ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTRCL BOARD

January 22, 1987

VILLAGE OF VILLA PARK,      

)

Petitioner,

)

PCB 86—140

ILLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL      

)

PROTECTION AGENCY,

Respondent.

OPINION AND ORDER OF THE BOARD (by J. Theodore Meyer):

This matter comes before the Board on the September 11, 1986

petition for variance and the October 24, 1986 amended petition

for variance filed by the Village of Villa Park. Villa Park

seeks variance from 35 Ill. Adm. Code 602.105(a), Standards for

Issuance, and from 35 Ill. Adm. Code 602.106(b), Restricted

Status, but only to the extent those rules involve combined

radiurt—226 and 228. This variance is requested for a period of

five years or until compliance is achieved, whichever is

sooner. The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (Agency)

filed its recommendation that variance be granted on December 3,

1986. Hearing was waived and none was held.

On December 22, 1986 Villa Park filed motions for decision

on the pleadings and for expedited decision citing the delay of

an important construction project due to the Village being placed

on the Agency’s Restricted Status list. Those motions are hereby

granted.

The Village of Villa Park is located in CuPage County,

Illinois. The Village provides public services including potable

water supply and distribution for 6,200 residential and 480

commercial customers. The population equivalent served by the

well and distribution system is approximately 23,000. The system

includes five (5) deep wells, two (2) shallow wells, pumps and

distribution facilities.

35 Ill. Adm. Code 604.301(a) provides for a maximum

allowable concentration of combined radiuni—226 and 228 in

community water supplies of 5 pCi/i. By letter dated August 23,

1985, the Village was first informed that the maximum allowable

concentration of combined radium was being exceeded. The Agency

report indicated a combined radium content of 8.0 pCi/l.

The Village intends to correct this problem by utilizing its

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Lake Michigan allocation to replace water presently supplied by

the wells. In 1980, the Village joined the DuPage Water

Commission whose purpose is to implement the delivery of Lake

Michigan water to its approximately 27 member communities.

Members of the Commission are investing more than $350 million in

a water transmission system to deliver the lake water to some

750,000 people in DuPage County via the City of Chicago. While

the primary purpose in entering into this long range program was

to assure an adequate water supply into the next century,

delivery of lake water will also eliminate the problem caused by

the presence of radium in the natural rock formations in the deep

underground aquifer. The DuPage Water Commission is expected to

deliver Lake Michigan water beginning in approximately 1992.

In the interim, treatment options such as lime or lime—soda

softening would require significant expenditures of time and

money and become obsolete when Lake Michigan water is obtained.

In addition, lime softening, though effective, produces large

quantities of sludge and concentrates the radium which causes

additional problems and expenses associated with proper

disposal. Likewise, ion exchange softening concentrates

radioactivity in the wastestream. Also, some of the

radioactivity remains in the ion exchange material posing a

possible hazard to maintenance workers. In addition, ion

exchange softening will raise the sodium content of the water if

the softener is regenerated with salt. This may cause

significant risk to persons who are hypertensive or who have

heart problems.

The Agency states that while radiation at any level creates

some risk, the risk associated with this level is very low. The

Agency believes that an incremental increase in the allowable

concentration for combined radium even up to a maximum of four

times the current standard, should cause no significant health

risk for the time period of this recommended variance.

Villa Park urges that since there is no significant risk of

environmental harm or risk to the public health for the limited

time period of the variance, continuation of the effect of being

on Restricted Status would be arbitrary or unreasonable hardship

to the Village and its taxpayers and to prospective developers

and persons and industries served by those developers. The

Village states that presently water main extensions are needed to

serve the Fireside Trail Subdivision; a 24—lot subdivision for

single family homes.

The Agency believes that the Board may grant the recommended

relief consistent with the Safe Drinking Water Act since the

variance is from the effect of Restricted Status to allow water

main extensions and is not a variance from the national primary

drinking water regulations. The Village is still subject to the

possibility of enforcement for violations of the maximum

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allowable concentration for combined radium.

The Board finds that the hardship resulting from denial of

the variance from the effects of being on Restricted Status

outweigh the minimal 

risk from grant of the variance.

In light

the cost to Villa Park for treatment of its current water

supply, the unlikelihood of injury to the public from

continuation of the present level of the contaminant in question

and the likelihood of compliance upon delivery of Lake Michigan

water, the Board concludes that denial of variance from the

effects of restricted status would impose an arbitrary or

unreasonable hardship upon the Village of Village Park. The

Board notes that Villa Park has requested a variance level of 15

pCi/l; however, no substantiation for this level is provided.

Since present levels are B pCi/i, the Board will grant variance

to 10 pCi/l as adequate to assure relief from Restricted Status.

This Opinion constitutes the Board’s findings of fact and

conclusions 

of law in this matter.

ORDER

The Village of Villa Park is hereby granted a variance from

35 Ill. Adm. Code 602.105(a), Standards of Issuance, and

602.106(b), Restricted Status, but only as they relate to

combined radium—226 and radium 

228, subject to the

following

conditions:

1.  That this variance expires when five years has passed

from g.rant of this variance, or when compliance is

achieved, whichever occurs first.

That Petitioner continue in efforts to obtain Lake

Michigan water.

That Petitioner report to the Agency one year

prior to

the expiration of this variance as to the status of

obtaining Lake Michigan water before this variance

expires. If it 

reasonably appears that Petitioner will

not obtain Lake Michigan water prior to said expiration,

Petitioner shall apply to IEPA for all necessary permits

for the construction of treatment facilities at least

six months prior to said expiration and install said

facilities and have them operational prior to said

expiration.

4.  In consultation with the Agency, Petitioner shall

continue its sampling program to determine as accurately

as possible the level of radioactivity in its wells and

finished water. Until this variance expires, Petitioner

shall collect quarterly samples of its water from its

distribution system, shall composite and shall analyze

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them annually by

a laboratory certified by the State of

of Illinois for radiological analysis so as to determine

the concentration of the contaminant in question.

The

results of the analyses shall be reported to the water

Quality Unit, Division of Public Water Supplies, 2200

Churchill Road, IEPA, Springfield,

Illinois 62706,

within 30 days of receipt of each analysis.

At the

option of Petitioner,

the quarterly samples may be

analyzed when collected.

The running average of the

most recent four quarterly sample results shall be

reported to the above address within 30 days of receipt

of the most recent quarterly sample.

5.  Compliance shall be achieved with the maximum allowable

concentration in question no later than five years from

grant of this variance.

6.  Pursuant to 35 Ill. Adni.. Code 606.201, in its first set

of water bills or within three months after the date of

this Order, whichever occurs first, and every three

months thereafter, Petitioner will send to each user of

its public water supply a written notice to the effect

that Petitioner has been granted by the Pollution

Control Board a variance from 35 Ill. Adni. Code

602.105(a) Standards of Issuance, and 35 Iii. Adm. Code

602.106(b), Restricted Status, as it relates to the MAC

standard in question.

7.  Pursuant to 35 Iii. Adni. Code 606.201, in its first set

of water bills or within three months after the date of

this Order, whichever occurs first, and every three

months after the date of this Order, whichever occurs

first, and every three months thereafter, Petitioner

will send to each user of its public water supply a

written notice to the effect that Petitioner is not in

compliance with the standard in question. The notice

shall state the average content of the contaminant in

question in samples taken since the last notice period

during which samples were taken.

8.  That Petitioner shall take all reasonable measures with

its existing equipment to minimize the level of

contaminant in question in its finished water. In no

event shall combined radium levels exceed 10 pCi/i.

9.  The Petitioner shall provide written progress reports

and relevant documentation to IEPA, every six months

concerning steps taken to comply with paragraphs 2 and

8. This information shall be sent to the Division of

Public water Supplies at the address in paragraph 4

above. Progress reports shall quote each of said

paragraphs and immediately below each paragraph state

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what steps have been taken to comply with each

paragraph.

10. That within forty—five days of the date of this Order,

Petitioner shall execute and forward to Wayne L.

Wiemersiage, Enforcement Programs, Illinois

Environmental Protection Agency, 2200 Churchill Road,

Springfield, Illinois 62706, a Certificate of Acceptance

and Agreement to be bound to all terms and conditions of

this variance. This forty—five day period shall be held

in abeyance for any period this matter is being

appealed. The form of the Certification shall be as

follows:

CERTIFICATION

I, (~e),

hereby accept and agree to be bound by all terms and conditions

of the Pollution Control Board in PCB 86—140, January 22, 1987.

Petitioner

BY ______________________________

Authorized Agent

Title

Date

IT IS SO ORDERED.

Board Members J. Dumelle and B. Forcade dissented.

I, Dorothy M. Gunn, Clerk of the Illinois Pollution Control

Board, hereby certify that the 

above

Opinion and Crder was

adopted on the  

2~-~(

day of        

—,

1987, by a vote

of~/~_.

/L~

—

Dorothy M. G~mnn, Clerk

Illinois Pollution Control Board

75.61