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One of AQMD's key tasks is to assure compliance
with air quality rules and regulations and with state
and federal air quality statutes to achieve and sustain
air quality standards
throughout the South Coast Air Basin.
AQMD does this through a multi-faceted effort that couples
traditional enforcement activities -- such as inspections
and public complaint response -- with a full range of educational and
technical assistance
programs.
Traditional Enforcement
Under clean air law, the federal EPA has set health-based
standards for ambient air quality. AQMD's mission is to develop and maintain a
plan for reducing pollution to meet those standards and to
implement that plan though adopting
regulations
that set emissions limits. AQMD administers these regulations through air pollution
control permits that set emissions limits and operating conditions
on some 30,000 individual facilities.
AQMD inspects facilities periodically to ensure that permit
operating conditions and emissions limits are being met and maintained. Inspectors also
respond to air quality complaints reported
by the
public. According to AQMD's compliance policy, when inspectors find violations they will
write either a Notice of Violation (usually emissions-related),
which can involve penalties, or a Notice to Comply (usually
administrative in nature), which does not carry penalties as long as the facility
owners/operators make any needed corrections in a timely manner.
In handling violations, AQMD carefully considers all the
facts and circumstances under its General Compliance Policy.
If a facility has a good compliance record and other requirements are met, the violation
may be resolved under AQMD's
Supplemental Environmental Project (SEP) Policy,
which allows the use of measures which will create a direct or indirect air pollution
benefit, instead of cash, as a form of civil penalty. AQMD also gives special treatment
under its Self-Auditing Penalty Policy
to
facilities that promptly report violations discovered through self-auditing, including a
waiver or significant reduction of civil penalties.
Assistance Emphasized
As AQMD continues its traditional enforcement efforts with a
steady commitment to inspecting large facilities, there is an increasing emphasis on
education and technical assistance, particularly with small- and medium-sized businesses.
Among the many forms of assistance now available are:
- Compliance Assistance Classes explaining how to follow the
rules;
- Technical consultations during which AQMD will make
recommendations on how to comply most economically without the fear of enforcement action
as long as compliance is achieved in a reasonable time; and
- Loan guarantees for small businesses that must purchase pollution control
equipment.
AQMD has also moved to streamline its permit
application review process, and to provide more regulatory flexibility through
market-based compliance options (such as scrapping old cars).
High Compliance Level
AQMD has found that the vast majority of businesses in the
region do their best to comply with air pollution control standards. By emphasizing
education and technical assistance, technical consultations, and self-auditing strategies,
AQMD helps sources achieve a higher level of compliance with pollution control rules.
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