The secretary may designate, by rules proposed for legislative approval in accordance with article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, additional categories of aboveground storage tanks for which one or more of the requirements of this article may be waived upon a determination that such categories of aboveground storage tanks either do not represent a substantial threat of contamination or they are currently regulated under standards that are consistent with the protective standards and requirements set forth in this article and rules promulgated thereunder.