The South Coast Air Quality Management District’s (AQMD’s) Annual 
Emission Reporting (AER) program was developed to track emissions of air contaminants from permitted facilities. Loma Linda University Health is one of the facilities that is permitted under the Title V permit by South Coast AQMD to allow us to emit certain pollutants into the air with strict limits. LLUH has to pay fees for the air contaminates that we emit into the air. Fees for emissions of air contaminants are assessed based on the reported data. These fees help to cover the costs of evaluating, planning, inspecting, and monitoring air quality efforts.
Why we are subject to this report?
Every facility that had emission of criteria pollutants and 24 Toxic Air contaminants and Ozone Depleting Compounds (TACs ad ODCs) that exceeded the following threshold is subject to this program per Rule 301 requirement and Loma Linda University Health is one of those permitted facilities.
Emission Threshold Chart
What should be included in the emission report?
We should report all emissions from all permitted and non-permitted stationary and portable sources, and processes. Examples; Permitted Turbines,Permitted Boiler(Capacity>2MMBtu/hr.), Non-permitted boiler, Permitted Internal Combustion Engines (>50BHP), Material usage/handling/processing, use of Organic materials, etc. All the emissions are calculated based on fuel usage, material usage and appropriate emission factors.
Who prepares the report and how the data are collected?
Environmental Health & Safety office prepares the Annual Air Emission Report on behalf of the Loma Linda University Health and submits to the South Coast AQMD then the emission fee is paid by department of Risk Management. The data are collected mainly from the Power Plant, LLUMC Facility Management, LLU Campus Engineering, Clinical laboratory, Pathology laboratory, Anatomy Laboratory, Printing Services, Fleet Services and other areas that subject to this reporting.
When is the deadline for the report?
The deadline for the submission of AER report usually is March 1 of each year. It takes few weeks for EH&S to organize the data, calculates the emission, generate the report and create the check. In order to submit the report in accuracy and timely manner, EH&S encourage all pertinent departments submit their data to the EH&S as early as possible and latest by January 31. EH&S will send a courtesy email beginning of the year to remind all pertinent departments to submit their data to the EH&S.
Environmental Health & Safety is committed to provide excellent services to ensure LLUH remains regulatory complaint.
Have questions or comments about the report? Visit the Speaking of Safety blog to join the conversation.
This post appears in the Environmental Health and Safety Speaking of Safety blog, a two-way communication tool created to increase communication among LLUH safety coordinators and the Department of Environmental Health and Safety.