California Code of Regulations
Title 20 - Public Utilities and Energy
Division 2 - State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission
Chapter 5 - Power Plant Site Certification
Article 7 - Additional Provisions for Considering Expedited Applications Under Public Resources Code Section 25550
Section 2022 - Information Requirements

Universal Citation: 20 CA Code of Regs 2022

Current through Register 2024 Notice Reg. No. 38, September 20, 2024

(a) Any applicant requesting that the commission reach a decision on an application for certification within six months after acceptance of the application shall meet the requirements of this section.

(b) To be eligible for a decision within six months after acceptance of an application, the application shall contain all of the information that is relevant to the project and required in Appendix B to this Chapter. If an information requirement in Appendix B is not relevant to a proposed project because of its design, location, or other particular circumstance, the application need not provide the information and, instead, shall provide an explanation with specific facts as to why the requirement is not relevant to the project as proposed. Applicants are encouraged to request a prefiling review pursuant to section 1709.5 to determine the extent to which documentation relevant to a proposed application is sufficient to meet the information requirements in Appendix B and to determine which information requirements, if not all, are relevant to the proposed application. The application shall also contain all of the following:

(1) Substantial evidence that the project as proposed in the application will comply with all standards, ordinances, and laws applicable at the time of certification, including:

(A) a list of all such standards, ordinances, and laws;

(B) information demonstrating that the project as proposed in the application will comply with all such standards, ordinances, and laws;

(C) where a standard, ordinance, or law is expected to change between the time of filing an application and certification, information from the responsible jurisdiction documenting the impending change, the schedule for enactment of the change, and whether the proposed project will comply with the changed standard, ordinance, or law; and

(D) a list of the requirements for permitting by each federal, state, regional, and local agency that has jurisdiction over the proposed project or that would have jurisdiction, but for the exclusive jurisdiction of the commission, and the information necessary to meet those requirements;

(2) substantial evidence that the project as proposed in the application will not cause a significant adverse impact on the environment, including all the following:

(A) a detailed modeling analysis assessing whether the cumulative impacts of all inert criteria pollutants (NOx, SO2, CO, and PM10) from the project's typical operating mode in combination with all stationary emissions sources within a six-mile radius of the proposed site that have received construction permits, but are not yet operational, and all stationary emissions sources that are currently undergoing air district permit application review will cause or contribute to a violation of any ambient air quality standard;

(B) a description of the project's planned initial commissioning phase, which is the phase between the first firing of emissions sources and the consistent production of electricity for sale to the market, including the types and durations of equipment tests, criteria pollutant emissions, and monitoring techniques to be used during such tests, and air dispersion modeling analyses of the impacts of those emissions on state and federal ambient air quality standards for NO2, SO2, CO, and PM10;

(C) a detailed description of the mitigation, which an applicant shall propose, for all project impacts from criteria pollutants that currently exceed state or federal ambient air quality standards, but are not subject to offset requirements under the district's new source review rule;

(D) a modeling analysis that identifies the extent of potential public exposure to toxic substances, as identified in subsection (g)(9)(A) of Appendix B, resulting from normal facility operation;

(E) if the project will result in a discharge of waste that could affect the water quality of the state, a complete report of proposed waste discharge as required by section 13260 of the Water Code. This will allow for issuance of waste discharge requirements by the appropriate regional water quality control board within 100 days after filing of the application in accordance with Public Resources Code section 25550(d).

(F) a demonstration, based on appropriate data including, but not limited to, scientific surveys taken at the appropriate time of year, that the project will have no significant impact on wetlands, plant or animal species that are endangered, threatened, or of concern under state or federal law, or the areas listed in Public Resources Code section 25527;

(G) with respect to the handling of hazardous materials, a demonstration that:

(i) the project will not use or store any regulated substance defined in Section 25532(g) of the California Health and Safety Code or

(ii) the project is eligible for Program 1 status pursuant to Section 68.10 of Part 68 of Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations or can demonstrate that no worst case accidental release would result in a plausibility (risk greater than 1 in 1,000,000) of an impact at the nearest public receptor above the maximum airborne concentration below which it is believed nearly all individuals could be exposed for up to one hour without experiencing or developing irreversible or other serious health effects or symptoms that could impair an individual's ability to take protective action. The Emergency Response Planning Guidelines, Level 2 (ERPG 2) reflect this maximum airborne concentration standard.

(H) if the project will store or use a regulated substance defined in Section 25532(g) of the Health and Safety Code, a demonstration either that the boundary of the powerplant site will not be within 1000 feet of any residential area, school, general acute care hospital, long-term health care facility, or child day care facility as such terms are defined in section 25534.1 of the Health and Safety Code or that the project will pose no plausible potential for exposure at such facilities from an accidental release of the regulated substance; and

(I) a demonstration that the proposed facility will not require storage of gaseous flammable or explosive materials in quantities greater than 25000 standard cubic feet;

(3) substantial evidence that the project will not cause a significant adverse impact on the electrical system, including all of the following:

(A) an Interconnection Study identifying the electrical system impacts and a discussion of the mitigation measures considered and those proposed to maintain conformance with NERC, WSCC, Cal-ISO or other applicable reliability or planning criteria based on load flow, post transient, transient, and fault current studies performed by or for the transmission owner in accordance with all applicable Cal-ISO or other interconnection authority's tariffs, operating agreements, and scheduling protocols and

(B) a full description of the facilities, if any, that are required for interconnection, including all such facilities beyond the point where the outlet line joins with the interconnected system and a full description of the environmental setting, environmental impacts, and any recommended mitigation measures proposed by the applicant for any required facilities beyond the point where the outlet line joins with the interconnected system;

(4) a discussion of the potential for disproportionate impacts from the project on minority or low-income people; such discussion shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following:

(A) demographic information by census tract, based on the most recent census data available, showing the number and percentage of minority populations and people living below the poverty level within six miles of the proposed site;

(B) one or more maps at a scale of 1:24,000 showing the distribution of minority populations and low-income populations and significant pollution sources within six miles of the proposed site, such as those permitted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (Toxic Release Inventory sites), the local air quality management district, or the California Department of Toxic Substances Control; and

(C) identification of available health studies concerning the potentially affected population(s) within a six-mile radius of the proposed power plant site;

(5) the following information to demonstrate that the project, if certified, is likely to be constructed and operated;

(A) information demonstrating the applicant's control, by ownership, lease, option, or other legally binding agreement that the Commission finds acceptable, of the proposed site and

(B) a will-serve letter or similar document from each provider of water to the project, indicating each provider's willingness to provide water to the project and describing all conditions under which the water will be provided, and a discussion of all other contractual agreements with the applicant pertaining to the provision of water to the project.

1. New section filed 11-27-2000 as an emergency; operative 11-27-2000 (Register 2000, No. 48). A Certificate of Compliance must be transmitted to OAL by 3-27-2001 or emergency language will be repealed by operation of law on the following day.
2. Certificate of Compliance as to 11-27-2000 order, including amendment of section, transmitted to OAL 3-21-2001 and filed 4-25-2001 (Register 2001, No. 17).

Note: Authority cited: Sections 25213 and 25218(e), Public Resources Code. Reference: Sections 25216.5(a), 25520 and 25550(b), Public Resources Code.

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