Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District (District) will hold a public workshop at the time and location listed above to discuss a new draft rule, Rule 364. The draft rule requires all petroleum refineries within the District to install and maintain a fenceline monitoring network that can measure various criteria air pollutants and toxic air contaminants that are emitted from the refinery. The rule also requires the District to install and maintain a community air monitoring system to measure the refinery-related pollutants in the nearby community. The rule will satisfy the new requirements in California Health and Safety Code, consistent with Assembly Bill 1647 (2017-2018).

ATC Group Services, LLC has applied to the Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District (District) for a permit to excavate and remove approximately 135 cubic yards of soil contaminated by a former oil well located at 3030 Caselli Way in Santa Maria.  Excavated material will be loaded on trucks for transportation offsite to a State-approved disposal facility.  The project site is within 1,000 feet of the property boundary of Valley Christian Academy, located at 2970 Santa Maria Way in Santa Maria.

The Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District (District) has updated the fee tables for Rules 210 and 213 in accordance with the California Consumer Price Index (CPI). Please see the cover letter and updated fees located at www.ourair.org/wp-content/uploads/cpi-fees.pdf. The CPI changes are also reflected in the District’s application forms. Prior to submitting any applications, please make sure you are using the newest and most recent forms.

The Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District (District) has prepared an annual air monitoring network plan for the county. The plan includes a statement of the purpose for each air monitor, and evidence that the siting and operation of each monitor meets the requirements of the federal regulations.

The Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District (District) will hold a public hearing at the time and location listed above to accept comments and consider adoption of the proposed amendments to District Rules 361 and 342.

The Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District (District) has issued four (4) draft federal Part 70 permits for the HVI Cat Canyon, Inc. facilities that are part of the South Cat Canyon Stationary Source. The HVI Cat Canyon, Inc. South Cat Canyon Stationary Source is located approximately six miles south of the city of Santa Maria in Santa Barbara County. The source includes three (3) oil and gas leases: Bell, Blochman and Palmer-Stendl. In addition to permits for these three oil and gas leases, there is one permit for internal combustion engines used within the stationary source.

The Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District (District) will hold a public workshop and two public hearings on the proposed budget for fiscal year 2019-2020. A copy of the proposed budget is available for review on the District website (below) or at District offices:

The Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District (District) will hold a public workshop at the time and location listed above to discuss the draft revisions to Rule 361 and Rule 342. The draft rule revisions require all newly installed and modified units to meet a lower oxides of nitrogen (NOx) emission standard. These standards are based on similar requirements adopted by the Ventura County APCD, the San Joaquin Valley Unified APCD, and the South Coast AQMD. The District will also be addressing the Assembly Bill 617 Best Available Retrofit Control Technology (BARCT) standards as they relate to the largest sources of air pollution in the County.

The Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District (District) has made a preliminary decision to approve emission reduction credits for the Point Arguello Pipeline Company (PAPCO). An emission reduction credit is earned by a company when it reduces air emissions beyond what is required by permits and rules or when a facility shuts down. It is an asset that can be used by its owner or sold to companies that need emission offsets. Emission reduction credit amounts to be approved for PAPCO are:

State law (Health and Safety Code Section 40923) requires the Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District (District) to publish a list of regulatory measures scheduled for consideration each year. These regulatory measures, or rules and regulations, are adopted in order to reduce air pollution in Santa Barbara County. Air quality rules and regulations that may be adopted or amended during 2019 are listed below. Other measures may be proposed for adoption per the criteria specified in Section 40923 of the Health and Safety Code. Before the adoption or amendment or any regulatory measure, the District publishes a notice in a local newspaper and holds a public hearing to accept comments from affected businesses and other interested parties.