ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD

June

18, 1976

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY,

Complainant,

v.

)

PCB 75—452

VILLAGE OF MONTROSE,

Respondent.

Mr. George

W. Tinkham, Assistant Attorney General, Attorney

for Complainant

Mr. Harlan Heller,

Attorney for Respondent

OPINION AND ORDER OF THE BOARD

(by Mr.

Young):

This matter comes before the Board on the Complaint filed

by the Environmental Protection Agency on December 1, 1975

charging that the Village of Montrose operated a solid waste

management site from July 27,

1974 to the date of the filing

of the Complaint without an operating permit in violation of

Rule 202(b) (1)

of Chapter

7:

Solid Waste Rules and Regulations

and in further violation of Section 21(e)

of the Environmental

Protection Act.

Hearing was held in Montrose on March 31,

1976.

As a result of the pleadings in this matter the facts are

not in dispute since the Village has admitted operating a solid

waste management site for the benefit of its 350 citizens without

a permit.

The record indicates that the Village immediately closed

the site upon being served with the Complaint in this matter.

The Board finds that the Village operated its solid waste

management site without the requisite operating permit in violation

of the Regulations and the Act and will assess

a penalty of $100.00

for these violations.

The Board will also require the Village to

discontinue refuse operations and to properly close the site.

It was undisputed that the site was operated in general

com-

pliance with the Regulations, except for the permit requirement.

While the Village alleges that the permit violation is a mere

technical violation, the Board does not agree.

In order to obtain

a permit, an operator must submit relevant geological and hydro-

logical information to the Agency.

Only with this information can

the Agency determine whether the site is properly located so that

environmental damage will be avoided.

This analysis is fundamental

22—143

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—2—

to the permit process and if an operator runs a landfill without

having this analysis performed, he exposes the environment

to

uncertain hazards.

This the Board will not allow.

The Village

also alleges that it cannot afford to expend the $4000—5000 re-

quired for the engineering services necessary to complete the

permit application.

If the Village wishes to provide its

citizens

with a proprietary service,

it must be willing to bear the costs

of doing business.

One of the necessary expenses of the landfill

business is the cost of the engineering report to ensure that the

site is properly located environmentally, and if the Village wishes

to provide

in this proprietary service,

it must be willing to bear

this associated cost.

This Opinion constitutes the Board’s findings of fact and con-

clusions of law in this matter.

ORDER

1.

Respondent, Village of Montrose,

is found to have operated

its refuse disposal site without the required permit in violation

of Rule 202(b) (1)

of the Board’s Solid Waste Rules and Regulations

and in further violation of Section 21(e)

of the Environmental

Protection Act and shall pay a penalty of $100.00 for such vio—

lations.

Penalty payment by certified check or money order payable

to the State of Illinois shall be made within

35 days of the date

of this Order to:

Fiscal Services Division, Illinois Environmental

Protection Agency,

2200 Churchill Road, Springfield, Illinois,

62706.

2.

Respondent shall discontinue all refuse disposal activities

at the site and properly close the site unless application for an

operating permit is made to the Agency within 30 days of the date

of this Order and such permit is obtained within 120 days of the

date of this Order.

IT

IS

SO

ORDERED.

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

Control Board, here~ycertify the

bove Opinion and Order were

adopted on the

“

day of

,

1976 by

a

vote of

_______

Illinois Polluti

Board