Environmental Issues

MPPA has led efforts to keep Maine’s environmental regulations reasonable and practical by advocating regulatory approaches that are based on sound science and sustainable economic principles.

• Over the past several years, MPPA helped to successfully defeat proposals that would have mandated TCF bleaching technology and established unattainable water quality standards for mercury and dissolved oxygen.
• In 2005 the DEP announced that all of Maine’s Kraft pulp mills are in compliance with the state’s fish tissue dioxin test, culminating over 5 years of work by MPPA, member companies and the National Council on Air and Stream Improvement. The compliance determination received national recognition.
• In recent years MPPA has negotiated an exemption from reporting requirements and water use restrictions for existing mills in DEP water withdrawal rulemaking, helped defeat a Legislative proposal to adopt a more stringent dissolved oxygen and phosphorus standard for the Androscoggin and St Croix Rivers, and assisted DEP in efforts to gain a waiver from stringent EPA N0x requirements in Maine’s ozone attainment areas.
• In 2010 MPPA successfully advocated for modifications to a rule enacted in 2010 dealing with radiation control program licensing fees. In response to comments provided by MPPA on a proposed fee increase, the registration fees for general licenses of fixed gauges were actually decreased for some large users, like paper mills, because the Radiation Control Program decided to apply the fee per facility, rather than per device.
• MPPA is leading efforts within Maine in opposition to the federal EPA’s proposed air quality rules for industrial boilers (Boiler MACT) that will cost Maine mills hundreds of millions of dollars if adopted as currently written. MPPA worked with the Maine DEP, the Governor’s Office, Maine’s congressional delegation, and our counterparts at the AF&PA to provide information about the impact that the rule would have.
• MPPA is representing the industry in continuing stakeholder efforts in air and water toxics, solid waste, stormwater discharge, oil spill reporting, and agency fee initiatives.