Labs and EPA gather data on emissions, regulation

Abstract

A stakeholders' group made up of representatives of the academic, industrial, and government research laboratory communities is working closely with Environmental Protection Agency staff to convince EPA not to list research labs as major sources of hazardous air pollutants. Many research administrators believe formal listing of research facilities might set off a chain of regulatory events that could result in confusion, extraordinary expense, and, eventually, inappropriate regulation. Last May, EPA published a notice of its intent to list R&D facilities as a category of major sources of hazardous air pollutants under Section 112 of the Clean Air Act ( Federal Register , May 12, 1997, page 25877). This notice, which was prompted by what is generally believed to be a misreading of the Clean Air Act by EPA's Inspector General Office (C&EN, July 21, 1997, page 25), has caused academic and industrial researchers and health and safety officers a lot of headaches. The Clean Air Act has ...