An Asset Management Approach for EPA/CARB SF6 Regulations Robert Preston Lloyd, P.E. Senior Technical Specialist ‐ Substation Compliance & Asset Management ‐
Southern California Edison April 2012 Paper Abstract Starting in 2011, the State of California, through the California Air Resources Board (CARB), became the first state to enact mandatory reductions in SF6 emissions. Over the last ten years, Southern California Edison’s (SCE) participation in the US Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Voluntary SF6 Emission Reduction Partnership for Electric Power Systems has yielded reduced SF6 emissions. Nonetheless, the more stringent regulations and related data requirements from CARB presented new challenges for gas‐ insulated switchgear owners. To address these challenges involving increased inventory and data management, our existing program had to evolve. Therefore, SCE transitioned the (mostly) paper documentation process to an electronic process involving our company‐wide asset management system and an in‐house‐developed field tool to ensure compliance with the more rigorous CARB SF6 regulations. This paper will present an overview of the tools and methods that SCE utilizes to track SF6 gas in our service territory to meet EPA’s and CARB’s mandatory requirements. The paper process that was used for the EPA reporting will be detailed followed by the transition of this paper process to an electronic process able to meet both EPA and CARB reporting requirements. A “user experience” analysis is described demonstrating the overall “life” of a gas cylinder upon entering inventory and eventually leaving inventory, including its usage, data processing, and reporting to regulators. SF6 Quality Assurance methods and related data analysis for reporting internally and externally will also be discussed. This paper is intended to be an approach for entities to model in an effort to aid them in meeting reporting requirements in an increasingly more stringent greenhouse gas regulatory climate.