Amendments to the Chromium Plating and Chromic Acid Anodizing Facilities Regulation.

Amendments to the Chromium Plating and Chromic Acid Anodizing Facilities Regulation.

In 1986, CARB identified hexavalent chromium as a toxic air contaminant (TAC). Hexavalent chromium was determined to be an extremely potent human carcinogen with no known safe level of exposure. Hexavalent chromium plating, or simply chromium plating, is the electrical application of a coating of chromium onto a surface for decoration, corrosion protection, or durability. An electrical charge is applied to a tank (bath) containing an electrolytic salt (chromium anhydride) solution. The electrical charge causes the chromium metal particles in the bath to fall out of the solution and deposit onto objects placed in the plating solution. The most familiar type of chromium plating is the decorative chromium plating process which provides a bright, shiny finish onto objects such as wheels and plumbing fixtures. During chromic acid anodizing, an oxidation layer is generated on the surface of the part. These electrolytic processes cause mists containing hexavalent chromium to be ejected from the plating tank which is eventually emitted into the outdoor air. Exposure over a lifetime to very low hexavalent chromium concentrations can substantially increase a person’s chance of developing cancer. The Proposed Project would require the use of the trivalent chromium plating process for all decorative and functional hard chromium plating facilities. The proposed complete phase-out dates for the use of hexavalent chromium at electroplating and chromic acid anodizing facilities are as follows: • Beginning two years after the effective date of the Amendments, CARB staff are proposing that all decorative plating facilities must convert to the use of trivalent chromium or cleaner alternative or stop using hexavalent chromium. • Beginning after two years after the effective date of the Amendments, CARB staff are proposing that no person shall install or operate any new functional hard hexavalent chromium electroplating facility in the state. • Beginning after 15 years after the effective date of the Amendments, CARB staff are proposing that all functional hard hexavalent chromium electroplating facilities must transition to trivalent chromium or another cleaner hexavalent chromium-free alternative, or stop using hexavalent chromium. Organizations representing the functional hard hexavalent chromium industry have the option to present periodic technology reviews to CARB staff. These technology reviews will assess the feasibility of alternatives to hexavalent chromium that are less toxic than trivalent chromium or control options that will provide equivalent or better emission reductions to that of trivalent chromium. Beginning after two years after the effective date of the Amendments, functional hard hexavalent chromium facilities will be required to comply with additional emission control requirements, such as building enclosures, housekeeping requirements, best management practices, air pollution control techniques, and compliance monitoring parameters.

Statewide

California Air Resources Board (ARB), California Baldwin Hills Conservancy (BHC), California Coachella Valley Mountains Conservancy (CVMC), California Coastal Commission (CCC), California Department of Conservation (DOC), California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR), California Department of Education, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Bay Delta Region 3 (CDFW), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Central Region 4 (CDFW), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Habitat Conservation Planning (CDFW), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Inland Deserts Region 6 (CDFW), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Marin Region 7 (CDFW), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, North Central Region 2 (CDFW), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Northern and Eureka Region 1 (CDFW), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, South Coast Region 5 (CDFW), California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE), California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD), California Department of Parks and Recreation, California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR), California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, California Department of State Parks, Division of Boating and Waterways, California Department of Transportation, District 1 (DOT), California Department of Transportation, District 10 (DOT), California Department of Transportation, District 11 (DOT), California Department of Transportation, District 12 (DOT), California Department of Transportation, District 2 (DOT), California Department of Transportation, District 3 (DOT), California Department of Transportation, District 4 (DOT), California Department of Transportation, District 5 (DOT), California Department of Transportation, District 6 (DOT), California Department of Transportation, District 7 (DOT), California Department of Transportation, District 8 (DOT), California Department of Transportation, District 9 (DOT), California Department of Transportation, Division of Aeronautics (DOT), California Department of Transportation, Division of Transportation Planning (DOT), California Department of Water Resources (DWR), California Energy Commission, California Fish and Game Commission (CDFGC), California Governor's Office of Emergency Services (OES), California Highway Patrol (CHP), California Natural Resources Agency, California Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development (OSHPD), California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Central Coast Region 3 (RWQCB), California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Central Valley Fresno Region 5 (RWQCB), California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Central Valley Redding Region 5 (RWQCB), California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Central Valley Sacramento Region 5 (RWQCB), California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Colorado River Basin Region 7 (RWQCB), California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Lahontan South Lake Tahoe Region 6 (RWQCB), California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Lahontan Victorville Region 6 (RWQCB), California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Los Angeles Region 4 (RWQCB), California Regional Water Quality Control Board, North Coast Region 1 (RWQCB), California Regional Water Quality Control Board, San Diego Region 9 (RWQCB), California Regional Water Quality Control Board, San Francisco Bay Region 2 (RWQCB), California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Santa Ana Region 8 (RWQCB), California San Diego River Conservancy (SDRC), California San Joaquin River Conservancy (SJRC), California Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy (SMMC), California State Lands Commission (SLC), California Tahoe Conservancy, California Transportation Commission (CATC), Central Valley Flood Protection Board, Colorado River Board, Delta Protection Commission, Delta Stewardship Council, Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA), Department of General Services (DGS), Department of Toxic Substances Control, Office of Historic Preservation, San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC), San Gabriel and Lower Los Angeles Rivers and Mountains Conservancy (RMC), Santa Monica Bay Restoration, Sierra Nevada Conservancy, State Water Resources Control Board, Division of Drinking Water, State Water Resources Control Board, Division of Water Quality, State Water Resources Control Board, Division of Water Rights, Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA), California Native American Heritage Commission (NAHC)

California Native American Heritage Commission (NAHC)

Other (Statewide Regulation)

Statewide Regulation

Aesthetics, Agriculture and Forestry Resources, Air Quality, Biological Resources, Cultural Resources, Geology/Soils, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Hazards & Hazardous Materials, Hydrology/Water Quality, Land Use/Planning, Noise, Transportation, Utilities/Service Systems