For industrial facilities in Ohio and across the Midwest, air permits are a necessary part of regulatory compliance. Without the right environmental compliance permits, you can face production delays, expensive fines, and complete shutdowns of your business operations.
The air permitting process can be complex. To keep up with regulatory compliance, you’ll need to monitor your emissions limits, have continuous monitoring and testing, and maintain record keeping and reporting.
At Impact Client & Testing, our team can help your business in Ohio keep up with regulatory compliance and necessary air permits. Contact us today to learn more about our regulatory compliance monitoring.
How Can You Achieve Continuous Regulatory Compliance with Air Permits?
Achieving regulatory compliance through air permits can be a complex process. You’ll have to meet several federal, state, and local requirements to get your permit.
Your permit describes operational conditions, testing frequencies, and recordkeeping requirements that your business must have in order to maintain regulatory compliance.
Working with a compliance and testing company can help you understand the complex technical language in your air permits. They can translate these requirements into daily standard operating procedures for your business.
To achieve continuous regulatory compliance, you’ll generally need to meet the following conditions outlined in your air permits:
Emission Limits
Emissions limits are the most fundamental, legally-binding condition in your air permit. Staying within the limits is essential for future compliance reporting. These limits define the maximum amount of pollutant your business is allowed to release over a specific period.
These can be expressed in a few different ways:
- Mass limits, or tons per year
- Concentration limits, or parts per million
- Production limits, or maximum pounds of solvent used per month
To ensure ongoing regulatory compliance, you’ll need to carefully track the materials your business uses, including fuel, solvents, and raw materials. This will help you calculate pollutant emissions.
To make sure limits are met, air permits often limit your business’ operational hours or production throughput. They may also mandate the use of specific control technologies.
Working with a company such as our team at Impact Compliance & Testing can help you follow best practices for regulatory compliance.
Monitoring & Testing
Following emission limits is meaningless if you don’t have proof that you are adhering to them. For this reason, there are various tests you can use to facilitate regulatory compliance.
- Source Testing: Source testing is the gold standard for regulatory compliance. It involves physically testing the emissions from your business’ stack or vent over a certain period. At Impact C&T, we specialize in accurate source testing. Our team gathers data that is scientifically defensible to regulatory agencies and simplifies the process for regulatory compliance.
- Continuous Monitoring: Best for facilities with very high emissions. These systems consistently track and record pollutant concentrations. However, they require a higher level of maintenance and calibration.
- Parametric Monitoring: For facilities with limited emissions, your air permit may require you to monitor key operational parameters. That way, you can be sure your pollution control equipment is functioning correctly and helping you maintain regulatory compliance.
Recordkeeping & Reporting
Thorough recordkeeping and reporting is essential to prepare for any regulatory compliance audit. It’s important for you to be able to demonstrate that all permit conditions are being met at any time.
Be sure to have data on:
- Monitoring data
- Maintenance logs
- Operational hours
- Materials usage
- Calculated emissions
Keep this information neatly documented and stored in an organized fashion. It’s also recommended to store this data for a minimum period of five years.
Contact Us for Quality Air Testing for Your Illinois Business
If you need help maintaining regulatory compliance for your industrial facility in Ohio or throughout the Midwest, contact our team at Impact Compliance and Testing.
Based in Michigan, our company has over 70 years of combined experience in environmental consulting. We work closely with you to develop proactive strategies that ensure regulatory compliance for your business.
From air quality compliance and air permitting to source testing, engineering analyses, and regulatory analyses, we can guide you through the complex permitting process and regulatory landscape.
Ready to get started? Call (734) 464-3880 or contact us online today to learn more about our services.