CURRENTLY-EXEMPT RULE 219 EQUIPMENT MAY NEED PERMITS

South Coast Air Quality Management District staff has proposed to remove some of the exemption in Rule 219 (permit exemption rule). A new provision would affect facilities with emissions of 4 tons per year or more, which have no prior permits. The change is a departure from the way the agency looks at permit exemptions. Currently, pieces of equipment are looked at individually in order to determine whether or not they are exempt. Under the new proposal, a facility-wide threshold (4 TPY) would determine permit applicability. Staff proposes to permit under one facility permit, the pieces of equipment that individually emit less than 4 tons per year, but in aggregate emit over 4 tons per year. The baseline emission for each permit will be calculated using records for the highest annual emission levels within the last 5 years. The permit requirements under the new provision will apply to the following operations:

• Previously exempted printing operations
• Previously exempted coating, adhesive or laminating equipment
• Hand application of VOC containing materials

Hand application operations will now be included in the permitting system. Current language gives the District the discretion to use District-approved test methods for some operations.

Staff proposes to restrict the current exemption for ultraviolet and electron beam materials. The new language would require the operations to file a registration with the District under Rule 222.

Spray machines operated inside control enclosures used for wood coatings operations, [as specified under Rule 219 (l)(6)] have been added to the exemption list. Additionally, a new exemption has been created for passively and intermittently operated active venting systems used in residential settings to prevent the accumulation of naturally occurring methane and associated gases in enclosed spaces.

STATEWIDE PORTABLE EQUIPMENT REGISTRATION PROGRAM

The Portable Equipment Registration Program is a voluntary statewide program managed by the California Air Resources Board. The state issues a registration for portable equipment such as:

Registered portable equipment may operate throughout the state without obtaining permits from any of California’s 35 air districts. Owners or operators of portable engines 50 horsepower or greater, are required to have a permit or registration to legally operate in California. The local air districts are responsible for taking enforcement action against individuals who own or operate portable equipment without a registration or permit. The ARB has posted an advisory on their webpage informing potentially affected owners/operators that “California air districts received a significant increase in funds for their enforcement activities. It is very likely that the owners and operators of unregistered or unpermitted engines will be cited and fined. Avoid being penalized! Register today!”

During an ARB hearing, business owners that may have been eligible for participation in the program, commented that they were unaware of the program. The ARB recently extended the deadline for registration. Specific deadlines vary according to engine model year and horsepower.

UPDATES TO THE STATE ARCHITECTURAL COATINGS CONTROL MEASURE

The California Air Resources Board presented changes to the state suggested control measure (SCM) for architectural coatings. The SCM is not a regulation but it is a guidance to air districts which can adopt rules based on the state’s recommendation.

The agency has proposed to change the definition of floor coatings to include garage floors, but exclude clear wood coatings on floors, industrial maintenance and concrete/masonry sealers. The VOC limit for this category is 100 grams per liter.

The VOC limit for the industrial maintenance category will remain at the current 250 grams per liter. The definition has been altered to focus on “heavy industrial.” The general criteria for abrasion and exterior exposure of metal have been removed and criteria for structural steel, structural concrete and heavy abrasion at designated facilities have been added.

Faux finishing will include metallic-looking coatings with pearlescent mica pigment. The VOC limit for this category is 350 grams per liter. The fire resistive coatings category is now expanded to include intumescent fire resistive coatings. The VOC limit for this category is 350 grams per liter.

Clear stains are removed from the “stains” definition and will be included in the clear wood coatings category. The VOC limit for this category will remain 250 grams per liter. The definition of swimming pool coatings has been clarified to include repair and maintenance. The VOC limit will remain at 340 grams per liter.

The ARB staff has proposed to eliminate categories for clear fire retardant coatings, opaque fire retardant coatings, and mastic texture coatings. These classes of coatings will be folded into existing categories of clear wood coating; flat coatings and concrete/masonry sealer, flat, industrial maintenance; respectively.

The following table outlines some of the proposed new categories and their corresponding VOC limits.

CALIFORNIA ACTIVE IN CLIMATE CHANGE POLICY

.A working group made up of scientists from around the world has released a report on climate change geared towards policy makers. The summary for policy makers states:

” Global atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide have increased markedly as a result of human activities since 1750 and now exceed pre-industrial values determined from ice cores spanning many thousands of years….The global increases in carbon dioxide concentrations are due primarily to fossil fuel use and land-use change, while those of methane and nitrous oxide are primarily due to agriculture.”

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has convened various advisory panels and commissioned the Air Resources Board to tackle greenhouse gas reduction policy. The findings are to be released later on this year. Governors from Washington and Oregon have formed a western states alliance to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

COMPOSITE WOOD AIR TOXICS CONTROL MEASURE

The California Air Resources Board held a public workshop to discuss their proposed air toxics control measure to reduce formaldehyde emissions form composite wood products. Products subject to the regulation include hardwood plywood, particleboard, and medium density fiberboard. Hardboard, structural plywood, structural panels, structural composite lumber, oriented strand board, glued laminated timber, prefabricated wood joists, composite wood used in vehicles and military specified plywood are excluded.

The regulation requires distributors, importers and fabricators to take “reasonable prudent precautions” to ensure that products being used to make finished goods for California comply with applicable emission standards. Recordkeeping provisions, labeling requirements and statements of compliance have been incorporated into the ATCM. Manufacturers using no added formaldehyde-based resins may avoid requirements for quality assurance testing and third party certification. Facilities may be subject to inspections.

The ARB has incorporated exemptions for non-California composite wood products or finished goods, hardwood plywood and particleboard installed in manufactured homes subject to HUD regulations and windows that contain less than 5% by volume of composite wood products in relation to total volume of finished window product.

The regulation includes sell-through provisions for products entering commerce “immediately prior to effective dates of applicable emission standards.”

Some of the emissions standards proposed are as follows:

SOUTH COAST RULE 1470 — REQUIREMENTS FOR STATIONARY DIESEL-FUELED INTERNAL COMBUSTION AND OTHER COMPRESSION IGNITION ENGINES

The South Coast Air Quality Management District intends to allow an additional three years to meet Tier 3 standards (Title 13 §2423 of the California Code of Regulations) for particulate matter, hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides. The SCAQMD is following the ARB proposal to extend the compliance time. According to the air District, Tier 3 direct drive fire pump engines are not available. They propose to allow the use of Tier 2 direct drive fire pump engines until the Tier 3 engines become available. At the end of the three year timeframe, Tier 3 requirements will take effect.

Changes will also cover new stationary emergency diesel engines used in demand response programs (DRP), which are programs for reducing electrical demand through the use of interruptible service contracts (ISC). Under the minor source Best Available Control Technology Guidelines, diesel-fueled emergency internal combustion engines are prohibited from participating in interruptible service contracts, unless they meet the more stringent BACT requirements for spark-ignition emergency engines. The changes will fold in the BACT provisions into Rule 1470. The staff report notes that “diesel engines currently are not able to meet the spark-ignition engine BACT level of 1.5 grams/bhp-hr for NOx, which effectively prohibits them from participating in ISCs.” The requirements for in-use engines used in demand response programs remain unchanged.

The section of the rule [( c )(2)( c )(i)(iii)] that defines “existing” schools as those existing as of April 2, 2004, is being changed to strike the date. The section has been replaced by a requirement that considers all existing schools at the time the application for Permit to Construct/Operate is deemed complete for a new emergency standby diesel engine to be installed on school grounds or within 100 meters of an existing school.

The proposed amendments apply to facilities that are installing new direct-drive fire pumps and new emergency backup engines which would be enrolled in a DRP. Based on a 2006 analysis, AQMD staff estimates that there are more than 5,700 facilities with approximately 9,100 stationary diesel-fueled engines in the South Coast district. There are approximately 850 direct-drive fire pump engines located at 635 facilities.

CHANGES TO VERIFICATION PROCEDURES FOR DIESEL ENGINES

The ARB created verification procedures as part of their Diesel Risk Reduction Plan to ensure that effective emission control systems are available to reduce diesel particulate matter (PM). The procedure (adopted in 2002) is comprised of test procedures, warranty requirements, and in-use compliance requirements. It also sets limits for secondary emissions, such as nitrogen dioxide, from verified emission control systems.

The agency reports that some diesel control systems, while able to reduce emissions of diesel PM, they increase emissions of nitrogen dioxide. Nitrogen dioxide emissions also contribute to the formation of ozone and particulate nitrates. In 2004, the ARB adopted limits to achieve a 20 percent reduction in nitrogen dioxide emissions.

Staff now concludes that most verified PM control devices remain unable to meet the nitrogen oxides limit in the rule. Thus, the nitrogen dioxide limit was revised. The original limit restricted total tailpipe-out NO2 emissions regardless of how much NO2 is contributed by the engine. The new limit restricts the increase in NO2 emissions over the baseline, not the total emissions level. The maximum amount by which a retrofit may increase emissions of NO2 from a diesel engine will be 30 percent of the total baseline emissions. This requirement is already in effect. The percentage will drop to 20 percent effective January 1, 2009. New verification classifications designated by “Plus” will signify early compliance with the 2009 limit.

The changes include requirements related to filter condition, test cycles, duration of pre-conditioning, test conditions, backpressure and the engine’s condition. The amendment was intended to address emission control systems whose NO2 emissions might be influenced by the presence of soot and ash at the time of testing.