The Clean Air Act (CAA) violations at issue took place at AHE?s landfill gas-to-energy facility (AHE Facility) in Northville, Michigan. The AHE Facility is adjacent to the Arbor Hills Landfill in Northville, which is owned and operated by another company. The AHE Facility converts landfill gas (LFG), which is generated by decomposition of waste in the landfill, into electricity by burning it as fuel in four gas turbines. Arbor Hills RNG LLC (AHRNG), an affiliate of AHE, is a party to the CD and will be responsible for implementing one of the two possible compliance pathways set forth in the CD.
The complaint alleges that AHE violated: (1) Title V of the CAA, the federally approved Michigan Title V program, and Section 3 of the applicable Renewable Operating Permit (ROP) by emitting SO2 at levels that exceed emissions limits at all four of the AHE Facility?s turbines and all three of its duct burners; (2) the New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) General Provisions and the National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) General Provisions, by failing to operate the AHE Facility and air pollution control equipment in a manner consistent with good air pollution control practices for minimizing emissions; (3) the NSPS for Stationary Gas Turbines, by using diesel fuel as an unpermitted alternative to LFG for startup of the plant?s three stationary gas turbines and by failing to monitor the sulfur content of the fuel; (4) the NESHAP for Municipal Solid Was