Notice of Public Hearing

SUBJECT: Notice of Public Hearing for to Consider Amendments to Rule 413, Stationary Gas Turbines

The Board of Directors of the Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District (SMAQMD) will conduct a public hearing on Thursday, March 24, 2005 at 9:30 a.m. in Room 1450 (Board of Supervisors Chambers), County Administration Building, 700 H Street, Sacramento, California. The purpose of the hearing is to consider the adoption of amendments to SMAQMD Rule 413, STATIONARY GAS TURBINES. Rule 413 is being amended in order to:

• Extend the startup period for a gas turbine, during which time the gas turbine is exempt from the emission limits specified in the rule. A gas turbine with a rated output of 160 megawatts or more, which is part of a combined cycle process, will be allowed a startup period of up to 4 hours, depending on the length of time that the associated steam turbine has been shut down.
• Provide a limited exemption for "short-term excursions," which are brief increases in the emissions of NOx that are associated with certain transient operating conditions. A gas turbine with a rated output greater than 100 megawatts, which is part of a combined cycle process, will be allowed an emissions averaging time of 6 hours to comply with NOx limits during periods that include short-term excursions.
• Add recordkeeping requirements to aid in the assessment of compliance with the exemptions for startup periods and short-term excursions.

Rule 413 establishes Reasonably Available Control Technology (RACT) and Best Available Retrofit Control Technology (BARCT) limits for NOx emissions from stationary gas turbines. The amendments are being proposed because the current rule imposes requirements that are technologically infeasible for large gas turbines at combined cycle plants to meet.

The public notice, rule and the staff report will be posted on the SMAQMD website (www.airquality.org), and may be downloaded. These documents may also be viewed at the SMAQMD office at the address listed below.

By this notice, all interested parties are specifically requested to testify on the proposed amendments to the rule. Oral and written testimony may be directed to the Board of Directors at the public hearing on March 24, 2005, or to the Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District, 777 12th Street, 3rd Floor, Sacramento, CA 95814, ATTENTION: Kevin J. Williams (916) 874-4851.