Aviation and Airport Development Law : Aviation Lawyer & Attorney : Chevalier Allen & Lichman Law Firm : Airport Development, Environmental Law

EPA Administrator signed a Notice on August 17, 2009, proposing Airport Deicing Effluent Guidelines. In that Notice, EPA is proposing "technology-based effluent standards for discharges from airport deicing operations."  Effluent guidelines and new source performance standards are technology-based regulations that are developed by EPA for a category of dischargers. In this case, the deicing effluent guidelines are based on the performance of control and treatment technologies.

In general, the regulations would apply to "wastewater associated with the deicing of aircraft and airfield pavement at primary commercial airports."  (Although various industry groups have objected to using the term "wastewater" to describe the deicing effluent, since that is the term that the EPA uses in the proposed rule, that is the term used in this article).  The proposed regulations would affect airports that

1. conduct aircraft deicing operations,
2. have 1,000 or more annual jet departures, and
3. 10,000 or more total annual departures.

Such airports would be required to collect spent aircraft deicing fluid (ADF) and treat the wastewater. They may either treat the wastewater on-site or send it to an off-site treatment contractor or publicly owned treatment works. Some airports would be required to reduce the amount of ammonia discharged from urea-based airfield pavement deicers or use more environmentally friendly airfield deicers that do not contain urea.

Although EPA Administrator signed the notice on August 17, 2009, it has not yet been published in the Federal Register.  The public comment period on the regulations will run for 120 days after publication in the Federal Register.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks

On March 10, 2009, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued a news release proposing the first comprehensive national system for reporting emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases produced by major sources in the United States.  Although the EPA has yet determine whether greenhouse gases, such carbon dioxide, are "pollutants" under the Clean Air Act, the EPA has taken this step to gather "comprehensive and accurate data about the production of greenhouse gases."

The EPA stated that the new reporting requirements would apply to suppliers of fossil fuel and industrial chemicals, manufacturers of motor vehicles and engines, as well as large direct emitters of greenhouse gases with emissions equal to or greater than a threshold of 25,000 metric tons per year.  The EPA estimates that it will affect approximately 13,00 facilities, which account for about 85% to 90% of greenhouse gases emitted in the United States.  For a listing of the various industries that EPA believes will be affected, see the end of this post.

In order to differentiate it from the mandatory greenhouse gas reporting programs developed by states and regional programs, the EPA will require automobile, truck and engine manufacturers to report emissions from the engines they produce.  The first annual report would be submitted to EPA in 2011 for the calendar year 2010, except for vehicle and engine manufacturers, which would begin reporting for model year 2011.

The proposed rule will be open for public comment for 60 after publication in the Federal Register, which has not yet occurred.  Two public hearings will be held during the comment period.

The Proposed Rule:

• Preamble to the proposed rule.
• Text of the proposed rule.

Information regarding the public hearing:

• Public Hearing on April 6 and 7, 2009, at EPA Potomac Yard Conference Center, Arlington, VA.
• Public Hearing on April 16, 2009, at Sacramento Convention Center, Sacrament0, CA.

Other Information regarding the Proposed Rule:

• EPA March 10, 2009, press release.
• Power point presentation providing a general overview of the Proposed Mandatory Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule.
• General fact sheet for the Proposed Mandatory Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule.
• Information sheets for each of the source categories in the Proposed Rule.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks

In the May 21, 2008, issue of the Federal Register, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) proposed a new rule affecting two airports that are a part of the East Coast Airspace Redesign.  The FAA proposes to establish procedures to address congestion in the New York City area by assigning slots at JFK and Newark Liberty Airports in a way that allows carriers to respond to market forces to drive efficient airline behavior.

• The FAA's proposed rule is similar in many respects to its proposal for LaGuardia airport. 
  
• This proposal, however, takes into account the fact that both JFK and Newark have a large number of international flights, which implicates FAA's international obligations. 
  
• The FAA proposes to
  
  • extend the caps on the operations at the two airports,
    
  • assign to existing operators the majority of slots at the airports, and
    
  • create a market by annually auctioning off a limited number of slots in each of the first five years of this rule.

• the assignment of slots at JFK and Newark would be conducted through a uniform mechanism.
  
• The FAA would auction off a portion of the slots and would use the proceeds to mitigate congestion and delay in the New York City area.
  

• provisions for minimum usage,
  
• capping unscheduled operations, and
  
• withdrawal for operational need.
  

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks (2)