Current through Register 2024 Notice Reg. No. 38, September 20, 2024
(a) This Subarticle applies to any person
that uses, possesses, purchases, distributes, manufactures, offers for sale, or
sells sulfur hexafluoride or products containing sulfur hexafluoride in
California, with the exception that section
95343 does not apply to the
following uses:
(1) Use in chemical vapor
deposition (CVD) chamber cleaning.
(2) Use in etching.
(3) Use as a dielectric medium including
equipment containing sulfur hexafluoride for use as a dielectric
medium.
(4) Use as an arc quenching
medium including equipment containing sulfur hexafluoride for use as an arc
quenching medium.
(5) Use in
one-time testing per laboratory fume hood, provided that the use is in
compliance with Cal/OSHA ventilation requirements for laboratory fume hood
operations set forth in title 8, California Code of Regulations, section
5154.1(c)(2)(B),
for the purpose of reducing laboratory fume hood face velocity when the hood is
unattended and realizing the associated energy savings.
(6) Medical uses, which includes only the
following applications:
(A) Injection or other
entry of sulfur hexafluoride into a human or animal body for the purpose of
improving health,
(B) Use of sulfur
hexafluoride in a diagnostic tool in order to either identify a disease or
condition by its outward signs and symptoms or analyze the underlying
physiological/biochemical cause(s) of a disease or condition,
(C) Use of sulfur hexafluoride in a medical
treatment process for a disease or other medical condition.
(7) Use in testing nuclear power plant
control room emergency ventilation systems every six years in compliance with
the Technical Specifications Task Force (TSTF) Specification 448, January 2007,
which is incorporated by reference herein.
(8) Use in equipment calibration and in
testing to find alternatives to sulfur hexafluoride use.
(9) Use in testing hyperspectral remote
sensing systems to detect toxic gases in the infrared portion of the
spectrum.
(10) Use for research in
a research facility. Use for tracer gas testing applications and magnesium
casting is not included and is still subject to the provisions in sections
95343 through
95346. Research facilities
planning to use sulfur hexafluoride for on- or off-site research in a use not
covered by 95341(a)(1-9) must:
(A) Register
with ARB in the form of a letter to the Executive Officer and must include the
business name, physical address, contact name, telephone number, fax number,
e-mail address, and web site address, as applicable.
(B) Monitor and report usage annually as
defined in section
95345(d).
(b) Any person may apply for an exemption
from section
95343 as specified below:
(1) A person may apply in writing to the
Executive Officer for an exemption from the requirement of section
95343 for the uses or possession
of sulfur hexafluoride identified below in subsections (A) or (B). The
application must include documentation that supports the exemption claim,
including the data and test methods used to generate the data, if applicable.
Information submitted pursuant to this section may be claimed as confidential
and such information shall be handled in accordance with the procedures
specified in title 17, California Code of Regulations, sections
91000-91022.
(A)
Uses of sulfur hexafluoride that
result in reduced greenhouse gas emissions.
The Executive Officer may allow the use of sulfur
hexafluoride if the applicant demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Executive
Officer that the use of sulfur hexafluoride will result in less greenhouse gas
emissions over the lifetime of the equipment, facility, or process than the use
of all other alternatives.
(B)
Uses or possession of sulfur
hexafluoride with no alternatives.
The Executive Officer may allow the use and/or
possession of sulfur hexafluoride if the applicant demonstrates to the
satisfaction of the Executive Officer that there is no viable alternative to
sulfur hexafluoride in the specified use or that there is no viable alternative
for possessing sulfur hexafluoride for an out-of-state or other use. No
exemption shall be granted unless the applicant provides and agrees to comply
with a mitigation plan identifying a list of actions to be undertaken by the
applicant to minimize greenhouse gas and sulfur hexafluoride
emissions.
(2)
Procedure for responding to an exemption from section
95343.
(A) Within 60 days of receipt of an exemption
application the Executive Officer shall determine whether the application is
complete, or that specified additional documentation is required to make it
complete. Within 60 days of receipt of the specified additional information,
the Executive Officer shall advise the applicant in writing either that the
application is complete, or that specified additional information is still
required before it can be deemed complete.
(B) Within 90 days after an application has
been deemed complete, the Executive Officer shall determine whether, and under
what conditions, an exemption from the requirements of section
95343 will be permitted. The
Executive Officer shall notify the applicant of the decision in writing and
shall specify such terms and conditions as are necessary to insure that the
requirements of section
95341(b)(1)(A) or
95341(b)(1)(B)
are met and will continue to be met.
(C) The Executive Officer and the applicant
may mutually agree to an extension of any of the time periods specified in this
section, and additional supporting documentation may be submitted by the
applicant before a decision has been reached.
(3)
Revocation or Modification of
Exemption: If the Executive Officer determines that the use for which
an exemption has been granted no longer meets the criteria specified in section
95341(b)(1)(A) or
(b)(1)(B), or that the applicant is not
following the mitigation plan submitted pursuant section
95341(b)(1)(B),
the Executive Officer may modify or revoke the exemption. The Executive Officer
shall not modify or revoke the exemption without first affording the applicant
an opportunity for a hearing in accordance with the procedures specified in
title 17, California Code of Regulations, Division 3, Chapter 1, Subchapter
1.25, Article 2 (commencing with section
60055.1).
1. New
section filed 12-28-2009; operative 1-1-2010 pursuant to Government Code
section
11343.4
(Register 2010, No. 1).
Note: Authority cited: Sections
38501,
38510,
38560,
38560.5,
38580,
39600
and
39601,
Health and Safety Code. Reference: Sections
38501,
38505,
38510,
38550,
38551,
38560,
38560.5,
39003,
39600
and
39601,
Health and Safety Code.
