State program helps small businesses comply with environmental regulations

The New York State Environmental Facilities Corp. (EFC) says it offers the state’s small businesses a program that can help them in complying with state and federal air regulations.

The Small Business Environmental Assistance Program (SBEAP) provides confidential technical assistance to New York’s small-business owners at no cost, the agency says.

The EFC’s is primarily focused on the financing of infrastructure projects for wastewater and drinking-water systems. Former Syracuse Mayor Matthew Driscoll is currently serving as president and CEO of the EFC.

EFC launched the SBEAP program in 1995, following the 1990 amendments to federal Clean Air Act, says Harry Ching, manager of the program since its inception. 

The amendments included a national permits program to make the law more “workable,” and an improved enforcement program to help ensure better compliance with the law, according to the website of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

“States need to have a program to help small businesses comply with the complex air regulations,” Ching says, paraphrasing the law’s explanation for the SBEAP program.

Ching, a chemical engineer, joined the EFC in 1988, he says. 

The program is available to assist more than 50,000 New York small businesses that might be subject to federal and/or state air-emission requirements. 

“We try to explain to a business in plain language, step by step, after we review the business to identify what regulations they have to comply with,” Ching says. 

If the company needs any permits or registrations, the program helps them complete the application and attaching the necessary air-emissions calculations that are associated with the application package, he adds. 

SBEAP operates a toll-free technical-assistance hotline (1-800-780-7227) to answer questions and help determine what regulations apply to a small business’s operations, Ching says. 

It also helps small companies with completing the required authorizations and supporting documentation, including permit-application forms for state-facility permits or minor-facility registrations, emission inventories, air-dispersion modeling, and compliance plans, the EFC said.

When Ching works with a small business on completing an application, he performs an emissions inventory for the business. 

“With that information, I have to fit them into the regulatory framework that establishes what regulations they must comply with,” Ching says.

At that point, Ching will continue discussions with the company to determine what level of permit for which the firm should apply, he says.

SBEAP also provides pollution-prevention suggestions in the areas of material substitution and process modification that may alleviate regulatory requirements. 

As needed, EFC conducts on-site technical-assistance visits to evaluate the site-specific compliance issues at a given business. 

In addition, SBEAP also prepares technical publications (fact sheets and brochures) to provide both general-compliance information and information for specific industry sectors.    

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com