On Monday, July 11, 2011, the EPA released its long awaited proposed rule governing Stage ll vapor controls at gas stations and other gasoline refueling sites. EPA is proposing to designate June 30, 2013, as the official date when ORVR achieves “widespread use” nationally. PMAA and other industry associations have been urging EPA to define widespread use for over ten years.

“Gasoline retailers have endured significant costs installing and maintaining Stage ll systems,” said Dan Gilligan, PMAA President. “Establishing a date certain gives PMAA’s state associations the opportunity to begin concrete discussions with state government agencies about dismantling Stage ll” he said.  The TPCA staff have been in discussions with TCEQ on the Stage II “Wide Spread Use”  issue for the past 3 years. The EPA announcement does bring clarity to the entire issue moving forward. TPCA will be discussing this issue as well as others at a meeting with TCEQ Executive Director, Mark Vickery on Thursday, July 14th. TPCA will update members as more definitive information becomes available.

Here are some highlights of the EPA proposal

• Widespread use will be achieved nationwide including in those areas of serious, severe and extreme non-attainment by June 30, 2013
• The EPA will waive CAA Stage II requirements for all areas nationwide on this date and preclude any Stage II requirements for new nonattainment areas designated after January 1, 2011.
• EPA will allow removal of Stage II requirements before June 30, 2013 if states demonstrate that widespread use has occurred within the state.
• EPA sets out analytical approaches states must meet to demonstrate widespread use for early removal requests.
• EPA won’t allow States to drop Stage II before June 30, 2013 if it would affect attainment status or increase in VOC emissions that violate existing ozone limits.
• States have the option to continue with Stage II requirements after the June 30, 2013 waiver date.
• States must file a revised SIP plan in order to remove Stage II requirements.
• EPA estimates the amount of control that ORVR would need to achieve to be equivalent to Stage II alone is 74.4%. EPA believes that the 74.4% ORVR control meets the definition of “widespread use”
• EPA estimates that by the end of 2012, 75% of all gasoline will be dispensed into vehicles with ORVR.
• The EPA is not proposing to eliminate Stage II in the Northeast Ozone Transport Region (OTR). Stage II was imposed in the OTR under a different section of the Clean Air Act than the rest of the country. Stage II cannot be removed by States in the OTR even where widespread use has been achieved, until the states adopt measures to reduce emissions that are at least equivalent to Stage II controls.

Since 1994, gas stations in certain areas have been required to use gasoline vapor recovery systems. The systems capture fumes that escape from gasoline tanks during refueling. However, as required by the Clean Air Act, automobile manufacturers began installing onboard refueling vapor recovery (ORVR) technologies in 1998, making gas stations’ systems redundant. Since 2006, all new automobiles and light trucks (pickups, vans, and SUVs) are equipped with ORVR.