ILLINOIS

POLLUTION

CONTROL

BOARD

December

4,

1980

In the

Matter

Of:

Proposed Amendment to Chapter

8:

)

R80—9

Noise Regulations,

Rules 101,

206,

)

R80—10

208, and 209

FINAL ORDER, EMERGENCY

RULE

ORDER OF THE BOARD

(by

J, Anderson):

Rule

209(f)

currently exempts the owner or operator of

certain Class

C

land

who conducts necessary explosive blasting

activities from complying with the sound limitations contained

in Rule 206.

This

exemption expires on January

1,

1981.

On May 15, 1980,

the Mining Industry Task Force on Impulsive

Noise and Vibration proposed that the Board extend the exemption

until June

1,

1983, pending completion in 1982 of federal research

on the “Human Response to Blast Noise and Ground Structure Vibra—

tions(R80—9).

On July 10,

1980,

the Environmental Protection

Agency proposed enactment of certain “interim” sound limitations

during this waiting period

(R80—10).

The Board has concluded regulatory hearings on these proposals.

Testimony in these hearings reaffirms prior testimony

in R76-16 that

the A—weighted sound measuring

scale of Rule 206 is an inadequate

descriptor

of human response to blast noise.

(See Opinion and

Order in R76—16,

32 PCB 457,

458 January

18,

1979.)

The Board has

also learned that the coal

industry, but not the quarry industry,

is currently subject to federal regulations essentially equivalent

to the Agency’s proposed interim limits measured on a C-weighted

sound scale.

This emergency rulemaking is necessary to avoid exposing

those who conduct explosive blasting activities

to enforcement of

the inappropriate sound limitations

of

Rule 206 as of January

2,

1981.

While the Board has considered filing the proposed interim

limitations as an emergency rule,

we

have chosen to continue the

exemption on an emergency basis while the permanent rulemaking

is

in the process

of being completed.

This measure is being taken

to insure that the quarry industry has ample time to determine

first, whether its blasting activities are currently in compliance

with the proposed limits,

and secondly,

how and when compliance

can be achieved so that any necessary petitions for variance can

be timely filed.

40—9 7

---

2

The Board therefore amends Rule

209(f) of Chapter

8 to

continue its exemption from the Rule 206 sound limits to and in-

cluding May 31,

1981.

Amended Rule 209(f) will become effective

January

2,

1981 and is being

filed with the Secretary of State

without notice or comment as provided by Rule 5.01 of the

Secretary

of State’s Rules

on Rules

arid Section 5(b)

of the

Illinois Administrative Procedure Act

Ill.

Rev.

Stat,

1979,

Ch.

127,

Section 1005(bfl,

ORDER

The Board hereby adopts the following emergency amendment.

to

Rule 209(f) of Chapter

8:

Noise Regulations.

Rule

209:

Compliance Dates For Part

2

(f)

Every owner or operator of Class C Land now or heraafter

used as specified by SLUCM Codes

852 and 854 shall have

to and including

a~y-~-498~

~y31,_1981

to bring

the sound from necessary explosive blasting activities

in compliance with Rule 206 provided that such blasting

activities are conducted between 8:00

a.rn.

and 5:00 p.m.

local

time,

at specified hours previously announced to

the local public.

IT IS SO ORDERED.

I, Christan L. Moffett, Clerk of the Illinois Pollution

Control Bo~rd, hereby ce7tify that the above Order was adopted

on the

‘-I

day of

~

,

1980 by a vote of

‘~‘~

D.

i

~

~~iJ1

___

Christan L. Mof’fë~t~,Clerk

Illinois Pollution Control Board

(1—0 $~