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Notice of Cancellation of Tentative Public Hearings on Permits for Fairbanks SIP: Golden Valley Electric Association North Pole Power Plant

PUBLIC NOTICE: NOTICE OF CANCELLATION OF PUBLIC HEARING
STATE OF ALASKA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION
GOLDEN VALLEY ELECTRIC ASSOCIATION
NORTH POLE POWER PLANT

The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (ADEC) has made a preliminary decision
to approve Golden Valley Electric Association’s (GVEA’s) application for Air Quality Control
Minor Permit AQ0110MSS01 Rev. 1 for the North Pole Power Plant (NPPP).

Applicant: Golden Valley Electric Association
P.O. Box 71249, Fairbanks, AK 99707-1249
Location: North Pole, Alaska
64.7344º North; 147.3453º West

Activity: The basis for this permit revision is classified under AS 46.14.130(c)(2), because the
Department finds that public health or air quality effects provide a reasonable basis to regulate the
stationary source. This finding is contained in the State Implementation Plan (SIP) for the Fairbanks
North Star Borough (FNSB) Serious Nonattainment Area (NAA) adopted on November 19, 2019.
The Department is processing Minor Permit AQ0110MSS01 Rev. 1 under the Department’s revoke
and reissuance procedures under AS 46.14.280(a)(2), and therefore no permit application was
submitted by the Permittee. The Department is preparing a new comprehensive SIP with a new
determination that SO2 BACT limits for major stationary sources are not required to satisfy the
State’s obligations under the Clean Air Act requirements for stationary sources in the NAA. Given
that the Department originally issued Minor Permit AQ0110MSS01 for the sole purpose of
implementing SO2 controls identified in the FNSB NAA SIP for the North Pole Power Plant, The
Department now finds no underlying basis for issuing such permit.

The Department sent GVEA a notice of intent to revoke and reissue Minor Permit AQ0110MSS01
Rev. 1 under AS 46.14.280(a)(2), on December 15, 2023, to remove SO2 conditions and add PM 2.5
conditions and additional monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting (MR&R) requirements.
Emissions: Minor Permit AQ0110MSS01 Rev. 1 authorizes a change in SO2 emissions only.
With this permitting action, the North Pole Power Plant’s potential SO2 emissions will revert to
2,530.6 tons per year, the levels in place upon the issuance of AQ0110MSS01 before the existing
SO2 limits went into effect on June 9, 2021. The Department does not consider this change to be a
potential or actual emissions increase under 18 AAC 50.502(c)(3), or a potential or net emissions
increase under 40 C.F.R. 52.21(b).

ADEC Preliminary Review: ADEC drafted a preliminary permit decision for this project under
AS 46.14 and 18 AAC 50.

Available Information: Copies of the revoke and reissue letter, ADEC’s preliminary minor permit
and technical analysis report (TAR) are available at the following offices:
ADEC Air Permits Program, 410 Willoughby Avenue, Suite 303, Juneau, Alaska 99801
ADEC Air Permits Program, 555 Cordova Street, Anchorage, AK 99501

These documents are also available at ADEC’s website at:
http://dec.alaska.gov/Applications/Air/airtoolsweb/AirPermitsApprovalsAndPublicNotices/
Opportunity for Public Participation: Any interested person may present written statements
relevant to the preliminary decision by October 22, 2024. ADEC will consider all comments
received and make any changes ADEC finds beneficial or necessary to assure compliance with
18 AAC 50 or state law. ADEC will issue a final decision to issue or deny the permit after the close
of the public comment period.

ADEC complies with Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. If you are a person
with a disability who may need a special accommodation in order to participate in this public
process, please contact Julia Schweminiski at (907) 269-7660 or TDD Relay Service 1-800-770-
8973/TTY or dial 711 by the 15th day of this public comment period to ensure that any necessary
accommodations can be provided.

Comments relevant to the preliminary minor permit and draft operating permit may be submitted
electronically via ADEC’s public notice site at
https://dec.alaska.gov/Applications/Air/airtoolsweb/FormalComments, or to Adam Leibert by mail
to 555 Cordova Street, Anchorage, AK 99501, or by email to adam.leibert@alaska.gov. Comments
must be received by close of public comments period at 11:59 p.m. Alaska time on October 22,
2024. Except for comments classified under AS 46.14.520, all public comments submitted during
the public comment period can be viewed at
https://dec.alaska.gov/Applications/Air/airtoolsweb/AirPermitsApprovalsAndPublicNotices after
the public comment period.

Hearing: ADEC published a public notice regarding these proposed changes on September 20,
2024. In the public notice the Department announced that a public hearing for these proposed
regulations was tentatively scheduled for Monday, October 21, 2024, from 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. via
teleconference. The Department did not receive a request to hold the public hearing by 5:00
p.m. on Monday, October 14, 2024, as required in the original public notice. Therefore, the
public hearing will not be held.

Attachments, History, Details

Attachments

None

Revision History

Created 10/15/2024 4:45:35 PM by jfrintala

Details

Department: Environmental Conservation
Category: Public Notices
Sub-Category:
Location(s): Statewide
Project/Regulation #:
 
Publish Date: 10/15/2024
Archive Date: 10/23/2024
 
Events/Deadlines: