Unless specifically defined in the Texas Clean Air Act or in
§3.2 or §101.1 of this title (relating to Definitions),
the terms used by the commission have the meanings commonly ascribed
to them in the field of air pollution control. In addition, the following
words and terms, when used in this division, have the following meanings,
unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.
(1) Activity--The amount of activity at a facility
or mobile source measured in terms of production, use, raw materials
input, vehicle miles traveled, or other similar units that have a
direct correlation with the economic output and emission rate of the
facility or mobile source.
(2) Actual emissions--The total emissions during a
selected time period, using the facility's or mobile source's actual
daily operating hours, production rates, or types of materials processed,
stored, or combusted during that selected time period.
(3) Area source--Any facility included in the agency
emissions inventory under the area source category.
(4) Baseline emissions--The facility's emissions, in
tons per year, before implementation of an emission reduction calculated
as the lowest of the facility's historical adjusted emissions or state
implementation plan emissions.
(5) Certified--Any emission reduction that is determined
to be creditable upon review and approval by the executive director.
(6) Curtailment--A reduction in activity level at any
facility or mobile source.
(7) Emission credit--An emission reduction credit or
mobile emission reduction credit.
(8) Emission rate--The facility's rate of emissions
per unit of activity.
(9) Emission reduction--A reduction in actual emissions
from a facility or mobile source.
(10) Emission reduction credit--A certified emission
reduction, expressed in tenths of a ton per year, that is created
by eliminating future emissions and quantified during or before the
period in which emission reductions are made from a facility.
(11) Emission reduction strategy--The method implemented
to reduce the facility's or mobile source's emissions beyond that
required by state or federal law, regulation, or agreed order.
(12) Facility--As defined in §116.10 of this title
(relating to General Definitions). Original equipment and replacement-in-kind
equipment that are the same or functionally equivalent are considered
the same facility. For the purpose of generating an emission reduction
credit at an area source, multiple emissions points with common characteristics
may be grouped in order to be considered as a single unit equivalent
to a facility as long as the total grouping has emissions equal to
or greater than 0.1 tons per year (tpy), even if emission points within
the group have emissions of less than 0.1 tpy.
(13) Generator--The owner or operator of a facility
or mobile source that creates an emission reduction.
(14) Historical adjusted emissions--The emissions occurring
before implementation of an emission reduction strategy and adjusted
for any local, state, or federal requirement, calculated using the
following equation.
Attached Graphic
(15) Mobile emission reduction credit--A certified
emission reduction from a mobile source or group of mobile sources,
expressed in tenths of a ton per year, that is created by eliminating
future emissions and quantified during or before the period in which
reductions are made from that mobile source or group of mobile sources.
(16) Mobile source--A source included in the agency's
emissions inventory under the mobile source category.
(17) Mobile source baseline activity--The level of
activity of a mobile source based on an estimate for each year for
which the credits are to be generated. After the initial year, the
annual estimates should reflect:
(A) the change in the mobile source emissions to reflect
any deterioration in the emission control performance of the participating
source;
(B) the change in the number of mobile sources resulting
from normal retirement or attrition, and the replacement of retired
mobile sources with newer and/or cleaner mobile sources;
(C) the change in usage levels, hours of operation,
or vehicle miles traveled in the participating population; and
(D) the change in the expected useful life of the participating
population.
(18) Mobile source baseline emissions--The mobile source's
actual emissions, in tons per year, occurring prior to a mobile emission
reduction strategy calculated as the lowest of the historical adjusted
emissions or state implementation plan emissions.
(19) Mobile source baseline emission rate--The mobile
source's rate of emissions per unit of mobile source baseline activity
during the mobile source baseline emissions period.
(20) Permanent--An emission reduction that is long-lasting
and unchanging for the remaining life of the facility or mobile source.
Such a time period must be enforceable.
(21) Point source--A facility included in the agency's
emissions inventory under the point source category.
(22) Primarily operated--When the activity is at least
75% within a specific nonattainment area.
(23) Projection-base year--The year of the emissions
inventory used to project or forecast future-year emissions for modeling
point sources in a state implementation plan revision.
(24) Protocol--A replicable and workable method of
estimating emission rate or activity level used to calculate the amount
of emission reduction generated or credits required for facilities
or mobile sources.
(25) Quantifiable--An emission reduction that can be
measured or estimated with confidence using replicable methodology.
(26) Real reduction--A reduction in which actual emissions
are reduced. Emissions reductions that result from any of the following
are not considered a real reduction:
(A) lowering the allowable emission limit in a permit
without a physical change or change in method of operation;
(B) shifting a vent gas stream or other pollution or
waste stream to another site;
(C) a mobile source that is not capable of being operated
as intended; or
(D) a change in an emissions factor or emissions calculation
equation.
(27) Shutdown--The permanent cessation of an activity
producing emissions at a facility or mobile source.
(28) Site--As defined in §122.10 of this title
(relating to General Definitions).
(29) State implementation plan--A plan that provides
for attainment and maintenance of a primary or secondary national
ambient air quality standard as adopted in 40 Code of Federal Regulations
Part 52, Subpart SS.
(30) State implementation plan (SIP) emissions--SIP
emissions are determined as follows.
(A) For point sources, SIP emissions are facility-specific
values based on the emissions data in the state's annual emissions
inventory (EI) for the year used to develop the projection-base year
inventory for the modeling included in an attainment demonstration
(AD) SIP revision, used for the attainment inventory for a maintenance
plan SIP revision, or used in an EI SIP revision, as applicable under
subparagraph (B)(i) - (iii) of this paragraph. For area and mobile
sources, SIP emissions are calculated values based on actual operations
during the latest triennial National Emissions Inventory (NEI) year
used to support an AD SIP revision, used for the attainment inventory
for a maintenance plan SIP revision, or used in an EI SIP revision,
as applicable under subparagraph (B)(i) - (iii) of this paragraph.
For point, area, and mobile sources located in a nonattainment area
without an applicable SIP as determined under subparagraph (B)(i)
- (iii) of this paragraph, SIP emissions are based on the year of
the most recent NEI submitted to the United States Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) preceding that area's nonattainment designation for the
current National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS).
(B) The applicable SIP revision must be for the nonattainment
area where the facility is located, or for mobile sources where the
mobile source is primarily operated, and must be for the criteria
pollutant, or include the precursor pollutant, for which the applicant
is requesting credits. The applicable SIP revision is:
(i) an AD SIP revision or a maintenance plan SIP revision,
whichever was most recently submitted to the EPA for the current NAAQS;
(ii) if the SIP revisions identified in clause (i)
of this subparagraph have not been submitted to the EPA, an AD SIP
revision or a maintenance plan SIP revision, whichever was most recently
submitted to the EPA for an earlier NAAQS issued in the same averaging
time and the same form as the current NAAQS; or
Cont'd... |
