The Environmental Protection Agency approved a revision to New York's ozone air quality plan setting a nitrogen oxide limit for three oil-fired engines at Big Six Towers Inc., an apartment and retail complex at 59-55 47th Avenue in Woodside, Queens. The rule takes effect September 14, 2026.
The approval sets an alternate NOx limit of 5.0 grams per brake horsepower-hour for the facility's three oil-fired engines, above the state's presumptive RACT limit of 2.3 grams per brake horsepower-hour for that engine category. New York's RACT regulations allow a source-specific limit when the presumptive standard is not technologically or economically feasible.
What the facility runs
Big Six Towers holds a Title V operating permit covering six internal combustion engines, three fired on natural gas and three on oil, along with three boilers that burn natural gas as the primary fuel and No. 2 fuel oil as backup. The complex generates electrical power and steam for its apartment and retail space. All of these sources are grouped under a single emission unit, EU 1-STACK.
| Engine type | NOx limit (g/bhp-hr) |
|---|---|
| Oil-fired engines (this rule) | 5.0 |
| Statewide presumptive limit for oil-fired engines | 2.3 |
| Natural gas-fired engines (already compliant) | 1.5 |
The three natural gas-fired engines already meet the presumptive limit and were not part of this action.
Compliance steps
Big Six must submit a testing protocol to NYSDEC for approval at least 90 days before any stack test, and the owner or operator must keep compliance records on-site for five years.
Timeline
New York submitted the source-specific plan revision on July 24, 2024, backed by a NOx RACT analysis dated June 2022 and a public notice posted to the Environmental Notice Bulletin on September 6, 2023. The EPA proposed approval on May 28, 2026, and finalized it in this rule. The agency found the limit implements Reasonably Available Control Technology and meets the requirements of the Clean Air Act without interfering with ozone air quality standards.
