AWC Encouraged by Clarity on Boiler MACT
WASHINGTON – American Wood Council (AWC) President and CEO Robert Glowinski issued a statement following the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Wheeler’s signing of the Boiler Maximum Achievable Control Technology (MACT) proposed rule in response to two D.C Circuit Court remands.
“The wood products industry has been needing final clarity on Boiler MACT since the courts directed EPA to relook at a few aspects of its 2013 rules. AWC appreciates that EPA has reaffirmed parts of the original rule and made reasonable adjustments to emission limits for biomass boilers, used extensively by the wood products industry. Our member companies need regulatory certainty to complete their compliance planning and this proposal confirms that the hundreds of millions of dollars already invested in pollution controls are largely sufficient.
“Using these boilers, wood product manufacturers produce about 75 percent of their own energy through the use of carbon neutral biomass that displaces the need for fossil fuels. This proposed rule will allow mills to minimize costly additional retrofits of existing biomass boilers. The proposal has confirmed that significant compliance investments already made by the wood products industry are sufficient and the industry can move on to other priorities and opportunities.
“AWC is looking forward to reviewing EPA’s docket and providing input during the comment period.”
The American Wood Council (AWC) is the voice of North American wood products manufacturing, an industry that provides almost 450,000 men and women in the United States with family-wage jobs. AWC represents 86 percent of the structural wood products industry, and members make products that are essential to everyday life from a renewable resource that absorbs and sequesters carbon. Staff experts develop state-of-the-art engineering data, technology, and standards for wood products to assure their safe and efficient design, as well as provide information on wood design, green building, and environmental regulations. AWC also advocates for balanced government policies that affect wood products.
www.awc.org | @woodcouncil
MEDIA CONTACT
Heather Stegner
Vice President, Communications
202-463-4756, hstegner@awc.org
