Public Participation

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Stakeholder Involvement

The Air Quality Bureau frequently seeks input and recommendations from stakeholders on various planning and rulemaking activities, along with permits that will be issued.

  • Public Input allows opportunities for comment and general information to review Air Quality rulemakings and draft permits. Please see the fact sheet Making Your Comments Count for tips on making effective comments.
  • Meetings are ongoing, regularly scheduled meetings to discuss current and upcoming regulatory issues.
  • Workgroups are established to assist the Air Quality Bureau with specific air quality program implementation activities.

Interested members of the public can view agendas, documents, and general information; meeting and workgroup activities can also be tracked.

Please note that not all categories will have items available for comment at all times. Public meetings being held throughout the state are also available on the State of Iowa public meeting calendar.

Public Input

Construction Permits

* The Iowa DNR is proposing to issue these construction permit(s). Written comments should be directed immediately to the assigned engineer.

Operating Permits

 

Meetings - Fee Advisory Groups

Legislation passed by the 86th session of Iowa General Assembly (Senate File 488) established authority to collect application fees for new source air construction permits at major sources. Construction permit application fees will pay for the reasonable direct and indirect costs of implementing and administrating new source review programs for major sources. The legislation directs the DNR to convene a fee advisory group to obtain recommendations regarding these fees for major source air construction permits, including Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) permits. The advisory group will meet at least once annually to consider the fees. For more information contact Jim McGraw at Jim.Mcgraw@dnr.iowa.gov or 515-725-9543.


Meetings - Air Quality Client Contact

Air Quality Client Contact Meetings focus on current and upcoming air program issues and changes. The meetings provide an open forum for stakeholders and the general public to discuss new state and federal air quality rules or air program developments and are a good source of information for anyone who works with or has an interest in activities related to air quality.

All meetings are open to the public.


Workgroups

Draft Rulemaking Proposal - Federal Updates

The Iowa DNR Air Quality Bureau (DNR) invites the public to provide informal input on a draft rulemaking proposal.


Summary of Draft Proposal

The proposed changes adopt amendments to EPA methods for measuring air pollutant emissions (stack testing and continuous monitoring). The proposal also includes the adoption of revisions to federal new source perfomance standards (NSPS), air toxics standards (also known as National Emissions Standard for Hazardous Air Pollutants, or NESHAP), and adding 1-bromopropane (1-BP) to the Clean Air Act (CAA) list of hazardous air pollutants (HAPs). Affected businesses and the public benefit from up-to-date air quality requrements and increased effectiveness.


Rulemaking Documents
How to Provide Input

Written comments and suggestions on the draft proposal may be provided to Jessica Reese McIntyre, Iowa DNR Air Quality Bureau, by Wednesday, August 31, 2022, at Jessica.ReeseMcIntyre@dnr.iowa.gov or by mail or hand-delivery to: DNR Air Quality Bureau, 502 E. 9th Street, Des Moines, Iowa 50319.


Informal Public Comment

This informal input period is an opportunity for stakeholders to assist the Iowa DNR in developing the rule proposal. After considering public input, the Iowa DNR will determine whether to proceed with the rulemaking and present a proposal to the Environmental Protection Commission (Commission). The public may also provide comments on the proposal at the Commission meeting. If the Commission approves the proposal for public comment, the Notice of Intended Action will be published in the Iowa Administrative Bulletin. The Iowa DNR will hold a public hearing during the public comment period.

Individuals with disabilities or limited English proficiency are encouraged to participate in all DNR activities, including submitting public comments. If a reasonable accommodation or language services are needed to participate, contact the Air Quality Bureau staff member listed or Relay Iowa TTY Service at 800-735-7942 in advance to advise them of your specific needs. DNR's language access and disability nondiscrimination plans are available at https://www.iowadnr.gov/About-DNR/Environmental-Justice.

For more information, please contact Jessica Reese McIntyre by e-mail at Jessica.ReeseMcIntyre@dnr.iowa.gov or by phone at 515-725-9547.

The Air Quality Bureau is convening a stakeholder advisory group to receive input on a potential rule making regarding requiring electronic submittal of air emissions inventory reports, air permit applications, and other air quality documents. An advisory group meeting will be held with Zoom on August 19 at 10 am [air electronic submittals advisory group meeting, add to calendar]. Registration details are included in the meeting agenda.

For more information please contact Jessica Reese Mcintyre at jessica.reesemcintyre@dnr.iowa.gov or 515-725-9547, or Jim Mcgraw at jim.mcgraw@dnr.iowa.gov or 515-689-1439. For information on the potential rule making, please contact Christine Paulson at christine.paulson@dnr.iowa.gov or 515-725-9510.

The Air Quality Bureau convened a diverse work group (see members below) to reexamine and provide feedback on the current fees for: minor source and major source air construction permit applications; operating permit applications; title v emissions; and asbestos notifications. Group members developed and endorsed specific recommendations for future changes to funding the Iowa air quality program.

For more information contact Jim Mcgraw at jim.mcgraw@dnr.iowa.gov or 515-725-9543 or Wendy Walker at wendy.walker@dnr.iowa.gov or 515-725-9570.

Agendas and the handouts from each meeting are posted below.

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June 21, 2017 ....... Agenda

July 13, 2017 ....... Agenda

July 19, 2017 ....... Agenda

July 20, 2017 ....... Agenda

July 25, 2017....... Agenda

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Workgroup Members

Charter

July 7 Enfotech eApplication presentation

The DNR held a value stream mapping event (VSM) on October 17 – 20, 2016. This was a collaborative event with six industry representatives and was co-facilitated by the Department of Management. The VSM participants thoroughly discussed various opportunities to transform Title V permitting and came to consensus on six key deliverables to improve efficiency:

  • optional pre-application meeting
  • optional pre-technical review meetings
  • improved application forms
  • metrics to determine missing information and customer satisfaction
  • critical information earlier in the process
  • directory for just-in-time sharing of internal data

These deliverables will relate to receiving better information from our applicants, thereby improving the efficiency of the DNR staff who will no longer spend time collecting information that could have been provided up front.

Since three of these improvements are more complex in nature, the DNR is asking for the input of additional team members. Two workgroups will be held between January 17 and 20, 2017 to address the optional pre-meetings and improvements to the application forms. The workgroups will consist of a diverse group of twelve to fifteen industry representatives.

Additional Information:

If you have comments or questions about the VSM event, please contact Marnie Stein, Title V permit supervisor, at 515-725-9525 or marnie.stein@dnr.iowa.gov.

Title V Workgroups

Representatives from eight businesses collaborated with Title V permit writing staff from the DNR and Linn County in two workgroups held between January 17 and 20, 2017. One team addressed optional pre-meetings for hands-on help with the application, likely resulting in a faster application review time a permit that better reflects the needs of the business. The second team simplified the Title V application forms by creating excel spreadsheet versions of some forms, allowing the use of previous versions of the forms, reducing the information requested, and updating the application instructions.

The Iowa DNR Air Quality Bureau hosted two lean events the week of November 30-December 4, 2015. These dual lean events allowed invited participants to explore efficiencies related to the creation of an option for a multi emission point construction permit and a reduction in the length of issued construction permits.

Some of the specific goals and objectives of the 2015 construction permit dual lean events include:

  • Create an option for a permit that includes multiple emission points.
  • Identify and integrate efficiencies created with the new permit option that can apply to existing permit options.
  • Identify key strategies and resources for assuring customer awareness of available permit options.
  • Provide a permit framework that works for all customers that decreases the length of their permit.
  • Capture efficiencies identified during this event to the overall permitting process, as appropriate, to decrease the time required to issue permits.
  • Design a permit that can be easily understood by permit holders, inspectors, other stakeholders.
  • Streamline, eliminate duplication, and ensure all applicable regulations are reflected in the issued permit.

General Information

If you have comments or questions about either of the lean events, please contact Sarah Piziali, Construction Permit Supervisor, at 515-725-9549 or sarah.piziali@dnr.iowa.gov.

Event 1: Multi-permit (November 30th - December 2nd)

Event 2: Reduced Permit Framework (December 3rd & December 4th)

The Iowa General Assembly (House file 2473) directed the DNR to convene a stakeholder group for the purposes of studying the funding of the air quality programs administered by the department. Stakeholder group members will develop recommendations for funding the air quality program for next year and beyond. The department submitted a report to the general assembly regarding the findings and recommendations of the stakeholder group on December 1, 2014.

For more information contact Jim Mcgraw at jim.mcgraw@dnr.iowa.gov or 515-689-1439.

December 1, 2014

November 13, 2014 Meeting

November 5, 2014 Meeting

October 15, 2014 Meeting

September 30, 2014 Meeting

august 20, 2014 meeting

july 17, 2014 meeting

information