§ 63.1006 Valves in gas and vapor service and in light liquid service standards.

(a) Compliance schedule. (1) The owner or operator shall comply with this section no later than the compliance dates specified in the referencing subpart.

(2) The use of monitoring data generated before the regulated source became subject to the referencing subpart to initially qualify for less frequent monitoring is governed by the provisions of § 63.1004(b)(6).

(b) Leak detection. Unless otherwise specified in § 63.1002(b), or § 63.1016, or in paragraph (e) of this section, or the referencing subpart, the owner or operator shall monitor all valves at the intervals specified in paragraphs (b)(3) through (b)(6) of this section and shall comply with all other provisions of this section.

(1) Monitoring method. The valves shall be monitored to detect leaks by the method specified in § 63.1004(b) and (c).

(2) Instrument reading that defines a leak. The instrument reading that defines a leak is 10,000 parts per million or greater.

(3) Monitoring period. (i) Each valve shall be monitored monthly to detect leaks, except as provided in paragraphs (b)(3)(ii), (e)(1), (e)(2), and (e)(4) of this section. An owner or operator may otherwise elect to comply with one of the alternative standards in paragraphs (b)(5) or (b)(6) of this section as specified in paragraph (b)(4) of this section.

(ii)

(A) Any valve for which a leak is not detected for 2 successive months may be monitored the same month (first, second, or third month) of every quarter, beginning with the next quarter, until a leak is detected. The first quarterly monitoring shall occur less than 3 months following the last monthly monitoring.

(B) If a leak is detected, the valve shall be monitored monthly until a leak is not detected for 2 successive months.

(C) For purposes of paragraph (b) of this section, quarter means a 3-month period with the first quarter concluding on the last day of the last full month during the 180 days following initial startup.

(4) Allowance of alternative standards. An owner or operator may elect to comply with one of the alternatives specified in either paragraph (b)(5) or (b)(6) of this section if the percentage of valves leaking is equal to or less than 2.0 percent as determined by the procedure in paragraph (c) of this section. An owner or operator must notify the Administrator before implementing one of the alternatives specified in either paragraph (b)(5) or (b)(6) of this section.