NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR TITLE V AIR QUALITY OPERATING PERMIT

Published by admin on Fri, 05/01/2026 - 7:54am

The South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources (DANR) has received and reviewed the application for a Title V air quality operating permit for the following applicant:

APPLICANT NAME:

POET Bioprocessing – Big Stone, LLC

FACILITY LOCATION:

Big Stone City, South Dakota

The Title V air quality operating permit will allow the operation of the following processes and units:

1. Unit #1 – Grain receiving and dried distiller grain and solubles load out, controlled with a baghouse;

2. Unit #2 – grain cleaning, transfer, and surge bin, controlled with a baghouse;

3. Unit #4 – Fermentation and distillation, controlled with two wet scrubbers;

4. Unit #4a – Wet Scrubber;

5. Unit #4b – Wet Scrubber;

6. Unit #6 – Dryer system, controlled with a regenerative thermal oxidizer;

7. Unit #6a – Regenerative Thermal Oxidizer;

8. Unit #7 – Dried distiller grains and solubles receiver system, controlled by a baghouse;

9. Unit #8 – Dried distiller grains and solubles silo loading process, controlled by a baghouse;

10. Unit #9 – Industrial cooling tower;

11. Unit #10 – Boiler #1, with a maximum operating rate of 81 million Btus per hour and equipped with a low NOx burner;

12. Unit #11 – Boiler #1, with a maximum operating rate of 81 million Btus per hour and equipped with a low NOx burner;

13. Unit #15 – Tank #1, above ground ethanol 180,000 gallon storage tank;

14. Unit #16 – Tank #2, above ground denaturant 180,000 gallon storage tank;

15. Unit #17 – Tank #3, above ground denatured ethanol 1,000,000 gallon storage tank;

16. Unit #18 – Tank #4, above ground undenatured ethanol 1,000,000 gallon storage tank;

17. Unit #19 – Tank #5, above ground denaturant 65,000 gallon storage tank;

18. Unit #20 – Submerged truck loading rack, controlled with a flare;

19. Unit #21 – Rail car loading rack, controlled with a flare;

20. Unit #22 – Hammermill #1, controlled with a baghouse;

21. Unit #23 – Hammermill #2, controlled with a baghouse;

22. Unit #24 – Hammermill #3, controlled with a baghouse;

23. Unit #25 – Hammermill #4, controlled with a baghouse;

24. Unit #27 – Hammermill #5, controlled with a baghouse;

25. Unit #28 – Hammermill #6, controlled with a baghouse;

26. Unit #29 – Fluid bed cooler, controlled with a baghouse;

27. Unit #30 – Dried distiller grains and solubles silo, controlled with a baghouse;

28. Unit #32 – Boiler #3, with a maximum operating rate of 81 million Btus per hour and equipped with a low NOx burner; and

29. Unit #33 – Tank #6, above ground ethanol 2,000,000 gallon storage tank.

A review of this application indicates POET Bioprocessing – Big Stone, LLC can operate the ethanol plant in compliance with South Dakota’s Air Pollution Control rules and the federal Clean Air Act. DANR, therefore, recommends that the Board of Minerals and Environment issue a Title V air quality operating permit to POET Bioprocessing – Big Stone, LLC with conditions to ensure compliance with South Dakota Codified Laws (SDCL) 34A1 and the federal Clean Air Act.

In accordance with the Administrative Rules of South Dakota (ARSD) 74:36:05:17, any person desiring to comment on DANR’s draft permit conditions must submit written comments to the address below by close of business on the thirtieth day of this public notice. Commenters are encouraged to submit their comments electronically using the comment link for this permit on DANR’s One Stop Public Notice website at https://danr.sd.gov/public. Alternatively, written comments may be mailed to: Teresa Williams; PMB 2020; Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources; 523 East Capitol, Pierre, South Dakota 57501. Mail deposited with the U.S. Postal Service may no longer be postmarked on the day it was dropped off. To establish that you have met a public-notice deadline, you may need to send mail by certified or registered mail, request a hand-stamped postmark at the time the mail is dropped off, or include an affidavit of mailing. DANR will consider and address all comments that are timely submitted before issuing a final permit decision. DANR will notify the applicant and each person that requested notice or submitted written comments of DANR’s final permit decision, including notification of any changes to the permit based on the comments.

Any person desiring to contest the issuance of this permit and have a contested case hearing must file a petition, which complies with ARSD 74:09:01:01. This petition must be filed either by close of business on the thirtieth day of this public notice or, if that person submits comments on DANR’s draft permit pursuant to the paragraph above, within thirty days of receiving notice of DANR’s final permit decision. Upon receipt of a petition, DANR will schedule this matter for a contested case hearing before the Board of Minerals and Environment.

If no comments or objections are received by close of business on the thirtieth day of this public notice, the draft permit becomes the final permit decision and the proposed permit will be submitted to EPA for review.

Copies of DANR’s draft permit conditions and other information may be obtained from Teresa Williams, at the above address, telephone at (605) 773-3151 or the One-Stop Public Notice Page at:

https://danr.sd.gov/public

Hunter Roberts, Secretary

Department of Agriculture and

Natural Resources