ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD

March

26, 1975

ALTON BOX BOARD COMPANY,

Petitioner,

v.

)

PCB 74—491

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY,

Respondent.

MR. KARL K. HOAGLAND,

JR., Attorney of Record for Petitioner;

MR. HENRY

J. HANDZEL,

JR., Attorney of Record for Respondent.

OPINION

AND

ORDER OF THE BOARD

(by Mr. Dumelle):

Aiton Box Board Company

(Alton)

filed

a request for an

extens:Lon of a previously granted variance on December 31,

1974 relating to discharges from its Alton paper mill.

The

Environmental Protection Agency

(Agency)

filed a request for

hearing and a recommendation on February

6,

1975.

On February

27,

1975

the

Pollution Control Board

(Board)

entered an

order denying the Agency’s request for hearing but allowing

the parties

10 days to submit additional

information with

respect to the variance extension and allowing an additional

five

days for the filing of rebuttal statements by March 14,

1975.

Aiton filed a response to points raised

in

the Agency

recommendation on March

7,

1975.

The Agency filed a rebuttal

statement on March 17,

1975.

Alton seeks to extend the variance granted by the Board

in Alton Box Board Company

v.

EPA,

PCB

73-140,

9 PCB 15

(August

9,

1973)

,

as extended by the Board pursuant to the

order in Alton Box Board Company v.

EPA, PCB 74-5,

13 PCB 63

(July

18,

1974).

The extension Alton seeks

is a one-year

extension to and including April

6,

1976.

The extension

granted in PCB 74-5 was the result of

a stipulation and an

agreement between the Agency and Alton with respect to the

variance proceedings and two separate enforcement actions

(PCB

73—61,

74—51, and 74-15)

.

Alton stipulated that the

Board could take official notice of the prior proceeding and

the petition for variance in PCB 73-140 and the petition for

extension of variance in PCB 74-5.

Alton alleges that it

fully and timely complied with all the Board requirements

and conditions set forth in the Board order in the two

previous variance actions.

Alton further alleged that to

deny the variance extension would impose an arbitrary and

unreasonable hardship.

16—227

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The Agency,

in its recommendation to deny the variance

extension, denied that Alton was in complete compliance with

the conditions

of the previous Board orders.

The Agency

raised a series of points of the prior Board order, on a

paragraph by paragraph basis, which it believed Alton had

failed to comply with.

Based upon this analysis, the Agency

recommended that the Board deny the variance petition until

Alton submitted adequate proof that it had complied with the

prior Board order or that failure to comply with the conditions

were due to circumstances beyond the control of Alton.

The

Agency further recommended that if the variance be granted

that certain specific conditions be attached.

The Response To The Point Raised In The Agency’s Recommenda-

tion filed by Alton on March

7,

1975 answered many of the

points raised by the Agency’s recommendation.

The Agency

noted,

in its rebuttal to Alton’s response, that Alton had

shown that

59 working days were lost between June

4,

1974

and February 14,

1975 due to labor problems, mechanical

breakdowns of equipment and inclement weather.

Alton further

provided data indicating that it incurred expenses of $6,391.19

in order to keep the impoundment area at a low water level.

Based upon the information provided by Alton

in the March

response,

the Agency stated it believed that “Alton had

substantially complied with the requirements of paragraph

1,

3,

4a,

4b,

4c,

4d,

4e, and

6 of the Board’s order in PCB 74-

51”.

The Agency,

however,

stated that it still felt that

Alton had failed to provide sufficient data to justify non-

compliance with paragraph

2,

4f, and

5 of the Board’s order

in PCB 74-51.

The Board agrees with several questions submitted by

the Agency.

Paragraph

3 of the order in PCB 74-51 required

that Alton “immediately construct and operate a means to

divert Alton mill effluent directly to the Mississippi

River.. .by July 30, 1974”.

Alton has stated that it did not

achieve compliance with paragraph

3 until March

6,

1975.

It

should be pointed out that the Board granted the extension

in PCB 74-51 as part of an overall settlement of the variance

and enforcement cases.

One enforcement case dealt with a

very grave hydrogen sulfide

(H2S)

emission problem resulting

from the impoundment of Alton’s high BOD and sulfate effluent.

The parties agreed, and the Board ordered,

that Alton discharge

its effluent directly to the Mississippi River no later than

July 30,

1974.

Alton in its response stated that

“it would

be

a fair statement to say that it was a well-known fact

that the original dates specified in the stipulation could

not possibly be met at the time the stipulation was approved

by the Board”.

The Agency disputes this “well-known fact”

and stated that “the Agency did indeed expect these dates to

16—228

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be adhered to

in accordance with the conditions of the

stipulation”.

The Board agrees with the Agency.

A date

contained in

a Pollution Control Board order

is to be complied

with.

Alton should need no reminder that it has filed a

substantial bond to insure compliance with the terms and

conditions of

the original variance and the order extending

the original variance.

This order required installation of

the pipeline by July

30,

1974.

If Alton could not comply

with this provision of the suggested order, then Alton

should not have agreed and so submitted that provision.

If

Alton cannot comply with a date or provision of a Board

order, then Alton should seek to modify that order through

an appropriate variance proceeding

(or,

if timely,

a motion

to modify pursuant to Procedural Rule 334)

.

The installation

of the pipeline was an integral part to the prior Board

order.

The Board further agrees with the Agency that Alton has

failed to adequately comply with paragraph

2 of the order in

PCB 74-51.

This paragraph required Alton to neutralize,

treat or remove any odor—producing sludge which had accumulated

in the impoundment area on a one—time basis so as to prevent

future emission of offensive odors to the atmosphere which

could result from said sludge.

While paragraph

2 required

that Alton take these steps once Alton had constructed and

operated a means to divert its effluent directly to the

Mississippi River,

as discussed in the prior paragraph,

this

pipeline was to have been constructed no later than July

30,

1974.

Alton in its response stated that it had undertaken

some action and that a report from its consultant was expected

within a month.

The Agency stated any variance extension

should be conditioned upon the submittal of an acceptable

program for accomplishing the prior requirement of paragraph

2 of the previous Board order.

The Board agrees with this

Agency recommendation and will so condition the grant of

this variance extension.

Paragraph 4f of the prior variance extension required

Alton to “dispose of any sludge removed from the sludge

lagoon or clarifier in a manner acceptable to the Agency”.

Alton has removed an accumulation of sludge from the lagoon

and stock piled it adjacent to the lagoon.

Although Alton

states that it has “not disposed”

of the sludge as of yet,

Alton has clearly

“removed” such sludge from the lagoon.

The Board will condition an extension of this variance upon

requirement that Alton submit a report setting forth an

engineering program acceptable to the Agency for disposal of

the sludge removed from the sludge lagoons or clarifier.

16—229

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—4—

Paragraph

5 of the previous order required Alton to

“prepare and implement an Agency-approved water pollution

control abatement program for effluent to the ditch on

the northside of the Alton mill property”.

Alton correctly

states that no time limit was imposed for the preparation of

an Agency-approved water pollution abatement program for

this effluent.

Alton states that it has undertaken an

engineering program to identify and locate sources of effluent

within its plants during September through November of

1974.

The Agency states that compliance with the requirement for

this effluent was necessary by December 31,

1974.

Therefore,

the Agency recommends

that before Alton should be granted a

variance for this effluent, that Alton should submit a

preliminary plan for abatement of this discharge within 45

days

of the date of the Board order or in the alternative

the Agency recommends that a variance be denied for this

discharge.

Rather than deny the variance the Board will

condition the variance extension upon a submittal of

a

preliminary plan within 45 days.

The Agency recommends that any grant of

a variance

extension be conditioned upon the imposition of numerical

limitations on Alton’s discharge.

Alton states that the

Agency recommendations for numerical limitations, which are

found in Table

I of Agency Exhibit

2, which accompanied the

Agency Recommendation, and were based on

a single test and

may not be representative of those contaminants under any

and all conditions~ Alton further states,

however, that,

it

would have no objection to the imposition of these numerical

limits so long as the basic intention of the parties to

provide a sufficient and complete variance from these effluent

limits is not violated.

Because of the long Board policy in

imposing upper numerical limitations on variances whenever

possible, the Board will condition the variance extension

from Rule 408 upon such limitations.

Should Alton not

maintain its effluent within such limitations it can take

appropriate action.

The Board finds with the exception of those portions of

the Board order previously discussed,

that Alton has established

substantial compliance with the previous Board order and

that to deny such variance extension would

impose an arbitrary

and unreasonable hardship.

For these reasons the Board will

extend the previously granted variance subject to those

conditions which have been previously discussed.

This Opinion constitutes the Board’s findings of fact

and conclusions of law.

ORDER

The Pollution Control Board hereby extends the variance

16—230

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previously granted in PCB 74-5 to Alton Box Board Company from

April

6,

1974 until April

6,

1976 subject

to

the following

conditions:

(1)

That this variance shall be limited to Rules 402,

403,

404(b)

and 408(a)

as to Iron

(total),

Iron

(dissolved),

Lead

(total), Manganese

(total), Oil

(Hexane solubles or

equivalent), Phenols,

and Total Dissolved Solids and 408(b),

408(c), and 962 of Chapter

3, and a limited variance from

Section 12(a)

of the Act.

The variance from Section 12(a)

is to be limited to the discharge of BOD~,

Total Suspended

Solids,

Total Dissolved Solids and the c~ntaminantsspecified

under Rule 408(a) above.

(2)

That the variance from Rule 408(a)

shall be limited

to the following:

Iron

(total)

4.0 mg/i

Iron

(dissolved)

2.0 mg/i

Lead

(total)

1.0 mg/i

Manganese

(total)

1.5 mg/i

Oil

(Hexane Solubles

or equivalent)

40.0 mg/l

Phenols

1.0 mg/i

Total Dissolved Solids

5,000

mg/i

(3)

That Alton shall comply with the following schedule:

(a)

Until August 31,

1975, Alton’s discharges

shall not exceed 130 mg/i of suspended solids as a

monthly average nor 260 mg/l of suspended solids as

a daily maximum based on a 24—hour composite sample

at any time.

(b)

Completion of conversion to 100

secondary

fiber shall be attained by June 30,

1975.

Cc)

Interim effluent limitations of 20,000 lbs

of BOO5 as

a daily average and 40,000 lbs of BOD5

as a daily maximum, and 4,200 lbs of suspended solids

daily average and 8,400 lbs of suspended solids as

a daily maximum shall be attained by August 31,

1975.

(d)

Progress reports on Stages

3 and 4 shall be

submitted on February 28,

1976 to the Agency.

(e)

Preliminary wastewater treatment plant plans

and specifications shall be submitted by March

31,

1976 to the Agency.

(f)

Completion

of Stage

4 and compliance with the

standards of

20 mg/i of BOD5 and 25 mg/i of suspended

solids shall be attained by June 30,

1978.

16—231

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(g)

Attainment of all the requirements

for Rule

408 shall be made by June

30,

1978.

(4)

That Alton collect samples for all parameters set

forth in Table

1 contained in Agency Exhibit

2 at least once

every six months.

That the company collect samples and

report analysis for all parameters included within paragraph

1 of this order on a monthly basis to the Agency.

(5)

That Alton submit a report within 30 days detailing

the steps which it has taken and intends to take to neutralize

or treat the sludge remaining in the impoundment area.

(6)

That Alton submit within 60 days a report setting

forth an engineering program acceptable to the Agency for

disposal of sludge removed from the sludge lagoons or clarifier.

(7)

That the pipe and pump station for diverting its

effluent directly to the river is kept operating during this

variance extension.

(8)

That Aiton continue to provide monthly progress

reports on items yet to be completed as required in the

prior Board orders PCB 73—140, August 9,

1973,

and PCB 74—5,

August 29,

1974.

(9)

That Alton procure all permits necessary for

implementation of its abatement program.

(10) That the performance bond posted in PCB 73-140

remain in full force and effect and be so modified as to

assure performance of the conditions of this variance.

(11) That Alton file a statement with the Board and the

Agency accepting all the terms and conditions of any variance

extension within

35 days from the date of the Board order.

(12) That Alton submit to the Agency an acceptable

abatement program for discharges

from the water treatment

facility to the ditch on the north side of Aiton mill property

within 45 days of the date of the Board’s order.

IT IS SO ORDERED.

I, Christan L. Moffett, Clerk of the Illinois Pollution

Control Board, hereby cer1~ifythe above Opinion and Order

weçe adopted on the

~

day of March, 1975 by a vote of

L1-O

Illinois Pollution Control Board