Impact of the initiatives of the CCME [Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment] management plan with regard to reduction of NOx and VOC [volatile organic compounds] in the Canadian petroleum refining and distribution industry

The Canadian petroleum refining and distribution industry produces 98,300 tonnes/y of emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOC), or 5.5% of the national inventory. The Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME) has formulated plans for controlling emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) and VOC, and the Canadian petroleum industry is in broad agreement with the CCME proposals that control measures must be taken to reduce ozone levels in regions with an ozone problem (notably the Windsor-Quebec City corridor and the Fraser Valley) by taking appropriate measures to reduce emissions of ozone precursors NOx and VOC. Three types of NOx reduction initiatives are outlined: increasing energy efficiency, reducing NOx from furnaces and boilers, and modernization of certain refinery processes. Initiatives for reducing VOC include limiting the volatility of petroleum fuels, control of fugitive vapor emissions from storage tanks, recovery of such vapors from service stations and fuel transfer depots, and control of fugitive hydrocarbon emissions from refineries. The economic impacts of these initiatives are evaluated, showing important variations in terms of benefits and efficiency for the options considered. 9 refs., 2 figs., 2 tabs