US Seeks to Cut Emissions from Gasoline Deliveries
Date: 03-Nov-06
Country: US
Author: Tom Doggett
The proposed regulations would block emission in gasoline vapors of about 46,000 tons of hazardous pollutants each year, including cancer-causing benzene, the Environmental Protection Agency said. Benzene is put in gasoline to reduce knocking.
The rules would cover small facilities, including terminals and pipelines, that store gasoline and transfer it to trucks for transport to retail outlets. They also would curb emissions when gasoline is put into storage tanks at stations in urban areas.
Most facilities already comply with the proposed rules, but about 3,000 to 5,000 will need more controls, the EPA said.
The extra controls would cost between US$60 million and US$65 million for the large bulk facilities, but the agency said that money will be recouped and ultimately result in annual savings of about US$6 million.
"The value of the recovered gasoline and gasoline not allowed to evaporate will more than pay for the annual cost of the capital expenditures and the operation and maintenance of the equipment," the EPA said.
The agency will take public comment on the proposed standards for 30 days and plans to finalize them by the end of the year.
At gasoline distribution terminals and smaller bulk plants, gasoline is stored and loaded into trucks for delivery to service stations and convenience stores. Pumping stations also pull gasoline along a pipeline, sometimes temporarily storing it until it is re-injected into the pipeline for distribution to gasoline terminals.
There are separate existing air pollution regulations to reduce gasoline emissions from pump nozzles when drivers fill up their vehicles.