Best Practice Guidelines for Dry Cleaning

These Guidelines have been developed to help implement a European Directive on reducing emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) to the air from the consumption of organic solvents. The Directive has been brought into effect in Ireland through Regulations published in November 2002. All or part of this publication may be reproduced without further permission, provided the source is acknowledged. Care should be taken to direct those to whom such reproductions are made available to the relevant items of legislation for completeness and accuracy. Although every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the material contained in this publication, complete accuracy cannot be guaranteed. Neither the Environmental Protection Agency nor the authors accept any responsibility whatsoever for loss or damage occasioned or claimed to have been occasioned, in part or in full, as a consequence of any person acting, or refraining from acting, as a result of a matter contained in this publication. Section 1: Introduction; These Guidelines have been developed to help implement a European Directive on reducing emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) to the air from the consumption of organic solvents. The Directive has been brought into effect in Ireland through Regulations published in November 2002. The Directive was drawn up because solvent emissions can have harmful effects on human health and the environment. Dry cleaning is just one of the many types of businesses to be affected by the Directive. 1.1 What are solvents and VOCs? In dry cleaning a solvent called perchloroethylene is mainly used to clean textiles/clothing. Perchloroethylene, or perc as it is commonly called, is a solvent that is used to dissolve dirt and remove it from the clothes. Perc is also a volatile organic compound (VOC), i.e. a chemical that has a tendency to evaporate under ambient conditions. The Directive definitions for each of these terms are outlined below. Organic Compound (Directive definition): any compound containing at least the element carbon and one or more of hydrogen, halogens, oxygen, sulphur, phosphorus, silicon or nitrogen, with the exception of carbon oxides and inorganic carbonates and bicarbonates; Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) (Directive definition): any organic compound having at 293.15 K a vapour pressure of 0.01 kPa or more, or having a corresponding volatility under the particular conditions of use. Organic Solvent (Directive definition): any VOC which is used alone or in combination with other agents, and without undergoing a chemical change, to dissolve raw materials, products or waste materials, or is used as a cleaning agent to dissolve contaminants, or as a dissolver, or as a dispersion medium, or as a viscosity adjuster, or as a surface tension adjuster, or a plasticiser, or as a preservative. 1.2 What will the legislation mean for me? If you are involved in dry cleaning you are legally obliged to meet the relevant requirements of the solvents Regulations which are outlined in these Guidelines. Section 2: Sector Covered By The Guidelines; The activity covered by these Guidelines is dry cleaning, which is the use of organic solvents, principally perc (perchloroethylene), to clean clothes, textiles, furnishings and other similar items. There are generally two types of dry cleaning operation. The first involves commercial premises providing a dry cleaning service to the consumer. The second is dry cleaning carried out as part of an industrial activity, usually companies offering textile rental to business and industry. The former accounts for the majority of dry cleaning operations, as many of the latter are changing to conventional laundry services. There is one application which is not covered by these Guidelines - using solvent to manually remove stains and spots in the textile and clothing industry. In general, the dry cleaning process can be divided into five steps: 1. cleaning in solvent; 2. spinning to extract solvent; 3. drying with hot air and recovery of solvent; 4. deodorisation; 5. regeneration of used solvent after the clothes have been cleaned. Two main types of machine are in use: open-circuit machines - deodorisation of the clothes takes place with venting of drying air to atmosphere; closed-circuit machines - solvent is condensed from the drying air inside the machine and there is no general venting. Some closed-circuit machines have integral water-cooled or refrigerated condensers, while newer versions have integral activated carbon adsorption in addition to the refrigerated condensers. If you are still unsure as to whether your operation involves dry cleaning, the Directive definition is given below. Dry cleaning (Directive definition): any industrial or commercial activity using VOCs in an installation to clean garments, furnishing and similar consumer goods with the exception of the manual removal of stains and spots in the textile and clothing industry See Section 8 for a list of the emissions to air, water, and waste from the dry cleaning sector, and the sources of such emissions.

Table of Contents:
Section 1: Introduction 3; 1.1 What are solvents and VOCs? 3; 1.2 What will the Directive mean for me? 3; Section 2: Sector Covered by the Guidelines 4; Section 3: New or Existing Installations 5; Section 4: Summary of Legal Requirements 6; Section 5: Registration with your Local Authority & Certificates of Compliance 7; 5.1 Dates for registration and obtaining a certificate of compliance 7; 5.2 How do I register? 7; 5.3 What is the AIC report? 7; 5.4 How often must an AIC report be submitted? 8; 5.5 What must I do before getting an accredited inspection contractor? 8; 5.6 What will the AIC inspector look for on the day of inspection? 8; 5.7 Where can I find an accredited inspection contractor? 8; 5.8 What is the certificate of compliance? 8; 5.9 How long is the certificate of compliance valid? 9; Section 6: Emission Limit Value (ELV) 10; 6.1 The Emission Limit Value - what is it? 10; 6.2 How do I find out if I am meeting the Emission Limit Value? 10; 6.3 What do I do if I am above the Emission Limit Value? 10; 6.4 Emissions to Sewer/Water 10; Section 7: Solvent Management Plan 11; 7.1 Solvent Management Plan - What is it? 11; 7.2 Solvent Management Plan terms for Dry Cleaning 11; 7.3 Keeping Records - the Excel Spreadsheet 13; 7.4 Getting Information for the Solvent Management Plan Terms 13; 7.5 The Solvent Management Plan Calculation 14; 7.6 Comparing Actual Emissions with the Emission Limit Value 14; Section 8: Emissions and Sources 15; 8.1 Air 15; 8.2 Water 15; 8.3 Waste 15; Section 9: Other Mandatory Requirements 16; 9.1 Solvent Containment 16; 9.2 Safe Disposal of Solvent Containing Waste 16; 9.3 Training 17; 9.4 Documented Maintenance Records 18; Section 10: Reducing Emissions 19; 10.1 Load Minimisation or Source Reduction 19; 10.2 Containment 23; 10.3 Recovery and Recycling 25; 10.4 Abatement 27; Appendix 1: Glossary 28; Appendix 2: Registration Details 30; Appendix 3: Summary list of information to be gathered by dry cleaners 31; Appendix 4: Accurate Waste Sampling 32; Appendix 5: A Typical Maintenance Checklist 33; Appendix 6: References and Further Reading 34.