Air quality guidance for Colorado gas stations identifies expectations, penalties

The act also created new civil penalties of not more than $15,000 per day for each violation at gasoline dispensing facilities that fail to maintain a properly functioning vapor collection system, as described in the guidance (see illustration below). The guidance notes that having the required records may be taken into consideration if a AQCC inspector observes emissions during an inspection.

The issuance of the guidance document follows the AQCC’s increased efforts to enforce Regulation 7 following the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reclassification of the Denver Metro Northern Front Range (DMNFR) as a “serious” nonattainment area in 2019. The region’s ozone data failed to show attainment of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 2008 8-hour Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) of 75 parts per billion (ppb) between 2015 and 2017. The DMNFR consists of a nine-county area that includes Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Broomfield, Denver, Douglas, Jefferson, and portions of Larimer and Weld.

A Guide to Air Regulations for Gasoline Dispensing Stations & Gasoline Transport Trucks in Colorado  describes how GDFs located in Colorado’s 8-hour ozone nonattainment area must file an Air Pollutant Emission Notice (APEN) if uncontrolled actual volatile organic compounds (VOC) emissions equal or exceed 1 ton per year. These stations must file an APEN and obtain an air permit if uncontrolled actual VOC emissions equal or exceed 2 tons per year. A GDF would require an APEN if it dispenses 145,000 gallons or more of gasoline annually, though stations in an ozone attainment area are exempt from obtaining an air permit.