Air Enforcement: Mississippi Commission on Environmental Quality and Guntown Manufacturing Facility Enter into Agreed Order

The Mississippi Commission on Environmental Quality and Norboard Mississippi, LLC (“Norboard”) entered into a September 15th Agreed Order (“AO”) addressing alleged air permit violations. See Order No. 7150 21.

The Order provides that the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality )”MDEQ”) received from Norboard on January 22, 2019, a report of results from a stack test conducted at its facility on November 27-29, 2018.

MDEQ is stated to have contacted Norboard and notified the company of the following violations:

1. Air-Construction Permit No. 1540-00058, Condition 3.6: Respondent exceeded Emission Point AA-001's PM/PM10 limit of 19.0 lb/hr by 150% during the stack test conducted on November 27-29, 2018.
2. Air-Construction Permit No. 1540-00058, Condition 3.7: Respondent exceeded Emission Point AA-001 's PM/PM10 limit of 0.10 lbs/ MMBTU by 100% during the stack test conducted on November 27-29, 2018.
3. Air-Title V Operating Permit No. 1540-00058, Section 5, Condition 1.A.4: Respondent failed to report the deviations from permit requirements discovered during the stack test conducted on November 27-29, 2018 within five ( 5) days of the time the deviation began.
4. Air-Title V Operating Permit No. 1540-00058, Section 5, Condition 5.B.1: Respondent failed to demonstrate compliance with the with the emission limitations for Emission Point AA-001 by the biennial due date of December 1, 2018.
5. Air-Title V Operating Permit No. 1540-00058, Section 5, Condition 5.B.5: Respondent failed to demonstrate compliance with the volatile organic compound emission limitation for Emission Point AA-002 by the biennial due date of December 1, 2018.
6. Air-Title V Operating Permit No. 1540-00058, Section 5, Condition 5.B.7: Respondent failed to demonstrate compliance with the emission limitations for Emission Points AA-003, AA-004, AA-005, AA-006, AA-007, and AA-014 by the biennial due date of December 1, 2018.

Norboard provided to MDEQ on April 11, 2019, a report of the results from a stack test conducted on February 13, 2019. Such report is stated to have demonstrated compliance with Emission Point AA-001’s PM/PM10 limits.

A civil penalty of $75,600 is assessed.

A copy of the AO can be downloaded here.