Pellet Plant's Permit Not the Norm

By 250 News

Pacific Bio-Energy is getting set to open its new plant  in Prince George this week, and it will find itself operating under one of the most restrictive operations permits ever issued by the Ministry of the Environment in Prince George.

The new facility is located in the BCR industrial site in the heart of the river valley and impacting an already stressed airshed.

The permit will allow Pacific Bio- Energy   annual emissions of 188 tonnes of particulate.  On the surface, that would appear to be three times the amount the company has been producing.  Indeed, the previous permit, issued in 2002, had set a limit of 66 tonnes of particulate.  That same year, the Ministry of Environment had taken enforcement action against the company (which was then PFI Pellet Flame (1997) Inc.) for pollution based on complaints of emissions and dust.  Following the enforcement, the complaints dropped, and there was no follow up inspection, and the pellet plant carried on.

The Ministry of Environment’s Maureen Bilawchuk says the Ministry identifies facilities based on risk, and that means complaints, emissions, inspection results, stack test data, are all factored to assess a facility as low medium or high risk, and in this case, there were neither follow up inspections, nor were there further complaints. The pellet plant continued to operate without inspections, without follow-up. “There were no further red flags” says Bilawchuk.

By 2006,  the plant,  now owned and operated by Pacific Bio- Energy,  had purchased land in the BCR  site,  had changed a rail spur, and needed a new operations permit.  Pacific Bio Energy did a detailed study of its emissions at the existing facility to see what kind of emissions were really taking place.

In September 2006 it was discovered, the actual emissions were more than 5 times the allowable limit. Pacific Bio Energy then initiated  the process to ensure it was properly permitted for those emissions.  Knowing that facility was soon to be closed, a revised permit was issued, allowing that plant to emit 348 tonnes of particulate.

The permit for the new plant is not a “status quo” permit says Bilawchuk.  “This permit has an expiry date of December 2010 by which time the plant will have to submit a plan to show how it will further reduce the levels of particulate and that plan will have to be approved before a new permit is issued.”

There is something else attached to this permit that hasn’t been seen in Prince George before.  For the first time, an industry will have to curtail its production when there is an air quality advisory.  In this case, Pacific Bio-Energy will have to stop using its secondary dryer, and use materials already dried.

There are limits on the company’s production levels.  It cannot produce more than 250,000 tonnes of product per year (21,000 tonnes of product per month) without further upgrading the facility to best available control technology standards for total particulate removal.

During its first year of operation,  it will have to monitor emissions 8 separate times and will have to provide a characterization of the emissions.  “The company will have to prove it is meeting the limits set” says Bilawchuk,  who adds that in 2008, the plant will  have to test its emissions every second month to  ensure it is still within the allowable limits.

She says the permit limits were set after extensive study “We reviewed extensive dispersion modelling , particularly since the new plant will be at a lower elevation and will have a lower stack.  We discovered the overall concentrations would be less for the air shed, with the exception of the property north of the new plant.”

This permit does have a number of triggers that could force the plant to shut down until the problem is corrected.  Bilawchuk says the public had input into the development of this permit “We considered not only the impact on the air shed, we also listened to the concerns expressed by the public.”

Bilawchuk says the plant operators are aware they will be under the microscope.  “People have set the bar, and we want to make sure we are following through.”

The permit can be appealed,   the appeal must be launched within  30 days of the permit being issued, which in this case, was July 4th. 

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