The Air Engineering Section regulates most of the stationary sources of air pollution in Hillsborough County, in cooperation with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and the US EPA. The section is responsible for issuing air permits and performing inspections of all sources of air pollution that are granted a permit to operate. In addition to inspecting industrial air pollution sources, the section performs annual performance test audits, complaint investigations, and other activities regarding stationary sources.

Industrial Air Pollution Sources

Stationary sources include major facilities, which operate under the Title V program of the Clean Air Act and have the potential to release criteria air pollutants above 100 tons per year, or 10 tons of an individual hazardous air pollutant, or 25 tons for a group of hazardous air pollutants. Criteria pollutants commonly found at industrial facilities include:

• Particulate matter (PM),
• Sulfur dioxide (SO2),
• Oxides of nitrogen (NOx),
• Carbon monoxide (CO),
• Volatile organic compounds (VOCs).

Hillsborough County is home to the Port of Tampa, Florida’s largest seaport. Not surprisingly, almost twenty percent of Florida’s industrial air pollution sources are located in Hillsborough County. Stationary sources include major facilities, which operate under the Title V program of the Clean Air Act and have the potential to release criteria air pollutants above 100 tons per year, or 10 tons of an individual hazardous air pollutant, or 25 tons for a group of hazardous air pollutants. Criteria pollutants commonly found at industrial facilities include:

• Particulate matter (PM) - Storage silos, material handling, grit blasting, combustion boilers, manufacturing, mining, etc.
• Sulfur dioxide (SO2) - Power plants, combustion sources (boilers, ovens, generators and incinerators), etc.
• Oxides of nitrogen (NOx) - need sources, combustion sources (boilers, ovens, generators and incinerators), etc.
• Carbon monoxide (CO) - need sources, combustion sources (boilers, ovens, generators and incinerators), etc.
• Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) - Printing, painting, fuel or chemical storage or distribution, plastics extrusion, adhesives, recycling, etc.

Air permits are issued to industrial, commercial, and institutional air pollution sources. They limit the amount of pollution released into the air by setting operational requirements and best management practices for each facility. Air permits set emission standards and include requirements for testing, monitoring and reporting.

Any activity or operation which releases pollutants into the air may require an air pollution permit. The type of permit required depends on the type and amount of pollutants emitted. Rule 62-210, F.A.C. specifies the type of sources that need an air permit, along with the activities which do not require a permit.

Construction, operation and Title V applications are reviewed and processed for air pollution sources within Hillsborough County. A copy of the application can be obtained for submittal to EPC.

To submit an air permit application or if you have any questions, contact EPC Air Permitting at 813-627-2600.

Inspections are performed at industrial facilities to ensure the source is operating according to the conditions of the permit.

All pollution control devices are inspected and evaluated to verify proper operation and maintenance procedures are followed. Operators are required to test the amount of pollution emitted to the air by the facility yearly. These tests are monitored and reviewed for compliance with regulations. 

The section is also responsible for quantifying Hillsborough County’s industrial source criteria pollutants on an annual basis. These results are used for air pollution modeling, tracking air emission trends, and developing effective air pollution control strategies.

• Code of Federal Regulations (Parts 60, 61, 63 and 70)
• 62-200 Series of the Florida Administrative Code
• Chapters 1-1, 1-2, and 1-3, Rules of the EPCHC

• Check the status of permit applications submitted to the EPC for review.
• Access FDEP’s Permit Tracking website.
• Forms and Applications