Imperial County Air Pollution Control District Rule 805

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RULE 805 PAVED AND UNPAVED ROADS

(Adopted 11/08/2005; Revised 10/16/2012)

A. Purpose

The purpose of this regulation is to reduce the amount of fine Particulate Matter 

(PM-10) entrained in the ambient air as a result of emissions generated from new 

or existing public or private Paved or Unpaved Road, road construction project, 

or road modification project by requiring actions to prevent, reduce, or mitigate 

PM-10 emissions.

B. Applicability

This rule applies to any new or existing public or private Paved or Unpaved 

Road, road construction project, or road modification project.

C. Definitions

The definition of terms found in Rule 800 (General Requirements for Control of 

Fine Particulate Matter (PM-10) shall apply to this rule.

D. Exemptions

In addition to the exemptions listed in Rule 800, Section E, the following 

exemptions are established for this Rule:

D.1 Paved and unpaved driveways serving one single family residential 

dwelling.

D.2 Agricultural Operation Sites subject to Rule 806, Conservation 

Management Practices.

D.3 Recreational OHV Use Areas on public lands subject to Rule 800, General 

Requirements for Control of Fine Particulate Matter (PM-10).

E. Requirements

E.1 Unpaved Haul/Access Roads: No Person shall cause, suffer or allow the 

operation, use, or maintenance of any unpaved Haul/Access Road without 

complying with one or more of the requirements of Section F.1 so as to 

limit VDE to 20% opacity.

E.2 Unpaved Roads: On any Unpaved Road segment with 50 or more 

Average Vehicle Trips per Day, the owner/operator shall limit VDE to 20% 

opacity, as determined by the test methods for “Visual Determination of 

Opacity” in Rule 800, Appendix A, and comply with the requirements of a 
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Stabilized Unpaved Road by application and/or maintenance of at least 

one of the requirements of Section F.1.

E.3 The construction of any new Unpaved Road is prohibited within any area 

with a population of 500 or more unless the road meets the definition of a 

Temporary Unpaved Road. The Temporary Unpaved Road shall meet the 

definition of a Stabilized Unpaved Road as determined by the test 

methods in Rule 800, Appendix B, Section C, and where VDE is limited to 

20% opacity.

E.4 Canal Roads: all Persons who cause, suffer or allow the operation, use or 

maintenance of any Canal Road with 20 or more Average Vehicle Trips 

per Day shall comply with one or more of the requirements of Section F.1 

to comply with the requirements of a Stabilized Unpaved Road and limit 

VDE to 20% opacity, as determined by the test methods in Rule 800, 

Appendix A, and shall also comply with one or more of the requirements of 

Section F.2.

E.5 Unpaved Traffic Areas: All Persons who cause, suffer or allow the 

operation, use or maintenance of any Unpaved Traffic Area larger than 

one (1) acre and with 75 or more Average Vehicle Trips per Day shall 

comply with one or more of the requirements of Section F.3 and limit VDE 

to 20% opacity.

E.6 Paved Roads: any new or Modified Paved Roads shall comply with the 

requirements of section F.4.

E.7 Requirements for Existing Unpaved Public Roads in City and Rural Areas:

Each city or county agency with primary responsibility for any existing 

Unpaved Road shall take the following actions:

E.7.a By January 1, 2006 provide the APCD with a list of all Unpaved 

Roads under its jurisdiction in any city or Rural area(s), including 

data on length of, and Average Vehicle Trips per Day on, each 

Unpaved Road segment.

E.7.b By March 31, 2006 the County Public Works Department shall 

provide the APCD and comply with a compliance plan. The 

compliance plan shall include a compliance schedule indicating that 

during the period 2006 through 2015 a 10% per each fiscal year, 

beginning July 1 and ending June 30, of all Unpaved Roads subject 

to the requirements of this rule will comply with a 20% VDE and 

comply with the requirements of a Stabilized Unpaved Road 

(Treatment in excess of the annual requirement can be credited 

toward future year requirements). The plan shall identify the control 
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measures implemented or that will be implemented at each 

Unpaved Road segment with 50 or more Average Vehicle Trips per 

Day. The plan shall clarify that the 10% stabilized each year differ 

from the roads previously stabilized so that 100% of roads are 

stabilized by 2015.

E.7.c By July 31 of each year, 2007 through 2016, the County Public 

Works Department shall submit to the APCD the total number of 

Unpaved Road miles which were mitigated during the previous 

fiscal year, a list of the specific mitigated roads, and the percentage 

of cumulative miles relative to the schedule provided pursuant to 

Section E.7.b. Once stabilized pursuant to Section E.7, Public 

Roads must comply with the requirements of a Stabilized Unpaved 

Road by application and/or maintenance of at least one of the 

requirements of Section F.1.

F. Best Available Control Measures for Fugitive Dust (PM-10)

F.1 UNPAVED ROADS, INCLUDING UNPAVED HAUL AND ACCESS 

ROADS:

F.1.a Pave.

F.1.b Apply Chemical Stabilization as directed by product manufacturer 

to control dust on Unpaved Roads.

F.1.c Apply and maintain Gravel, recrushed/recycled asphalt or other 

material of low Silt (<5%) content to a depth of three or more 

inches.

F.1.d Wetting. Apply water one or more times daily

F.1.e Permanent road closure

F.1.f Restrict unauthorized vehicle access.

F.1.g Any other method that effectively limits VDE to 20% opacity and 

meets the conditions of a Stabilized Unpaved Road.

F.2 CANAL ROADS:

F.2.a Stocking of Triploid Grass Carp in canals to reduce maintenance 

vehicle trips along Canal Banks to mechanically remove aquatic 

weeds.

F.2.b Installation of remote control delivery gates to eliminate manual 
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gate operation by maintenance personnel in vehicles along Canal 

Banks.

F.2.c Implement Silt removal program to delay grading of spoil piles 

deposited on Canal Bank after cleaning operations until the next 

cleaning operation to eliminate vehicle access to Canal Bank.

F.2.d Permanent road closure.

F.2.e Conversion of open canals to pipeline.

F.2.f Lining canals to eliminate maintenance for Silt/weed control.

F.2.g Canal Bank surface maintenance.

F.3 UNPAVED TRAFFIC AREAS:

F.3.a Pave.

F.3.b Apply Chemical Stabilization as directed by product manufacturer 

to control dust on Unpaved Roads.

F.3.c Apply and maintain Gravel, recrushed/recycled asphalt or other 

material of low silt (<5%) content to a depth of three or more 

inches.

F.3.d Wetting. Apply water one or more times daily.

F.4 NEW OR MODIFIED PAVED ROADS

Any Person having jurisdiction over, or ownership of, public or private 

Paved Roads shall construct, or require to be constructed, all new or 

Modified Paved Roads in conformance with the Imperial County Public 

Works Department guidelines for width of shoulders and median 

shoulders as specified below:

F.4.a New arterial roads or streets or modifications to existing arterial 

roads or streets shall be constructed with paved shoulders that 

meet following widths:

Annual Average Daily 

Vehicle Trips

Minimum Paved or Stabilized 

Shoulder Width in Feet

 1-2000 2

 Greater than 2000 6
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F.4.b New or modified collector roads or streets or local roads or streets 

shall be constructed with paved shoulders that meet following 

widths:

F.4.c A curbing adjacent to and contiguous with the travel lane or paved 

shoulder or a road may be constructed, in lieu of meeting the paved 

shoulder width standard listed in Sections F.4.a and F.4.b. Any 

road paving projects constructing curbing in County road right of 

ways shall be approved by the Director of Public Works Department 

prior to construction.

F.4.d Intersections, auxiliary entry lanes, and auxiliary exit lanes may be 

constructed adjacent to and contiguous with the roadway, in lieu of 

meeting the paved shoulder width standard in Sections F.4.a and 

F.4.b.

F.4.e New Paved Road construction or modifications to an existing 

Paved Road that are required to comply with California 

Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and National Environmental 

Policy Act (NEPA) determinations regarding environmental, 

cultural, archeological, historical, or other considerations addressed 

in such documents, are exempt from the paved shoulder width 

requirements specified in Section F.4.a.

F.4.f Whenever any Paved Road which has projected Annual Average 

Daily Vehicle Trips of 500 or more is constructed, or modified with 

medians, the medians shall be constructed with paved shoulders 

having a minimum width of four feet adjacent to the traffic lanes 

unless:

F.4.f.1 The medians of roads having speed limits set at or below 45 

miles per hour are constructed with curbing; or 

F.4.f.2 The medians are landscaped and maintained with grass or 

other vegetative ground cover to comply with the definition of 

Stabilized Surface.

F.4.g In lieu of complying with the paving or vegetation requirements a 

Person may apply oils or other Chemical Stabilizers/Suppressants 

to the required width of shoulder and median areas as specified in 

Annual Average Daily 

Vehicle Trips

Minimum Paved or Stabilized 

Shoulder Width in Feet

 1-2000 2

 Greater than 2000 4
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Sections F.4.a and F.4.b. The material shall be reapplied and 

maintained to limit VDE to 20% opacity and fulfill conditions for a 

Stabilized Surface.

G. Record of Control Implementation

Any Person subject to the requirements of this rule shall compile and retain 

records that provide evidence of control measure application (i.e., receipts and/or 

purchase records). Such Person shall describe, in the records, the type of 

treatment or control measure, extent of coverage, and date applied. For control 

measures which require multiple daily applications, recording the frequency of 

application will fulfill the recordkeeping requirements of this rule (i.e., water being 

applied three times a day and the date) Records shall be maintained and be 

readily accessible for two years after the date of each entry and shall be provided 

to the APCD upon request. 

H. Violations

Failure to comply with any provisions of this rule shall constitute a violation of 

Regulation VIII.