DEPARTMENT OF THE ENVIRONMENT 

AIR AND RADIATION MANAGEMENT ADMINISTRATION 

RESPONSE TO COMMENTS 

 for the 

PUBLIC HEARING held on January 23, 2008 

in BALTIMORE, MD 

Related to Proposed Regulation COMAR 26.11.35 Control of VOC Emissions from Adhesives 

and Sealants and Amendments to COMAR 26.11.19.30 Control of Volatile Organic Compounds 

from Chemical Production and Polytetrafluoroethylene Installations. 

Purpose of Hearing: The purpose of today's hearing is to give the public an opportunity to 

comment on the new Regulations .01 - .07 under a new chapter, COMAR 26.11.35 Control of 

VOC Emissions from Adhesives and Sealants and proposed amendments to Regulation .30 under 

COMAR 26.11.19 Control of Volatile Organic Compounds from Chemical Production and 

Polytetrafluoroethylene Installations. 

Date and Location: The public hearing was held on January 23, 2008 at 10:00 a.m. at 1800 

Washington Boulevard, 1st Floor Aqua Conference Room, Baltimore MD 21230. 

Hearing Officer: Deborah Rabin, Regulations Coordinator, Air and Radiation Management 

Administration, served as Hearing Officer. 

Attendance: The following parties were present on this date. 

Joe Miedusiewski, EPDM 

Bill Schneider, EPDM 

Mike Ducharme, EPDM 

Statement: The Department's statement was submitted into the record by Dr. Husain Waheed, 

Public Health Engineer, Regulation Development Division of the Air and Radiation 

Management Administration, Department of the Environment. 

Comments Received: Written comments were received from the EPDM Roofing Association and 

the Department of the Navy. 

Comments and Responses: The comments received by the Department during the 30-day comment

period that relate to the proposed action have been summarized and the Department's responses are 

given below. 

1. COMMENT: Although the rubber roofing industry has developed low-VOC adhesives and 

sealants that are suitable for effective installation during the late spring, summer and early fall in 

Maryland, there is no currently available technology that can supplement the need for high-VOC 

adhesives to bond the rubber membrane to roof substrates during the colder months of the year. 

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Because of the lack of effective low-VOC installation technology during the early spring, later 

fall and winter months, ERA recommends a seasonal approach to VOC regulation, requiring 

low-VOC adhesives during the warmer "ozone season" months while continuing to allow highVOC adhesives during the colder months outside the ozone season. 

In an effort to help assure that such a seasonal approach will maximize the reduction of VOCs 

during the ozone season and reduce concerns that high-VOC adhesives might inadvertently be 

used during the warmer, ozone-prone months, an industry- sponsored program is proposed to be 

implemented. 

RESPONSE: 

The basis for the adhesive and sealant regulations is a regional model rule developed by staff of 

member states, including Maryland, and the Ozone Transport Commission (OTC) in 2006. The 

model rule itself was based in large part upon the reasonably available control technology 

(RACT) and best available retrofit control technology (BARCT) determination developed in 

1998 by the California Air Resources Board (CARB). Based upon a review of those standards 

and comments received at public meetings, the OTC states finalized a model rule suitable for 

implementation in the Northeast in early 2007. Maryland has requested the OTC to review the 

applicability of bonding adhesives in the climatic conditions of the Northeast. The Department 

will analyze the information and take into consideration the recommendations of the OTC. 

 

2.COMMENT: COMAR 26.11.35.01 should include an exemption for internal transfers and 

transactions that occur at military installations. The military has a single point of control for the 

purchase, receipt and distribution of hazardous materials including paints and coatings. In the 

Navy, this single point of control is called hazardous minimization (HAZMIN) pharmacy. It is 

not clear whether the term “supplies” in COMAR 26.11.35 is applicable to HAZMIN operations. 

Large inventories of adhesives and sealants that do not meet the standards would have to be sent 

to landfills. 

RESPONSE: HAZMIN pharmacy program as described is different from a supplier of products 

that engages in the activity as a result of a sale. HAZMIN transfers take place after a purchase 

has been made by the Navy and the product is distributed to naval facilities. The standards in the 

regulations apply at the time of purchase. Once the purchase has been made the Navy can 

distribute to other facilities as needed. All entities that purchase and supply adhesives and 

sealants are subject to the requirements of the regulations. Specific exemptions are provided in 

the regulations. California has implemented the standards with similar lead-time as the shelf life 

of the materials is limited. The regulations provide for a compliance date of January 1, 2009 so 

that inventories can be fully utilized. 

3.COMMENT: COMAR 26.11.35.07 states that maximum or actual VOC content should be 

included on the containers. To enhance the ability to determine compliance there should be a 

requirement for maximum VOC content allowed and actual VOC content on the containers. 

RESPONSE: The standards in the regulations have to be complied with on an as applied basis. 

If the actual or maximum VOC content is given then a determination can be made on whether 

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the product meets the standards. These requirements come from the OTC model rule and are 

designed to have regional consistency. 

4.COMMENT: The de minimis exemptions under COMAR 26.11.35.01 apply to facilities that 

emit less than 200 pounds of VOCs per year. Five year monthly records need to be maintained to 

claim this exemption. It would be more appropriate if yearly records were required. 

RESPONSE: Maintaining yearly records, as opposed to monthly records, may provide some

relief in administrative record keeping. However, usage or emissions rates would not be noticed 

until after the fact if emission records were not maintained monthly. 

5.COMMENT: The regulations should allow the use of products in existing inventory. This can 

be accomplished by requiring that products manufactured after January 1, 2009 meet the 

standards in the regulations instead of the requirement for all products. 

RESPONSE: The regulations provide the lead-time of almost one year to use existing materials. 

The emission reductions are needed in 2009 to achieve attainment of air quality standards and 

meet the commitments of the State Implementation Plan. California has implemented the 

standards with a similar lead-time and problems with utilization of inventory have not been 

reported. 

L:\AQPlanning and Monitoring\Regulation Development Division\Response to Comments\A&S 

RTC 26.11.35 and 26.11.19.30 (02-27-08).doc 

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