CHEVRON RICHMOND REFINERY - ISSUANCE OF ACCELERATED PERMIT TO OPERATE FOR S-9334 COOLING WATER TOWER WHILE S-4187 IS BEING SERVICED. (Air District A/N 31895)
Summary
SCH Number
2024030476
Public Agency
Bay Area Air Quality Management District
(BAAQMD)
Document Title
CHEVRON RICHMOND REFINERY - ISSUANCE OF ACCELERATED PERMIT TO OPERATE FOR S-9334 COOLING WATER TOWER WHILE S-4187 IS BEING SERVICED. (Air District A/N 31895)
Document Type
NOE - Notice of Exemption
Received
Posted
3/14/2024
Document Description
The Air District's issuance of a Permit to Operate (PTO) under the Accelerated Permitting Program (APP) for S-9334, which is a cooling water tower with a maximum circulation rate of 138,000 gallons per hour. S- 9334 will be permitted as a new source per Regulation 2-1-232.1. It will be used in place of S-4187 (FCC Polymer Cooling Water Tower) while the tower section of S-4187 is being replaced at the existing cooling tower location. The original material of the tower portion of S-4187 was constructed of redwood, which is falling apart and needs to be replaced. The new tower portion of S-4187 will be constructed of a fiberglass reinforced polymer material. The proposed permit conditions will ensure only one cooling tower (either S- 4187 or S-9334) will be operated at any given time after the proposed tower portion repairs are completed. The circulation rate (i.e., throughput) of the temporary tower is limited by the capacity of the cooling water tower's circulation pumps. The temporary tower will be using one of the existing (permanent) circulation pumps, P-781 (primary) or P-781A (spare), until S-4187 resumes operation after the proposed repairs to it are completed. S-9334 will tie into the current process via underground piping and will process the same process water as S-4187 did. Since the proposed repairs to S-4187 can take longer than 90 days, this application is being processed as a new source under the APP.
Contact Information
Name
Nimrat Sandhu
Agency Name
Bay Area Air Quality Management District (Air District)
Job Title
Supervising Air Quality Engineer
Contact Types
Lead/Public Agency
Phone
Email
Name
Laurie Mintzer
Agency Name
Chevron
Job Title
Senior Permit Specialist
Contact Types
Project Applicant
Phone
Email
Location
Cities
Richmond
Counties
Contra Costa
Regions
Citywide, Countywide, San Francisco Bay Area
Cross Streets
Marine Street
Zip
94802
Other Location Info
841 Chevron Way Richmond, Contra Costa County, CA, 94802. Nearest Cross Street: Marine Street
Notice of Exemption
Exempt Status
Ministerial
Type, Section or Code
Code section 21080, subdivision (b)(l) and California Code of Regulations, title 14, section 15268, subdivision (a).
Reasons for Exemption
The Air District's regulatory requirements that governed the approval of the accelerated Permit to Operate for the temporary use of S-9334 involved objective numerical standards outlined in the Permit Handbook Chapter 11.4, which did not allow for or require any subjective judgment or discretion to interpret or apply. Also, this project did not trigger Best Available Control Technology (BACT) or BACT for toxics. The project complied with such standards; accordingly, the Air District must approve it as ministerial. Because the approval is ministerial, the temporary project involving S-9334 cooling tower is exempt from CEQA. The Air District's permit action is also exempt because it permits only a minor alteration of an existing use. The project does not entail any expansion of the S-4187 cooling tower's existing use. S-9334 will be removed from the site and S-4187 cooling tower will continue to be operated per its permit once the tower section is repaired. S-9334 will be equipped with a continuous flow monitor to ensure that no greater than 138,000 gallons per hour of water is circulated through S-9334. In addition, the applicant has included in its permit application CE QA-related information (CEQA Appendix H) that demonstrates with certainty that the project has no potential for resulting in any significant environmental impacts.
Exempt Status
Categorical Exemption
Type, Section or Code
(Guidelines§ 15301)
Reasons for Exemption
The Air District's permit action is also categorically exempt from CEQA because it permits a minor alteration of an existing use and does not authorize any expansion of that existing use.
County Clerk
Contra Costa
Attachments
Notice of Exemption
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