ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD

September

6,

1972

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

Complainant,

v.

)

PCB 72—244

JACK

OHLMAN

CONTRACTOR,

Respondent.

Prescott E.

Bloom, Assistant Attorney General for the EPA

Thomas

H.

Trager, Attorney fOr Respondent

OPINION AND

ORDER

OF THE BOARD

(by

Mr.

Henss)

Respondent

is charged with violating Section 9(c)

of the

Environmental Protection ~ct in that he caused or allowed open

burning of refuse at a construction site near Peoria Heights

on December

6,

1971.

Evidence revealed that on the date in

question the volunteer fire department of Peoria Heights was

called to the site to combat a trash fire.

The burning rubbish

was in

a pile about

30’

long,

20’ wide and

6’

in height.

It

consisted of cardboard boxes, wood, insulation,

paint cans,

concrete and various “tailings”

from the construction of apart-

ment buildings at that location.

Testimony indicated that it

was customary to pile up the trash and then haul it away by

truck at regular intervals.

The record does not reveal how the

fire started.

Respondent is the principal stockholder of Jack Ohlman and

Associates,

a corporation which has owned or controlled the

acreage in question for several years and has participated in the

construction of an apartment building complex on it.

Four apart-

ment buildings had been finished and six were under construction

at the time of the fire.

Respondent referred to the corporation

as

“my” corporation

(R.

30).

He admitted that he was in control

of the construction site

(R.

29).

Respondent was on the sitein his office when he learned of

the fire.

His foreman or “site boss”

and various subcontractors

were apparently on the job

at the time the fire started but they

did not testify.

The fire created a considerable amount of smoke in the resi-

dential area for several hours and was not completely extinguished

until the fire department had made two visits to the scene.

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379

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On the record we believe Respondent must be held responsible

for causing or allowing the open burning, even though there

is no

evidence that he started the fire or directed his employees to do

so.

It is clear that Respondent was in control of the area and

that the activities which led to the creation of the trash pile

and the disposal of

the

tailings were under his supervision.

The

best that can be said for Respondent is that he negligently failed

to properly supervise the disoosalof the trash.

The responsibility

was his.

Under the circumstances the. Respondent had the burden

of offering a satisfactory explanation for the fire.

EPA vs. Neal

Auto Salvage Inc. PCB 70-5.

This he failed to do.

This one occurrence does not require the imposition of

a

heavy penalty.

For an incident of this type without proof of

wrongful intent we believe a penalty of $100.00

is adequate.

ORDER

It is ordered that:

(1)

Respondent cease and desist from causing or allowing

open burning of refuse in violation of the Environ-

mental Protection Act.

(2)

Respondent Jack Ohiman shall pay to the State of

Illinois by October

6,

1972 the sum of $100.00 as

a penalty for the violations found in this proceeding.

Penalty payment by certified check or money order

payable to the State of Illinois shall be made to:

Fiscal Services Division, Illinois EPA,

2200 Churchill

Drive, Springfield, Illinois

62706.

I, Christan Moffett, Clerk of the Pollution Control Board, certify

that the Board adopted the above Opinion and Order this

/,

day of September,

1972, by a vote of

~

•~

Christan L. Moffett~Clerk

Illinois Pollution”control Board

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