ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD
April
16,
1981
CITY OF CRYSTAL LAKE,
Petitioner,
v.
)
PCB
81—i
ILLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY,
)
Respondent.
OPINION AND ORDER OF THE BOARD
(by J. Anderson):
This matter comes before the Board on the petition filed
January
2,
1981,
as amended February
23,
1981,
for extension of
the variance from the 1.0
mg/i
barium concentration
limitation
of Rule 304(B)(4)
of Chapter
6:
Public Water Supplies which wa~
granted in City of Crystal Lake v.
ISPA,
PCB 77—332,
33 PCB 185
(March 29,
1979).
On March 20, 1981 the Illinois Environmental
Protection Agency (Agency) filed its Recommendation in support
of the petition.
Hearing was waived and none has been held.
Consistent with the terms of the Board’s prior Order, by
use of its existing synthetic resin type ion exchange treatment
equipment the City of Crystal Lake
(City), McHenry County, has
been providing its population of approximately 8,300 persons
with finished water containing 4.0 mg/i barium.
As previously
stated,
the finished water from three of the City’s wells
contains barium in excess of 1.0 mg/i, and two of these exceed
4.0 mg/i
(33 PCB 186).
In exploring ~ompliance options as required by the original
variance,
the City has identified three methods by which the
barium content of its water could be further reduced:
further
ion exchange treatment,
construction of new shallow wells,
or
use of water from the Fox River.
The City argues that each
treatment technique will be expensive to finance,
and difficult
to implement.
(The Agency notes that a possible fourth option,
blending,
“would be a difficult proposition as well,” given the
nature of the City’s system.
Rec.
2.)
The City states that reducing the barium below the
4 mg/i by
further ion—exchange treatment would produce an
“aggressive
and
unstable” water requiring additional pumps,
holding tanks and
chemicals to stabilize.
Annual operating costs would increase
at least $100,000; water supply would be reduced by 224,000 gal-
lons per day and an additional well would he required together
with softeners, pumps,
and other appurtenances.
Moreover, the
ion—exchange water treatment facilities cannot produce a consistent
finished water quality of 1.0 mg/i barium using the waters of
the
City’s existing deep sandstone water supply wells.
4 1—273
2
Alternatively, the City could discontinue using its three
primary high capacity deep sandstone wells and construct ten
new low capacity shallow limestone wells and additional treatment
facilities.
The estimated construction cost of this
is $4,000,000
and the increase in the City’s annual cost of operation, depreci-
ation, and debt service is estimated to he approximately $615,000
per year.
The City’s other choice would be to discontinue using
its
three primary high capacity deep sandstone wells and pipe water
from the Fox River.
The estimated cost of construction for
transmission lines,
treatment plants and other appurtenances
is
estimated at $8,000,000.
In addition to financial hardship, the City alleges that
consumption of barium at these
levels does not adversely affect
the health of its water users
(see 33 PCB 185—6) and notes
that the federal barium standard has been the subject of contin-
uing study.
The Village therefore requests extension of variance
until January
1,
1984,
the deadline date for exemptions under
Section 1416 of the Safe Drinking Water Act,
42 U.S.C.
§300(g)—5.
The Board finds that to require immediate compliance would
impose an arbitrary or unreasonable hardship,
given the great
expense of complying with
a standard under review,
and the
existence of little,
if any, threat to public health.
Variance
is accordingly granted until January
1,
1984 subject
to the
conditions outlined in the attached order.
This Opinion constitutes the Board’s findings of fact and
conclusions of law
in this matter
ORDER
1.
Petitioner, the City
of Crystal Lake,
is granted a
variance from the 1.0 maximum barium concentration limit of
Rule
304
of Chapter
6:
Public Water Supply until January
1,
1984,
subject to the following conditions:
A.
Petitioner shall continue to investigate
the compliance
options
it has identified, but shall also investigate
the possi-
bility of blending.
B.
Beginning on or about June
1,
1981,
and at six month
intervals thereafter, the Petitioner shall communicate with the
Agency in order to ascertain whether new barium removal
techniquc~.;
applicable to its system have been developed and identified.
C.
As expeditiously after identification of a feasible
compliance method as is practicable, but no later than January
1,
1983,
Petitioner shall submit to the Agency a program
(with
increments of progress)
for bringing its system into compliance
with barium standards.
41—274
3
D.
Petitioner shall take all reasonable measures with
its
existing equipment to minimize the level of barium in its water
supply and shall not allow the barium concentration to exceed
4.0 mg/l.
E.
Pursuant to Rule 313(D)(1)
of Chapter
6, on or before
June 30,
1981 and every three months thereafter,
Petitioner will
send to each user of its public water supply a written notice to
the effect that Petitioner has been granted by the Pollution
Control Board a variance from the 1.0 mg/i maximum barium stand-
ard.
The notice shall state the average content of barium in
samples taken since the last notice period during which samples
were taken.
2.
Within forty—five days of the date of this Order,
Petitioner shall execute and forward to David L. Rieser, Technical
Advisor,
Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, Enforcement
Programs,
2200 Churchill Road, Springfield,
Illinois
62706,
a
Certificate of Acceptance and Agreement to be bound
to all terms
and conditions of this variance.
This forty-five day period
shall be held in abeyance for any period this matter is being
appealed.
The form of the certificate
shall be as follows:
CERTIFICATE
I,
(We), _______________________________,
having read
the Order of the Illinois Pollution Control Board in PCB 81-1,
dated __________________________, understand and accept the said
Order, realizing that such acceptance renders all terms and
conditions thereto binding and enforceable.
Petitioner
By:
Authorized Agent
Title
Date
IT IS SO ORDERED.
I, Christan L. Moffett, Clerk of the Illinois Pollution
Control Board, hereby certify that the above Opinion and Order
were adopted on the
~
day of
_____________,
1981 by
a vote of
S—O
.
~.
ki-
~JL1
Christan L. Moffetl~, Clerk~
Illinois Pollution Control Board
41—275