ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD

March 25,

1976

JACKSONVILLE MENTAL HEALTH

&

DEVELOPMENTAL CENTER,

)

Petitioner,

V.

)

PCB 75—451

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY,

Respondent.

OPINION AND ORDER OF THE BOARD

(by Mr.

Zeitlin):

This matter is before the Board on an Amended Petition for

Variance filed January 21,

19.76, wherein Petitioner Jacksonville

Mental Health

& Developmental Center

(Jacksonville)

seeks relief

from the particulate emission limitations contained

in Rule 2—2.53

of the Rules and Regulations Governing the Control

of Air Pollution

(hereinafter

“old rules”)

and Rule 203(g)

of Ch.

2: Air Pollution,

of this Board’s Rules

and

Regulations.

The Amended Petition

supplements

an earlier Petition which the Board found inadequate

in

an Interim Order dated December

4,

1975.

A Recommendation was filed

by the Environmental Protection Agency

(Agency)

on February

20, 1976.

No hearing was held in

this

matter.

The Variance requested herein constitutes an extension of

a

Variance granted in

a previous case,

PCB 74-356

(December

19,

1974.

In that case,

the Board granted Jacksonville a Variance from Rule

2-2.53 of the “old rules” and from the compliance date of May 30,

1975

contained in Rule

203(g)

o~h.

2:

Air Pollution

(hereinafter “Regula-

tions”), until October

1,

1975.

The Board’s Opinion and Order there

approved Jacksonville’s compliance plan for control of particulate

emissions from four existing coal-fired,

steam boilers. That plan,

estimated to have a total cost of $180,000, called for the installation

of multi—clone collection devices on the existing boilers.

Boilers

No.

1 and No.

3 were to be retrofitted with the collection devices

by October

1,

1975, while boilers No.

2 and No.

4 were

in use.

(Only

two boilers are used at any one time at the Jacksonville facility.)

20—397

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—2—

However, Jacksonville states that it cannot begin work on

No.

3

boiler until the work on No.

1 has been completed, and that it antici-

pates a “completion date of March

1,

1976.”

The Agency’s Recommendation

points out that the Amended Petition filed by Jacksonville

is not

entirely accurate; work on boiler No.

1 only will be completed by

approximately March

1,

1976.

It will require until April

1,

1976

to

complete work on boiler No.

3.

After that, boilers

No.

1 and 3 will

be in compliance with the applicable particulate standards, and boilers

No.

2 and

4 can be taken off line,

and will themselves be retrofitted

and

in compliance by January,

1977.

(It is not entirely clear whether

boiler No.

2 will

in fact be retrofitted for compliance,

or retired.)

The Agency Recommendation also points out that Jacksonville has

attempted in good faith to comply with the provisions of our Order

in

PCB 74-356, with the exception of obtaining the appropriate operating

permits from the Agency.

The required compliance plan information and

interim compliance reports have been properly submitted to the Agency.

Although the Amended Petition does not directly address the reason for

the delays

in bringing boilers No.

1 and

3 into compliance,

the Agency’s

Recommendation fills this gap by pointing out that the delays have been

caused by a 6-week work stoppage at the project, and by problems

in

obtaining necessary appropriations for completion of the project, both

being beyond Jacksonville’s control.

Based on these facts and on our earlier

Opinion

and Order

in

PCB 74-356, we are again disposed to grant a Variance.

With its Amended Petition,

Jacksonville submitted relevant data

from the Agency’s 1974 Annual Air Quality Report, citing specific

data concerning particulate readings at Petersburg,

Illinois

(30 miles

northeast of Petitioner’s

facility)

and Springfield,

Illinois

(35 miles

east of Petitioner’s facility).

Air quality monitors

in Petersburg

recorded an annual concentration

in

1974 of 59 ug/m3, and two sampling

stations in Springfield recorded 72 and 66 ug/m3, respectively.

While we agree with the Agency that data from sampling points so

far removed from Petitioner’s facility cannot fully indicate the effects

of that facility on ambient air quality, we nonetheless find that the

data is sufficient to allow a grant of a Variance here.

The sampling

sites cited are the closest ones to Jacksonville at which samples are

taken for particulate matter,

and would tend to indicate that the area

is generally in compliance with

the

appropriate standard.

In light

of

the relatively small amount of emissions

in question

(1.148 lbs.

particulate per million btu),

and the relatively short Variance period

(compliance by April

1,

1976)

,

we

do not feel that the alternative,

an

individualized program of modeling and/or monitoring for the site in

question,

will be necessary here.

20—398

---

—3—

Concerning the issue of which boilers

a Variance should apply

to, and for what period of time,

we find that only the operation of

boilers No.

2 and

4 need be covered by a Variance here, while boilers

No.

1 and

3 are being retrofitted with appropriate controls.

Once

boilers

No.

1 and

3 are operating properly,

and since two boilers are

normally in use at any one time,

no other Variance should be needed

for any other boiler.

The Supreme Court’s affirmation of the Appellate

Court’s reversal of Rule 203(g) (1) leaves

in effect the applicable

old rules,

as specifically provided for in Section 49 of the Environ-

mental Protection Act and Rule 114 of Chapter

2:

Air Pollution,

of the

Regulations.

Ill.

Rev.

Stat., Ch.

111—1/2,

§1049

(1975.)

Boilers No.

2 and

4 both constitute “existing sources,” as defined in the old rules,

and are thus covered under Rule 2-2.53.

Finally, the Agency’s Recommendation notes that although controls

on boilers No.

1 and No.

3 should be complete by April

1,

1976,

a

Variance will be necessary until April 15,

1976,

to allow sufficient

time for “debugging”

of the equipment.

We agree that this will

provide a reasonable time for the completion of controls on boilers

No.

1 and

3.

This Opinion constitutes the findings of fact and conclusions

of law of the Board in this matter.

ORDER

IT IS THE ORDER OF THE POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD that Petitioner

Jacksonville Mental Health

& Developmental Center be granted

a Variance

from Rules 2-2.53 of the Rules and Regulations Governing the Control

of Air Pollution for the period October

1,

1975 until April 15,

1976,

to allow the operation of its coal-fired boilers designated boilers

No.

2 and No.

4,

subject to the following conditions:

1.

Petitioner shall apply for and obtain all

appropriate operating permits for its coal-fired

boilers.

2.

Petitioner shall apply for and obtain

all

appropriate construction permits to cover the install-

ation of controls on its coal—fired boilers, as detailed

in the foregoing Opinion.

20

399

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—4—

3.

Petitioner shall, during the month of March,

1976,

submit to the Illinois Environmental Protection

Agency a progress report on its compliance plan for

boilers No.

1 and No.

3.

Petitioner shall notify the

Agency in writing immediately upon completion of that

phase of the compliance plan.

4.

Petitioner shall subsequently submit quarterly

reports to the Environmental Protection Agency detailing

progress on its

compliance

plan for boilers No.

2 and

No.

4,

and a final report upon completion of the compliance

plan.

5.

That portion of the Petition for Variance

in this matter requesting Variance from Rule 203(g)

of Chapter

2: Air Pollution,

of the Pollution Control

Board Rules and Regulations,

is dismissed.

I, Christan L.

Moffett, Clerk of the Illinois Pollution

Control Board, her~bycertify the a ave Opinion and Order were

adopted on the

~‘

day of

_________,

1976,

by a vote of

~

Illinois Pollution