Fayette County: Ask for Public Meeting on Compressor Station Air Permit

The DEP is asking for written comments about a draft air permit for a “natural” gas (methane) compressor station that would be associated with construction of the proposed Mountain Valley Pipeline. The compressor station would be built near Meadow Bridge in Fayette County, West Virginia.

Please write DEP’s Department of Air Quality to ask for a public hearing regarding Draft Permit R13-3277. We feel the public deserves a chance to ask questions and hear answers from DEP at a public meeting about this proposed compressor station.

You may also want to make some comments about the air permit and the proposed compressor station’s impact on air quality. You can learn a little about compressor stations and human health here and here.

Comments and meeting requests must be received at DEP’s DAQ by 5 p.m. February 24.

If you need some help drafting your comment We detail below some of our concerns about this draft permit.

Below is DEP’s notice about the air permit. Need help with drafting comments or making your request for the public meeting? If you are an OVEC member* or supporter, you can e-mail info@ohvec.org, and we’ll send you the letter we are sending DEP so you can use it as a template for making your own comments.

(*Please join OVEC; there’s power in numbers and we need to grow our power. We have a “sweat-equity” option for membership, so if you’d rather not pay dues, e-mail info@ohvec.org for details on joining with the sweat equity option. All you have to do is promise to take action, such as writing this letter to the DEP…)

February 24: Deadline to comment on Draft Permit R13-3277 for Mountain Valley Pipeline, LLC’s Stallworth“Natural” Gas Compressor Station, which would be located near in Meadow Bridge, Fayette County, WV.

Notice from the WV DEP:

AIR QUALITY PERMIT NOTICE

Notice of Intent to Approve

On October 23, 2015, Mountain Valley Pipeline, LLC applied to the WV Department of Environmental Protection, Division of Air Quality (DAQ) for a permit to construct a Natural Gas Compressor Station located near Meadow Bridge, Fayette County, WV at latitude 37.868033 and longitude -80.757717.  A preliminary evaluation has determined that all State and Federal air quality requirements will be met by the proposed facility.  The DAQ is providing notice to the public of its preliminary determination to issue the permit as R13-3277.

The following potential emissions will be authorized by this permit action:

Particulate Matter less than 10 microns, 20.30 tons per year (TPY); Particulate Matter, 20.30 TPY; Oxides of Nitrogen, 79.84 TPY; Carbon Monoxide, 91.28 TPY; Volatile Organic Compounds, 13.46 TPY; Total Hazardous Air Pollutants, 4.53 TPY.

Written comments or requests for a public meeting must be received by the DAQ before 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, February 24, 2016. A public meeting may be held if the Director of the DAQ determines that significant public interest has been expressed, in writing, or when the Director deems it appropriate.

The purpose of the DAQ’s permitting process is to make a preliminary determination if the proposed Construction will meet all State and Federal air quality requirements.  The purpose of the public review process is to accept public comments on air quality issues relevant to this determination.  Only written comments received at the address noted below within the specified time frame, or comments presented orally at a scheduled public meeting, will be considered prior to final action on the permit.  All such comments will become part of the public record.

Roy F. Kees, P.E.
WV Department of Environmental Protection Division of Air Quality
601 57th Street, SE
Charleston, WV  25304
Telephone: 304/926-0499, ext. 1222
FAX: 304/926-0478

Additional information, including copies of the draft permit, application and all other supporting materials relevant to the permit decision may be obtained by contacting the engineer listed above.  The draft permit and engineering evaluation can be downloaded at:
www.dep.wv.gov/daq/Pages/NSRPermitsforReview.aspx