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AHOSKIE – Enviva Pellets, LLC is seeking to increase the annual production at its Ahoskie mill as well as making improvements to its air quality control system.

Chris Brown, Community Relations for Enviva, provided an update about those pending modifications at the recent meeting of the Ahoskie Town Council. He said Enviva wants to increase production at the Ahoskie plant from 481,800 oven dried tons to 630,000 oven dried tons per year. That increase, he said, requires the installation of air pollution control equipment and operational limits to reduce emissions of volatile organic compounds and total hazardous air pollutants.

Enviva has made an application with the North Carolina Division of Air Quality to make improvements to the Ahoskie facility.

“We have to apply for modifications to our air quality permit. It will improve how our facility operates in terms of air quality and also increases production a little bit as well,” Brown said at the Ahoskie Council meeting.

He added that the changes to the air quality permit require Enviva to install a regenerative thermal oxidizer and a regenerative catalytic/thermal oxidizer at the Ahoskie mill.

“All emissions at the Ahoskie facility will be routed through those devices,” Brown noted. “They will make a significant impact on improving air quality.”

Additionally, the upgrade at the Ahoskie mill includes reworking the plant’s existing wood yard.

“We will continue to accept wood chips,” Brown stated. “We are planning improvements there to help with some of the appearance there when folks drive by the chip pile.

“We really appreciate being a part of this community. We enjoy working with the town, “ Brown said, adding that Enviva opened the Ahoskie mill in 2011 and currently employs 83 workers on site plus provides ancillary jobs for truckers, loggers, etc.

The N.C. Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Air Quality (DAQ) will host an in-person public hearing at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 16 on the draft Title V air permit renewal for Enviva Pellets, LLC – Ahoskie Plant.

The public is invited to attend the hearing, which will be held at the Roanoke-Chowan Community College’s Student Services Center gymnasium, and provide comments on the proposed action. Sign up will be available upon arrival. Oral comments at the hearing should be limited to three minutes or less. Written comments may also be submitted during the hearing.

Comments on the project can also be submitted by email to DAQ.publiccomments@ncdenr.gov with the subject line “Enviva Ahoskie.20B” or by leaving a voicemail at (919) 707-8430. The public comment period ends at 5 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 19.

The Division will consider all public comment before making a final decision on the proposed permit.

Copies of all data and the application submitted by Enviva Pellets, LLC – Ahoskie Plant are available for public inspection on the DAQ website or in person by appointment only at:

NC DEQ

Division of Air Quality

Air Permits Section

217 West Jones Street, Suite 4000

Raleigh, NC 27603

or

Washington Regional Office

943 Washington Square Mall

Washington, NC 27889