''Startups, shutdowns, and malfunctions'' (SSM) are periods of non-continuous operation in refineries, chemical plants or similar industrial facilities. During such temporary periods, these plants might emit larger amounts of
pollution, and therefore the
pollution abatement
Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into the natural environment that cause adverse change. Pollution can take the form of any substance (solid, liquid, or gas) or energy (such as radioactivity, heat, sound, or light). Pollutants, the ...
equipment may be unable to effectively control it.
Recognizing this problem, beginning in 1994 the
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
Environmental Protection Agency
A biophysical environment is a biotic and abiotic surrounding of an organism or population, and consequently includes the factors that have an influence in their survival, development, and evolution. A biophysical environment can vary in scale f ...
(EPA) allowed such facilities to release large amounts of otherwise prohibited air pollution during SSM. However, in 2002 and again in 2003 the EPA made regulatory revisions which seemed to increase the allowable periods of such non-compliance periods, which motivated a coalition of environmental groups to challenge the changes, by suing the EPA. These groups argued that these changes effectively neutralized the
United States Clean Air Act
The Clean Air Act (CAA) is the United States' primary federal air quality law, intended to reduce and control air pollution nationwide. Initially enacted in 1963 and amended many times since, it is one of the United States' first and most infl ...
.
The
U.S. Court of Appeals for the
District of Columbia issued a ruling on the lawsuit
[ Chemical & Engineering News, 5 January 2009, "Court declares EPA exemption on toxic releases unlawful", p. 11] (19 December 2008), finding that allowing such SSM exemptions does violate requirements of the Clean Air Act, in that the CAA requires that some reasonable limit on a facility's emissions of hazardous air pollutants must always be in effect.
The
American Chemistry Council, a trade association of industrial and chemical manufacturing companies, joined the EPA in the court's defense actions.
An EPA spokesman said in late December 2008 that the agency is studying the decision to determine an appropriate course of action.
References
{{reflist
Hazardous air pollutants