An Act To Test for and Reduce Mercury Emissions from Resource Recovery Facilities
Maine Legislature, Session 121, LD 0851
Committee: Natural Resources
Sponsors: TWOMEY, STRIMLING, BARSTOW, COWGER, HUTTON, KOFFMAN, LA VERRIERE-BOUCHER, MAKAS, PENDLETON
Amends: 38 MRSA §590-B, 38 MRSA §610-B

Legislative Document 
No. 851 
H.P.628 
House of Representatives, February 20, 2003 
An Act To Test for and Reduce Mercury Emissions from Resource 
Recovery Facilities 
(EMERGENCY) 
Reference to the Committee on Natural Resources suggested and ordered printed. 
Presented by Representative TWOMEY of Biddeford. 
Cosponsored by Senator STRIMLING of Cumberland and 
/y/~frl.~ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Representatives: BARSTOW of Gorham, COWGER of Hallowell, HUTTON of Bowdoinham, 
KOFFMAN of Bar Harbor, LA VERRIERE-BOUCHER of Biddeford, MAKAS of Lewiston, 
McKEE ofWaYlle, Senator: PENDLETON of Cumberland. 
Printed on recycled paper 
Emergency preamble. Whereas. Acts of the Legislature do not 
become effective until 90 days after adjournment unless enacted 
as emergencies; and 
Whereas. testing 
f "r mercury is not specifically included in 
current law requiring testing of incineration facilities for the 
emission of dioxin and heavy metals; and 
Whereas, this bill establishes mercury discharge limits for 
incineration facilities burning municipal waste, limits that are 
necessary for the health of Maine citizens; 
Whereas, in the judgment of the Legislature, 
these facts 
create an emergency within the meaning of the Constitution of 
Maine 
and 
require 
the 
following 
legislation 
as 
immediately 
necessary for the preservation of the public peace, health and 
safety; now, therefore, 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 38 MRSA §590-B. sub-§§ 1 and 2, as amended by PL 1989, 
c. 
890, Pt. 
B, 
§165 and affected by Pt. 
A, 
§40, 
are further 
amended to read: 
1. 
Testing; first 2 years of commercia1 operation. 
Testing 
l5 required at each resource recovery facility burning municipal 
solid waste at least once in every 6-month period during the 
first 2 years of commercial operation for the presence of dioxin 
and heavy metals, including, but not limited to, lead, 
merc~ 
cadmium and chromium in the emissions of the facility. 
The cost 
of these tests must be paid by the applicant or permittee. 
z. 
Testing after first Z years of 1icensure. 
After the 
facility has been in operation and licensed for 2 years, testing 
is required for dioxin and heavy metals, 
including, 
but not 
limited to, lead, mercury, cadmium and chromium in the emissions 
of the facility at a frequency determined by the board by 
rule~ 
but in no event may such testing occur less freguently than 
annually. 
The cost of these tests must be paid by the applicant 
or permittee. 
A. 
The 
rules 
adopted 
by 
the 
board 
under 
this 
section 
establish a 
system of monitoring the overall air emission 
performance 
of 
resource 
recovery 
facilities 
employing 
surrogate 
measures 
of 
combustion 
efficiency 
and 
other 
parameters that. in the judgment of the board, may affect 
the creation of dioxin emissions and the emission of heavy 
metals. 
The 
board shall provide 
for 
minimum 
acceptable 
operating 
conditions 
as 
indicated 
by 
the 
surrogate 
measures. 
Failure to achieve and maintain these conditions 
.. 
will 
result 
in testing for 
dioxin and 
heavy metals 
as 
indicated by the surrogate measures. 
B. 
Scheduling of tests required by this subsection must 
reflect the operating conditions that originally required 
the testing to ensure the greatest protection of public 
heal th and the environment. 
Seasonal differences in waste 
stream composition and atmospheric and climatic conditions 
must be taken into account in conducting the tests. 
C. 
The board shall adopt rules under this section on or 
before January 1, 1989. 
Sec. 2. 38 MRSA §610-B is enacted to read: 
§§10-B. 
Emission limits for municipal ~aste burning facilities 
1. 
Applicability. 
A 
resource 
recovery 
facility 
with 
combustion units with a combined design capacity to burn 100 tons 
per day or more of municipal solid waste shall reduce its mercury 
emissions to achieve a mercury emission rate of no more than 
0.028 milligrams per dry standard cubic meter corrected to 
7"0 
oxygen 
by 
volume 
on 
a 
dry basis, 
or at least 
85% 
control 
efficiency. 
2. 
Compliance. 
A 
person 
may 
not 
operate 
a 
resource 
recovery facility with combustion units with a combined design 
capaci ty to burn 100 tons per day or more of municipal solid 
waste without a license issued by the department in accordance 
',;ith section l310-N. 
A resource recovery facility 
subj~ct to 
this chapter shall file an application for a license or Jicense 
amendment and a plan for achieving compliance with this chapter. 
3. 
Compliance 
deadline. 
The 
owner 
or 
operator 
of 
Q 
resource 
recovery 
facility 
with 
a 
combustor 
with 
a 
design 
capacity of less than 350 tons per day but not less than 100 tons 
per day, in operation as of January 1, 2003, shall submit the 
application and plan required by subsection 2 wi thin 3 months 
after the effective date 
of this section and shall complete 
installation 
and 
begin 
operation 
of 
the 
necessary 
emission 
control equipment as expeditiously as possible, but not later 
than 18 months after receipt of all required state and local 
permits 
and 
approvals. 
The 
owner 
or 
operator 
of 
any 
such 
combustor shall demonstrate compliance with the emission limits 
in subsection 1, no later than 21 months after receipt of all 
required state and local licenses. 
Emergency clause. 
In view of the emergency cited in the 
preamble, this Act takes effect when approved. 
SUMMARY 
This bill specifically requires that the presence of mercury 
be tested for in the emissions of resource recovery facilities 
burning municipal waste. 
This bill also establishes limits on 
mercury emission rates for a resource recovery facility that has 
the capacity to burn 100 tons per day or more of municipal waste 
and requires facilities that burn more than 100 tons but less 
than 350 tons per day of municipal waste to be licensed. 
..