Greenhouse Gases: Reporting Requirements
Questions and Answers
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Who must report?
Any facility that emits any criteria pollutant
over its reporting threshold must also report greenhouse gas
emissions. Greenhouse gas emissions reporting is also required
of:
- All electrical power transmission and distribution plants that emit
any amount of sulfur hexafluoride (SF6), and
- All greenhouse gas manufacturing facilities.
DEP Rules, Chapter 137 lists four specific greenhouse gases and two
broad classes for which emissions must be reported. The four specific
greenhouse gases are:
The two broad classes of greenhouse gases are:
A complete list of hydrofluorocarbons and perfluorocarbons,
including Global Warming Potentials relative to carbon dioxide, can
be found here.
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When do I have to report my emissions?
Facilities subject to greenhouse gas emissions reporting must file their
emission statement with the DEP by July 1 of the year
following the inventory year. For example, a facility would file
an report detailing emissions from calendar year 2008 by July 1, 2009.
In general, the greenhouse gas emission statement must be filed by the
same date as the criteria pollutant emission statement.
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What information must be included
on the emission statement?
Beginning with the 2005 emissions inventory, greenhouse gases
should be reported with criteria pollutants using Satellite i-STEPS. If
you are reporting on paper forms or are a first time reporting facility,
use the blank form (Adobe Acrobat PDF, 159kb) which can be downloaded
from out site. Facilities,
not using Satellite i-STEPS to report, should summarize greenhouse
gas emissions on that sheet, expressed in tons per year.
De minimus emissions need not be reported. For greenhouse
gases, de minimus level means those emissions, calculated on
a per facility basis, below 1 ton CO2 equivalent. A
complete list of greenhouse gases with carbon dioxide equivalents (Global
Warming Potentials) can be found here.
All supporting documentation, including calculation spreadsheets,
must be included for the submittal to be complete. Supporting
documentation may be attached or sent electronically to the Department. Acceptable
electronic submittal formats include CDs or
files attached in e-mail to Tammy.Gould@Maine.gov. An
e-mail confirming receipt of the files will be sent to the sender's
address within 24 hours of receipt.
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How do I calculate
greenhouse gas emissions?
There are many, industry-specific calculation tools available on the
Web. Most of these tools are spreadsheets and calculations are
based on fuel used or material processed. Visit
our calculation tools page for links to some of these sites.
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What greenhouse
gas emission factors can I use?
Greenhouse gas inventories are still evolving and the Department will
accept any emission factor with proper documentation. The
three primary sources of emission factors are:
- World Resources Institute (WRI)/World Business Council for
Sustainable Development (WBSCD) - These groups have published
the most widely-used greenhouse gas emission factors. These
factors are included in NCASI's Pulp and Paper workbook, the Wood
Products workbook, and in DEP greenhouse gas calculation tools;
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, AP-42 - AP-42,
the primary source of emission factors for criteria pollutants, also
has greenhouse gas emission factors for selected processes; and
- U.S. Dept. of Energy, Energy Information Administration -
The DOE publishes primarily CO2 emission factors for an exhaustive
list of fuels.
Links to above sites can be found on our Calculation
Tools page. Stack test data and other industry-specific
documents can be submitted with calculations to document emission
factors.
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Do I use dry or wet weight of wood?
That depends. The WRI/WBSCD emission factors assume dry weight
with approximately 12% moisture content for wood or 8,000 Btu/lb of
wood. The U.S. EPA, AP-42 emission factors assume a 50% moisture
content or 4,500 Btu/lb of wood. Facilities should use the factor most
applicable to their needs or perform appropriate conversions.
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Who do I contact for more
information?
If you still need further assistance, please feel free to contact Tammy Gould at (207)
287-7036 or by e-mail at Tammy.Gould@Maine.gov.
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