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The Air Resources Board (ARB or Board) staff has issued a
Regulatory Advisory related to the upcoming July 1, 2014,
deadline for existing Aboveground Storage Tanks (AST) to upgrade
to Phase I Enhanced Vapor Recovery (EVR).   
The Regulatory Advisory will provide relief from Phase I EVR
requirements for many ASTs.  AST owners and operators can refer
to the nine step process in the AST EVR Regulatory Advisory to
determine whether relief is provided for their AST.  All existing
AST owners and operators are advised to check with the
appropriate air districts to verify the compliance status of
their ASTs.

The AST EVR Regulatory Advisory along with the accompanying
Frequently Asked Questions flyer are available on ARB's website:
http://www.arb.ca.gov/vapor/vapor.htm.

For further information about the AST EVR Regulatory Advisory or
ARB’s AST EVR program, visit
http://www.arb.ca.gov/vapor/vapor.htm or call 916-327-0900. 

Background: 
In 2008, the Board adopted EVR standards to reduce air pollution
from AST.  Owners and operators of AST are required to install
EVR equipment to reduce the emission of gasoline vapors caused by
daily changes in ambient temperature and exposure to sunlight
(Standing Loss Control, or SLC) as well as vapors that are
emitted during the transfer of gasoline from the cargo tanker to
the AST (Phase I) and then from the AST to the motor vehicle
(Phase II).  Under the statewide regulation, new AST have been
required to have SLC equipment since April 1, 2009, and Phase I
equipment since 
July 1, 2010.  For existing AST located in state ozone
non-attainment areas, SLC has been required since April 1, 2013,
and Phase I equipment will be required by July 1, 2014. 
Installation deadlines for Phase II equipment have not yet been
established due to a lack of certified equipment.

Based on recent analysis, ARB staff has determined that in some
situations the costs associated with implementation of Phase I
equipment are higher than originally anticipated, particularly
for AST with low gasoline throughput which are in many cases
located in rural areas.  To allow for more cost-effective
implementation of AST EVR requirements, ARB staff will ask the
Board at a public hearing scheduled for November 2014 to consider
regulatory amendments that would exempt certain ASTs from
compliance with SLC and Phase I requirements.  Prior to the
November Board Hearing, ARB staff will hold a series of public
workshops to explain the basis for the proposed regulatory
amendments and seek public comment.  In the interim, to ensure
that owners/operators do not unnecessarily expend funds to
upgrade ASTs that may ultimately be exempt under the amendments
that ARB staff will be proposing, ARB will request air districts
to not enforce the July 1, 2014 compliance deadline for those AST
owners/operators who may not be required to comply under the nine
step process laid out in the AST EVR Regulatory Advisory.



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