CALIFORNIA AIR RESOURCES BOARD
State Building
Auditorium, Room 1138
107 South Broadway
Los Angeles, CA
February 18, 1988
10:00 a.m.
AGENDA
Page
88-2-1 Consideration of Proposed Hexavalent Chromium 001
Control Plan.
88-2-2 Public Hearing to Consider the Adoption of an 346
Airborne Toxic Control Measure for Hexavalent
Chromium Emissions From Chrome Plating and
Chromic Acid Anodizing Facilities.
88-2-3 Consideration of an Informational Report on the 579
Status List of Toxic Air Contaminants.
Other Business
a. Closed Session
Personnel (as authorized by State Agency Open Meeting Act,
Govt. Code Sec. 11126(a).)
b. Research Proposals
c. Delegations to Executive Officer
ITEM NO.: 88-2-1
Proposed Control Plan for Hecavalent Chromium.
RECOMMENDATION
ARB staff recommends that the Board approve the proposed pan and
direct staff to carry out the Plan as proposed.
DISCUSSION
In January 1986, the Board identified hexavalent chromium as a
toxic air contaminant with no identifiable carcinogenci threshold
level. The health risk of hexavalent chromium was based on
epidemiological studies of workers.
As required by State law, the plan addresses the following
issues:
1) present and future emissions and estimated levels of human
exposure;
2) the atmospheric fate and persistence;
3) the availability, technological feasibility, and cost of
airborne toxic control measures; and
4) the potential impacts that might occur as a result of the
implementation of the potential airborne toxic control
measures discussed in the report.
The plan was developed with the assistance of the South Coast and
Bay Area Air Quality Management District. Also the Plan was
developed in consideration of comments received by the public and
affected industries and has been approved by the Technical Review
Group.
SUMMARY AND IMPACTS OF PROPOSED BOARD ACTION
The plan places the highest priority on developing control
measures for chrome plating/chromic acid anodizing operations
which are planned for discussion today following the Board's
consideration of the Plan. A high priority is also placed on
control measures for cooling towers using chromate water
treatments; Board consideration of this control measure is
tentatively scheduled for October 1988. Other emission source
categories are recommended for continued evaluation with no
specific dates scheduled for Board action.
The Plan identifies control measures that could reduce the number
of statewide potential cancer cases from hexavalent chromium
emissions by 97%. Implementation of the chromium control
measures for plating operations and cooling towers will reduce
potential cancer cases by 53% and 44%, respectively.
Approval of the hexavalent chromium control plan will not in
itself have any environmental or economic impacts. The impacts
from a specific control measure will be fully addressed when the
control measure is presented to the Board for approval as an
airborne toxic control measure.
ITEM NO.: 88-2-2
Proposed Airborne Toxic Control Measure for Emissions of
Hexavalent Chromium from Chrome Plating and Chromic Acid
Anodizing Operations (Regulatory).
RECOMMENDATION
The ARB staff recommends that the Board adopt the proposed
Airborne Toxic Control Measure for Emissions of Hexavalent
Chromium from Chrome Plating and Chromic Acid Anodizing
Operations.
DISCUSSION
In accordance with the provisions of Health and Safety Code
Section 39666, the Air Resources Board staff developed a proposed
airborne toxic control measure for chrome plating and chromic
acid anodizing operations. The measure was developed with the
assistance of the districts through the TRG and in consultation
with the interested public. The TRG approved this control
measure.
What an airborne toxic control measure is.-An airborne toxic
control measure (ATCM) is a regulation that under law serves as
the basis for regulations adopted by districts. If the ARB
adopts an ATCM for a nonvehicular source, the measure is
forwarded to the districts. From the effective date of Board
adoption, the districts have 120 days to propose and six months
to adopt regulations that are at least as stringent as the ATCM.
What the control measure would require.-If adopted as proposed,
the measure would require chrome plating and chromic acid
anodizing operations, through the use of demonstrated technology,
to achieve control eficiencies of from 95% to 99.8% within 6 to
48 months after adoption by the districts. The level of
efficiency required of a facility would depend on the type of
plating done and the amount of hexavalent chromium emitted from
the facility. Decorative platers would be required to use anti-mist
additives or other control methods in a manner demonstrated
to reduce emissions by at least 95%. The smallest hard chrome
plating operations would be required either to install control
equipment capable of reducing emissions by 95% or to emit less
than 0.15 mg of hexavalent chromium per amp-hour of current used
in the tank(s). No hard plating facility would be allowed to
emit more than two pounds of hexavalent chromium per year unless
at least 99% control of emissions from each tank was achieved, or
emissions were less than 0.03 mg per amp-hour. No hard plating
facility would be permitted to emt more than 10 pounds per year
unless 99.8% control had been chieved or emissions were less than
0.006 mg per amp-hour. The demonstrated technology required in
this measure would result in the earliest feasible control for
emissions from these sources.
SUMMARY AND IMPACTS OF THE PROPOSED BOARD ACTION
Potential reductions in emissions and cases of cancer.-The
adoption of this control measure will result in an average
decrease in 97% in hexavalent chromium emissions to the
atmosphere from this source category within 4 years of adoption
by the districts. This is expected to yield a 97% statewide
reduction in potential cancer cases, reducing the number of
lifetime cancer cases by 210 to 2600.
Costs.-The regulation is expected to result in costs to the
industry for control equipment, testing, and for permitting and
inspection fees to offset the costs the district incurs for these
activities. The cost of the measure per cancer case avoided
ranges from 110,000 to 1.3 million dollars. To recover these
costs, the present $200 per square foot price of plating is
estimated to increase anywhere from 18 cents to $15 per square
foot.