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DOWNLOADIn 2011, a new EPA rule (40 CFR Part 98) went into effect requiring a wide range of companies that emit Green House Gases (GHG) to submit annual reports to the EPA. These were primarily large facilities emitting 25,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide
equivalent (mtCO2e) or more of GHG emissions per year.
The 25,000 mtCO2e limit was chosen because it is estimated that 80% of the CO2 emitted comes from the 10,000 or so facilities that emit that much or more. 25,000 mtCO2e is equivalent to the annual greenhouse gas emissions from approximately 4,600 passenger vehicles consuming over 58,000 barrels of oil.
80% of the 10,000 facilities affected are from the following categories:
- Big combustion boilers/kilns/heaters (more than 30 million BTU's): 3,000
- Landfills: 2,551
- Natural gas plants: 1,502
- Electrical generating stations: 1,108
- The rest (2,000 or so) are paper mills, auto plants, refineries, bulk gas companies, steel plants and other metal production plants
SIERRA'S SOLUTION
Sierra initially developed their BoilerTrak™ 620S Mass Flow Meter in 2007 as a solution to the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006. This is the program that the new EPA reporting mandate is modeled after. To date, Sierra has over 2,000 BoilerTrak’s installed. It’s proven itself as an optimal GHG solution for measuring the fuel that is piped to gas-fired combustion boilers, kilns and heaters.
In addition to the BoilerTrak 620S, Sierra has now self-certified several of their meters to meet the requirements of the new EPA rule. Look for the GHG certified logo throughout Sierra's website to identify the GHG flow meters. In addition to new meters, Sierra can rapidly certify and recalibrate existing Sierra meters so that you can immediately meet the requirements.
Sierra also has a large installed base of flow devices for the measurement of landfill gases, the second largest source category in 40 CFR Part 98. Sierra’s SteelMass® 640S provides an optimal solution. In addition, Sierra routinely supplies their 640S and 780S series immersible thermal mass flow meters to the gas production and electrical generation sectors to measure the full list of greenhouse gases.
All Sierra meters referenced above have been optimized to meet 40 CFR part 98 and provide the following benefits:
- Direct mass flow monitoring eliminates need for separate temperature and
pressure inputs - 100:1 turndown accurately measures both low and high flows
- Contains no moving parts which prevents clogging and lowers maintenance costs
- Minimal pressure drop and patented Dry-Sense™ Sensor Technology increases
accuracy (+/- 1% of reading plus 0.5% of full scale) - 640S & 780S are backed by a lifetime sensor warranty
Visit sierrainstruments.com/greenhouse.html and look for our GHG logo
