ENVIRONMENTAL HEARING BOARD Keystone Cement Company v. DEP; EHB Doc. No. 95-151-MG [27 Pa.B. 1615] The Department of Environmental Protection (Department), and Keystone Cement Company (Keystone) have agreed to a second partial settlement of the above-captioned matter regarding its two cement kilns located in East Allen Township, Northampton County. The first partial settlement was published in the Pennsylvania Bulletin on June 29, 1996.
The Department had issued Air Quality Operating Permits (1995 Permits) to Keystone on June 19, 1995 authorizing Keystone to operate the cement kilns in accordance with the waste fuel feed rates, emission limitations, monitoring requirements and other conditions set forth in the Permits. Keystone filed a timely appeal challenging various permit conditions, including the requirement to perform a risk assessment.
The parties have agreed to a second partial settlement, the major provisions of which include (in summary form) the following:
1. Keystone will complete a multipath risk assessment in accordance with the Department approved Protocol and the Department's Risk Assessment Guidelines for Facilities Burning Hazardous Waste and submit the complete risk assessment report to the Department within 120 days of EHB approval of the settlement.
2. The Department will evaluate the risk assessment and any additional information submitted by Keystone within 120 days of receipt. If Keystone's risk assessment and report meet the standards established in Paragraph 1 above and Keystone's risk assessment shows that the combined risks through all relevant pathways identified in the Protocol due to total emissions from Keystone's facility do not exceed the acceptable target levels established by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department will go forward with public notice, review and comment on the risk assessment.
3. Concurrent with its submittal of the risk assessment to the Department, Keystone may submit applications for modifications to its 1995 Permits to increase its hazardous waste fuel feed rate from 50% to 75% of the total heat input, for each kiln. If the Department receives such applications timely and if Keystone's risk assessment meets the standards established in Paragraph 1 above and shows that total emissions would not exceed the levels set forth in Paragraph 2 above, the Department will draft amendments to the 1995 Permits showing a hazardous waste fuel feed rate of 75% of the total heat input for each kiln, and proceed with public notice, review and comment on the draft amendments simultaneously and concurrently with the public notice, review and comment on the risk assessment. The Department will act on such applications within 60 days of the close of the public comment period.
4. Public notice, review and comment on the risk assessment and applications for modification to the 1995 Permits will consist of the following: (i) Within 10 days of receipt of the risk assessment report, the Department will prepare a notice for publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin that the risk assessment is available for public review and comment; (ii) within 120 days of receipt of the risk assessment report and applications for permit modification, the Department will prepare for publication by Keystone in a newspaper of general circulation and by the Department in the Pennsylvania Bulletin notice setting forth the date of a public hearing and the procedure for public review and comment on the risk assessment and proposed permit modifications; (iii) the Department will hold a public hearing on the risk assessment and proposed permit modifications within 45 days of publication of notice in the Pennsylvania Bulletin; receipt of the risk assessment and applications; and (iv) the Department will allow a 30 day comment period following the public hearing.
5. This appeal will be stayed during the procedures set forth above. The appeal will be discontinued 30 days after the Department acts on Keystone's applications for permit modifications.
Copies of the full agreement are in the hands of:
Barbara L. Smith, Assistant Counsel, Office of Chief Counsel, Department of Environmental Protection, 2 Public Square, Wilkes-Barre, PA 18711-0790, (717) 826-2519;
Howard J. Wein, Esquire, Klett, Lieber, Rooney & Schorling, One Oxford Centre, 40th Floor, Pittsburgh, PA 15219-6498, (412) 392-2160;
and at the Offices of the Environmental Hearing Board and may be reviewed by any interested party on request during normal business hours.
Persons who are aggrieved by the above settlement have a right to appeal to the Environmental Hearing Board, Rachel Carson State Office Building, 400 Market Street, 2nd Floor, P. O. Box 8457, Harrisburg, PA 17105-8457.
If information concerning this notice is required in an alternative form, contact the Secretary to the Board at (717) 783-3483. TDD users may telephone the Board through the AT&T Pennsylvania Relay Center at 1 (800) 654-5984.
Appeals shall be filed within 20 days of this publication.
The Environmental Hearing Board is empowered to approve this settlement, if no objection is timely filed with the Board.
GEORGE J. MILLER,
Chairperson[Pa.B. Doc. No. 97-489. Filed for public inspection March 28, 1997, 9:00 a.m.]
