Whether you're on an industrial or manufacturing or commercial real estate journey, you will quickly realize that being a professional in one of these careers will likely lead you to many different permit requirements across many regulatory industries. While it is true that many of these regulatory bodies are only deeply concerned about high profile emissions generators no matter which media is being managed, there are still requirements for small operations especially with respect to highly monitored environmental quality programs such as hazardous waste generation, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emissions, hazardous air pollutants (HAPs), stormwater quality, wastewater treatment (industrial or public), and soil contamination which can lead to groundwater intrusion, water table (aquifer) contamination, and biological degradation/species loss.Â
We have taken the time and used our own experience in working with these agencies directly and compiling available resources through each state environmental quality division to provide you with a short summary (short in legal and regulatory terms) that has enough explanation and detail for you to stake your compliance needs on. The biggest recommendation we can make is to seek help before pushing off compliance! We have seen and heard from clients who have received massive regulatory fines from the EPA or state agencies for neglecting environmental regulatory compliance in their operations--typically at the plant/emission source and reporting levels.
We have attached this general guideline for the permitting application process useful for all potential permit applicants. In this example we use a Concrete Batch Plant (very common across the country as a whole) that also pours concrete into "forms" for general concrete product manufacturing. Remember, we're keeping it general and have not listed all state-specific and federal requirements.
We have begun working on a publication that explains in great but succinct detail exactly how the permitting process works in each state for air quality permitting procedures. We expect to have this published by the end of 2024, but we hope sooner than that estimate!
Again, we can't stress enough the importance of seeking professionals to assist you in permitting. Many times our clients are only shy a few operational tweaks to remain under permitting thresholds. It's good if we catch the mistake, but it can be costly if a regulatory inspection finds it first! Give us a call [816-434-0563] or book an appointment online if you are curious where your facility stands.
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