§ 63.342 Standards.

(a)

(1) At all times, each owner or operator must operate and maintain any affected source subject to the requirements of this subpart, including associated air pollution control equipment and monitoring equipment, in a manner consistent with safety and good air pollution control practices for minimizing emissions. The general duty to minimize emissions does not require the owner or operator to make any further efforts to reduce emissions if levels required by this standard have been achieved. Determination of whether such operation and maintenance procedures are being used will be based on information available to the Administrator which may include, but is not limited to, monitoring results, review of operation and maintenance procedures, review of operation and maintenance records, and inspection of the source.

(2) Each owner or operator of an affected source subject to the provisions of this subpart shall comply with these requirements in this section on and after the compliance dates specified in § 63.343(a). All affected sources are regulated by applying maximum achievable control technology.

(b) Applicability of emission limitations. (1) The emission limitations in this section apply during tank operation as defined in § 63.341, and during periods of startup and shutdown as these are routine occurrences for affected sources subject to this subpart. In response to an action to enforce the standards set forth in this subpart, the owner or operator may assert a defense to a claim for civil penalties for violations of such standards that are caused by a malfunction, as defined in 40 CFR 63.2. Appropriate penalties may be assessed, however, if the owner or operator fails to meet the burden of proving all the requirements in the affirmative defense. The affirmative defense shall not be available for claims for injunctive relief.

(i) To establish the affirmative defense in any action to enforce such a standard, the owner or operator must timely meet the reporting requirements of paragraph (b)(1)(ii) of this section, and must prove by a preponderance of evidence that:

(A) The violation was caused by a sudden, infrequent, and unavoidable failure of air pollution control equipment, process equipment, or a process to operate in a normal and usual manner; and could not have been prevented through careful planning, proper design or better operation and maintenance practices; and did not stem from any activity or event that could have been foreseen and avoided, or planned for; and was not part of a recurring pattern indicative of inadequate design, operation, or maintenance; and

(B) Repairs were made as expeditiously as possible when exceeded violation occurred. Off-shift and overtime labor were used, to the extent practicable to make these repairs; and

(C) The frequency, amount and duration of the violation (including any bypass) were minimized to the maximum extent practicable; and

(D) If the violation resulted from a bypass of control equipment or a process, then the bypass was unavoidable to prevent loss of life, personal injury, or severe property damage; and

(E) All possible steps were taken to minimize the impact of the violation on ambient air quality, the environment, and human health; and

(F) All emissions monitoring and control systems were kept in operation if at all possible, consistent with safety and good air pollution control practices; and

(G) All of the actions in response to the violation were documented by properly signed, contemporaneous operating logs; and

(H) At all times, the affected sources were operated in a manner consistent with good practices for minimizing emissions; and

(I) A written root cause analysis was prepared, the purpose of which is to determine, correct, and eliminate the primary causes of the malfunction and the excess emissions resulting from the malfunction event at issue. The analysis shall also specify, using the best monitoring methods and engineering judgment, the amount of excess emissions that were the result of the malfunction.

(ii) Report. The owner or operator seeking to assert an affirmative defense shall submit a written report to the Administrator with all necessary supporting documentation, that it has met the requirements set forth in paragraph (i) of this section. This affirmative defense report shall be included in the first periodic compliance, deviation report or excess emission report otherwise required after the initial occurrence of the violation of the relevant standard (which may be the end of any applicable averaging period). If such compliance, deviation report or excess emission report is due less than 45 days after the initial occurrence of the violation, the affirmation defense report may be included in the second compliance, deviation report or excess emission report due after the initial occurrence of the violation of the relevant standard.

(2) If an owner or operator is controlling a group of tanks with a common add-on air pollution control device, the emission limitations of paragraphs (c), (d), and (e) of this section apply whenever any one affected source is operated. The emission limitation that applies to the group of affected sources is:

(i) The emission limitation identified in paragraphs (c), (d), and (e) of this section if the affected sources are performing the same type of operation (e.g., hard chromium electroplating), are subject to the same emission limitation, and are not controlled by an add-on air pollution control device also controlling nonaffected sources;

(ii) The emission limitation calculated according to § 63.344(e)(3) if affected sources are performing the same type of operation, are subject to the same emission limitation, and are controlled with an add-on air pollution control device that is also controlling nonaffected sources; and

(iii) The emission limitation calculated according to § 63.344(e)(4) if affected sources are performing different types of operations, or affected sources are performing the same operations but subject to different emission limitations, and are controlled with an add-on air pollution control device that may also be controlling emissions from nonaffected sources.