EPA Issues Emergency Order and Information Request to New Indy Containerboard Pulp and Paper Mill in Catawba, S.C. and Expands Community Air Monitoring

05/13/2021

ATLANTA (May 13, 2021) - Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 4 issued an emergency order under Section 303 of the Clean Air Act (CAA) to New Indy Containerboard to reduce emissions of hydrogen sulfide from their pulp and paper mill in Catawba, S.C., to meet specific limits as monitored at the fence line. Simultaneously, EPA sent the company a formal request for information under CAA Section 114 requiring the company to perform air monitoring in the communities surrounding the facility. EPA is also initiating its own air monitoring around the greater Rock Hill area extending into North Carolina this week in response to requests from state, local and tribal agencies. Together, these actions are intended to reduce and prevent future public health and welfare risks associated with hydrogen sulfide emissions.

'The steps taken by EPA today are necessary to address levels of hydrogen sulfide that have impacted residents along the North Carolina and South Carolina border, and Catawba Indian Nation (CIN),' said EPA Acting Region 4 Administrator John Blevins. 'The join efforts of CIN, the South Carolonia Department of Health and Environmental Control (SC DHEC), the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ), and the Mecklenburg County Air Quality (MCAQ) emphasize the agencies' full commitment to restoring the area's air quality.'

Upon receipt of the Section 303 order today, New Indy Containerboard is required to immediately begin taking steps to reduce hydrogen sulfide emissions to meet specific limits, as monitored at the fence line, of 600 parts per billion over a rolling 30-minute period and 70 parts per billion over a rolling seven-day average. The facility is required to install three fence line monitors to ensure that it is meeting the limits. Under the order, the company is required to submit a draft and final plan to meet these limits within three and eight days, respectively, and comply with the final plan within five days after EPA approval of the company's final plan. Additionally, the order requires that New Indy Containerboard immediately notify EPA of any hydrogen sulfide exceedance, submit daily documentation of the previous 24 hours of monitoring data, and submit summary reports every seven days documenting the results of the continuous monitoring.

On May 7, 2021, SC DHEC ordered New Indy Containerboard to submit a Quality Assurance Project Plan (QAPP) for outdoor air quality monitoring both on and off the facility property. Details of SC DHEC's order can be found here. Under EPA's CAA Section 114 information request, the company is required to also submit a QAPP to EPA, and EPA will collaborate with SC DHEC on the siting of the monitors in off-site locations in the community.

Since mid-April, EPA has had technical teams on the ground in the Rock Hill, S.C. area conducting an investigation into residents' complaints about air quality. The issuance of this order and information request represent the next steps EPA and our partners have taken to identify and control the source of the hydrogen sulfide emissions.

Background

During the week of April 5, SC DHEC contacted EPA Region 4 regarding air quality concerns in the Rock Hill area. EPA immediately began working with our state, tribal and local partners and assembled an internal technical team to investigate the issue. Building off information gathered by SC DHEC, NC DEQ, MCAQ and CIN, EPA began planning for additional activities in the area. On April 15, 2021, EPA Region 4 and SC DHEC conducted a joint CAA inspection at the New Indy Containerboard facility. On April 24, EPA deployed a mobile air monitoring vehicle, the Geospatial Measurement of Air Pollution mobile laboratory, to assess hydrogen sulfide levels around industrial facilities and the surrounding communities over the span of a few days. From April 26-27, 2021, EPA conducted a Clean Water Act inspection to determine the extent of potential violations.

For information and updates on EPA's activities: H2S in South and North Carolina

For more information on Clean Air Act Section 303 orders: https://www.epa.gov/enforcement/guidance-use-section-303-clean-air-act-caa

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