The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) is proposing to issue a new Regulation, 6 NYCRR Part 222 “Distributed Generation Sources”, replacing the March 1 2017 adopted Part 222 after it was challenged in the Supreme Court of the County of Albany.
The new proposed Part 222 will be opened for public comments until November 25, 2019. A hearing will also be held by NYSDEC in Albany on 11/12/2019 and in Long Island City on 11/20/2019. Walden intends to provide comments to NYSDEC and participate in the hearing on 11/20/2019.
Here in brief are the applicability and requirements proposed in the new Part 222.
Applicability:
The Part 222 will apply to distributed generation sources (DGS) that are classified as an economic dispatch source (EDS) with a maximum output of 200 hp or greater where the potential to emit (PTE) NOx is less than 25 tons/years. Let’s review the definitions for both DGS and EDS.
Definitions:
A DGS is defined as a “A stationary reciprocating or rotary internal combustion engine that feeds into the distribution grid or produces electricity for use at the host facility or both. This includes, but is not limited to, emergency power generating stationary internal combustion engines and demand response sources”, which are private sources that can reduce the load on the electric grid by providing energy during peak periods, receiving some curtailment on the electric bill or other incentives.
An EDS is defined as “A DGS intended to provide electricity for general use to a building, structure, or collection of structures in place of electricity supplied by the distribution utilities. Demand response and price-responsive generation sources are considered EDS. EDSs do not include emergency generators or DGS that provide electricity to power equipment or structures not served by distribution utilities”. It is not clear if the expression “served by” means that the electric utilities are not present at all at one facility or are somewhat not efficient causing a non-economically feasibility for a business owner to connect their equipment or structures to the grid. This doubt will be part of Walden comments submittal to the NYSDEC.
Notification of Applicability:
A DGS shall be registered or permitted by NYSDEC in compliance with 6 NYCRR Part 201 (Air Quality), prior to operate as an EDS. Before March 15, 2020 the owner or operator of a DGS required to be registered or permitted under Part 201 prior to effective date of the new proposed Part 222, shall notify the NYSDEC if their DGS will operate as a EDS.
Control Requirements:
Before May 1, 2020 any EDS, being either
- a combustion turbine firing natural gas or oil
- compression-ignition engines, or
- lean-burn engines
Must comply with the following:
- be of model year 2000 or newer OR
- have a NOx emission rate ≤ 2.96 lbs/MW-hr as certified by a Professional Engineer
- a rich burn engine, instead, shall be equipped with 3-way catalyst emission controls
Before May 1, 2025 EDS must comply with NOx emission limits as per Table below:
The above limits shall be demonstrated with emissions tests that must be submitted to NYSDEC before May 1, 2025 and must be conducted according to USEPA Method 7 Appendix A, unless a different protocol is approved by NYSDEC. Recordkeeping of test results shall be maintained for 5 years. Other recordkeeping includes monthly logs recording the hours of operation, type and quantity of fuel(s) used and electricity generated in kW-hr.
Walden will provide NYSDEC with comments regarding this new proposed Part 222, specifically focused on what type combustion engines will require to comply with this new regulation. Walden will then participate in the public hearing scheduled for 11/20/2019 at NYSDEC Region 2 location in Long Island City.
If you think your facility might fall under this new Part 222 or if you have any doubts about its applicability, please contact Walden Environmental Engineering for a free consultation to discuss any issue about the proposed NYSDEC Part 222 or any other compliance issue related to air permitting under Federal, State or Local jurisdiction.