, an issue that had been previously unaddressed.
The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) adopted interconnection standards for net-metered and other forms of distributed generation in August 2006. Pennsylvania has four levels of interconnection, for generators with up to a 2 MW capacity. Level 1 interconnection applies to certified, inverter-based systems up to 10 kilowatts (kW) in capacity. Level 2 interconnection applies to certified, inverter-based systems with up to 2 MW in capacity, that do not qualify for, or were not approved for Level 1 interconnection. Level 3 is for systems up to 2 MW that do not qualify for Levels 1 or 2, and Level 4 is for systems that do not qualify for any of the above and that do not export power to the grid. IEEE 1547 and UL 1741 technical standards are used in evaluation at all levels of interconnection.
EXIT FEES:
In the state of Pennsylvania, a utility may asses an exit fee on a DG customer for the loss of load to the utility's system. Customers are liable for their fully allocated share of transition costs. This cost is recouped through a competitive transition charge through 2010. Some utilities, predominately ones without nuclear generator assets, have already recovered their stranded costs.
The Electricity Generation Customer Choice and Competition Act,
66 Pa. C.S § 2808. Competitive Transition Charge
If a customer installs on-site generation which operates in parallel with other generation on the public utility's system and which significantly reduces the customer's purchases of electricity through the transmission and distribution network, the customer's fully allocated share of transition or stranded costs shall be recovered from the customer through a competitive transition charge. The competitive transition charge shall be included on bills to customers for a period not to exceed nine years from the effective day of this chapter (2010) unless an alternative payment methodology is mutually agreed upon by the customer and the utility or unless the commission, in its discretion and for good cause shown, orders an alternative payment period. In establishing the length of the period for collection of the competitive transition charge, the commission shall consider the effect on the ability of the commonwealth to compete in attracting industry and jobs, on the financial health of electric utilities and other relevant factors.
*Above rules cited from the regulations page of the DTE Website
Exit Fees In Effect |
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Utility |
Exit Fee Sunset Date |
Alleghent Power (West Penn Power) |
Still in Effect (December 31, 2008) |
Citizens' Electric of Lewisburg |
None |
Duquesne Light Company |
February 20, 2003 (While the Competitive Transition Charge is being dropped from residential bills, some commercial and industrial customers are still paying the charges.) |
First Energy (Met Ed and Penelec) |
In Effect Through 2010 |
Pennsylvania Power Light Company (PPL) |
Still in Effect |
FirstEnergy (Penn Power) |
Still in Effect |
Excelon (PECO) |
Still in Effect |
Pike County Light Power Company |
Still in Effect |
UGI Corporation |
Still in Effect |
Pennsylvania does not have a statewide policy on standby rates. Relevant policies for Pennsylvania utilities are listed below.
PECO Energy Co - Auxiliary Service Rider - standby service is provided when a customer contracts with the utility for a specified amount of demand capacity. Standby demand charges are based on contract demand and actual energy use. Rate available at: http://www.exeloncorp.com/ourcompanies/peco/pecobiz/energy_rates/our_rates_and_prices.htm
Applies to |
Qualifying facilities or small power producers and cogenerators as defined by PURPA whose electrical requirements are partially or wholly provided by facilities not owned by the Company |
Supplementary Power |
Billing shall be under the provisions of the applicable rate and riders.
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Firm Back-up Power |
For all customers: Variable Distribution Service Charge: $0.34 per kW Competitive Transition Charge: $0.86 per kW Energy and Capacity Charge: $2.02 per kW
For service billed at:
High Tension Voltage: Variable Distribution Service Charge: 0.87¢ per kWh Competitive Transition Charge: 2.23¢ per kWh Energy and Capacity Charge: 5.29¢ per kWh
Primary Voltage: Variable Distribution Service Charge: 1.89¢ per kWh Competitive Transition Charge: 2.77¢ per kWh Energy and Capacity Charge: 5.94¢ per kWh
Secondary Voltage: Variable Distribution Service Charge: 2.34¢ per kWh Competitive Transition Charge: 3.68¢ per kWh (I) Energy and Capacity Charge: 7.32¢ per kWh
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Interruptible Back-Up Power |
For service billed at: High Tension Voltage: Variable Distribution Service Charge: 0.16¢ per kWh Competitive Transition Charge: 0.48¢ per kWh Energy and Capacity Charge: 2.36¢ per kWh
Primary Voltage: Variable Distribution Service Charge: 0.30¢ per kWh Competitive Transition Charge: 0.55¢ per kWh Energy and Capacity Charge: 2.59¢ per kWh
Secondary Voltage: Variable Distribution Service Charge: 0.85¢ per kWh Competitive Transition Charge: 1.73¢ per kWh Energy and Capacity Charge: 4.30¢ per kWh
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Firm Maintenance Power |
June through September: Same as Supplementary Power.
October through May: Same as Interruptible Back-Up Power.
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