Plywood and Composite Wood Products Manufacture: National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP)
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Rule Summary
Plywood and composite wood products are manufactured by bonding wood material (veneer, fibers, particles, strands, etc.) or agricultural fiber, generally with resin under heat and pressure, to form a structural panel or engineered wood product. Plywood and composite wood products manufacturing facilities include facilities that manufacture dry veneer and lumber dry kilns.
Plywood and composite wood products include (but are not limited to):
- plywood,
- veneer,
- particleboard,
- oriented strand board,
- hardboard,
- fiberboard,
- medium density fiberboard,
- laminated strand lumber,
- laminated veneer lumber,
- wood I-joists,
- kiln-dried lumber, and
- glue-laminated beams
The National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) for this sector was originally proposed in 2003 and promulgated in 2004. In these actions, the EPA identified acetaldehyde, acrolein, formaldehyde, methanol, phenol and propionaldehyde as the main pollutants emitted from this sector. In 2007, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit vacated some of the provisions in the NESHAP that created and delisted a low risk subcategory of the plywood and composite wood product facilities. See the Rule History section below for the regulation and the Court’s vacatur.
In October 2017, the EPA issued an Information Collection Request to gather information needed for the agency to conduct residual risk and technology review of the plywood and composite wood products NESHAP. On June 8, 2020, EPA finalized amendments to the 2004 NESHAP. See the section below for proposed and final rulemaking notices pertaining to EPA’s review of the regulation.
On May 18, 2023, the EPA proposed amendments to the NESHAP that would add standards for processes with previously unregulated hazardous air pollutant emissions. See the section below for the rulemaking proposal.
Rule History
06/12/2023 - Comment Period Extension (88 FR 38009)
05/18/2023 - Proposed Rule (88 FR 31856)
08/21/2020 - Correction to Final Rule (85 FR 51668)
08/13/2020 - Final Rule (85 FR 49434)
09/06/2019 - Proposed Rule (84 FR 47074)
10/29/2007 - Final Rule (72 FR 61060) (Revised due to court actions)
02/16/2006 - Final Rule; amendments (71 FR 8342)
07/29/2005 - Notice of Reconsideration of Final Rule (70 FR 43826) & Proposed Rule (70 FR 44012)
07/30/2004 - Final Rule (69 FR 45944)
01/09/2003 - Proposed Rule (68 FR 1276)
Additional Resources
Public Hearing Registration - PCWP Proposed Rule (pdf)
Plywood and Composite Wood Products Residual Risk Review - PCWP HEM input files (zip)
Air Toxics Regulation for Plywood and Composite Wood Products Fact Sheets (2002-2004)
View the supporting documents in the docket folder to find additional related documents to this rule.
Compliance
Applicability Determination Index (ADI). The ADI provides a data base of memoranda dealing with applicability issues. The database is searchable by Subpart.