The National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) for Area Sources under 40 CFR Part 63 Subpart HHHHHH (6H) applies to operations involving paint stripping and miscellaneous surface coating operations. The 6H rule applies to any of the following activities:

• Paint stripping using paint stripper containing methylene chloride
• Spary applications of coatings to metal or plastic substrates with coatings containing compounds of chromium, lead, maganese, nickel, or cadmium.

To help reduce air toxics and protect employee health, EPA created a Collision Repair Campaign and even produced a free 19-minute training video starring NASCAR driver Jeff Gordon to inform small shop owners about the paint stripping rule, worker protection, and best practices. For Pennsylvania small businesses in the automotive industry sector, be sure to check out EMAP’s information on Air Permitting and Surface Coating Operations.

Automotive operations often generate muncipal, residual, and hazardous wastes from automotive fluids handling, the recycling or salvaging of auto parts, and vehicle crushing operations. In Pennsylvania, small automotive operations should review DEP’s fact sheet on “Proper Management of Wastes from Automotive Recycling Operations” to better understand how to properly manage wastes onsite.  In addition, Pennsylvania DEP maintains a Waste Oil Program with information and requirements that apply for used motor oil, oil filters, and oil collection sites.

All automotive operations in Pennsylvania must manage their operations and property correctly to prevent fluids and waste materials from being exposed to the weather. In the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, DEP requires all operations to either submit a No Exposure Certification or obtain a permit for Industrial Stormwater. To better help the regulated community understand industrial stormwater permitting and the No Exposure Certification, DEP has created an FAQ document on the subject.