SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY UNIFIED AIR POLLUTION CONTROL DISTRICT 

FINAL STAFF REPORT

October 8, 2009 

Amendments to Rule 4692 (Commercial Charbroiling) 

Prepared by: Sandra Lowe-Leseth, Air Quality Engineer 

Reviewed by: Renald Harris, Air Quality Engineer, Permit Services 

Kathi Crump, Air Quality Inspector, Compliance 

Stephanie Hitchman, Senior Air Quality Specialist, Emission 

Reduction Incentives Program 

Joven Nazareno, Senior Air Quality Engineer 

George Heinen, Supervising Air Quality Engineer 

Errol Villegas, Program Manager, Planning Department 

I. SUMMARY 

The San Joaquin Valley Air Basin has been designated by the United States 

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as a non-attainment area for particulate matter 

with aerodynamic diameter of 2.5 micrometers or less (PM2.5). Commercial cooking 

operations using charbroilers have been identified as a potential source for reducing 

these emissions and helping the District reach attainment. The proposed amendments 

would increase the number of chain-driven charbroilers that would be subject to the 

rule. Estimated emission reductions from rule amendments to Rule 4692 are about 6.4 

tons per year of directly-emitted PM2.5. 

A. Reason for Rule Development Project 

District staff amended Rule 4692 to implement an emission control measure in the 

District’s 2008 PM2.5 Plan. The main objective of this rule project was to obtain as 

much reduction of particulate matter (PM) from commercial charbroiling as is 

expeditiously practicable, technologically feasible, and economically reasonable. As 

guidelines for developing the proposed changes to Rule 4692, District staff investigated 

available technologies and reviewed Bay Area Air Quality Management District 

(BAAQMD) Regulation 6 Rule 2 (Commercial Cooking Equipment) and South Coast Air 

Quality Management District (SCAQMD) Rule 1138 (Control of Emissions from 

Restaurant Operations) as well as rules and regulations in other air districts inside and 

outside of California. 

This rule project was a direct result of a control measure in the District’s PM2.5 Plan. 

As such, it was meant to limit directly emitted PM2.5; however EPA has not approved a 

test method for stack testing specifically for PM2.5. Without an official test method, it 

would be difficult to determine a suitable PM2.5 emission limit for this source category. 

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For Revised Proposed Amendments to Rule 4692 
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Final Staff Report: Rule 4692 (Commercial Charbroiling) October 8, 2009 

Rule 4692 limits particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter of 10 micrometers or less 

(PM10) emissions, although the rule considers total particulates collected during testing 

as PM10. For purposes of this rule project, District staff equated control of PM10 with 

control of PM2.5, meaning that if PM10 emissions are controlled, PM2.5 are controlled 

by the same proportion as the PM10 emissions. 

B. Rule Development Process

District staff presented proposed amendments to the Governing Board on June 18, 

2009, after three rounds of public workshops commencing in October 2008. 

Throughout the rule development process, District staff solicited information from 

affected source operators, vendors and manufacturers of control equipment, and trade 

associations on the technological and economic feasibility of the proposed rule 

amendments. Although District staff sent over 6,000 workshop notices to restaurant 

operators throughout the Valley, participation in the workshops was extremely limited. 

Throughout the rule development process, District staff drafted rule requirements based 

on the best information available and District staff addressed all issues raised by 

workshop participants. 

On June 18, 2009, the Governing Board received public testimony and considered 

adopting amendments to Rule 4692. In response to operator comments received at the 

June hearing, the Governing Board directed staff to meet with operators of under-fired 

charbroilers and other interested parties to address operators’ concerns. After meeting 

with control technology vendors and operators, District staff recommends significant 

changes to the June 18, 2009 version of the rule. 

The changes reflected new information received as a result of the post-public hearing 

meetings. New estimates for capital costs for under-fired charbroilers range from 

$37,500 to $104,000. Annualizing that cost over 10 years and adding the annual 

operation and maintenance cost means that these businesses would spend between 

$10,000 and $27,000 per year to control PM2.5 emissions. For most restaurants, this is 

more than 10% of their net profit, which the District considers a significant impact. The 

new estimates for cost effectiveness (which reflects the unit price of reducing pollution) 

for under-fired charbroilers ranges from $22,300 to $58,200 per ton PM2.5 reduced, 

which is also considered significantly high for a PM2.5 control measure. 

District staff, therefore, recommended that under-fired charbroilers not be addressed by 

Rule 4692 control requirements at this time, and that staff be authorized to develop a 

program to provide incentives to operators who proactively control emissions from 

under-fired charbroilers. Although not recommending specific control limits at this time, 

District staff will re-evaluate the potential for emission reductions from this source 

category in the future as the District plans for attainment of new air quality standards, 

specifically the most recent PM2.5 national ambient air quality standard. District staff 

will also monitor the implementation of rules affecting under-fired charbroilers in Bay 

Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD) and South Coast Air Quality 

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Final Staff Report: Rule 4692 (Commercial Charbroiling) October 8, 2009 

Management District (SCAQMD). The District will perform a comprehensive 

assessment benefitting from new and expanded information as these new controls are 

employed. A report on this assessment, including a recommendation on the need and 

feasibility for further rulemaking concerning under-fired charbroilers will be presented to 

the Governing Board in the first quarter of 2011. 

II. BACKGROUND 

A. Current Rule 4692 (Commercial Charbroiling) 

Rule 4692 applies to owners and operators of commercial cooking operations (meaning 

restaurants) using chain-driven charbroilers to cook beef, lamb, pork, poultry, fish, and 

seafood. The rule applies to operators who cook more than 875 pounds of meat per 

week on a chain-driven charbroiler and emit more than one pound per day of any 

criteria pollutant. The current rule limits emission of VOC and particulate matter with 

aerodynamic diameter of 10 micrometers or less (PM10). The rule requires that chaindriven charbroilers be equipped and operated with a certified catalytic oxidizer control 

device and maintained in good working order to minimize visible emissions to the 

atmosphere. For detailed requirements, please refer to current Rule 4692, which is 

available on the District’s website at www.valleyair.org. 

B. Affected Source Category 

Charbroilers have the highest input rate and production capacity among broiler 

categories. A chain-driven charbroiler is a semi-enclosed broiler designed to move food 

mechanically on a grated grill through the device as the food cooks. Food cooks 

quickly, because chain-driven charbroilers have burners located both above and below 

the grill. Chain-driven charbroilers are most common in fast food restaurants. 

While chain-driven charbroilers use a conveyor system to ensure that meat is cooked 

for a specific amount of time, under-fired charbroilers employ a metal "grid", a heavyduty grill like that of a home barbecue. The grid commonly reaches temperatures of 

over 600°F and conducts a significant amount of heat to the food. Below the grid, gas 

broilers have a set of burners spaced every four to twelve inches along the width of the 

broiler. The flames are diffused by a bed of rock, ceramic briquettes, or a metal shield 

("radiant") just above the burners. This material between the flame and the food 

converts some of the flame's energy to radiant heat. Electric charbroilers may have 

heating elements interwoven with the bars of the grid, or the elements may be sheathed 

inside the grid itself, in which case, heat transfer is almost entirely by conduction. As 

food cooks on an under-fired broiler, fat drippings burn on the hot elements, coals, or 

radiants to create the charbroiler's characteristic flame and smoke. Un-incinerated 

drippings are collected in a grease tray. 

The smoke and vapors generated by cooking on either type of charbroiler contain water, 

volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and PM. Larger particles and grease are typically 

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captured by the grease filter of the ventilation hood over the charbroiler. The remaining 

VOCs and smaller PM (typically PM10 and smaller) are exhausted to the atmosphere, 

unless a secondary control is installed. 

In developing the proposed changes to Rule 4692, District staff investigated available 

technologies and reviewed BAAQMD Regulation 6 Rule 2 (Commercial Cooking 

Equipment) and SCAQMD Rule 1138 (Control of Emissions from Restaurant 

Operations) as well as rules and regulations in other agencies inside and outside of 

California. Stakeholders and control equipment vendors were also consulted as part of 

the District’s public rule development process. 

C. Health Impacts 

As was the case with domestic wood burning, emissions from charbroiling are 

increasingly understood to pose a threat to public health. Charbroiling contributes a 

significant fraction of PM2.5 found in urban areas. In a Los Angeles study, estimated 

emissions of charbroiling ranged from 4,400 to 4,900 kg/day vs. 1,400 kg/day for meat 

frying. The authors estimated that approximately 21% of all fine organic carbon (OC) 

particulates in the region originated with meat frying or charbroiling.1 A subsequent 

Central Region Particulate Air Quality Study (CRAPQS) study conducted in Fresno 

estimated that meat cooking contributed 6 to 14% of organic carbon aerosol found in 

the city.2

 The same study found that charbroiled hamburger resulted in up to 40 g per 

kg of fine aerosol emissions vs. 7 g per kg for extra lean meat. 

In addition to emission quantification, environmental health research has helped bring to 

focus the quality of charbroiling emissions and their attendant health hazards. Organic 

substances containing carbon and hydrogen produce polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons 

(PAHs) during incomplete combustion (pyrolysis). The process of charbroiling, 

characterized by fat falling on either flame or charcoal, results in two to five times higher 

emissions of PAH by mass when compared with frying, an increase that is comparable 

to the greater overall PM2.5 emissions generated by charbroiling cited in the previous 

paragraph.3 In addition to having carcinogenic properties, these organic chemicals 

have been shown to promote oxidative stress in the lungs, resulting in altered lung 

function and capacity. For example, scientific evidence of suppressed lung function in 

Fresno asthmatics resulting from inhaled PAH (chrysenequinone) was presented by Tim 

Tyner of the University of California San Francisco to the District’s Governing Board at 

the June 18, 2009 Board meeting. 

The low wind speeds and chronic evening thermal inversions that characterize the San 

Joaquin Valley have the additional effect of limiting dispersion of emissions from 

commercial charbroiling. As with domestic wood burning, this potential for 

 

1

 See Hildemann et al. (1991) Environmental Science and Technology, Vol. 25, pp. 744-751. 

2

 See Schauer and Cass (2000) Environmental Science and Technology, Vol. 34 (9), pp. 1821-1832. 

3

 See Rogge et al. (1991) Environmental Science and Technology, Vol. 25, pp. 1112-1125. 

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neighborhood-level concentration of emissions during evening or multi-day stagnation 

events raises environmental justice concerns, e.g. residential areas that border 

shopping centers where restaurants are located. To conclude, there is ample 

environmental health justification to begin the process of reducing public exposure to 

charbroiling emissions via the proposed incentive program. Past experience has shown 

that this inducement of demand will accelerate the development and cost-effectiveness 

of technological control options. 

III. PROPOSED CHANGES TO RULE 4692 

In December 2007, BAAQMD adopted a rule that controlled emissions from both chaindriven and under-fired charbroilers. The amendments to District Rule 4692 

incorporated many of the concepts from the BAAQMD rule as they apply to chain-driven 

charbroilers. The minimum meat cooked for a charbroiler to be subject to control 

requirements would be reduced by more than 50%. This means that more chain-driven 

charbroilers would be subject to the rule’s control requirements. The following 

paragraphs outline the specifics of the revised proposed amendments. 

A. Section 2.0 Applicability 

No change (from the adopted rule) is proposed for the applicability section of the rule. 

The rule would apply only to chain-driven charbroilers. 

The limited data on historical use of the particulate controls for under-fired charbroilers 

raise questions concerning the reliability and effectiveness of these devices. Although 

not addressing control limits at this time, District staff will re-evaluate the potential for 

emission reductions from under-fired charbroilers in the future as the District considers 

attainment of new air quality standards, specifically the most recent PM2.5 national 

ambient air quality standard. The newly-adopted federal health-based standard for 

PM2.5 will also mandate that the District adopt a new attainment plan in 2012, calling 

for additional reductions in directly-emitted PM2.5. District staff will also monitor the 

implementation of rules affecting under-fired charbroilers in BAAQMD and SCAQMD. 

B. Section 3.0 Definitions 

The definitions of existing chain-driven charbroiler and new chain-driven charbroiler 

have been removed, since it is past the compliance date for both types and the overall 

control requirements are the same for both new and existing chain-driven charbroilers. 

The definition for PM10 has been expanded to note that all particulate collected during 

testing would be considered PM10 for purposes of this rule. Section 3.0 has been renumbered to reflect the proposed changes. 

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Final Staff Report: Rule 4692 (Commercial Charbroiling) October 8, 2009 

C. Section 4.0 Exemptions 

The purpose of the exemption section is to refine the rule applicability. This rule project 

modifies the exemption section to assure that the rule applies to commercial cooking 

operations (for example restaurants and cafes) that cook a certain amount of meat. The 

current rule allows owner/operators who cook less than a certain amount of meat on 

their chain-driven units to be exempt from control requirements, although the 

owner/operators must demonstrate that they are exempt through weekly recordkeeping. For chain-driven units, the amendments reduce the quantity allowed for the 

exemption by more than 50% - from 875 pounds per week to 400 pounds per week. 

This mirrors BAAQMD’s recently-adopted rule. 

The current rule has an exemption for low-emitting chain-driven charbroilers. The 

purpose of this exemption is to acknowledge that some owners/operators may choose 

to invest in clean technology. The exemption allows the use of these cleaner units as 

long as the owner/operator maintains certain records. 

Other Exemption Considerations 

The BAAQMD charbroiler rule has a limited exemption from control requirements based 

amount of meat purchased. District staff reviewed the exemption and found that there 

is a certain amount of ambiguity in terms of enforceability between the meat-purchased 

and the meat-cooked exemptions. In certain circumstances, it would be unclear to a 

compliance inspector which exemption the operator’s records are supporting. To 

reduce any confusion, District staff has elected to not include a meat-purchased 

exemption because it is the cooking of meat that causes emissions, not purchasing 

meat. 

District staff evaluated whether to count reheated or pre-cooked meat as part of the 

exemption determination. Initial thoughts were that the heating/re-heating of alreadycooked food does not generate as much emissions as cooking from raw and therefore, 

the heating/re-heating should not be counted in the exemption determination. However, 

no emission factor was found for this type of cooking. Demonstrating that the 

charbroiler is exempt could be problematic if the owner/operator had to separate out 

pre-cooked meat. For example, owner/operators would have to also keep records 

tracking the amount of precooked meat purchased in addition to the amount of meat 

cooked on the grill District staff recommends that pre-cooked food should be included 

in the limited use exemption count in order to minimize emissions, since even reheating 

would have some level of emissions. 

During the October 2008 workshop, one stakeholder commented that for one special 

event, their restaurant serves significantly more customers than at any other time during 

the year. In order to accommodate this concern, District staff has included an annual 

meat-cooked limit for chain-driven charbroilers. The annual amount is the weekly 

exemption multiplied by 52 weeks, then divided by two. In determining the annual 

quantity, District staff wanted to be sure that excursions above the weekly “normal 

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Final Staff Report: Rule 4692 (Commercial Charbroiling) October 8, 2009 

operations” limit did not raise the overall amount of meat cooked to remain exempt. The 

limit is based on a rolling twelve-month period so that quantity of meat-cooked can be 

fairly evaluated. An annual amount based on a calendar year would mean that all 

restaurants would be allowed the exemption until such time that the amount of meat 

cooked went above the annual amount. This was not the intent of exemption. In the 

case of a rolling 12-month basis, the amount of meat cooked is reviewed over the past 

twelve months, and reflects a longer evaluation time. For this reason District staff 

proposed that the basis for the exemption be a rolling twelve-month period. 

Proposed Exemptions Section Compared to the April 2009 Draft Rule 

Exemptions for lower-use under-fired charbroilers have been removed, as they are no 

longer needed for the rule. Also, the requirement for loss of exemption has been moved 

to Section 7.0 (Compliance Schedule) for reader clarity. 

D. Section 5.0 Requirements 

Section 5.0 is a compilation of emission limits and work practices required to control 

emissions from the source operation. Under the current rule, chain-driven charbroilers 

must have a catalytic oxidizer certified by South Coast Air Quality Management District 

(SCAQMD). This would change slightly under the proposed amendments. District staff 

proposed that the control efficiency requirements used by SCAQMD be included in the 

rule. The addition aids understanding by operators of rule requirements by putting all of 

the needed information in the rule. 

The amendments reference a percent control, which is different from BAAQMD 

Regulation 6 Rule 2. Using the percent control required by SCAQMD and BAAQMD’s 

uncontrolled emission factor for chain-driven charbroilers yields the emission limit used 

in BAAQMD Regulation 6 Rule 2. The District and BAAQMD use different emission 

factors for uncontrolled emissions. Rather than debate which emission factor is “right”, 

District staff uses the required percent control called for by SCAQMD certification 

protocol. The percent control represents the actual technology limit for these units. 

SCAQMD has certified chain-driven charbroilers for some years. The models that were 

certified prior to January 1, 2011 would be considered compliant with the new rule limits. 

This allows operators to select from the current SCAQMD-certified units to comply with 

the rule provisions. 

Operators are allowed to use control devices other than catalytic oxidizers in the current 

rule. This would be highlighted by placing this option in a separate section. If operators 

elect an alternative control device, the alternative control device would be required to 

meet the same emission control efficiency limits imposed on catalytic oxidizers. 

Based on changes to the exemption limit for chain-driven charbroilers, there would be 

existing chain-driven units that are currently exempt from the control requirements of 

this rule that become subject to control requirements due to loss of exemption. To 

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Final Staff Report: Rule 4692 (Commercial Charbroiling) October 8, 2009 

minimize ambiguity in compliance, operators would be required to comply with the 

proposed amendments on and after January 1, 2011, which is the same day as the 

proposed change in exemption level. Units that lose their exemption for meat-cooked 

would be subject to a single control level and the dates coincide to minimize confusion 

or compliance ambiguity. 

Section 5.3 currently requires that catalytic oxidizers be operated and maintained per 

manufacturer’s instructions. Language in this section would be modified to include all 

control devices, not just catalytic oxidizers. The expansion is necessary to be sure that 

control devices other than catalytic oxidizers are operated and maintained so that 

emissions from charbroiling are actually reduced in practice and not just theoretically. 

Proposed Requirements Section Compared to the April 2009 Draft Rule 

There are three differences in Section 5.0 of the adopted rule compared to the April 

2009 version of the rule. The first difference is that all references to under-fired 

charbroilers have been removed. Second, as noted below, the proposed compliance 

date for chain-driven units has been extended from July 1, 2010 in the April 2009 

version of the rule to January 1, 2011 in the adopted rule. This does not affect units that 

are already subject to the rule since the proposed changes only make explicit the 

requirements of a SCAQMD-certified chain-driven charbroiler. The change in 

implementation date allows operators new to the control requirements additional time to 

install control devices. The third difference is that the certification section has been 

moved to Section 6.0 – Administrative Requirements. District staff has re-evaluated the 

rule language and determined that the certification requirement is more like an 

administrative requirement rather than an emission limit or a work practice, therefore, 

the section was moved to Section 6.0 for rule clarity. 

E. Section 6.0 Administrative Requirements 

Section 6.0 (Recordkeeping and Test Methods) has been re-titled “Administrative 

Requirements.” The change more clearly reflects the purpose of Section 6.0. The 

section has been expanded to clarify records needed, test protocols to be used, and 

control device registration, as well as details of the control device certification process. 

Required Records 

The records required are grouped by the type of charbroiler for clarity. The records 

requirement for exempt units would be separated from the records for chain-driven 

charbroilers. The section would be re-arranged to put exempt units first, since the 

exemptions appear before the control requirements in the rule. 

For exempt units, required records reflect those items necessary to show that the unit 

meets the terms of the exemption – weekly records of meat cooked and, for lowemitting units, test results with the maximum meat cooked calculations. For chaindriven units subject to the control efficiency limit of Section 5.0, records reflect those 

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Final Staff Report: Rule 4692 (Commercial Charbroiling) October 8, 2009 

items needed to show compliance with the requirements, generally meaning records 

showing that the control device is being maintained. Weekly records of meat cooked 

would also be required. 

Alternative Records 

Owners/operators can keep records differently than specified, if both EPA and the 

District agree in writing. This allows operators the flexibility to record information in a 

way that is appropriate for their particular circumstances without compromising their 

ability to demonstrate compliance with rule provisions. 

Certification of Control Devices 

A section has been added to Section 6.0 to outline the basic steps for control device 

certification. There are three main steps for manufacturers or owners to obtain 

certification of their units. Testing would be done at an independent lab and the 

resultant control efficiency would be equal to or greater than the applicable control 

efficiency limit in order to be considered for certification. Manufacturers/owners would 

be required to obtain written certification of the system from the District. 

Test Methods 

The test methods section has been expanded to include a calculation for percent control 

efficiency for rule clarity. Because the amendments have a percent control as the 

emission limit, the equation is necessary so that consistency between operators is 

maintained. 

Control Device Performance Criteria 

Section 6.6 details the minimum control efficiencies for chain-driven charbroilers. Since 

it is expected that manufacturers would perform the testing and apply for certification, 

the control efficiency limits are placed near the test methods and the certification 

procedure. 

Certification Details 

The last part of Section 6.0 lists the particulars for the certification application. The 

procedure echoes the BAAQMD rule for charbroilers. If a unit has been certified in 

SCAQMD, the person seeking District certification does not need to re-test the units in 

order to obtain District certification. All that needs to be submitted is the appropriate 

paperwork showing that the unit has been tested appropriately and the unit has met the 

control efficiency limits of Section 6.6 of District Rule 4692. Since the District and 

SCAQMD have similar requirements, it would be overly-duplicative to require that the 

unit be tested separately for each air district’s certification. 

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Final Staff Report: Rule 4692 (Commercial Charbroiling) October 8, 2009 

Proposed Administrative Requirements Section Compared to the April 2009 Draft Rule 

Compared to the April 2009 draft version of the rule, all administrative and testing 

requirements for under-fired charbroilers have been removed from Section 6.0. Also, 

the order in which the each type of charbroiler appears has been rearranged. Records 

required for exempt units are followed by records required for chain-driven charbroilers. 

The proposed order reflects the order in which the units appear in the rule. New to 

Section 6.0 is the certification procedure. This procedure had been part of Section 5.0 

in the April version of the rule. 

F. Compliance Schedule 

This section outlines the dates by which the operators must meet the applicable 

requirements. This section was added since the April draft of the rule, however, the 

purpose of this section is to consolidate compliance schedules into a single section for 

improved reader understanding. 

Chain-driven charbroilers are required to comply with the control requirements of the 

rule by January 1, 2011. The compliance schedule was changed from the April 2009 

draft of the rule, which had a July 1, 2010 deadline for compliance. The change is in 

response to the continued concerns about the ability of business owners to obtain loans 

as well as the projection of a poor economic outlook for the balance of 2009 and into 

2010. Many consumers consider eating at restaurants an expense that can be 

foregone, so restaurant businesses could be directly impacted by reduced consumer 

spending. 

If a chain-driven charbroiler loses its exempt status after the compliance date in Section 

7.1, the operator would be responsible for bringing the unit into compliance with all rule 

requirements when the charbroiler is operated after the exemption is lost. 

IV. AVAILABLE CONTROL TECHNOLOGIES 

The smoke and vapors generated by cooking on a charbroiler contain water, VOCs and 

PM. Larger particles and grease are typically captured by the grease filter of the 

ventilation hood over the broiler. The remaining VOCs and smaller PM (typically PM10 

and smaller) are exhausted to the atmosphere, unless a secondary control is installed. 

A. Chain-Driven Charbroiler Control Technology 

The flameless catalytic oxidizer consists of a layer of catalyst spread over a support 

structure. The supported catalyst is housed in a metal canister that is attached to the 

charbroiler. The exhaust from the cooking process goes through the heated catalyst. 

The catalyst promotes the oxidation of PM and VOC to carbon dioxide and water vapor. 

The energy released by the reaction heats the catalyst and is transferred to the heat 

recovery system - no additional fuel is needed for this unit. Catalytic oxidizers are ideal 

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Final Staff Report: Rule 4692 (Commercial Charbroiling) October 8, 2009 

for chain-driven charbroilers because the exhaust of charbroiler can be directed through 

the control device with little loss of temperature. In fact, the reactions at the catalyst 

surface only take place at high temperature. The exhaust from under-fired charbroilers, 

on the other hand, loses much of its heat before it can be directed to a control device; 

therefore, the reactions at the catalyst surface cannot take place because the exhaust is 

not hot enough. For this reason, other control strategies are more effective for underfired charbroilers. 

B. Under-Fired Charbroiler Control Technology 

The following control technologies may be suitable for under-fired charbroilers: 

• High efficiency particulate-arresting (HEPA) filtration systems 

• Electrostatic precipitators (ESPs) 

• Wet scrubbers 

Control equipment vendors report that, nationwide, at least 400 HEPA filter systems and 

nearly that number of ESPs are already in use. The vendor reports indicate that at least 

70 control units may have been installed in California, mostly in the Los Angeles and 

San Francisco areas. One vendor has provided the District with a list of facilities having 

purchased their device. The other vendors were unwilling or unable to provide a similar 

list. The District has been unable to receive any information from the owners/operators 

to verify vendor claims or assess long-term equipment reliability. 

Building codes normally require a primary grease filter above most cooking appliances. 

A HEPA filtration system takes that several steps further. Behind the primary grease 

filter is a secondary grease filter to catch the air stream’s remaining grease. This is 

followed by a second filter to remove the larger particles. The third and final filter is a 

HEPA filter, which effectively eliminates particulates down to about 0.3 microns. 

Depending on a restaurant’s particular mix of cooking, instead of a single secondary 

grease filter, there may be two or more to remove enough particulate before the HEPA 

filter to make the filter change-out schedule reasonable for the restaurant operator. 

According to vendors, maintenance of a filtration system is relatively easy for restaurant 

personnel to perform, however, depending on the amount of particulate, weekly 

changing of one or more filters may be necessary. 

ESPs’ primary use has been in industrial settings to remove fine dust and smoke. In the 

restaurant setting, ESPs are often used to remove smoke and odors when commercial 

kitchen exhaust is discharged at street level rather than at roof level. An ESP works by 

passing the air first through an electrically charged screen that gives a charge to the 

particles, creating ionized particles. The ionized particles then pass between two 

oppositely-charged plates where the ionized particles are attracted to one surface or the 

other. ESPs work best on fine particulate, so an ESP system would have one or more 

filters prior to the ESP itself to remove grease and larger particles from kitchen exhaust. 

The ESP system usually has a clean-in-place system that washes the plates while they 

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are in the ESP cabinet, usually in the early morning when the restaurant is closed. 

Then, once or twice a year, the plates are removed for a more thorough cleaning. 

Because the plates can weigh as much as 75 pounds, operators with ESPs often 

choose to hire outside companies to perform the routine maintenance. 

With wet scrubbers, a fine stream of a water and detergent “washes” the particulates 

from the kitchen exhaust. The particulate/water/detergent mix is filtered and the filtered 

water/detergent mix is recycled through to clean more kitchen exhaust. The particulateladen wash water is discharged to the sewer system. The water/sewer usage and the 

cost of detergent can be the most challenging aspect of wet scrubbers, although recent 

improvements in design have overcome many of the inefficiencies of older units. 

While control vendors have been helpful in understanding the control systems’ 

technology, they have not been able to provide the District with several critical pieces of 

information. Despite repeated attempts by the District, owners and operators have 

shown a great deal of reluctance to provide information. Some of this reluctance may 

be due to the unavailability of information given the relative short time that these units 

have been in operation. 

 

These controls appear promising. However, in light of the new information that we have 

received and given the high cost of these controls for under-fired charbroilers, the 

District staff cannot recommend these controls for the rule at this time. Reliable and 

verifiable information and more careful examination are needed to judge these systems’ 

reliability in the field. Among the outstanding issues concerning the control units being 

reported to be installed by the vendors are: 

• Whether an under-fired charbroiler is included in the kitchen appliances for 

facilities that vendors report as having these controls (some of these controls 

appear to be only serving fryers); 

• The type of meat being charbroiled; 

• The actual amount of charbroiling done; 

• The length of time the control system has been in use; 

• The size of the control system; 

• The costs and labor involved in routine operating and maintenance based on 

actual experience of the operators; and 

• Actual field data on control system reliability such as maintenance frequency, 

control efficiency, and frequency of equipment breakdown. 

District staff will conduct extensive research and data-gathering to answer these 

questions and report to the Governing Board during the first quarter of 2011. This 

report will also include an assessment and recommendation concerning the need for 

and feasibility of further rulemaking for under-fired charbroilers. 

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Final Staff Report: Rule 4692 (Commercial Charbroiling) October 8, 2009 

V. POTENTIAL INCENTIVE FUNDING FOR UNDER-FIRED CHARBROILERS 

In place of regulatory control, the District is considering making available incentive funds 

in the form of grants for the purpose of installing particulate control devices on existing 

under-fired charbroilers. The US EPA recognizes that there are circumstances when 

additional emission reductions can be better achieved through economic incentives. 

This is especially true in cases like this where control technology is expensive and is 

being newly applied to sources under consideration. 

The District proposes to design a charbroiler incentive program that achieves maximum, 

cost-effective emissions reductions. In this program, the District would not specify the 

control technology to be used, but, rather, would provide an incentive level based on 

cost-effectiveness while allowing the operator to determine the best control technology 

for his/her operation. The level of incentive funding would depend on several factors, 

including the amount of meat being cooked, the project life, and cost-effectiveness of 

those reductions. The District would enter into legally binding agreements with 

interested operators to ensure that the emissions reductions occur over the life of the 

project. To make certain that the predicted emission reductions are achieved, the 

District would employ a variety of methods, including, but not limited to, project audits, 

inspections, and annual reporting. 

It is estimated that funding for each operation will range from approximately $20,000 to 

$80,000, depending on the size of the operation and amount of meat cooked. On 

average, this would fund approximately 60% to 90% of the capital cost, including 

equipment and installation, depending on the specific control-technology selected by the 

operator. The operator will be responsible for ongoing operational and maintenance 

costs. Although high ongoing operating costs may discourage some from participating 

in the incentive program, it is hoped that a number of operators would choose to 

participate given the rules in other areas and the likelihood that the District will need 

additional reductions in the future. To gauge interest and need for funding, the staff 

recommends a pilot program for up to 10 units operating over the next 12 months. 

The district proposes to allocate up to $500,000 for this pilot program through a 

competitive solicitation. It is anticipated that funding for the program will come from 

Indirect Source Review (ISR) fees generated by the District. Consequently, the 

program cost-effectiveness thresholds and will be established pursuant to the applicable 

cost-effectiveness limits in the ISR program. 

VI. BASELINE EMISSION INVENTORY AND EMISSION REDUCTIONS 

Because very few restaurants hold a District Permit-to-Operate, District staff cannot 

determine the number of restaurants and by extension, the baseline emission inventory 

for this source category. Equally, the number of restaurants affected by amendments to 

the rule is not information available from internal District documents. Using multiple 

information sources, District staff estimated the baseline PM2.5 emission inventory for 

 13 Final Staff Report With Appendices 

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Final Staff Report: Rule 4692 (Commercial Charbroiling) October 8, 2009 

this source category and the emission reductions associated with the rule amendments. 

Directly-emitted PM2.5 emissions are estimated to go down by about 0.018 tons per 

day or about a 24% reduction of baseline emissions for under-fired charbroilers. Details 

of the calculation are in Appendix B of this staff report 

VII. COSTS AND COST EFFECTIVENESS ANALYSIS 

Under the California Health and Safety Code, the District is required to perform a cost 

effectiveness analysis of available emission control options prior to adopting each Best 

Available Retrofit Control Technology (BARCT) rule. Absolute cost effectiveness of a 

control option is the added annual cost, in dollars per year ($/year), of a control 

technology or technique, divided by the emission reduction achieved, in tons reduced 

per year. The costs include capital equipment costs, engineering design costs, labor 

and maintenance costs. Cost effectiveness for chain-driven charbroilers is estimated at 

$19,900 per ton PM2.5 reduced. 

VIII. SOCIOECONOMIC IMPACT ANALYSIS 

Pursuant to state law, District staff is required to perform a socioeconomic impact 

analysis prior to adoption, amendment, or repeal of a rule that has significant air quality 

benefits or that will strengthen emission limitations. As part of the District’s 

socioeconomic analysis process, District staff met with representatives from interested 

groups during the Socioeconomic Focus Group. The Focus Group assisted District staff 

in determining the appropriate method for gathering information on regulatory 

compliance costs and business impacts resulting from compliance with the rule. The 

Socioeconomic Focus Group met in February 2009. The results of the socioeconomic 

analysis are included in this report (See Appendix D). The draft socioeconomic impact 

analysis report was presented along with the refined version of the proposed rule to the 

public and interested parties during the April 2009 workshop. 

IX. ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS 

The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires that District staff investigate 

the likely environmental impacts of the proposed changes to the rules. After careful 

evaluation, District staff is proposing that a Notice of Exemption be filed for this rule 

project. 

X. RULE CONSISTENCY ANALYSIS 

Prior to adopting, amending, or repealing a rule or regulation that implements best 

available retrofit technology (BARCT), California Health and Safety Code Section 

40727.2 requires a written analysis that identifies and compares requirements of the 

 14 Final Staff Report With Appendices 

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Final Staff Report: Rule 4692 (Commercial Charbroiling) October 8, 2009 

proposed rule with corresponding, existing and proposed District rules and 

corresponding United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rules, regulations, 

and guidelines. This analysis is attached to this staff report as Appendix E. 

XI. REASONABLY AVAILABLE CONTROL TECHNIQUES (RACT) ANALYSIS 

The federal Clean Air Act requires ozone non-attainment areas to implement RACT at 

all Major Sources of ozone precursors, and for all source categories covered by an 

EPA-promulgated Control Techniques Guideline (CTG) document. Major Source is 

defined as a stationary source with the potential to emit at least 10 tons per year of 

VOCs or nitrogen oxides. District staff has found that there are no major sources with 

charbroiling operations, and that EPA has not promulgated a CTG for this category. 

Therefore, federal RACT requirements are not applicable to commercial charbroiling in 

the San Joaquin Valley. 

XII. BEST AVAILABLE CONTROL MEASURE (BACM) ANALYSIS 

In October 2008, EPA staff commented that the District should include a discussion 

showing that the rule is BACM for PM10. BACM is required for all areas designated as 

serious non-attainment and above. The District has been designated in attainment of 

PM10 National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) as promulgated in the Federal 

Register Volume 73 pages 66759 - 66775 (73 FR 66759-66775). This rule development 

project is a control measure in an attainment plan for the PM2.5. The PM2.5 NAAQS has 

no requirement for BACM demonstration in attainment plans. See the federal Code of 

Regulations Title 40 Section 51 Subpart Z, which details the plan requirements for nonattainment areas to attain the PM2.5 NAAQS. Section 50.1010 does not mention a 

required BACM analysis. Since a BACM analysis is not required as part of the PM2.5 

NAAQS and the District is in attainment of the PM10 NAAQS, District staff has not 

performed a BACM analysis for this rule project. 

XIII. REFERENCES 

1. Bay Area Air Quality Management District – Regulation 6, Rule 2: Commercial 

Cooking Equipment, adopted December 5, 2007. 

2. Bay Area Air Quality Management District – Staff Report for Regulation 6, Rule 2: 

Commercial Cooking Equipment, dated November 2007. 

3. Virginia Lau, Senior Air Quality Specialist, Bay Area Air Quality Management 

District – personal communication April 21, 2009. 

4. San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District Area Source Emission Inventory 

Methodology (690 – Commercial Cooking Operations). 

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Final Staff Report: Rule 4692 (Commercial Charbroiling) October 8, 2009 

5. South Coast Air Quality Management District Rule 1138 (Control of Emissions 

from Restaurant Operations), adopted November 14, 1997. 

6. California Public Utilities Commission, Food Service Technology Center – 

“Commercial Cooking Appliance Technology Assessment” Report # 5011.02.26 

published in 2002. 

7. Dan Hopkins, Crest Distributing, Inc. – personal communication. 

8. Fuoad Parvin, Halton Company – personal communication 

9. Kurt Curtis, Captive Aire, Inc – personal communication 

10. Mike Anderson, West Coast Stainless – personal communication 

11. Steve Zimmerman, Plumbing and Mechanical Systems, City of Bakersfield – 

personal communication. 

12. Mike Smith, United Air Specialists – personal communication 

13. Bill Lukens, Gaylord Industries – personal communication 

14. Don Fisher, Food Service Technology Center – personal communication 

15. Hildemann et al. (1991) Environmental Science and Technology, Vol. 25, pp. 

744-751. 

16. Schauer and Cass (2000) Environmental Science and Technology, Vol. 34 (9), 

pp. 1821-1832. 

17. Rogge et al. (1991) Environmental Science and Technology, Vol. 25, pp. 1112-

1125. 

 16 Final Staff Report With Appendices 

For Revised Proposed Amendments to Rule 4692