A GUIDEBOOK ON HOW TO COMPLY WITH THE CHROMIUM ELECTROPLATINGAND ANODIZING NATIONAL EMISSION STANDARDS FOR HAZARDOUS AIR POLLUTANTS

CHAPTER 6

WHAT RECORDKEEPING AND REPORTING WILL I NEED TO DO?

Figure 6-1. Timeline for reporting requirements.

RECORDKEEPING

The regulation requires that you keep records to document compliance status with the regulation. These records include:

The recordkeeping requirements are described below.

Inspection and maintenance records. Table 4­3 lists the various work practice standards that apply to air pollution control systems and monitoring equipment and the frequency with which these practices are to be conducted. Records must be maintained to show that the work practices were conducted on schedule. The records can take the form of a checklist; an example checklist for a composite mesh-pad system is provided in Appendix E of this guidebook. Also, records of all maintenance performed on the process, air pollution control system, and monitoring equipment must also be maintained; these records could take the form of contractor invoices that describe the work or simply handwritten descriptions of the maintenance performed.

Malfunction records. Records of the occurrence, duration, and cause of any malfunction of the process, air pollution control device, and monitoring equipment must be maintained. If the actions required to correct the malfunctions were consistent with those described in the operation and maintenance (O&M) plan, then records of these actions need not be maintained. However, records of the actions taken to correct the malfunction when the actions are inconsistent with the O&M plan must be maintained, and the plan must be revised accordingly.

An example of a control device malfunction is the settling of packing material in a packed-bed scrubber. After the initial installation of the unit, the packing material settles which sometimes opens up a gap in the top of horizontal flow units. Settling of the packing material should be indicated by a loss in pressure drop across the unit because the air flow is following the path of least resistance and bypassing the packed bed. To correct this problem, additional packing material should be added to the top of the packed bed.

Performance test results. Test reports documenting the results of performance tests conducted on the affected source must be maintained. The test report must contain process and air pollution control system operating parameter measurements obtained during testing as described in Table 5­1. Any additional measurements required for those facilities using a common control system to reduce emissions from multiple sources at a facility should also be included in the test report.

Monitoring data records. Records of the monitoring data used to determine compliance with the emission limits must also be maintained. Table 5­3 lists the monitoring requirements for each of the air pollution control systems. Monitoring data can be recorded on a simple form that identifies the control system, the monitored parameter(s), the value of the monitored parameter(s), and the time and date when the parameter was monitored. An example of a monitoring data form developed for a packed-bed scrubber is provided in Appendix E of this guidebook.

Excess emissions records. Excess emissions occur when the values of the monitored parameters exceed the value or range of values established under the performance test. You must record the start and end times and dates of each period of excess emissions, regardless of the cause of the excess emissions. The example monitoring data form in Appendix E of this guidebook provides a space to record the start and end times of excess emissions episodes.

Process records. All tanks. The process operating time for each chromium electroplating or chromium anodizing tank must be recorded. For those tanks using fume suppressants, the date and time of each addition of fume suppressants must be recorded.

Hard chromium tanks. If you are using the actual rectifier capacity to demonstrate that your facility is "small" (for purposes of the emission limits), then the actual rectifier capacity expended by month and the total capacity expended for the reporting period (semiannual for major sources and annual for area sources) must be recorded.

Decorative chromium tanks. For decorative chromium electroplating tanks using a trivalent chromium bath, records of the bath components purchased must be maintained with the wetting agent clearly identified as a bath constituent contained in one of the bath components. These records may be invoices showing the bath components (including the wetting agent), quantities purchased, and date of purchase.

Miscellaneous records. You are required to keep a copy of your O&M plan on record. Records that support the reporting requirements described below and that support any petitions to the EPA (e.g., requests to waive the recordkeeping or reporting requirements of the regulation) must also be maintained.

REPORTING

The regulation requires that sources submit reports and notifications, which include:

All reports must be submitted to the Administrator. The Administrator is the appropriate Regional Office of the U. S. EPA (as listed in Table 10-1 of this guidebook) or the delegated State or local authority. You may contact the appropriate EPA Regional Office to identify those State or local agencies with delegated authority. The required reports may be sent by U. S. mail, fax, or by another courier (including electronic submission). The reporting requirements and deadlines are described below and illustrated in Figure 6­1.

Initial notifications. If your source has an initial startup date before January 25, 1995 (this would include all existing tanks), you must submit an initial notification to the Administrator on or before July 24, 1995 (180 days after promulgation of the final rule). An example initial notification is provided in Appendix E of this guidebook.

If your source is new or reconstructed and has an initial startup after January 25, 1995, you must submit an initial notification to the Administrator that provides:

A notification of the actual startup date of the source must be submitted within 30 calendar days after that startup date.

Notification of construction/reconstruction. After January 25, 1995, no one may begin construction or reconstruction of new or reconstructed sources without submitting a notification of construction/reconstruction to the Administrator. Construction or reconstruction may begin as soon as the notification of construction/reconstruction has been submitted; approval by the Administrator is not required. If construction or reconstruction commenced before January 25, 1995, but startup did not occur, then a notification of construction/ reconstruction must be submitted by March 26, 1995. An example form for notification of construction/reconstruction is provided in Appendix E of this guidebook.

Notification of initial performance test. You must notify the Administrator in writing of intent to conduct an initial performance test at least 60 calendar days before the scheduled date of the test to allow the Administrator to have an observer present at the test. The Administrator may or may not choose to have an observer present. An example form for notification of initial performance test is provided in Appendix E of this guidebook.

If the scheduled date for the test is changed for unforeseen reasons, you must inform the Administrator within 5 calendar days of the originally scheduled test date and must specify the date of the rescheduled test.

Notification of compliance status. You must submit a notification of compliance status within 90 days after your initial performance test (if testing is required) or no later than 30 days after your compliance date (if testing is not required). If testing is required, a copy of the test report must be submitted as support for the test results shown (see Table 5­1 for a list of items to be included in the test report). If a title V permit has not been issued to your source, you should send the notification of compliance status to the Administrator. If a title V permit has been issued, you should send the notification of compliance status to the appropriate permitting authority. An example form for notification of compliance status is provided in Appendix E of this guidebook.

Ongoing compliance status reports for major sources. If your source is located at a major source site, you must submit ongoing compliance status reports to the Administrator every six months. The Administrator may decide on a case-by-case basis to require a source to submit ongoing compliance status reports more frequently. Additionally, if a source experiences exceedances of the emission limits as indicated by ongoing monitoring of air pollution control system operating parameters, then the source will be required to submit quarterly reports. An example form for reporting ongoing compliance status is provided in Appendix E of this guidebook.

Reduced reporting frequency. A source that is required to submit ongoing status reports on a quarterly or more frequent basis may reduce the frequency of reporting to semiannual if the following conditions are met:

To reduce the reporting frequency, the source must notify the Administrator of its intention to make the change. This notification can take the form of a simple letter to the Administrator that describes the initial exceedance (that caused the source to have to report more frequently), any actions taken to address the exceedance, the subsequent period of compliance (at least 1 year), and the intention of the owner/operator to reduce the frequency of submittals of ongoing compliance status reports. The Administrator may review all previously submitted reports or records kept by the source to make a judgement on whether the reduced frequency request should be approved. Approval is automatically granted if the Administrator does not issue a notice of disapproval within 45 days after the request is submitted.

Ongoing compliance status reports for area sources. The owner/operator of an affected area source must also prepare ongoing compliance status reports that contain the same information described above for major sources. The reports must be prepared annually and retained onsite and must be made available to the Administrator on request. The example form for an ongoing compliance status report provided in Appendix E of this guidebook may be used to fulfill this requirement.

However, if both of the following conditions are met, then semiannual reports must be prepared and submitted to the Administrator:

Regardless if these conditions are met, the Administrator or the permitting authority may choose to require that ongoing compliance status reports be completed more frequently (e.g., semiannually) and be submitted.

An area source may petition the Administrator (as described above for major sources) to reduce the frequency of reporting and/or retain the required reports onsite.

Reports associated with trivalent chromium baths. If you use a trivalent chromium bath, you must submit the following reports instead of the reports described above:

If you decide to change your process (e.g., from using a trivalent chromium process to using a hexavalent chromium process because of problems with the plating quality), you must submit a report within 30 days after the change that includes:

In addition, you must submit all other applicable notifications described above according to the schedules shown.


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