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Regulation 8 Rule 18: Equipment Leaks - 2024 Amendment (Current)
Learn about the Air District's development process for amendments to Regulation 8, Rule 18, which would further address emissions from equipment leaks at refineries, chemical plants, and facilities that load and store organic liquids in bulk quantities in the Bay Area.
Find out about the status of the rule development process. Information on hearings, workshops, and other events is provided below.
The Air District developed amendments to Rule 8-18 to reduce emissions of Total Organic Compounds (TOC) from equipment leaks at refineries, chemical plants, and facilities that load and store organic liquids in bulk quantities in the Bay Area. Rule 8-18 was identified as part of the Air District's Expedited Best Available Retrofit Control Technology (BARCT) Implementation Schedule adopted per AB 617. Administrative amendments were made to Rule 8-18 in 2021. However, Rule 8-18 was last substantively amended in December 2015 to include equipment at these facilities that services heavy liquids (liquid with an initial boiling point greater than 302 ºF). Due to questions regarding emissions reductions and cost-effectiveness related to including components in heavy liquid service in monitoring requirements, Resolution No. 2015-12 directed staff to examine these issues further and recommend modifying this rule if appropriate. In addition, the Air District was sued in 2016 by three petroleum refineries challenging the 2015 Amendments, resulting in a settlement agreement between the Air District and the petroleum refineries issued in March 2017.
To determine appropriate emission factors for heavy liquid component leaks, a Heavy Liquids Study was conducted and finalized in April 2022. Using this study, the Air District developed rule amendments to limit emissions associated with a subset of equipment that services heavy liquids.
The amendments to Rule 8-18 require that certain components in heavy liquid service be included in a Leak Detection and Repair (LDAR) Program. The amendments also include updates to aid with readability and clarity, as well as changes covering Exemptions, Definitions, Standards, Administrative Requirements, Monitoring and Records, and Procedures. In May 2024, the Air District released a Public Hearing Notice, Staff Report, text of the proposed rule amendments, Socioeconomic Impact Analysis, a California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Notice of Intent (NOI) and CEQA Initial Study and draft Negative Declaration, accepting written comments on these materials. The Air District released the Final Proposal Package for the public hearing, including the proposed amendments to Rule 8-18, Final Staff Report, CEQA Initial Study and Negative Declaration, and Response to Comments.
On September 4, 2024, the Air District Board of Directors conducted a public hearing and adopted the proposed amendments and a CEQA Negative Declaration. Information and a recording of the public hearing can be found in the 'Hearings, Workshops and Other Events' table below.
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Hearings, Workshops and Other Events
Documents
Comments
Updates Notification Subscription
Last Updated: 05/09/2024