Purpose

This bill adds new requirements for municipal solid waste incinerators in Minnesota. It targets emissions measurement, limits, and public disclosure to align with federal standards and improve tracking of air pollutants from these facilities.

Definitions and scope

• Defines key terms such as air contaminant, continuous automated sampling system (CASS), continuous emissions monitoring system (CEMS), and startup/warmup/shutdown periods.
• Applies to municipal solid waste incinerators (including energy recovery facilities) that burn mixed municipal solid waste and are subject to Minnesota rules and permits.

Emissions limits

• Requires incinerators to meet the emissions limits set by amendments to federal rules for large municipal waste combustion units (as published in the Federal Register on January 23, 2024).
• Two timing scenarios:
  • Facilities operating before the effective date must meet the standards for all pollutants listed in Table 2 (except carbon monoxide, CO, corrected to seven percent oxygen).
  • Facilities constructed and starting operation after the effective date must meet the standards listed in Table 3 (CO corrected to seven percent oxygen).
• In all cases, CO limits apply for every hour the facility is operating, unless otherwise permitted.

Emissions measurement and monitoring requirements

• Operators must submit a plan to the commissioner to deploy either:
  • a continuous emissions monitoring system (CEMS), or
  • a continuous automated sampling system (CASS) to monitor emissions of a broad list of air contaminants.
• Contaminants to monitor include, but are not limited to: carbon dioxide, ammonia, hydrochloric acid, dioxinfuran (dioxins and furans), lead, mercury, arsenic, hexavalent chromium, manganese, nickel, selenium, zinc, PFAS, particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), hydrofluoric acid, beryllium, cadmium, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.
• If a CEMS is feasible and commercially available for a given pollutant, the plan must require CEMS; if not, the plan must use CASS with long-term year-round sampling.
• Calculated estimates from parametric monitoring cannot replace direct monitoring or sampling.
• The plan must describe how monitoring will be conducted and how data will be posted publicly in a format easily uploaded to the agency website.

Data disclosure and public access

• Requires an automated, transparent data-sharing system (datasharing system) to make emissions data accessible to the public via the agency website.
• The system must for each air contaminant:
  • report readings in concentrations and in pounds per day and per year,
  • compare emissions to state/federal limits and permit limits,
  • list all violations of emissions limits,
  • show the operating status (including startup/shutdown) at the time emissions are measured,
  • archive emissions data for download,
  • present results of facility performance tests,
  • automatically notify involved parties by electronic mail about emissions violations.
• For dioxinfuran, the system must report emissions in mass and in toxic equivalents using EPA or World Health Organization factors.
• The commissioner may review and adjust the datasharing plan for accuracy and accessibility.
• A determination must be issued within about a year after the datasharing system is implemented on whether the monitoring data are accurate and reliable enough for enforcement.

Implementation timeline and rulemaking

• The commissioner must adopt implementing rules no later than a specified date.
• The bill sets that certain deadlines (such as dates for plan approval and actual implementation) are to be determined and filled in later, with processes for modification by the commissioner as needed to ensure compliance and data quality.

Additional considerations

• The plan must reflect “technologically feasible and commercially available” status, meaning the system must be technically possible to install and available for purchase, but cost analysis is not considered in determining feasibility.
• The data collection during startup, warmup, and shutdown periods must be emitted and reported with oxygen measurements at the stack, and not adjusted to seven percent oxygen unless stated for normal operations.

Significance and potential impact

• Strengthens monitoring requirements and ties Minnesota standards to federal rules for large municipal waste combustion units.
• Increases transparency by making emissions data publicly accessible and searchable.
• Could influence operating costs and equipment decisions for existing and new incinerators.

---

Relevant Terms municipal solid waste incinerator; emissions limits; continuous emissions monitoring system (CEMS); continuous automated sampling system (CASS); air contaminant; dioxinfuran; dioxins and furans; PFAS; startup; warmup; shutdown; carbon monoxide (CO); oxygen content; Table 2; Table 3; ammonia; hydrochloric acid; polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs); lead; mercury; arsenic; hexavalent chromium; manganese; nickel; selenium; zinc; particulate matter (PM10, PM2.5); volatile organic compounds (VOCs); hydrofluoric acid; beryllium; cadmium; polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs); Federal Register; EPA NSPS; EPA emission guidelines; toxic equivalents (TEQ); data-sharing system; public access; Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA); required rulemaking.