Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) - Philadelphia Nonattainment Area (Delaware Portion)
The Delaware portion of the Philadelphia-Wilmington-Atlantic City ozone nonattainment area includes the county of New Castle. New Castle County is grouped with parts of southeastern Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey, and northeastern Maryland for ozone planning purposes. New Castle County, Delaware is currently designated Serious nonattainment under the 2015 8-hour ozone NAAQS.
Under federal nonattainment New Source Review (NSR) requirements, new or modified major stationary sources of ozone precursors—nitrogen oxides (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOC)—must obtain Emission Reduction Credits (ERCs) to offset any proposed emissions increases. For a Serious ozone nonattainment classification (2015standard), the required offset ratio is 1.2 to 1. For example, if a project proposes to emit 100 tons per year (tpy) of NOx, it must obtain 120 tpy of NOx ERCs.
| Pollutant | New Major Source Emission Rates | Major Modification to existing Source |
|---|---|---|
| Nitrogen oxides (NOx) | ≥50 tons/year | ≥25 tons/year |
| Volatile Organic compounds (VOC) | ≥50 tons/year | ≥25 tons/year |
Facilities that were emitting NOx or VOC may be eligible to generate Emission Reduction Credits (ERCs) with a permanent reduction of those emissions generating from a shutdown or installation of control technology or process change.
If your company has a new project that exceeds thresholds or had a facility with permanent reduction of emissions at any level, please reach out to see how Emissions Experts can assist.