The MOECC has Amended O. Reg. 524/98

The MOECC has amended O. Reg. 524/98 (commonly known as the Exemption Regulation) which lists all activities that do not require an emissions permit. This has included demolition activities, emissions related to small residences (home furnaces, for example) and others. The MOECC has now expanded the list of exempt activities to now include testing of emergency generators (essentially the same generators that were EASR regulated before, under O. Reg. 346/12), HVAC systems including cooling towers (as long as they possess drift eliminators), equipment used at Public and Private Schools (primary and secondary “ woodshop baghouses, lab fumehoods, etc.), and, Comfort Heating Systems Small Wood Fired Combustors (rated at 50kW or less). Confusingly, in cases where a permit (ECA or EASR) is required for any on-site activities, air/noise emissions must still account for these exempt activities even though specific permission is not required. In cases where exempt activities are the only activities on-site (e.g., office buildings, hospitals, schools) although regulatory permitting and assessment is no longer required, in some cases (primarily for emergency generators, school equipment, and, wood-fired combustors) Airzone would identify that best practise for due diligence is to still conduct an air impact assessment as part of the design and installation phase. This will assist in defence of due diligence should adverse effects occur as a result of equipment emissions (air and noise). See also Summer 2016 News Bulletin for further explanation.

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