DEQ opens comment period on ATI Specialty Materials air permit in Union County
RALEIGH — The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality is accepting public comments on a draft air quality permit for ATI Specialty Materials’ Bakers Plant in Union County.
The DEQ Division of Air Quality announced June 5 that the Monroe facility has applied to expand operations and remove limits that currently restrict its emissions to minor source levels. If approved, the change would reclassify the plant as a major source facility requiring a Title V permit.
ATI processes scrap metal at the Bakers Plant. According to DEQ, the facility currently operates under a synthetic minor air quality permit. Synthetic minor permits allow facilities to avoid major source classification by accepting enforceable limits on emissions.
DEQ said air dispersion modeling reviewed by the Division of Air Quality found that the facility’s emissions of toxic air pollutants are not expected to exceed the state’s acceptable ambient levels.
The draft permit includes conditions intended to ensure pollutants emitted by the facility comply with emission standards beyond the facility’s fence line. If the permit is approved, ATI would be subject to recordkeeping and reporting requirements, along with regular inspections.
The public comment period runs through July 6. DEQ said it will consider comments before making a final decision on the proposed permit. Members of the public may also request a public hearing during the comment period.
Comments may be emailed to daq.publiccomments@deq.nc.gov with “ATI.25A” in the subject line, left by voicemail at 919-707-8430 or mailed to the NCDEQ Division of Air Quality at 1641 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-1641.
DEQ said copies of the public notice, draft permit, draft permit review, permit application, community profile report and a one-page project fact sheet are available online.
The agency’s announcement includes information in English and Spanish. The permit decision remains pending.
Editor’s note: This article was drafted with the assistance of artificial intelligence and was reviewed and fact-checked by a member of the NC Political News editorial team before publication.
