15A NCAC 02D .0101. DEFINITIONS

The definition of any word or phrase used in Rules of this Subchapter is the same as given in Article 21, G.S. 143, as amended. The following words and phrases, which are not defined in the article, have the following meaning:

(1)           "Act" means "The North Carolina Water and Air Resources Act."

(2)           "Administrator" means when it appears in any Code of Federal Regulation incorporated by reference in this Subchapter, the Director of the Division of Air Quality unless:

(a)           a specific rule in this Subchapter specifies otherwise, or

(b)           the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in its delegation or approval specifically states that a specific authority of the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency is not included in its delegation or approval.

(3)           "Air pollutant" means an air pollution agent or combination of such agents, including any physical, chemical, biological, radioactive substance or matter emitted into or otherwise entering the ambient air.

(4)           "Ambient air" means that portion of the atmosphere outside buildings or other enclosed structures, stacks or ducts, and that surrounds human, animal or plant life, or property.

(5)           "Approved" means approved by the Director of the Division of Air Quality according to these Rules.

(6)           "Capture system" means the equipment (including hoods, ducts, fans, etc.) used to contain, capture, or transport a pollutant to a control device.

(7)           "CFR" means "Code of Federal Regulations."

(8)           "Combustible material" means any substance that, when ignited, will burn in air.

(9)           "Construction" means change in method of operation or any physical change, including on-site fabrication, erection, installation, replacement, demolition, or modification of a source, that results in a change in emissions or affects the compliance status.

(10)         "Control device" means equipment (fume incinerator, adsorber, absorber, scrubber, filter media, cyclone, electrostatic precipitator, or the like) used to destroy or remove air pollutant(s) before discharge to the ambient air.

(11)         "Day" means a 24-hour period beginning at midnight.

(12)         "Director" means the Director of the Division of Air Quality unless otherwise specified.

(13)         "Division" means Division of Air Quality.

(14)         "Dustfall" means particulate matter that settles out of the air and is expressed in units of grams per square meter per 30-day period.

(15)         "Emission" means the release or discharge, whether directly or indirectly, of any air pollutant into the ambient air from any source.

(16)         "Facility" means all of the pollutant emitting activities, except transportation facilities as defined under Rule .0802 of this Subchapter, that are located on one or more adjacent properties under common control.

(17)         "FR" means Federal Register.

(18)         "Fugitive emission" means those emissions that could not reasonably pass through a stack, chimney, vent, or other functionally equivalent opening.

(19)         "Fuel burning equipment" means equipment whose primary purpose is the production of energy or power from the combustion of any fuel. The equipment is generally used for, but not limited to, heating water, generating or circulating steam, heating air as in warm air furnace, or furnishing process heat by transferring energy by fluids or through process vessel walls.

(20)         "Garbage" means any animal and vegetable waste resulting from the handling, preparation, cooking and serving of food.

(21)         "Incinerator" means a device designed to burn solid, liquid, or gaseous waste material.

(22)         "Opacity" means that property of a substance tending to obscure vision and is measured as percent obscuration.

(23)         "Open burning" means any fire whose products of combustion are emitted directly into the outdoor atmosphere without passing through a stack or chimney, approved incinerator, or other similar device.

(24)         "Owner or operator" means any person who owns, leases, operates, controls, or supervises a facility, source, or air pollution control equipment.

(25)         "Particulate matter" means any material except uncombined water that exists in a finely divided form as a liquid or solid at standard conditions.

(26)         "Particulate matter emissions" means all finely divided solid or liquid material, other than uncombined water, emitted to the ambient air as measured by methods specified in this Subchapter.

(27)         "Permitted" means any source subject to a permit under this Subchapter or Subchapter 15A NCAC 02Q.

(28)         "Person" as defined in G.S. 143-212 includes any individual, partnership, co-partnership, firm, company, corporation, association, joint stock company, trust, estate, political subdivision, or any other legal entity, or its legal representative, agent or assigns.

(29)         "PM10" means particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter less than or equal to a nominal 10 micrometers as measured by methods specified in this Subchapter.

(30)         "PM10 emissions" means finely divided solid or liquid material, with an aerodynamic diameter less than or equal to a nominal 10 micrometers emitted to the ambient air as measured by methods specified in this Subchapter.

(31)         PM2.5" means particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter less than or equal to a nominal 2.5 micrometers as measured by methods specified in this Subchapter.

(32)         "Refuse" means any garbage, rubbish, or trade waste.

(33)         "Rubbish" means solid or liquid wastes from residences, commercial establishments, or institutions.

(34)         "Rural area" means an area that is primarily devoted to, but not necessarily limited to, the following uses: agriculture, recreation, wildlife management, state park, or any area of natural cover.

(35)         "Salvage operation" means any business, trade, or industry engaged in whole or in part in salvaging or reclaiming any product or material, including, but not limited to, metal, chemicals, motor vehicles, shipping containers, or drums.

(36)         "Smoke" means small gas-borne particles resulting from incomplete combustion, consisting predominantly of carbon, ash, and other burned or unburned residue of combustible materials that form a visible plume.

(37)         "Source" means any stationary article, machine, process equipment, or other contrivance; or any combination; or any tank-truck, trailer, or railroad tank car; from which air pollutants emanate or are emitted, either directly or indirectly.

(38)         "Sulfur oxides" means sulfur dioxide, sulfur trioxide, their acids and the salts of their acids. The concentration of sulfur dioxide is measured by the methods specified in this Subchapter.

(39)         "Total suspended particulate" means any finely divided solid or liquid material, except water in uncombined form, that is or has been airborne as measured by methods specified in this Subchapter.

(40)         "Trade wastes" means all solid, liquid, or gaseous waste materials or rubbish resulting from combustion, salvage operations, building operations, or the operation of any business, trade, or industry including, but not limited to, plastic products, paper, wood, glass, metal, paint, grease, oil and other petroleum products, chemicals, and ashes.

(41)         "ug" means micrograms.

 

History Note:        Authority G.S. 143‑213; 143‑215.3(a)(1);

Eff. June 1, 1976;

Amended Eff. December 1, 1989; July 1, 1988; July 1, 1984;

Temporary Amendment Eff. March 8, 1994 for a period of 180 days or until the permanent rule becomes effective, whichever is sooner;

Amended Eff. December 1, 2005; June 1, 2004; July 1, 1998; July 1, 1996; July 1, 1994.