[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 130 (Monday, July 9, 2007)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 37157-37161]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-13203]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 60
[EPA-HQ-OAR-2006-0699; FRL-8336-2]
RIN 2060-AN71
Standards of Performance for Equipment Leaks of VOC in the
Synthetic Organic Chemicals Manufacturing Industry; Standards of
Performance for Equipment Leaks of VOC in Petroleum Refineries
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of Data Availability (NODA).
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: EPA is issuing this NODA in support of the proposed rule
published on November 7, 2006, entitled Standards of Performance for
Equipment Leaks of VOC in the Synthetic Organic Chemicals Manufacturing
Industry; Standards of Performance for Equipment Leaks of VOC in
Petroleum Refineries. EPA received a number of comments on the proposed
rule and is in the process of evaluating those comments. This NODA
addresses new data collected and analyses conducted in response to
comments that EPA received concerning the impacts of the proposed
monitoring
[[Page 37158]]
provisions for open-ended lines and valves.
We are seeking comment only on the impacts of the proposed
monitoring provisions for open-ended lines and valves at synthetic
organic chemical manufacturing sources and petroleum refineries. We do
not intend to respond to new comments addressing any other aspect of
the proposed rule.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before August 8, 2007.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-
OAR-2006-0699, by one of the following methods:
http://www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line
instructions for submitting comments.
E-mail: [email protected].
Fax: (202) 566-1741.
Mail: EPA Docket Center (6102T), Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-
2006-0699, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460. Please
include a total of two copies. In addition, please mail a copy of your
comments on information collection provisions to the Office of
Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget,
Attn: Desk Officer for EPA, 725 17th St., NW., Washington, DC 20503.
Hand Delivery: In person or by courier, deliver comments
to: EPA Docket Center (6102T), EPA West Building, Room 3334, 1301
Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. Such deliveries are only
accepted during the Docket's normal hours of operation, and special
arrangements should be made for deliveries of boxed information.
Instructions: Direct your comments on the NODA to Docket ID No.
EPA-HQ-OAR-2006-0699. EPA's policy is that all comments received will
be included in the public docket(s) without change and may be made
available online at www.regulations.gov, including any personal
information provided, unless the comment includes information claimed
to be confidential business information (CBI) or other information
whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit information
that you consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through
www.regulations.gov or e-mail. The www.regulations.gov Web site is an
``anonymous access'' system, which means EPA will not know your
identity or contact information unless you provide it in the body of
your comment. If you send an e-mail comment directly to EPA without
going through www.regulations.gov, your e-mail address will be
automatically captured and included as part of the comment that is
placed in the public docket and made available on the Internet. If you
submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you include your name
and other contact information in the body of your comment and with any
disk or CD-ROM you submit. If EPA cannot read your comment due to
technical difficulties and cannot contact you for clarification, EPA
may not be able to consider your comment. Electronic files should avoid
the use of special characters, any form of encryption, and be free of
any defects or viruses. For additional information about EPA's public
docket, visit the EPA Docket Center homepage at http://www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm.
Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the
www.regulations.gov index. Although listed in the index, some
information may not be publicly available, e.g., CBI or other
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other
material, such as copyrighted material will be publicly available only
in hard copy. Publicly available docket materials are available either
electronically through www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the EPA
Docket Center, EPA West Building, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave.,
NW., Washington, DC. The Public Reading Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to
4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The
telephone number for the Public Reading Room is (202) 566-1744, and the
telephone number for the EPA Docket Center is (202) 566-1742.
To expedite review of your comments by Agency staff, you are
encouraged to send a separate copy of your comments, in addition to the
copy you submit to the official docket, to Ms. Karen Rackley,
identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Karen Rackley, U.S. EPA, Office of
Air Quality Planning and Standards, Sector Policies and Programs
Division, Coatings and Chemicals Group (E143-01), Research Triangle
Park, NC 27711; telephone number: (919) 541-0634; e-mail address:
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Submitting CBI. Do not submit information
that you consider to be CBI electronically through www.regulations.gov
or e-mail. Send or deliver information identified as CBI only to the
following address: Roberto Morales, OAQPS Document Control Officer
(C404-02), U.S. EPA, Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards,
Research Triangle Park, NC 27711, Attention Docket ID EPA-HQ-OAR-200-
0699. Clearly mark the part or all of the information that you claim to
be CBI. For CBI information in a disk or CD-ROM that you mail to EPA,
mark the outside of the disk or CD-ROM as CBI and then identify
electronically within the disk or CD-ROM the specific information that
is claimed as CBI. In addition to one complete version of the comment
that includes information claimed as CBI, a copy of the comment that
does not contain the information claimed as CBI must be submitted for
inclusion in the public docket. Information so marked will not be
disclosed except in accordance with procedures set forth in 40 CFR part
2.
If you have any questions about CBI or the procedures for claiming
CBI, please consult the person identified in the FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT section.
Worldwide Web (WWW). In addition to being available in the docket,
an electronic copy of the proposed rule published on November 7, 2006,
is available on the WWW through the Technology Transfer Network (TTN).
A copy of the proposed rule is posted on the TTN's policy and guidance
page for newly proposed or promulgated rules at http://www.epa.gov/ttn/oarpg. The TTN provides information and technology exchange in various
areas of air pollution control.
Outline. The information presented in this NODA is organized as
follows:
I. Background
II. Proposed Amendments to Requirements for Open-Ended Lines and
Valves
A. What are the proposed amendments for open-ended lines and
valves?
B. What new information is EPA making available for review and
comment?
C. What additional supporting data or documentation do I need to
provide with my comments?
I. Background
In November 2006, pursuant to Clean Air Act (CAA) section 111(b),
EPA proposed amendments to Standards of Performance for Equipment Leaks
of VOC in the Synthetic Organic Chemicals Manufacturing Industry (40
CFR part 60, subpart VV) and Standards of Performance for Equipment
Leaks of VOC in Petroleum Refineries (40 CFR part 60, subpart GGG). See
71 FR 65302, November 7, 2006. In developing the proposed amendments,
EPA used the best available data that it had before it at the time.
Detailed background information describing the proposed rulemaking can
be found in the preamble to the proposed rule and in the docket in
support of that rule.
During the public comment period, EPA received comments that the
supporting documentation in the docket did not provide estimated
impacts of the proposed annual monitoring provisions
[[Page 37159]]
for open-ended lines and valves. To address this issue, we have
reviewed data collected by Agency inspectors regarding the percentage
of leaking open-ended lines and valves at petroleum refineries and
chemical manufacturing facilities. We also collected screening values
for the leaking open-ended lines and valves at petroleum refineries. We
used this information to estimate cost and emission reduction impacts
for monitoring at the proposed frequency as well as at alternative
monitoring frequencies. We will consider only comments, data or
information related to data, and procedures used in the impacts
analysis. We do not intend to respond to new comments addressing any
other aspect of the proposed amendments.
All the monitoring data and details of the procedures used in the
impacts analysis discussed in this NODA are available at the EPA Docket
Center described in the ADDRESSES section of this preamble.
II. Proposed Amendments to Requirements for Open-Ended Lines and Valves
A. What are the proposed amendments for open-ended lines and valves?
Subpart VV (and subpart GGG, which references subpart VV) currently
requires open-ended lines and valves to be equipped with a cap, plug,
blind flange, or a second valve. As discussed in the preamble to the
proposed amendments, inspections conducted by enforcement agencies have
found that many of these components are leaking due to improper
installation. In order to reduce these emissions and increase
compliance with the requirement to properly install the control
equipment, we proposed an amendment that would require annual
monitoring using Method 21 in 40 CFR part 60, appendix A. An instrument
reading of 500 parts per million (ppm) or greater would be considered a
leak. As with other leaking equipment, repair would be required within
15 days after detection of the leak. Examples of repair attempts
include tightening or replacing the cap, plug, blind flange, or second
valve. Records of all monitoring results, each leak detected, and each
repair attempted also would be required. Documentation of the total
number of leaks and the number for which repair was delayed would be
required in semiannual reports.
B. What new information is EPA making available for review and comment?
We are making available open-ended line monitoring data from
enforcement agencies. We are also providing estimates of emission
reductions and cost impacts for the proposed annual monitoring
requirement as well as for more frequent monitoring scenarios. Separate
analyses were conducted for petroleum refineries and chemical
manufacturing facilities. A summary of the new data and the impacts
analysis is presented below. Additional information is in the docket,
including the data and documents referred to in the impacts analysis.
Inspectors from EPA's National Enforcement Investigations Center
(NEIC) monitored open-ended lines at 16 petroleum refineries.
Instrument readings were collected from open-ended lines on an average
of 3.5 process units per refinery. On average, 10 open-ended lines were
found to be leaking at greater than 500 ppm per refinery (or 2.86
leaking per process unit). All of the monitored process units were
subject to standards that require caps, plugs, blind flanges, or second
valves for open-ended lines.
The percentage of leaking open-ended lines at these refineries was
not available because the NEIC inspectors monitored only a fraction of
the open-ended lines in each process unit, and they did not record the
total number of open-ended lines per process unit. To estimate the
percentage leaking, we assumed the number leaking per process unit from
the NEIC inspections represented the total number leaking for an
average refinery process unit, and we divided this number by the
estimated number of open-ended lines for an average process unit. Based
on the impacts analysis for the proposed amendments to subparts VV and
GGG, we estimated that 195 new or reconstructed refinery process units
with equipment in volatile organic compound (VOC) service would become
affected sources in the next 5 years. Information on the number of
open-ended lines for different types of process units at large and
small refineries (see EPA-454/R-98-011) was used to estimate a total of
7,349 open-ended lines in VOC service at these 195 process units. This
would mean an average refinery process unit has 37.7 open-ended lines
in VOC service, and 7.6 percent (2.86/37.7) are leaking.
To the best of our knowledge, the monitored open-ended lines that
were found to be leaking were in gas/vapor service or light liquid
service. Based on information about the type of service for valves,
flanges, and pumps in refinery process units (see EPA-454/R-98-011) we
estimated that 27 percent of open-ended lines in refinery process units
are in heavy liquid service. The resulting estimate is that 10.4
percent (7.6/0.73) of refinery open-ended lines in gas/vapor or light
liquid service are leaking. This estimate may understate the number of
open-ended lines that are leaking (and the resulting emission reduction
estimates) because the NEIC inspectors did not monitor all open-ended
lines in each of the inspected processes, and it is unlikely that none
of the unmonitored open-ended lines were leaking.
For the synthetic organic chemicals manufacturing industry (SOCMI),
inspectors in EPA's Region V have monitored open-ended lines at six
chemical manufacturing facilities. They found between 6 and 27 percent
of all open-ended lines were leaking at greater than 500 ppm. The
average was 12.6 percent leaking. However, the leak concentrations for
the monitored open-ended lines at SOCMI sources were unavailable.
Therefore, we decided to estimate SOCMI emissions using the same leak
concentrations and overall leak frequency as for refineries. Since the
overall percent leaking for refineries (10.4 percent) is lower than for
SOCMI sources (12.6 percent), this approach results in worst-case cost-
effectiveness estimates for SOCMI sources. As described for the
refinery analysis, to the best of our knowledge, these leaks occurred
from open-ended lines in gas/vapor service or light liquid service.
Based on information from the Additional Information Document (see EPA-
450/3-82-010) we estimated that 12 percent of open-ended lines in SOCMI
process units are in heavy liquid service. We then divided the percent
of total open-ended lines at refineries (i.e., 7.6 percent) by 0.88 to
estimate that 8.6 percent of the open-ended lines in gas/vapor service
and light liquid service at SOCMI sources are leaking.
To estimate the current emissions from leaking open-ended lines, we
used the NEIC instrument readings in correlation equations for
connectors and flanges (see Tables 2-9 and 2-10 in EPA-453/R-95-017).
The equations for connectors and flanges were used because we expect
that the openings through which VOC would be emitted around an
improperly installed cap or plug would be more similar to the openings
for connectors and flanges than an uncapped open-ended line. This
procedure provided average emission rates per open-ended line
(including non-leakers) for both refineries and SOCMI facilities. To
estimate baseline
[[Page 37160]]
nationwide emissions, we multiplied these average emission rates by the
estimated number of open-ended lines in gas/vapor or light liquid
service that will become affected facilities in the 5 years after
proposal of the amendments. The estimated number of refinery and SOCMI
process units, open-ended lines, and emissions in the fifth year after
proposal are shown in Table 1 of this preamble.
Table 1.--National Fifth Year Estimates of the Number of Petroleum Refinery and SOCMI Process Units, Number of Open-Ended Lines, and Baseline Emissions
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number of open- Current Emissions
ended lines in -------------------------------------
Type of source Total number of Total number of gas/vapor or
process units open-ended lines light liquid kg/hr/OEL Nationwide Mg/yr
service
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Refinery................................................. 195 7,350 5,370 0.00047 22
SOCMI.................................................... 191 24,300 21,400 0.0028 520
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The amount of emission reduction associated with monitoring will be
a function of the monitoring frequency, how often the cap or plug on
the open-ended line is opened, and the subsequent leak frequency for
opened open-ended lines. In addition to the proposed annual monitoring
frequency, the analysis also estimates impacts for semiannual,
quarterly, and monthly monitoring. The opening frequency depends on the
purpose of the open-ended line. Available data indicate that open-ended
lines that are used for sampling represent about 20 percent of all
open-ended lines at refineries. These open-ended lines are likely
opened more frequently than open-ended lines that serve other
functions. For this analysis, we assumed that these open-ended lines
are opened once per month. Other open-ended lines that are used for
purging, venting, and draining are likely opened much less frequently
than open-ended lines that are part of sampling connection systems.
Some may be opened only when the process unit is being shut down. For
this analysis we assumed that the 80 percent of open-ended lines used
for these purposes are evenly distributed among those that are opened
quarterly, semiannually, and annually because data from refineries or
SOCMI sources are unavailable. We also assumed the 20/80 split applies
to SOCMI sources as well as refineries.
The subsequent leak frequency is due primarily to the care and
technique of the operator installing the cap or other control
equipment. Properly installed, there should be no leak. For this
analysis, we assumed that operators would continue to install caps and
other control equipment in the same manner that they currently use.
This means that for any open-ended lines that are opened between
monitoring events, we would expect the subsequent leak frequency to
equal the baseline leak frequency, regardless of the amount of time
since the previous monitoring event or the monitoring frequency. The
impact of these assumptions on the percentage emission reductions for
each of the different opening frequencies and monitoring intervals is
described in the analysis. The estimated overall percent reductions and
total mass reductions for each of the four monitoring scenarios in the
fifth year after proposal of the amendments are shown in Tables 2 and 3
of this preamble for petroleum refineries and SOCMI sources,
respectively.
The cost impacts analysis includes estimated initial costs and
annual costs. The initial costs include costs for identifying and
integrating open-ended lines into the monitoring program, initial
monitoring, and repair of initial leakers. Annual costs include capital
recovery for initial costs, periodic monitoring costs, costs to repair
leaking equipment, and additional time to prepare semiannual reports.
Unit costs for initial setup and monitoring and annual monitoring were
assumed to be the same as for other types of equipment. These costs
were estimated only for open-ended lines in gas/vapor or light liquid
service because, as noted above, essentially all of the leaking open-
ended lines are likely in these services. Repair costs were estimated
assuming all of the leaks can be repaired online in an average of 10
minutes by relatively simple techniques such as tightening the valve,
replacing a worn plug, or reinstalling a cap properly. Labor rates and
overhead factors were assumed to be the same as in the earlier analysis
of impacts for the proposed changes in the leak definitions for pumps
and valves. One hour was added to the time to prepare each semiannual
report. We expect that the additional reporting burden will be minimal
because only the total number of leaks and the number for which repair
is delayed would have to be reported. The impacts analysis also
includes a recovery credit for the material that is not emitted. As in
the earlier impacts analysis, these credits are $600/megagrams (Mg) for
emission reductions at petroleum refineries and $900/Mg for emission
reductions at SOCMI facilities.
The estimated initial costs, total annual costs, and cost-
effectiveness of each option are shown in Tables 2 and 3 of this
preamble for refinery and SOCMI process units, respectively. Note that
the recovery credit for two of the four scenarios in the SOCMI analysis
exceeds the total annual cost, but it does not in the refinery
analysis. This difference in the results is due primarily to the
difference in the correlation equations for the two industries. For a
given screening value, the equation for SOCMI facilities estimates much
higher emissions than the equation for refineries.
Table 2.--National Fifth Year Impacts of Monitoring Options for Open-Ended Lines in Refinery Process Units
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Emission Reductions Total Annual Costs (1000 $/ Cost-Effectiveness ($/Mg)
--------------------------------- yr) -------------------------------
Initial costs --------------------------------
Monitoring frequency (1000 $) Without
Percent Mg/yr recovery With recovery Overall Incremental
credit credit
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Annually............................... 24 5.3 102 37 34 6,500 ..............
Semiannually........................... 42 9.1 102 51 46 5,000 3,000
[[Page 37161]]
Quarterly.............................. 60 13 102 75 67 5,100 5,200
Monthly................................ 82 18 102 150 140 7,800 15,000
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Table 3.--National Fifth Year Impacts of Monitoring Options for Open-Ended Lines in SOCMI Process Units
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Emission Reductions Total Annual Costs (1000 $/ Cost-Effectiveness ($/Mg)
-------------------------------- yr) -------------------------------
Initial costs --------------------------------
Monitoring frequency (1000 $) Without
Percent Mg/yr recovery With recovery Overall Incremental
credit credit
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Annually................................ 24 120 400 120 11 87 ..............
Semiannually............................ 42 220 400 170 (20) (93) (340)
Quarterly............................... 60 310 400 260 (18) (57) 25
Monthly................................. 82 430 400 560 180 420 1,700
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
C. What additional supporting data or documentation do I need to
provide with my comments?
The EPA is soliciting comment on the new monitoring data and on all
aspects of the procedures and assumptions used in the impacts analysis.
We are specifically requesting data and comment on the following items:
Additional monitoring data for open-ended lines,
particularly any data that show open-ended lines in heavy liquid
service that have been found to leak at greater than 500 ppm.
Data on the percentage of open-ended lines in heavy liquid
service.
The appropriateness of using correlation equations for
connectors and flanges to estimate emissions from improperly capped and
plugged open-ended lines.
Data on how often open-ended lines in different
applications are opened.
A description of the types of activities needed to repair
leaking open-ended lines, and estimates of the time needed to perform
such repairs.
Timely comments on these subjects will be taken into account in
developing the final impacts analysis and in EPA's final action on the
proposed amendments.
List of Subjects for 40 CFR Part 63
Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Hazardous
substances, Intergovernmental relations, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements.
Dated: June 27, 2007.
Stephen D. Page,
Director, Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards.
[FR Doc. E7-13203 Filed 7-6-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P