ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD
    November 6, 1986
    VILLAGE OF NORTH UTICA,
    Petitioner,
    v.
    )
    PCB 86—196
    ILLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL
    )
    PROTECTION AGENCY,
    )
    Respondent.
    OPINION AND ORDER OF THE BOARD (by J.D. Dumelle):
    This provisional variance request comes before the Board
    upon a November 6, 1986 Recommendation of the Illinois
    Environmental Protection Agency (Agency). The Agency recommends
    that a 21—day provisional variance be granted to the Village of
    North Utica (Village) from 35 Ill. Adm. Code 304.120 and 304.121
    to allow the bypassing of the Petitioner’s wastewater treatment
    facility during the time period that repairs are being made to
    the heating coils in the plant’s digester.
    The Village of North Utica, which is located in LaSalle
    County, Illinois, owns and operates a wastewater treatment
    facility (WWTP) which has a design average flow of 0.144 million
    gallons per day and discharges effluent into the Illinois River
    pursuant to the appropriate NPDES Permit authorization. (Rec.
    1). The Petitioner’s WWTP includes a pump station, bar screen,
    digester, chlorination facilities, and sludge drying beds. The
    Agency has issued NPDES Permit No. 1L0023116 to the Village which
    requires the effluent to meet 90 milligrams per liter (mg/i) as a
    30 day average for both five—day biochemical oxygen demand and
    total suspended solids. (Rec. 1).
    The Agency received a previous request for a provisional
    variance from the Village of North Utica on September 29, 1986.
    However, this request was denied by the Agency on October 29,
    1986 because of a lack of sufficient information to allow the
    Agency to make a recommendation. (Rec. 1).
    The Petitioner believes that faulty heating coils are
    preventing the maintenance of the necessary temperature inside
    its digester. Accordingly, the Village has requested a
    provisional variance to allow it to drain the digester in order
    to repair the heating coils. (Pet. 1). The Village anticipates
    that the necessary repairs would involve: (1) draining as much
    sludge and water as possible out of the clarifier into existing
    drying beds; (2) pumping out the remaining sludge with a “mud
    74.65
    —2—
    cat” pump; (3) hosing down walls and digester coils to clean them
    as much as possible; (4) inspecting coils and repairing these
    coils as needed, and (5) reactivating the digester and continuing
    with normal plant operations. (Pet. 1—2). In order to
    accomplish the requisite repair work, the Village has indicated
    that it is absolutely necessary to remove the digester from
    service in order to drain it so that the appropriate repairs can
    be made, thereby necessitating bypassing into the Illinois River
    during the time period that the digester is out of service.
    (Pet. 1—2).
    The Village has presented no alternatives to bypassing its
    entire wastewater treatment facility while the digester is out of
    service. Because of the short duration of the proposed bypass,
    the Agency has concluded that the Village’s plan for
    accomplishing the necessary repair work is the most practical and
    feasible course of action. (Rec. 2).
    The Agency expects that there will be little adverse
    environmental impact upon the Illinois River from the
    Petitioner’s effluent discharge given the short duration of the
    bypassing and the large dilution factor of greater than 10,000 to
    1. Moreover, because of the time of the year that the repair
    work is being done, the Agency does not expect any adverse impact
    on the recreational uses of the Illinois River. (Rec. 2).
    Based on the demonstrated necessity of repairing the heating
    coils and the short duration of the relief sought, the Agency
    agrees with the Petitioner’s contention that denial of the
    provisional var~ancewould create an arbitrary or unreasonable
    hardship in this case. Furthermore, although the Village has
    requested a provisional variance for only 14 days, the Agency has
    recommended that a 21—day provisional variance be granted in
    order to make some allowance for inclement weather. (Rec. 2).
    The Agency has therefore concluded that compliance on a
    short—term basis with applicable standards would impose an
    arbitrary or unreasonable hardship upon the Petitioner. (Rec. 1—
    2). Accordingly, the Agency has recommended that the Board grant
    the Petitioner a provisional variance from 35 Ill. Adm. Code
    304.120 and 304.121, subject to certain conditions.
    This Opinion constitutes the Board’s findings of fact and
    conclusions of law in this matter.
    74-66
    —3—
    ORDER
    The Petitioner, the Village of North Utica, is hereby
    granted a provisional variance from 35 Ill. Adm. Code 304.120 and
    304.121 to allow the bypassing of its wastewater treatment
    facility during the time period that repairs are being made to
    the heating coils in its digester, subject to the follow
    conditions:
    1. The provisional variance shall commence when the
    digester is removed from service and shall continue for
    21 days or until the digester is returned to service,
    whichever occurs first.
    2. The Petitioner shall dispose of the contents of the
    digester in an environmentally safe manner.
    3. The Petitioner shall notify Mr. Dennis Connor of the
    Agency’s Rockford Regional Office via telephone at 815—
    987—7755 when the digester is taken out of service and
    when it is returned to service. Written confirmation of
    each verbal notification shall be submitted within 5
    days to the following address:
    Mr. Dennis Connor
    Illinois Environmental Protection Agency
    4302 North Main Street
    Rockford, Illinois 61103
    4. The Petitioner shall make every effort to minimize the
    time that the digester is out of service.
    5. Within 10 days of the date of the Board’s Order, the
    Petitioner shall execute a Certification of Acceptance
    and Agreement which shall be sent to Mr. James Frost of
    the Agency at the following address:
    Mr. James Frost
    Illinois Environmental Protection Agency
    Division of Water Pollution Control
    Compliance Assurance Section
    2200 Churchill Road
    Springfield, Illinois 62706
    This certification shall have the following form:
    74.67
    —4—
    I, (We), ______________________, having read the Order of
    the Illinois Pollution Control Board in PCB 86—196, dated
    November 6, 1986, 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
    IT IS SO ORDERED.
    I, Dorothy M. Gunn, Clerk of the Illinois Pollution Control
    Board, hereby cert~y that the above Opinion and Order was
    adoptedon the
    ~~-~-~-
    day of
    ,/
    ,
    1986, by a vote
    of
    ___________.
    Dorothy M. Gunn, Clerk
    Illinois Pollution Control Board
    74-68

    Back to top