Louisville City Wire

The Louisville Metro Air Pollution Control District proposed to issue a proposes to issue a construction permit for American Synthetic Rubber Company (synthetic rubber production plant), 4500 Camp Ground Road, Louisville, 40216, in accordance with Regulation 2.03. The 30-day public comment period starts March 2, 2024, and ends on April 2, 2024. A public hearing may be scheduled if the District determines that there are germane, unresolved issues or substantial public interest, in accordance with Regulation 2.07.
    Drafts of the permit and summary are available on the District website, by emailing our permitting section, calling Matt King at (502) 574-6000, or at the District office 701 West Ormsby Avenue, Suite 303, Louisville, KY 40203, between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. Copies of the application are available upon request. Written comments will be accepted through the District’s online public comment form until midnight or at the District office until 5:00 p.m. on April 2, 2024.

1.  What is the purpose of this permit?  This permit authorizes construction of a second Regenerative Thermal Oxidizer (RTO-2) to control finishing line emissions of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC), Hazardous Air Pollutants (HAP), and Toxic Air Contaminants (TAC). Currently the finishing line is controlled by combustion in one RTO and two coal-fired boilers. The coal-fired boilers are scheduled to be removed and this new RTO will serve as additional control for the finishing line. Both RTOs will be operated at the same time. If there are operational issues or maintenance needs to be performed on either, the other will be able to provide high efficiency control of process emissions.

2. Will this permit increase pollution? Construction Permit C-0011-22-0036-V will not increase pollution.

3.  Does this facility have a history of non-compliance?  The District issued a notice of violation on April 26, 2023, alleging exceedances of standards for their  spray reactor and coal-fired boilers. A draft Agreed Board Order to resolve the alleged violation has been proposed and is available for public comment.  Prior to that, the District, company, and Air Pollution Control Board entered into an agreed board order to resolve an alleged violation related to exceedances of the company’s Environmental Acceptability Demonstration (EA Demo). See the Compliance History Section of the Statement of Basis.

4.    Where can I find out more? Additional information, including equipment descriptions, potential emissions, and applicable rules, are summarized in the Statement of Basis. The Draft Permit details the application of these rules to the equipment and includes the monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting that the District determined is necessary to demonstrate compliance.

http://www.louisvilleky.gov/APCD/docket

Original source can be found here.