General Permit for Gasoline Dispensing 

Facilities in Indian Country within California

Webinar Presentation

October 12, 2016

Air Permits Office, U.S. Environmental Protection 

Agency Region 9
Overview

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• What did EPA propose?

• How is this action be relevant to me?

• How were the requirements determined?

• What are the requirements in the draft general permit?

• Which gas stations qualify for the general permit?

• Where do I find more information?

• Important dates and how to comment
• EPA is proposing a General Permit for new or modified gasoline dispensing 

facilities (GDFs), such as gas stations, on Tribal lands within the boundaries of 

California.

• A general permit provides a streamlined process for meeting the permitting 

requirements under the Federal Indian Country Minor New Source Review 

(Minor NSR) program. 

• Gas stations constructed or modified on or after September 2, 2014 may 

be required to obtain a preconstruction permit. 

• A national permitting option for gas stations is already available, called a 

“Permit by Rule,” but is not available for gas stations within California

• EPA Region 9 developed this separate permit to consider the unique air quality 

issues facing areas inside California – California has some of the worst air 

quality in the country

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EPA’ s Proposed Action: General Permit 

for Gas Stations within California
• This action may affect you if you construct a new gas station or modify an 

existing gas station

• The Minor NSR program applies to sources that construction or modify on 

or after September 2, 2014

• Existing gas stations may be required to register with EPA

• The Minor NSR program requires certain air pollution sources to obtain a 

permit prior to construction (and operate according to the permit).

• The Minor NSR program is triggered based on the amount of emission 

increases 

• A Potential to Emit (PTE) Calculator was developed to assist with 

determining this for a gas station.

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How is this action relevant?
• Authorizes the construction or modification of a source and sets ongoing 

emission limits for air pollutants, operating parameters, monitoring, 

recordkeeping, and reporting

• Ensures air pollution sources will not interfere with attaining or 

maintaining the National Ambient Air Quality Standards

• In developing draft permit conditions, we considered the following 4 factors:

1. Local air quality conditions

2. Typical control technologies or other emissions reduction measures 

used by similar sources in surrounding areas

3. Anticipated economic growth in the area

4. Cost-effective emission reduction alternatives

• See the draft Technical Support Document for our detailed analysis

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Determining the Draft Permit 

Requirements
• The general permit requirements are designed to limit emissions of volatile 

organic compounds (VOCs), a precursor to ozone

• Requires “Stage I” emissions controls – consistent with existing federal 

regulations for limiting hazardous air pollutants from gas stations, and the 

national permit by rule for gas station on Tribal lands outside of California

• Controls emissions during unloading of gasoline fuel from a tanker truck to storage 

tanks 

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Overview of Draft General Permit 

Requirements – Stage I

Stage I System Stage II System
• In ozone nonattainment areas – requires Stage II emissions controls

• Reduces emissions caused during vehicle refueling and evaporative losses from storage tanks

• Consistent with what is required in the State of California:

• Phase II Enhanced Vapor Recovery (EVR) and In-Station Diagnostics (ISD) 

standards set by the California Air Resources Board (CARB)

• CARB has certified manufacturers’ equipment that meets the standards –

draft permit requires owner/operator to install CARB-certified equipment

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Overview of Draft General Permit 

Requirements – Stage II

Stage I System Stage II System
To be eligible for the General Permit, certain criteria must be met, including:

• Must be a minor source on tribal lands within California

• In serious, severe, extreme ozone nonattainment areas, will dispense less 

than 15,000,000 gallons of gasoline per year; less than 25,000,000 gallons 

in all other areas

• Use Stage I dual-point vapor balance system

• If in an ozone nonattainment area, will install CARB-certified Phase II 

Enhanced Vapor Recovery (EVR) with In-Station Diagnostics (ISD)

• Complete screening processes for: (1) federally-listed threatened or 

endangered species, (2) historic properties

• See Request for Coverage for complete list of criteria

• If a source doesn’t meet the criteria will need to apply for source-specific 

permit – the General Permit is optional

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Eligibility for General Permit
• All information related to this action is available here: 

https://www.epa.gov/caa-permitting/california-tribal-gasoline-permits

• As part of this action, we developed the following documents to accompany 

the General Permit, which are also available for review:

• Technical Support Document

• Request for Coverage – application form owners/operators will complete 

when requesting coverage under the General Permit

• Instructions for the Request for Coverage – information to assist in 

completing the Request for Coverage

• Potential to Emit (PTE) – Calculator – assists in calculating emissions from 

gas stations

• Questionnaire – assist owners and operators in determining whether they 

might qualify for the General Permit

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Where do I find more information?
• Draft General Permit is available for public comment through November 30, 

2016.

• EPA Tribal Conference, October 25, 2016 – learn more about air permitting on 

Tribal lands. 

• Public hearing scheduled at EPA Region 9 in San Francisco on November 30, 

2016 at 2pm.

• Comments may be submitted to R9AirPermits@epa.gov.

• For more information or updates on the General Permit for gas stations see 

the Tribal NSR website:

• https://www.epa.gov/caa-permitting/california-tribal-gasoline-permits

• https://www.epa.gov/caa-permitting/tribal-nsr-permits-region-9

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Important Dates and How to Comment
Questions and Contact Info

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Questions?

For more information on the draft General Permit contact:

Lisa Beckham 

Air Permits Office

(415) 972-3811

R9AirPermits@epa.gov
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Permitting Thresholds – Minor Source

Pollutant

Attainment Area 

(tons per year)

Nonattainment Area

(tons per year)

Carbon Monoxide (CO)

10 5

Particulate Matter (PM) 10 N/A

Particulate Matter 

(PM10) 5 1

Particulate Matter 

(PM2.5) 3 0.6

Sulfur Dioxide (SO2) 10 5

Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) 10 5

Volatile Organic 

Compounds (VOC) 5 2
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Permitting Thresholds – Major Source

Pollutant

Attainment 

Areas

Nonattainment Areas

Designation Threshold

Ozone (NOx 

and VOC)

250 or 100 tpy

(based on type 

of source)

Marginal 100 tpy of VOC or NOx

Moderate 100 tpy of VOC or NOx

Serious 50 tpy of VOC or NOx

Severe 25 tpy of VOC or NOx

Extreme 10 tpy of VOC or NOx

PM10, PM2.5 250 or 100 tpy Moderate 100 tpy

Serious 70 tpy

CO 250 or 100 tpy Moderate 100 tpy

Serious 50 tpy

SO2, NO2 250 or 100 tpy N/A 100 tpy