BILL NUMBER: S841

SPONSOR: BIAGGI
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the environmental conservation law, in relation to
reducing emissions of air pollutants from petroleum bulk storage facili-
ties

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

To reduce air pollution emitted by petroleum bulk storage facilities.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 provides a statement of findings and definitions, and amends
the environmental conservation law by adding a new section 17-1016 to
require petroleum bulk storage facilities to paint their tanks white or
beige/cream.

Section 2 sets forth the effective date.
              

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Petroleum bulk storage facilities around New York State contribute
significantly to hazardous air pollution. Many of these facilities are
near residential communities, including a number of low income and
minority communities.

Petroleum bulk storage tanks emit hazardous air pollutants(1), including
benzene, a known human carcinogen,(2) through evaporation loss. Evapo-
ration loss occurs when molecules from a stored liquid form a vapor in
the space above the liquid and escape into the atmosphere.(3) The rate
of evaporation loss increases in the presence of two factors: heat and
vapor pressure.(4)

This bill serves to reduce heat in petroleum bulk storage tanks and will
reduce the evaporation loss of harmful pollutants.

The external paint color of a petroleum bulk storage tank significantly
affects the temperature of the tank's metal.(5) Dark-colored paints have
high absorptivity rates and cause metal tanks to retain heat from
sunlight whereas white, light-colored, and reflective paints with low
absorptivity rates reduce tank heating by minimizing sunlight absorp-
tion.(6) Studies have shown a nearly 300% decrease in evaporation losses
where tanks are painted with a minimally absorptive paint color.(7)

This bill will require all above-ground petroleum storage' tanks be
painted white or beige to minimize sunlight absorption and, ultimately,
the emission of hazardous air pollutants. This is a low-cost and
straightforward way to protect the health and safety of New Yorkers by
addressing a significant contributor to hazardous air pollutants.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2020: 59083 - Died in Rules

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
January 1st, 2023.
1 "Hazardous air pollutants" as used herein includes the chemicals list-
ed in the "Clean Air Act", 42 U.S.C.S. § 7412(b) (1).
2 Center for Disease Control and Prevention, "Facts about Benzene",
NATIONAL CENTER FOR ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH, April 4, 2018.
3 TI-3 Petroleum Committee, Air Pollution Control Association, Control
of Atmospheric Emissions From Petroleum Storage Tanks, 21 J. AIR
POLLUTION CONTROL ASS'N 260, 260 (1971); see also Office of the Federal
Register, National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants:
Miscellaneous Coating Manufacturing Residual Risk and Technology Review,
84 F.R. 46419, 46627 (2019).
4 TI-3 Petroleum Committee, supra note 1 at 260.
5 Farzaneh-Gord, Nabati, Saadat-Targhi, Rasekh & Niazmand, Selecting
best painting colour for crude oil storage tanks' exterior surface, 23
INT'L J. OIL, GAS & COAL TECH at Abstract (2020).
6 Tavakoli & Baktash, Numerical Analysis for Effect of Envelop Color of
Oil Tank Storage with Floating Roof, 2 INT'L J. MODERN ENG. RES.  3773,
3781 (2012). This study compared two paint colors: one with an absorp-
tivity rate of 0.9, the other with an absorptivity rate of 0.1.  id.;
see also Farzaneh-Gord, supra note 4.