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1. What are the agency’s general regulatory requirements?

Odors from producing and processing plants must be controlled and not cause a nuisance to your neighbors.

The main requirements are the Notice of Construction (NOC) or permitting program and the Registration program. The NOC program is a pre-construction application and review program that, when approved, result in permits to businesses with site-specific conditions to achieve compliance with air quality laws and regulations. The NOC applications  rely on case-by-case decisions which reflect the specifics of the application and the emission control technology options and projected impacts for that specific proposal.

The Registration program includes on-site inspections, compliance reviews, and annual fees to the Agency. The inspections review compliance with specific permit conditions (obtained through the NOC approval process) along with general agency regulations.

2. Why does the Agency care about these facilities?

We are charged with preventing, reducing and controlling emissions and exposure from significant sources of air pollution. If facilities need meaningful emission controls to prevent them from being a nuisance to the public, we take that responsibility seriously and want to work with producers and processors to identify the methods and means to achieve the common goal of “no nuisance impacts.”

We care about the actual or potential emissions that may come from these facilities for producers and processors. Our current understanding is that the producer (i.e. grower) and processor operations produce a significant amount of odorous emissions which may cause nuisance impacts off site if they are not properly controlled and managed. Colorado is working through similar issues to those faced in Washington and has shared some guidance regarding some odor control practices.

We have coordinated with other local government agency representatives and visited some early licensee sites to understand what types of activities are involved in these operations. This has confirmed the potential for odorous emissions.

Our focus is on the producers and processors for this industry, not retail facilities.