Skip to main content

Oregon State Flag An official website of the State of Oregon »

Owens-Brockway

Owens-Brockway Glass Plant #21 produces a variety of glass bottles and jars from post-consumer glass and raw materials. This plant has been operating in Portland since 1956.

From April to June 2023, DEQ held a public comment period, including a public hearing in May 2023, for Owens-Brockway's draft Title V air quality permit. Following comments from EPA, DEQ revised this permit and held another public comment period from late-February to April 2024 which included a second public hearing on April 4, 2024

Owens-Brockway was on a hot hold from July 2023 through January 2024, meaning it was not making glass during this period, due to a slowdown in business. Emissions were very low while the facility was in this state.

In December 2023, DEQ approved a seven-week delay in the installation of pollution controls. Throughout the construction process, Owens-Brockway regularly provided information and updates to DEQ for its permit. According to the new timeline, Owens-Brockway was required to install the controls by June 30, 2024. Owens-Brockway successfully installed the controls by that deadline, and it is operational. See details about this below in the Enforcement section.

Current actions

​Current status:

DEQ issued Owens-Brockway's updated Title V air quality permit on June 21, 2024. Access the following Title V air quality permit documents below: 

Background: Owens-Brockway currently has a Title V air quality permit with DEQ. On May 10, 2021, EPA issued an order requiring DEQ to revise Owens-Brockway's Title V air quality permit and/or the permit record in 90 days. Specifically, the order requires DEQ to re-examine how the permit ensures compliance with particulate matter emission limits. DEQ also received a memorandum from EarthJustice on April 24, 2021 that summarized emissions modelling of the facility and raised concerns about the permit's ability to ensure Owens-Brockway did not exceed the National Ambient Air Quality Standards, or NAAQS, for one-hour sulfur dioxide, one-hour nitrogen dioxide and 24-hour PM2.5.

On June 25, 2021, DEQ sent a letter to Owens-Brockway informing the facility of DEQ's intent to reopen its permit in response to EPA's order and to assure compliance with emission limits and NAAQS. In its letter, DEQ requested that the facility provide information that could inform DEQ's permit reopening.

Since then, Owens-Brockway has made a number of submittals. First, Owens-Brockway submitted a permit modification application on July 28, 2021 to remove Furnace A, one of its two remaining glass-making furnaces, from its air quality permit. This permit change would eliminate Owens-Brockway's authorization to operate Furnace A, and signaled the company's intention to keep the furnace permanently shut down. The facility has also requested an opportunity to perform its own NAAQS modelling analysis, and submitted a modelling protocol to DEQ on Sept. 20, 2021.

Second, on Aug. 9, 2021, the company executed a Regional Haze Stipulated Agreement and Final Order with DEQ, see more information below.

DEQ has also made several visits to the Owens-Brockway plant since the EPA order to verify site conditions and evaluate compliance.

DEQ asked EPA for an extension of the 90-day deadline to evaluate and incorporate new information into a revised permit and to see if the parties can arrive at a more comprehensive solution. DEQ issued a revised permit that responded to EPA's order, incorporated the Regional Haze agreement and the final enforcement order, and imposed conditions necessary to assure compliance with NAAQS and emission limits.

In January 2022 DEQ approved Owens-Brockway's modeling protocol for demonstrating the facility's level of compliance with short-term National Ambient Air Quality Standards, and Owens-Brockway submitted the results of this modelling. DEQ reviewed the modeling results and concluded that particulate matter, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide emissions from Owens-Brockway will not exceed federal standards. This will require Owens-Brockway to keep glass production below the limits tested in the model. More information about Regional Haze and Enforcement in the dropdown menus below.​

Current status: On March 10, 2022, DEQ approved the final risk assessment for Owens-Brockway. The results reflect uncontrolled operations at the facility and is not representative of risk after the facility completes installation of the combined ceramic filter unit discussed above. The risk assessment results trigger permit requirements and source risk limits. DEQ has incorporated source risk limits and associated permit conditions into the facility's Title V operating permit.​

For information on Owens-Brockway's Cleaner Air Oregon status, visit the facility's project page.​​

​​​Regional Haze is a program that large stationary sources of air pollution in Oregon are required to go through in order to determine what reasonable controls are required to improve visibility in certain areas in Oregon and neighboring states. The rules applied to all sources with Title V air quality permits. For general information on Regional Haze, visit DEQ's Regional Haze page.

Current Status: DEQ entered a Stipulated Agreement and Final Order with Owens-Brockway to obtain compliance with Regional Haze on Aug. 9, 2021. Through the order, Owens-Brockway agreed not to operate Furnace A any longer; to accept tighter limits on sitewide emissions of nitrous oxide, sulfur dioxide and particulate matter by January 2022; and to make further reductions by July 2025. The requirements from this order have been incorporated into the air quality permit as described above.​

BackgroundOn July 23, 2021, the Environmental Quality Commission adopted new and revised rules for Regional Haze emissions control analysis for stationary sources. These rules detail a process that large stationary sources of air pollution in Oregon are required to go through in order to determine what reasonable controls are required to improve visibility in Oregon and neighboring states. The rules applied to all sources with Title V air quality permits.

The rules allow the facility demonstrate compliance through one of the following:

  1. Evaluate emission controls for effectiveness at reducing regional haze emissions and install controls deemed cost effective by DEQ;

  2. Reduce permitted emissions below a specific threshold identified in the rule;

  3. Work with DEQ to identify and install alternative control options that would reduce regional haze pollutants; and/or

  4. Replace emission units with lower-emitting equipment.

On Aug. 9, 2021, DEQ entered a Stipulated Agreement and Final Order with Owens-Brockway to obtain compliance with Regional Haze. Through the order, Owens-Brockway agreed to no longer operate Furnace A, to reduce nitrous oxide, sulfur dioxide and particulate matter emissions from Furnace D by January 2022, and to make further reductions by July 2025. Owens-Brockway is working to identify potential methods to reduce emissions from Furnace D. The facility also agreed not to use, restart or rebuild Furnaces B and C without first going through future emissions control analysis.

DEQ incorporated this agreement into its proposed State Implementation Plan for Round II of Regional Haze.

​​​Current Status: 

Owens-Brockway was on a hot hold from July 2023 through January 2024, meaning it was not making glass, due to a slowdown in business. Emissions were very low while the facility was in this state, and Owens-Brockway notified DEQ in writing when it resumed glass production.

In December 2023, DEQ approved a seven-week delay in the installation of pollution controls​. According to the new timeline, the controls were required to be installed by June 30, 2024. Owens-Brockway successfully installed the controls by the June 30, 2024 deadline, and it is operational.

BackgroundIn June 2021, DEQ is​sued a $1 million civil penalty and order to Owens-Brockway for air quality violations, including ongoing exceedances of the total particulate matter and opacity limits in the permit. In October 2021, DEQ signed an agreement with Owens-Brockway resolving the enforcement action and giving Owens-Brockway two options: install pollution controls or shut down.

In June 2022, Owens-Brockway notified DEQ of their intention to install pollution controls and submitted a Notice of Approval application, permit modification and associated materials. Their application proposes installation of a catalytic ceramic filter, to control particulate matter. In addition, the filter will control emissions of nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide.

In November 2022, DEQ issued Owens-Brockway's construction air quality permit to install its pollution controls. View the presentation from the public hearing. This started the 18-month timeline for Owens-Brockway to complete the installation of controls. Owens-Brockway reported monthly to DEQ on its progress towards installing the controls, and has completed the project including the following milestones since November 2022:

  • February 2023: Execute a contract to install controls – DONE.
  • September 2023: Complete construction drawings. – DONE.
  • Jan. 30, 2024: Begin pollution control installation. - DONE.
  • June 30, 2024: Pollution controls fully installed. - DONE.

Read the monthly progress reports from Owens-Brockway to DEQ:

In addition to installing controls, there are two other things Owens-Brockway has to do:

  • Interim opacity limit. Leading up to successfully installing the controls, Owens-Brockway was subject to an interim opacity limit. Opacity is a surrogate for PM, and the limit helped ensure that Owens-Brockway operated the facility in a manner that reduced PM emissions until the company installed the controls. Violations of the interim limit incurred a penalty of $18,000 per violation. In July 2023, DEQ issued a $213,600 penalty to Owens-Brockway under these provisions of the agreement. DEQ issued a $54,000 penalty in January 2024​ for three violations of the interim opacity limit in June 2023.
  • Supplemental environmental project. DEQ required Owens-Brockway to spend $529,404 of the penalty on one or more projects that will provide air quality benefits to the surrounding community. In March 2022, DEQ approved Owens-Brockway's application for a supplemental environmental project to contribute these funds to Friends of Trees for tree planting efforts in neighborhoods surrounding the facility. Owens-Brockway submitted a SEP progres​s reports ​to DEQ in June 2023 and June 2024.​ ​They will submit a final SEP report in the summer or fall of 2025 after one more year of monitoring the success of the plantings. Learn more about supplemental environmental projects in general at DEQ's Supplemental Environmental Projects page. ​

Public involvement

The public comment period ended on April 10, 2024. DEQ held a virtual public hearing on Thursday, April 4, 2024. Read the Title V air quality permit review report that includes DEQ's responses to comments.

envelopeGreen.gifSign up to receive email or text updates  and information via GovDelivery.

Contact

For media inquiries:
Michael Loch
Office of Communications and Outreach