BEFORE THE POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD
OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS
March
3,
1971
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
V.
)
*71—7
OLIN CORPORATION,
East Alton,
Illinois
OPINION OF THE BOARD
(BY MR.
LAWTON):
On October
28,
1970,
this Board entered an Opinion and Order
in Case #70-li, granting
to Olin Corooration,
East Alton,
Illinois,
an extension of
its existing variance,
originally granted on May 18,
1967 by the Air Pollution Control Board,
to continue disposal
of
its explosive trade waste by open burning.
The Order extended the variance to,Fehruary
22,
1971,
subject
to specified conditions which obliged Olin to make monthly reports
on the nature and extent of
its open burning activities and on the
progress being made relative to improved technology and facilities
enabling disposal of explosive wastes
in compliance with statutory
provisions
and. the relevant regulations.
Provision was made that
if the Environmental Protection Agency advised the Board that
the
open burning operation of explosive wastes by Olin was producing
an undue burden on adjacent areas,
the Board
could,
after Hearing,
terminate
the variation,
No such report has been received from the
Environmental Protection Agency.
The monthly reports provided for
in the Order of October
28,
1970
to be made by Olin have been
received.
On January
18,
1971, Olin filed
a new Petition with
this Board seeking an extension of the existing variance until
December
31,
1971
“or until
such shorter time
as Petitioner has
brought itself into compliance with
all of the regulations”.
The
content
of
the
new
petition
will
be
considered
below.
Pursuant
to statute,
the Environmental Protection Agency
filed its recommendation in which
~t recommended that
the petition
be granted subject~to certain terms
and conditions which are embodied
in this Order.
The Board determined that no hearing would be neces’-
sary
on this new petition.
On February
22,
1971,
the day that the extended variance pro—
vlously granted by the Board
in Case *70-li expired,
the Board entered
an Order extending
the variance
to December
31,
1971,
subject to the
terms and conditions hereinafter set
forth,
This Opinion is
in
support of that
Order.
1
—-
29?
The character
of Petitioner’s
explosive waste and
the
means employed
for its disposal have been amply set forth
in our
Order and Opinion #70-11.
There we concluded
that no suitable
alternative
to open burning presently exists and that petitioner
had satisfied the statutory requisites for the granting of
a variance.
No burden on adjacent areas from petitioner’s operation is indicated.
The conditions justifying
the original variance still maintain al-
though Petitioner has made substantial progress
in achieving com-
pliance.
The present petition states that analysis of emissions
show that the quantities of nitrogen oxides involved are negligible,
total emissions from all burning being
less than
a pound per day
as NO2.
Likewise,
no significant amounts of sulphur emanate from
the scrap explosives or ammunition
burned.
Sulphur oxides
as
502
total several pounds per day resulting from burning of low—sulphur
fuel oil
in the vertical destruction
chamber.
According to the
petitioner,
this corresponds roughly to emissions from a large
residence heated by
fuel oil
(Pet.
5).
A table of emissions deter-
mined from Illinois Institute of Technology tests
is included in
the petition.
Tests made
by lIT indicate that disposal of primer mix,
propellant powder and shot gun shells
in the vertical destruction
chamber will meet Board incinerator regulations.
Petitioner proposes
the
use of
a modified standard incinerator
to dispose of contaminated
paper,
wood,
trash,
scrap lacquers
arid solvents
as well as shot shell
cases.
A scrubber will be installed
if necessary to meet State
regulations.
Low temperature demolition of center fire
and rim fire,
metallic ammunition,
primers and scrap primed metallic ammunition will
be burned
in a rotary kiln.
This equipment will be installed
on a
pilot basis
and be of adequate
size and capacity to handle production
quantities.
Emissions from
this unit will conform to State require-
ments when used on
a production basis.
Substantial progress toward compliance has been made by
petitioner since
the entry of our October
28,
1970 order.
Among
other things, Olin
is using water and antifreeze rather than oil to
desensitize smokeless
powder,
eliminating the black
smoke resulting
from previous burnings
when
oil was
used.
Technical advances
have
been made
in lead shot and powder removal,
low temperature ignition
experimentation to eliminate lead
fumes,
improved monitoring equip-
ment
and powder and emission analysis.
Additional
incineration
equipment to achieve compliance
is being purchased.
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298
Petitioner
seeks the extension of variance granted
in
Case #70-11 until December
31,
1971, or until such shorter time as
petitioner brings itself into compliance with all applicable regu-
lations.
The Environmental Protection Agency recommends that the
variance be extended,
subject to the vertical destruction chamber
being used for
the demolition of stated categories of explosive
waste until
a permit
is obtained from the Agency but
in no event
for more than ninety days from the granting of the variance exten-
sion.
The Environmental Protection Agency also recommends that
the modified standard incinerator and rotary kiln shall be used
for
the demolition of
the stated categories of explosive waste until
December
31,
1971,
subject to termination upon a showing of absence
of satisfactory progress to achieve compliance.
In granting the original variance, we stated that future
extensions would be allowed only upon
a showing that petitioner
was aggressively pursuing
a program to bring itself into compliance.
We are pleased with the progress being made in this direction.
This
proceeding demonstrates
the desired result of
a variance allowaire,
where, through cooperation between the industry,
the agency and the
board, rapid and definitive progress can be made
in eliminating air
pollution without the imposition of hardship on either the community
or the applicant.
Petitioner anticipates being
in full compliancewith
the
applicable regulations by December
31, 1971.
However, insistence
on immediate compliance would impose hardship on petitioner
and
resulting dangers disproportionate with any benefit accruing
to the
public.
The extension of the variance is clearly indicated.
This opinion constitutes
the findings of fact and conclu-
sions of law of the Board.
IT
IS THE ORDER of the Pollution Control Board that the
variance heretofore granted in Case #70—11, expiring February
22,
1971,
be extended to December
31,
1971, subject to all terms and
conditions
of said variance as granted,
except as modified by this
Order and in addition thereto,
the following conditions:
1.
The vertical destruction chamber shall be used for the
disposal of primer mix and propellant powders for no
more than ninety days from the date hereof,
or until
such time as
a permit shall have been issued by
the
Environmental Protection Agency, whichever first occurs.
1
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299
2.
Use of the modified standard incinerator and rotary
kiln for disposal
of categories of explosive waste
as stated
in the petition,
shall be permitted until
December
31,
1971; provided, however,
that the var-
iance shall terminate,
on or after July
31,
1971 if
the Environmental Protection Agency shall demonstrate
to the Board after notice and hearing,
that the peti-
tioner has not made satisfactory progress in bringing
these facilities into compliance with the relevant
regulations,
3.
Petitioner shall continue
to submit reports required
by Items
1 and
2
of the Board’s Order of October
28,
1970,
except that the reports shall
be transmitted
to the Environmental Protection Agency only every
sixty days.
4.
Antifreeze shall be used as
a desensitizer in the
burning of smokeless powder.
No oil shall be used
for this purpose.
I,
Regina
,~
Ryan, certify that the Board adopted the above opinion
and order
~
.~‘
,
1971.
I Concur
,,
~
~
,~
I Dissent
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