BEFORE

THE

ILLINOIS

POLLUTION

CONTROL

BOAR])

IN THE

MATFER

OF:

PROPOSED SITE

SPECIFIC

RULE

FOR

CITY

OF SPRINGFIELD,

ILLINOIS, OFFICE

OF

PUBLIC

UTILITIES, CITY

WATER,

LIGHT

AND

POWER

AND

SPRINGFIELD

METRO

SANiTARY DISTRICT

FROM

35 ILL.

ADM.

CODE

SECTION

302.208(g)

C1EVE

CLERK’S

OFFICE

NOTICE

OF

FILING

John

Theirrault,

Clerk

Illinois

Pollution

Control

Board

James

R.

Thompson

Center

100 W.

Randolph,

Suite

11-500

Chicago,

Illinois

60601

Bill

Richardson,

Chief

Legal

Counsel

Illinois

Department

of

Natural

Resources

One Natural

Resources Way

Springfield,

illinois

62702-1271

Katherine

D.

lodge

Hodge

Dwyer

Zeman

3150

Roland

Avenue

P.O.

Box

5776

Springfield, illinois

62705-5776

Marie

E.

Tipsord

Hearing

Officer

James

R.

Thompson

Center

100W.

Randolph,

Suite

11-500

Chicago,

Illinois

60601

Christine

G.

Zeman

Hodge

Dwyer

Zeman

3150

Roland

Avenue

P.O.

Box

5776

Springfield,

Illinois

62705-5776

Matt

Dunn,

Chief

Environmental

Bureau

Office

of the

Attorney

General

100

W. Randolph,

12

th

Floor

Chicago,

Illinois

60601

PLEASE

TAKE

NOTICE

that

I

have

filed

today

with

the

Illinois

Pollution

Control

Board

the

PREFILED

TESTIMONY

OF

ROBERT

MOSHER,

a

copy of

which

is

herewith

served

upon

you.

Dated:

October

27, 2008

1021

North

Grand

Ave.

East

P.O.

Box 19276

Springfield, Illinois

62794-9276

(217)

782-5544

ILLINOIS

ENVIRONMENTAL

PROTECTION

AGENCY

Joey

Loga

-Wil

y

Assistant

Counsel

Division

of Legal

Counsel

OCT

192008

))

)

‘flUution

STATE

OF

Control

ILLINOIS

BOai’d

)

PCB

No. 2009-0008

)

(Rulemaking-Water)

)

)

THIS

FILING

PRINTED

ON

RECYCLED

PAPER

---

BEFORE

THE

ILLINOIS

POLLUTION

CONTROL

BOARD

:

iN

THE

MATTER

OF:

OCT

2008

PROPOSED

SITE

SPECIFIC

)

lutfr

°9NOIs

RULE

FOR

CITY

OF SPRINGFIELD,

)

ro

8o

ILLINOIS,

OFFICE

OF

PUBLIC

)

UTILITIES,

CITY

WATER,

LIGHT

)

AND

POWER

AND SPRINGFIELD

)

PCB No.

2009-0008

METRO

SANITARY

DISTRICT

)

(Rulemaking-Water)

FROM

35 ILL.

ADM.

CODE

)

SECTION

302.208(g)

)

)

PREFILED

TESTIMONY

OF

ROBERT

MOSHER

INTRODUCTION

My name

is

Robert

Mosher

and

I have

been

employed

by

the Illinois

Environmental

Protection

Agency

(“Illinois

EPA”)

for 23

years.

For

the past

20 years,

I

have

been

the manager

of

the

Water

Quality

Standards

Unit.

My duties

in

this capacity

are to

oversee

the

development

of new

and

updated

water

quality

standards

and,

together

with

others

in

the Division

of Water

Pollution

Control,

to

apply

those

standards

in

NPDES

permits

and

Section

401

Water

Quality

Certifications.

I

have

a B.S.

in

zoology

and

environmental

biology

and

an

M.S.

in

zoology

from

Eastern

Illinois

University.

In my

testimony,

I

will discuss

the petition

for

a site-specific

rule

filed

by the

City

of

Springfield,

Illinois,

City

Water,

Light

and

Power,

and

Springfield

Metro

Sanitary

District

(referred

to

collectively

as “CWLP”

or

“Petitioners”),

and

the

Illinois

EPA’s

basis

for

agreement

with

the proposal.

Prior to

filing

its

petition

with

the

Board,

CWLP

submitted

draft proposals

to

the

Illinois

EPA for

review

and

comment.

CWLP

met

with

Illinois

EPA

staff

on

---

several occasions to discuss boron treatment and removal

options. The Illinois EPA

is

in

agreement with the Petitioners that the site-specific

rulemaking is necessary, will

cause

no adverse impact to the environment,

and meets the requirements of

Sections

27

and 28

of the Act.

DISCUSSION

On August 29, 2008, the

Petitioners filed a proposal for

a Site-Specific Rule

pursuant to Sections

27

and

28 of the Illinois Environmental

Protection Act

(“Act”) (415

ILCS

5/27

and

5/28 (2006)),

and 35 Iii. Adm. Code 102.202

and 102.210.

Specifically, Petitioners are seeking relief

from 35 Ill. Adm.

Code

304.105

as it

applies

to

the water quality standard

for boron at 35 Ill. Adm.

Code 3 02.208(g) (“Section

302.208(g)”). The general use water quality

standard for boron set forth in Section

3 02.208(g) is 1.0

mg/L. CWLP’s

proposal would establish

an alternative water quality

standard for boron of 11.0 mgJL from

Outfall 007 at the Spring Creek

Sanitary Treatment

Plant to 182 yards downstream of the confluence

of Spring Creek with

the Sangamon

River; 4.5 mg/L from

182

yards downstream of the

confluence

of Spring Creek with

the

Sangamon

River

to

the

confluence of Salt Creek with the

Sangamon River; 1.6

mg/L

from the

confluence of Salt

Creek with the Sangamon River

to its confluence with the

Illinois

River; and 1.3 mg/L in the Illinois River

100 yards downstream

of

its

confluence

with the

Sangamon

River.

In

1994, the Board granted

CWLP an adjusted water

quality standard

from 35 Ill.

Adm.

Code 304.105 for boron

for discharges into Sugar Creek.

The current adjusted

standard

allows boron

concentrations

of

up to

11.0

mg/L in Sugar Creek

from

the CWLP

discharge

to the confluence of the

Springfield Sanitary District

Sugar Creek Plant Outfall,

2

---

of

up

to

5.5

mg!L

from

the

Springfield

Sanitary

District

Sugar

Creek

Plant

Outfall

on

Sugar

Creek

to the

confluence

with

the

South

Fork

of

the

Sangamon

River,

and

up

to 2.0

mgJL

from

the

confluence

of

Sugar

Creek

and

the

South

Fork

of

the

Sangamon

River

to

100

yards

downstream

of

the

confluence

of the

Sangamon

River

and

Spring

Creek.

In

the

petition,

CWLP

states

that

these

levels

do

not

provide

adequate

relief

due

to

the

increased

boron

levels

resulting

from

the

operation

of

the

air pollution

control

systems

required

for

its Daliman

Units.

CWLP

is

engaged

in retrofitting

the existing

air

pollution

control

system

and

is

building

a

new

air

emissions

system

at

the

facility

in

order

to

meet

air

quality

regulations.

CWLP

has

discovered

that

boron

concentrations

in the

water

used

in

the

air

pollution

control

systems

have

increased

substantially

over

concentrations

common

in

previous

wastewater

streams.

During

meetings

with

the

Petitioners

between

2003

and

2007,

the

Illinois

EPA

encouraged

the

investigation

of treatment

alternatives

for

the

removal

of

boron

from

the

effluents.

The

Petitioners have

investigated

alternatives

for

removing

boron

from

their

effluent,

and

have

determined

that

the

alternatives

are

not

technically

feasible

or

economically

reasonable.

In

the

Petition,

CWLP

discusses

the

technical

feasibility

and

economic reasonableness

of

the

boron

removal

options

considered:

a

Brine

Concentrator

treatment

system,

reverse

osmosis,

electrocoagulation,

the

use

of non-Illinois

coal,

and

the

pretreatment

of water

for

transfer

to

the Springfield

Metro

Sanitary

District

(“SMSD”).

The

investigation

of

the

different

treatment

and

removal

options

resulted

in

a

final

determination

by

CWLP

that

the

preferred

option

is the

pretreatment

of water

for

transfer

to

the

SMSD.

3

---

After

reviewing

the

findings

of CWLP,

the

Illinois

EPA

agrees

that

boron

cannot

be

removed

without

significant

monetary

and

energy

expenditures

that

are nottechnically

feasible

or

economically

reasonable.

The

Illinois

EPA’s

conclusion

that

alternatives

to

the

discharge

of the

boron

contained

in

the

CWLP

effluents

are not

reasonable

stems

in

part

from the

fact

that

boron

is

not toxic

to

aquatic

life

at these

concentrations.

Petitioners’ August

2008 Technical

Support

Document

for Petition

for

Site-SpeczjIc

Boron

Standard

for

the

SpringfIeld

Metro

Sanitary

District

Spring

Creek

Plant,

Sangamon

County,

Illinois

(“TSD”),

prepared

by

Hanson

Professional

Services,

Inc.,

cites

several

studies

supporting

the

safety

of

boron

at

these concentrations

to

aquatic

life.

The

TSD also

cites the

Technical

Support

Document

for

Petition

for

Adjusted

Boron

Standardsfor Sugar

Creek

and

the Sangamon

River

(“1994

TSD”),

prepared

by

Hanson

in

1994

for the

proceeding

wherein

the

Board

set the

current

boron

standard

for the

waters

that

are

subject

of this

rulemaking.

According

to

Petitioners,

the

1994

TSD

demonstrated that the

samples

taken

from

the South

Fork, Sangamon

River,

and

Sugar

Creek

did

not show

a pattern

of

degradation

from

the

boron

discharges,

supporting

the

conclusion

that

there

would

be

no

adverse

impact

to

aquatic

life

from

boron

concentrations at or

below

11.0

mg/L.

The

Illinois

EPA

agrees

that the

boron

concentrations

discharged

will

not cause

aquatic

life

toxicity

in

the Sangamon

River.

Moreover,

human

health

will not

be

endangered

because

the boron

in

the

river

will be

diluted

below

any

estimation

of

drinking

water

concern

before

it reaches

the nearest

public

water

supply

intake,

which

is

located

approximately

185

miles

downstream

of

the

SMSD

discharge.

The

existing

general

use

water

quality

standard

for

boron

was initially

adopted

in

order to

protect

4

---

crops

from

excess

boron

in

irrigation

water,

and

the

Illinois

EPA

is

aware

of

no

significant

use

of

the

Sangamon

River

for

this

purpose.

The

Board

has

previously

granted

relief

from

the

boron

water

quality

standard

to

CWLP

and

other

permit-holders

on the

basis

that

discharges

of

boron

at

higher

concentrations

are

not

toxic

to aquatic

life,

and

that

treatment

is

not

technically

feasible

or

economically

reasonable.

The

Illinois

EPA

anticipates

the

filing

of

petitions

for

relief

from

the

boron

water

quality

standard.

Because

there

is a

need

for relief

from

the

standard, and

studies

have

shown

that

discharges

of higher

boron

concentrations

are

not

toxic

to

aquatic

life,

the

Illinois

EPA

believes

that

the

general water

quality

standard

for

boron

should be amended.

During

recent

discussions

regarding

the

need

for

relief

from

the

boron

standard,

USEPA

has

indicated

that

the

Illinois

EPA

should

generate

new

aquatic

life

toxicity

data

for

the

derivation

of

a

State-wide

water

quality

standard.

The

Illinois

EPA

intends

to

work

with

the

Illinois

Natural

History

Survey

to

generate

the

necessary

supplemental

aquatic

life

toxicity

data

to

derive

a general

standard

that

is

protective of

aquatic life

under

both

acute

and

chronic

exposure,

and

to

determine

what

value

will

be

protective

of human

health

and

domestic water

uses

at public

water

supply

intakes. These

standards

derivations

will

be structured

to assure

federal

Clean

Water

Act

approval.

Some

of

the

data

will

likely

be

available

during

the

course

of

the

CWLP

Site

Specific

Rulemaking.

In

the

meantime,

the

existing

toxicity

database

summarized

by

CWLP is

adequate for

the

site-specific

demonstration

in

this

matter.

CONCLUSION

The

Illinois

EPA

agrees

that

the

alternatives

for

the

treatment

of

boron are

not

technically

feasible

or

economically

reasonable,

and

that

the

standards

proposed

in

5

---

CWLP’s

Petition

will cause

no adverse

impact

to

the

environment

or

human

health.

The

Illinois

EPA

recommends

that

the

Board

grant

relief

from

the

water

quality

standard

for

boron

as

requested

by

CWLP.

ILLINOIS

ENVIRONMENTAL

PROTECTION

AGENCY

By:__

Robert

Mosher

Dated:

October

23,

2008

Illinois

Environmental

Protection

Agency

1021

North

Grand

Avenue

East

Post

Office

Box

19276

Springfield, Illinois

62794-9276

(217)

782-5544

THIS

FILING

PRINTED

ON

RECYCLED

PAPER

6

---

CERTIFICATE

OF

SERVICE

I, Joey

Logan-Wilkey,

certify

that

I have

served

the attached

Prefiled

Testimony

of

Robert

Mosher,

by first class

mail,

upon the

following

persons:

John

Theirrault,

Clerk

Illinois Pollution

Control Board

James

R. Thompson

Center

100 W.

Randolph,

Suite

11-500

Chicago,

Illinois

60601

Bill

Richardson,

Chief Legal

Counsel

Illinois

Department

of

Natural

Resources

One

Natural

Resources

Way

Springfield,

Illinois

62702-127

1

Katherine

D.

Hodge

Hodge

Dwyer

Zeman

3150

Roland

Avenue

P.O.

Box

5776

Springfield,

Illinois

62705-5776

Dated:

October

27,

2008

Marie

E.

Tipsord

Illinois

Pollution

Control

Board

James R.

Thompson

Center

100 W.

Randolph,

Suite 11-500

Chicago,

Illinois

60601

Christine

G.

Zeman

Hodge

Dwyer

Zeman

3150

Roland

Avenue

P.O.

Box 5776

Springfield,

Illinois

62705-5776

Matthew

Dunn,

Chief

Environmental

Bureau

Office

of the

Attorney General

100

W.

Randolph,

12

th

Floor

Chicago,

Illinois

60601

(1

1A2

Joy

Loan-Wtllcey

Assistant

Counsel

Division

of

Legal

Counsel

Illinois

Environmental

Protection

Agency

THIS

FILING

PRINTED

ON

RECYCLED

PAPER