OTHER AGENCIES AND ORGANIZATIONS
Environmental Protection Agency
US Environmental Protection Agency Region 4
Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Air Permits
The EPA Region 4 is providing notice of the opportunity to be placed on a mailing list to receive notification of OCS air quality permitting actions. Most permits required by the Clean Air Act (CAA) are issued by state and local agencies. Occasionally, however, the EPA is responsible for issuing permits for sources of air pollution located in areas of federal jurisdiction, such as offshore. The EPA Region 4 is responsible for issuing CAA permits to facilities and operations proposed to be located on the OCS in the eastern Gulf of Mexico approximately 125 to 200 miles offshore Florida. This is an area bounded by the Military Mission Line and east of 87.5 degrees longitude. The Department of Interior has authority for regulating air quality on the OCS in the Gulf of Mexico west of 87.5 degrees longitude, corresponding to areas offshore the states of Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas.
The OCS activities subject to air quality permitting are typically engaged in oil and gas exploration or development and the operations in this area are generally conducted on vessels in deep water. OCS projects typically require an air quality preconstruction permit and a Title V operating permit issued pursuant to the CAA and the applicable OCS air quality regulations found in part 55 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
When the EPA proposes a draft OCS permit, the EPA is required to notify the public of the opportunity to comment on the permit and/or to request a public hearing. The draft permit, supporting documentation, and notice of the opportunity for public comment will be available through EPA’s Public Notice web page at: https://www.epa.gov/publicnotices and Region 4’s OCS web page at: https://www.epa.gov/caa-permitting/draft-ocs-permits-available-public-comment-southeastern-us and on the Regulations.gov website at: http://www.regulations.gov. The EPA will also provide the public notice by e-mail or US mail to any person who requests to be on the mailing list. The EPA Region 4 is hereby providing notice of the opportunity to be placed on a mailing list and to be directly notified of these OCS air quality permitting actions.
If you are interested in receiving such notifications, please go to: https://www.epa.gov/caa-permitting/forms/public-notice-distribution-list-caa-permits-region-4 and fill out and submit the Public Notice Distribution List form. You can also submit a request by email to R4OCSpermits@epa.gov or by US mail to the address below. Please provide the following information: first and last name; organization (if applicable); email address and/or mailing address; and phone number (optional, only for the purpose of clarifying the information provided). Please specify that you are interested in “OCS permits” and if you prefer notification through email or US mail. You may also limit your request to a specific project. For questions regarding the mailing list, please contact: Rosa Yarbrough, Air Permits Section, EPA Region 4, 61 Forsyth Street, SW, Atlanta, GA 30303, (404)562-9643.
