ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD
February 23,
1989
SALT CREEK DRAINAGE BASIN
)
SANITARY DISTRICT S.T.P.,
)
)
Petitioner,
v.
)
PCB 89—37
ILLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL
PROTECTION AGENCY,
Respondent.
OPINION AND ORDER OF THE BOARD
(by
3.
Marlin):
This matter comes before
the Board upon
a February
21,
1989,
Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (Agency) Recommendation
that the Board grant
a
20 day extension
to
a provisional variance
issued
to the Salt Creek Drainage Basin Sanitary District S.T.P.
(Petitioner)
on January
5,
1989
in PCB 89—1.
Petitioner requests
a variance extension
to allow time
to do necessary repairs, sand
blasting,
and painting
on the sand fflter.
While these necessary
repairs are being
niade
it will not be able
to chlorinate
and will
therefore violate
its NPDES Fecal Coliform Effluent Limits.
Petitioner
owns and operates
a 5.0 MCD wastewater treatment
facility which consists of
a bar
screen, aerated grit removal,
pre—aeration, primary sedimentation,
activated sludge, secondary
clarification,
rapid
sand filtration, and chlorination.
Primary
and waste activated sludges are anaerobically digested prior
to
land application.
Effluent
is discharged
to Salt Creek which
is
a
tributary of the Des Plaines River.
Petitioner presently is required by its NPDES permit
to meet
effluent Fecal
Coliform limitation of 400 per 100
ml
for daily
maximum.
Petitioner received from
the Board
a provisional variance on
January
5,
1989
(PCB 89—1).
The variance began January
9,
1989
when the sand
filter was removed from service
and continued until
February
8,
1989,
30 days.
Petitioner has indicated
that the
repair work on
the sand filter could
not be completed during the
30 day variance due
t9
the following
reasons:
1.
Rusting spots on
the filter required more
sand blasting than originally planned.
2.
The large
fluctuations
in temperature have
caused delays
in repainting
the tanks.
$7
—2—
Temperatures were
in
the 40’s when the
tank
was drained, however, during the
first week
in February the high
temperature was only
in the teens.
Petitioner has stated that they currently chlorinated
in the
clear well which is located below the rapid sand filter.
Therefore, once
the sand filter was removed
from service for the
necessary repairs,
Petitioner
is not able
to chlorinate
until the
filter
is brought back on line.
Petitioner
has stated,
and the
Agency agrees,
that additional
time is needed
to complete this
repair work due
to the additional
time needed
for sand blasting
and poor weather conditions encountered during the construction.
The Agency anticipates
that since secondary treatment will
be provided that the environmental
impact on Salt Creek caused by
this repair work will be minimal.
There are
no public water supplies which would be adversely
affected by granting this provisional variance.
The closest
downstream water supply
is Peoria Water
Co., approximately 200
miles downstream.
There are no federal laws which would preclude the granting
of this variance.
The Agency’s opinion
is that denial
of this provisional
variance petition would create an arbitrary and unreasonable
hardship upon
the Petitioner.
The Agency bases its opinion on
the fact that the repainting work
is necessary
to maintain
structual stability and the Petitioner has
no alternative
to
removing the sand
filter from service
to do the necessary work.
The Agency recommends,
therefore,
that the Salt Creek
Drainage Sanitary Basin S.T.P.
be granted
a provisional variance
from 35
Ill.
Adni.
Code 302.209 Fecal Coliform subject to certain
conditions.
The Board having received
notification from
the Agency that
compliance on
a short
term basis with the Fecal Coliform
limitations imposed by
35 Ill. Adm. Code 302.209 would
impose
an
arbitrary and unreasonable hardship upon Petitioner,
and
the
Board concurring
in that notification, the Board grants extension
to its provisional variance subject
to the conditions suggested
by the Agency.
This Opinion constitutes the Board’s findings of fact and
conclusions of law in this matter.
ORDER
The Salt Creek Drainage Basin Sanitary District S.T.P.
96—”288
—3—
(Petitioner)
is hereby granted provisional variance from 35 Ill.
Adm. Code 302.209 Fecal Coliform subject
to the conditions set
forth below:
1.
This variance shall commence on February
9,
1989 and continue
for a period of 20
days or until
the filter
is returned to
service whichever occurs first.
2.
Petitioner shall notify Ted Denning at the
Agency’s Maywood Regional Office via
telephone at 312/345—9780 when
the filter
is returned to service.
Written
confirmation of each notification shall
be
sent within
5 days
to the following
address:
Illinois Environmental Protection
Agency
The Intercontinental Center
—
Suite
600
1701
S.
First Avenue
Maywood,
IL
60153
ATTN:
Ted Denning
Illinois Environmental Protection
Agency
Compliance Assurance Program
2200 Churchill Road
P.O. Box 19276
Springfield, IL
62794—9276
P.TTN:
Jan Hopper
3.
During this provisional variance,
Petitioner shall operate its wastewater
treatment facility so as
to produce the
best effluent practicable.
Additionally,
Petitioner shall perform the necessary
repair work on the sand filter
as
expeditiously as possible so
as to
minimize the period
of time that it is out
of service.
4.
Within
10 days of the date of this Order,
Petitioner shall execute a Certificate of
Acceptance and Agreement which
shall be
sent to Mark T.
Books at the Springfield
address indicated above.
96--289
—4—
This variance shall be void
if Petitioner
fails
to execute and forward the
certificate within the forty—five day
period.
The forty—five day period shall
be held
in abeyance during the period that
this matter is being appealed.
The form
of said Certificate shall
be as follows:
CERTIFICATE
I,
(We), Salt Creek Drainage Basin Sanitary District S.T.P.,
having read the Order of the Illinois Pollution Control Board,
in
PCB 89—37, dated February 23,
1989,
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
Section
41
of the Environmental Protection Act,
Ill. Rev.
Stat.
1985,
ch.
1111/2,
par.
1041, provides for appeal
of final
Orders of the Board within 35 days.
The Rules of the Supreme
Court of
Illinois establish filing requirements.
IT
IS SO ORDERED.
96—290
—5—
I, Dorothy M Gunn, Clerk of the Illinois Pollution Control
Order was
adopted on the
‘~—
day of _________________________
Board, hereby certify that the above
1989,
by a vote of
___________
Doroth~unn,Cl
erk,
Illinois P~1utionControl Board
96—291