California Code of Regulations › Title 13 - Motor Vehicles › Division 3 - Air Resources Board › Chapter 9 - Off-Road Vehicles and Engines Pollution Control Devices › Article 4.1 - State Implementation Plan Credit from Mobile Agricultural Equipment › Section 2428 - Procedure for State Implementation Plan Credit from Mobile Agricultural Equipment

Current through Register 2024 Notice Reg. No. 28, July 12, 2024
(a)
				  Purpose.
The purpose of this regulation is to provide an
					 administrative mechanism for the State of California to receive credit towards
					 the State Implementation Plan (SIP) requirements for emission reductions
					 achieved in the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District from
					 incentive-funded mobile agricultural equipment projects that are implemented
					 using the Carl Moyer Program guidelines. This regulation will complement San
					 Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District's Rule 9610, adopted by their
					 governing board on June 20, 2013, which provides an administrative mechanism
					 for the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District to receive credit
					 toward SIP requirements for emissions reductions achieved in the San Joaquin
					 Valley through incentive programs administered by the district, the U.S.
					 Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service, or the Air
					 Resources Board (ARB). The two rules together ensure that emission reductions
					 achieved through incentive programs in the San Joaquin Valley are eligible to
					 become credited to SIP when quantified and included in a SIP amendment adopted
					 by ARB and approved by United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA)
					 in accordance with the requirements of the federal Clean Air Act (CAA).
Other California Air Pollution Control Districts or Air
					 Quality Management Districts (District) may opt-in if the District governing
					 board notifies the Executive Officer of the intent to participate, adopts a
					 local rule that complies with the requirements of this regulation, and submits
					 the local rule to ARB for approval. Upon approval, ARB will submit the local
					 rule to U.S. EPA. Upon approval of the local rule by ARB and U.S. EPA, emission
					 reductions that are determined to be eligible for SIP credit under this
					 proposed regulation become credited to the SIP when quantified and included in
					 a SIP amendment adopted by ARB and approved by U.S. EPA in accordance with the
					 requirements of the CAA.
(b)
				  Applicability.
This proposed regulation applies to emission reductions
					 achieved from voluntary incentive-funded mobile agricultural equipment projects
					 implemented using incentive program guidelines and administered or implemented
					 by ARB or the District.
(c)
				  Definitions.
(1)
"Agricultural
				  operations"
means
(1) the
				  growing or harvesting of crops from soil (including forest operations) and the
				  raising of plants at wholesale nurseries (but not retail nurseries), or the
				  raising of fowl or animals for the primary purpose of making a profit,
				  providing a livelihood, or conducting agricultural research or instruction by
				  an educational institution, or (2) agricultural crop preparation services such
				  as packinghouses, cotton gins, nut hullers and processors, dehydrators, and
				  feed and grain mills. Agricultural crop preparation services include only the
				  first processing after harvest, not subsequent processing, canning, or other
				  similar activities. For forest operations, agricultural crop preparation
				  services include milling, peeling, producing particleboard and medium density
				  fiberboard, and producing woody landscape materials.
(2)
"Air Pollution Control Officer
				  (APCO)"
means the District Air Pollution Control Officer, Executive
				  Director, Executive Officer or designee.
(3)
"Air Resources Board (ARB or
				  CARB)"
means the California State Air Resources Board as established
				  by Health and Safety Code section
				  39510.
(4)
"Carl Moyer Program"
means the Carl Moyer Memorial Air Quality Standards Attainment Program, as
				  defined by California Health and Safety Code Sections
				  44275-
				  44299.2.
(5)
"Clean Air Act (CAA)"
means the Clean Air Act, United States Code, Title 42, Chapter 85.
(6)
"Contract"
means a
				  legally binding document including, but not limited to, contracts, grants,
				  vouchers, rebates, loans, and loan guarantees signed by ARB or a District and
				  the funding recipient to fund an incentive program project for the purpose of
				  reducing emissions. Contracts include provisions for ensuring that the emission
				  reductions occur, including, but not limited to, actions that the funding
				  recipient must take to achieve the emission reductions for the project,
				  deadlines, inspection and monitoring requirements, non-performance penalties,
				  and contract term.
(7)
"District"
means a local air pollution control district or air
				  quality management district.
(8)
"Enforceable"
means emission reductions are enforceable if the
				  incentive program guidelines include provisions for ensuring the following:
(A) The emission reductions are independently
				  and practicably verifiable through reporting, inspections, monitoring, or other
				  mechanisms;
(B) Incentive program
				  violations are defined through legally binding contracts, including identifying
				  the party or parties responsible for ensuring that emission reductions are
				  achieved;
(C) Funding recipients
				  are obligated to provide all records needed to demonstrate that emission
				  reductions are achieved; and
(D)
				  The District provides public access to all emissions-related information for
				  reductions claimed.
(9)
"Executive Officer"
means ARB Executive Officer.
(10)
"Funding recipient"
means a person, business, association, public agency, or other entity that
				  enters into a contract with ARB or a District to reduce emissions under an
				  incentive program.
(11)
"Incentive program"
means a program that reduces emissions by
				  promoting the adoption of lower emitting mobile agricultural equipment through
				  the distribution of funds to a funding recipient who chooses to voluntarily
				  participate in the program.
(12)
"Incentive program guidelines"
means administrative
				  procedures, emission reductions quantification methodologies, eligibility
				  criteria, cost-effectiveness criteria, reporting practices, and other
				  procedures and methodologies used to implement incentive programs, as described
				  in Section (e).
(13)
"Inspection"
means a physical examination by an APCO of mobile
				  agricultural equipment under contract as part of an incentive
				  program.
(14)
"Mobile
				  agricultural equipment"
means diesel-fueled, self-propelled, off-road
				  equipment or vehicles with greater than 25 horsepower that are used in
				  agricultural operations. For the purposes of this regulation, an equipment or
				  vehicle that is used by its owner for both agricultural and nonagricultural
				  operations is considered to be an equipment or vehicle engaged in agricultural
				  operations only if over half of its annual operating hours are for agricultural
				  operations.
(15)
"Operating
				  hours"
means hours of mobile agricultural equipment use.
(16)
"Permanent"
means
				  actions are taken to physically destroy or disable forever the older, dirtier
				  mobile agricultural equipment to ensure the reduction of emissions for the
				  duration of the project life.
(17)
"Project"
means actions taken to reduce emissions through
				  incentive programs, as contracted between the funding recipient and ARB or a
				  District. Such actions include, but are not limited to, replacements,
				  retrofits, or repowers for one or more pieces of mobile agricultural
				  equipment.
(18)
"Project
				  life"
means the period of time over which an incentive program project
				  achieves emission reductions that are surplus, quantifiable, enforceable, and
				  permanent. Project life must not exceed the useful life of mobile agricultural
				  equipment funded through incentive programs and may vary across incentive
				  programs and project types.
(19)
"Project type"
means the type of mobile agricultural equipment
				  funded through incentive programs.
(20)
"Quantifiable"
means
				  emission reductions can be reliably determined through the use of
				  well-established, publicly available emission factors and calculation
				  methodologies, as outlined in applicable incentive program
				  guidelines.
(21)
"San
				  Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District"
means the regional
				  governing authority that has primary responsibility for air quality management
				  in eight counties including the entire counties of Fresno, Kings, Madera,
				  Merced, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Tulare, and the western portion of Kern
				  County.
(22)
"SIP
				  attainment demonstration"
means the technical control measures,
				  analyses, and emission reduction commitments that show how a nonattainment area
				  will meet a National Ambient Air Quality Standard by the applicable
				  deadline.
(23)
"State
				  Implementation Plan (SIP)"
means a plan which provides for
				  implementation, maintenance, and enforcement of National Ambient Air Quality
				  Standards promulgated by U.S. EPA.
(24)
"Surplus"
means
				  emission reductions that are not otherwise required by any federal, state, or
				  local regulation, or other legal mandate, and are in excess of the baseline
				  emission inventory, attainment year, and progress milestone year forecasts that
				  include adopted regulations.
(25)
"U.S. EPA"
means United States Environmental Protection
				  Agency.
(26)
"Western
				  Portion of Kern County"
means that portion of Kern County which lies
				  west and north of a line described as follows: beginning at the Kern-Los
				  Angeles County boundary and running north and east along the northwest boundary
				  of the Rancho La Libre Land Grant to the point of intersection with the range
				  line common to R. 16 W. and R. 17 W., San Bernardino Base and Meridian; north
				  along the range line to the point of intersection with the Rancho El Tejon Land
				  Grant boundary; then southeast, northeast, and northwest along the boundary of
				  the Rancho El Tejon Land Grant to the northwest corner of S. 3, T. 11 N., R. 17
				  W.; then west 1.2 miles; then north to the Rancho El Tejon Land Grant boundary;
				  then northwest along the Rancho El Tejon line to the southeast corner of S. 34,
				  T. 32 S., R. 30 E., Mount Diablo Base and Meridian; then north to the northwest
				  corner of S. 35, T. 31 S., R. 30 E.; then northeast along the boundary of the
				  Rancho El Tejon Land Grant to the southwest corner of S. 18, T. 31 S., R. 31
				  E.; then east to the southeast corner of S. 13, T. 31 S., R. 31 E.; then north
				  along the range line common to R. 31 E. and R. 32 E., Mount Diablo Base and
				  Meridian, to the northwest corner of S. 6, T. 29 S., R. 32 E.; then east to the
				  southwest corner of S. 31, T. 28 S., R. 32 E.; then north along the range line
				  common to R. 31 E. and R. 32 E. to the northwest corner of S. 6, T. 28 S., R.
				  32 E., then west to the southeast corner of S. 36, T. 27 S., R. 31 E., then
				  north along the range line common to R. 31 E. and R. 32 E. to the Kern-Tulare
				  County boundary.