ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD
    August 20,
    1981
    ILLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL
    )
    PROTECTION AGENCY,
    )
    Complainant,
    v.
    )
    PCB 78—212
    CATERPILLAR TRACTOR COMPANY,
    a California corporation,
    )
    Respondent.
    MR. WILLIAM E.
    BLAKNEY, ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL, APPEARED ON
    BEHALF OF THE COMPLAINANT.
    MR. STEVEN
    C. HOFFMAN, ATTORNEY AT LAW, APPEARED ON BEHALF OF THE
    RESPONDENT.
    OPINION AND ORDER OF THE BOARD
    (by N.E.Werner):
    This matter comes before the Board on the August
    8,
    1978
    Complaint brought by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency
    (“Agency”).
    Count
    I of the Complaint alleged that, from October, 1977 until
    March,
    1978, the Respondent, the Caterpillar Tractor Company
    (“Caterpillar Tractor” or the “Company”),
    intermittently discharged
    effluents from the wastewater treatment facility (“facility”) of its
    East Peoria tractor assembly plant which exceeded the limitations
    for oil and grease established by its NPDES Permit No.
    IL 0002291
    in violation of Rule 901 of Chapter
    3:
    Water Pollution Control
    Regulations (“Chapter
    3”) and Sections
    12(a) and 12(f) of the
    Illinois Environmental Protection Act (“Act”).
    Additionally, Count
    I alleged that, on January
    9,
    1978,
    January 23, 1978,
    February 13,
    1978, and February 20,
    1978,
    the
    Respondent discharged effluents which exceeded the cyanide limits
    in its NPDES Permit in violation of
    Rule 901 of Chapter
    3 and
    Sections 12(a)
    and 12(f)
    of the Act.
    Count II alleged that, on February 16,
    1978, Caterpillar
    Tractor discharged effluent from its facility which contained a
    cyanide concentration level of 0.5 mg/i in violation of Rules 401(c)
    and 408(a) of Chapter
    3 and Section 12(a) of the Act.
    43—157
    —2
    Count III alleged that the Respondent failed to notify the
    Agency within
    5 days after the Company became aware of its
    non—compliance with the effluent limitations in its NPDES Permit
    in violation of the
    terms
    of this NPDES Permit,
    Rule 901 of Chapter
    3,
    and Sections 12(a) and 12(f) of the Act.
    A hearing was held on June 16,
    1981 at which the parties
    submitted an unsigned copy of the Stipulation and Proposal for
    Settlement
    (“Stipulation”).
    The parties filed an executed copy
    of this Stipulation on July
    7,
    1981 which was substantially
    identical* to the initially submitted unsigned copy of the Stipulation.
    Caterpillar Tractor owns and operates a tractor assembly manu-
    facturing plant which is located at 600 West Washington Street in
    East Peoria,
    Illinois.
    (Stip.
    1).
    The Company,
    as part of its
    plant operations, utilizes a wastewater treatment facility which
    discharges effluents into the Illinois River pursuant to NPDES
    Permit
    No.
    IL 0002291.
    (See: Exhibit A).
    The parties have stipulated that a grab sample from the
    Respondent’s discharge at its East Peoria plant was collected by the
    Agency on February 16,
    1978 and, when analyzed,
    this sample
    contained a cyanide concentration of 0.5 mg/l.
    (Stip. 6).
    Subsequently, after numerous discussions between the Agency
    and the Company’s technical personnel, Caterpillar Tractor adopted
    various measures to comply with the conditions in its NPDES Permit
    pertaining to allowable concentrations of oil, grease, and cyanide,
    and the reporting of excursions.
    (Stip.
    6-8).
    To control oil and grease discharges,
    the Company repaired
    broken oil lines,
    stopped leaking oil, eliminated the recirculation
    of decanted liquids and sludges back through the primary separators
    of its wastewater treatment plant, eliminated plugged filters,
    changed oil treatment overflow pipes, added prepared clay to the
    influent
    (“to provide better absorption and removal of oil
    in the
    primary separators”), and reworked its “Heat Treat quench pits”
    to eliminate the overflowing of oil into sewers,
    (Stip.
    6-7).
    In order to better control cyanide discharges, the Respondent
    made “hundreds of sample analyses...in all areas throughout the
    plant”, but discovered no major source or use of cyanide except for
    *However, additional information was provided by the attachment of
    three exhibits.
    Exhibit A is
    a copy of the Respondent’s NPDES
    Permit.
    Group
    Exhibit
    B
    consists
    of
    the
    Company’s
    monthly
    Discharge
    Monitoring Reports.
    Group Exhibit C includes reports of non—complying
    discharges.
    43—158
    —3—
    “small quantities in duplicating machines which would not normally
    find their way” into the sewer system.
    (Stip.
    7).
    However, “during
    the sampling program it was discovered that certain combinations of
    chlorinated solvents, amines and nitrates
    (all of which are used
    in
    varying amounts in the plant) will indicate small quantities of
    cyanide when analyzed by standard methods”.
    (Stip.
    7).
    The Company also inaugurated a “formalized system of direct
    reporting to a responsible manager”
    in order to see that any
    excursions are promptly reported within
    5 days after the analyses of
    samples are completed.
    (Stip.
    7-8).
    The proposed settlement agreement provides that the Company
    agrees to cease and desist from further violations and pay a
    stipulated penalty of $1,000.00
    .
    (Stip.
    8—9).
    In evaluating this enforcement action and proposed settlement
    agreement, the Board has taken into consideration all the facts and
    circumstances in light of the specific criteria delineated in
    Section 33(c) of the Act.
    The Board finds the settlement agreement
    acceptable under Procedural Rule 331 and Section 33(c)
    of the Act.
    Accordingly, the Board finds that the Respondent, the Caterpillar
    Tractor Company, has violated Rules 401(c),
    408(a), and 901 of
    Chapter 3:
    Water Pollution Control Regulations and Sections 12(a)
    and 12(f)
    of the Illinois Environmental Protection Act.
    The Company
    will be ordered to cease and desist from further violations and pay
    the stipulated penalty of $1,000.00
    This Opinion constitutes the Board’s findings of fact and
    conclusions of law in this matter.
    ORDER
    It is the Order of the Illinois Pollution Control Board that:
    1.
    The Respondent, the Caterpillar Tractor Company, has
    violated Rules 401(c), 408(a), and 901 of Chapter 3:
    Water Pollution
    Control Regulations and Sections 12(a) and 12(f) of the Illinois
    Environmental Protection Act.
    2.
    The Respondent
    shall cease and desist from further violations.
    3.
    Within 35 days of the date of this Order, the Respondent
    shall, by certified check or money order payable to the State of
    Illinois, pay the stipulated penalty of $1,000.00 which is to be
    sent to:
    Illinois Environmental Protection Agency
    Fiscal Services Division
    2200 Churchill Road
    Springfield, Illinois
    62706
    43—159
    —4—
    4.
    The Respondent shall comply with all the terms and
    conditions of the Stipulation and Proposal for Settlement filed
    on July 7,
    1981, which is incorporated by reference as if fully set
    forth herein.
    I,
    Christan L. Moffett, Clerk of the Illinois Pollution Control
    Board, herqby certify that the ~bove Opinion and Order wer~adopted
    on the
    ~C’1’~
    day of
    _____________,
    1981 by a vote of
    3’L
    —.
    (~)
    ~
    ~-Th-4~th’
    -
    Christan L.
    Moffett(,
    ~erk
    Illinois Pollution
    on rol Board
    43—160

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