How is the state of New Mexico going to implement the recently promulgated EPA rule on ethanol plants?
A. On 12 April 2007, USEPA promulgated a new definition of chemical process plants for the purpose of expediting the air quality permitting process for ethanol plant construction. The change raises the PSD threshold from 100 tons per year to 250 tons per year per pollutant, removing ethanol plants from the list of 28 facility types that have a 100 ton per year threshold. It also removes ethanol plants from the PSD and Title V list of sources for which fugitive emissions can trigger the applicability of those programs. The affected federal rules are 40 CFR, Parts 51, 52, 70, 71. New Mexico is not immediately adopting these changes, but will revise the New Mexico State Implementation Plan in the future as required by USEPA to meet rule deadlines. Until the State Implementation Plan has been revised, the previous definition and PSD thresholds remain in effect (i.e., ethanol plants with emissions greater than 100 tons per year of any pollutant must submit a PSD permit application and fugit
