ILLINOIS

POLLUTI ON

CONTROL

BOARD

March

6,1980

TOWN

OF

NORMAL,

Petitioner,

PCB 79—204

v.

ILLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

AGENCY,

Respondent.

OPINION AND ORDER OF THE BOARD

(by

Mr. Goodman):

On October 29, 1979,

Petitioner filed

its amended petition

for variance.

The recommendation of the Illinois Environmental

Protection Agency

(Agency) was received on December

7,

1979.

Hearing was held on January 28,

1980, with nineteen affected

citizen homeowners, and one citizen pastor,

testifying to

basement floodings and the deteriorated condition of Sugar Creek

(Creek) running through the Town of Normal and the City of

Bloomington in McLean County.

A written objection to the

variance petition as

it would allow dumping sewage into the Creek

was received on October 21, 1979 from Mr. Craig Greenwood,

Attorney for the Westside Improvement Association,

a division of

the Association of Commerce and Industry of McLean County.

Petitioner

seeks

a variance from Rule 602(b)

of the Board~s

water regulations, which prohibits sanitary sewer overflows,

and

from §12(a) of the Illinois Environmental Protection Act

(Act)

prohibiting discharges which cause water pollution or which

violate the Board~sregulations or the Act.

Because this

petition is determined with respect to Rule 602(b),

relief with

respect to §12(a) becomes

immaterial,

The Board does not favor

granting variances from sections of the Act.

Petitioner seeks

a four—year variance to construct nine

relief sump pump stations to transport manhole overflow to

existing storm sewers,

and then to the

west branch of the Creek.

This

is an interim measure designed to provide temporary relief

until

it can complete its primary corrective plan.

This primary

plan would eliminate excessive inflow and infiltration to the

sanitary sewers servicing the four major areas affected by

disconnecting some

971 improperly installed footing tiles and

37—461

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—2—

In the early 1950’s,

Petitioner adopted a Sewer

tise

Ordinance

prohibiting

infiltration

from

footing

tiles,

down-spouts,

area drains and storm sewers.

After completing a

1974 study Petitioner passed

a

“stronger” ordinance requiring

that illegal connections be corrected by the homeowners

themselves.

A homeowner group sued Petitioner,

maintaining that

this

burden should be borne by either the developers or the

previous homeowners.

The outcome of this litigation is not

cited.

Nearly all home basements both within Petitioner’s

boundaries and within the City of Bloomington require footing

tiles due to high ground water levels and flat ground slopes.

In

Petitioner’s boundaries,

68

of the sanitary sewer lines

exist separately from the storm

lines;

in Bloomington, only 40

exist separately.

The Bloomington and Normal

Sanitary District

(District) operates the sewage treatment plant,

located in

Bloomington,

and an interceptor system for transport to the

plant.

The District also “maintains

improved waterway channels

of

Sugar

Creek

and

its

major

tributaries

within

the

urban

areas

inside

Normal

and Bloomington.”

(Original Petition, p.1).

A

large portion of

Bloomington’s interceptors is subject to

overflow at nine points.

A threshold question

is

whether the Board can allow

Petitioner variance

to permit the

sump pump stations to add

manhole overflow discharge to existing storm sewers.

Because

the

manhole overflow could subject both the District and Bloomington

to violations of §12 of the Act, alone or in combination with

Petitioner,

the Board orders that the District and Bloomington

be

noticed by certified mail of the final order

in this matter.

It

is certain that the interim measures Petitioner will take

will add raw sewage to the Creek.

However, as the citizen

witnesses make clear,

the Creek is already an environmental sore,

with the proliferation of 18—inch rats;

the sights of toilet

paper and sanitary napkins

in

trees and bushes; the stink of

sewage;

the dead birds,

fish,

and rabbits;

the mosquitoes;

the

erosion of adjacent gardens and

farmland;

and the destruction

of

fences,

etc.

(R,62—66,

92—6,

103,

114—124). The Board finds that

granting this variance will not significantly worsen these

conditions.

The additional BOO which will

he discharged per backup

is

only 253 pounds and will be discharged during heavy rains

so that

the sewage in the creek will be relatively diluted,

The BOD

concentration during backups is 101.9 mg/i.

Similarly,

the

additional

suspended solids which will

be discharged per backup

is only 666 pounds.

The TSS concentration during backups is

112.3 mg/i.

Taken with the fact that overflow occurrences

will

result in an additional 2.377 MGD flow in the north branch of the

Creek, these additional pollutant amount should have no

significant adverse environmental impact.

3

7—4

62

---

—3—

The twenty citizens did not only testify as to the

conditions of

the

Creek;

there was much testimony about basement

flooding.

The raw sewage

enters

like

a

“geyser”

(R.50)

and

causes in

some cases thousands of dollars’

damage

to carpeting,

furniture,

and appliances.

(R.37—39,

50—61,

111,

117).

One

homeowner has

found dead rats in her basement.

(R.101).

The

total, per flooding,

cost to homeowners is about

$472,000;

with

triannual occurrences,

the total annual

cost becomes over one

million

dollars,

(R,35),

The Board

finds

that the

interests

of the homeowners

are

more direct, more urgent and

more important

than

the

insignificant increase in

pollution of the Creek which

will

result

from granting this variance.

This finding

is highlighted

by the fact that Petitioner states that at least

on one occasion

firemen had to be called to shut off utility mains to prevent

explosions occurring from the short—circuiting caused

by the

basement

flooding.

“There is also a real danger of persons being

injured or killed by electrical shock if they attempt to shut off

the power themselves,”

(Original Petition,

p.5).

Such potential

danger to life during flooding episodes compels the granting of

this variance pending the completion of the permanent measures of

correcting the illegal

footing tile connections and installing

additional sump pumps.

Petitioner

is to proceed with its permanent plan as

expeditiously as possible,

and to have it

in operation no later

than April

1,

1984,

regardless of pending litigation regarding

who

is financially responsible

for correcting the improper

footing tile connections,

etc.

This Opinion constitutes the findings of

fact and conclusion

of law in his matter,

ORDER

It

is the Order of the Illinois Pollution Control Board

that:

1.

The City of Bloomington and the Bloomington and Normal

Sanitary District be sent a copy of this order by certified mail.

2.

The Town of Normal be granted variance

from Rule 602(b)

of the Board’s water regulations on the following conditions:

a.

The variance shall be until

April

1,

1984 or until

Petitioner’s plan to correct improper footing tile

connections and install

sump pumps

is completed,

whichever first occurs;

37—363

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—4—

b.

On or before the ‘termination of the variance

the relief sump pump stations shall be removed;

c.

The Town of Normal

shall report to the Illinois

Environmental Protection Agency, Variance Unit,

Department of Water Pollution Control,

2200 Churchill

Road,

Springfield,

Illinois

62706,

in writing monthly

as to all steps taken, whether or not pursuant to

this

variance,

to eliminate the possibility of basement

flooding caused by sewage backups and to minimize

the

dangers to health and life resulting therefrom.

3.

The Town of Normal

shall execute a certification

of acceptance of this variance and submit it to the Illinois

Environmental Protection Agency at the address above.

(We),

_____

—~_______________

___having read and

understanding the Order of the Illinois Pollution Control

in PCB 79—204,

hereby accept said Order and agree to be

by

all

of the terms and conditions thereof,

SIGNED________________________

TITLE_________________________

DATE____________________________

Mr. Dumelle concurs.

Mrs.

Anderson

abstains.

I,

Christan L.

Moffett, Clerk of the Illinois Pollution

Control Board, hereby certify that the above Order was adopted on

the

(~-(~ day of it~J~.

,

1980 by a vote of

4~—o

Christan L.

Moffq1~/~Clerk

Illinois Pollution ~ontrol

Board

37—46