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Air Quality and Greenhouse Gas Technical Report Griffith Energy Storage Project Fluorinated Gases are synthetic and emitted from a variety of industrial processes. HFCs are man-made chemicals used as a substitute for CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons)for automobile air conditioners and refrigerants. PFCs are very stable and do not break down through the chemical processes in the lower atmosphere and they have long lifetimes (between 10,000 and 50,000 years). The two main sources of PFCs are primary aluminum production and semiconductor manufacturing. SFs is an inorganic, colorless, odorless, nontoxic, nonflammable gas used for insulation in electric power transmission and distribution equipment, semiconductor manufacturing, the magnesium industry, and as a tracer gas for leak detection. Global Warming Potential The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change developed the global warming potential (GWP) concept to compare the ability of each GHG to trap heat in the atmosphere relative to another gas. The GWP of a GHG is defined as the ratio of the time-integrated radiative forcing from the instantaneous release of one kilogram of a trace substance relative to that of one kilogram of a reference gas. The reference gas used is CO2. Therefore, GWP-weighted emissions are measured in metric tons (MT)of CO2 equivalent(CO2e). It was assumed that the GWP for CH4 is 25 (which means that emissions of 1 MT of CH4 are equivalent to emissions of 25 MT of CO2), the GWP for N20 is 298, and the GWP for SF6 is 22,800 based on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fourth Assessment Report(IPCC 2007). These GWPs are also codified by the EPA in 40 CFR 98. 3.2 REGULATORY SETTING 3.2.1 Federal Regulations The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on April 2, 2007, that CO2 is an air pollutant as defined under the CAA, and that the EPA has the authority to regulate emissions of GHGs. Responding to the mounting issue of climate change, the EPA has taken actions to regulate, monitor, and potentially reduce GHG emissions. Mandatory Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule (40 CFR 98) On September 22, 2009, the EPA issued a final rule for mandatory reporting of GHGs from large GHG emission sources in the United States. In general, this national reporting requirement will provide the EPA with accurate and timely GHG emissions data from facilities that emit 25,000 metric tons or more of CO2 per year. This publicly available data allows the reporters to track their own emissions, compare them to similar facilities, and help identify cost effective opportunities to reduce emissions in the future. Reporting is at the facility level, except that certain suppliers of fossil fuels and industrial GHGs along with vehicle and engine manufacturers report at the corporate level. An estimated 85 percent of the total United States GHG emissions, from approximately 10,000 facilities, are covered by this final rule. Endangerment and Cause or Contribute Findings for Greenhouse Gases under the Clean Air Act On December 7, 2009, the EPA adopted its Proposed Endangerment and Cause or Contribute Findings for Greenhouse Gases under the CAA(Endangerment Finding). The Endangerment Finding is based on Section 202(a) of the CAA, which states that the Administrator(of EPA) should regulate and develop standards for"emission[s] of air pollution from any class or classes of new motor vehicles or new motor vehicle engines, which in [its]judgment cause, or contribute to, air pollution which may reasonably be anticipated to endanger public health or welfare."The rule addresses Section 202(a) in two distinct findings. The first addresses whether the concentrations of the six key GHGs (CO2, CH4, N20, HFCs, PFCs, and SFs) in the atmosphere threaten the health and welfare of current and future generations. The OTETRA TECH 31 July 2023