(1) Applicability. The owner or operator of any source may apply to the permitting authority for an emission reduction credit (ERC) if the source proposes to reduce its actual emissions rate for any contaminant regulated by state or federal law for which the emission requirement may be stated as an allowable limit in weight of contaminant per unit time for the emissions units involved.

(2) Time of application. The application for an ERC must be made prior to or within one hundred eighty days after the emission reduction has been accomplished.

(3) Conditions. An ERC may be authorized provided the following conditions have been demonstrated to the satisfaction of the permitting authority.

(a) The quantity of emissions in the ERC shall be less than or equal to the old allowable emissions rate or the old actual emissions rate, whichever is the lesser, minus the new allowable emissions rate. The old actual emissions rate is the average emissions rate occurring during the most recent twenty-four-month period preceding the request for an ERC. An alternative twenty-four-month period from within the previous five years may be accepted by the permitting authority if the owner or operator of the source demonstrates to the satisfaction of the permitting authority that the alternative period is more representative of actual operations of the unit or source.

(b) The ERC application must include a description of all the changes that are required to accomplish the claimed emissions reduction, such as, new control equipment, process modifications, limitation of hours of operation, permanent shutdown of equipment, specified control practices, etc.

(c) The reduction must be: Greater than otherwise required by an applicable emission standard, order of approval, or regulatory order and be permanent, quantifiable, and federally enforceable.

(d) The reduction must be large enough to be readily quantifiable relative to the source strength of the emissions unit(s) involved.

(e) No part of the emission reductions claimed for credit shall have been used as part of a determination of net emission increase, nor as part of an offsetting transaction under WAC 173-400-113(4) or 173-400-830, nor as part of a bubble transaction under WAC 173-400-120.

(f) No part of the emission reduction was included in the emission inventory used to demonstrate attainment or for reasonable further progress in an amendment to the state implementation plan.

(g) Concurrent with or prior to the authorization of an ERC, the applicant shall receive (have received) a federally enforceable regulatory order or permit that establishes total allowable emissions from the source or emissions unit of the contaminant for which the ERC is requested, expressed as weight of contaminant per unit time.

(h) The use of any ERC shall be consistent with all other federal, state, and local requirements of the program in which it is used.

(4) Additional information. Within thirty days after the receipt of an ERC application and all supporting data and documentation, the permitting authority may require the submission of additional information needed to review the application.

(5) Approval. Within thirty days after all required information has been received, the permitting authority shall approve or deny the application, based on a finding that conditions in subsection (3)(a) through (h) of this section have been satisfied or not. If the application is approved, the permitting authority shall:

(a) Issue a regulatory order or equivalent document to assure that the emissions from the source will not exceed the allowable emission rates claimed in the ERC application, expressed in weight of pollutant per unit time for each emission unit involved. The regulatory order or equivalent document shall include any conditions required to assure that subsection (3)(a) through (h) of this section will be satisfied. If the ERC depends in whole or in part upon the shutdown of equipment, the regulatory order or equivalent document must prohibit operation of the affected equipment; and

(b) Issue a certificate of emission reduction credit. The certificate shall specify the issue date, the contaminants involved, the emission decrease expressed as weight of pollutant per unit time, the nonattainment area involved, if applicable, and the person to whom the certificate is issued. The emission reduction credit listed in the certificate shall be less than the amount of emission reduction achieved by the source. The difference between the emission reduction and the emission reduction credit must be a decrease of at least one ton per year or one percent of the emission reduction, whichever decrease is greater.

(c) The certificate of emission reduction credit shall include the expiration date of the credit.