42 U.S.C. § 7475 — Preconstruction requirements

(a) Major emitting facilities on which construction is commenced: No major polluting facility whose construction starts after August 7, 1977, can be built in an area covered by this part unless all eight of these are true:
(1) a permit has been issued for the facility that sets emission limits following this part's rules;
(2) the proposed permit went through the review process in this section, including required analysis under EPA regulations and a public hearing where anyone - including EPA representatives - could speak about the facility's air quality impact, alternatives, control technology, and other relevant issues;
(3) the facility's owner^* or operator proves, as section 7410(j) requires, that building or running the facility will not cause pollution above (A) the maximum allowable increase or concentration for any pollutant, more than once a year, (B) the national ambient air quality standard for the region, or (C) any other applicable emission standard^* under this chapter;
(4) the facility uses the best available control technology^* for every regulated pollutant it emits;
(5) the facility meets subsection (d)'s requirements for protecting class I areas;
(6) there has been an analysis of the air quality impact from growth the facility would cause in the area;
(7) the owner or operator agrees to monitor the facility's effect on air quality in any area the emissions might reach; and
(8) if the facility is proposed for a class III area and would push pollution above what a class II area allows - and no performance standard has been set for that kind of source since August 7, 1977 - the Administrator^* has approved the facility's best-available-technology plan.

(b) Exception: The proof required under (a)(3) about maximum allowable increases does not apply to class II areas when a facility that already existed on August 7, 1977 is being expanded or modified, as long as: after meeting the technology requirement in (a)(4), the facility's allowed emissions will be under 50 tons per year, and the owner proves particulate matter and sulfur oxide emissions will not push air quality above the national secondary standard for those pollutants.

(c) Permit applications: Any completed permit application under section 7410 for a major polluting facility in a covered area must be granted or denied within one year of the date it was filed.

(d) Action on permit applications:
(1) Each state^* must send the EPA Administrator a copy of every permit application it receives for a major polluting facility, and notify the Administrator of every action taken on it.
(2)(A) The Administrator must notify the Federal Land Manager^* and the federal official responsible for managing any class I land that the proposed facility might affect.
(B) That Federal Land Manager and official have a duty to protect the air-quality-related values (including visibility) of that land, and must work with the Administrator to consider whether the facility would hurt those values.
(C)(i) If the responsible federal official, Federal Land Manager, the Administrator, or the governor of a nearby state with a class I area formally alleges that the facility may harm that area's air quality, the permit cannot be issued unless the owner proves particulate matter and sulfur dioxide emissions will not push concentrations above the class I maximum increases.
(ii) If the Federal Land Manager proves to the state that the facility would hurt the land's air-quality-related values (including visibility) - even if pollution stays under the class I maximum increases - the permit still cannot be issued.
(iii) If the owner proves to the Federal Land Manager's satisfaction - and the Manager certifies it - that the facility will not hurt those values, the state may issue the permit even if pollution would exceed the class I maximum increases.
(iv) A permit issued this way must still include limits ensuring sulfur oxide and particulate matter do not exceed these higher increases (in micrograms per cubic meter): particulate matter annual average 19, 24-hour maximum 37; sulfur dioxide annual average 20, 24-hour maximum 91, 3-hour maximum 325.
(D)(i) If an owner was denied certification under (C)(iii), the owner can ask the governor for a variance. After notice and a public hearing, if the governor finds the facility cannot be built because of the 24-hour-or-shorter sulfur dioxide limit for a class I area - and, for federal mandatory class I areas, finds the variance will not hurt the area's air-quality values - the governor may grant a variance, with the Federal Land Manager's recommendation considered and, where required, agreed to.
(ii) If the Federal Land Manager disagrees with the governor's recommended variance, both recommendations go to the President, who can approve the governor's recommendation only if it serves the national interest. That Presidential decision cannot be reviewed by any court. The President must approve or deny it within 90 days of receiving both recommendations.
(iii) A permit issued under this variance must still keep 24-hour and 3-hour sulfur oxide increases from exceeding set limits (in micrograms per cubic meter) - low terrain areas: 24-hour max 36, 3-hour max 130; high terrain areas: 24-hour max 62, 3-hour max 221 - and cannot let the normal maximum increases be exceeded on more than 18 days per year.
(iv) A "high terrain area" is any area 900 feet or more above the base of the facility's stack; a "low terrain area" is any other area.

(e) Analysis:
(1) The review under (a) must be preceded by an analysis, following EPA regulations, of the air quality at the proposed site and in nearby areas the facility might affect, for every pollutant it will emit. The state, a local government, or the applicant itself can conduct this analysis.
(2) Starting one year after August 7, 1977, this analysis must include continuous air quality monitoring data showing whether the facility's emissions would exceed the maximum allowable increases or concentrations. This data must normally be gathered over the full calendar year before the permit application, unless the state decides - following EPA rules - that a shorter period is enough. The results must be ready by the public hearing.
(3) Within six months of August 7, 1977, the Administrator must issue regulations for this analysis that: (A) do not require any automatic or uniform buffer zone; (B) require analyzing air quality, climate, weather, terrain, soil, vegetation, and visibility at the site and nearby areas for every regulated pollutant the facility would emit, plus the facility's size, how much continuous emission reduction it could achieve, and other relevant factors; (C) require the analysis results to be ready by the public hearing; and (D) specify exactly which air quality models to use under which conditions. The Administrator can adjust a designated model, after notice and a hearing, if unique terrain or weather in the affected area makes that necessary.