National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants: Surface Coating of Large Appliances

This action proposes national emission standards for hazardous air pollutants (NESHAP) for large appliance surface coating operations located at major sources of hazardous air pollutants (HAP). These proposed standards would implement section 112(d) of the Clean Air Act (CAA) by requiring these operations to meet HAP emission standards reflecting the application of the maximum achievable control technology (MACT). The HAP emitted by these operations include ethylbenzene, glycol ethers (including 2-butoxyethanol), hexane, methylene chloride, 4,4'-methylene diphenyl diisocyanate, methyl ethyl ketone, methyl isobutyl ketone, toluene, and xylene. Exposure to these substances has been demonstrated to cause adverse health effects such as irritation of the lung, eye, and mucus membranes, asthma, effects on the central nervous system, and cancer. In general, these findings have only been shown with concentrations higher than those typically in the ambient air. The adverse health effects associated with the exposure to these specific HAP are further described in the docket for this rulemaking. The proposed standards would reduce nationwide HAP emissions from major sources by approximately 45 percent.