SOUTH COAST AIR QUALITY MANAGEMENT DISTRICT

(Adopted December 4, 2009)(Amended May 2, 2014)

RULE 1155. PARTICULATE MATTER (PM) CONTROL DEVICES

(a) Purpose

The purpose of this rule is to establish requirements for permitted particulate 

matter (PM) air pollution control devices, including, but not limited to,

baghouses, high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) systems, bin vents, or other 

dust collectors using high efficiency or other air filters, cyclones, electrostatic 

precipitators, and wet scrubbers.

(b) Applicability

This rule applies to the operator of permitted PM air pollution control device(s)

venting processes that have direct (non-combustion) PM emissions. A summary 

of key rule elements is provided in Table 1 of this rule.

(c) Definitions

(1) BEST AVAILABLE CONTROL TECHNOLOGY (BACT) is as defined 

in South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) Rule 1302 –

Definitions, subdivision (h).

(2) BAGHOUSE means an air pollution control device designed to remove

PM from a gas stream using fabric filters in the shape of a tube or an 

envelope, or other air filters that are built into a frame or cartridge. For 

the purpose of this rule, baghouses are separated into three tiers based on 

the following characteristics:

(A) Tier 1: Baghouses for which the filter surface area is less than or 

equal to 500 square feet;

(B) Tier 2: Baghouses for which the filter surface area is greater than 

500 square feet but less than or equal to 7,500 square feet; or

(C) Tier 3: Baghouses for which the filter surface area is greater than 

7,500 square feet.

(3) BAG LEAK DETECTION SYSTEM (BLDS) means a system that 

monitors electrical charge transfer based on triboelectricity or electrostatic 

induction to continuously monitor bag leakage and similar failures by 

detecting changes in particle mass loading in the exhaust. 

(4) BIN VENT means an air filtration dust collector designed to remove PM 

from the air that is displaced by materials filling silos and bins.

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Rule 1155 (cont.) (Amended May 2, 2014)

(5) CONTINUOUS OPACITY MONITORING SYSTEM (COMS) means a 

system that meets minimum requirements specified under U.S. EPA 40 

CFR Part 60, Appendix B, to continuously monitor opacity.

(6) CYCLONE means an air pollution control device designed to remove PM 

from a gas stream by inertia.

(7) ELECTROSTATIC PRECIPITATOR (ESP) means an air pollution

control device designed to remove PM from a gas stream by imparting a 

high voltage direct current (DC) charge to the particles while 

simultaneously ionizing the carrier gas, producing an electric corona.

(8) EXISTING PM CONTROL DEVICE means a PM air pollution control 

device installed or for which an application for a permit has been deemed 

complete on or before December 4, 2009.

(9) FACILITY means any source or group of sources or other air 

contaminant-emitting activities which are subject to this rule and are 

located on one or more contiguous properties within the SCAQMD, in 

actual physical contact or separated solely by a public roadway or other 

public right-of-way, and are owned or operated by the same person (or by 

persons under common control), or an outer continental shelf (OCS) 

source as determined in 40 CFR Section 55.2. Such above-described 

groups, if noncontiguous, but connected only by land carrying a pipeline, 

shall not be considered one facility. Sources or installations involved in 

crude oil and gas production in Southern California Coastal or OCS 

Waters and transport of such crude oil and gas in Southern California 

Coastal or OCS Waters shall be included in the same facility which is 

under the same ownership or use entitlement as the crude oil and gas 

production facility on-shore.

(10) NEW PM CONTROL DEVICE means a PM air pollution control device

for which an application for a permit has been deemed complete after 

December 4, 2009.

(11) NON-CONTINUOUS PROCESS means an emissions generating activity 

vented to a PM air pollution control device that operates no more than 

once per week or for periods of less than one hour, not to cumulatively 

exceed 4 hours during any single day.

(12) VERIFIED FILTRATION PRODUCT means a filtration product that has 

been verified under the U.S. EPA Environmental Technology Verification 

(ETV) program at the time of purchase. Manufacturers whose filtration 

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Rule 1155 (cont.) (Amended May 2, 2014)

product verification has expired must demonstrate at the time of purchase 

that the product is the same as was previously tested and verified under the 

ETV program.

(13) WET SCRUBBER means an air pollution control device designed to 

remove PM from a gas stream by using a finely atomized stream of liquid 

to capture particulate matter pollutants.

(d) General Requirements

(1) Beginning April 1, 2010, the operator of a facility shall not cause or allow 

any visible emissions (excluding condensed water vapor) from any PM air 

pollution control device required to have a permit.

(2) No later than January 1, 2011, the operator of any Tier 3 baghouse shall

meet an outlet PM concentration of less than or equal to 0.01 grains per 

dry standard cubic foot (gr/dscf).

(A) Notwithstanding the above, the operator of hot mix asphalt 

production equipment shall comply with the 0.01 gr/dscf limit no 

later than January 1, 2013, unless the operator has documentation 

that demonstrates that new fabric filters have been installed within 

12 months prior to December 4, 2009, in which case the hot mix 

asphalt production equipment shall comply by January 1, 2014 or 

at the end of the filter useful life, whichever occurs sooner. 

(3) No later than April 1, 2010, all permitted PM control devices shall be 

operated and maintained in accordance with the manufacturer’s operation 

and maintenance manual or other similar written materials supplied by the 

manufacturer or distributor of a control device to ensure that the control 

device remains in proper operating condition. If such documents are not 

available, the operator shall provide and follow written operation and 

maintenance procedures for the PM control device(s). Such 

documentation shall be made available to the Executive Officer

immediately upon request.

(4) No later than January 1, 2012 or after the end of the useful life of a manual 

shaker unit, whichever occurs sooner, the operator of an existing manual 

shaker baghouse shall upgrade or replace it with, at a minimum, an

automated shaker unit.

(5) An operator shall not install a manual shaker baghouse after December 4, 

2009.

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Rule 1155 (cont.) (Amended May 2, 2014)

(6) If the PM emission limit in paragraph (d)(2) is exceeded, the operator shall

file a permit application to use verified filtration products, as defined in 

paragraph (c)(12), or other technologies or methods demonstrated through 

source test pursuant to paragraph (e)(6) to comply with the requirement in 

paragraph (d)(2), within three months of discovery by the operator or of 

notification by the Executive Officer, to replace the existing filter bags or 

cartridges. The operator shall install the verified filtration products within 

three months of issuance of the permit.

(7) If the operator discovers the exceedance of the PM limit in paragraph (d)(2) 

and resolves the problem that led to the exceedance, within 24 hours of 

discovery, the operator would not be subject to the requirements in 

paragraph (d)(6). 

(8) When a new process is vented to a new baghouse, the operator shall install 

and maintain a ventilation system that meets a minimum capture velocity 

requirement specified in the applicable standards of the most current

Edition of the U.S. Industrial Ventilation Handbook, American 

Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists, at the time of 

installation.

(9) The operator shall discharge material collected in a permitted PM control 

device for disposal or bring the material back to the process through a 

controlled material transfer system to prevent fugitive emissions during 

material transfer, including, but not limited to, shrouding or use of dust 

suppressants to stabilize the material.

(10) Until more stringent requirements of this rule are effective and after, if 

still applicable, the operator shall operate and maintain all existing PM air 

pollution control devices according to existing SCAQMD permit 

conditions.

(11) For any new or modified PM air pollution control device subject to 

BACT, the operator of such device shall meet the more stringent BACT 

level established for that device (pursuant to SCAQMD BACT 

Guidelines) at the time of evaluation of the permit application for the 

device. 

(e) Monitoring Requirements

(1) No later than March 31, 2010, the operator shall have a minimum of one 

person trained in the reading of visible emissions pursuant to EPA Method 

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Rule 1155 (cont.) (Amended May 2, 2014)

22. Beginning April 1, 2010, the operator of any baghouse or other PM 

control device shall have the trained person conduct a continuous fiveminute visible emissions observation using EPA Method 22 once a week 

and shall maintain records for each observation and any necessary 

subsequent action(s) taken to eliminate visible emissions pursuant to 

subdivision (f). The provisions of this paragraph shall apply to Tier 3 

baghouse units up to and until compliance with the provisions of 

paragraph (e)(3).

(A) If the operator observes any visible emissions exiting at any time, 

including during a scheduled Method 22 test, the operator shall 

implement, within 24 hours, all necessary corrective actions to 

eliminate the visible emissions.

(B) To verify corrective actions were effective, the operator must

restart the operations and complete a new Method 22 test to ensure 

no visible emissions are present. If visible emissions are still 

present, further corrective actions pursuant to subparagraph 

(e)(1)(C) must be taken. If no visible emissions are present, 

normal operations may resume.

(C) If the operator, after taking all corrective actions, subsequently 

observes visible emissions, the operator shall shut down the PM 

emitting equipment that vents into the control device, unless the 

baghouse operation can be adjusted to ensure no visible emissions,

until necessary steps are taken to prevent the visible emissions. 

Baghouse adjustments include, but are not limited to, closing off 

specific baghouse chambers.

(D) If the activity being observed is consistently a duration of less than 

five minutes, then the Method 22 observation shall be for the 

period in which the activity takes place.

(E) An operator shall not be considered in violation of this paragraph

and (d)(1), if the operator complies with subparagraphs (e)(1)(A) 

through (e)(1)(D).

(F) To the extent that multiple Method 22 tests can be conducted 

simultaneously, the operator may observe multiple sources

contemporaneously at a single time as long as all of the sources are 

located in the field of view of the observer and appropriate records 

are kept for each observation. If the operator observes a visible 

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Rule 1155 (cont.) (Amended May 2, 2014)

emissions problem during the reading, each source shall then be 

monitored separately.

(2) Notwithstanding the requirements of paragraph (e)(1), any baghouse 

outfitted completely with verified filtration products shall only be required 

to conduct visible emission observations once per month, pursuant to 

paragraph (e)(1), and shall maintain records for each Method 22 

observation and any subsequent actions taken to eliminate visible 

emissions.

(3) The operator of any Tier 3 baghouse shall install, operate, calibrate and 

maintain a BLDS pursuant to the manufacturer’s written 

recommendations, to monitor baghouse performance and ensure 

compliance with in paragraphs (d)(1) and (d)(2).

(A) The provisions of this paragraph shall apply to any new Tier 3 

baghouse installed and operated as of December 4, 2009. For an 

existing baghouse, the facility operator shall file a permit 

application for a BLDS no later than May 1, 2010 and shall install 

the BLDS within three months of issuance of the permit. 

(B) The BLDS system shall meet the following minimum 

requirements:

(i) The BLDS sensor must provide output of relative PM 

emissions; and

(ii) The BLDS must have an alarm that will activate 

automatically when it detects significant increase in relative 

PM emissions greater than a preset level and the presence 

of an alarm condition should be clearly apparent to the 

facility operator.

(C) The operator shall install a BLDS that has been certified by the 

manufacturer to be capable of alarming automatically before 

visible emissions can be seen in the exhaust of a baghouse and 

shall set the BLDS to operate at such level. The baseline output 

for the system must be established as follows:

(i) Adjust and maintain the range and the averaging period of 

the device for the specific application per the 

manufacturer’s written specifications and 

recommendations; and

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Rule 1155 (cont.) (Amended May 2, 2014)

(ii) Establish and maintain the alarm set points and the alarm 

delay time per the manufacturer’s written specifications 

and recommendations.

(D) The operator shall perform adequate maintenance and inspections 

of a BLDS, according to the written specifications and 

recommendations of the manufacturer, to ensure that the monitor is 

operating properly at all times and shall maintain the records 

pursuant to subdivision (f).

(E) If the operator receives an alarm from the BLDS, the operator shall 

investigate the baghouse and the BLDS, and take all necessary 

corrective actions to eliminate the cause of the alarm.

(F) The operator shall maintain filters and operate the baghouse such 

that the BLDS alarm activation is minimized and the cumulative 

number of hours of alarm activation within any continuous sixmonth rolling period do not exceed more than five percent of the 

total operating hours in that period after following the procedures 

of subparagraph (e)(3)(G), including, but not limted to, shut down 

of the equipment as specified. 

(G) Each time the alarm activates, the operator shall count the alarm 

time as the actual length of time of the elevated emissions that 

caused the alarm and record it. If the inspection of the baghouse, 

pursuant to subparagraph (e)(3)(E), demonstrates that no visible 

emissions are occuring in conjunction with the alarm and that no 

corrective actions are necessary to the baghouse equipment, no 

alarm time will be counted. If cumulative alarm time exceeds five 

percent of the total operating hours based on any continuous sixmonth rolling period, the operator shall shut down the equipment 

that vents into the baghouse until necessary actions are taken to 

eliminate the elevated emissions.

(4) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (e)(1) and subparagraph 

(e)(3)(A) applicable to Tier 3 units, the operator of hot mix asphalt 

production equipment may conduct daily visible emissions monitoring, as 

described in paragraph (e)(1), in lieu of BLDS installation, provided the 

facility operator notifies the Executive Officer in writing no later than 

May 1, 2010, files a permit application for a BLDS no later than June 1, 

2011, and installs the BLDS within three months of issuance of the permit, 

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Rule 1155 (cont.) (Amended May 2, 2014)

at which time the operator shall comply with the provisions of paragraph 

(e)(3). Daily visible emissions monitoring shall begin no later than 

January 1, 2011 and continue until such time the BLDS is installed. The 

operator shall maintain records for each observation and any subsequent 

actions taken to eliminate visible emissions during the time in which daily 

visible emissions monitoring is conducted.

(5) No later than January 1, 2015 or after the end of the useful life of a 

COMS, whichever occurs sooner, a COMS installed at an existing Tier 3 

baghouse shall be changed to a BLDS.

(6) Source tests conducted to demonstrate compliance with paragraph (d)(2)

shall follow SCAQMD Methods 5.1, 5.2, or 5.3, as applicable.

(A) For a baghouse located at a Title V facility, the facility operator 

shall conduct an initial source test no later than January 1, 2011 to 

demonstrate compliance with the requirements of paragraph (d)(2). 

Subsequent source tests shall be conducted every five years

thereafter. 

(B) Source tests shall be conducted by an approved lab from the 

SCAQMD Laboratory Approval Program. For the purpose of this 

rule, the total weight of PM in solid and liquid form should be 

considered when conducting source tests.

(f) Recordkeeping

Records shall be kept in a format approved by the Executive Officer to 

demonstrate compliance with the provisions of this rule, and all records and 

information recorded pursuant to this subdivision shall be maintained at the 

facility for a minimum of five years and shall be made available to the Executive 

Officer immediately upon request.

(1) For the purposes of paragraph (e)(1), records kept shall include, but not be 

limited to:

(A) Facility name;

(B) Observer’s name and affiliation;

(C) Date and time of observation;

(D) Process unit(s) being observed;

(E) Observer’s position relative to the source;

(F) Observation duration;

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Rule 1155 (cont.) (Amended May 2, 2014)

(G) Whether visible emissions occurred and cumulative amount of 

time visible emissions occurred; and

(H) If visible emissions were observed, what actions were taken to 

correct the problem causing them, including and up to date and 

time of equipment shutdown, if applicable.

(2) For the purposes of paragraph (e)(3), records kept shall include, but not be 

limited to:

(A) Facility name;

(B) Facility representative for maintaining the BLDS;

(C) Date and time of routine maintenance and inspections conducted 

on BLDS; 

(D) The date and time of any alarm, including length of the alarm time, 

and cause of the alarm;

(E) The date and time corrective action is completed to eliminate the 

cause of the alarm;

(F) Whether visible emissions occurred; and

(G) Total operating hours of the baghouse.

(g) Exemptions

(1) With the exception of paragraph (d)(1), any baghouse for which the filter 

surface area is less than or equal to 100 square feet is exempt from the 

provisions of this rule.

(2) The operator of a PM air pollution control device venting a noncontinuous process is exempt from the provisions of paragraph (e)(1), 

provided no visible emissions occur when the process activity takes place.

(3) Any equipment with an active permit to operate that is not in operation as 

of December 4, 2009 shall be exempt from the provisions of this rule until 

operations commence.

(4) Facility operations that are subject to District Rules 1105.1 – Reduction of 

PM10 and Ammonia Emissions from Fluid Catalytic Cracking Units, and 

1156 – Further Reductions of Particulate Emissions from Cement 

Manufacturing Facilities, are exempt from the provisions of this rule.

(5) The operator of a Tier 1 or Tier 2 baghouse that voluntarily installs, 

operates, calibrates and maintains a BLDS pursuant to paragraph (e)(3)

shall be exempt from the visible emissions provisions of paragraph (e)(1).

(6) Bin vents are exempt from the provisions of paragraph (e)(1).

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Rule 1155 (cont.) (Amended May 2, 2014)

(7) The provisions of paragraphs (d)(1), (d)(2), (d)(6), and (e)(1), and 

subparagraphs (e)(3)(E) through (e)(3)(G) shall not apply during the onehalf hour of start-up of the equipment or process venting to the PM air 

pollution control device, including start-up after a repair to fix an 

equipment breakdown or after a scheduled maintenance activity. During 

that one-half hour starting period, PM air pollution control devices under 

this rule remain subject to the PM concentration (grain loading) 

requirements of Rule 404 and an opacity requirement of no greater than 

No. 1 on the Ringelmann Chart as specified in Rule 401 (b)(1) [shown as 

Rule 401 (a) in the SIP-approved version, as amended March 2, 1984, and 

SIP-approved on January 29, 1985].

(8) For PM air pollution control devices connected in series, the provisions of 

paragraphs (d)(2), (d)(6), and (e)(1) shall only apply to the PM air 

pollution control device exhausting to the atmosphere. In the event a Tier 

3 baghouse is not the last in the series to vent to the atmosphere, the 

provisions of paragraph (e)(3) shall not apply.

(9) Any paint spray booth or powder spray booth is exempt from the 

provisions of this rule.

(10) Air pollution control equipment exclusively venting organic gases from

hot mix asphalt load-out operations and directly related equipment, 

including storage silos, conveyors, mills, and batching towers, are exempt 

from the provisions of this rule.

(11) With the exception of paragraph (d)(1), any portable dust collector, fume 

extractor, or negative air machine with a maximum rated capacity of less 

than or equal to 3,000 cfm is exempt from the provisions of this rule.

(12) With the exception of paragraph (d)(1), facility operations that are subject 

to District Rule 1469 - Hexavalent Chromium Emissions from Chromium 

Electroplating and Chromic Acid Anodizing Operations are exempt from 

the provisions of this rule.

(13) With the exception of paragraph (d)(1), high efficiency particulate air

(HEPA) equipment are exempt from the provisions of this rule.

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Rule 1155 (cont.) (Amended May 2, 2014)

Table 1

Summary of Requirements

Fabric Filtration PM Air Pollution Control Equipment

(baghouses)*

Other Fabric and Non-Fabric 

Filtration 

PM Air Pollution Control Equipment

(dust collectors, cyclones, ESPs, wet 

scrubbers)*

Tier 1 Tier 2 Tier 3 n/a

≤ 500 square feet > 500 – 7,500 square feet > 7,500 square feet n/a

Once-a-week visible emissions 

monitoring and recordkeeping

(new, existing)

Once-a-week visible emissions 

monitoring and recordkeeping

(new, existing)

Until BLDS is installed, 

once-a-week visible 

emissions monitoring 

and recordkeeping

Once-a-week visible emissions 

monitoring and recordkeeping

(new, existing)

-- -- BLDS installation

(new, existing) --

-- Emission limit

(0.01 gr/dscf) --

Title V facilities conduct 

initial source test and 

test every five years 

relative to compliance 

with the emission limit.

* Except as provided in subdivision (g) Exemptions.

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