NSR Rule Published; States React

Lynn Schenkman

Washington, D.C. -- The New Source Review (NSR) rule for equipment replacement was published in the Federal Register Oct. 27 and will become effective after 60 days. The rule requires replacement components to be functionally equivalent to existing components, and it requires the fixed cost of the replaced component to be less than 20 percent of the replacement value of the entire process unit. The rule was proposed in December 2002. For details, visit

www.epa.gov/nsr/

.

Attorneys general for 12 states — New York, Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Wisconsin — are trying to block the rule changes, arguing only Congress should make these types of alterations to NSR and the Clean Air Act regulations. Several cities, including New York and San Francisco, also are opposing the amendments.