ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD
February
17, 1982
OAK GROVE MOBILE HOME
PARK,
)
Petitioner,
v.
)
PCB 81—148
ILLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY,
)
and VILLAGE OF
MILAN,
)
Respondents.
OPINION AND ORDER OF THE BOARD
(by J.
Anderson):
This matter comes before the Board on the petition for
variance filed by the Oak Grove Mobile Home Park (Oak Grove)
September
28, 1981 as amended November
19,
1981.
Oak Grove
seeks
variance from the Chapter
3:
Water Pollution effluent limitations
of Rules 203(f)
as it relates to ammonia nitrogen,
Rules 404(a—c)
as they relate to BOD5 and TSS, and Rule 405 as
it relates to
fecal
coliform.
As one compliance option would involve transport
of Oak Grove’s effluent for treatment at a sewage treatment plant
owned and operated by the Village of Milan, the Village was joined
as a respondent by Board Order of December 3,
1981.
The Village
has voiced no agreement with or opposition to this petition.
The January
7, 1982 Recommendation of the Illinois
Environmental Protection Agency
(Agency)
is that variance be
granted in part and denied in part.
The Agency notes in regard
to the requested ammonia nitrogen variance, that variance from
the water quality standards of Rules 402 and 402.1 would also be
necessary to allow for Agency modification of Oak Grove’s NPDES
permit.
The Board will accordingly construe this petition as
seeking this additional
relief.
Hearing was waived and none has
been held.
The Oak Grove Mobile Home Park
is located approximately two
miles
south of the Village of Milan,
Rock Island County.
Its 55
mobile home units are served by a collection system and sewage
treatment plant which have been in operation since the early
1950’s.
The treatment plant consists of three septic tanks
in
series,
followed by a 1400 gallon dosing tank and intermittent
sand filters.
Effluent
is discharged into an unnamed intermittent
creek tributary first
to Mill Creek, then the Rock River, then the
Mississippi.
Oak Grove seeks variance until the expiration of its
current NPDES permit on May 31,
1986 to allow it to discharge
45—425
2
effluent containing 60 mg/i of each BOD5 and TSS (the effluent
standard being 10/12),
20 mg/i ammonia nitrogen (the effluent
standard being 1.5 mg/i),
and unlimited amounts of fecal coliform
(the effluent standard being 400/100 ml).
In six selected months
between July,
1980 and May, 1981, Daily Monitoring Reports
(DMR’s)
indicated BOD5 loadings ranging from 18 to 96 mg/i, TSS from 22
to 102 mg/i, ammonia nitrogen from 7.09 to 7.56 mg/i,
and fecal
coliform from 1600 to 1,270,000 per 100 mg/i.
Total plant rehabilitation,
as estimated by Beling
Consultants,
Inc., would require an initial outlay of $33,700,
with annual expenses of $15,200.
Oak Grove
is loathe to embark
on such a project for two reasons.
First,
monthly user charges
of $23 per month would be required (the petition’s silence would
indicate that there are currently none).
More importantly,
such
expense could be obviated by Oak Grove’s connection to the Milan
sewer system and treatment plant.
The Agency notes that the Milan plant currently has the
capacity to treat Oak Grove’s effluent.
The Village is currently
in Step
1 of the construction grant program, and
is expected,
according
to Agency grant personnel, to have completed a facility
plan in a year.
The Village has, however,
also applied for a
Step
1 grant amendment to allow
it to conduct a Sewer System
Evaluation Survey.
Oak Grove states that
it cannot estimate the
costs of connection until the plan is complete, although the
Agency believes such estimates can be made,
and can be completed
within six months.
As an interim measure,
Oak Grove proposes to make certain
renovations and improvements to its system, particularly the sand
filter area.
These interim measures would involve outlays
initially of $13,800 and then annually of $6,600,
resulting in
imposition of
a $10 monthly user charge.
The Agency concludes that some relaxation of the Board’s
regulations would he both environmentally acceptable and consistent
with the Clean Water Act, but not to the levels requested.
It
believes that with improved operation and maintenance BOT)
and TSS
limitations of 30/30 could be achieved.
As Oak Grove’s a~monia
nitrogen levels have not exceeded 7.58 mg/l,
the Agency suggests
an interim limit of 8.0 mg/i
to prevent “backsliding” and possible
toxic effects to fish by discharge at the requested 20.0 mg/i
level.
The Agency recommends that the fecal coliform limit be
eliminated.
In support it cites the pendency of R77—12, Docket
r) remarking that Oak Grove would be exempt from the limitation
if the rules are adopted as proposed.
Finally, the Agency
proposes that variance, with conditions,
expire in six months by
which time costs of connection to the Milan system should have
been completed.
The Board finds that denial of variance would impose an
arbitrary or unreasonable hardship.
Oak Grove is within the Milan
Facility Planning Area.
Given the preference,
for environmental
45—426
and other reasons, for regional sewage treatment over individual
treatment plants,
for the Board to require complete plant
rehabilitation at this time would not be in the best interests
of all concerned.
Variance will be granted to include effluent
limitations as recommended by the Agency.
While the fecal
coliform limit will be waived entirely, this does not reflect
a
pre-judgement of the outcome of R77—12,
Docket D.
Rather,
it
reflects the Board’s determination that the capital outlay
required for installation of disinfection equipment can reasonably
be deferred for the short term of this variance, during which the
regulatory proceeding should have been completed.
The Board believes that the suggested six-month term for
variance
is too short,
while Oak Grove’s
4 year proposal
is too
long.
Proper evaluation of the costs and feasibility of con-
nection to the Milan plant may well be dependent upon information
generated during the next year
in the course of the Village’s
SSES and facility planning.
However, four years
is too long for
Oak Grove to defer ultimate compliance planning.
Variance with
conditions
is therefore granted for one year.
This Opinion constitutes the findings of fact and conclusions
of the law of the Board in this matter.
ORDER
1.
Petitioner, the Oak Grove Mobile Home Park,
is granted
variance from Rule 203(f),
402, 402.1 and 404(a,c)
of Chapter
3:
Water Pollution, until February 17,
1983 subject to the following
conditions:
A)
The following effluent limitations shall be met:
BOD5 and TSS
--
30/30 as
a monthly average,
and ammonia
nitrogen
——
8.0 mg/i.
B)
Oak Grove
shall, after receipt of all necessary
permits,
i)
Remove the sludge from its existing septic
tank system at
least three times a year.
ii)
Replace the duplex siphons to permit
alternate dosing of each sand filter.
iii)
Maintain and improve the existing sand filter
area by
a)
replacing the sand to a depth of
2 feet with
washed filter sand, effective size
.25 to 1.0 mm with a
uniformity coefficient not greater than 3.5,
b)
replacing
filter cell walls,
c) refurbishing inlet distribution
system to each filter.
C)
On or before February
1,
1983, Oak Grove shall
submit to the Agency a report on the feasibility and costs
of connection to the Village of Milan sewer system.
45—427
4
2.
Within forty—five days of the date of this Order,
Petitioner shall execute and forward to the Illinois Environmental
Protection Agency,
Enforcement Programs,
2200 Churchill Road,
Springfield, Illinois
62706,
a Certificate of Acceptance and
Agreement to be bound to all terms and conditions of this variance.
This forty-five day period shall be held in abeyance for any
period this matter is being appealed.
The form of the certificate
shall
be as follows:
CERTIFICATE
I,
(We),
,
having read
the Order of the Illinois Pollution Control Board in PCB 81-148,
dated ___________________________________, 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
3.
The Agency
is authorized to modify Oak Grove’s NPDES
permit consistent with the terms
of this Order.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
I,
Christan L. Moffett, Clerk of the Illinois Pollution
Control Board,
hereby, certify that the above Opinion and Order was
adopted on the J~’~ayof __________________________,
1982 by
a vote of
y-~
.
7
Christan L.
Mof ett, CXe±k
Illinois Pollution Control Board
45—428