§ 60.276b - Recordkeeping and reporting requirements.

§ 60.276b Recordkeeping and reporting requirements.

(a) Records of the measurements required in § 60.274b must be retained for at least 5 years following the date of the measurement.

(b) Each owner or operator shall submit a written report of exceedances of the control device opacity to the Administrator or delegated authority semi-annually. For the purposes of these reports, exceedances are defined as all 6-minute periods during which the average opacity of emissions from the control device is 3 percent or greater or, where the daily shop opacity visible emissions were measured according to EPA Method 22 and exceeded 0 seconds.

(c) Operation at a furnace static pressure that exceeds the operational range or control setting under § 60.274b(g), for owners and operators that elect to install a furnace static pressure monitoring device under § 60.274b(f) and either operation of control system fan motor amperes at values exceeding ±15 percent of the value established under § 60.274b(c) or operation ranges or control settings outside of those established under § 60.274b(c) may be considered by the Administrator or delegated authority to be unacceptable operation and maintenance of the affected facility. Operation at such values shall be reported to the Administrator or delegated authority semiannually.

(d) The requirements of this section remain in force until and unless EPA, in delegating enforcement authority to a State under section 111(c) of the Act, approves reporting requirements or an alternative means of compliance surveillance adopted by such State. In that event, affected sources within the State will be relieved of the obligation to comply with this section, provided that they comply with the requirements established by the State.

(e) When the owner or operator of an EAF or AOD is required to demonstrate compliance with the standard under § 60.275b(b)(2) or a combination of (b)(1) and (b)(2) the owner or operator provide notice to the Administrator or delegated authority of the procedure(s) that will be used to determine compliance. Notification of the procedure(s) to be used must be postmarked at least 30 days prior to the performance test.

(f) For the purpose of this subpart, the owner or operator shall conduct the demonstration of compliance with § 60.272b(a) of this subpart and furnish the Administrator or delegated authority with a report of the results of the test according to paragraph (i) of this section. This report shall include the following information:

(1) Facility name and address;

(2) Plant representative;

(3) Make and model of the control device, and continuous opacity monitoring equipment, if applicable;

(4) Flow diagram of process and emission capture system including other equipment or process(es) ducted to the same control device;

(5) Rated (design) capacity of process equipment;

(6) Those data required under § 60.274b(h) of this subpart;

(i) List of charge and tap weights and materials;

(ii) Heat times and process log;

(iii) Control device operation log; and

(iv) Continuous opacity monitor or EPA Method 9 data, or, as an alternative to EPA Method 9, according to ASTM D7520–16 (incorporated by reference, see § 60.17), with the caveats described under Shop opacity in § 60.271.

(7) Test dates and test times;

(8) Test company;

(9) Test company representative;

(10) Test observers from any outside agency;

(11) Description of test methodology used, including any deviation from standard reference methods;

(12) Schematic of sampling location;

(13) Number of sampling points;

(14) Description of sampling equipment;

(15) Listing of sampling equipment calibrations and procedures;

(16) Field and laboratory data sheets;

(17) Description of sample recovery procedures;

(18) Sampling equipment leak check results;

(19) Description of quality assurance procedures;

(20) Description of analytical procedures;

(21) Notation of sample blank corrections; and

(22) Sample emission calculations.

(g) The owner or operator shall maintain records of all shop opacity observations made in accordance with § 60.273b(d). All shop opacity observations in excess of the emission limit specified in § 60.272b(a)(3) of this subpart shall indicate a period of excess emissions and shall be reported to the Administrator or delegated authority semi-annually, according to § 60.7(c) and submitted according to paragraph (j) of this section. In addition to the information required at § 60.7(c), the report shall include the following information:

(1) The company name and address of the affected facility.

(2) An identification of each affected facility being included in the report.

(3) Beginning and ending dates of the reporting period.

(4) A certification by a certifying official of truth, accuracy, and completeness. This certification shall state that, based on information and belief formed after reasonable inquiry, the statements and information in the document are true, accurate, and complete.

(h) The owner or operator shall maintain the following records for each bag leak detection system required under § 60.273b(e):

(1) Records of the bag leak detection system output;

(2) Records of bag leak detection system adjustments, including the date and time of the adjustment, the initial bag leak detection system settings, and the final bag leak detection system settings; and

(3) An identification of the date and time of all bag leak detection system alarms, the time that procedures to determine the cause of the alarm were initiated, if procedures were initiated within 1 hour of the alarm, the cause of the alarm, an explanation of the actions taken, the date and time the cause of the alarm was alleviated, and if the alarm was alleviated within 24 hours of the alarm.

(i) Within 60 days after the date of completing each performance test or demonstration of compliance required by this subpart, you must submit the results of the performance test following the procedures specified in paragraphs (i)(1) through (3) of this section.

(1) Data collected using test methods supported by the EPA's Electronic Reporting Tool (ERT) as listed on the EPA's ERT website (https://www.epa.gov/electronic-reporting-air-emissions/electronic-reporting-tool-ert) at the time of the test. Submit the results of the performance test to the EPA via the Compliance and Emissions Data Reporting Interface (CEDRI), which can be accessed through the EPA's Central Data Exchange (CDX) (https://cdx.epa.gov/). The data must be submitted in a file format generated using the EPA's ERT. Alternatively, you may submit an electronic file consistent with the extensible markup language (XML) schema listed on the EPA's ERT website.

(2) Data collected using test methods that are not supported by the EPA's ERT as listed on the EPA's ERT website at the time of the test. The results of the performance test must be included as an attachment in the ERT or an alternate electronic file consistent with the XML schema listed on the EPA's ERT website. Submit the ERT generated package or alternative file to the EPA via CEDRI.

(3) Confidential business information (CBI). Do not use CEDRI to submit information you claim as CBI. Anything submitted using CEDRI cannot later be claimed CBI. Although we do not expect persons to assert a claim of CBI, if you wish to assert a CBI claim for some of the information submitted under paragraph (i)(1) or (2) of this section, you must submit a complete file, including information claimed to be CBI, to the EPA. The file must be generated using the EPA's ERT or an alternate electronic file consistent with the XML schema listed on the EPA's ERT website. The preferred method to submit CBI is for it to be transmitted electronically using email attachments, File Transfer Protocol (FTP), or other online file sharing services (e.g., Dropbox, OneDrive, Google Drive). Electronic submissions must be transmitted directly to the OAQPS CBI Office at the email address [e-mail], and should include clear CBI markings and note the docket ID. If assistance is needed with submitting large electronic files that exceed the file size limit for email attachments, and if you do not have your own file sharing service, please email [e-mail] to request a file transfer link. If sending CBI information through the postal service, submit the file on a compact disc, flash drive, or other commonly used electronic storage medium and clearly mark the medium as CBI. Mail the electronic medium to U.S. EPA/OAQPS/CORE CBI Office, Attention: Group Leader, Measurement Policy Group, MD C404–02, 4930 Old Page Rd., Durham, NC 27703. The same file with the CBI omitted must be submitted to the EPA via the EPA's CDX as described in paragraphs (i)(1) and (2) of this section. All CBI claims must be asserted at the time of submission. Furthermore, under CAA section 114(c), emissions data is not entitled to confidential treatment, and the EPA is required to make emissions data available to the public. Thus, emissions data will not be protected as CBI and will be made publicly available.

(j) You must submit a report of excess emissions and monitoring systems performance report according to § 60.7(c) to the Administrator semiannually. Submit all reports to the EPA via CEDRI, which can be accessed through the EPA's CDX (https://cdx.epa.gov/). The EPA will make all the information submitted through CEDRI available to the public without further notice to you. Do not use CEDRI to submit information you claim as CBI. Anything submitted using CEDRI cannot later be claimed CBI. You must use the appropriate electronic report template on the CEDRI website (https://www.epa.gov/electronic-reporting-air-emissions/cedri) for this subpart. The date report templates become available will be listed on the CEDRI website. The report must be submitted by the deadline specified in this subpart, regardless of the method in which the report is submitted. Although we do not expect persons to assert a claim of CBI, if you wish to assert a CBI claim, follow paragraph (i)(3) of this section except send to the attention of the Electric Arc Furnace Sector Lead. The same file with the CBI omitted must be submitted to the EPA via the EPA's CDX as described earlier in this paragraph (j). All CBI claims must be asserted at the time of submission. Furthermore, under CAA section 114(c), emissions data is not entitled to confidential treatment, and the EPA is required to make emissions data available to the public. Thus, emissions data will not be protected as CBI and will be made publicly available.

(k) If you are required to electronically submit a report through CEDRI in the EPA's CDX, you may assert a claim of EPA system outage for failure to timely comply with that reporting requirement. To assert a claim of EPA system outage, you must meet the requirements outlined in paragraphs (k)(1) through (7) of this section.

(1) You must have been or will be precluded from accessing CEDRI and submitting a required report within the time prescribed due to an outage of either the EPA's CEDRI or CDX systems.

(2) The outage must have occurred within the period of time beginning five business days prior to the date that the submission is due.

(3) The outage may be planned or unplanned.

(4) You must submit notification to the Administrator in writing as soon as possible following the date you first knew, or through due diligence should have known, that the event may cause or has caused a delay in reporting.

(5) You must provide to the Administrator a written description identifying:

(i) The date(s) and time(s) when CDX or CEDRI was accessed and the system was unavailable;

(ii) A rationale for attributing the delay in reporting beyond the regulatory deadline to EPA system outage;

(iii) A description of measures taken or to be taken to minimize the delay in reporting; and

(iv) The date by which you propose to report, or if you have already met the reporting requirement at the time of the notification, the date you reported.

(6) The decision to accept the claim of EPA system outage and allow an extension to the reporting deadline is solely within the discretion of the Administrator.

(7) In any circumstance, the report must be submitted electronically as soon as possible after the outage is resolved.

(l) If you are required to electronically submit a report through CEDRI in the EPA's CDX, you may assert a claim of force majeure for failure to timely comply with that reporting requirement. To assert a claim of force majeure, you must meet the requirements outlined in paragraphs (l)(1) through (5) of this section.

(1) You may submit a claim if a force majeure event is about to occur, occurs, or has occurred or there are lingering effects from such an event within the period of time beginning five business days prior to the date the submission is due. For the purposes of this section, a force majeure event is defined as an event that will be or has been caused by circumstances beyond the control of the affected facility, its contractors, or any entity controlled by the affected facility that prevents you from complying with the requirement to submit a report electronically within the time period prescribed. Examples of such events are acts of nature (e.g., hurricanes, earthquakes, or floods), acts of war or terrorism, or equipment failure or safety hazard beyond the control of the affected facility (e.g., large scale power outage).

(2) You must submit notification to the Administrator in writing as soon as possible following the date you first knew, or through due diligence should have known, that the event may cause or has caused a delay in reporting.

(3) You must provide to the Administrator:

(i) A written description of the force majeure event;

(ii) A rationale for attributing the delay in reporting beyond the regulatory deadline to the force majeure event;

(iii) A description of measures taken or to be taken to minimize the delay in reporting; and

(iv) The date by which you propose to report, or if you have already met the reporting requirement at the time of the notification, the date you reported.

(4) The decision to accept the claim of force majeure and allow an extension to the reporting deadline is solely within the discretion of the Administrator.

(5) In any circumstance, the reporting must occur as soon as possible after the force majeure event occurs.

(m) Any records required to be maintained by this subpart that are submitted electronically via the EPA's CEDRI may be maintained in electronic format. This ability to maintain electronic copies does not affect the requirement for facilities to make records, data, and reports available upon request to a delegated air agency or the EPA as part of an on-site compliance evaluation.

[88 FR 58487, Aug. 25, 2023, as amended at 89 FR 11207, Feb. 14, 2024]