air quality Archives — Page 2 of 4

NY orders Norlite to stop offsite Cohoes dust

New Report Links Off-Site Dust to Norlite’s Operations

New York Town Discovers a Possibly Toxic Problem - WSJ

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Basil Seggos announced that DEC is ordering the Norlite facility in the city of Cohoes to immediately cease and desist off-site dust impacts as documented in the agency’s new report released today.

Based on the findings of a comprehensive analysis of fugitive dust monitoring that directly links dust impacting neighboring properties to Norlite’s operations, DEC is requiring new corrective actions to protect area air quality. This week, DEC issued a Notice of Violation that requires the facility to immediately cease and desist actions resulting in dust leaving the property, in addition to other facility operation improvements and enhancements to address these serious and preventable violations.

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“Norlite continues to show a blatant disregard for the surrounding community by allowing dust to blow off their property, and if they do not address these violations, the state of New York will do everything in its power to shut them down,” Commissioner Seggos said. “This cannot continue and we are working on multiple legal fronts to stop these violations and require necessary facility upgrades to prevent any future impacts to the people of Cohoes.”

Results of the interim study show that dust particles larger than PM2.5 from the Norlite facility are migrating to the Saratoga Sites property. The data show that dust particle plume events usually occur in short, one- to four-hour intervals at levels higher than observed by DEC air monitors in downtown Albany during the same hours and demonstrate that Norlite has been violating DEC’s stringent air pollution control regulations and permit conditions.

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Air quality alert issued for 2nd day as wildfire smoke continues and pollution rises. Strong storms forecast for this afternoon

From NJ.com – Updated 9:44 AM; Today 9:33 AM

Areas shaded in dark gray are under an air quality alert on Wednesday, July 21, 2021. The alert was issued by the state Department of Environmental Protection . National Weather Service

By Len Melisurgo | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

For the second straight day, state environmental officials have issued an air quality alert for parts of New Jersey as smoke continues to drift over the state from massive wildfires that are burning in the western United States and western Canada.

The “code orange” alert was issued by the state Department of Environmental Protection shortly before 9 a.m. Wednesday in Burlington, Camden, Gloucester, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, Ocean counties. It remains in effect until midnight.

“A code orange air quality alert means that air pollution concentrations within the region may become unhealthy for sensitive groups,” the alert says. “Sensitive groups include children, people suffering from asthma, heart disease or other lung diseases, and the elderly. The effects of air pollution can be minimized by avoiding strenuous activity or exercise outdoors.”

Smoke from wildfires brought a hazy sunset in Bridgewater, N.J. July, 20, 2021Ed Murray | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Patrick O’Hara, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service’s regional forecast office in Mount Holly, said smoke and other particles from the western wildfires continue to travel thousands of miles along the jet stream, across the nation to the New Jersey region.

“The smoke is still pretty prevalent over the area,” O’Hara said Wednesday morning. “A lot of stuff that was over Michigan and Ontario a couple of days ago is gone from that area now and over our area.,

This map shows the air quality across New Jersey and other eastern states as of 8 a.m. Wednesday, July 21. Green indicates good air quality, yellow indicates moderate air quality, orange indicates air that is unhealthy for sensitive groups, and red indicates air that is unhealthy for anyone.AirNow | EPA, NOAA, NASA

Smoke from wildfires burning in the western United States and western Canada affects the sunset in Ocean City, Tuesday, July 20, 2021. Tim Hawk | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

A cold front and scattered thunderstorms are expected to move across New Jersey Wednesday afternoon, and although that will likely cut down on the smoke, it might not completely push it out, O’Hara said.

Forecasters say some of Wednesday’s thunderstorms could be strong to severe, with heavy downpours, hail, and wind gusts as strong as 60 mph.

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Air quality alert issued for 2nd day as wildfire smoke continues and pollution rises. Strong storms forecast for this afternoon Read More »

Covanta discloses emissions data for all NJ waste-to-energy plants

The company says this data will help provide transparency and peace of mind to stakeholders and communities

Covanta Says It Has Stopped Accepting Waste That Caused a 'Purple Plume' Over Newark | NJ Spotlight News — Covanta waste incinerator in Newark, New Jersey

Posted by Adam Redling, Waste Today

Covanta, Morristown, New Jersey, announced that emissions data for all of its New Jersey waste-to-energy facilities is now accessible to the public on the company’s website. This is the same data used by operators on-site at each of the three Covanta facilities in the state to monitor operational performance.

The company says that publishing this data will help provide “a layer of transparency to give stakeholders and communities increased peace of mind, as well as a unique birds-eye view into the science behind sustainable waste management.”

“By making this data publicly accessible, it is our hope that people will see beyond the industrial exteriors of our facilities and have an opportunity to engage with the work we are doing on behalf of the environment, and at the same time, develop a greater appreciation for the essential role our dedicated employees play in safely and sustainably managing the waste society creates,” Covanta COO Derek Veenhof says.

“Making this information available to our community members is not a regulatory requirement. We are doing so in order to provide greater transparency and understanding of the work we do every day on behalf of our neighbors and communities,” Michael Van Brunt, senior director of sustainability at Covanta, says.

Continuous emissions monitoring is an important tool in determining a waste-to-energy facility’s compliance with the emission limits set forth in its operating permit established in accordance with the federal Clean Air Act and other regulatory requirements. In 2020, Covanta’s facilities in New Jersey operated in compliance with their permits over 99 percent of the time, the company says.

Collectively, Covanta’s New Jersey facilities serve the solid waste disposal needs of more than 1.8 million people in the counties of Camden, Essex, and Union. This waste is used to power approximately 90,000 homes and helps avoid 1.8 million tons of greenhouse gases annually by keeping waste out of landfills.

Covanta has more than 600 employees in New Jersey and approximately 4,000 in the U.S., Canada, Ireland, and the UK.

Facility information and emissions data for Covanta’s New Jersey plants can be found for the respective sites: Covanta Camden, Camden, New Jersey; Covanta Essex, Newark, New Jersey; and Covanta Union, Rahway, New Jersey.

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This carbon-pricing bill could be the nation’s most far-reaching

Container trucks that run on diesel fuel line up at the Port of Seattle, which seeks to reach net zero emissions by 2050. Under cap-and-invest legislation, Washington refiners of this fuel will have to steadily reduce their carbon emissions, and almost eliminate them by 2050. ( Elaine Thompson / The Associated Press, 2015)

Container trucks that run on diesel fuel line up at the Port of Seattle, which seeks to reach net zero emissions… ( Elaine Thompson / The Associated Press, 2015)

By Hal Bernton, Seattle Times staff reporter

Washington state’s recently passed carbon-pricing legislation appears to be the nation’s most far-reaching state-level attempt to clamp down on greenhouse gas emissions.

It’s also likely to turn the state into a global testing ground for policy to combat climate change.

State Senate Bill 5126, headed to Gov. Jay Inslee’s desk for signing, is designed to help drive down pollution from 2018 levels of about 100 million metric tons to net zero emissions by 2050. That would require huge reductions in the use of fossil fuels in industries, as well as a near phaseout of gasoline and diesel fuel for cars and trucks. Much of the natural gas now used to heat many buildings would likely have to go.

The legislation is the culmination of a yearslong struggle by climate activists who often were not in agreement on how to proceed. The coalition that helped pass it eventually included not only many environmental groups but also powerful corporate players such as Puget Sound Energy and Microsoft, as well as BP, the state’s largest oil refiner, and some tribal governments.

Democrats used their majority control of the Legislature to pass the measure during an intense and historic finale to the 2021 session. Republicans, noting that Washington due to hydropower already has a relatively low-carbon profile, have fought a long-running battle to try to forestall what they view as laws that will unnecessarily push up the cost of energy for Washingtonians.

Rep. J.T. Wilcox, the Republican House minority leader from Yelm, calls it a “regressive tax and crushing blow to working families.”

The legislation, dubbed “cap and invest” by Democrats and “cap and tax” by Republicans, would require the state’s 100 largest emitters, including refiners, gas utilities and Boeing, to reduce pollution. Some of the emitters would have to pay for the right to release greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

The bill is forecast to raise at least $460 million in the fiscal year that starts July 1, 2023, and at least $580 million annually by 2040. The money would be invested in a broad range of activities that include restoration of marine and freshwaters, forest health, renewable energy, and public transportation. A portion of the money is set aside to assist workers and low-income people transition to a clean-energy economy, and some could be used to help fund the state’s working families’ tax rebate.

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This carbon-pricing bill could be the nation’s most far-reaching Read More »

In England, the sale of coal and wet wood is restricted

Curbs on the sale of house coal and wet wood for household burning in England have come into force under new rules aimed at cutting air pollution.

A log being put into a wood burning stove

By Justin Rowlatt, Chief environment correspondent, BBC News

People will still be able to use stoves and open fires but they will need to burn cleaner alternatives.

These are the first restrictions on what people can burn in their homes since the clean air acts of the 1950s.

The UK’s air is far cleaner now, but in recent years pollution from log burners has increased dramatically.

Only 8% of households use them, but they are now the biggest source of the tiny pollution particles that are most damaging to health, according to government data.

It shows domestic wood burning in both closed stoves and open fires was responsible for 38% of pollution particles under 2.5 microns in size, three times more than road traffic.

These tiny particles can enter the bloodstream and lodge in lungs and other organs, the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) warns, and have been identified by the World Health Organization as the most serious air pollutant for human health.

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Report: 13 U.S. refineries exceeded emissions limits for cancer-causing benzene in 2020

Sun sets on the Philadelphia Energy Solutions plant refinery in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S., January 9, 2020. REUTERS/Mark Makela

By Laura Sanicola and Laila Kearney, Reuters

Thirteen U.S. oil refineries released the cancer-causing chemical benzene in concentrations that exceeded federal limits last year, according to government data published by the green group Environmental Integrity Project (EIP) on Wednesday.

The study is based on the second full year of data reported by U.S. refineries since the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2015 began requiring continuous monitoring of air pollutants around plants to protect nearby communities, many of which are disproportionately poor, Black and Hispanic.

In 2019, eleven refineries made the list, EIP said.

“If the Biden EPA wants to act on its environmental justice promises, these neighborhoods near refineries are a great place to start,” Benjamin Kunstman, staff engineer at EIP, told Reuters.

For eight of the 13 refineries, benzene levels exceeded the EPA standard of nine micrograms per cubic meter of air at the fencelines at the end of every quarter in 2020, according to the report.

When refineries monitor results that exceed the action level, the program requires them to undertake root cause analyses and corrective actions to reduce benzene, the EPA said in a statement.

The agency said it was “committed to reducing benzene and other air toxic emissions from refineries and protecting those communities most at risk from air toxics.”