Washington, D.C. – The American Wood Council and American Forest & Paper Association called for serious reforms in the New Source Review (NSR) permitting program in testimony before the House Energy and Commerce Environment Subcommittee. Paul Noe, Vice President for Public Policy for both associations, testifiedas one of six panelists at the Capitol Hill hearing - “New Source Review Permitting Challenges for Manufacturing and Infrastructure.” The full text of his testimony can be found here.

Robert Glowinski, President and CEO of AWC:

“The existing New Source Review permitting program has created gridlock that threatens needed facility and environmental improvements. EPA needs to adopt more flexible policies and allow use of realistic emissions dataand modeling. Requirements should be updated so minor projects and those that would reduce mill emissions can avoid the burdensome and time consuming permitting process currently in place. Poorly designed regulations and arcane permitting systems like NSR can cause more harm than good, waste limited resources, undermine sustainable development and erode the public’s confidence in our government.”

Donna Harman, President and CEO of AF&PA:

“The New Source Review permitting program is broken and must be updated to achieve the twin purposes of the Clean Air Act to promote public health and welfare, as well as the productive capacity of the nation. We are one of the largest manufacturing sectors