Boiler Blog | Nationwide Boiler Inc.

The Boiler MACT Rule & Assistance Program

The big buzz in the industry lately has been all about the Boiler MACT Rule. The Boiler MACT Rule was introduced by the EPA in March 2011, requiring emissions control technologies to be implemented for all industrial and commercial boilers by March 2014. The rule was created to ensure compliance with the EPA’s strict air requirements, aimed at reducing emissions of hazardous air pollutants (including PM, Hg, HCI, and CO) from boilers and process heaters.  This new requirement affects industries of all kinds, specifically companies who are labeled as major sources of emissions by the EPA. (Major sources are facilities that emit 10 tons per year or more of any single air toxin or 25 tons per year or more of any combination of air toxins).

The Department of Energy’s Clean Energy Application Center’s have devised a plan, the Boiler MACT Assistance Program, to help the more than 650 facilities affected by the Boiler MACT Rule. The program has been created to provide technical assistance to these facilities by promoting cleaner, more efficient boilers and presenting cost-effective clean-energy strategies for compliance. To learn more about the Boiler MACT Assistance Program, click here.

The Boiler MACT Rule has not only been a hot topic in industry, but also in Washington.  Some in Congress claim the rule as a “job killer” and debate that there are insufficient domestic manufacturing resources to comply within the time frames set by the EPA.  The American Boiler Manufacturer’s Association (ABMA) has diligently worked to educate politicians and the public on the truth about the Boiler MACT and a new website, www.boilermactfacts.com, has been developed to list the associations stand on the rule.

Despite claims, the Boiler MACT can be achieved with existing, affordable, state-of-the-art, technologically-advanced and fuel-flexible products, along with innovatively-designed-and-engineered application solutions, provided by members of the ABMA to meet boiler facilities that will be impacted. As stated online, “Implementation may not be cheap or easy, but it's entirely doable – and critically important for long-term public health, environmental quality and business stability.”  ABMA members have the combined experience in meeting tough air-quality regulations with real-world solutions and are ready to help those affected by these rules to comply with them in a timely and affordable manner.  While doing so, jobs will be generated not only for the boiler and pollution control technology industry, but also for small businesses that install, repair and tune-up boilers and boiler systems.

Resources are available to assure compliance with the boiler MACT rule in an affordable and timely manner, and the members of the ABMA, including Nationwide Boiler, are here to help.