06- 096 C.M.R. ch. 113, § 6

Current through 2024-51, December 18, 2024

Section 096-113-6 - Certification Procedures

A. A completeness review shall be performed on any application for certification of offset credits that has been submitted to the Department documenting the proposed offset credits generation pursuant to this Chapter. The Department shall conduct a technical review of the application, and a draft Department Order shall be issued describing the Department's preliminary determination on the acceptability of the proposal to generate offset credits.

B. Public review procedures shall be followed by any source that seeks to generate offset credits. A public comment period shall be held on the draft Department Order as follows:

(1) The applicant shall provide a copy of the draft Department Order, its application for offset credits generation, any supporting documentation, and any subsequent amendments to the application to the municipal clerk of the municipality where the source is located, or, if the project is in an unorganized area, to the county commissioners. This material shall also be available at the Department's Augusta office. This material must be on file for public comment for thirty (30) calendar days.

(2) The Department shall provide a copy of the draft Department Order and the application for offset credits generation, any supporting documentation, and any subsequent amendments to the application to EPA. EPA shall have thirty (30) days to review the draft.

(3) A Notice of Draft Availability shall be published at the beginning of the comment period, at the applicant's expense, once in the public notice section of a newspaper of general circulation in the region in which the source is located. The Notice of Draft Availability shall include:

(a) the name and address of the applicant;

(b) a citation of the statutes or rules under which the application is being processed;

(c) the location of the proposed action;

(d) a summary of the proposed action including the quantity and type of emissions offsets to be certified;

(e) a statement of the availability of the application and supporting documents and the Department's preliminary determination in the form of a draft Order;

(f) a statement of written public comment opportunity, with the mailing address of the Department; and

(g) the date, place, and time a public meeting may be held, if a written request is received by the Department within 15 calendar days from the date on which the notice is published. The date on which the public meeting is held shall be at least 30 days after the date the notice is published.

(4) Any person may request in writing that the Department hold a public meeting. The written request shall state the issues which the person requesting the meeting would like addressed. If the Department's Augusta office receives a written request for a public meeting within fifteen (15) calendar days from the date on which the notice is published and which raises a material issue, a public meeting shall be held on the date and time as identified in the public notice. Whenever the Department holds a public meeting, or for other good cause, the duration of the public comment period may be extended to the close of the public meeting or extended to a later date announced at the public meeting.

(5) The Department shall receive comments for at least thirty (30) days, beginning the day on which the Notice of Draft Availability is published.

(6) The Department shall consider and keep records of all analyses and all written comments received during the public comment period, and all comments received at any public meeting in making a final decision on the approvability of the draft Order. The Department shall maintain all written comments for public inspection at the Department's Augusta office.

06- 096 C.M.R. ch. 113, § 6