La. Admin. Code tit. 33 § III-611

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 5, May 20, 2024

Section III-611 - Determination of Creditable Emission Reductions from Mobile Sources

A. Eligibility

1. In order to be eligible for ERCs, the mobile source must be capable of being used or operated for its intended purpose and registered and insured by the owner, if required by applicable law.

2. Eligible emission reduction strategies include:

a. exhaust control technologies in which a pollution control device, such as an oxidation catalyst, is installed in or connected to an engines exhaust system;

b. remanufacturing systems or kits, which entail the replacement of certain parts of an engine during a rebuild, resulting in reduced emissions;

c. EPA-verified idle reduction projects which involve the installation of a technology or device that reduces unnecessary idling of diesel-fired mobile sources and/or is designed to provide services (e.g., heat, air conditioning, and/or electricity) to such sources that would otherwise require the operation of the main or an auxiliary engine while the mobile source is temporarily parked or remains stationary;

d. engine repowers in which an existing engine is replaced with a newer or remanufactured engine certified to or configured to meet a more stringent set of emission standards or otherwise powered with an alternative fuel;

e. vehicle or equipment replacements in which an entire vehicle or other eligible source type is replaced with a newer vehicle or similar source certified to a more stringent set of emission standards, or otherwise powered with an alternative fuel;

f. clean alternative fuel conversions in which a mobile source or engine is permanently altered to operate on alternative fuels such as propane, natural gas, alcohol, or electricity. The conversion system must be certified by EPA in order to ensure that the project is exempt from the tampering prohibition in section 203(a) of the Clean Air Act.

3. On-road mobile sources must be part of a commercial, governmental, or institutional fleet. Privately-owned vehicles operated primarily for personal use may not participate in the emissions banking program.

4. On-road mobile sources and nonroad engines must be no more than 20 years old and marine vessels must be no more than 40 years old in order to participate in the emissions banking program.

5. Eligible emission reduction projects must generate at least 0.5 tons of NOX or VOC ERC.

B. Procedures for Calculating the Surplus Emission Reduction

1. Calculate Actual Emissions During the Baseline Period. The applicant shall demonstrate, to the satisfaction of the department, a reliable and accurate basis for calculating actual emissions. Such means may include, but are not limited to, EPA-approved emission modeling systems for mobile sources (e.g., MOVES) and EPA-approved test methods.

a. Actual emissions shall not be based on a rate which exceeds the emission standard to which the mobile source is subject or the emission performance standard to which the mobile source is certified, as applicable.

b. Actual emissions shall exclude any emissions realized when the mobile source was operating outside of the ozone nonattainment area during the baseline period.

c. The applicant shall provide sufficient documentation to substantiate the operational locations and utilization rate of the mobile source during the baseline period.

2. Calculate Projected Emissions. Projected emissions shall be based on the highest anticipated annual utilization of the modified or substitute mobile source after the emission reduction strategy has been put in place.

a. Projected emissions shall not be based on a utilization rate less than that realized by the mobile source during the year of the baseline period in which its utilization was higher.

b. Projected emissions shall not exclude periods during which the modified or substitute mobile source is anticipated to operate outside of the ozone nonattainment area.

3. The surplus emission reduction shall be calculated using the following equation:

ERC = (Actual Emissions During the Baseline Period-Projected Emissions) / 1.2

C. Permanent, Quantifiable, and Enforceable

1. The owner or operator shall operate and maintain the modified or substitute mobile source in accordance with the manufacturers emission-related operation and maintenance instructions. Records of maintenance activities shall be retained for the life of the source at a location approved by the department and made available for inspection upon request.

2. A substitute mobile source shall be certified to meet applicable federal exhaust and evaporative emission standards. If no federal exhaust emission standards are applicable to the substitute mobile source, the testing requirements of Paragraph C.3 of this Section shall apply.

3. Testing. NOx and VOC emissions from a modified mobile source shall be verified via EPA-approved test methods in accordance with a protocol approved by the department.

a. In the event the emission reduction strategy is applied to a large group of identical or functionally equivalent mobile sources, a subset of the modified or substitute mobile sources may be tested as approved by the department.

b. Testing shall not be required:

i. if the modified mobile source must be recertified with or configured to meet federal exhaust emission standards as a matter of federal law;

ii. if the owner or operator installs a diesel emission reduction technology verified by EPA or the California Air Resources Board (CARB), provided the percent reduction claimed is not in excess of that recognized by EPA or CARB;

iii. for a modified mobile source, which will be powered by a battery or fuel cell-powered electric motor; or

iv. for any pollutant for which ERCs are not being claimed.

4. If a mobile source is to be taken out of service as part of the emission reduction strategy, the mobile source (or engine associated with the mobile source) shall be rendered permanently inoperable.

a. Acceptable methods to render a mobile source (or engine associated with a mobile source) permanently inoperable include, but are not limited to:

i. scrapping the mobile source or engine using an automobile crusher licensed by the Louisiana Used Motor Vehicle Commission;

ii. making the engine unusable by drilling a hole through all of the cylinder bores on the engine block large enough to prevent its repair (i.e., 3 inches); or

iii. returning the engine to a remanufacturing facility either operated by the original engine manufacturer or authorized by the department. In this case, the remanufacturer of the engine must completely disassemble the engine components for recycling purposes, but may use the old block to build a remanufactured engine with a new serial number.

b. The applicant shall certify in writing and, if requested by the department, provide photographs that verify the mobile source (or engine associated with the mobile source) has been rendered permanently inoperable.

D. Prohibitions

1. Emission reductions from mobile sources funded through state or federal programs (e.g., the Diesel Emissions Reduction Act) shall not qualify as ERCs unless specifically allowed by that program.

2. Emission reductions from mobile sources shall not be considered creditable decreases for purposes of determining whether a physical change or change in the method of operation constitutes a major modification as defined in LAC 33:III.504 or 509.

E. Emission reductions from mobile sources may be creditable for use as offsets for up to 5 years from the date of the actual emission reduction to the atmosphere. An ERC is considered to be used for this purpose upon issuance of a permit that relies upon the ERC as offsets.

La. Admin. Code tit. 33, § III-611

HISTORICAL NOTE: Promulgated by the Department of Environmental Quality, Office of the Secretary, Legal Division, LR 43929 (5/1/2017).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 30:2054.