Roadmap to Broadly Applicable Approved Alternative EPA Test Methods

Collaborative Efforts to Improve Environmental Monitoring
Oral Presentation

Prepared by B. Tyler
Enthalpy Analytical, 12328 Whartons Way, Raleigh, NC, 27613, United States


Contact Information: [email protected]; 919-491-5145


ABSTRACT

The EPA's Air Emission Measurement Center (EMC) has four traditional air test method buckets available to them when drafting new regulations, guidance or requesting regulated entities to provide emission measurements from stationary sources (stacks).
1. EMC Promulgated Test Methods
2. EMC Conditional Test Methods (CTM)
3. EMC Other Test Methods (OTM)
4. Broadly Applicable Approved Alternative Test Methods (ALT)

Without these methods the ability of the EPA to regulate and enforce would be inhibited, because without a viable sampling and measurement approach there would be no mechanism to enforce a regulation. This presentation will provide an overview of the four air method buckets, how new methods are proposed and promulgated. It will also address the limitations of many existing methods and the appropriate path to gain a Broadly Applicable Approved Alternative Test Method from the EPA and how this tool benefits all stakeholders (public, industry, regulators) to generate reliable and defensible data.