Permitting Officials Attend Detroit Hydrogen Workshop, Codes and Standards Conference
Geoff Bromaghim, National Hydrogen Association
 On September 17-19, two consecutive events, a hydrogen permitting workshop and a hydrogen codes and standards conference, brought a variety of local and state permitting officials, code experts, and industry professionals to Detroit, MI. NextEnergy Center, a Detroit-based non-profit organization dedicated towards advancing alternative energy in the State of Michigan, hosted both events. Links to available presentations are provided below.
On September 17-18, various permitting officials met for a workshop on permitting hydrogen fueling stations and fuel cell backup power for wireless telecommunications sites. The event was co-organized by the National Association of State Fire Marshals, the U.S. Department of Energy, the State of Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ), and NextEnergy Center. The audience of about 30 people included MDEQ inspectors, municipal fire chiefs, and other local building permitting officials.
This event was a continuation of a series of regional workshops targeted at educating key permitting officials on the relevant safety considerations and applicable permitting processes for citing hydrogen facilities in their localities. These officials also help provide valuable feedback on how to improve these permitting processes.
On May 1, 2008, Michigan became the first state to promulgate its own hydrogen rules. Therefore, this workshop had the duel objectives of familiarizing local officials with the properties of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies as well as informing them of the newly formed procedures required to permit these facilities in the State of Michigan.
Ryan Smith of NextEnergy Center and Tony Androsky of the U.S. Fuel Cell Council opened the technical program with detailed primers on hydrogen as a fuel, its properties, and the operation of fuel cells. Joe Mercurio of General Motors gave a projection on the growth and commercialization of hydrogen vehicles from the view of the automotive industry, and Paul Buehler of Plug Power provided an industry perspective from his experiences getting permits for telecommunications projects. Attendees were also given a tour of NextEnergy Center’s facilities, including their on-site hydrogen fueling station.
Andrea Zajac, Chief of MDEQ’s Storage Tank Unit, gave an in-depth overview of Michigan’s hydrogen permitting program. She detailed what does and does not get regulated in Michigan, application procedures, and the division of specific responsibilities between the MDEQ officials and local authorities.
At the completion of the workshop, attendees were invited to participate in NextEnergy Center’s 2008 Hydrogen Codes and Standards Conference, which began on the afternoon of September 18.
The Conference provided a comprehensive update on the state of hydrogen codes and standards, with speakers from various standards organizations such as the National Fire Protection Association, CSA-America, Society for Automotive Engineers, Compressed Gas Association, and the International Electrotechnical Commission. Following their presentations, the audience engaged these panels with rounds of Q&A, allowing them to relay how their standards organizations are responding to head-off specific concerns and ensure safety with emerging hydrogen and fuel cell technologies.
Carl Rivkin of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory then summarized the U.S. Department of Energy’s Hydrogen Education Program activities. Steve Matheson (Honda), Marcus Newborough (ITM Power), and Max Dorflinger (NextEnergy) discussed residential hydrogen refueling technologies.
More than 60 hydrogen industry experts, automobile industry representatives, local authorities, and first responders were in attendance for the Conference.
Links to available workshop and conference presentations as well as the State of Michigan hydrogen rules are below. Information about upcoming workshops will continue to be provided in future editions of the Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Safety Report.
Permitting Workshop Links
At the time of publication, the proceedings were not available. These will be made available through our “Technical Resources” Section as soon as they are available.
NextEnergy Center’s 2008 Hydrogen Codes and Standards Conference
The presentations from this event have been posted onto the NextEnergy Center website. To download these presentations, please click on the hyperlinks below, or visit the NextEnergy Center website at: http://www.nextenergy.org/events/2008/hcsc.aspx
Michigan Rules
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