New Mexico Administrative Code
Title 20 - ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
Chapter 2 - AIR QUALITY (STATEWIDE)
Part 50 - OIL AND GAS SECTOR - OZONE PRECURSOR POLLUTANTS
Section 20.2.50.116 - EQUIPMENT LEAKS AND FUGITIVE EMISSIONS

Universal Citation: 20 NM Admin Code 20.2.50.116

Current through Register Vol. 35, No. 18, September 24, 2024

A. Applicability: Well sites, tank batteries, gathering and boosting stations, natural gas processing plants, transmission compressor stations, and associated piping and components are subject to the requirements of 20.2.50.116 NMAC. Components in water or air service are not subject to the requirements of 20.2.50.116 NMAC. The requirements of this Part may be considered in the facility-wide PTE and in determining the monitoring frequency requirements of this section.

B. Emission standards: The owner or operator of oil and gas production and processing equipment located at well sites, tank batteries, gathering and boosting stations, natural gas processing plants, or transmission compressor stations shall demonstrate compliance with this Part by performing the monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements specified in 20.2.50.116 NMAC. Tank batteries supporting multiple facilities are subject to the requirements for the most stringently regulated facility of which they are a part.

C. Default monitoring requirements: Owners and operators shall comply with the following monitoring requirements:

(1) The owner or operator of a facility with an annual average daily production or average daily throughput of greater than 10 barrels of oil per day or an average daily production of greater than 60,000 standard cubic feet per day of natural gas shall, at least weekly, conduct an external audio, visual, and olfactory (AVO) inspection of thief hatches, closed vent systems, pumps, compressors, pressure relief devices, open-ended valves or lines, valves, flanges, connectors, piping, and associated equipment to identify defects and leaking components as follows:
(a) conduct an external visual inspection for defects, which may include cracks, holes, or gaps in piping or covers; loose connections; liquid leaks; broken or missing caps; broken, cracked or otherwise damaged seals or gaskets; broken or missing hatches; or broken or open access covers or other closure or bypass devices;

(b) conduct an audio inspection for pressure leaks and liquid leaks;

(c) conduct an olfactory inspection for unusual or strong odors; and

(d) any positive detection during the AVO inspection shall be repaired in accordance with Subsection E if not repaired at the time of discovery.

(2) The owner or operator of a facility with an annual average daily production or average daily throughput of equal to or less than 10 barrels of oil per day or an average daily production of equal to or less than 60,000 standard cubic feet per day of natural gas shall, at least monthly, conduct an external audio, visual, and olfactory (AVO) inspection of thief hatches, closed vent systems, pumps, compressors, pressure relief devices, open-ended valves or lines, valves, flanges, connectors, piping, and associated equipment to identify defects and leaking components as specified in Subparagraphs (a) through (d) of Paragraph (1) of Subsection C of 20.2.50.116 NMAC; except that an owner or operator of a well site within 1,000 feet (as measured from the center of the well site to the applicable structure or area of public assembly) of an occupied area shall conduct the AVO inspection at least weekly.

(3) The owner or operator of the following facilities shall conduct an inspection using U.S. EPA method 21 or optical gas imaging (OGI) of thief hatches, closed vent systems, pumps, compressors, pressure relief devices, open-ended valves or lines, valves, flanges, connectors, piping, and associated equipment to identify leaking components at a frequency determined according to the following schedules, and upon request by the department for good cause shown:
(a) for existing well sites and standalone tank batteries, the owner or operator shall comply with these requirements no later than two years from the effective date of this Part.

(b) for well sites and standalone tank batteries:
(i) annually at facilities with a PTE less than two tpy VOC;

(ii) semi-annually at facilities with a PTE equal to or greater than two tpy and less than five tpy VOC; and

(iii) quarterly at facilities with a PTE equal to or greater than five tpy VOC.

(c) for gathering and boosting stations and natural gas processing plants:
(i) quarterly at facilities with a PTE less than 25 tpy VOC; and

(ii) monthly at facilities with a PTE equal to or greater than 25 tpy VOC.

(d) For transmission compressor stations, quarterly or in compliance with the federal equipment leak and fugitive emissions monitoring requirements of New Source Performance Standards, 40 C.F.R. Part 60 , as may be revised, so long as the federal equipment leak and fugitive emissions monitoring requirements are at least as stringent as the New Source Performance Standards OOOOa, 40 CFR Part 60 , in existence as of the effective date of this Part.

(e) Quarterly at well sites within 1,000 feet of an occupied area.

(f) For existing wellhead only facilities, annual inspections shall be completed on the following schedule: thirty percent by January 1, 2024; sixty-five percent by January 1, 2025; and one-hundred percent by January 1, 2026.

(g) for inactive well sites:
(i) for well sites that are inactive on or before the effective date of this Part, annually beginning within six months of the effective date of this Part;

(ii) for well sites that become inactive after the effective date of this Part, annually beginning 30 days after the site becomes an inactive well site.

(4) Inspections using U.S. EPA method 21 shall meet the following requirements:
(a) the instrument shall be calibrated before each day of use by the procedures specified in U.S. EPA method 21 and the instrument manufacturer; and

(b) a leak is detected if the instrument records a measurement of 500 ppm or greater of hydrocarbons, and the measurement is not associated with normal equipment operation, such as pneumatic device actuation and crank case ventilation.

(5) Inspections using OGI shall meet the following requirements:
(a) the instrument shall comply with the specifications, daily instrument checks, and leak survey requirements set forth in Subparagraphs (1) through (3) of Paragraph (i) of 40 CFR 60.18; and

(b) a leak is detected if the emission images recorded by the OGI instrument are not associated with normal equipment operation, such as pneumatic device actuation or crank case ventilation.

(6) Components that are difficult, unsafe, or inaccessible to monitor, as determined by the following conditions, are not required to be inspected until it becomes feasible to do so:
(a) difficult to monitor components are those that require elevating the monitoring personnel more than two meters above a supported surface;

(b) unsafe to monitor components are those that cannot be monitored without exposing monitoring personnel to an immediate danger as a consequence of completing the monitoring; and

(c) inaccessible to monitor components are those that are buried, insulated, or obstructed by equipment or piping that prevents access to the components by monitoring personnel.

(7) Owners and operators of well sites must conduct an evaluation to determine applicability of Subparagraph (e) of Paragraph (3) of Subsection C of Section 20.2.50.116 NMAC within 30 days of constructing a new well site, and within 90 days of the effective date of this Part for existing well sites.

(8) An owner or operator conducting an evaluation pursuant to Paragraph (7) of Subsection C of Section 20.2.50.116 NMAC shall measure the distance from the latitude and longitude of each well at a well site to the following points for each type of occupied area:
(a) the property line for indoor or outdoor spaces associated with a school that students use commonly as part of their curriculum or extracurricular activities and outdoor venues or recreation areas;

(b) the property line for outdoor venues or recreation areas, such as a playground, permanent sports field, amphitheater, or other similar place of outdoor public assembly;

(c) the location of a building or structure used as a place of residency by a person, a family, or families; and

(d) the location of a commercial facility with five-thousand (5,000) or more square feet of building floor area that is operating and normally occupied during working hours.

(9) Injection well sites and temporarily abandoned well sites are not subject to the leak survey requirements of Paragraphs (3) through (6) of Subsection C of 20.2.50.116 NMAC.

(10) Prior to any monitoring event, the owner or operator shall date and time stamp the monitoring event.

D. Alternative equipment leak monitoring plans: An owner or operator may comply with the equipment leak requirements of Subsection C of 20.2.50.116 NMAC through an equally effective and enforceable alternative monitoring plan, which may include the use of alternative monitoring methods and technologies, as follows:

(1) An owner or operator may comply with an individual alternative monitoring plan, subject to the following requirements:
(a) the proposed alternative monitoring plan shall be submitted to the department on an application form provided by the department. Within 90 days of receipt, the department shall issue a letter approving or denying the requested alternative monitoring plan. An owner or operator shall comply with the default monitoring requirements of Section 20.2.50.116 NMAC and may not operate under an alternative monitoring plan until it has been approved by the department.

(b) the department may terminate an approved alternative monitoring plan if the department finds that the owner or operator failed to comply with a provision of the plan and failed to correct and disclose the violation to the department within 15 calendar days of identifying the violation.

(c) upon department denial or termination of an approved alternative monitoring plan, the owner or operator shall comply with the default monitoring requirements of Subsection C of 20.2.50.116 NMAC within 15 days.

(2) An owner or operator may comply with a pre-approved alternative monitoring plan maintained by the department, subject to the following requirements:
(a) the owner or operator shall notify the department in writing of the intent to conduct monitoring under a pre-approved alternative monitoring plan, and identify which pre-approved plan will be used, at least 15 days prior to conducting the first monitoring under that plan.

(b) the department may terminate the use of a pre-approved alternative monitoring plan by the owner or operator if the department finds that the owner or operator failed to comply with a provision of the plan and failed to correct and disclose the violation to the department within 15 calendar days of identifying the violation.

(c) upon department denial or termination of a pre-approved alternative monitoring plan, the owner or operator shall comply with the default monitoring requirements of Subsection C of 20.2.50.116 NMAC within 15 days.

E. Repair requirements: For a leak detected pursuant to monitoring conducted under 20.2.50.116 NMAC:

(1) the owner or operator shall place a visible tag on the leaking component not otherwise repaired at the time of discovery until the component has been repaired;

(2) leaks shall be repaired as soon as practicable but no later than 30 days from discovery;

(3) the equipment must be re-monitored no later than 15 days after the repair of the leak to demonstrate that it has been repaired;

(4) if the leak cannot be repaired within 30 days of discovery without a process unit shutdown, the leak may be designated "Repair delayed," the date of the next scheduled process unit shutdown must be identified, and the leak must be repaired before the end of the scheduled process unit shutdown or within 2 years, whichever is earlier; and

(5) if the leak cannot be repaired within 30 days of discovery due to shortage of parts, the leak may be designated "Repair delayed," and must be repaired within 15 days of resolution of such shortage.

F. Recordkeeping requirements:

(1) The owner or operator shall keep a record of the following for all AVO, RM 21, OGI, or alternative equipment leak monitoring inspections conducted as required under 20.2.50.116 NMAC, and shall provide the record to the department upon request:
(a) facility location (latitude and longitude);

(b) time and date stamp, including GPS of the location, of any monitoring;

(c) monitoring method (e.g. AVO, RM 21, OGI, approved alternative method);

(d) name of the person(s) performing the inspection;

(e) a description of any leak requiring repair or a note that no leak was found; and

(f) whether a visible tag was placed on the leak.

(2) The owner or operator shall keep the following record for any leak that is detected:
(a) the date the leak is detected;

(b) the date of attempt to repair;

(c) for a leak with a designation of "repair delayed" the following shall be recorded:
(i) reason for delay if a leak is not repaired within the required number of days after discovery. If a delay is due to a parts shortage, a record documenting the attempt to order the parts and the unavailability due to a shortage is required;

(ii) the date of next scheduled process unit shutdown by which the repair will be completed; and

(iii) name of the person(s) who determined that the repair could not be implemented without a process unit shutdown.

(d) date of successful leak repair;

(e) date the leak was monitored after repair and the results of the monitoring; and

(f) a description of the component that is designated as difficult, unsafe, or inaccessible to monitor, an explanation stating why the component was so designated, and the schedule for repairing and monitoring the component.

(3) For a leak detected using OGI, the owner or operator shall keep records of the specifications, the daily instrument check, and the leak survey requirements specified at 40 CFR 60.18(i)(1)-(3).

(4) The owner or operator shall comply with the recordkeeping requirements in 20.2.50.112 NMAC.

G. Reporting requirements:

(1) The owner or operator shall certify the use of an alternative equipment leak monitoring plan under Subsection D of 20.2.50.116 NMAC to the department annually, if used.

(2) The owner or operator shall comply with the reporting requirements in 20.2.50.112 NMAC.

Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. New Mexico may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.