AB 2588 requires the South Coast Air Quality Management District (South Coast AQMD) to categorize each facility as either high, intermediate, or low priority to determine if a facility needs to conduct a Health Risk Assessment and to determine its AB 2588 fees. Per the requirements of AB 2588, the South Coast AQMD’s prioritization procedure considers the toxicity and volume of hazardous materials released from the facility, and the proximity of the facility to potential receptors (e.g., hospitals, schools, daycare centers, worksites, and residences).
The procedure follows the 2016 version of the Emissions and Potency Procedure recommended by the Facility Prioritization Guidelines of the AB 2588 Risk Assessment Committee of the California Air Pollution Control Officers Association (CAPCOA Procedures). It also incorporates updated risk calculation methodologies laid out in the 2015 OEHHA Guidance Manual. While the South Coast AQMD Procedure is consistent with the CAPCOA Guidelines, several refinements have been made to refine the prioritization methodology for better characterization of the priority score for each facility in the Basin.
A facility receives scores for four health endpoints: cancer, non-cancer chronic, non-cancer chronic 8-hr, and non-cancer acute. The cancer, non-cancer chronic, non-cancer chronic 8-hr health endpoints are evaluated for four receptors for each facility: the absolute closest sensitive receptor and worker receptor, and the closest sensitive receptor and worker receptor in the worst case wind direction. The non-cancer acute health endpoint is evaluated at a single receptor. Every facility therefore receives 13 different scores where the highest score is used to determine the Priority Score (PS).
Three categories are used in the ranking: high priority, intermediate priority, and low priority. Facilities designated as high priority are required to submit either an ATIR or VRRP under the AB 2588 Program. Facilities ranked with intermediate priority are considered to be District Tracking facilities, which are then required to submit an emissions inventory once every four years. Facilities ranked with low priority are potentially exempt from reporting. The following thresholds are used to prioritize facilities:
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Priority Score
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Category
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PS > 10
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High Priority
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1 < PS < 10
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Intermediate Priority
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PS < 1
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Low Priority
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