Buncombe County air board says storm recovery work proceeding while long-term burning and cleanup require new permits

At a meeting of the Buncombe County Air Quality Board, staff reported continued recovery work from Tropical Storm Lane and new air-permitting challenges as cleanup shifts from emergency response to longer-term operations. Ashley, the board’s director, said the program has issued about 30 demolition and asbestos-removal permits so far, down from roughly 130 reported in the first three months after the storm, and described several permitting and nuisance-complaint issues that could require board review.

The director said two federal programs are supplying the current batch of work: FEMA-funded demolition/asbestos removals and FEMA’s property buyout program, which pays pre-storm value for properties that will not be rebuilt. Ashley said municipalities and contractors are coordinating on payment of permit fees and that Buncombe County has received a county purchase order for permits it issued on county properties; arrangements for municipal reimbursement remain under discussion.

Staff briefed the board on air curtain incinerators used for storm debris. The Environmental Protection Agency’s prior no-action assurance allowed some incinerators to operate without Title V permits for disaster debris, but that temporary relief has ended and the state and EPA have recently revised rules to give more flexibility for short-term operations. Ashley said local operators who want to keep air curtain incinerators in long-term service must submit Title V permit applications. The three local sites identified were Asheville Affordable Treatment, North End Stump and Brush, and Biltmore Estate; Biltmore has been in contact and is preparing an application, while the other two had not responded by the meeting.

Because permits for these incinerators will require particulate-matter modeling that addresses National Ambient Air Quality Standards, Ashley said state staff will help with modeling for the first permits and county staff will take over afterwards. She also said the North Carolina General Assembly reduced permit-application fees for air curtain incinerators to 10% of standard Title V application rates; instead of roughly $11,000, the reduced fee is about $1,100 for a new permanent application, with a similar reduction to the annual fee.

Silver Line Plastics, a permitted facility affected by the storm, has temporarily brought on a chipping operation to process flood-damaged plastic pipe. Staff said visible dust from muddy material created opacity and fugitive-dust complaints; the operation must be added to Silver Line’s air permit. The company agreed to stop the process and will run limited trial days while county staff evaluate whether it can operate in compliance before any permanent permit modification. Board members were told an expedited temporary permit process is available if the company demonstrates it can operate within opacity and particulate limits before the board’s next scheduled meeting.

Board members were also briefed about multiple mulch-storage fires in Western North Carolina, including a site in Barnardsville that has reignited several times. That site operates under solid-waste regulations rather than county air permits because the stored mulch is intended for sale rather than disposal. The county’s solid-waste division has told the owner to stop accepting additional mulch because of fire risk; the air-program director said the air program’s enforcement options are limited when fires result from spontaneous combustion rather than deliberate burning.

The director’s report also noted extra complaints about open burning, asphalt-plant odors, and reports of possible vapor-balance system issues at a gasoline storage facility tied to the storm. Staff said they have prioritized inspections and complaint responses amid reduced staffing and a high volume of storm-related cases.

The board did not take formal action on these recovery items at the meeting but was told staff may request a special meeting to consider expedited or temporary permits in cases where waiting until the next regular meeting (scheduled for November) would create a financial hardship for operators.