ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD

November

1,

1979

CITY

OF

ONEIDA,

Petitioner,

)

PCJ3

 79—158

ENVIRONMENTAL

 PROTECTION

 AGENCY,

Respondent.

OPINION AND ORDER OF THE BOARD

 (by Mr. Dumeile):

Petitioner has requested a variance from the drinking

water standard for fluoride for its public water supply in

Knox County.

 The Agency has recommended that a variance be

granted until January

1,

 1981.

 No hearing was held.

Petitioner’s water supply serves a community of 780

persons with approximately 300 water users.

 Petitioner

recently constructed

 a 150,000 gallon elevated water storage

tank which will replace

 an aging wooden ground storage tank

and pressure tank,

 Raw water from Petitioner’s two existing

wells has

 an average fluoride content of 2.0

—

 2.5 mg/i.

Petitioner

 is presently required to meet a standard of 2.0

mg/i by Rule 304B4 of Chapter

6:

 Public Water Supplies.

Petitioner has investigated three alternative treatment

techniques to comply with this standard.

 They are activated

alumina and bone char adsorption,

 reverse osmosis, and

electrodialysis.

 In addition, Petitioner has investigated

 alternate ground water or surface water supplies.

 Petitioner

has concluded that there are no alternative sources available

and that adsorption is the most cost effective treatment

technique.

 Adsorption would involve $255,000

 in installation

costs which would require additional annual revenues of

$35,000.

 Water rates would have to rise from the present

$10.00/user/month to $27.00,

 Petitioner feels that this

increase is unreasonable since the fluoride standard may be

changed

 at the federal level

 soon and fluoride treatment

is

unreliable.

 Petitioner is requesting relief until January

1,

 1981,

 the maximum extent allowed under federal

 law,

 with

a promise to install

 fluoride removal after that date if

necessary.

 Petitioner feels that its present fluoride

levels do not constitute a threat to public health.

The Agency’s data show that recent fluoride analyses of

Petitioner’s supply have ranged as high as 3.8 mg/i.

The

3E—41

—2—

Agency agrees that there is no fluoride free ground water

supply available to Petitioner and that switching to a sur-

face water supply

 is not an economically reasonable alterna—

tive.

 The Agency

 feels that activated alumina adsorption is

superior to the use of bone char and that Petitioner’s cost

 estimates are accurate.

 The Agency agrees that present

fluoride levels are not

 a health threat and that Petitioner

should not be required at this time to install

 fluoride

removal.

 The Agency believes that U.S. EPA may raise the

permissible maximum concentration level

 for fluoride and

that Congress may extend the date for compliance with all of

the National Interim Primary Drinking Water Standards U.S.

EPA feels that aside from

tooth mottling,

 no adverse health

effects have been observed at levels up to

 8 mg/i.

 Until

further studies are completed, U.S. EPA recommends interim

relief up to 4 mg/i providing excess tooth mottling is not

evident.

The

Agency believes that the fluoride levels in

Petitioner’s supply should not produce noticeable tooth

mottling.

The Board has addressed similar situations in three

varinaces affecting small water supplies near Petitioner’s

(Central

 Illinois Utility Co.

v.

 EPA, PCB 77—349,

 30 PCB

32,

April

13,

 1978;

 Little Swan Lake Sanitary District v. EPA,

PCB 78—53,

 30 PCB 310, May

25,

 1978;

 and Village of Rio,

PCB

78—218,

 31 PCB 691, October

 19, 1978).

 In each case the

Board granted relief because present levels were below

4

mg/l and treatment was unproven and unreasonably expensive.

 The Board noted that it would be inappropriate to require

treatment which may be rendered unnecessary

 if the standard

is changed.

 Since those decisions,

 U.S.

 EPA has granted

Illinois primary enforcement responsibility (primacy) under

the Safe Drinking Water Act.

The Board concludes that denial of a variance in this

instance would constitute arbitrary or unreasonable hardship.

Petitioner’s circumstances are similar to the previous

variances,

 and the logic of those decisions

 is controlling.

The only difference here is that the vesting of primacy

requires the Board to respect Federal deadlines.

 Consequently

PetiLioner will be required to submit a compliance program

for approval by the Agency to show that it

 is ready to

comply with whatever standards or deadlines U.S. EPA or

Congress may choose to establish.

This Opinion constitutes the Board’s

 findings of fact

and conclusions of law in this matter.

ORDER

1,

 Petitioner

 is hereby granted a variance from the drinking

water standard for fluoride in Rule 304B4 of Chapter

6:

Public Water Supplies until January

1,

 1981.

36—L~2

—3—

2..

 Within six months of the date of this Order, Petitioner

shall

 submit

 a compliance program for approval by the

Agency to show its plans

 to comply with the fluoride

standard in a timely fashion.

3.

 Within 45 days of the date of this Order Petitioner

shall

 execute

 a certification of acceptance and agreement

to be bound by the terms and conditions of this variance.

This

 45 day period shall be held in abeyance if this

matter

 is appealed.

 The certification shall

 be forwar-

ded to the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency,

Division of Public Water Supplies,

 2200 Churchill Road,

Springfield,

 Illinois

 62706 and shall

 read as follows:

CERTIFICATION

(We),

 __________________________,

 having read and

fully understanding the Order

 PCB 79—158 hereby accept

that Order and agree to be bound by all of its terms and

conditions.

SIGNED ____________________________

TITLE ___________________________

DATE _____________________________

IT

IS

SO

ORDERED.

 Christan L.

 Moffett, Clerk of the Illinois Pollution

Control Board, hereby c~rtifythe ~bove

 Opi ion and Order

were adopt~ion the /~C~day of

-e-”—-

 1979 by

a vote of

Christan L.

 Moffett, Cl~t

Illinois Pollution Control Board

36—43